Chapter 47: LPL

The blue side bans and picks first.

PE’s top laner certainly didn’t actually pick Kha’Zix for mid.

Even though the LPL slot is confirmed, losing a match unexpectedly and getting crushed isn’t something to be happy about.

So the first pick went to the jungler, securing the strong early-game Spider Queen.

After the pick exchanges, NXG’s composition was finalized; floors one and two immediately locked in Ashe and the Prince.

“Ashe wants to push towers quickly; the Prince’s flag boosts her attack speed, and the mid laner seems to be going for a teamfight mage.” PE players exchanged guesses as they watched NXG’s picks.

Xika shook his head. “Still uncertain. Just don’t pick mid before they do.”

“What should we pick?”

“MF and Varus.”

MF!

This was a pre-planned move Xika and CiCi had prepared during their last match against NXG.

Their own bottom-lane Nami isn’t good against Veigar, so against NXG—a team with strong teamfighting—the key to breaking through was an AD who could deal massive damage in a short time.

No matter how well-coordinated NXG’s teamfights were, MF just needed an opening to land a solid ultimate.

“Let’s see if the third and fourth picks on their side choose a mid laner.”

“Feels unlikely. Isn’t JM NXG’s boss? Who’d leave the counter-pick slot for their employees?”

Click!

“We’re in perfect sync—aren’t we?”

But to the complete surprise of PE’s entire team, NXG on the purple side locked in Twilight’s Eye on floor three, then instantly locked in their mid laner on floor four.

Nine-Tailed Fox—Ahri!

…

Just as PE was stunned by NXG’s mid laner being revealed early.

Penguin Sports, the organizer of the LPL, was simultaneously broadcasting several ongoing LPL qualifier matches onto the Tencent Gaming Arena (TGA).

Thanks to YY Platform’s bold push for Jiang Ming’s top-ranked server climb campaign, combined with Penguin’s own prior heavy promotion, League of Legends—already heating up under the massive wave of City League of Legends tournaments—was now experiencing an extraordinary surge in player growth.

This caught Penguin Sports’ attention on JM, the top-ranked LoL ladder player who had been manipulating the scene ahead of everyone else.

His top-three ladder ranking in Season 2, high-quality LoL tutorial videos, integration of game traffic with e-commerce, and finally his bold move to launch a professional team—all combined made several Penguin executives, who had just learned these details, marvel at the astonishing foresight of this student under twenty.

Remember, Penguin’s top management had only recently decided to invest heavily in promoting, supporting, and developing LoL as an e-sport—and even then, very few knew.

Who could have imagined that on a single player, they saw more confidence in LoL than the company itself?

The final decision-makers were thus inspired to consider an early test broadcast of the LPL professional league.

The reason? YY Platform’s recent aggressive promotion of JM’s top-ranked server climb had drawn absurdly high real-time viewership numbers that made hearts race.

An early test broadcast had advantages: not only could it pre-warm up the audience for the upcoming pro league, but any flaws discovered during the test could be fixed promptly.

Thus, under the joint initiative of TGA and YY Live.

On the 25th, both platforms’ homepages.

Countless logged-in users suddenly saw a brand-new special page.

“LoL Professional League is coming—Quarterfinal Qualifiers in full swing…”

“Match Schedule: OMG vs IG, LM vs Dawn’s Wings WOA, NXG vs PE! (In Progress)”

Inside the live stream room.

Countless danmaku flooded the screen.

[???]

[What the hell, Penguin and YY? You guys crazy?]

[You just dropped the pro league outta nowhere—what about the announced date of January 29?]

[Who the hell broadcasts a tournament without any promotion? Are you afraid of too many viewers?]

[Uh, calm down, angry guy above—the title says it’s a test broadcast of the quarterfinal qualifiers.]

[No wonder they didn’t make a big fuss—if my eyes had blinked faster, I’d have missed it.]

[Wait, NXG’s match has already started—Penguin, you’re not even trying, why is the last match on the schedule playing first?]

Players who clicked into the stream stared at the ongoing BP screen and felt thunder rolling in their skulls.

Holy shit, “test broadcast” really meant test broadcast—no promotion, no commentary, and the match started instantly. Penguin, you’re unstoppable.

[WOW, look what I found—a gem! JM is actually playing!]

[Is NXG’s record really this insane? Five wins, zero losses? Not a single defeat?]

[Holy cow, earlier in the stream, guys were debating whether JM’s team would go bankrupt—but with this record, there’s something here.]

[JM, you’re the boss, you’re the boss! Why are you playing pro? Let the players fight—you just go back and stream for us!]

[Oh man, blue side didn’t ban Ahri—guys, we’re gonna see JM’s Kha’Zix show again!]

[No way, I gotta call my dying buddy right now—this might be JM’s first pro match, a historic game, can’t miss it!]

[Aaaah, why pick Ahri? I want to see Kha’Zix!]

[What Kha’Zix? Is there anything prettier than my Ahri? JM, ignore these idiots—I wanna learn ten thousand ways to play Ahri!]

Although Penguin had informed the participating teams that the final two rounds of the quarterfinal qualifiers would be test-broadcasted, they hadn’t specified the exact time.

Jiang Ming and the others naturally didn’t know their final match against PE was already being streamed.

“Wuhu! They picked Ahri first—Van, what are you waiting for? Pick Kha’Zix! Pick him!”

“Bro, if you don’t pick Kha’Zix, I look down on you—Kha’Zix vs Ahri? That’s a one-sided beatdown.”

Fueled by frustration over NXG’s early Ahri pick and his teammates’ frantic urging, Vans’s last lingering doubts vanished completely.

Pick!

Fuck, they’re looking down on us—and Kha’Zix is one of my absolute best champions.

If we lose, no big deal. If we win, we hit the jackpot.

“The invisible blade is the deadliest.”

Watching the blue side confidently lock in Kha’Zix, Jiang Ming smiled, turning to the fifth floor: “Kha’Zix—she’s the one.”

Pang Ran nodded, moving his mouse over the head of a purple, garlic-shaped champion.

“Pleased to meet you!”

—Fairy Witch, Lulu.

At last, both teams’ compositions were finalized.

Blue side PE: Top—Cassiopeia, Jungle—Spider Queen, Mid—Kha’Zix, Bottom—MF + Tahm Kench.

Purple side NXG: Top—Shen, Jungle—Prince, Mid—Ahri, Bottom—Ashe + Lulu.

What does it mean to give your all?

It means giving your all as an individual—and giving your all in the draft.

Shen, the Prince, and Ahri formed a triple-engagement system; Ashe’s pushing power combined with Lulu’s protection—facing PE, one of the strongest teams in the inaugural LPL, NXG had left nothing to chance.