Chapter 820: Legends Never Die

On the evening of the 17th, the Huludao event ended, EDG all returned to Shanghai, and then, carrying their luggage, they rushed overnight from Shanghai to Wu Han.

But it was too late; EDG's reputation had completely collapsed.

Among fan groups, the Pig-Dog Alliance had already broken apart; now RNG and VG fans are like one family, and EDG has been expelled from the LPL.

In just two or three days, EDG's official Weibo lost nearly a million fans, directly landing in the top three of the Weibo fan‑loss speed ranking; the matter was even pushed to the hot search list, and some EDG fans who didn't usually follow gossip only learned of it then, triggering another round of frantic fan loss……

A Bu's intestines regretted turning green; he summoned all members of EDG's expedition team to a meeting, unleashed a torrent of anger, spraying everyone with dog‑blood, yet never mentioned that he himself had personally approved the Huludao event. After venting, he then demanded that players train an extra two hours each night to make up two days before the group stage begins, and required the team's photographer to follow them daily, capturing footage of EDG members still earnestly training in the practice room after VG and RNG have clocked off and rested……

From that day onward, EDG's official Weibo would post a photo each day, trying to salvage its image; whether it works or not, at present there's no sign of improvement.

……

On the 18th, aside from a few teams encountering visa issues, all other S7 World Championship participating teams had arrived in Wu Han and checked into the hotel contracted by Riot.

At the same time, TX's cooperation with the authorities on promoting the S7 World Championship was in full swing, online and offline, from website banners to subway posters, a barrage of publicity.

The landmark buildings of the host cities, and even the billboards at the expressway toll gates entering the cities, were all replaced with huge posters……

No one knows how much money TX poured in, but the official's level of cooperation is absolutely unprecedented; the scale and standard of this publicity campaign are unparalleled in Chinese esports history, and with such frenzied buildup, what a spectacle the actual event will be?

Looking worldwide, probably only the Olympic Games could compare to it.

Many local netizens, seeing S7 promotional posters and slogans everywhere in their cities, couldn't help but remark:

"If the LPL fails to win this championship, it'll be hard to bring things to a close."

It's far more than just hard to wrap up.

Jinyibo felt both joy and worry about this, even to the point of being terrified and walking on thin ice.

He wasn't afraid that failing to win would leave him unable to answer to Xiao Ma Ge; what truly frightened him was the official slogan—'China team, come on!'

Figure: China team, come on!

What would happen if the LPL really didn't win the championship?

Jinyibo didn't even dare to think about it.

Things have come to this; all we can do is try our best to fulfill our own duties.

The rest, we leave to fate……?

No, we'll leave it to VG instead!

……

Liang Yan was watching the newly released S7 World Championship theme MV from Riot.

《LegendsNeverDie（Everlasting Legend）》

Compared with previous edition MVs in League of Legends history, this theme song's MV isn't outstanding, but the song itself—even when stacked against theme songs from years later—still ranks among the top three.

Meanwhile, the S6 theme song on this timeline, affected by Liang Yan, kept the same music but changed its MV.

The original LegendsNeverDie MV opened with a silhouette of an SKT player backstage, then switched to the hero backstories of Ashe, Demacia, and the Mang Seng, finally giving only a two‑or‑three‑second gameplay clip; the whole MV actually had little to do with the actual match.

But the brand‑new version of LegendsNeverDie that Liang Yan is watching now is completely different from the one he remembers, even though it shares the same oily‑paint‑texture realistic 3D animation style; the story is entirely distinct.

At the MV's start, the Mang Seng walks the wilderness with a bundle on his back, embarking on a quest for the pinnacle of martial arts; the screen then flickers repeatedly, showing the Mang Seng time and again being turned away by major sects and meeting scorn… these opening ten‑odd seconds depict his frustrated pursuit of the Dao.

But effort never betrays the earnest; the Mang Seng finally received an invitation.

Just then, the picture suddenly jerked; the scene of the Mang Seng picking up the invitation turned into a close‑up of a knuckly hand lifting an envelope from a keyboard. The envelope's front bears the G2 team logo.

By this point, almost everyone could see what was going on.

The opening twenty seconds of the MV actually tell the story of Firrrrrre before his debut—his frustrating job hunt in the LPL, ending with G2 taking him in.

The opening sets the tone for the whole MV; thereafter it follows the Mang Seng's pursuit of the martial‑arts peak, facing mockery and doubt as he challenges one strong opponent after another, until the heavy‑epic chorus swells and he finally steps onto the summit of the martial path.

The Mang Seng's quest for the Dao symbolizes Liang Yan leading G2's charge in S6, defeating one strong team after another and ultimately winning the championship.

From Liang Yan's veteran perspective, the MV's narrative arc is exactly like that of the later S8 MV titled Rise, which takes An Zhangmen as its protagonist.

To be frank, Liang Yan was moved.

Although Riot has repeatedly targeted him, one must admit they really know how to have fun. The MV inserts numerous visual metaphors of iconic S6 moments—for example, the classic "wind‑up one‑four", the Dragon Pit male gunner crouching Xiao Huasheng the leopard woman, Vayne Q flash lock wind‑up, plus the S7 mid‑season championship opener VG vs. FW where Liang Yan recreates the S6 moment of spider‑crouching Karsa the male gunner, and the mid‑season finals VG vs. KT first game where Liang Yan pulls out an unconventional four‑protect‑one mantis… Besides these widely remembered highlights, Riot even woven into the MV the real‑life meme of Liang Yan's first kick in G2 that knocked over the original jungler, earning him the nickname "Foot God".

Riot has done similar things before; for instance, they once slipped Faker eating raw broccoli into the S‑series theme MV.

One could say that nearly all of Liang Yan's brightest moments in S6 were naturally woven into this MV by Riot with excellent skill.

As the MV's protagonist, Liang Yan naturally feels it deeply; when his fans see the MV, the more sentimental viewers are moved to tears.

Watching the MV's ending, where the Mang Seng's silhouette on the mountaintop gradually merges with his own shadow, Liang Yan inexplicably felt sympathy for the person who served as his debut background.

I think his name was Trick?

I haven't seen that ID in ages, and I don't know where he's hanging out these days.

Or maybe he's already retired?

Come to think of it, when Trick left the team he also took G2's original starting AD with him; if he hadn't, the subsequent chain reaction of other starters quitting might not have happened, and Lao Zhang wouldn't have gotten that comeback opportunity.

If the chance arises, I really ought to thank him……

Just then, Liang Yan received a WeChat video call.

The caller surprised Liang Yan greatly.

It turned out to be Zhou Dong.