From Pokémon to The International, Dota 2

"Zeus reacted very quickly just now! If he hadn't jumped out and been caught out first, the outcome of this team fight might have been completely different."

"Yes, if Tiny manages to take down Zeus first, Dire's damage output might not be enough to secure a kill."

The fans of the Soul Stone team present were all holding their breath, but thankfully they won the team battle in the end.

"Shouldn't the Soul Stone team seize this opportunity to push high ground? Their first and second positions are both dead, or at least they should be forced to buy back?"

The commentators were trying to figure out a solution for the Soul Stone team. Their push lineup had managed to take down all three of the enemy's high ground towers, so it seemed like they really needed to get a grip.

However, this wave of Soul Stones didn't rush to push high ground, but instead focused on controlling Roshan, seemingly in no hurry at all.

"Well... it seems they're not in a hurry to buy the Soul Stones. Maybe they think forcing them to buy them is too risky."

"Indeed, the Radiant side is too good at defending their high ground. If they push high ground and force a buyback, then get wiped out, this Aegis is basically given to the enemy. If the enemy pushes back, they might have to use their buybacks themselves."

The commentator tried to justify himself, but the chat was divided into two camps and started arguing. Some people thought that not going high ground meant the player was a noob and didn't know how to find opportunities, while others thought that they should play it safe and that going high ground was just feeding.

[If we don't push the high ground now, we're doomed! Who the hell gave the orders and got blamed after the game?!]

[Only an idiot would push high ground; if they get wiped out and then give away the Aegis, they can just GG!]

Just as the chat was arguing fiercely, the Soul Stone team activated a Trickster's Fog at the 60-minute mark of the match, when they could use level 5 neutral items. This was in preparation for catching the opposing team when they came out to use neutral items!

"The Soul Stones' strategy was quite imaginative. They knew that pushing high ground would easily lead to their annihilation, so they deliberately didn't go. Then, even after 60 minutes, they didn't pressure the enemy to prevent them from farming neutral items. Instead, they secretly used Smoke of Deceit to try and disrupt the discipline of the Demon Locking Tower! But it seems that the Demon Locking Tower team wasn't farming separately either; they were sticking together."

From God's perspective, the five Dire players headed straight for the Radiant's main jungle and then into the Radiant Snack Street at the bottom of the map. Just as they were about to run into the Radiant main force, the five Radiant players seemed to realize something, immediately activated Smoke of Deceit, and abandoned their jungle camps to flee in a frantic escape!

With Lang Ge playing his piano and accelerating, the five members of the Immortal Sword Demon Locking Tower ran incredibly fast. They reached the Nightmare Experience Shrine and then collectively teleported home.

"It seems the Demon-Sealing Tower is also very cautious. They must have noticed that the enemy is suddenly gone from the map, and the timing is also very sensitive, so they immediately used the fog to escape. If they had been blocked outside by the Soul-Suppressing Stones, it would probably have been a total wipeout."

Fans on the Demon Locking Tower side were on tenterhooks, thankfully no real fight broke out.

This wave did not escalate into a team fight; both sides could only return to their own half of the map to farm jungle camps and neutral objectives.

"If this doesn't escalate, this match will drag on. Those of you who need to use the restroom, you might want to go now. The real match may have just begun."

The commentator was joking. The game had been going on for 60 minutes and neither side had broken through the high ground. The economic difference was only a few thousand. Neither side dared to go to the other side's high ground. It looked like they would have to wait for another Roshan fight before a fight could break out.

At the 70-minute mark, another Roshan fight broke out. The Demon Tower used Smoke of Deceit to catch Bane in the enemy's main jungle. Ancient Apparition's ultimate held Beastmaster. After a team fight, three players—Beastmaster, Bane, and Dark Seer—had to buy back, while the Demon Tower only managed to buy back Ancient Apparition.

With the stalemate ongoing, Soul Stone, due to its disadvantage in buying back, dared not go to Roshan to engage in team fights again, so this generation of Roshan's Aegis was taken by the Demon Tower.

"Finally, it's the Demon-Sealing Tower's turn to attack the high ground near the Soul-Suppressing Stone. Will they succeed?"

At 75 minutes, the five members of the Demon Tower team grouped up and pushed towards the mid-lane high ground. The battle flag was planted behind three siege minions. Windranger with Aegis and Blink Dagger went up and started focusing fire on the tower. She was equipped with Lotus Orb and also had Linken's Sphere. After destroying the mid-lane high ground tower, they were too afraid to stand up and attack the barracks - that position was too deep. They relied on the invulnerable siege minions to slowly whittle down the enemy.

The Soul Stones also had their own battle flags, which they planted between their two barracks to block the soldiers. The scene became quite comical, with the soldiers on both sides invincible and aimlessly slashing at each other, but neither could kill the other.

Windranger couldn't hold back any longer. His neutral item was the Webworm Leg, so he started focusing fire at the edge of the high ground and began whittling down the barracks' health. He finally managed to whittle down the ranged barracks. Just as he was about to continue whittling down the melee barracks, he was finally traded for a Linken's Sphere by Vengeful Spirit. However, the rest of the Dire team didn't follow up with their damage output, and the Radiant team, after supporting Windranger, managed to kill Vengeful Spirit.

After VS lost one life, Zhenhunshi was even less willing to engage in team fights, and was pushed back by the Demon Locking Tower.

"Now the Radiant have an advantage in two lanes, and they don't seem to want to drag the game out any longer with the Dire. Even though the Aegis expired, they still initiated a smoke gank, probably trying to disrupt their mentality—they might think we won't dare to push high ground without the Aegis, and they might relax at this point. If we can find an opportunity to execute a perfect team fight, we could potentially end the game!"

The commentator sensed that the match might be coming to an end, and his voice rose several decibels.

The tower opened the fog of war and went straight to the Dire top lane from the Dire's main jungle. After breaking the fog, Tiny used Blink Dagger to blindly search and found the two supports with Soul Stones. However, both supports reacted quickly and Blink Daggered away!

Xiao Xiao didn't want to let them leave so easily, so she took a few steps forward and tried to spear Pain Source back with a harpoon, but Beast King used a timely Linken's Scepter to cut it off!

The source of pain immediately countered with Exhaust to break Linken's Sphere, then used a Claw to pull Tiny. Support Senhai Feixia had a powerful Eul's Scepter, but the distance wasn't enough. Vengeful Spirit used Black King Bar and Blink Dagger to enter the fray, unleashing a terrifying Pulse that boosted his attack power, relentlessly attacking Tiny. Rango, who came to help, was stunned by Beastmaster's Primal Roar, and the squirrels in the backline were also knocked back—Tiny was instantly killed! Rango was also brought to low health by Vengeful Spirit's Serpent Breath!

Gu Ran's Zeus was hexed by Ice Spirit in the front row, and Windranger provided damage, but he was saved by Vengeful Spirit's teleportation when he was about to die. The Radiant formation was in chaos at this time, and the Dire pressed their advantage and killed four of the enemy's positions one through four in one wave. Only Ice Spirit saw that the situation was hopeless and found a corner to teleport home.

"On the Demon Tower side, Xiao Xiao's hasty initiation led to a fierce counterattack. He shouldn't have chased after the opponent with Blink Dagger. Now, with five buybacks, the Soul Stone side can destroy the outposts and push straight up to the Radiant high ground!"

Both Tiny and Squirrel bought back, and Soul Stone didn't fight hard either. After pushing down two lanes of Radiant high ground, they retreated when the enemy Windranger had ten seconds left to respawn.

The match has now reached 83 minutes, and the Soul Stone team's three core units are almost full of six equipment slots and three backpack slots.

At 87 minutes, Spirit Breaker attempted to push up the high ground of the Demon Tower. Since Tiny and Squirrel didn't have buybacks, if they could force one to buy back and die, they could end the game. However, Radiant's ability to defend high ground was too strong. Tiny had Divine Rapier and Daedalus, and the damage from Aghanim's Scepter and Tree Throw was incomprehensible. Longo provided infinite sustain, and Ancient Apparition's ultimate could also prevent healing. One wrong move could result in a team wipe. So, after sacrificing Vengeful Spirit's life, Spirit Breaker chose to retreat.