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

The storm on the internet did not subside after SKT swept C9; instead, Xiao Yan's dazzling performance escalated into an even more divisive war of public opinion.

Although the Royal Fans, Pig Fans, and 60E still hold the high ground in LPL public opinion and are frantically belittling Xiao Yan, a clear stream is quietly gathering amidst this clamor.

Those casual viewers tired of the infighting among LPL fan groups, those skilled fans impressed by Vayne's godlike plays, and even some players who were originally indifferent to Korean teams, began to voice their different opinions in the corners of Tieba and forums:

"To be fair, putting team affiliation aside, Xiao Yan's Vayne is in a league of its own so far in S7, right?"

"Indeed, I watched the replay of that quick-fire shot and the predicted push ten times. It really wasn't luck."

"Why is it so hard to admit that someone else is better? Why do you have to say that the other side is weak?"

"I don't care which team he's on, as long as he can pull off such visually stunning plays, I'll be a fan."

These voices, though faint, are like sparks, stubbornly flickering in the e-sports world shrouded in hostility.

Two days later,

RNG vs. MSF.

MSF, who would have driven SKT to the brink of defeat in a parallel universe, instead encountered a RNG team in peak form in this timeline.

3:0.

RNG swept their opponent cleanly and decisively.

Uzi's Tristana and Twitch, with the support of the Ardent Censer, delivered a dominant performance.

This resounding victory instantly ignited public opinion in China.

LPL fans, who had been holding back for so long, were completely ecstatic. In their eyes, RNG's victory was the most powerful response to SKT and Xiao Yan.

[See that?! This is the world's best AD carry! This is the true face of the LPL!]

Uzi didn't die once in three games! His KDA was off the charts! What is Xiao Yan even comparable to?

Although MSF was the second seed, RNG played much more easily than SKT did against C9!

This year is LPL's most promising year yet! Go, all-Chinese team!

[Final Battle at the Bird's Nest! RNG Will Determine Victory Over SKT!]

That evening, Uzi started his live stream.

He originally just wanted to share his joy of victory with his fans, but he found that the tone of the comments was gradually going astray. Amidst the screen filled with "666" and gifts, a large number of comments were trying to stir up trouble:

[Hey bro, did you watch SKT's match the other day? What did you think of Xiao Yan's Vayne?]

Some people say Xiao Yan is in better shape than you right now. What do you say about that?

That substitute AD carry is too arrogant, actually looking down on the LPL. Uzi has to teach him a lesson!

When will the streamer play a game with Vayne to prove who's the best in the world?

At first, Uzi tried to keep smiling and avoid the topic. But as more and more comments compared him to Xiao Yan, and even some trolls posted things like "Xiao Yan is the real Vayne jinchūriki" and "Uzi is getting old," this proud and talented AD finally broke down.

"Stop refreshing! It's so annoying!"

Uzi abruptly ripped off his headphones, his face flushed red, and shouted into the camera:

"Everyone's just spamming 'Xiao Yan, Xiao Yan.' He's only played a few games, and they're already praising him like crazy after he got a pentakill?"

He took a deep breath, his competitive spirit ignited, and before millions of viewers, he made a bold statement that would shock the entire internet:

"I'm putting this down right now! If I encounter SKT at the Bird's Nest and I can't defeat Xiao Yan head-on, if I can't crush him, I, Jian Zihao, will retire on the spot!"

boom--!

This statement was like a nuclear bomb, instantly igniting a trending topic on Weibo.

#Uzi vows to crush Xiao Yan at the Bird's Nest#

#Uzi: I'll retire on the spot if I lose#

#The Fated Showdown Between LPL and LCK#

Countless marketing accounts reposted the video, and fans were thrilled, as if they could already see Uzi lifting the trophy at the Bird's Nest.

……

A private room in a high-end hot pot restaurant in Wuhan.

The entire SKT team is enjoying a well-deserved day off.

The hot pot of red oil was bubbling and steaming. Huni was stuffing fatty beef into his mouth, sweating profusely, while Faker quietly cooked vegetables on the side, occasionally watching Huni to prevent him from taking all the meat.

"Brother, look at this."

Peanut, sipping his iced cola, handed his phone to Xiao Yan with a mischievous grin, "Uzi declared war on you on Weibo, saying he'll retire if he loses to you at the Bird's Nest."

Xiao Yan was picking up a piece of tripe when he heard this and paused slightly.

He took the phone and glanced at the Weibo post that had topped the trending searches, along with tens of thousands of comments below it praising Uzi's dominance and saying things like "Crush the traitors."

"Oh."

Xiao Yan chuckled, tossed the phone back to Peanut, then dipped the blanched tripe in the oil sauce and said casually:

"Commendable courage."

"Aren't you angry?" Peanut asked curiously. "He's provoking you."

"Why are you angry?" Xiao Yan put the tripe into his mouth, enjoying the spicy and savory flavor that exploded on his tongue. After swallowing, he said calmly, "He wants to beat me at the Bird's Nest, but the prerequisite is that he has to be able to get into the Bird's Nest."

"You mean RNG won't make it to the finals?" Wolf leaned closer, somewhat surprised. "They just beat MSF 3-0, they're in great form."

Xiao Yan picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes:

"RNG has some strength, but not much. Let alone us, even SSG or KT, RNG might not be able to beat them."

Xiao Yan shook his head, as if stating a given fact: "Want to play against me in the retirement tournament? He'll probably have to break his promise. Because I don't think they can get past the semifinals."

After saying that, he tapped the table and called out, "Alright, stop looking at your phone. Hurry up and eat. The duck intestines here are pretty good. Huni, eat less and save some for me!"

Seeing Xiao Yan's nonchalant attitude, as if he didn't take the LPL's top seed seriously at all, the SKT players all smiled with relief.

……

The rest day is over, and the intense training matches have begun again.

This time, Coach KkOma's opponent is WE.

In the training room, KkOma, holding his laptop, said, "In this scrim, we'll mainly practice the Galio-Prince engage composition. As for the bot lane, Xiao Yan, what do you want to play?"

"I want... Draven."

KkOma paused for a moment.

Draven?

In this meta where Ardent Censer champions are rampant and AD carries generally lean towards late-game carry builds, picking a champion like Draven, who has an extremely low margin for error and relies heavily on snowballing, is practically going against the meta.

"Are you sure?" KkOma frowned. "Mystic's laning phase is very strong. If you don't gain an advantage early on..."

"Mm," Xiao Yan nodded.

Seeing Xiao Yan persist, KkOma sighed and closed his notebook.

"Alright, Draven it is. Wolf, you take Thresh to support him."

"no problem."

Xiao Yan wasn't going to use any tactics; he was just planning to play Draven. He simply wanted to play, knowing that the LPL news was being relayed.

……

Customize your room, game begins.

Blue side WE:

Top laner 957: Shen

Jungler Condi: Sejuani

Mid laner Xiye: Karma

ADC Mystic: Kog'Maw

Support Ben: Lulu

Red team SKT:

Top laner Huni: Jayce

Jungler Peanut: Lee Sin

Mid laner Faker: Galio

ADC Xiao Yan: Draven

Support Wolf: Thresh

When they saw SKT lock in Draven and Thresh in the bot lane, the WE players in another training room were clearly stunned for a moment.

"Draven?" Mystic exclaimed in Korean, "Is this Xiao Yan really that confident? He even dares to pick up a version-specific trap?"

Xi Ye frowned: "Be careful, this guy is a bit strange. But if Lulu with Kog'Maw doesn't feed in the early game, he can't beat you after level six."

"Don't worry." Mystic confidently adjusted his runes. "I'll show him that scrims and ranked games are different."

However, Mystic sensed something was wrong the moment it went live.

That sense of oppression didn't come from the hero's attributes, but from Draven's positioning.

Level 1 Xiao Yan controlled Draven, spinning two throwing axes in his hands, directly crossing the minion wave and standing in front of the WE ranged minion.

"So fierce?" Mystic was about to finish him off when Draven hurled a spinning axe at his face.

Snapped!

My health dropped by one bar instantly.

Mystic activated W to try and trade blows, but Ben's Lulu also used Pix.

However, the moment Xiao Yan's Draven threw the axe, he clicked the ground with an astonishingly fast frequency. Taking advantage of the momentary stun after the attack, he made an extreme right-angle move to the side and rear, forcefully dodging Lulu's Q skill, and at the same time, steadily catching the falling axe!

Snapped!

Second knife!

The knife struck Big Mouth, and Mystic's eyelids twitched in pain.

"That positioning... was too precise." Mystic had to retreat, missing two melee units.

This is just the beginning.

At level two, Wolf's Thresh landed an extremely tricky hook, forcing Ben to use Flash.

"kill!"

Xiao Yan instantly upgraded his W skill, [Bloodthirsty Dash]!

Draven glowed red and charged forward like a mad dog.

*Snap!* One slash! Catch the axe! W refreshes! Speed ​​boost!

*Snap!* Two slashes! Catch the axe! W refreshes again! More acceleration!

Mystic wanted to turn around and use a basic attack to trade damage, but Xiao Yan used the instant movement speed burst from W to block Kog'Maw's attack range. He retreated slightly the moment Kog'Maw raised his hand, preventing Kog'Maw from attacking. Then, the moment Kog'Maw withdrew his hand, he rushed up and slashed again!

This is top-notch distance control!

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

After three slashes, Big Mouth lost half his health.

"Damn, is this guy a monster?" Mystic was sweating. He realized that every time he tried to finish off an enemy or fight back, Draven would use his speed boost to make him suffer terribly.

That Draven was like he was on a script; the point where he caught the axe was always the optimal path for his movement, without any unnecessary actions.

five minutes.

Peanut's Lee Sin ganked the bot lane.

But he didn't need to lift a finger.

Xiao Yan had already pushed the minion wave under the tower, and Da Zui's health had been reduced to below half.

"Tower diving," Xiao Yan said coldly in the voice chat.

Wolf's Thresh understood perfectly, immediately flashing and using E [Pendulum of Doom] to return to Kog'Maw, applying Ignite, and then hooking!

Mystic reacted quickly, using Flash to heal, and Lulu used her ultimate to save her life.

But just as Big Mouth flashed and landed, two enormous round axes, accompanied by a deathly howl, predictively swept across that spot.

R skill: Cold-blooded Pursuit!

After the first hit, Kog'Maw's health dropped drastically!

Xiao Yan instantly pressed the R key, and the axe was pulled back at its maximum distance, causing the second stage of damage to pierce through Da Zui's body once again!

At the same time, Xiao Yan and Shan Yifa used their Q skill, Spinning Axe, in a basic attack, slamming it hard into Da Zui's face.

"Snapped!"

Big Mouth fell to the ground.

First Blood!

The passive skill [Draven's Alliance] triggers, and the sound of gold coins being deposited into the bag is crisp and pleasant.

……

Fifteen minutes in, SKT grouped up and pushed down the middle.

WE attempted a counterattack. 957's Shen used E-Flash to taunt Draven, Xiye's Karma activated RE for a group speed boost, and Mystic's Kog'Maw activated W for a crazy burst of damage.

"die!"

All the WE players had only one thing in their eyes: Draven.

However, Xiao Yan remained completely calm in the face of the entire WE team's focused fire.

Mercury instantly removes taunts!

Almost simultaneously, he made a small sidestep to the front and side, narrowly dodging Sejuani's ultimate ability, Frostfire Prison!

E skill [Pulley Axe] is thrown out, knocking back and slowing Shen and Sejuani who are trying to rush in and hold them!

E skill [Pulley Axe] is thrown out, knocking back and slowing Shen and Sejuani who are trying to rush in and hold them!

Then, under the knock-up protection of Faker's Galio ultimate [Heroic Entrance] upon landing, his twin axes transformed into the Grim Reaper's scythe.

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

The critical hit warning text is flashing wildly!

A poorly developed Shen is as fragile as paper in front of a Draven with three items; a few axe blows and he's melted.

W refreshes, accelerates, and charges towards the back row.

Mystic's massive mouth looks like a baby compared to Draven.

One critical hit from the long-range artillery barrage, and Big Mouth lost half of his health!

Follow up with the second spinning axe strike!

The fully charged mouth instantly evaporated.

Quadra Kill!

Quadra kill!

Seventeen minutes.

Xiao Yan's Draven already has the Bloodthirster, Infinity Edge, and Rapid Firecannon.

He didn't even need his teammates to initiate a team fight; he charged straight to the high ground, killed Lulu with two hits, killed Kog'Maw with three hits, and then spawn-camped the enemy fountain.

The five WE players huddled in the fountain, watching Draven standing at the entrance recalling and taunting them, a deep sense of powerlessness rising within them.

This is not even a contest of the same level.

This is a completely one-sided massacre.

19 minutes 45 seconds.

WE's main crystal exploded.

The training match has ended.

The training room of WE was deathly silent.

Mystic took off his headphones, staring at the 0-8-1 scoreline on the screen, unable to recover for a long time. His hands were still trembling slightly.

As a top AD carry in the LPL, he has lost before, but this is the first time he has lost so badly and without any chance to fight back.

"Is this... Xiao Yan?" Xi Ye swallowed, his voice a little hoarse. "This dominance is even more terrifying than Uzi's..."

"Is this even human?" Condi chuckled wryly. "I haven't even finished clearing my jungle, and the bot lane is already cleared. How am I supposed to help?"

Meanwhile, in SKT's training room.

Xiao Yan stretched and looked at the terrifying damage percentage on the results screen, a satisfied smile curving his lips.

"It feels good."

He turned to look at the dumbfounded KkOma, raising an eyebrow:

"Coach, finish within twenty minutes."

Koma realized he had underestimated Xiao Yan. He hadn't expected Xiao Yan's Draven to be so dominant in the current Ardent Censer meta. However, Koma also knew that the opposing team had been a bit careless. If they had farmed steadily until they got the Ardent Censer, they would have lost the game.

"Alright, everyone, take a ten-minute break and get ready for the next round," KkOma said, suppressing his excitement and trying to appear calm.

WE's training room was quiet. The brother-in-law looked at the Draven who had dealt the highest damage to the team and could hardly believe his eyes. He never expected that he would be brutally crushed by Xiao Yan, who was playing against the meta.