LPL didn't want me? I joined SKT instead!

Lingshi Road, Shanghai.

Inside the WE eSports Club's meeting room, the air was so heavy it seemed to have solidified.

A contract covered with densely printed terms was slammed heavily onto the table by a large, fat hand, causing the paper cup next to it to shake violently.

"Sign it, Xiao."

WE's manager, Wang Lei, sat with his legs crossed, his eyes radiating an air of condescension. The cigarette dangling from his mouth trembled as he spoke. "Although your Lucian performance during the trial was passable, at WE, we have no shortage of mechanical geniuses. This 'Youth Training Talent Reserve Contract' is a blessing that many people would kill for."

Xiao Yan sat opposite him, his gaze sweeping over the terms of the contract, his brows gradually furrowing into a deep frown.

This isn't a contract; it's clearly a servitude agreement!

A ten-year contract with a penalty of 50 million, while the monthly salary... is only 2,500? It even states that "depending on performance, the player may be demoted to the second team or the bench, during which time the salary will be halved."

"Manager Wang, are you kidding me?" Xiao Yan raised his head, his eyes sharp. "Ten years? Two thousand five hundred? Are you recruiting professional players or cheap slaves? In the scrim just now, I crushed the enemy bot lane at level three, and my team fight damage share was 40%. Is this your assessment of me?"

Wang Lei chuckled and flicked his cigarette ash: "Young man, don't be so arrogant. Where do you think you are? This is the LPL! Without a club promoting you, no matter how good your skills are, you're just a random solo queue player. We're already being generous by giving you a minimum guarantee, don't push your luck."

"Then I really don't care about my reputation."

Without any hesitation, Xiao Yan stood up, grabbed his peripheral bag, and turned to leave.

"Don't regret it once you step out this door! In the entire LPL, apart from WE, no one will want a hothead like you who doesn't know his place!" Wang Lei's furious voice rang out behind him.

Xiao Yan didn't even pause before pushing open the door and leaving the smoky office behind.

Stepping out of the base gate, the cold wind of early winter blew, and Xiao Yan's feverish mind calmed down a little, followed by a deep sense of absurdity.

He is not a person of this era.

Or rather, his soul comes from the future when Lee Sang-hyeok had just lifted his sixth S-series trophy.

Just as he was watching the man known as the "Undying Demon King" on the screen climb to the top again, lamenting when LPL would regain its glory, he opened his eyes and found himself back at the beginning of Season 7.

S7 was the most regrettable year for LPL, and also the year without a national team at the Bird's Nest stadium.

Xiao Yan originally intended to seize this opportunity to use his advanced understanding and awareness to make a name for himself in this era dominated by incense burner monsters and where operations reign supreme, and save the LPL from its dire straits.

However, reality gave him a resounding slap in the face.

"Heh, save the LPL? They don't even look down on you."

Xiao Yan stood by the roadside, looking at the series of rejection messages on his phone, a self-deprecating bitter smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

EDG thought his playstyle was too aggressive and didn't fit the Maokai system; RNG said their all-Chinese roster was full and they only needed a substitute support; IG did watch the replay, but their management was busy drawing players and didn't have time to deal with him.

WE was the last club he tried out for.

It was also the last club in the country willing to give him a chance.

Now, even that door is closed.

"Having been reborn, am I really going to go back to being a game booster or working at an internet cafe?"

An unprecedented sense of frustration welled up inside him. The frustration of holding a winning hand but being unable to even get to the poker table caused his mentality to instantly collapse.

"This damn LPL, I might as well quit!" Xiao Yan kicked a pebble on the roadside hard.

Just then, a cold, mechanical voice suddenly exploded in his mind.

[A drastic fluctuation in the host's mental state has been detected...]

[Binding "Defense Break System"... Binding successful!]

This system aims to collect negative emotion points (breakdown points). Rewards are given for causing others (including but not limited to opponents, teammates, viewers, and commentators) to experience feelings of anger, helplessness, or breakdown.

Xiao Yan was stunned.

System? Cheat Code?

Before he could react, the system notification sounded again:

[The system detected that the host is experiencing extreme despair due to feeling "at the end of the road," achieving the achievement: I broke down in my own defenses.]

[Congratulations, host, you have received the Newbie Gift Pack: Hero Specialization - Caitlyn, the Sheriff of Piltover (Proficiency: 100/100, God-tier).]

[Bonus Passive Skill: Absolute Headshot (When calculating attack range, your perception will be accurate to the pixel level).]

Xiao Yan: "..."

Good grief, the first target to break through my defenses is myself? Isn't this system a bit too ridiculous?

However, as countless details about the policewoman's handling of situations, her movement rhythm, and her prediction of traps suddenly flooded his mind, Xiao Yan's originally gloomy eyes instantly lit up.

A super-talented policewoman!

In this S7 Ardent Censer patch, Caitlyn was nerfed in the early game, but as long as she gets going with her tower-pushing momentum, she's still an unstoppable force.

"With this technology, why would I be afraid of not having a team?"

Xiao Yan glanced back at the second-floor window of the WE base, a fire igniting in his heart.

Since you're all blind, I'll go in again and use this god-tier policewoman to completely crush your proud bot lane duo, making that Manager Wang kneel down and beg me to sign him!

Just as he clenched his fist, preparing to turn around and launch a surprise attack, staging a "don't underestimate a young man's potential" slap in the face—

"Buzz—"

My phone vibrated in my pocket.

It's a new email.

Xiao Yan subconsciously took out his phone and looked at it. The sender's suffix made his pupils shrink sharply.

From: SKT T1 Global Scouting Team

Subject: Trial Invitation

The email was written in English, and its gist was: We noticed your ID (Xiao Yan Reborn, who reached the top ten in the Korean server) in ranked games. Your playstyle is very aggressive and perfectly matches our tactical vision for the new season. If you are interested, SKT cordially invites you to Seoul for an offline tryout, with all airfare and accommodation covered. It was signed…KkOma.

Xiao Yan's hand holding the phone froze in mid-air.

A few seconds later, he glanced at WE's tightly closed doors, then at the "SKT" logo on his phone screen.

"puff."

Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Will WE slap them in the face again?

The layout is small.

Since LPL dislikes me and is offering me a ten-year contract, why don't I just go to LCK?

Go to SKT, be Faker's teammate, and in S7, the most desperate era for LPL, personally keep LPL teams out of the finals. Wouldn't it be even more satisfying to watch those managers and coaches who once looked down on you break down in tears in the audience?

This is the correct way to use a true "defense breaching system"!

"Manager Wang, thank you for not signing."

Xiao Yan waved in the direction of the WE base, his gesture extremely elegant.

Xiao Yan hailed a taxi.

"Driver, to Pudong Airport, and quick!"

"Alright! Young man, going on vacation?"

"No," Xiao Yan leaned back in his chair, watching the scenery rushing past the window, a playful smile playing on his lips, "Go and boost the intensity of the LPL."