Chapter 644: Like the sun at high noon!

July 1, Luonaerduo arrived in Shanghai, and after a brief rest at the hotel, he headed straight to the VG base. Since this event carried a certain sense of repaying gratitude, Luonaerduo deliberately made a big show of it, wishing everyone would know.

One L5, with no more than 20 nationwide and small red flags on the front corners, led the way; Luonaerduo's Rolls-Royce followed behind, then four Cadillacs, forming a convoy of six luxury cars that slowly drove through Shanghai's bustling streets like a parade, and finally leisurely entered the villa district where the VG base is located.

The convoy stopped in front of the VG base. Luonaerduo, along with a group of leaders from the Shanghai Sports Bureau and security personnel, got out of the car. The two VG bosses, accompanied by several department managers, stood at the base's main gate to welcome them. Dozens of reporters lined the lawns on both sides, raising their long and short lenses and frantically clicking away.

The VG base could hardly accommodate so many people, so in the end only the CCTV team was allowed to enter the VG base for filming.

Under the camera, the whole visit and exchange actually had no substance, but this kind of event inherently doesn't require substantive interaction; what matters is just saving face.

Accompanied by the two bosses, Luonaerduo toured the base, then had a meal at the VG base cafeteria. In the end, host and guest enjoyed themselves thoroughly, and the party left the VG base at 2 p. m., concluding this publicity trip.

That evening during prime time, CCTV News aired a report on Luonaerduo's entourage visiting the VG base. The news segment ran over forty seconds, with the footage of Luonaerduo shaking hands and talking with Liang Yan taking up more than ten seconds. The news narration went: 'During his visit to China, Brazilian football legend Luonaerduo specially came to visit the VG Esports Club, exchanging pleasantries with Liang Yan, the champion player of the sixth League of Legends World Championship...'

The entire domestic internet erupted in fury, news-related headlines dominated all major platforms, and the heat was even more explosive than the previous wave when state media reposted Liang Yan's college entrance exam story.

VG fans and Liang Yan's personal fans were excited beyond words, straight up saying they couldn't take it.

【Please stop pampering my treasure Yan; he's already too famous, there are too many past lessons, and I'm really afraid that if he ever falls from his pedestal, he'll end up like the factory chief!】

【You're overthinking it! How many times has the factory chief been on CCTV? He's nowhere near the level of Jiao Shen! You have no idea how valuable a CCTV endorsement is!】

【This publicity is too huge; it feels like his historical status is rivaling the Human Emperor's. Even if he becomes washed up later, he won't fall, because his divinity is already secured!】

【Now it seems the combined popularity of the entire LPL can't even match VG alone.】

【Overseas assessments show Jiao Shen's commercial value has already surpassed Faker's!】

In just a few days, the VG official Weibo gained over a million more followers.

Meanwhile, Liang Yan's personal Weibo followers are already heading toward fifteen million; this scale far surpasses many of the current idol-idol fresh meat in the fan circles.

That said, speaking of his looks, calling him a fresh meat would actually be fine, but because of the previous buzz cut incident, netizens' impression of him has become stereotyped; they subconsciously see him as a tough guy rather than a pretty boy, so even when his looks-based fans give him a nickname, they don't lean toward the 'fresh meat' label……

Lu Wenjun has a good business sense; he anticipated this wave of heat and earlier contacted several factories to produce a batch of team merchandise. However, he still underestimated the fans' enthusiasm—the first batch sold out quickly, so Lu Wenjun placed another order for a large batch.

Of course, compared to benefits that cannot be measured in concrete profits, selling merchandise and such is just an appetizer; to describe the current VG in four words, it is:

Like the sun at high noon!

After Luonaerduo's visit, VG's first match brought a terrifying surge of foot traffic to Zhengda Guangchang; the mall was completely packed with people, and the daily foot count even surpassed the mall's all-time high since opening. Looking down from the upper floors, one saw a sea of heads, and to avoid stampede accidents, the mall had to contact local authorities, finally deploying a team of dozens to maintain order.

And after the match ended, as the crowd dispersed, VG's players also got the star treatment: mall security and the uncles formed two human walls on either side, forcibly clearing a path to escort the VG players out of the venue.

With such blazing popularity offline, online goes without saying.

That day, the online viewership for the LPL livestream likewise broke the historical peak; according to tx statistics, the number of people watching VG's match that day even exceeded that of the MSI final a month earlier!

Naturally, the domestic server of League of Legends also welcomed a wave of new players jumping into the game.

Far away at the Los Angeles headquarters of Riot Games, Taida mi'er watched as the domestic server drove a sudden surge in the global registered player count of League of Legends, feeling both relieved and unable to help but reflect: fortunately, when the MSI had just ended, they didn't rashly decide to give VG a heavy blow; otherwise, they might not have seen today's spectacle.

"Kaitelina…"

Taida mi'er stood by the venetian blinds holding a cup of coffee, back to his dedicated assistant, and spoke softly. The blonde‑blue‑eyed female assistant, wearing a form‑fitting tailored office suit that accentuated her front‑curved, back‑raised figure, stood silently opposite a spacious desk:

"What's wrong, my boss?"

"Now it seems…"

Taida mi'er sighed, then continued:

"I'm afraid we really can't do anything about that guy."

"You mean the Fire player?"

"Besides him, who else is there?"

"Uh……"

The female assistant pondered for a moment, then spoke cautiously and probing:

"Perhaps... this might not be a bad thing for League of Legends?"

"…You're right, so I have nothing to complain about."

Taida mi'er turned around, downed the large half‑cup of bitter Americano in one gulp, his expression complex—unsure whether it was the coffee's bitterness or his mixed feelings. He sat down at the computer, picked up the mouse, glanced at the female assistant, then lowered his head and instructed:

"Bring over the documents for the Asia Confrontation Tournament preparations; I'll take another look."

After the fourth week of the regular season concluded across Asia's major regions, teams ranked in the middle to lower tiers entered a short break, while those with higher point totals after those four weeks had packed their bags and were ready to embark on another arena.

……

July 2.

When VG returned to base after the match, it was already past seven in the evening, and they had to catch a flight to Kaohsiung at eight the next morning—schedule tight. As soon as everyone got back to base, they started packing their bags; team captain Wang Liangyi ran back and forth between the dorms shouting, and for a moment the base was filled with the LOL division members' loud cries, busy as chickens flying and dogs jumping.

Meanwhile, members of other divisions, while watching the bustle, also looked on with eyes full of envy.