The knockout final was about to begin, coinciding with the break during the intercontinental tournament, so the livestream was gaining popularity.
The commentators on stage were professional, but lacked a bit of presence, not particularly good at stirring emotions. But since everyone was here to watch a secondary league, the audience didn’t really care.
[First time watching this kind of match, are the rules the same as LPL?]
[Pretty much, it's bo5, best of five.]
[Just came in, don't quite get it, if RAG wins this match do they qualify?]
[Whoever wins qualifies.]
[Who's the opponent? Does RAG have a good chance?]
[Don’t know the opponent, I think RAG has a good chance.]
[I’ve seen the opponent’s matches, pretty mediocre, always win by a narrow margin.]
[Are you talking about Boss Jia’s team? Hahaha, every year people say they’re mediocre, and every year they end up winning.]
[They’re hiding their strength, RAG better watch out for an upset.]
The match officially began.
In the first game, Bai Yu chose a conservative composition, intending to test the waters, but didn’t expect POX to take a risky move, targeting Qi Yi.
All the teams knew RAG’s weakness, the mid lane was the weakest, so nearly everyone used Yang Kaiming as the breakthrough point. Bai Yu, to protect mid lane, would prioritize roaming champions, which made overall protection weaker, and Qi Yi had a very obvious flaw. He often lost coordination with his teammates mid-game, making it impossible for Bai Yu to protect him.
By mid-game, Qi Yi had already died three times.
Bai Yu looked at the situation and felt it wasn’t good. The opposing top lane was playing a defensive role, so Chen Shi’an had a hard time gaining an advantage. The synergy between the opponent’s mid and jungle was very tight, Yang Kaiming got caught badly, and even though Fang Zhixu helped him several times, it still didn’t help. The enemy kept building up their snowball advantage.
The commentators were getting anxious: “The support needs to roam now!”
But Bai Yu looked at Qi Yi, who was clearly getting nervous, and still chose to stay and protect him. “It’s okay, follow my rhythm and play slowly, we’ll get a chance.”
Bai Yu’s voice calmed Qi Yi down. He understood what Bai Yu staying meant. It meant he had to carry the team’s damage output this game, or they would lose.
The pressure on him suddenly increased. He wanted to play more aggressively like Xu Bo, but he wasn’t Xu Bo. He couldn’t pull it off, and the opponent wasn’t giving any openings.
The opponents played with clear professionalism, obviously trained in a formal system. They knew exactly when to go in, when to retreat, and didn’t give any chances. Their style was extremely formulaic, like they had memorized some kind of question bank, using exam-prep techniques for every scenario.
As the situation grew more confusing, Bai Yu suddenly commanded through the mic: “Everyone follow me on this one.”
At that moment, the RAG base was also streaming the match. This was the most important game for the team. Other than the staff who went on-site, almost everyone else was watching.
“Their coordination is so good, not a single misstep. Didn’t expect such a strong macro team in the LDL.”
“Hey, Captain Yu won’t lose, right?”
A pale blue glow fell into Lu Sheng’s eyes. He stood at the back of the crowd watching the match. No matter how the game developed, it was all within his expectations.
Until Bai Yu led his teammates to sneak through vision into the enemy jungle, hiding in the brush near the wolves. Lu Sheng suddenly raised an eyebrow.
Things were getting interesting.
The POX players all came from very professional youth training camps, where they were introduced to a complete system right from the start.
Just like practicing problems from a question bank, this is how to solve this problem, that’s how to solve that one. How to play with an advantage, how to play from behind, how to play when stronger, how to play when weaker. All these scenarios were drilled to death in scrims, etched into their minds like formulas.
RAG’s overall level was above theirs. They couldn’t win head-on, so they avoided team fights and used seamless macro play to maintain gold advantage.
The AD, as usual, crossed his jungle with the support to clear the bot wave. Suddenly five burly men jumped out from the brush and slammed him and his support into the ground, took the dragon and the tower, pushed down the bot inhibitor in one breath, then grouped mid to continue the push. They were about to break another inhibitor, the pace was flying.
POX’s shotcaller was confused: “What’s going on? How did AD die at this timing?”
AD weakly raised his hand: “I was scared of being ganked, so I specifically went around the wolves. Who knew they’d be this crazy...”
You have to understand, at this point in the game, tempo is everything. And Bai Yu actually dared to abandon tempo at this timing and mess around in their jungle.
Wasn’t he afraid of losing the gamble and getting wiped?
Even Yang Kaiming had the same question. But Bai Yu said: “Didn’t you notice their playstyle is rigid from overusing formulas?”
Yang Kaiming’s mind suddenly opened up.
The opponent’s tight tempo was because they were always using the optimal solution.
Because they wanted to maintain gold income, they chose the safest 1-3-1 split. Because dragon was about to spawn, the AD would go for the safest wave, with support accompanying him, taking the supposedly safest route through the wolves. But it became predictable.
Lu Sheng saw this and couldn’t help but smile. He really had worried for nothing.
POX’s rhythm had been fine until Bai Yu disrupted it.
Tempo is a mysterious thing. Once you lose control of it, it’s hard to get it back. Conflict became inevitable. POX was forced to teamfight, but couldn’t handle it. Every time they got crushed, and in the end, had to accept defeat with tears.
After experiencing Bai Yu’s tactics, POX played very cautiously in game two. But Bai Yu changed style again, forcing the pace so fast they couldn’t keep up.
Chen Shi’an picked a very aggressive champion in top lane, breaking through the defense by force. Fang Zhixu also played faster than last game.
Most importantly, Qi Yi stepped up.
He’d been targeted for two full games, holding in his anger. Even with poor gold and items, he dodged two crucial crowd controls with godlike reaction speed and got a kill at one HP.
After two games, POX’s mentality took a huge hit, and their mechanics started to collapse. Game three was even more of a disaster.
[POX is done, the skill gap is too big.]
[Scared me, I thought RAG was going to lose.]
[RAG didn’t have much time to build synergy. Honestly, POX’s coordination is solid, just slightly worse individual players.]
[God Shi played amazing, the jungler too. Finally not a solo carry from bot lane.]
[I suddenly feel like that 30 million for the jungler wasn’t too much.]
[Xiao Fang was worth that price anyway.]
[Good thing we signed Fang Zhixu and God Shi, or it’d be a loss.]
[Hahaha, no way. Even without signing them, I never thought Bai Yu would lose. Did you forget how terrifyingly dominant he was in LPL?]
[Our Captain Yu is basically a prophet.]
The match continued, but the outcome was already obvious.
In the viewing room, Jia Mingyuan sighed as he watched, lit a cigarette with a “click,” and choked on the smoke. “Why’d it have to be Bai Yu’s team...”
Next to him was his business partner and team investor. Seeing this year’s loss was inevitable, he also expressed regret. “Didn’t expect him to sign such strong players.”
Jia Mingyuan replied with a “hmm?” then suddenly laughed, choking again on the smoke. “Old Wu, you still don’t understand esports. We didn’t lose because of the players he signed, but because his name is Bai Yu...”
He looked up at the screen. Bai Yu, the team commander, remained calm and composed throughout. Everyone thought RAG would lose, but in fact, Bai Yu hadn’t even furrowed his brows.
“This is a team game. Individual skill can indeed determine a lot, but team tactics are the decisive factor. And Bai Yu has almost never lost to anyone in tactics. Even if he didn’t sign Chen Shi’an, Fang Zhixu, or even Qi Yi, just relying on Xu Bo alone, he could still beat us. Do you believe that?”
“That’s way too mythical, isn’t it?” The investor looked utterly disbelieving and exclaimed, “But our players are so much stronger than theirs.”
Jia Mingyuan smiled and shook his head, his deep eyes narrowing slightly. “Esports is far more complex than we think. It’s not just about who’s stronger. The battlefield is ever-changing, and Bai Yu is the kind of player who can control that change. You haven’t witnessed his brilliance, so you can’t feel that kind of shock. As a player, his greatest strength are his strategic vision and foresight. He can predict outcomes from chaos.”
“You probably can’t even imagine that Bai Yu only used less than one-tenth of his ability today and still beat us.”
The investor couldn’t believe it. His gaze toward Bai Yu had changed, as if what was visible was just the tip of an iceberg while the strength hidden beneath the surface was completely unknowable.
Then it hit him. “So that’s why you did everything you could to stop Bai Yu from forming a team?”
Jia Mingyuan chuckled lowly. No matter how much he admired Bai Yu, he eventually revealed his nature as a businessman. “Just like Yan An, I wanted him to retire from the professional scene. That’s why we both tacitly set up all kinds of roadblocks for him. And maybe it wasn’t just us. The whole world tried to stop him. But he still made it here.”
The screen froze at the moment the crystal exploded. The match was over.
Bai Yu won the finals 3:0.
[3:0. I actually thought Bai Yu might lose earlier.]
[If Bai Yu were losing, his face wouldn't look like that. Go check out the World Championship round of sixteen. His brow bone almost twisted.]
[Bai Yu’s expressions are always fun to analyze. Remember that time an AD sold him out? The look he gave from the fountain was the definition of restraint haha.]
[Back then everyone was flaming Bai Yu. Now that he's gone, SG crashed. Happy now?]
[Haha no one’s flaming Bai Yu anymore. They’re all flaming SG management.]
[SG used to be my favorite team. Now it’s a mess.]
[I don’t care. As long as I get to watch God Shi play, I’m happy.]
[Why didn’t that dog Xu Bo play today? Was his scrim performance worse than Qi Yi’s?]
[Maybe Qi Yi is just more obedient.]
[You hit the nail on the head…]
[Hahahaha!]
Bai Yu, after winning, simply smiled faintly, as if everything had gone just as planned. Jia Mingyuan truly felt regret. “Actually, the person I wanted to sign most this year was Bai Yu. I thought I could lure him back with a high-paying offer after he retired. But he just wouldn’t give up.”
On camera, Bai Yu rose calmly and stepped forward into the future that awaited him. On this long road, he never seemed to have considered turning back.
With the qualifiers over, aside from the award ceremony, there were still many interviews waiting for them—discussions on game strategies or thoughts on advancing. Bai Yu was already very experienced with interviews. His responses were watertight.
Behind him stood his teammates. In front of him were brilliant lights. Whether forward or backward, it was all his stage.
After the interviews came the more formal awards ceremony. The organizers had invited some well-known guests. There were photo ops and commemorative moments. Another top team from a different region was promoted alongside them, and the two shared the promotional spotlight. Though the scene wasn’t on par with the LPL, the ceremony still felt significant. By the time everything was over, it was nearly midnight.
On the way back, everyone chatted about the match. It had been thrilling. Even though it ended 3:0, there were several moments they thought POX might turn it around.
Fang Zhixu walked beside Bai Yu, still reviewing the match obsessively. “Captain, do you think picking Nocturne in the last game slowed our tempo? Would Kha’Zix have been better? If I’d invaded their jungle early, they might’ve lost faster. And my counter-engage in game two wasn’t great either. If I had acted sooner, I definitely could have—”
Bai Yu was already satisfied with his performance and didn’t overthink it. “Alright, leave them a little mercy.”
Everyone laughed. Xu Bo crossed his arms and said coldly, “He just wants to show off. Let him.”
Fang Zhixu blinked innocently as if the jab hadn’t landed, then suddenly leaned in helpfully. “Xu-ge, are you upset because you didn’t get to play? I’m sure the captain had his reasons. As long as you keep training hard, he’ll definitely notice you.”
Xu Bo: "…"
What kind of twisted btch is this?
After teasing him, Fang Zhixu turned to Qi Yi with a sincere smile. “Xiao Yi, your skin looks amazing. Doesn’t look like someone who stays up all night playing.”
Qi Yi blushed. “R-really?”
Bai Yu watched them bicker and shook his head helplessly. “I had a reason for not letting Xu Bo play.”
Chen Shi’an nodded, indicating he understood. “You wanted Qi Yi to get more stage time. After all, we’ll need to rely on him at Worlds.”
When the future came up, Bai Yu’s steps slowed. He looked at the figures walking ahead and said softly, “To be honest, Xu Bo could suppress Qi Yi with his experience. If I’d let him play today, we’d have won even more decisively. But Qi Yi has so much potential. I still can’t see his ceiling.”
Chen Shi’an was surprised. “You can’t see his ceiling?”
Bai Yu nodded. There were three players whose limits he couldn’t see—peak Lin Kun, current Lu Sheng, and future Qi Yi.
“Did you know? His APM isn’t just 600. During the public data test, he wasn’t even going full throttle. After a few sessions with me, his speed jumped past 650.”
“I’ve seen all his solo queue footage. He’s basically just messing around using pure speed and still solo climbed to Master 400 LP.”
Chen Shi’an was already thrilled. Because based on current public data, only peak Lin Kun ever hit 650 APM. Even Lu Sheng peaked at 620.
That’s already beyond what the human eye can track.
If his dynamic training catches up, he could pull off moves no human has ever seen. That’s why Bai Yu insisted on having him play.
Chen Shi’an sighed. “So the LPL isn’t lacking talent, just too many buried gems.”
Exactly. The LPL doesn’t lack talent. People are just too scared of sunk costs to start digging.
As Bai Yu pondered, he stopped halfway up the steps.
Everyone else had gone off to rest. Only Lu Sheng was waiting in the corner, apparently for a long time.
Bai Yu thought it would be awkward being alone, but Lu Sheng seemed totally at ease, walking over as naturally as eating or drinking. “You advanced. How do you feel?”
Thankfully, he wasn’t being sarcastic this time.
Bai Yu continued up the steps. “Feels pretty good. Funny thing is, I even felt a little excited during the award ceremony, even though I’ve been through so many of these before.”
Lu Sheng quietly followed behind. At the last step, he suddenly stopped. “Let me play the next match.”
Bai Yu froze. He turned back and saw Lu Sheng’s side profile. He wasn’t looking at him, just at the steps. His voice carried a hint of uncertainty. “I was the only one missing from today’s award ceremony. You all took pictures. Fang Zhixu even posted on social media. I felt like I missed something.”
His tone was mild, but it hit hard.
Bai Yu’s pupils dilated slightly. He couldn’t believe someone of Lu Sheng’s caliber would care about something like a secondary league’s award ceremony.
But Lu Sheng’s expression clearly said he cared a lot.
Suddenly, Bai Yu saw the same persistence in him from three years ago. The same drive to stand side by side on the battlefield. The one who lost his chance because of a single sentence from him.
He’d probably been waiting for this answer a long time.
Bai Yu took a deep breath and gave a formal reply. “Of course. Next match, we’re officially teammates.”
He reached out his hand. “Looking forward to working together.”
Lu Sheng stood below him, looking up. The backlit Bai Yu seemed to glow, even his hair catching the light.
The answer he had waited so long for had finally come.
---
After the LDL promotion tournament ended, the LPL relegation tournament was also nearing its conclusion. Every team was playing cautiously, afraid that one mistake could lead to the evaporation of several small goals in market value.
[Oh no, please don't let my main team get relegated! I can't handle this stress.]
[Don't even mention it, my team almost got eliminated yesterday too, but luckily they pulled through in the end. I nearly had a heart attack.]
[Which two teams got promoted this year?]
[RAG and BN.]
[RAG? That sounds a bit familiar.]
[Isn't that the team that was trending on Weibo recently? They signed that guy, what’s his name again? Oh right, Fang Zhixu!]
[Oh, it's that team?]
[They’d better not have wasted all that money and still not get promoted, that'd be ridiculous.]
[They faced SG's second team this year and completely trashed their old org. Haha, Bai Yu is basically the protagonist of a fantasy story.]
[I’m supporting Bai Yu.]
[SG is a trash team.]
[You didn’t call them trash when Bai Yu made it to the top 16.]
[What's wrong with the top 16? Isn’t that garbage?]
[SG almost got relegated, don’t act like the top 16 is garbage now, alright?]
[Stop arguing, LPL is just as bad.]
[The Interregional tournament is almost over too, right? (smiling)]
With the relegation tournament ending, the handover between the old and new teams was completed, and the Interregional tournament was also nearing its end.
Even though three teams had already gone out, the hype was still high, and the bullet comments were full of complaints, hoping IKG would make it to the finals, only for IKG to fall in the semifinals, leaving the audience furious.
[Alright, I'm uninstalling the game now.]
[I’m a dog if I keep watching this.]
[LPL is so trash now? I remember they were pretty good back in the day.]
[You mean when the "gods" were fighting? That’ll never happen again, there are no players like that anymore.]
[The once-in-a-lifetime god-tier players, five of them were born in that year.]
[I call it the golden age of esports.]
[Whenever this time comes around, people always remember that year...]
[Help, I didn’t get into the scene back then!]
[So this is how esports fans used to eat so well.]
[Enough, I’m going to rewatch the old matches.]
The greatest tragedy in this world is probably when the tournament is still going on, but your own region has already been eliminated.
The match had ended, and IKG still had to face the interview. Watching the five players on stage looking bewildered, Bai Yu felt inexplicably heartbroken. Can the region’s glory ever be revived?
Bai Yu, feeling a chest pain, turned off the stream.
Already in a bad mood, Bai Yu walked back to the training room and saw Zhang Peng joking around with the teammates. He immediately grabbed him: "Zhang Peng, Go back and train!"
Usually, Bai Yu was gentle and soft-spoken, but his sudden cold expression scared Zhang Peng to death, and he never dared to slack off again!
Everyone knew Bai Yu wasn’t in a good mood, so the training room fell silent, especially Xu Bo, who had experienced Bai Yu’s fierceness and was now as quiet as a little chick.
Bai Yu logged into the game, originally planning to duo with Qi Yi, but suddenly someone sent him a team invite.
He clicked it and realized it was Chu Fei.
The first thing Chu Fei said was: "Captain Yu, congratulations! So fast to get promoted! I wonder if I’ll have the honor to join you guys next season?"
Bai Yu had previously invited Chu Fei and had a good chat with him, even mentioning that when his contract expired next season, he could come to try out for their team.
At that time, Bai Yu hadn’t expected to sign Lu Sheng.
Bai Yu politely declined: "Thanks for your attention. Of course, I’d be honored if you could come, but let’s talk about it when the opportunity arises."
Chu Fei thought Bai Yu was avoiding the topic of contracts: "Sure, we’ll talk when my contract expires. Actually, I really want to come for a tryout..."
It seemed like there was some misunderstanding. Bai Yu was still thinking about how to respond when a ghostly voice suddenly came from behind: "Didn’t you say when rejecting, you should do it thoroughly?"
Bai Yu’s hand trembled.
Lu Sheng suddenly leaned down, casting a shadow over him, holding a cup of water he had just gotten, looking at him coldly, "Your efficiency is too low, do you need me to help? Captain."
His tone when saying "Captain" was completely emotionless, making Bai Yu’s scalp tingle. No wonder he was a two-time champion mid-laner, his pressure was absolutely overwhelming.
Bai Yu immediately grabbed the keyboard, "No need."
He typed: Actually, we already have a new mid-laner.
Chu Fei: "I didn’t see any announcement, haha, a bit regretful, but I hope we have a chance to collaborate in the future!"
After exchanging some pleasantries, Chu Fei wisely exited the team interface. Bai Yu quickly pulled Qi Yi into the team, and only then did Lu Sheng return to his seat.
Actually, Bai Yu thought, it might be time to publicly announce Lu Sheng’s identity.
Taking advantage of the queue time, Bai Yu quickly sent a message to the new operations manager.
Next