LOL: What does it mean to torture players?

Amidst thunderous cheers, Su Mo and his teammates stood in the center of the stage, bowed to the audience, and then walked towards the red team's battle area belonging to EDG.

The moment he sat in that familiar gaming chair and put on his noise-canceling headphones, all the noise from the outside world was shut out, and all that remained was his own clear heartbeat and the relaxed conversations with his teammates in the team's voice chat.

"Brothers, let's play well in the first game of the new season and try to get off to a good start." Meiko, as the captain, gave his routine pre-match pep talk.

"Viper, don't be nervous," Jiejie said with a smile to the new AD beside him, "I'll take you flying today."

Viper simply nodded quietly, but a burning fighting spirit burned in his sharp eyes.

Arriving in the LPL, joining a championship team, and playing alongside legends, he longs to prove himself with a perfect victory.

Of course, with Mo on the field now, he felt that the outcome of this game was no longer in doubt.

On the other side, the atmosphere at the LNG team's booth was as heavy as still water.

The coach gave them his final instructions: "Remember our tactics! Don't engage them at level one, play it safe! Tarzan, focus on the top lane in the early game, absolutely do not let Mo gain an advantage, once he snowballs, we're done for!"

LNG's top laner, M1kuya, is currently clasping his hands together, his palms already glistening with sweat.

He looked at the ID opposite him—EDG.Mo—as if he were looking up at an insurmountable mountain.

"Don't be nervous, just do it the way we've practiced." Icon, the team's senior mid-laner, patted him on the shoulder, trying to put him at ease. "Don't treat him like a god, just treat him like an ordinary opponent."

That being said, Icon's own eyes were filled with apprehension.

Meanwhile, Tarzan, the team's core jungler, stared intently at the screen, frantically mentally simulating the upcoming match.

He knew that the key to this match lay in the game between Ueno and Ueno.

He will not only be facing EDG's champion jungler Jiejie, but also Mo, who may disappear from the lane at any time and likes to sneak into other people's jungle.

With both players ready, the match officially entered the draft phase!

"Alright, viewers! The highly anticipated opening match of the S11 Spring Split, the draft phase has officially begun!" Miller's voice was loud and passionate from the commentary booth.

Wawa followed up: "Let's take a look at the strategy between the two coaches! How will LNG, on the blue side, target EDG, especially Mozi?"

As expected, LNG's first three bans showed Su Mo a great deal of respect.

"Aatrox! Irelia! Sylas!" Miller shouted, looking at the ban list on the screen. "LNG has banned three of the strongest top lane champions! Their intention is too obvious; they're just preventing you from getting your favorite carry-type top laner!"

On EDG's side, coach Abu and Clearlove appeared calm and composed.

They banned Olaf and Pantheon, strong junglers in the current patch, as well as Lillia, a versatile champion for mid and top laners, in an attempt to limit Tarzan's champion pool.

After the banning phase ends, the selection phase begins.

On the first floor of LNG, they decisively locked in Kai'Sa, a Tier 1 ADC for their own ADC player, Light.

At Viper's own request, EDG acquired the equally strong ADC Samira and Meiko's signature champion Riel, forming a highly aggressive bot lane duo.

LNG then locked in Udyr as jungler and Alistar as support.

This is a tempo-based jungler that Tarzan excels at, using Alistar's strong engage to look for opportunities in the mid-game.

When it was EDG's turn to pick a champion, Scout didn't hesitate to lock in Orianna, a versatile teamfight carry.

Now, the pressure is on LNG; they need to select their top and mid laners first.

After a brief discussion, LNG locked in Viktor for mid lane on the fifth floor. Subsequently, their top laner M1kuya, at the coach's instruction, chose a relatively stable champion – Renekton.

"Crocodile!" the doll analyzed. "LNG's choice is very smart! Crocodile has strong laning ability and is not easy to be solo killed. Even if he can't win, he can withstand the pressure."

Now, all eyes are on EDG's final pick.

On the screen, the character selection box representing Su Mo began to flash.

Faced with a Renekton determined to withstand pressure, what hero will he choose to counter? Will he also choose a scaling hero to farm peacefully, or...?

Just when everyone thought he would choose a long-range or late-game carry to counter him, Su Mo's fingers lightly tapped on the keyboard, and then, a hero that surprised the entire audience was instantly locked on!

"It has to be me!"

His domineering and unrestrained voice resounded throughout the venue.

Sett, the Sett!
"Sett?!" In the commentary booth, Miller and Wawa exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes. "Mozi's last pick was Sett! This champion has a very low pick rate in the current version, both in competitive and ranked games! He hasn't appeared on the competitive stage for a long time!"

At the same time, the LPL official live stream room instantly exploded with excitement.

"??? Am I seeing things? Sett top lane?"

"This champion is too clunky. He's easy to beat Renekton, but what use is he in team fights?"

"Oh no, Mozi is up to his old tricks, are we going to lose this game?"

"Sett is indeed strong in lane, but in the current version, he's too easy to kite. He doesn't feel as good as Camille or Kennen."

"Stop criticizing! What do you know? This is called hero confidence! Whatever hero God picks, that hero becomes the answer to the meta!"

"All I can say is that Mo Shen did his best. It's not his fault that he lost this game; it's the hero's fault."

Online opinions instantly polarized, with optimistic and pessimistic voices arguing fiercely.

The LNG players were also taken aback when they saw Sett's pick.

"Sett?" M1kuya asked the coach uncertainly, "This champion... we don't think we've encountered him much in scrims."

The coach frowned and pondered, "He probably wants to exert absolute dominance online. M1kuya, be careful, don't fight him head-on, wait for Tarzan to come."

Although they said that, the entire LNG team secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least, not the kind of Irelia or Aatrox who can fly through the air and take the enemy general's head from the midst of a massive army.

Sett, this champion, doesn't seem... that scary.

Amidst much discussion, the lineups for both sides were finally finalized.

Blue side LNG: Top laner Renekton, Jungler Udyr, Mid laner Viktor, ADC Kai'Sa, Support Alistar.

Red team EDG: Top laner Sett, jungler Lillia, mid laner Orianna, ADC Samira, support Riel.

"Alright, both teams have finished their adjustments, and their runes and summoner spells have been finalized!" Miller's voice drew the audience's attention back to the arena. "We can see that Mozi's Sett has chosen Conqueror as his primary rune, along with Flash and Ignite! It's worth mentioning that LNG's Renekton is also using Ignite and Flash. It seems M1kuya isn't going to play passively; he wants to secure kills in lane!"

Miller nodded: "Yes, even if he can't beat Mozi, no one will be surprised. But if he manages to kill Mozi in one-on-one, that would be something to be proud of. So it's not a problem for him to fight a little more aggressively."

As the countdown ended, the ten players officially entered Summoner's Rift!

Welcome to Summoner's Rift!

The familiar system notification sounded, announcing the official start of this opening battle!

"Alright, the match officially begins! Neither side opted for a level 1 team fight invasion; instead, they're adopting standard defensive positioning." Wawa spoke calmly and deliberately. "Let's look at the top lane. Both top laners started with a Doran's Blade and a Health Potion, indicating they're both planning to trade blows!"

The minion waves quickly converged in the mid lane and then slowly moved towards the lane. Su Mo, controlling Sett, did not rush forward but stayed beside the minions.

M1kuya's crocodile also demonstrated considerable experience.

He knew Sett was very strong at level one, but he had Ignite and didn't want to completely give up lane control. He controlled Renekton and stepped forward as well, trying to create a standoff with Sett, neither giving an inch.

"The atmosphere in the top lane is really tense!" Miller keenly sensed the tense atmosphere in the laning phase. "Both sides are fighting for control of the minion wave. Whoever can reach level two first will gain the initiative in the first wave!"

Su Mo looked at the crocodile in front of him, a slight smile playing on his lips.

He knew that the crocodile could trade blows effectively by leveling up Q at level one, but he was even more aware that Sett's passive "Battlefield Spirit" combined with his Q skill gave him an advantage in sustained trades.

Sure enough, when the first melee minion was low on health, M1kuya couldn't hold back any longer. He stepped forward and unleashed his Q skill, trying to harass Sett while finishing off the minion.

The moment the crocodile raised its hand, Su Mo moved!
He took a step forward and delivered a right punch with the second passive effect! As the Crocodile's Q skill damage landed, Su Mo's Q skill [Subduing the Enemy's Might] was also pressed instantly, resetting the auto-attack!
AQ-AA!

A smooth and fluid combo was executed in a very short time!

Sett's Conqueror runes stacked instantly, dealing astonishing damage.

Although M1kuya's Renekton also landed a QA on Sett, Sett's health bar dropped much faster!

M1kuya felt a chill run down his spine; he hadn't expected his opponent's desire to attack to be so strong and so decisive.

He quickly retreated, took a healing potion, and frowned slightly as he looked at his health, which had dropped to two-thirds.

With just one roster change, the advantages and disadvantages of the online teams have become clear.

Fortunately, the crocodile has strong lane sustain, so as long as you pay attention to trading blows later on, you don't have to worry about being solo killed.

Su Mo did not continue the pursuit, but instead began to consciously control the minion wave.

He only last-hit minions, allowing the minion wave to slowly push back towards him, while using positioning to pressure M1kuya, making him cautious even when trying to gain experience.

The first wave of minions was quickly cleared out.

Just then, the second wave of minions arrived at the top lane.

Su Mo knew that his opportunity had arrived.

He calculated with precision, and the moment the second melee soldier in front of him was about to fall, he began to press forward.

M1kuya's nerves tensed up instantly!
He knew his opponent was going to take the second spot, so he instinctively tried to create some distance between himself and the opponent.

But, it's too late!

The instant the melee minion turned into gold, Su Mo's Sett flashed with golden light and instantly leveled up to level two!

Without the slightest hesitation, without the slightest doubt!

The instant he upgraded, Su Mo immediately pressed Flash!

call out!
A golden light flashed, and Sett's figure instantly traversed a distance, appearing on the face of the crocodile who was trying to retreat!
Then start with a basic attack.

M1kuya was a little confused.

He flashed in at level two and started attacking! Has this Sett gone mad?!

After taking two basic attacks and seeing that he only had half health left, M1kuya hesitated and did not use Flash. Instead, he turned around and took the experience from a minion.

He planned to farm minions to reach level two, then use his E skill to escape, saving a Flash. When his jungler arrived, he was sure they could kill Sett together.

As one of the enemy minions fell, the crocodile did indeed level up to level two.

But when he reached level two, he was hit twice by Sett, and his health was down to only one-third.

M1kuya instantly activated his E skill and pressed it immediately. He intended to use E to pass through Sett's body and then use the second E to escape.

But to his surprise, as soon as he used his E skill, Sett interrupted it with another E, and he was left in a brief state of stun.

The next moment, Sett pressed his Q skill, and after two punches, Renekton was left with only a little over 80 health.

M1kuya's face turned green. He hurriedly used Flash to run away, but as soon as he used Flash, he found a flame above his head.

The ignition of the stunner.

Four seconds later, M1kuya watched helplessly as his crocodile fell under the tower.

Yes, they were burned to death.

"First Blood!"

The notification sound of First Blood echoed throughout Summoner's Rift.

The LNG team voice chat was completely silent.

Tarzan looked at the devastating news coming from the top lane, his mouth slightly open, but he couldn't utter a single word.

He originally planned to counter-gank in the top lane after clearing the red buff, but the opponent's attack was so fast that he didn't have time to react at all.

And how the hell is M1kuya able to die even after using his flashbang? Is he a bot?!

Although he really wanted to curse, Tarzan could only offer words of comfort since it was a competition.

"No...it's okay, M1kuya, hold on, wait for me."

Meanwhile, EDG's voice chat was filled with relaxed praise.

"Wow, Mozi! He killed the other team in just two minutes!" Jiejie shouted excitedly.

Although Viper didn't speak, his eyes were filled with awe as he looked at the icon representing Sett on the top lane of the minimap.

Is this the power of God?
Meanwhile, the development of other routes is also progressing steadily.

In the mid lane, Scout's Orianna and Icon's Viktor were farming peacefully, both probing each other and neither gaining an advantage.

In the bottom lane, Viper's Samira and Meiko's Riel, with their stronger laning duo, slightly suppressed Light's Kai'Sa and gained a slight lead in CS.

But everyone knows that the rhythm of this game has been completely rewritten because of the level 2 solo kill in the top lane.

After securing the solo kill, Su Mo's Sett still had half a health bar left, mostly from minions.

Instead of immediately returning home, he slowly pushed a large wave of minions towards LNG's turret before choosing to recall to base for supplies.

Since the other side didn't teleport, he didn't panic.

M1kuya's crocodile will lose the experience and economy of two whole waves of troops because of this death.

The snowball on the road has already started rolling.

At least that's how Su Mo sees it. Next, all they need to do is call in the jungler to gank the opposing team! (End of Chapter)