LOL: What does it mean to torture players?

The battle drums of the Summer Season are about to sound amidst the increasingly loud cicada chirping of midsummer.

In the training room, the team members had completed the final version integration and tactical drills.

Soon, it was June 12, 2021. The Shanghai Hongqiao Tiandi Performing Arts Center was filled with stars and bustling crowds.

This is the official start date of the LPL Summer Split.

Soon, it was June 12, 2021. The Shanghai Hongqiao Tiandi Performing Arts Center was filled with stars and bustling crowds.

This marks the official start of the LPL Summer Split.

This year's LPL Summer Split remains a highly competitive landscape.

Seventeen top teams will engage in a brutal battle that will last for months, vying for the league's highest honor and the few remaining tickets to the S11 World Championship.

The participating teams include the four champions of the Spring Split: EDG, FPX, RNG, and TES, as well as a host of strong challengers such as LNG, WE, SN, and JDG.

The tournament format remains the same: a single round-robin BO3 points-based tournament in the regular season. The top ten teams will advance to the playoffs to compete for the final Silver Dragon Cup.

On the opening day of the Summer Split, the league officially arranged a highly anticipated clash of titans as the opening game—

EDG, the reigning MSI champions and Spring Split kings, will face off against Top Esports (TES), a top-tier team boasting "Golden Left Hand" Knight and the prodigy ADC JackeyLove!
Even before the match started, the atmosphere in the entire venue had already been ignited to a boiling point by the fans' enthusiasm.

In the commentary booth, LPL's "Haier Brothers" Miller and Wawa, as well as Rita as a special guest, were already in place.

"Welcome back to the 2021 LPL Summer Split!" Miller's voice was as passionate as ever. "After a month-long break, the battle is back! And today's opening match is an absolute clash of titans! MSI defending champions EDG will face off against LPL's top all-Chinese team, TES!"

Wawa also remarked, "Yes! EDG just proved their world-class dominance in Iceland, but back in the LPL, no team will be an easy target. Especially TES, after the Spring Split's adjustments and the off-season, they have only one goal: revenge!"

Rita then steered the conversation toward the man: "However, according to the starting lineup we received before the match, EDG's starting top laner today is Flandre. Mo... unsurprisingly, he's on the bench."

This news caused the live stream chat to scroll through comments at lightning speed.

What's going on? Mo Shen isn't playing in the opening match again?

[Standard procedure. Let Flandre find his rhythm during the regular season. Mo Shen is a nuclear weapon; we'll save him for the playoffs.]

I want to see Mo Shen beat 369! My youth is over!

The atmosphere in EDG's preparation rest room was as relaxed as ever.

Flandre is making his final preparations for the game, warming up his wrists.

"Flandre, relax," Clearlove said from behind. "The regular season is just for you to find your form. Winning or losing doesn't matter. Just play your own game."

"Understood." Flandre nodded, but his eyes unconsciously drifted towards the corner.

There, Su Mo was wearing headphones, leaning back on the sofa with his eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to everything around him. He hadn't even changed out of his team uniform, still wearing his casual T-shirt.

At 5:00 PM sharp, accompanied by rousing battle songs and dazzling light shows, the opening ceremony of the LPL Summer Split officially began!
At the center of the enormous stage, dazzling AR effects created statues of heroes, and flags representing the logos of the 17 teams slowly rose.

LPL's main host, Yu Shuang, dressed in a gorgeous gown, walked to the center of the stage and announced the official start of the Summer Split with her signature, infectious voice.

"Now, let's give a warm welcome to the two teams in the opening match—TES! And our 2021 MSI Mid-Season Invitational champions—EDG!!"

Amidst thunderous cheers, the TES players were the first to emerge from the tunnel. JackeyLove, with a confident smile on his face, waved to the audience.

Then, the EDG players took the stage.

The atmosphere reached its peak the moment they appeared on stage in their black and gold team uniforms!

"EDG! EDG! EDG!"

The unified shouts demonstrated the unparalleled popularity of this champion team.

Both teams are in position, setting up their equipment, and the competition is about to begin.

First game's draft phase.

TES, on the blue side, immediately banned Lillia and Riel, who had performed exceptionally well for EDG at MSI.

EDG specifically banned Zoe and Olaf, the signature champions of TES's mid and jungle players.

Ultimately, TES locked in Jayce, a champion with extremely strong laning capabilities, for their top laner 369, while Flandre picked Gnar to counter him.

In the mid lane, Knight picked Orianna, while Scout took Viktor.

In the bottom lane, JackeyLove's Kai'Sa faced off against Viper's Aphelios.

Thus, a textbook lineup for a showdown between the "Four Emperors" was born.

However, the course of the match poured cold water on EDG fans who were immersed in the joy of winning the MSI championship.

TES's mid and jungle players, Karsa and Knight, demonstrated their top-notch synergy from the very beginning of the match.

Karsa's Volibear frequently ganked the mid lane, helping Knight's Orianna establish absolute lane control.

Knight, having secured lane priority, began roaming with Karsa, constantly putting pressure on EDG's side lanes.

Especially the top laner, Flandre, whose Gnar struggled to develop under the constant harassment from 369's Jayce and Karsa's Volibear, with his turret's health being reduced to zero early on.

"TES's pace is too fast!" Miller analyzed from the commentary booth. "They don't give EDG any chance to play strategically at all. They just take advantage of their mid and jungle strength and keep trying to fight! Flandre is having a tough time!"

Despite the efforts of the other EDG members who put up a strong fight with their individual skills, the balance of the game tipped completely in TES's favor during the third dragon team fight at the 22-minute mark.

In that team fight, Knight's Orianna executed a perfect "hidden ball R flash", pulling in three EDG players who were grouped together with their ultimate!
JackeyLove's Kai'Sa flew in from the flank and finished off the enemy!
TES executed a perfect team fight with a 0-for-4 exchange, and then secured the Baron Nashor.

Finally, at 28 minutes, TES, with the huge advantage of the Baron buff, pushed down EDG's base.

1-0, TES takes the first game!
When the huge word "DEFEAT" appeared on the screen, the EDG fan area at the scene fell silent.

Back in the lounge, the atmosphere was somewhat somber.

Saint Gun lowered his head and said in frustration, "My bad, my bad, I didn't secure lane priority in the top lane, which allowed the enemy jungler to do whatever he wanted."

“It’s okay,” Abu said calmly. “It’s not just your problem. They’ve dictated our overall pace. They played very aggressively today, not giving us a chance to drag the game into the late game.”

The factory manager then looked at Flandre and asked, "Is 369's Jayce on the other side under a lot of pressure?"

Flandre gave a wry smile: "He played very aggressively, but mainly it was Karsa who was always in the back, so I didn't dare to go up and trade blows."

Just then, Su Mo, who had been leaning back on the sofa playing on his phone, suddenly spoke without looking up:

"Your Gnar vs. Jayce matchup is fine in terms of controlling your rage, but you're too focused on using Q to poke. Jayce has a minion wave advantage, so if you Q him, he'll just switch to hammer form and trade his combo with you. You'll always be at a disadvantage."

His voice wasn't loud, but it silenced the entire lounge.

Everyone's eyes were on him.

Su Mo put down his phone, finally sat up straight, and looked at Flandre: "If you're playing Gnar again next game, don't try to harass him, just control the lane. If he dares to come up and pressure you, just keep your rage a little short of red rage, wait for the minion wave to reach the tower, then transform and jump up to slam him. Karsa won't be of any use, it's a 2v2 under the tower, who has Gnar ever been afraid of?"

These words were like a bolt of lightning, cleaving through the fog in Flandre's mind.

He kept using conventional strategies in the laning phase, forgetting that he was EDG's top laner and had championship teammates standing behind him! He was playing too conservatively!

"I understand!" Flandre's eyes lit up again.

Abu and the factory manager exchanged a glance, both seeing the amusement in each other's eyes. "Next game," Abu said, looking at Flandre, "I'll give you Gnar again, dare you play?"

"I dare!" Holy Gun Bro answered decisively.

After a short break, both contestants returned to the stage.

In the second game, EDG switched to the blue side.

During the draft phase, EDG still allowed Jayce to be picked, and in the first three picks, they once again locked in Gnar for Flandre!

This choice surprised both the commentators and the audience.

"Still picking Gnar?" Wawa exclaimed in surprise. "Holy Gun's Gnar didn't perform well in the last game. Is EDG just being stubborn?"

Rita, however, had a different perspective: "I believe this is the result of communication between the coaching staff and the players. The problem in the last game wasn't the heroes, but the playstyle. Let's see if Flandre makes any changes in this game."

On TES's side, 369 didn't hesitate to lock in Jayce again, clearly wanting to rub salt into Flandre's wounds.

Game start!
Once the game started, everyone could clearly feel that Flandre's playstyle had changed!

He no longer focused on using his Q skill to harass, but instead concentrated all his energy on controlling the lane and managing his rage.

369's Jayce was still very aggressive, but Flandre's Gnar was like a slippery rock. You push him, he takes a step back, but he never gives you a chance to land a heavy punch.

Karsa's Volibear has returned to the top lane, hoping to replicate his success from the previous game.

However, just as he reached the river bushes, Flandre's Gnar abandoned the minion wave in front of the tower and retreated, giving him no chance at all.

After several unsuccessful attempts, Karsa had no choice but to shift his focus to the lower middle.

Meanwhile, under Su Mo's guidance, Flandre perfectly executed the "Red Fury Tactics Under the Tower".

Having just reached level six, 369's Jayce pushed the minion wave under the tower and habitually went forward to harass the enemy.

It's now!

Saint Gun's rage instantly turned red. He used his E skill [Light Jump] to step on a minion, then double-jumped high into the air, followed by his ultimate [Ah!], which slammed Jayce under the tower into the tower wall like a cannonball!
The turret's laser beam struck instantly!
Saint Gun followed up with W and Q skills, unleashing a smooth and fluid combo!
369's Jayce didn't even have time to use Flash before he was solo killed under the tower!

First Blood!

When the notification sound for the first kill rang out, the entire venue instantly erupted in cheers!
Saint Gun's solo kill under the tower was like a shot of adrenaline, instantly injecting energy into the hearts of the entire EDG team and all their fans!

"Solo kill!!!" Miller's voice suddenly rose, almost breaking the sound waves, "Holy Gun Bro! After being relentlessly ganked in the last game, he retaliated in the most valiant way this game! A perfect control of his rage and his operation under the tower, he directly cut down 369 who was bullying him in the last game!"

Wawa echoed, "This is our LPL top laner! You can pressure me, you can gank me, but if you give me even a fleeting moment, I can tear you to shreds! Flandre really got his revenge!"

In TES's team voice chat, 369 tapped the keyboard in frustration: "Damn it, I was too eager to pressure him and forgot about his anger."

Karsa's brows furrowed tightly.

His worst fears came true.

If the top lane fails to gain an advantage, or even becomes a disadvantage, then his entire upper jungle will face enormous pressure, and his invasion rhythm, on which he relies for survival, will be completely destroyed.

The game unfolded exactly as Karsa had predicted.

After returning to base, Flandre, having acquired Phage, became increasingly adept at maneuvering in lane. He was no longer the passive punching bag; instead, he began utilizing Gnar's form shifts to constantly kite and pressure Jayce's health. 369's laning pressure increased dramatically; not only could he no longer recklessly harass the turret, but even last-hitting became extremely difficult for him.

With the opening in the top lane, Jiejie's rhythm was instantly unleashed.

At 8 minutes, Jiejie's Diana easily secured the first dragon without any interference.

Ten minutes later, Diana immediately started attacking the Rift Herald.

On the TES side, Karsa didn't dare to contest the top half of the map because he was wary of Gnar's fighting power.

At 10 minutes, Jiejie released the Rift Herald in the mid lane, and together with Scout's Viktor, they successfully destroyed TES's mid lane tower, completely disrupting EDG's operational rhythm.

"EDG is alive! They're playing their most familiar rhythm!" Miller exclaimed excitedly, watching the situation on the field. "Flandre's advantage in the top lane is like a butterfly flapping its wings, triggering a storm that sweeps across the entire Summoner's Rift! Now it's TES's turn to suffer; their jungle vision is being completely suppressed!"

Having lost their rhythm, TES was forced to switch to defense, but EDG pressed their advantage relentlessly.

15 minutes later, the second dragon spawned.

EDG positioned themselves early and took advantage of the favorable terrain in the river.

TES knew they couldn't let this dragon go, so they had no choice but to bite the bullet and come to take over the team.

However, just as the two sides were grappling in the mid-lane river, Flandre, who was pushing the top lane, activated his teleport after pushing the minion wave into the second tower!
The teleportation point was a tricky spot behind the TES formation!
TES's formation was thrown into chaos instantly, with JackeyLove's Kai'Sa and support Rakan forced to retreat.

Just as they retreated, Meiko's Riel seized the opportunity!

Flash! W skill [Gravity Leap]!
With tremendous force, Ruier precisely struck Karsa, the jungler leading TES!

Scout's Viktor followed closely behind, and the Chaos Storm descended instantly!
At the same time, Flandre's Gnar landed, his rage full, and he instantly grew larger!
Like a prehistoric beast, he slammed the fleeing assistant Luo against the wall with a single blow!
Viper's Aphelios is in the safest position, activating Moonlight Cannon and dealing damage without pressure!

A perfect encirclement and split, an impeccable team effort!

TES's formation was completely torn apart, resulting in a lopsided team fight where 1 could be exchanged for 4!
EDG not only easily secured the dragon, but also pushed down TES's second mid-lane turret. The gold difference instantly widened to 5,000!
The outcome of the match has already been decided.

Back in the rest room, the atmosphere at EDG was completely different from after the first game.

"Nice, Flandre!" Jiejie excitedly punched Flandre on the shoulder. "That solo kill under the tower was crucial!"

Saint Gun scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly, but his gaze fell on Su Mo, who was still slacking off in the corner: "Mainly because... Brother Mo woke me up."

Abu came over and said with a smile, "It's not time for us to relax yet. In the next game, the decisive game, everyone needs to be on your toes!"

Then, his gaze turned to Su Mo.

"Brother Mozi," Abu's voice became serious, "In the third round, why don't you go up and finish this quickly?"

The whole team was invigorated!
Saint Gunner felt a huge sense of relief. He knew that the outcome of the game was already decided when this man decided to step onto the court.

Su Mo stretched and stood up from the sofa, his joints cracking loudly.

"Alright, let's stretch our muscles a bit, finish this quickly, and get some sleep when we get back," Su Mo said.

After a short break, when the host announced that EDG would be bringing in Mo for the third game, the entire Hongqiao Tiandi Performing Arts Center erupted in cheers!

"Mo!!!!"

"Mo Shen is on the field! TES can book their tickets home in advance!"

"My youth has returned! I've finally waited for you!"

The cheers from the fans were incredibly enthusiastic.

In the commentary booth, Miller got excited: "Here it comes! EDG has sent out their ace in the decisive game! That man, Mo, he has finally stepped onto the stage of the Summer Split! TES is now facing a fully-formed EDG! They are about to face the most terrifying top laner in the world!"

On the TES stage, 369 watched as the ID on the other side changed from "Flandre" to "Mo," and subconsciously sat up straight, his palms slightly sweaty.

The pressure came crashing down like a tidal wave. (End of Chapter)