LPL Summer Split, Debut Appearance [Seeking Monthly Votes]

Ming Kai glanced at the schedule Nofe was pointing at and frowned.

"Isn't it too late?"

Nofe had scheduled Xu Cheng's debut match to be in the latter half of the regular season, which was far too late.

Hearing this, Nofe looked at Factory Director and shrugged, saying nothing.

Factory Director understood what he meant.

In fact, the most conventional process for any professional rookie joining a professional team should be—

Youth training, secondary league, LPL substitute, LPL starter.

Among them, some might never get to play on the LPL stage in their lifetime, let alone be a starter; even being a substitute is a fantasy.

Especially for powerhouse teams like EDG, the competition for a starting spot is incredibly fierce, naturally bringing with it discussion and external attention.

But... Xu Cheng was different!

"We signed him to hone his skills and use him. If the schedule is too late, is he even going to play in S7?"

"I understand all that, but... our team's current performance is really too poor."

Nofe's Chinese was still awkward, and his expression was helpless.

Did he not understand what Factory Director was saying?

But firstly, EDG's current situation was not what it used to be. This year's EDG, in terms of roster, strength, and results, was the worst iteration.

And now, the upcoming Summer Split was crucial for securing a spot in S7, with fierce competition.

At this time, how could EDG dare to play around with training new players? If they performed the same as in the Spring Split, they would truly have no chance of making it to the S Tournament this year.

Although EDG had always been criticized for underperforming in the S Tournament, always getting eliminated in the quarterfinals, few people knew that they had never missed the S Tournament since their establishment, which was one of the reasons they could be called a powerhouse.

This year's S7 was so important; if they missed it... EDG absolutely could not accept such a thing.

"Ultimately, it's still a lack of refinement in the Spring Split. Half a year without touching LOL... even with great talent and quick adaptability, one Summer Split... is still too short."

Factory Director thought about these things and sighed.

No matter how talented you are, to fully adapt to the professional stage, the fastest possible time is one season.

Why did the clubs that were so eager to sign Xu Cheng suddenly change their attitudes so drastically? Wasn't it for this reason?

The time of one Summer Split, coupled with EDG's current performance, couldn't provide Xu Cheng with opportunities to hone his skills.

But...

"We can't just abandon him. This schedule is too late; I'll talk to the boss..."

After a brief moment of confusion, Factory Director immediately made up his mind—

Xu Cheng had to play in the Summer Split. If he didn't get some practice games now, he really wouldn't have a chance to appear on stage in this year's S7.

"Okay, in short, my suggestion is to reserve judgment... Let's look at his test results first."

Nofe shrugged. He knew that in EDG, Ming Kai's position was not just as a player but also as half of the management.

Factory Director nodded and didn't say anything further.

At this moment, Xu Cheng's test results from inside the room came out.

When the staff handed the report to everyone, despite having some expectations, they were still shocked—

Because in this most comprehensive test report, Xu Cheng's various talents were outstanding, enough to be directly rated as the highest S-rank by professional clubs.

And in the current professional scene, those with this rating were Ah Shui, Xu Cheng, iBoy, and the recently popular Zou Agui, who was publicly reported by Faker and had the same momentum as Xu Cheng at the beginning of the year.

But compared to the other three, Xu Cheng hadn't touched LOL for half a year.

In other words, this guy wasn't just talented at LOL; his memory, hand speed, and other aspects were already amazing.

"G-great job, brother! You're too incredible!"

Factory Director's dejected mood vanished, and he beamed.

The others were also astonished.

"His hand speed and reaction time... are you sure he didn't practice privately during these six months?"

"Practice what? How can you practice this? It's pure talent."

"I've never heard of an AD Carry having this standard..." Ah Guang said enviously.

"Agui, Agui, I'll follow you for meals from now on..."

Surrounded by the congratulations and goodwill of his teammates, Xu Cheng felt a little embarrassed. "Uh... that, were the test results okay?"

"Okay? Bro, you're way more than okay!"

Factory Director pulled Xu Cheng over. "Come on, into the room with me!"

"Tryout!"

Although it was called a tryout, for Xu Cheng, it was basically just going through the motions.

EDG now wanted to see how he would cooperate with the other team members.

The results of the entire day's tryouts, however, brought mixed emotions to everyone.

The joy was that Xu Cheng's talent and strength were truly no joke; given some opportunities and resources, he could genuinely carry the games.

In the current LPL, where all top laners were cowards, this was truly unprecedented.

Of course, this was also the reason for their worry—

Xu Cheng's talent was too great, his individual ability too strong. Although he was currently extremely unaccustomed to the rigorous, standardized scrims, often turning them into chaotic solo queue matches, he possessed an overwhelming power that could overcome all obstacles.

To put it metaphorically, Xu Cheng was like an uncontrollable monster. He had too many of his own ideas, and he acted on them subconsciously out of habit, making him incredibly difficult to change.

During one scrim, Factory Director called Xu Cheng four or five times, but the latter did not follow the team's operational tactics and strategy.

Although the final result was not bad, it completely disrupted the plans of EDG's other four members, leading to a loss in the scrim.

"Sometimes, having too much individual ability isn't a good thing. What EDG needs... is a Maokai, the Treant,"

Coach Nofe smacked his lips, suddenly feeling a sense of absurdity and strangeness—

A top laner like Xu Cheng would absolutely be a top-tier prospect in the LCK, but placed in the current LPL, especially on EDG... the collision of these two concepts was like oil and water, completely different species that couldn't blend.

Xu Cheng couldn't adapt to EDG's "steady style," and EDG couldn't adapt to Xu Cheng's "bloody" style.

Can you believe that in one scrim, EDG played like two different games, with two different art styles?

It couldn't be said that there was no cooperation at all, only that everyone did their best...

"He tried to force changes a few times, but the results were worse than not changing; it felt so awkward to play!"

Meiko, one of the in-game shotcallers, stroked his chin as he commented.

"...Change is good. Let's leave it at that for today."

Factory Director hadn't expected things to turn out this way either. With complex feelings, he ended the day's training.

For the next period, Xu Cheng continued to integrate with EDG daily, but the results remained unsatisfactory.

It wasn't that Xu Cheng wasn't strong; it was that he was too strong, so strong that he completely went against EDG's "steady system," leaving everyone who had high hopes somewhat dejected.

One day.

EDG paused their training. Everyone was nervous, staring intently at the large indoor screen.

When they saw the five members of WE, who had once stood at the pinnacle of the world and were full of spirit, being crushed and dominated by the European team G2 with a score of 1-3, regrettably ending their MSI journey.

The training room was filled with wails.

That's right, in the current LPL, let alone the LCK, they couldn't even beat Europe anymore!

The five red-clothed youths in the footage, their initial spirit gone, stared blankly, their emotions low. Xiye, who was closer to Xu Cheng, even shed tears of grievance.

The LPL's MSI journey for the year had ended, which was expected. Being crushed and eliminated by Europe, however, was unexpected.

WE, who had lost to Europe, would now face a wave of public criticism.

But none of this had anything to do with EDG anymore.

With WE's unfortunate elimination, the current MSI concluded with SKT defending their title.

The end of MSI signaled the start of the most intense and fierce competition for S7 spots throughout the year: the LPL Summer Split officially began!

June 8th.

The 2017 LPL Summer Split officially kicked off.

On this day, after half a year's absence, Factory Director returned to the stage.

This time, a "7" was finally added after Clearlove's ID.

This sparked countless sarcastic and teasing remarks from the outside world.

The rookie "Xiao 7's" debut performance was not ideal...

Although they won the match, it couldn't solve EDG's current weakness.

A few days later.

Just as Xu Cheng thought he probably wouldn't have a chance to step onto the LPL stage this summer split, Factory Director knocked on his door and said only one sentence—

"Get ready. Tomorrow is your LPL debut, you're starting!"

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