After SVP won against FG, even if the second-place PG team could win two matches, SVP still firmly held the first position in the playoffs.
The long regular season finally came to an end, and after a few days of rest, the playoffs were about to begin. The schedule was released on the same night as the end of the regular season matches.
As the first-place team, SVP, without surprise, advanced to the semifinals, scheduled for the last few days.
The summer playoffs lasted for a month in total. The first few days featured matches for the teams at the bottom, following a BO5 format
SVP’s match was on August 20th, playing against the winner of the previous round. If SVP could continue winning, they only needed to play two BO5 matches to advance to the grand finals. If they lost one match, they would have to go through the loser’s bracket and climb up again.
Two days after the regular season ended, the playoffs began. Even though SVP’s match was a week later, nobody in the team dared to slack off; they intensified their training every day. Xia Zeyu’s issue was pointed out, and after a heart-to-heart conversation with Coach A’kang, Tao Zi made up his mind. Jiang Mo no longer had the ease he had during the regular season; he trained harder with the other players. It was often Xia Zeyu and him rotating into training matches.
To the outside world, Xia Zeyu was the main player, and Wish was just a substitute.
For everyone in SVP, both Xia Zeyu and Jiang Mo were the most important key players in the team.
Chi Yu amicably parted ways with his former company, and someone was looking after his studio. He agreed to take a break for the latter half of the year, truly taking on a hands-off role.
Before meeting Jiang Mo, during the time he didn’t have work, Chi Yu’s routine was like this: he would cancel all gatherings with friends, read books, pet the cat, or sleep. It seemed very boring, but it was what he enjoyed. He liked extreme quietness, and the base was located in the suburbs, which were quiet during the day, fitting his idea of a vacation.
After Jiang Mo finished training, his greatest pleasure was to hug the Jiang Mo plush pillow and take a good nap.
After supervising Jiang Mo finishing lunch, Chi Yu took a walk in the garden corridor outside the base. When he returned, he saw that his phone, left in the room, had received seven or eight missed calls.
Chi Yu frowned and returned the call to his friend, Gu Rui.
“Haven’t I told you not to disturb me during this time?” Chi Yu said.
“It’s not that,” sighed Gu Rui on the other end of the phone. “Your assistant didn’t dare to offend you, so she sadly contacted me. What can I do? The kid is too pitiful.”
“What’s the matter?” Chi Yu asked.
Gu Rui replied, “Someone caught you having an affair with your team’s jungler. They’re asking if you’re willing to buy the negatives from them.”
Chi Yu: “…”
Gu Rui knew that Chi Yu was the owner of the SVP team. He occasionally played games with Chi Yu and watched the matches when he was bored.
He also knew about the recently popular Wish player. He never expected that Wish would be involved with Chi Yu.
Upon hearing this news from Dashuang, Gu Rui spat out the wine he was drinking from his blind date, and the other person slapped him hard. His face still hurt.
Chi Yu chuckled, “How much is he asking for?”
“Eight million,” Gu Rui said.
Chi Yu: “Tell him to get lost.”
Gu Rui was dumbfounded, “You really don’t intend to deal with this? If it gets exposed, do you know how much it will affect your career?”
Chi Yu knew the reason why Jiang Mo didn’t want to reveal his identity, and he respected Jiang Mo’s choice.
He didn’t try to persuade Jiang Mo, saying things like “No one will curse you online anymore.”
Now they all cherish you…
He felt that even if he said it, Jiang Mo probably wouldn’t believe him. So, there was no need to explain. Besides, who knew if some fence-sitters might turn against Jiang Mo.
He selfishly wanted to possess Jiang Mo, and only he knew about this treasure.
Everyone knew that Jiang Mo was won over by Chi Yu, solely Chi Yu’s.
However, they didn’t know that Wish was also Chi Yu’s.
If the gossip media wanted to expose something, go ahead, it would help him solve a problem.
He wasn’t the one revealing Jiang Mo’s identity.
Let everyone know that Wish belonged to him, and see who still dared to mention marrying Wish.
The little cat agilely jumped onto the sofa where Chi Yu was sitting. It softly meowed and nuzzled its head into Chi Yu’s hand.
Chi Yu’s eyes were full of tenderness. He petted the white fur of the cat’s head, as if trying to recall the softness of the ‘little white cat’ downstairs through this touch.
Chi Yu: “What impact could it have? If the other party doesn’t expose this, it only affects my feelings.”
Gu Rui couldn’t help but be astonished. He had always thought Chi Yu was an upright person.
Knowing that Chi Yu did such crazy things for Jiang Mo, pursuing when told to pursue, quitting shows when told to quit, he went from shock to calm in less than ten minutes. He understood Chi Yu, that he would indeed do such things.
But, how long has it been? He hasn’t been dating Jiang Mo for even three months, right? And he’s already changing partners so quickly?
When did Chi Yu become like this?
“Did you break up with Jiang Mo?” Gu Rui worriedly asked.
Chi Yu frowned, “Why would I break up with him when we’re doing well?”
Gu Rui: “…” How could Chi Yu say such a cruel thing with a straightforward tone?
Having a boyfriend and cheating? What a scoundrel!
Gu Rui reminded in a hushed tone, “Although Jiang Mo has withdrawn from the circle, before he left, he really played with his fans. He had millions of die-hard fans. Let me tell you, this is not a small number; these are genuine die-hard fans! Every day, people leave nostalgic comments under his Weibo posts…”
Chi Yu sneered, “People reminisce only after someone’s gone. What’s the use?”
Gu Rui said, “…You’re being too much. Your choice of words…”
Jiang Mo wasn’t dead, so this statement sounded strange.
Gu Rui continued, “Do you really like that jungler? Geez, as your childhood friend, I truly feel sorry for you. When did you become like this, a fickle-hearted man! Do you know how pitiful Jiang Mo is? His adoptive parents were never kind to him since he was little, exploiting him. Even on the show, he was bullied by those people. I thought you would wholeheartedly support him, but I was wrong. From now on, I don’t want you to be my best brother…”
Chi Yu said, “I forgot to tell you something.”
Gu Rui was still feeling indignant on behalf of Jiang Mo at the other end of the phone. His tone became heavier, “What?”
Chi Yu stated, “Wish is Jiang Mo.”
Gu Rui: “…”
…
In the semifinals, a total of four teams vied for a spot in the finals. In previous years, the semifinal spots shuffled between teams like OS, PG, RAG, UN, CAG, and FG. Since the entry of SVP last year, the competition for semifinal spots intensified this year.
SVP and PG teams had already secured two spots, leaving RAG and UN teams in fierce competition for the remaining spots after a heated contest.
Yesterday, the second-place PG team faced off against the UN team.
Previously, whenever the UN team encountered the PG team, they always ended up in defeat. This time, a miracle happened. The two teams played a full BO5, and UN, with a hard-fought 3:2 victory, advanced to the next stage.
Today, SVP was about to face their old rival, the RAG team.
SVP and RAG had a special connection, often meeting as opponents in important matches, be it the opening match or the semifinals.
Just as the SVP team arrived at their resting room, Xu Ta came in with a gloomy face.”Do you know? The previous losses to you were just a prelude.”
“And then?” Xie Ning rolled his eyes.
Xu Ta: “So, this time, we will definitely win. A victory often requires countless sacrifices.”
“Got it!” Li Yuan pushed Xu Ta out and handed him a packet of candy before closing the door. “This is a gift for you all. When you feel like crying later, just suck on the candy. If you eat the candy, you won’t cry.”
“You…” Xu Ta’s voice was blocked outside the door.
Coach A’kang clapped his hands and said to the people eating in the resting room, “Although we’ve taken quite a few points from RAG, they won’t go into battle unprepared. Don’t underestimate them later, especially Tao Zi.”
Tao Zi, halfway through sucking his noodles, had them bitten off. He stared blankly at the coach and nervously said, “I understand, I won’t chicken out.”
…
In this round, Coach A’kang still had Xia Zeyu try the waters first.
During the ban-pick phase, Xia Zeyu’s Foyego
This was the first time since the S tournament that Xia Zeyu’s hero had been banned, indicating fear and acknowledgment from the opponents.
[“Wow, long time no see! Xia Zeyu is finally being taken seriously.”]
[“Wuwuwu, our Xiao Yu has finally risen. It’s really not easy.”]
[“Hehe, what’s the use of rising now? In the next season, Wish will replace Xia Zeyu as the starting player!”]
[“Being replaced only means Xiao Yu isn’t as skilled. We admit it, but please don’t provoke. Wish and Xiao Yu are both good. Without Wish, there wouldn’t be the current Xia Zeyu. Wish is Xiao Yu’s master and also our master.”]
[“That’s right!”]
Xia Zeyu emphasized multiple times during the live broadcast that Jiang Mo was very kind to him and taught him a lot. Xia Zeyu’s fans were grateful to Jiang Mo, and this gratitude extended to becoming fans of Wish.
As Coach A’kang emphasized before the match, SVP was changing, and RAG was changing too. In response to SVP’s changed tactics, RAG had long prepared countermeasures.
Tao Zi’s fear had always been facing Gao Ze. In previous matchups, Tao Zi played defensively, rarely securing kills in the mid lane. Sometimes, this situation troubled Gao Ze too. If he went to gank, Tao Zi would quickly push the lane, forcing Gao Ze to return to defend the turret. When he returned, Tao Zi would freeze the minion wave, refusing to engage in a fight.
This time, RAG’s main target wasn’t top laner Xie Ning or AD Carry Tang Zi; it was the unexpectedly timid Tao Zi.
Xu Ta and Gao Ze collaborated in two waves. The first time, they only forced Tao Zi’s Flash. The second time, with Tao Zi having no Flash, they took down Tao Zi under the tower, pushed the mid lane, and then Gao Ze’s Lissandra
“This game is not going well,” Jiang Mo said in the resting room, and Coach A’kang nodded in agreement.
Tao Zi was the LPL’s top surviving player, and it took a lot of patience to lane against him. You had to endure a long and boring laning phase. Often, you couldn’t wait for that moment and would be eager to kill Tao Zi, only to be killed by him.
Gao Ze became impatient this time and coordinated with Xu Ta to go after Tao Zi.
The synergy between Lissandra and Lee Sin was excellent. Lissandra offered control, while Lee Sin’s ultimate could kick Tao Zi out of the turret’s range. Tao Zi excelled at turret diving, and one-on-one fights under the turret wouldn’t allow him to shine.
The mid lane went down first, and originally, Tao Zi was a player with limited impact in the early game. Collapsing the mid lane didn’t have a significant effect on the team, but losing the mid turret had a more significant impact. With SVP’s mid lane turret down, Gao Ze was freed up.
Tao Zi could continue with his usual strategy of clearing waves in the mid lane, but the distance from the second turret to the opposite first turret had increased, giving Gao Ze and Xu Ta enough time to clear Tao Zi’s waves after ganking.
Due to the continuous harassment from Gao Ze and Xu Ta, the bot lane duo, Tang Zi and Li Yuan, couldn’t farm effectively. In this match, only top laner Xie Ning held his ground, but RAG’s Best was also a seasoned veteran with impressive skills. During team fights, Best focused on restraining Xie Ning, making it impossible for Xie Ning to dive into the backline. As a result, this game was lost without any surprises.
“It’s my fault. We lost in the draft.” After the players left the stage, Coach A’kang didn’t wait for Tao Zi to speak and admitted his mistake first.
“Coach, it’s not your fault; it’s mine…”
Tao Zi hadn’t finished his apology when he was interrupted by Jiang Mo again, “Coach, let me play in the next round.”
Everyone looked at Jiang Mo. He looked at Tao Zi expressionlessly and calmly said, “I’d like to evaluate Tao Zi’s training progress.”
Tao Zi: “…”
Xia Zeyu sympathetically patted Tao Zi’s shoulder and said with heartfelt emphasis, “Brother, I’m giving my position to you.”
Tao Zi: “…”
In the second game, when the audience in the live broadcast room heard the announcement about SVP personnel changes, they were puzzled.
[“What? Did I hear it wrong? Wasn’t the last game Xia Zeyu’s fault? Why not switch the mid laner and keep the jungler?”]
[“Ah, but seeing Wish makes me happy, so it doesn’t matter if it’s not a mid lane switch.”]
[“For a scaredy-cat like Tao Zi, it’s better to bring Xiao Xi. At least Xiao Xi dares to be aggressive. I don’t want to see the mid lane farming for ten minutes and doing nothing.”]
Before Jiang Mo went on stage, he deliberately waited until all his teammates had left, then hugged Chi Yu gently. He whispered in Chi Yu’s ear, “You, you have to keep watching me.”
Chi Yu chuckled softly, “Okay, I will keep watching you.”
Jiang Mo would say this to Chi Yu every time before going on stage, as if it was his obsession. He desperately needed Chi Yu’s attention.
He wanted the person he liked to know that he also had his strengths, that he was worthy of Chi Yu’s sincere affection.
…
In the ban-pick phase, RAG consecutively banned Jiang Mo’s Foyego
[“666, it seems like RAG was scared after the Wish vs. FG match. These two quad-kill champions are indeed intimidating.”]
[“So what will Wish play then? I remember his Lucian
[“Elise is also fine, he plays Elise
very well too.”]
In this BP phase, SVP had the first pick, and Coach A’kang first picked champions for the bot lane and the top lane, leaving two positions to be chosen.
When it was RAG’s turn to pick champions, following the same routine as the previous round, Gao Ze once again chose Lissandra, and Lee Sin was banned. Xu Ta chose Hecarim
, a highly mobile champion, to complement Lissandra, forming a strong combination.
Picking Lissandra before the opponent’s mid laner selection was a confident choice. There are many champions that counter Lissandra, but Gao Ze wasn’t afraid that Tao Zi would choose champions like Kassadin
For the last two picks for SVP, there was no hesitation, and they quickly locked in their choices.
Jiang Mo chose Olaf
They had never seen Tao Zi play an assassin champion in the competitive arena, and he picked Zed right off the bat? Wasn’t this a joke?
Tao Zi made light of the situation and asked Jiang Mo through his headset, “Master, will I not be able to return to SVP tonight? Will everyone scold me to death?”
Jiang Mo: “If you play well, you won’t be scolded. If you want to be scolded to death, just cower under the tower.”
Tao Zi: “…”
Xie Ning, Tang Zi, and Li Yuan suppressed their laughter. Fortunately, the three of them performed well and didn’t need Jiang Mo’s guidance.
Their consolation to their teammate was merciless teasing.
The director was quick-witted, focusing the camera on the mid lane matchup for this game. Following Jiang Mo’s advice, Tao Zi didn’t dare to cower under the tower. However, he also didn’t dare to get too close to Lissandra. Lissandra had control skills that could freeze nearby enemy champions. If Tao Zi went in, he would be targeted by Lissandra’s skills.
Both Lissandra and Zed had mobility skills for escape or engage. Without their ultimates, the two didn’t deal significant damage to each other. Even if Hecarim attempted to gank, Zed could use his skills to escape, making this game more flexible than the previous one.
Originally, they thought Tao Zi picked this champion just for show. However, Zed hit level 6 and immediately jumped on Lissandra. Using his ultimate to dodge Lissandra’s control skills, he managed to dodge Lissandra’s freeze while dealing damage. Lissandra tried to self-freeze in place during this process, becoming immune to damage for 2.5 seconds.
Lissandra tried to dodge Zed’s ultimate, little did she expect that, while she stood still, an Olaf jungler charged out from the river bush. They faced each other, waiting for Lissandra’s ultimate effect to wear off, then both used their skills to attack Lissandra.
Lissandra used her E skill to retreat under the turret. Olaf, known as a berserker, activated his ultimate which granted him immunity to any crowd control skills for 3 seconds and increased movement speed. Landing basic attacks or E skill on enemy champions extended the duration of his ultimate.
Olaf activated his ultimate and chased after Lissandra. After a few axe strikes, Lissandra’s life was claimed by Olaf.
Hecarim arrived a bit late and tried to engage Olaf. Olaf still had the effects of his ultimate and retreated furiously. Accompanied by Zed, Hecarim couldn’t push forward.
The rhythm of Gao Ze and Xu Ta was disrupted. Tao Zi picking Zed wasn’t the most shocking thing to everyone; what astonished them the most was that, after reaching level 6, Tao Zi didn’t stay under the turret but followed Jiang Mo to hunt for kills.
With a berserker Olaf and an assassin Zed, RAG’s AD couldn’t withstand the pursuit of an assassin and a berserk.
A double kill erupted in the bot lane.
This situation was too familiar, perfectly replicating RAG’s rhythm from the last round. They thought Zed was picked to battle Lissandra, but in reality, it was Olaf who was battling Lissandra, and Zed was primarily focused on RAG’s AD in the bot lane.
The coordination between Lissandra and Hecarim couldn’t materialize. Whenever Gao Ze wanted to support, a berserker Olaf would charge out from different bushes. No one could withstand Olaf’s onslaught. He would go crazy, throwing his skills at him when his ultimate was active. Even if Xu Ta wanted to help Gao Ze, he couldn’t, and RAG’s AD was helpless. Zed would focus on killing him and then retreat, denying him any chance to survive.
The RAG support was constrained by Tang Zi and Li Yuan. Either he died in Zed’s hands or in the hands of the opposing bot lane.After Gao Ze’s death, Olaf pounced on Xu Ta like a maniac. There was a significant difference in their equipment. Xu Ta could only use his speed-boosting skill to escape to his base.
“Dmn, is he faster or am I faster? He only has two legs, and I have four!” Xu Ta was infuriated, wanting to pound the table. “This mad dog, so annoying!”
“Tsk, others call him a mad dog, you’re at most a centaur. You’re just one ‘mad’ away from him!” The support interrupted his rage mercilessly.
Xu Ta: “…”
Gao Ze had a headache. Olaf countered him too effectively. He was utterly helpless. He used his ultimate to secure his own safety. This played into Jiang Mo’s intentions perfectly. During the 2.5 seconds when he couldn’t do anything, Jiang Mo could kill his teammates and then turn to beat him up.
As Xu Ta had said –
So annoying!
[“Hahaha, I’m dying of laughter. Why did Hecarim use his skill to escape when he saw Olaf!”]
[“Xu Ta, can you stop being so timid? You’re playing as Hecarim! Four legs can’t outrun two legs?”]
[“Can’t help it, the support not only provides movement speed but also bought movement speed-boosting items, trying to make the opponents die!”]
[“Xu Ta and Gao Ze will dream tonight, dreaming of being chased and hacked by Olaf!”]
[“Haha, that’s not a funny story. Being chased with an axe is pretty scary!”]
In the second match, SVP secured a victory, one win and one loss, they still needed to win two more matches.
In the next two matches, Jiang Mo played in both, the reason being to supervise Tao zi. Under the pressure Jiang Mo exerted, the next two matches were played relatively easily.
In the fourth match, the opposing team secured a comeback by taking the Baron and regaining some advantage. The game was dragged on for several minutes, with the economy almost evening out. The audience was worried that SVP would be pushed back by the opponents. There was another Baron fight. RAG first grouped in the top lane and killed Xie Ning, who was pushing the lane. After Xie Ning died, they immediately moved towards the Baron pit.
The vision around the Baron pit was cleared, and Jiang Mo and others knew that the opponents had started the Baron.
Xie Ning apologized over the headset, “I’m sorry, I was careless.”
No one said anything because, at this moment, even their breathing unconsciously became lighter.
Tang Zi’s Miss Fortune
Everyone was focused on the brawl on Tang Zi’s side, and few noticed that Jiang Mo had already reached the top of the Dragon pit. Before the Dragon’s health reached the end, he used his ultimate to jump into the pit, targeting Hecarim, who had been half health due to Miss Fortune’s ultimate. With the damage from the Dragon and the male gun’s ultimate, Hecarim was in critical condition. Instinctively, he smited the Dragon to heal, but Jiang Mo’s E skill followed up with a second smite.
SVP secured the Dragon, and instead of escaping with his flash, the male gun engaged in a fight with the AD, who was at half health, inside the Dragon pit. He dodged the control from the top laner, and with two bullets, he killed the AD and then finished off the adjacent top laner. RAG’s support and mid laner returned to support, but they had missed the best timing and helplessly watched the male gun take the top laner’s kill.
Jiang Mo dodged Thresh’s Q with his positioning and swiftly flashed to avoid the mid laner Syndra’s
close-range skills.
——Quadra kill.
Syndra fell, and the low-damage Thresh could only watch as he was helplessly slaughtered.
——Penta Kill.
The excited commentator shouted, “Let’s congratulate Wish for achieving the first Penta Kill of this season. This is also Wish’s first Penta Kill, breaking the record for a newcomer achieving their first Penta Kill.”
[“Ah, why is he so handsome!”]
[“The camera angle provided by the director was perfect. That cold, indifferent look just now almost killed me. This is what they mean by ‘killing without mercy’!”]
[“Wuwuwu, why is my husband so outstanding.”]
“This is awesome! He’s so cool!” Xie Ning and the others exclaimed excitedly.
“If it weren’t for Xiao Ying’s sacrificial ultimate just now, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to perform,” Jiang Mo said.
Xie Ning: “Brother, you’re too modest.”
Tang Zi: “I just accidentally dealt some damage.”
“As long as my teammates are alive, there’s hope.” Just before the enemy crystal exploded, Jiang Mo lightly uttered these words, a belated response to Xie Ning. It was also a way of making amends and telling his teammates, “If it weren’t for all of you, I wouldn’t have made it here. Sitting here now, you all are the hope of victory.”
He smiled, and the sudden bright lights above him pierced into his eyes, as if countless stars were falling into the depths of his eyes. Everyone was awestruck.
Chi Yu looked at the screen, equally stunned.
It was precisely because of this that he wanted to have Jiang Mo all to himself.
He knew that his little one was exceptionally outstanding, and someday, the world would focus on him.
A few minutes after the match ended, #WishPentaKill# appeared on the trending topics.
In recent years, more and more people have been paying attention to esports. During tournaments, whenever a popular team achieves good results or showcases spectacular plays, it trends.
Accompanying this trend was another related to Wish: #ChiYuCheatingOnWish#.
Gu Rui is an amazing friend and wonderful person. It takes a big heart to call out a friend for bad behavior, and brass balls to distance yourself from them if they won’t change. To do this all because of being offended on Jiang Mo’s behalf when they aren’t even that close? I award him this ‘good guy’ card for sure.