Starting with Zaozi Ge, a dream lineup

Chapter 234 Trying to force an old meal? Cleverly taking Xayah!
The book says that when a person is in a life-or-death crisis or when they break through their own limits, the central nervous system of the brain becomes extremely active due to the large secretion of adrenaline, and the control over the body reaches an incredible level.

In such situations, a series of incredible changes can occur, such as lifting a one-ton car with both hands, or cornering through a sewer during extreme drifting.

At the moment the base exploded, the five people sitting in the Jakarta stadium all had the feeling that the world suddenly slowed down and then returned to normal.

There is only one signal transmitted by adrenaline!
So exciting!
Although the match had ended, the screen began replaying the final tower-pushing scene.

The instant Irelia teleported down, Vayne made a slight twist of her waist, dodging the ultimate skill without even using her Q skill.

Once, twice, three times!
Despite being relentlessly attacked by Irelia, Vayne, equipped with Randuin's Omen, remained unmoved, withstanding the damage and pushing down the Korean team's base.

"We won! We won! In the second set, we withstood the pressure again and pulled off a series of extremely difficult plays. This is the Chinese team's tactic, and this is a miracle that only the Chinese team can pull off!"

The child excitedly stood up from the commentary seat, raised one arm high, and waved it excitedly.

"Who says our tactics are crude? Today, we'll use Chinese-style tactics to defeat the so-called Korean macro-management. From today onwards, who in League of Legends dares to disobey this Chinese team!"

"Commentators, calm down, sit down. There's still one more game to play. Calm down!"

Seeing that Wawa and Miller had already started celebrating, Ren Dong quickly used both hands to pull down his shirt out of the camera's view, indicating that the broadcast was still on CCTV.

However, Ren Dong was unaware that it was precisely because of the two commentators' passionate commentary that League of Legends attracted a large number of middle-aged fans.

Anyone sitting in front of the screen who sees this will be curious about what makes this game so appealing, and even if they don't understand it, they will feel excited.

"Haha, it's been a long time since we've had a match where we were running on the edge of life and death like this. This game really showed us the growth of the Chinese team. These young men did a great job!"

"Yes, I have some data here. In the League of Legends World Championship, no team has ever accomplished the feat of coming back from a 0-2 deficit to win 3-2. I don't think it will happen today either!"

With their combined efforts, the Chinese team's formidable strength instantly turned the tide in this unfavorable situation, allowing everyone, including the commentators, to recognize the true charm of League of Legends.

On the other side, at the moment the Korean team's crystal exploded, Li Luo's mind went blank as his heart raced, and an indescribable feeling echoed in his heart.

Wow, games can be played like this?

This kind of maneuver to steal a tower in a ranked game is mostly just luck, a matter of creating a time advantage.

However, in a competition, the simpler the decision, the harder it is to execute!

How can you use tactics that everyone knows? How can you achieve intentions that everyone knows?

No team, no player, no one dared to use such a risky move in a world-class national competition.

But today, Li Luo did it!
It's growth, it's transformation, it's a change in mindset. From the moment I came into this world, this should be an even more thrilling match than the S7 finals.

When his four excited teammates pulled him out of the chair and they surrounded him in a hug, and when everyone was so excited they almost roared to the sky, Li Luo finally came to his senses.

"There's one more game, brothers. Don't worry, just think of it as one more best-of-one game. We're the gods in best-of-one!"

"Little dog, little dog, you're amazing! This game is definitely one of the top ten classic matches!"

"South Korean team, from today onwards, we no longer need to live in their shadow with our heads down."

After the initial excitement, all that remained was endless感慨 (feelings of deep emotion).

"Oh, what's the big deal? It's just one game we won. Even if we lost, we'll carry the next game, okay?"

Seeing that the group was a bit too excited, Li Luo laughed and scolded them while putting his arm around the factory manager, who was still in a daze.

"You son of a bitch! Your chewing gum has fallen off and is stuck to your clothes, and you're still acting all high and mighty."

The factory manager, who looked disgusted, smiled as he spoke, but his pale face revealed the immense psychological and physical pressure this match placed on a veteran like him.

Before the match was over, there was no need to shake hands. The group chatted and laughed as they walked backstage.

Chris and team leader Feng, who greeted them at the entrance of the lounge, immediately gave the impression that everyone on the team had undergone some kind of qualitative change.

Feng is very familiar with this kind of qualitative change. This team gave him the same feeling during the S7 World Championship Finals, and now, that feeling has returned.

The last change brought resilience to the team members.

This time, it's a new trait—charging forward.

Even in adversity, we will not give up, nor will we be afraid of losing. Everyone is willing to take responsibility, rush to the front, and sacrifice themselves.

Suddenly back in the 22-degree air-conditioned lounge, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

It's too hot.

The temperature rises as the afternoon progresses, which is why there are fewer spectators in Jakarta.

Who can withstand the strain of an open-air stadium?
Unlike RNG, where Li Luo specially arranged fitness meals and created a fitness atmosphere, Clearlove in EDG, although he also standardized training, still lagged behind in terms of physical fitness.

It's very likely that in the third game, the decisive one, we'll have to switch to Xiangguo.

Sure enough, when the staff came to collect the list, the factory manager leaned close to Chris and whispered a few words to him.

The new roster was submitted, marking the first substitution for the Chinese team at the Asian Games. The factory manager was replaced by Mala Xiangguo.

It's normal that Langx wasn't replaced. Players in high-elo casual games know that high-level matches, especially those involving psychological warfare, are extremely energy-consuming, especially after experiencing a losing game, where the energy consumption can be several times greater.

Even in low to mid-level matches, after playing seven or eight games a day, an average person will feel exhausted and like they can only coast along. Forcing themselves to play will only result in losing points.

In many best-of-five (BO5) matches, even viewers in lower ranks can clearly see the players' decline in form, mistakes, and problems with teamwork in the final game.

But now, the factory manager has been replaced by a fully-fledged hot pot, and the meaning behind this is self-evident.

RNG at its peak makes its debut!

"This is CCTV-5 Sports Channel. You are now watching the e-sports competition of the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, League of Legends, the final game!"

"Welcome back, everyone. I'm Wawa, Miller, and Ren Dong, the commentators for this year's finals."

"Yes, in this decisive game, the three of us will still be providing commentary!" Jakarta is very hot, and the commentators outside are parched, but the three of them in the studio are full of energy. They have even changed into festive Chinese red suits, giving us a hint in advance.

The Chinese team's brilliant performance in the first two matches of the finals, from their decision-making in the first game to their rallies in the second, was thrilling and left viewers breathless. Now, even before the ban/pick phase of the third game, the three players are already getting excited.

"Just entered the live stream... Oh, new viewers in the channel, the situation is that our Chinese team is leading 2-0, has reached match point, and is about to play the match point game, also known as the life-or-death game." Ren Dong may not be good at commentary, but he is extremely professional in reporting the game situation:

"In the first two matches, the Chinese team was unstoppable, winning two games in a row. If they can win the third game, the South Korean team will miss out on the gold medal!"

"That's right, you can see that our national team players are in great form today, especially their comeback in the last game, which was very exciting. If they can maintain that level and win this game, we are very confident!"

"Yes, we have received news from the front that the Chinese team has changed their jungler, with mlxg replacing clearlove7. We thank clearlove7 for his excellent performance and look forward to more surprises from mlxg!"

While you can't jinx a team in a live stream, several people were cheering for the Chinese team in CCTV's live stream.

"We send our sincerest blessings to the young men who are fighting for our country. We have received news that the athletes have begun to enter the stadium. Let's now enter the draft and ban phase of the third and final game of the League of Legends final at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the screen in the CCTV live broadcast room suddenly switched to a BP interface.

In the third match, the two teams switched sides again. The South Korean team, who were on the blue side in the first match, returned to the blue side, while the Chinese team became the more advantageous red side.

After the first two matches, the Chinese team has clearly found the weaknesses in the South Korean team, while the South Korean team is still living in a dream, fighting individually and relying purely on their individual strength.

The excessive pursuit of stability and strategic play is one of the key reasons why European and American teams were able to dominate LCK teams in later generations.

As expected, kkoma opted for a safer approach in the third game, banning Ornn, Syndra, and Sejuani.

Very targeted, kkoma once again relied on old ideas and produced a draft that had no new ideas or changes whatsoever.

The only change is that Rakan has been released, and as the blue team, if he isn't banned, they have to pick him first.

The fact that Kkoma used a ban slot on Xiangguo's Sejuani shows how much he values ​​Xiangguo.

The Chinese team once again shut down Faker's Irelia, Olaf, and Kennen in the top lane, just like in the previous game.

"The Korean team's ban/pick strategy is still unclear. They already suffered from their draft picks in the first two games, and I didn't expect them to pick the same thing again in the third game. It feels like they haven't changed anything."

Even Miller couldn't understand Kkoma's inexplicable actions at this point, and continued his analysis:
"It seems the Korean team is going to pick Rakan in one hand, otherwise, if they let us have the Xayah-Rakan combination, they'll have a hard time dealing with it."

"But the puppy's Kai'Sa is still available. Is the Korean team planning to let her out since they haven't banned her?"

As soon as the words were spoken, the South Korean team made their first choice, revealing Luo's image.

Then, without any hesitation, I locked it in.

In an instant, when it was the red team's turn to select their positions, the two commentators on the commentary desk suddenly realized what they had done and exclaimed how brilliant it was.

"So that's what Kkoma was thinking. That instant pick was so targeted. This is the Korean team's research in the draft phase. This Rakan pick forces Uzi to pick Xayah directly. This is also why they don't target the ADC in the ban phase. A brilliant decision."

Hearing the commentator's explanation, the viewers in front of the screen realized just how cunning Kkoma's move had been.

The Chinese team was given two options: first, you pick Kai'Sa, and then we can have the Xayah and Rakan combo.

Secondly, you can pick Xayah, but in the current version, Xayah is only on the edge of T2 and could drop to T3 at any time. During the laning phase, she has a long development time, weak laning ability, and poor survivability.

The challenge was now in Chris's hands, and the screen then switched to a small display of the scene in the lower right corner.

In the video, Chris is speaking very quickly, but because there is no audio recording and the speed is so fast, it is impossible to understand what he is saying through lip reading.

After discussing for a while, the Chinese team locked in two heroes in the final time slot.

Kai'Sa, Daughter of the Void.

Nautilus, the Titan of the Deep Sea.

"They didn't choose Xayah, it seems they've let the Korean team have the Xayah-Rakan combo, this..." Wawa looked shocked and continued, "To be fair, Kai'Sa and Nautilus are also a Tier 1 bot lane duo in the current version, but..."
"But what?" Miller asked, looking puzzled.

"Miller, didn't you look at the pre-match data? In this Asian Games, in so many matches, every team that used the Xayah and Rakan combination didn't lose!"

In the nearly one hundred matches of the Asian Games, every team that got the Xayah and Rakan combo, even if there was a gap in strength on paper, invariably won, even if the game was very difficult.

That is
"The Xayah and Rakan combo is indeed very strong," Miller analyzed. "But this combination also has a big problem: we already have Nautilus. If we can pick a strong engage composition later, the Korean team will have a very difficult time."

"Able to take down one of the South Korean players in one move."

As they talked, they realized they couldn't continue.

In a version where Rakan can still use WR Flash, it's not impossible to instantly kill someone in front of Rakan, but:

too difficult!
However, to break the deadlock, besides initiating an attack and actively defending against counterattacks, it is undoubtedly a fight to the death, which is extremely difficult!

As expected, the Korean team immediately picked Xayah in their second pick, forming the Xayah-Rakan combo, and their third pick was "Garrison" for Faker, a champion that shone brightly in S7.

With Rakan initiating the team fight and Galio making a second entry, the Korean team's first three picks were absolutely perfect.

In contrast, the Chinese team chose Twisted Fate as their third pick.

In Li Luo's mind, the best hero to pick at this time would be Sylas, the Thief, but it's awkward because Sylas was only released in Season 9. In Season 8, the only heroes to counter Galio's support were Twisted Fate and Nocturne.

After much deliberation, I decided to acquire the card for subsequent point control.

"Mid lane Twisted Fate, bot lane Kai'Sa and Nautilus, the first three picks are good," Wawa said. "Our current lineup has great teamfight output and control, but it's weak in the early game. It's a standard mid-to-late game pick. The last two picks should be some early-game champions to ensure we can get through the early game."

"As expected, the Korean team gave both of their draft picks to the jungler. Let's see how both sides choose!"

Both sides played their last two hands properly, and the lineups for both sides were quickly finalized.

Blue team (South Korea) vs. Red team (China)
Top Lane: Gangplank vs. Shen

Jungle: Lee Sin vs Taliyah
Mid Lane: Galio vs. Twisted Fate
ADC: Xayah vs Kai'Sa
Support: Rakan vs. Nautilus
(End of this chapter)