V5's AK killed TES's JKL.
Double Kill!
Gleeful Pleasure triggered for the third time!
But now, the only soul left for him to reap was the ensnared Viego.
The entire venue had already fallen silent in shock.
The audience stared at Summoner's Rift, at that corpse-strewn river. No one had expected V5's Jinx to have the last laugh in a team fight they had thought would nearly spark V5's downfall.
From Gwen's Teleport, to Trundle's pillar keeping them back, to Thresh's godly hook control, to Azir's fearless stand, and finally Jinx charging from the lower river all the way to top lane in a desperate bid for survival, V5's play had brought people far too many shocks!
Were they really watching the Spring Finals?
Chapter 53: Generals and Commanders
"AK entered the fight! AK cleaned up!!!"
"At the very last moment before the team fight ended, AK stepped up!"
The casters were so stunned by the scene that they did not know what to say. The instant Jinx charged forward, they instinctively shouted the catchphrases they had once used so often. By the time they came back to their senses, everything had already been decided.
Was this the damn Demacia Cup?
The casters were not even pretending anymore, were they? They just copied God's signature lines outright?
This was just ridiculous. They could turn this around?
No way, were V5 really about to end it in one push?
The atmosphere throughout the venue had completely heated up. Riding that momentum, the V5 group wiped out TES and immediately chose to force a push through top lane. Because of TES's earlier diversionary tactic, they had deliberately left V5's top-lane minion wave uncleared. Now, that very wave had become their death warrant.
V5 began their push.
At nearly the thirty-minute mark, the respawn timers were as long as fifty seconds. With Azir and Jinx, their Double C, still alive, their tower-taking speed was nothing short of terrifying.
Could they take it down?
Could they end the game in one push?
Countless viewers craned their necks in anticipation, all waiting for a miracle.
The earliest to die, Leona, posed no threat. Kennen, who had died second, still had more than thirty seconds before respawning. They could only watch as V5's Double C forced their way through everything—from the High Ground Turret, to the High Ground Crystal, to the Nexus turrets, and finally the Nexus itself.
To protect the soldiers from triggering the turrets' defensive targeting, PPGOD even stepped into the turret's attack range ahead of the wave and tanked the shots with his own body.
By the time the final Auto Attack blew up TES's Nexus, TES's top laner Kennen had only just charged out of the fountain with his E skill activated.
Everything was already too late.
2:1
V5 took match point first!
When the English word for victory appeared on the five V5 players' monitors, Luo Zhen and the others stared blankly at the screens at first. Then, as if only realizing it afterward, they suddenly threw up their hands and burst into laughter. They looked like a pack of madmen, laughing without restraint together.
For them, the joy of winning was certainly important. But more importantly, in that team fight, they had truly felt each other's presence.
I trust you, and you can keep up with me. Neither of us lets the other down. It sounded like such a simple thing.
But in reality, how many people could achieve that kind of mutual trust?
Watching the players grinning happily on the big screen, V5's team manager quietly let out a breath. As Pinduoduo's newly launched Galactic Battleship, V5 carried enormous expectations from every level of management. Even with Coach Homme's guarantee, they had still maintained a cautious attitude. But after today's game, he was finally beginning to feel at ease.
"Such a great atmosphere, isn't it?" Hong Mi sat in his chair, staring straight at the big screen, the smile in his eyes impossible to miss. "I told you that you could trust my judgment completely. This V5 already has the core needed to become a Galactic Battleship."
"You mean..."
The manager looked incredulous. Even though Luo Zhen had indeed performed very well this game, was it not too rash to establish him as the team's cornerstone so easily? In his view, if they had to choose a cornerstone, it should be a veteran with consistently stable performances like Rookie.
"Precisely because so many people think that way, not every LPL team gets to see the collaborative side of its roster."
From Hong Mi's perspective, a good general and a good commander were two different things.
A good general was not necessarily a good commander. As veteran players, Rookie and Karsa could naturally be called top-tier LPL generals, but they lacked Luo Zhen's ability to inspire and command. On the Pro Scene, command could essentially be understood as your teammates' belief in you.
For a top-tier team, its leader's individual ability did not necessarily have to be the strongest, but his ability to unite everyone had to be.
Luo Zhen possessed the power to subtly bring his teammates together.
Winning the third game to seize match point was undoubtedly a devastating blow to TES's morale. In a normal BO5, the team that won Game Three after a 1-1 tie could almost be said to have won half the series. A miraculous sequence like EDG's win-loss-loss-win-win at the World Championship was ultimately a Low Probability Event.
But the reason professional matches could be so exciting was precisely because nobody could predict what would happen next.
After more than ten minutes of intermission, Game Four began.
TES erupted.
Anyone who had followed the Demacia Cup in his Previous Life would surely remember one of TES's intermission vlogs. It showed Bai Seyueya smiling as he expressed faith in Xiao Tian. Even after TES lost two consecutive games, he still trusted Xiao Tian's Viego instead of substituting him out.
On an Ancient Battlefield, that would be called the grace of recognition, and it would most likely trigger the follow-up skill of redeeming oneself through merit.
Of course, Xiao Tian alone could not have influenced the game that much.
Remember this: a jungler could not decide whether a game was won or lost. Plenty of old hands in the comments surely understood that deeply.
The key was that the Sailor combination had stood up.
TES was actually a very unbalanced team:
TES at its strongest: when the Sailor combination stepped up.
Normal TES: the Sailor combination shared one battery. If one stood up, the other would inevitably disappear, underperform, or suffer Sudden Death.
TES in meltdown: neither member of the Sailor combination could step up, while the jungler got lost in the meta.
The core of the whole team was its Double C. When the Double C got going, they were invincible. When the Double C went silent, they collapsed. And now, perhaps Bai Seyueya's hypnotic powers were simply too strong, or perhaps the Sailor combination had truly been pushed into a corner by V5. At least in Game Four, both of them had stepped up at once. JKL even brought out his Draven. The moment Draven appeared, TES played as if pumped full of adrenaline, doing one outrageous thing after another.
And the price of TES's mid, bot, and jungle all stepping up at once was—Luo Zhen got crushed.
In every sense of the word.
He fell behind in last hits during lane, rotated slowly, and suffered Sudden Death in team fights.
The only good news was that at least he would not get solo-killed in lane or lose his turret plates outright. He simply could not outfarm or outtrade his opponent.
In his Burst State, JKL did not even need his support to set the tempo for him. Instead, he led his support around the map himself, pushing bot lane's Offensive Pressure to the limit. Rookie and Karsa wanted to help, but the equally explosive Xiao Tian and Knight held them back.
2:2
Just as Coach Homme had predicted, the series truly went to a Fifth Game.
V5's lounge.
After coming off the stage, Luo Zhen immediately grabbed a drink and started chugging it.
JKL's surge in form had exceeded his expectations. At the same time, facing an opponent above his level in lane and engaging in such intense Mind Games had placed a burden on his mind. His eyes felt a little tired, so he closed them.
So this was the intensity of the LPL? Back in the LDL, I could play five full games and still be full of energy. Why did just four games feel so exhausting now? While he was lost in thought, Hong Mi came over to Luo Zhen again. This time, however, he carried a warm towel and gently placed it over Luo Zhen's eyes.
"Huh?"
Feeling the warmth over his eyes, Luo Zhen was about to sit up when Hong Mi pressed him back down with one hand.
"Rest first. Don't rush. This is your first time experiencing such an intense BO5. Your hands and eyes must be under considerable strain."
"But, Coach..."
"Rest for five minutes first. The last game's composition and BP do not matter that much anymore. Adjusting your condition is what matters most." Hong Mi's voice was calm and unhurried. As an experienced coach, he knew what his player needed most at this moment.
After hearing that, Luo Zhen stopped protesting. He fully relaxed, closed his eyes, and entered a state of pretend sleep.
Hong Mi also waved to everyone else in the room and held up the timer in his hand. They immediately understood and began closing their eyes to rest as well.
It was not only rookies like Luo Zhen who struggled to keep up with the pace and suffered heavy exhaustion. These veteran players had also declined somewhat due to age. But before the final game, they needed to ensure that they were as mentally refreshed as possible.
Then—
They would fight TES in one final battle!
Chapter 54: Leave the Rest to AK
Here it comes, the battle anthem!
This year's Demacia Cup was great. V5 and TES both hit Burst State one after another, though V5's bot lane was still a bit weaker.
Not bad. At least they passed CJB's certification and gave us a Famous Scene. Their future really looked promising.
Whenever I got a bargain on Xianyu, it was always some girl's old stuff. Why could V5 find so many pieces of a strong roster through Pinduoduo? I'm jealous!
Want one? It cost them a sixteen-game losing streak.
The Demacia Cup's excitement had exceeded everyone's expectations since Game Three, then reached its climax in Game Five. The two teams' Playstyles resembled the legendary spear and shield.
TES's ultimate offense and V5's ultimate defense combined to put on a visual feast worthy of a top region.
When Luo Zhen and the others sat back down at the players' desks, Hong Mi had not said anything during the intermission. He had not even made any gestures to boost morale. Yet somehow, after just a few minutes of sleep, the group's mental state had undergone an enormous change.
It was one of life's bugs.
Suppose you were usually working or studying, and someone gave you two full hours to nap at noon. You might not sleep, and even if you did, it might not feel satisfying. When you woke up, you would probably still feel tired.
But!
If you hurriedly took a ten- or twenty-minute nap on the couch right before heading out, you would wake up feeling damn energetic, as if you had been completely renewed.
I did not know the reason, but this short-term buff really did exist.
"It's Game Five, brothers. Can you carry me to victory?" Having recovered much of his energy, Luo Zhen returned to his chatterbox mode. At that moment, he was even fantasizing about the post-match interview after they won.
"What, you have confidence this game?" Karsa glanced past Rookie at Luo Zhen seated on the other side and asked with a smile.
"Of course. I admit JKL was incredibly strong in Burst State, but his mistake was bursting in Game Four. I'm different—I still haven't hit Burst State yet. Maybe my rage bar will fill up soon and I'll unleash my ultimate."
Seriously.
After playing four full games, Luo Zhen had gained a preliminary understanding of JKL's strength.
He admitted that JKL was very strong after entering Burst State, but he did not believe the other side could maintain that state for two straight games. If he could, that would be far too outrageous.
Even your boki had a Sage Time. A Ruthless Person who could fire endlessly with no Cooldown did not belong on the League of Legends Pro Scene—he should go next door to Japan and become a juice man. Wouldn't that be more fun than playing professionally?
"Fine, just don't become head chef again like last game. I seriously wonder if you overdrawn your brain in that Game Three play and went straight into Pig Brain Overload in Game Four." PPGOD had watched his own AD grow throughout the Demacia Cup. It was genuinely encouraging, but the setting where he made plays one game and then inted the next was still hard to accept.
"What do you know? Head chefs are strong, okay? You have to know that our cooks, the Soviet Commissars, and American medics were all recognized as the fiercest units on the battlefield."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. As if I'd believe your nonsense, you little brat. You're rotten to the core."
Game Four's loss had not really affected the players' mentality. Frankly, taking this roster to a full BO5 was already a win for V5. The final game would merely decide how much they gained from it.
For the final game, TES chose Blue Side again.
First Ban Phase:
TES: Caitlyn, Jhin, Kalista
V5: Moon Man, Jinx, Lee Sin
Bai Seyueya had thoroughly seen through V5's Composition. On the surface, V5 seemed to be playing around top, mid, and jungle, but nearly every game V5 won had involved their bot-lane AD causing trouble from behind. Targeting top and jungle so much had been useless, so this game he would simply shut down their bot lane.
That was Blue Side's advantage. He did not even need to ban many things. He only needed to ban a few meta bot-lane picks in the early bans, and Red Side would be forced to ban the others. Otherwise, he could set traps through the BP, creating a situation where he could First Pick a version T0 bot laner while V5 could only take a version T2 pick after the BP ended.
"Are they targeting me? Should I feel honored?"
Luo Zhen smiled and scratched his head, inexplicably feeling a little proud inside.
Three bans aimed at bot lane—this could almost be considered TES's greatest respect for a rookie.
First Pick Phase:
TES: Viego (First Pick), Tristana Alistar
V5: Lucian, Nami (First Two Picks), Xin Zhao
The two sides' ADs were directly going head-to-head, though TES would be at a greater disadvantage by comparison. The Luna Combo's initiative lay with Lucian, whereas Tristana Alistar's initiative lay with Alistar. As always, TES's biggest blunder in the Demacia Cup was Gore Drinker Zhuo.
Second Ban Phase: Sylas, Twisted Fate, Draven, Renekton
In one sentence: nobody gets to play.
No flying around, no coasting. Both sides' BP focused almost entirely on laning strength across the board. The two coaches were playing a game of Souha.
With the Fourth Pick, V5 brought out Azir.
Before you continue