League: Educating LPL is my duty.

October 5, Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium.

As the starting point and group stage venue for the 2017 League of Legends World Championship, this place was packed with Summoners from all over the world from the morning onwards.

The huge venue was packed with people, with every seat filled. Outside, many people who hadn't managed to get tickets were interacting with cosplay enthusiasts.

At 3 PM, amidst cheers, host Ren Dong walked onto the stage, waved to the audience, and announced, "This is Wuhan, China. Welcome to the opening ceremony of the 2017 League of Legends World Championship Group Stage. I am your host today, Ren Dong."

After a brief self-introduction and opening, the team entrance began. Ren Dong said, "Next, let's welcome SKT, the three-time world champions and last year's League of Legends World Championship winners, to return the championship trophy!"

As the voice faded, cheers erupted in the venue. No League of Legends enthusiast, whether from home or abroad, was unfamiliar with SKT or Faker.

"SKT, take the championship again!"

"Faker!"

"Faker!"

In the back passage, watching Faker practically turn Wuhan into his home ground, Clearlove's expression changed slightly.

Li Chen didn't think too much about it. After all, he had watched the competitions over the years. In terms of LPL's performance, there was really no such thing as home or away games, because no one would consider a maggot as one of their own.

After a brief wait, Li Chen said softly, "It's our turn!"

On stage, Ren Dong, microphone in hand, shouted, "Next up is EDG, the LPL's number one seed, a four-time World Championship winner, and this year's MSI Mid-Season Invitational champion!"

Li Chen led his team out, waved to the stands, and finally stood on the platform opposite SKT, with both sides remaining silent.

"EDG, carry, go!"

"C, give it to me!"

"Don't back down, factory manager!"

"god_C!"

After a year of hard work, EDG's popularity is naturally much stronger than SKT's in the home arena, after all, this year's EDG is "really different".

Subsequently, the sixteen teams from the four groups that officially participated in the World Championship took turns to perform. Unlike the audience in a certain region who acted like villains and created a sports library, the domestic audience applauded each team.

As the Group D teams stepped off the stage, the large screen was taken over by a promotional video showing the scenery of Wuhan, while the theme song of this year's World Championship began to play in the venue.

legends never die

When the world is calling you

Can you hear them screaming out your name…

As one of the most popular theme songs in the history of the World Championship, "Legend Never Dies" is obviously a good song, especially when combined with the live atmosphere, which is in line with Riot Games' tradition of making music with care.

The camera flashed on the big screen, and the factory manager appeared first. He was standing by the river, and a voiceover said, "If we play in Wuhan, we'll definitely have a lot of fans supporting us, which will help us play better and better!"

As the factory manager walked away, the camera panned to the sky and then fell, revealing Ou Cheng's silhouette in the video: "I've always believed that the best thing about the World Championship is that no matter what happened before, you have to let your current results speak for themselves."

"This is my fourth time since I first entered the World Championship. I've been runner-up twice, and I always felt like I was just a little bit short. So I thought I could win the championship this time."

When Uzi faced the camera, the narrator's tone didn't seem very confident.

Subsequently, players such as Bjergsen, Xuanming Erlao, and Dashan appeared one by one, and finally Faker appeared on the screen.

"People say that if you beat me, you can become a legend. I don't think so. From the moment I defeated Ambition in my first appearance, I maintained the number one position for a long time. That's why people consider me a legend."

"So, if you want to become a legend, you have to beat players like me multiple times!"

At this point, the music reaches its final climax, then gradually returns to calm.

Everyone thought the promotional video was over, but then a hooded man with his back to the camera sat on the steps, looking at Faker and the trophy standing by the river.

"Faker, I see the future. The river is long, but there's a mountain... even higher!"

The scene abruptly ended there. Although he didn't appear on screen, many fans, being self-proclaimed "little haters," still accurately recognized Li Chen's voice, and the comments section erupted in celebration.

[Awesome, the longest river, the highest mountain.]

[C's performance is still amazing, I love it!]

[If you go undefeated from the start and win a Grand Slam in a year, wouldn't that be considered the highest peak?]

[Even his C-rank builds only target the highest peaks? It seems Faker's journey is quite long.]

Brother, you've suddenly become a bit more sophisticated!

In the backstage dressing room, Li Chen watched the video playing on the TV screen, his eyes filled with a hint of melancholy.

Sometimes, looking back after many years, you realize that the path of a professional player is truly full of regrets. So many players step onto the stage time and time again, but ultimately become mere supporting characters.

Players like Oklahoma City, Bjergsen, Clearlove, Uzi, Peanut, Smeb, and many others have fallen on the road to victory, giving their all but failing to touch the trophy.

It's truly unbelievable that someone could rebuild the Shurima network over several years after a fall, even as a veteran player; you wouldn't dare write something like that in a novel.

"I have to consider whether this is my only chance in this lifetime; Xiu Mei's value is still rising!"

Li Chen sighed silently, then turned to look at the factory manager's silly grin, raised an eyebrow and said, "Factory manager, treat me to hot pot after the first round of group matches."

"????"

The factory manager turned his head, tilted his head to the side, and his face was full of doubt and question marks.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm doing this for your own good. Let me ask you this: if you finish in the top 16 of the World Championships this year, do you think you'll ever have another chance in your life?" Li Chen said.

The factory manager paused for a moment, then asked, "And then?"

Li Chen said matter-of-factly, "So, I'm using your money to do your thing. If the top laner gets fed, the championship will naturally follow. Don't believe me? Ask your brothers if that's how it is."

"Brother Chen is right, Brother Chen, I'll treat you to a meal!" Ah Guang immediately expressed his willingness.

Abu stared at Clearlove with displeasure and said, "Clearlove, are you out of your mind? How can we win a game if we don't nurture our top laner?"

Factory manager: ...