Chapter 125: League's First Title! Grand Finals FMVP! I Will Guard EDG

As Ye Bo dismantled the TES base with a flushed face, the unstoppable roar of the crowd had already surged past the barrier of his noise-canceling headphones!

His mouse clicked incessantly on the enemy nexus; even though this didn't actually make the destruction any faster, he still took great pleasure in it.

As the fist of the Colossus of Justice slammed down, it shattered the nexus into pieces.

The atmosphere at the venue reached its absolute peak.

"Champions! The 2022 LPL Summer Split champions are EDG!" Jide shouted, arms raised high, his face full of fanaticism.

"Three to zero! EDG has swept the grand finals in an unimaginable fashion! They have truly brought us so many surprises and shocks in this grand final!"

Wang Duo praised the impressive member at the top of his lungs: "Ye, this rookie who is only 18 years old, has only been active for half a year, yet he has already claimed the Silver Dragon Cup that so many players dream of, and as the absolute core, no less."

"This is talent visible to the naked eye!" Guan Zeyuan interjected from the side: "In this year's durability patch with its massive changes, he has grown from a one-trick assassin player at his debut into the monster of a champion pool he is today! He is undoubtedly the key to their victory!"

Accompanied by the passionate commentary.

The Ornn, God of Mountain Fire from the pre-match opening ceremony, appeared once again, reaching into the furnace to pull out a brand-new, gleaming emblem among all the previous LPL champion team logos.

The black and white EDG lettering was exceptionally conspicuous.

The background, where the giant screen behind the player stage intersected with the light and shadow, looked dazzling!

Only after taking off his headphones did Ye Bo clearly feel the heat of the venue.

The muffled thuds of glow sticks, the sound of EDG supporters waving their battle flags high—all were eventually drowned out by the mountain-shaking, sea-roaring cheers.

Ye Bo felt as if the scene from his "dreams" had become reality.

Golden ribbons burst from high above, with several landing on top of Ye Bo's head.

The director's camera focused on the members standing up and hugging to celebrate at the player stage.

Ye Bo's smile was as sunny and bright as ever; as it was projected in close-up on the giant screen, one could vaguely make out the familiar words on his lips—

"We are the champions!"

The excitement of the other four members was not the slightest bit diminished, and was perhaps even greater than that of Ye Bo, who was winning his first title.

Only after experiencing the low points do you truly cherish the feeling of returning to the peak.

After climbing to the sky last year, the original lineup immediately suffered a landslide decline in their second year, from eighth in the spring to two consecutive losses at the start of the summer.

Even the experienced Meiko had privately confessed to close friends that everyone's form was very poor this year.

But no one could have expected it.

It was from that one match in the summer that everything began to change.

"You're really strong, brother!" Jiejie affectionately wrapped an arm around his shoulder and helped brush two golden ribbons off his head.

Ye Bo looked slightly smug, crossing his arms to show off: "No kidding, I'm just that good!"

"Haha, starting today, we EDG finally have a Galio too!"

Viper, not one for many words, simply gave two thumbs up.

Flandre was so excited his face was flushed: "Master Ye, you lifted the Silver Dragon Cup in your very first Summer Split; did you set a record?"

"I forgot if JackeyLove was the first seed that year; should we go ask later?" Meiko said with a mischievous smile.

"Let's go, let's go shake hands!"

Ye Bo, busy enjoying his first championship, only then realized he needed to leave his seat with his teammates and head to the TES player stage across the stage.

The director's camera followed their movement.

The faces of the TES fans in the stands were filled with utter disappointment.

They had thought their team would finally be able to stand tall for once and lift the Silver Dragon Cup to win a championship this summer.

But who would have thought that in just two hours, TES would collapse like a mountain!

They didn't even get their ticket money's worth!

Come on guys, were you in such a rush to catch a ride to Wuhan?

On stage, Wang Duo comforted the losers: "TES has experienced two 'Northern Expeditions' this year and has also stumbled in the finals for the second time; I have to say, the road in the league this year has been exceptionally winding."

"However, although the road in the league has been quite bumpy and winding, they actually still have a chance to prove themselves!"

"By virtue of their points from being runners-up in both Spring and Summer, TES will still head to this year's S12 World Championship as the LPL's second seed. I hope they can go further on the world stage!"

At the Top Esports player stage.

Tian hung his head, his eyes listless, his bangs soaked with sweat and plastered to his forehead, looking like he was cosplaying Sanmao the Wanderer.

Meanwhile, Knight was slumped over the table, limp as if his spine had been pulled out.

The match had been over for several minutes, but he was still immersed in the loss, unable to pull himself out.

It wasn't just because of the loss of the match.

Most importantly, on such a big stage, a player's performance might directly affect their market value and be linked to their future salary!

It was understandable that Knight would find it hard to accept!

Compared to the mid-jungle duo.

JackeyLove was quite open-minded, even greeting Ye Bo in a friendly manner during the post-match fist bump.

"You're strong, man. Good luck at Worlds; let's try to have another go at each other there!" JackeyLove seemed as confident as ever.

"Sure." Ye Bo also smiled and readily agreed.

Both teams had already secured their spots at Worlds, so saying this wasn't too far-fetched, and it was indeed a possibility.

The S-Championship has a "regional isolation" system, so in any case, an internal civil war would only happen after the quarterfinals.

Although the finals looked a bit miserable, TES was still the second seed after all.

Since when could a second seed fail to make the quarterfinals?

The EDG members walked out of the room.

Manager Guo Hao arrived immediately, forcing a smile to comfort the players.

"Alright, everyone, don't look so down. They are indeed strong; losing to them is nothing to be ashamed of."

"Everyone did their best. Being runners-up isn't bad either. Don't forget, our goal is this year's World Championship!"

"Let's shine brightly at Worlds!"

That was indeed the logic; after all, they had already made it to Worlds, and the difference between being the first or second seed really shouldn't affect the more important matches to come.

After being comforted, the TES members quickly adjusted themselves.

But only Knight remained silent throughout.

It wasn't until the entire opposing team had walked out that he dared to look through the glass window at that back walking toward the center of the stage.

Ye Bo and his teammates arrived at the center of the stage together.

The gleaming Silver Dragon Cup stood atop the high platform.

At this moment, Meiko suddenly suggested: "How about we let Ye Bo lift it first? Leave a commemorative picture. We're all old-timers, and this is his first year playing!"

Ye Bo was just about to refuse, but when Flandre and Jiejie heard this, they immediately pushed his back from the left and right.

Viper also made a lifting gesture toward the Silver Dragon Cup, as if to say: Let's see if you can lift it on your own~

The spotlight hit the center of the stage, casting a layer of light mist over the EDG members.

Ye Bo turned his head to look at his teammates, who had taken a step back.

"Oh, Master Ye, don't waste time; I'm starving!"

"Lift it, lift it! It's not like we aren't going to lift it; we're just letting you test the weight!"

"Come on!"

Feeling the good intentions of his teammates, Ye Bo stopped being coy.

Under the urging of the crowd, Ye Bo placed his fingers on the cold base of the cup, exerted force with his arms, and suddenly hoisted the trophy high above his head!

A sudden scene made the director roar, "Quick, cut to a close-up!"

In the frame.

Ye Bo was surrounded in the middle, with the EDG members watching him from half a step behind, each with a heartfelt smile on their face.

"Still laughing!!! Come here, I can't hold it!"

Ye Bo shouted as he turned his head, and everyone moved forward in unison.

Five pairs of hands pressed onto the trophy, which wasn't actually too heavy.

Only then did Ye Bo close his eyes in satisfaction, letting his heart beat violently in his chest as he enjoyed the joy in his heart.

"Congratulations once again to EDG for becoming the 2022 LPL Summer Split champions!"

Host Liu Hang stepped onto the stage and spoke in a deep, resonant voice.

"Next, please welcome Jin Yibo, CEO of TJ Sports and head of the League of Legends project, to the stage to present the awards to the champion players!"

A slim man in a suit brought a ceremonial attendant onto the stage and handed the prize board to the group with a smile.

Printed on it was the number 2 million in prize money.

"Next, please have Mr. Jin Yibo present the FMVP award for the Summer Split finals."

Jin Yibo opened the envelope without any suspense, as there really wasn't much doubt, and raised his voice to announce it loudly.

"Player Ye! Congratulations!"

On the giant LED screen, Ye Bo's official photo, where he held up two fingers in a simple "Yeah" gesture, became the center of attention for the entire venue.

On the side, the director provided the total stats for the three games of the BO5 finals.

KDA: 26/4/39

Damage Conversion Rate: 133. %

Team Damage Share: 38. %

Average Laning Difference: +999

These jaw-dropping stats all served to prove the legitimacy of this award!

The barrage in the livestream room drifted past, reflecting the inner feelings of all the viewers.

【Holy crap! Playing the finals like it's a boosting job? I want to report this, someone is boosting in the LPL!】

【Is this data even reasonable? I can't even put up these numbers in a low-tier lobby, damn it!】

【Honestly, it's really terrifying. You have to know what kind of playstyle Ye Bo has? To have this kind of KDA with his high-risk playstyle, it's hard to imagine how he maintains such consistency; his error rate is ridiculously low!】

【He's practically sleep-training, and he isn't having his Yang energy drained by any succubus, so isn't it normal for him to be a bit fierce?】

【I can only say, this is still because he picked a Galio in the last game; he was just too team-oriented. Otherwise, he would have had at least ten more kills!】

【Heh, making such a fuss over a custom game!】

【Standing before you now is—Best Rookie! First Team Mid Laner! Regular Season MVP! Summer Split Champion! Finals BO5 FMVP!】

Ye Bo took the heavy FMVP trophy from the other person's hands, feeling immense joy in his heart.

After the awards ceremony concluded, the customary on-site interview segment followed.

The host, Liu Hang, conducted brief interviews with the players in turn.

The interviews with Meiko and Viper were always quite simple, consisting of formulaic answers.

"So, Jiejie also delivered a very crucial and eye-catching performance in the second game, and is also a strong contender for the second game's MVP, especially that key play of flanking through the fog of war to the bottom lane..."

When it came to Jiejie, Liu Hang specifically brought up the question that everyone was confused about.

Actually, if not for the Fiddlesticks' quadra-kill in the final moments, the MVP for the second game should have gone to the Wukong; after all, that tempo was indeed the key turning point for Top Esports' collapse.

However, Jiejie didn't speak, simply making a familiar gesture as if it were a matter of course.

(￣︶￣)→

"Oh, I see, this is another one where I have to ask Master Ye, right!"

Liu Hang had, of course, seen that previous interview and suddenly understood what it meant.

He smiled and was just about to continue his questions when he suddenly remembered something else.

"Wait a second, does that mean Flandre's Kennen ultimate without vision was also..."

(￣v￣)→

Facing Liu Hang's follow-up, Flandre couldn't even be bothered to speak, naturally making the same gesture as Jiejie.

A wave of uproar erupted throughout the venue, and the livestream barrage was filled with 【????】.

"I knew it was that clever guy Ye Bo!"

Off-stage, Clearlove had an expression of having guessed correctly, though he was glad to see the two people on his right keep their mouths shut.

To the side, Ye Bo's father and mother watched from the audience, focusing on Ye Bo, who stood at the center of the venue's stage spotlight, watched by everyone.

Ye Ying's face was full of pride, and she kept waving the banner with Ye Bo's giant headshot on it.

Ye Xiong's eyes were also filled with surging emotions.

However, because this was a live interview, the segment was much shorter than the backstage interviews, so Liu Hang did not delve into the specific details.

But it is foreseeable that the next episode of EDG's "Post-Match Microphone" program will likely break viewership records.

The interview continued.

Jiejie also continued to say what he hadn't finished.

"Actually, before the match even started, I felt that we wouldn't lose this game."

"Because before I left, I accidentally saw a notebook on the table. It was Master Ye's, and it already had written on it what he wanted to say after lifting the trophy!"

"Master Ye never lies, so at that moment, I knew this final was in the bag!"

Having his secrets exposed, Ye Bo glared at Jiejie, feeling slightly embarrassed.

He wasn't embarrassed about anything else.

He was mainly worried that others would think it was a diary; what kind of serious person writes a diary!

Ever since he read the diary of the old veteran, he had a bit of PTSD regarding those three words.

That was actually just his training record booklet—of course, he did indeed record what he wanted to say after the match in it.

The ancestor of Seven once told us—trash talk is very important!

Liu Hang couldn't help but laugh. After naturally moving past this topic, he looked at Ye Bo, who was the last one, and was not stingy with his praise.

"Finally, it's our newly crowned FMVP player!"

"This year, player Ye can definitely be called the team's key man. During the regular season, he accounted for more than half of the team's MVPs! And in the three BO5s of the playoffs, he defeated everyone, including former teammates and various top-tier mid laners!"

"Netizens jokingly say that you have achieved an LPL Grand Slam-style head-to-head record!"

"So, as Jiejie just said, I heard you've already thought about what you want to say... We are very much looking forward to it."

Ye Bo took the microphone and cleared his throat with a light cough.

"Yes, I want to say... first of all, that is not a diary!"

"Actually, there was a lot I wanted to say, but after thinking about it, it doesn't seem necessary."

"Because this is only just the beginning. Whether it's me, my teammates, or the audience and fans, we won't be satisfied with just this one Summer Split championship."

Ye Bo paused again.

Then, with burning, intense eyes, he looked directly into the camera in front of him.

His voice was resonant, filled with confidence and determination.

"I think I have fulfilled my pre-match words and proven who the strongest mid laner in the LPL is... but I still want to go to the World Championship stage to prove more."

"The World Championship—I look forward to battling every strong opponent."

"As the mid laner for EDG, I will guard everything that belongs to EDG."

The venue and the livestream room were instantly ignited and exploded!

And as different people everywhere heard these words, their hearts all had different echoes...

(End of chapter)