Chapter 870

The remaining two matches are highly anticipated.

The Group C first-round finale: EDG vs IMT.

To avoid a 0-3 start, EDG held a long meeting after training last night and didn't return to the training room afterward—no one knows what they discussed.

But it seems Ah Bu's chicken soup was good; today, EDG's players took the stage with decent spirits, chatting and smiling.

Guan Zeyuan sat in the LPL commentator seat, smiling and saying: "Stay relaxed—going in lightly lets you show your true strength. I believe in EDG!"

Actually, Guan Zeyuan was being objective: today's opponent is IMT, and the pressure is indeed low. Earlier, EDG faced strong teams like G2 and SSG; Group C truly lived up to its "Group of Death" name, so EDG's two losses are understandable. Today, against NA's second seed, EDG clearly has the upper hand in raw strength—just play normally and win is likely.

Ah Bu and Coach Nofe think the same; last night's meeting included lengthy mental work for the players, urging them to stay calm and play normally.

By now, VG's team had returned to the hotel. Liang Yan checked the BP and fell silent.

"Does EDG not understand?"

Even Easyhoon couldn't help but comment,

"Their understanding of Lucian is clearly flawed—why keep picking him?"

Indeed, EDG picked Lucian again this game.

Always losing, always picking—aside from being stubborn, there's no other explanation.

Liang Yan was also helpless, shrugging and saying nothing.

Fu Lan Duo watched the ongoing battle on screen and chatted with Easyhoon: "Marquis, you just don't get it—actually, EDG's thinking is quite understandable…"

In the first match against SSG, EDG had a huge advantage but got reversed; they thought they played well early, Lucian's strength was sufficient, and their poor play leading to the reversal wasn't the hero's fault.

In the second match against G2, still reversed; EDG began to doubt, but Lucian still had an early edge, so they felt losing to strong teams and getting reversed was understandable.

Today against IMT, surely they won't get reversed again?

"……So they pulled out Lucian again today. That's roughly the logic."

Fu Lan Duo explained it all, making EDG's three-time Lucian pick logic crystal clear.

Easyhoon listened and slowly nodded twice.

I get it—summarized in three words: Don't Believe in Evil!

But sometimes, people really can't help believing in some supernatural things.

Or rather, the world is vast and time long—sometimes truly miraculous coincidences occur that defy normal thinking.

EDG didn't know yet, but after watching EDG's first two matches, IMT guessed they'd likely pick Lucian again in game three and did some counter-research…

EDG walked right into the gunfire today.

Facing EDG's Lucian lineup again, IMT happily unveiled their research findings:

Top lane Pantheon, jungle Pig Girl, mid Syndra, bot Ezreal + Lulu.

EDG's lineup was:

Top Malphite, jungle Rek'Sai, mid Lucian, bot Kog'Maw + Wind Girl.

IMT's strategy was also clear and simple.

At 3 minutes, level 3 Pantheon flashed to mid, sat down with his butt on Scout—who had already taken some poke in lane—Syndra followed up with a combo, Scout flashed away low on health, Pantheon fired a spear and got first blood.

Scout lost a wave, fell behind in lane, could only play conservatively; the director cut to him, often just seeing him hugging tower to farm.

At 6 minutes, Pantheon came again, ult jumped behind, Changzhang successfully counter-ganked, teamed with Scout to counter-attack—Pantheon didn't care and sat again with his butt, Syndra WQRE killed Scout, Changzhang took Pantheon's kill.

Scout couldn't hold, switched to bot lane to farm, letting the duo come to mid.

IMT's Syndra followed the lane swap.

At 9 minutes, Pantheon teleported to bot, again flashed butt-sit on Scout's face, Syndra one-combo instantly killed him, Mouse teleported down and gave another kill.

IMT then took first blood tower, Syndra solo took the bounty.

EDG fans in the danmu blamed Ah Guang for not using his skills.

But he's just a Malphite.

At 12 minutes, Herald teamfight: EDG initiated, Syndra with Sorcerer's Shoes + Morellonomicon + Rabadon's Deathcap flashed in, ignited, and one-combo killed Meiko's Wind Girl.

EDG then focused fire and killed Syndra.

Support swapped to mid—looked like EDG came out ahead.

But this is the Censer Meta.

Meiko was killed, our side had no way to dive the backline and pick off targets, EDG gave all effort but still couldn't win—four for two, lost the teamfight.

IMT took Herald, then destroyed mid tower, economic advantage reached 5000.

The game reached this point—basically garbage time from here on.

EDG's early-mid game relied solely on Lucian; after being completely countered by IMT's Pantheon, Lucian was rendered useless, so EDG couldn't match IMT's damage before Mouse built Blade of the Ruined King on Kog'Maw; as for frontline, Mouse's Malphite developed okay, but still—he's just a Malphite, can't carry.

IMT's frontline isn't worse than EDG's—Pig Girl can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Wukong as T0 jungler in this meta thanks to her bulk and control; plus, after EDG's Lucian was neutralized, early-mid game lacked damage, so in teamfights Pig Girl just brainlessly face-rushed, and EDG couldn't deal with her.

Pig Girl face-rushing with no pressure, plus Syndra one-combo killing Wind Girl, meant EDG's teamfights simply couldn't be won—even if their players were one tier above IMT's in mechanics.

"Already done, truly feel for my factory." Gangzi sighed.

Fu Lan Duo teased: "Weakness too obvious—EDG probably won't dare recruit another top laner who only knows Malphite in the future."

Mouse isn't actually only good at Malphite—he became that way only after joining EDG, because that's how EDG plays. They've ingrained this style into the team's heritage DNA, since that's how they won in S5—top laner just needs to be a frontline tool, everything else handled by Pawn and Deft.

But this game directly exposed EDG's playstyle's biggest flaw, showing the world: look, beat EDG just by doing this—guaranteed win!

Because tanks can't carry, Pantheon can just let Malphite farm freely, sacrifice his own development to collapse EDG's mid lane, leaving EDG with only bot lane as a late-game single core.

And then there was nothing after.

Couldn't even survive early-mid game—what late game?

At 34 minutes, EDG lost. Actually, IMT just had weak closing ability and rough details, which let EDG drag it out—but swap in any team slightly better at mid-late game, and EDG wouldn't last thirty minutes.

EDG fans completely lost hope.

In the LPL live stream, the screen was full of "Congratulations EDG Top 16" and "Lucian Three Kneels."

Liang Yan couldn't hold back.

How many times has he witnessed history repeating itself?

But if you say this is fate, everything happened so perfectly logically!

So I'm actually the architect of disaster?

Liang Yan couldn't help but think this.

Because, Lu Xi An's rise to fame in this year's World Championship began precisely with the VG vs AHQ opening match. In that battle, Easyhoon Lu Xi An fought from the early game to the end, ultimately leaving behind an iconic moment destined to be remembered in history.

But Liang Yan then thought: No, perhaps when Perkz first pulled out Lu Xi An last year, showcasing this playstyle to the global audience, the root of calamity was already planted.