Chapter 493: I came, I saw, I conquered (2)

Lao Zhang does not doubt Liang Yan's strength; it's just that EDG's internal-war record has indeed been too glorious all along.

Since the team was first formed at the start of the S4 season, the LPL league has undergone three full spring‑summer seasons, producing six champions; EDG took four of them, and in the other two occasions EDG's worst placement was fourth.

Moreover, as the Demacia Cup, an important tournament second only to the LPL in prestige and scale, has been held five times since S4, EDG has won all five Demacia Cup titles; thus, after EDG's five‑straight Demacia Cup win last year, netizens jokingly call it the EDG Cup.

EDG's dominance in internal conflicts is evident.

To claim that EDG would be cowed by Liang Yan's champion aura and surrender helplessly in a match against VG, Lao Zhang absolutely does not believe; EDG surely prepared something for the finals.

Of course, Lao Zhang merely said VG carries a risk of crashing, not that EDG's win rate is higher; he remains very confident in the strength of his sworn brother Liang Yan, and after saying that, he proceeded to praise his good brother in front of the tens of thousands of live viewers, but then he shifted his tone:

"But you need to know, League of Legends is fundamentally a team game, and the most noteworthy point is that you might have forgotten—Liang joined VG less than half a year ago……"

In the live stream, a die‑hard fan of Firrrrrre retorted him:

"【But don't you remember? When Firrrrrre led you to victory at the World Championship last year, he had also been with G2 for less than half a year!】"

But Lao Zhang was immersed in his own narration and didn't notice that remark.

Otherwise he might have remained silent.

……

On site.

The opening ceremony ended, and the players from both sides took their positions.

The stage lights also went out, leaving only a faint glow in the players' area to facilitate equipment adjustment.

The venue's lighting dimmed accordingly, the murmurs of tens of thousands of spectators coalescing into a heavy hum, and a faint smell of gunpowder lingered in the air.

The commentator's desk sounded in the venue.

Chang Mao: "Alright, both teams are ready in the players' area, the match is about to start; before the official kickoff, regarding this final showdown, I'd like to ask the two guests what their expectations are."

As the voice sounded, the on‑site camera slowly panned around and finally focused on the commentator's desk also located on site; when the two guests appeared on the commentator's desk, a commotion arose on site.

Figure: 2017 LPL Spring Finals commentators

Weixiao spoke first:

"For me, VG can be said to be the most aggressive team I've seen in the LPL; indeed, their average match duration shows their offensive tactics are very strong, a typical LPL style. EDG, meanwhile, is known for macro play and counter‑attacks, so today's match is essentially a spear versus shield clash. Therefore I think this game should still be quite entertaining."

Next is Lu Mouren, who rarely appears on the LPL commentary stage; although he is well‑known in the streaming world and his usual streaming style is highly abstract, when he shows his face in this official, important setting he still looks somewhat reserved:

"I think... at least play five full games, um... after all, um... today's ticket price is still quite high, the lowest is over three hundred, if I recall correctly. So, um... at least we need to earn back the ticket price, um... then I think... um... VG and EDG also represent the two highest‑level teams in the LPL, right? The person—or team—that wins today's match will also represent the LPL region at the already‑started Mid‑Season Championship in Ba Xi, so this match will definitely have many foreign um... foreign net... viewers watching, so I hope VG and EDG will both try harder, show our LPL's true level, um... that way, as a member of the LPL region, um... we'll also feel proud, um."

One can tell that the prohibition against swearing has indeed, to some extent, sealed Lu Mouren's gift of gab; his remarks came out haltingly.

The camera lingered briefly on the commentator's desk, then flashed past, splitting the live‑stream and on‑site big screen into two, showing the scenes in both teams' player areas.

First appearing on screen is VG jungler Firrrrrre's handsome side profile, with a VG label stuck on his cheek, laughing and chatting with his teammates.

Yet the audience's attention fell on an unexpected spot: in the live stream, countless people began discussing the white keyboard placed in front of Jiao Shen that had likewise been caught on camera.

"【Holy cow, same keyboard model!】"

"【The keyboard looks awesome, send the model!】"

"【I looked it up, holy cow it's expensive】"

"【Fifteen hundred, wow! A keyboard this expensive!】"

"【What's this? My globally limited custom edition costs over ten thousand】"

"【Rich bro, V me 50 to test strength】"

"【A custom edition over ten thousand…… you'd better believe him than believe I'm Qin Shi Huang】"

"【Hehe, ignorant poor ghost】"

"【As everyone knows, netizens' identities are self‑filled】"

The danmaku's style gradually turned a bit off‑kilter—although the danmaku in LPL live streams has always been rather off‑kilter, the official super‑mods stepped in, pulling out the main instigators of the rhythm and putting them on a mute package, so the danmaku discussion returned to the main topic.

The three commentators chatted on for a while, when the big screen suddenly began playing a pre‑match interview video, and the three commentators immediately fell silent.

The entire audience watched the video in silence.

First to appear was Meiko, wearing glasses, with a clean, fresh, fair complexion:

"This year I feel it's the most competitive year in LPL history……"

Right after, Changzhang's voice came in before his presence, cutting in sharply after Meiko's trailing sound:

"VG is like a mutant catfish, suddenly surging forth and wreaking havoc everywhere……"

Finally it was the VG players' turn to appear, but it was coach Long Ge, wearing a cheerful smile:

"Speaking frankly, the truth is I'm also dazed; I never imagined we'd become this strong. When I first started coaching, I was just handling a team of this caliber, and aside from happiness I had no other thoughts—everyone also supported me……"

Next came Xiao Duan, squinty‑eyed, with a thief‑like gaze, grinning nastily:

"I never considered any goals; when I first registered, I just thought being able to go pro was already awesome. I never imagined making it to the LPL finals, and when I entered the industry I truly hadn't thought about it at all, so for me this already counts as a fulfilled dream, and every step thereafter will be surpassing dreams……"