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

"Then just be yourself."

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

After saying this, Xiao Yan didn't offer any further philosophical insights, nor did he wait for Xiao Huasheng's response. He knew that some obstacles could only be overcome by oneself. He waved his hand, turned around, pushed open the glass door to the terrace, leaving Xiao Huasheng with a dashing back view, and went straight back to his room to sleep.

On the terrace, only Peanut remained.

A cool night breeze ruffled the stray hairs on his forehead. He gazed at the twinkling lights of the Seoul Tower in the distance, his mind replaying Xiao Yan's words and the unrestrained, wild images of himself during his time with ROX Tigers.

Back then, even if he played Elise, he dared to invade the enemy jungle at level two; even if he played Lee Sin, he dared to kick the enemy carry back from the middle of a huge enemy team.

"Be myself again..." Peanut murmured to himself, his eyes gradually clearing from confusion, finally settling into a long-lost sharpness. "Yes, I am Peanut, I am a carnivorous jungler, why force myself to be a herbivore who only places wards?"

That night, Xiao Yan didn't know when Xiao Huasheng went back to his room to sleep.

Even the next morning, when Xiao Yan walked into the training room yawning, he found that familiar figure already sitting in front of the computer.

The morning sunlight streamed through the blinds and fell on Peanut's profile. The face that had once been filled with gloom and self-doubt now wore a smile again.

That wasn't a forced smile, but rather a sense of ease and confidence after a heavy burden had been lifted.

On the screen, Peanut is practicing Gragas and Jarvan IV in custom mode.

Although these two heroes are often built with tank items to act as frontliners in the current version, in Peanut's hands, they seem to have a different soul.

"Bang!"

On the screen, Gragas used his E-Flash to precisely collide with the dummy, followed by his ultimate to blast back. The entire sequence of actions was fluid and full of aggression.

Hearing footsteps behind him, Peanut took off his headphones and turned his chair around.

Eyes facing each other.

Xiao Yan, holding a carton of milk, raised an eyebrow: "Up so early?"

Little Peanut looked at Xiao Yan, his smile deepening. He didn't say anything sentimental, but simply looked earnestly into Xiao Yan's eyes and solemnly said:

"Thanks, bro."

These four simple words carry a great deal of weight.

Xiao Yan, biting his straw, smiled slightly and casually waved his hand: "Why thank me? If we lose the competition, I'll be the first to criticize you."

"Don't worry." Peanut put his headphones back on, turned to face the screen, and said with a hint of ruthlessness in his voice, "I won't give you that chance."

……

In the following weeks, LCK viewers were surprised to find that Peanut, the "Jungle King" who once struck fear into the hearts of many, seemed to have really returned.

Although he still chose champions that were strong in the current meta, such as Jarvan IV, Gragas, and even Zac, his playstyle underwent a complete transformation.

He no longer passively farms jungle camps, counter-ganks, and provides vision; instead, he plays these tank heroes with the aura of an assassin.

In the match against JAG, Peanut's Jarvan IV ganked bot lane at level 2, and together with Xiao Yan's Draven, they forced a tower dive to secure first blood.

In the decisive game against AFS, his Gragas used E-flash to initiate a team fight around the dragon, directly knocking back the enemy's two carries, and instantly melting the opponents with the help of Faker and Xiao Yan.

That agile, fierce, and imaginative jungling style has breathed new life into the originally dull tank version.

Holy crap! This is the Peanut we know!

Who says tank junglers can't carry? Peanut will teach you a lesson!

This prince acts like an assassin, he's too ruthless!

With Peanut's improved performance, SKT's previously sluggish gears have started running at high speed again.

Xiao Yan's overwhelming dominance in the bottom lane, combined with Peanut's omnipresent offensive rhythm, and Faker's anchoring role in the mid lane, led SKT to embark on a terrifying winning streak.

Sweep MVP 2-0.

2-0 BBQ victory.

The number of wins is constantly increasing, and the ranking on the points table is also steadily rising.

The atmosphere in the lounge got better and better. Wolf laughed more, and although Bang was sitting on the bench, his expression softened a lot as he watched the team win the game.

With the regular season over, SKT secured third place in the regular season with an unstoppable winning streak.

Although they didn't get a direct pass to the finals, the team's fighting spirit is completely different. The playoff schedule has been released, and SKT will face the winner between the fourth and fifth place teams in the first round.

In the conference room, the names of two teams were written on the whiteboard: SSG (Samsung) and AFs (African team).

"While AFs is also a possibility, we must focus on SSG." Coach Koma circled SSG's name with a marker, his expression serious. "Ambition's map control rate has been terrifying lately, and Crown's stability in the mid lane is a headache. This is a team that excels at dragging out the late game and playing a defensive counter-attacking style."

Everyone nodded. As longtime rivals, they were all too aware of Samsung's suffocating operational capabilities.

Xiao Yan sat in the corner, twirling his pen. He knew very well that in the course of history, it was this very SSG team that ended SKT's dynasty in the S7 Bird's Nest finals. The current SSG, like a sophisticated machine, was gradually taking shape.

"It's difficult to beat SSG with conventional tactics," Xiao Yan suddenly said, breaking the tense atmosphere.

All eyes turned to them.

Xiao Yan stood up, walked to the whiteboard, and wrote the name of an item in the equipment section:

A blazing incense burner.

"What's this?" Wolf asked, puzzled. "Supports have been building this item recently, but it's probably just for the attack speed bonus, right? It's not very cost-effective."

"No, brother, you're wrong." Xiao Yan's eyes were firm. "This is the correct answer."

He tapped the Ardent Censer's passive attribute twice with his pen: "The shield and healing provide attack speed and lifesteal. In this meta where tanks abound and frontliners are tough enough, if an enchanter support rushes Ardent Censer to protect a late-game carry AD carry, that AD carry's mid-game fighting power will be overflowing. This isn't a support item; it's an item that turns AD carries into 'gods'."

"As long as Wolf can master Janna and Lulu, and rush Ardent Censer as your first item, I guarantee you, in the team fight 20 minutes from now, I can take on all three of them by myself."

Wolf stroked his chin, deep in thought. As a top-tier support, he quickly realized the terrifying aspect of this playstyle—using extremely low gold to gain a massive boost in AD carry power.

"This tactic will be our first trump card, and I'll arrange to try it out in practice matches." Coach Koma's eyes lit up as he quickly jotted it down, then asked, "And the second point? You just said that it's hard to win with the conventional approach."

Xiao Yan took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping over everyone present, finally settling on Faker, who was sitting in the very center.

"The second point concerns command."

The air in the room seemed to freeze instantly.

In SKT, the command and control usually rests with Faker and Wolf, especially Faker, who is the team's brain and absolute core. For a newcomer to try and take on command is practically a pipe dream in the hierarchical Korean esports scene.

But Xiao Yan did not back down. He looked directly into Faker's calm eyes and said sincerely and firmly:

"Sang-hyeok, I hope the team will be under my command during the playoffs."