From Pokémon to The International, Dota 2

【Victory for the Soul Stone!】

A deafening roar of cheers erupted from the field. The audience had just experienced what it meant to watch a game like a rollercoaster ride, with both sides engaging in several high ground offensive and defensive battles, keeping many on the edge of their seats.

Now all I want to do is vent and scream. This battle, which lasted almost two hours, has finally come to an end. Victory belongs to the Soul Stone team!

The stage lights and special effects swayed wildly, and golden rain fell on the stage. Lu Chen excitedly stood up and hugged Jiang Xia next to him, while Lao Fang bumped fists with Chun Yu next to him.

Gu Ran jumped up and high-fived each of his teammates. This was his first offline competition and his first offline championship. He couldn't express his feelings at that moment.

After calming down a bit, the five of them walked out of the competition room and walked to the front of the Immortal Cup.

Gu Ran walked first, picked up the Immortal Cup trophy first, and then passed it to each team member one by one. As each team member raised the trophy high, the audience responded with enthusiastic applause.

The host, Chi Xiaotu, also came to the front of the stage.

She raised the microphone and announced loudly:

Congratulations to Team Soulstone for winning the Immortal Cup!

【oh!!!!】

The audience cheered enthusiastically.

"All of our Soul Stone team members are now in the center of the podium, and we'd like to do a quick interview with each of them."

Chi Xiaotu walked over to Lao Fang, raised the microphone, and began to ask questions:

"First, let's interview our OldFang. In that Roshan fight just now, the enemy bought back and killed three of your players, pushing you onto their high ground. What were you thinking then? Did you ever consider the possibility of losing?"

Old Fang took the microphone, his voice still trembling with excitement:

"They probably didn't think too much about what happened in that wave. Our team's commander just told everyone to buy back as soon as they made a move. They're good at defending the high ground, but pushing the high ground is still our advantage."

Chi Xiaotu nodded. "Very composed. Perhaps this is the heart of a champion."

Then she moved to face the second contestant, Jiang Xia:

"Next, let's ask Shikamaru: Did you feel the situation went as you predicted before the game started? It dragged on for almost two hours; was that within your plan? Did you feel nervous playing this late in the game?"

Jiang Xia smiled shyly and took the microphone:

"That was unexpected. We actually had a mid-game push composition, but the opponent was too good at defending. We didn't play very well in the mid-game either. This long game was not within our expectations. In the late game, we can only say we'll see how it goes. Our mid laner kept saying he was invincible in the late game, so we weren't that nervous."

"Oh! So it turns out the team had a pillar of strength who kept everyone calm. Now let's interview our star player, Firefly!"

Chi Xiaotu walked to Gu Ran's side, and the entire audience cheered in advance. They had probably all been immersed in the role of Zeus just now, and it felt great.

"Let's ask Firefly, when did you start to feel like you were invincible in the late game? And how many layers of enchantment did you have on that Enchanter's Box at the end? Was it satisfying to cleave through people like that?"

Gu Ran took the microphone, and at that moment the main stage also displayed the post-match interface. Gu Ran's Zeus output was 275920, which was more than the other four teammates combined.

"It must have been the moment the level 4 neutral enchanter spawned. I was initially worried that dragging it out might make the fight harder, but when I saw the enchanter, I immediately chose him, thinking that if the fight dragged on, my voice would get louder and louder. I think I ended up with eight layers of enchantment, and it felt so satisfying to unleash my attacks!"

Please let me play this Zeus V game for 50 points, please!

This Zeus player feels like everyone else is playing normal Dota, while he's playing an overpowered (IMBA) mode!

The live chat was flooded with comments.

After the cheers from the audience subsided a little, Chi Xiaotu approached Lu Chen:

"Then I'd like to interview our player Huaqiang. What were you thinking when you saw so many Lotus Orbs and Linken's Spheres on the enemy team in the early and mid-game with your Beastmaster? Also, we noticed that there was always a jungle monster following Gu Ran from the mid-game onwards. Did you intentionally summon it for him?"

Lu Chen took the microphone:

"Well, actually, I felt like we were going to be finished in the early game because I was supposed to push during my power spike, but I just couldn't get through. The enemy team had so many Lotus Orb and Linken's Sphere that it was driving me crazy. Luckily, my teammate said he was invincible in the late game, so I thought, since you're invincible, I'll rely on you to win. So I summoned a Crypt Fiend to follow him and reduce his cooldowns."

"I see! It must be that your trust and bond helped you win the game!"

To elevate the theme, Chi Xiaotu approached the fifth contestant, Wang Chunyu.

"Hey XS, I played another game of VS today, how was it? What do you think of this hero's strength? Would you recommend him to everyone?"

The sound of spring rain is gentle and melodious.

"Well, I think the strength is okay. The late-game damage output is explosive, but I wouldn't recommend picking it directly. You might pick this hero if the enemy team has Doom."

Without further ado, and knowing his personality, the host turned to team leader Su Xiaoman:

"Finally, let's interview our captain, Sora. If you had to choose an MVP for the three games of this finals, who would you pick? And share your feelings as captain at this moment."

Su Xiaoman took the microphone and began to speak eloquently:

"I think the MVP should go to our mid-laner Firefly, because he gave his all in the first and third games, both of which were MVP-level performances. He also did not falter in the second game and won with his teammates."

As the captain, I am of course very happy and excited at this moment. In fact, I had already planned our lineup from the beginning of the selection process, and then I successfully secured my team at the selection meeting.

Although our results in the early training matches weren't good, everyone worked very hard. We improved as the tournament progressed, and finally won the finals with a clean 3-0 victory. Thank you to my teammates for their outstanding performance, and thank you to the enthusiastic support of the audience!

The crowd erupted in cheers once again.

"Thank you! Speaking of the 3-0 score, I must tell everyone again that Team Soulstone has been undefeated since the knockout stage, sweeping the Immortal Cup with a perfect record. They are truly the undisputed champions!"

【oh!!!!!!】

The atmosphere at the scene was immediately brought to its peak.

"Finally, let's invite our champion team to the center of the field for a championship trophy photo!"

So the six members of Team Soulstone joined forces to lift the championship trophy, and this photo quickly appeared on the homepages of major Dota-related media outlets.

"That concludes our Immortal Cup competition for this year. See you next time, everyone!"

As the host said goodbye, the audience lights illuminated layer by layer from the back to the front. Thousands of people stood up simultaneously, the sound of chairs snapping back like fine raindrops falling under the stadium dome. Most audience members walked along the aisles towards the exit, but many did not leave—they crossed the empty seats, went over the security line, and surged to the front of the main stage, holding light boards, posters, and support towels. Some even turned over the commemorative T-shirts they had just bought at the stadium entrance, their markers already clutched in their hands.

This was the first time Gu Ran had met his fans in person. There weren't many people, nothing like the crowd surrounding Wang Chunyu. But their enthusiasm was similar: several markers were handed to him at the same time, along with a few tickets with folded corners, a notebook with its cover turned to the top, and a team jersey with the Soul-Soul Stone pattern printed on the back.

He took each person's signature one by one, his hand aching from signing. After signing, he handed them back, saying "thank you" to each one. Many of these people had been with him since he first started live streaming; without their continued support, his live streaming might have had to stop long ago.

The fan group had already arranged a fan dinner for tomorrow, but because the team has another event later today, it had to be postponed until tomorrow, and the fans all expressed their understanding.

Su Xiaoman walked over, carrying her notebook. She clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention: "Group photo! Group photo! Everyone gather around the trophy, don't push. Squat in a row in front of the trophy, and stand back a little further apart." She spoke quickly, but her instructions were very professional, like she was arranging pre-match drafts. The fans smiled and stood in the positions she indicated, the front row squatting down and the back row turning sideways, so that the trophy was right in the center of everyone.

The person taking the photos is a staff member of the venue, holding up a camera and counting "three, two, one".

When the shutter clicked, everyone shouted "Soul Stone!"—fans, teammates, even the security guard standing next to them shouted it out.