LOL: Do I have to be a spinning top too?

After a day of rest, Chieh organized another training match.

In the training room, Chieh pulled the tactical whiteboard in front of him, his expression more serious than ever before.

Today's opponent is TT Team 1.

He quickly wrote down several IDs on the whiteboard:

"Top laner Hoya, jungler Beichuan, mid laner Ucal, AD carry Huanfeng, support Xinliu."

The training room was silent for a few seconds.

TT has never had a high profile in the LPL.

They're not one of those bottom-ranked teams that everyone can kick, nor are they a sure-fire playoff contender; they're stuck in the middle, neither here nor there.

But Li Hu has some impression of this year's TT.

In the Spring Split of 2023, this TT team created many miracles.

They won against TES, WBG, NIP, and UP in the regular season and made it all the way to the playoffs, causing a bunch of prediction bloggers to be completely wrong.

Although they ultimately lost 1-3 to RNG in the playoffs, their dark horse spirit was truly memorable.

When the summer season came, the management completely turned out to be inhumane.

We started learning T1 and using the controlled variable method, and we rotated players like crazy.

Huanfeng, Xinliu, Yuyanjia, Yaoyao, and 1xn took turns appearing and failed one after another.

The goodwill he had built up during the Spring Split was completely squandered.

What everyone found most absurd was that the roster, which looked quite promising in the Spring Split...

Huanfeng paired with Yaoyao, yet they never appeared in the control variables.

Even in the latter half of the summer season, Huanfeng was completely sidelined due to internal power struggles and couldn't even get a chance to play in scrims.

TT was eliminated in such a disgraceful manner, failing to even make it to the playoffs.

Of all the teams that made it to the playoffs in the Spring Split, they were the only ones to be eliminated.

  

Although Huanfeng, this young sea whip lad, certainly had a good hand but played it badly.

The scene of the red and white knife throbbing and swelling is still used as editing material by many content creators.

But even the world runner-up AD is still much better than that so-called new generation AD, 1xn.

But that's a story for another time.

TT is now definitely a mid-tier team in the LPL.

Top laner Hoya is a Korean import; he has a stable laning phase and a deep champion pool.

Beichuan's jungle rhythm is top-notch in LDL, and he adapted quickly after moving to LPL.

Ucal, the mid laner, is a seasoned veteran with extensive experience.

Huanfeng, the bottom laner, may have a mixed reputation, but his skill level is undeniable.

We cannot underestimate them.

"Cheer up, everyone."

Chieh tapped the whiteboard:

"TT's lineup isn't like IG's, which is used for training. Except for the support, all of IG's players are first-team starters. This is a true LPL-level strength."

His gaze swept across everyone's faces, finally settling on Li Hu:

"Especially you, Glory."

"After the previous two games, you were already a significant threat to the opposing coach, so they will definitely be targeting you today."

"Understood." Li Hu nodded.

Soon, the training match began.

Both sides entered the BP interface. Chieh stood behind Li Hu, his brows already furrowed.

TT banned Camille in the first three bans.

Second ban: Riven; third ban: Sett.

People in the training room began to gasp in surprise.

"Seriously? All three bans are for top lane?"

Xiao Fang couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Chieh's face darkened.

The first three bans were all placed on the top lane, which is already the highest level of targeting in scrims.

But TT clearly has no intention of stopping.

In the second round of bans, TT added two more... Vayne and Nasus.

Five bans on top laners.

Chieh took a deep breath, placed her hand on Li Hu's shoulder, and pressed down harder than usual:

"They're showing you every ounce of respect."

Li Hu looked at the five ban slots on the opposing team...

Camille, Riven, Sett, Nasus, Vayne.

Most of the heroes he frequently used in previous matches and scrims were banned.

This is indeed a bit too much.

"Tiger, what do you mean?"

Chieh's voice was filled with worry.

Although Li Hu has a deep hero pool, all five of his signature heroes are banned, which would be a headache for anyone playing him.

"The Stone Man, I suppose."

Li Hu spoke calmly:

"Give the ball to the bottom lane."

Chieh paused for a moment, then nodded.

That's all we can do.

The opposing team banned five top laners, clearly aiming to cripple TES's strongest player. This game will depend on whether the bot lane can step up.

The lineup is locked.

Blue side TT: Top lane Gragas, Jungle Xin Zhao, Mid lane Ahri, AD Varus, Support Pyke.

Red team TES: Top lane Malphite, Jungle Wukong, Mid lane Annie, AD Lucian, Support Nami.

The game finished loading, and Li Hu wiggled his fingers.

Malphite is one of the heroes he has 100% mastery of, but Malphite has a fatal flaw...

No matter how high your skill level, it doesn't change the fact that the Stone Golem is a super minion.

Against Gragas, you're basically guaranteed to get beaten up during the laning phase.

Li Hu opened the tab and glanced at the enemy's summoner spells. Hoya's Gragas had Flash and Ignite, his killing intent was at its peak.

He honestly brought Flash and Teleport, started with Doran's Shield and a Health Potion, a standard tanky build.

Within three minutes of the start, Li Hu felt TT's sincerity.

Beichuan's Zhao Xin came straight in at level three, with the red buff on him, and circled around from behind the river bushes.

The moment Li Hu saw Zhao Xin, he immediately teleported back.

But Hoya's barrel was already waiting, and he followed up with E-flash, then used his Q skill to roll the barrel and slow the enemy down.

Zhao Xin followed up with E's fearless charge, closing in on Zhao Xin and launching him into the air with a triple claw strike.

Li Hu's stone golem didn't even make it back to the base of the tower; it collapsed in front of the tower.

FirstBlood.

"Damn, they're arresting people at level three?"

Xiao Fang switched screens over, her tone full of surprise.

Li Hu looked at the screen and silently memorized it.

Kitagawa, the jungler, really knows how to gank top lane...

He brought up the gold encyclopedia and glanced at it.

The barrel progress bar jumped by 0.04%.

After this kill, he understood TT's strategy for targeting the top lane...

This was a premeditated military training exercise.

Upon respawning and returning to lane, Li Hu's Golem had just reached the base of the first tower.

Before they'd even cleared two minions, the mid laner's hazard lights went off...

Ucal's Ahri is heading towards the bottom lane.

Li Hu ignored this and chose to continue eating the line.

But he quickly realized something was wrong based on the movement of the barrels.

Ahri didn't roam to the bottom lane; she circled around to the top lane. Li Hu immediately controlled the Malphite to retreat.

"Mid lane miss, Ahri's gone up!"

Annie shouted into the voice message.

As soon as he finished speaking, Ahri, Xin Zhao, and Gragas surrounded them from three directions at the same time.

Li Hu's stone golem was trapped under the tower, without Flash, without level 6, and without any means of escape.

Gragas initiates with his E into the tower to absorb damage, Xin Zhao follows up with his E, and Ahri's Charm hits precisely.

The Golem died again, falling under its own defensive tower.

0-2.

The game lasted four and a half minutes.

"Three people are trying to get past me?"

Li Hu was unusually helpless.

My teammates were all silent in the headset.

Annie wanted to push the lane to get the plating to cut her losses, but Ucal's Ahri recalled to base after roaming.

They immediately teleported back to their lane, but the advantage in the mid lane failed to translate into anything.

And this was just the beginning. Under the relentless targeting from the enemy top laner, jungler, and support...

Li Hu's Malphite was 0-4, trailing by nearly 50 CS, and had no chance to gain experience or farm gold.

Xiao Fang wanted to take advantage of the enemy's training session on the top lane to do something in the bottom lane.

But every time he went down, Huanfeng could always sense the danger in advance and steadily retreat back under the tower.

"This person has a really strong awareness of avoiding ganks."

"No wonder he's the world's runner-up AD."

Xiao Fang's voice sounded a little irritated.

The situation in the mid lane is also not optimistic. Annie is facing off against Ucal's Ahri, and the difference in experience is obvious.

In the fourteenth minute, Annie was solo killed under the tower.

In the sixteenth minute, even worse news came from the bottom lane...

When Mark's Nami roamed, JiaQi's Lucian was solo killed by Huanfeng's Varus.

Without any support by his side, Lucian was bound and shot to death by Varus' ultimate.

"My bad, I didn't expect him to hurt just enough." JiaQi's voice was full of self-blame.

Mark paused for a few seconds, then spoke:

"It's okay, let's play it safe and drag it out until later."

But he knew in his heart that this round was already very difficult.

They were subjected to military training on the road, resulting in them falling behind in both equipment and experience.

The mid laner was suppressed by the veteran, the bottom laner was solo killed by his opponent, and the jungler's rhythm was completely shut down by Kitagawa.

They are at a disadvantage across the board, with virtually no chance of turning the tide.

In the 24th minute, the third dragon was won.

Li Hu's Malphite used Flash and his ultimate to knock up three people, making for the most eye-catching play of the entire game.

But his teammates weren't dealing enough damage... Lucian was too underdeveloped, and the Holy Light Baptism was like a tickle to Gragas.

Annie was killed by Ucal's Ahri with a charm and focused fire, and Wukong was hooked back by Pyke just as he was about to use his ultimate.

TT sacrificed a support player to wipe out all four members of TES.

In the 28th minute, a team fight broke out at the Baron pit.

Beichuan's Xin Zhao took the lead and cut into the backline, while Hoya's Gragas ultimate shattered TES's formation.

Huanfeng's Varus dealt damage without pressure from behind, reaping kills from TES players one by one.

Li Hu's stone golem was the last to fall.

Record: 1-7-3.

The moment GG was typed, a suffocating silence fell over the training room.

The second game was almost a carbon copy of the first.

After 26 minutes, they typed "GG".

0-2, speedrun.

The atmosphere in the training room was somber after the training match ended.

The high spirits from defeating IG a couple of days ago have completely vanished.

Everyone's face had a question written all over it...

Are we really that bad?

JinQi sat in front of the machine, staring blankly at the settlement screen.

He was out-farmed by Huanfeng in both games, losing nearly 5,000 gold and getting solo-killed twice.

This is a significant blow for a young ADC player.

Haoyang leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

In both games, he was suppressed by Ucal in the mid lane, and his roaming rhythm was completely out of reach.

Xiao Fang felt even worse.

As a jungler, he was led by the nose by Kitagawa in both games, failing to control jungle resources and set the pace of the lanes, wandering around the map like a headless fly.

Everyone knew one thing...

If Li Hu is suppressed, then this TES team will be completely uncompetitive.

The top laner is the team's only carry.

If your team's leader is completely dominated by the opponent, and no one else can step up, then you're destined to be speedrunned.

Chieh clapped her hands, breaking the silence.

Don't be too discouraged.

His tone was surprisingly calm: "This is my problem."

Everyone looked up at him.

"We played too smoothly against UP and IG before."

Chieh walked to the whiteboard, picked up a pen, and drew two lines on it:

"But that's because they don't know who our core player is, and they haven't made any preparations for the top lane."

"TT taught us a lesson today..."

"If we are restricted from using the roads, our entire system will collapse."

He wrote down the five heroes that Li Hu had banned on the whiteboard:

"It's a good thing that this situation was discovered early."

"It's much better to expose the problems early on than to wait until the Demacia Cup semi-finals."

"I will redesign the tactical system so that when Glory is targeted, other lanes can also step up."

"But now, what you need to do is to do a good review and remember how you felt today."

"Being crushed is not the worst thing; the worst thing is not thinking about changing things after being crushed."

Xiao Fang, Hao Yang, Jia Qi, and the others nodded.

Li Hu leaned back in his chair, showing no sign of frustration.

"Tiger, aren't you upset about being targeted like this?"

Qingtian peeked over from the side, her face showing surprise.

Li Hu stood up, patted him on the shoulder, and spoke calmly.

"There's nothing to be upset about."

"Brother Qingtian, do you know?"

"S10 champion mid laner Xu Xiu once said something."

Qingtian was taken aback: "What did you say?"

Li Hu flexed his aching fingers and began to speak.

"Failure is a constant throughout life."

His gaze fell on the 14% figure for the barrel in the encyclopedia.

"No one can win 100% of the time."

"But as long as I keep practicing and getting stronger."

"We will definitely win."