Chapter 776
Is it possible to kill the other side by crying?
Sylas stole Syndra's ultimate and used it on Riven, but the bleeding effect from Death's Dance delayed her death.
Su Mo unleashed a complete QA combo amidst the crowd, using [Swift Slash] to kill the Blind Monk and Milio.
Varus unleashed a barrage of attacks, reducing Riven to a sliver of health.
At the crucial moment, Syndra unleashed a full-ball ultimate, killing Varus.
Riven escaped with a sliver of health, recovering by killing jungle monsters.
EDG scored a 3-for-0 exchange and then took down Baron Nashor.
Thirty-seven minutes.
An ancient dragon is about to spawn.
This is the ultimate resource that determines the outcome of the game.
“The Ancient Dragon, whoever gets it wins,” Guan Zeyuan said.
Thirty-seven and a half minutes.
The two sides are locked in a standoff at Xiaolongkeng.
Su Mo's equipment already includes six divine items: Divine Split, Hydra, Death Dance, Bloodthirster, Resurrection Armor, and Mercury's Treads.
JDG's equipment is now complete, and Varus has the Last Whisper, making his damage output insane.
Thirty-eight minutes.
An ancient dragon was born.
EDG initiates the dragon fight.
With Baron's health reduced to half, JDG pressed forward.
Poppy activates her W, while Lee Sin watches intently from the side.
"I'll find the AD carry, you guys protect the backline," Su Mo said.
Thirty-eight minutes and ten seconds.
The big tree unleashes its ultimate, and a team fight breaks out!
Sylas enters the fray, steals Maokai's ultimate, and pushes back.
Su Mo's Riven didn't enter the arena; he was waiting.
Wait until Bobby's W ends.
Thirty-eight minutes and fifteen seconds.
The instant Poppy's W duration ends!
Su Mo used Flash!
Instead of jumping to the back row, he jumped right into Sylas's face, who was bound by Maokai's ultimate!
W is stunned, light speed QA!
Silas's health bar is reduced to zero!
"Kill the mid laner first!"
JDG remains resilient despite losing their mid-laner.
Lee Sin kicked Syndra away, and Varus followed up with his ultimate to kill her instantly.
The ancient dragon's health is almost depleted!
The Blind Monk and Foljerk both use Smite!
System notification: EDG.Achen has slain the Elder Dragon!
"EDG has secured the Elder Dragon!"
With the Ancient Dragon buff, Su Mo's Riven was like a god of war.
He activated his ultimate ability and charged towards Varus.
Varus went on a rampage, auto-attacking relentlessly, and picked up Riven's Guardian Angel.
During the resurrection period, Maokai and Ezreal withstood the pressure.
Two and a half seconds later, Riven stood up.
One basic attack triggers the Elder Dragon's finishing move!
Varus is dead!
Thirty-nine minutes.
JDG, having lost their two core players, suffered a complete defeat.
Lee Sin and Poppy were killed by the Elder Dragon buff.
"One wave! One wave!" Ah Chen shouted.
Four EDG players, carrying the minion wave, charged straight at JDG's base.
Thirty-nine minutes and fifty seconds.
The tooth tower collapsed.
Su Mo's Riven stood in front of the fountain, not dominating it, but calmly tapping the crystal.
Accompanied by the final basic attack.
"boom!"
The blue crystal nexus shattered.
Forty minutes.
game over.
"Congratulations to EDG! After a grueling forty-minute battle, they've successfully taken the first game!" Wawa, the commentator, let out a long sigh of relief, his voice a mix of excitement and exhaustion. "This match was truly spectacular! JDG's resilience was astounding, but Mozi's Riven, with his exceptional skills, managed to tear a hole in the face of adversity!"
Miller nodded repeatedly, his eyes filled with shock: "Yes! Facing the absolute counter of five bans on top laners and Poppy, Mozi not only got a solo kill in lane, but his split pushing and team fight engagements in the mid-to-late game were also textbook-level. Especially that solo kill in front of the high ground, where he used Poppy's ultimate to get into a blind spot, was just too detailed!"
Zitai, rubbing his belly, chuckled and said, "Hey, 369's probably going to be depressed this game. He picked Poppy hoping to be a dad, but he's being treated like a football. The first game is this exciting, this BO5 is going to be a real treat!"
The lights came back on in the stadium.
Su Mo took off his noise-canceling headphones and calmly rubbed his wrists. Even for him, the intense work of forty minutes had left his knuckles slightly sore. He picked up the black thermos on the table, took a sip of water, and headed backstage first.
Ah Chen and Xiao Yue followed behind, still excitedly reviewing the last wave of the Ancient Dragon raid.
"Brother Mo, your last-second move with Sylas was so decisive! I thought you were going to go for Varus, but you just flashed and killed Sylas!" Achen said with admiration.
Xiao Yue wiped the sweat from his forehead: "This game was too tiring. JDG's ability to find opportunities in the mid-game is too strong. I almost thought we were going to lose."
Su Mo walked ahead, his tone calm: "It's normal for them to fight hard in the final game of the regular season. In the next game, don't give them a chance to drag it out to the late game."
The chat room was completely buzzing with excitement.
Is this really the seven-time champion Riven? She beats Poppy like it's her son!
[369: Coach, why doesn't Poppy have her W ability?]
[Mozi's build is too aggressive, with Divine Split, Hydra, and Death's Dance, making him both tanky and high-damage.]
[My goodness! In a 40-minute game, Mozi's gold lead is 369, almost 5,000! Is he playing top lane like a single-player game?]
How should JDG draft for the next game? Should they ban all top laners?
[JDG's only countermeasure is to simply unplug Mozi's computer power cord.]
Halftime break room.
Abu and Mingkai were standing at the door early. When they saw the team members come in, they smiled, but their eyes remained serious.
"Well played, winning the first game is a great morale booster." Mingkai patted his teammates on the shoulder. "But this game exposed a problem: our vision control in the mid-game still has loopholes, which gave Lee Sin too many opportunities. Chen, you must solidify your vision control in the jungle next game."
Ah Chen nodded repeatedly: "Mine, mine, I definitely won't give them a chance to flank us next time." Su Mo walked to his private sofa, sat down, unscrewed the thermos, and filled it with more than half a cup of hot water.
Abu walked over and handed him a data report he had just compiled: "Mozi, we're on the red side next game and have a counter pick. JDG will definitely make adjustments this game; they might abandon targeting the top lane and instead target the mid and bot lanes."
Su Mo gently blew on the steam rising from the rim of the cup, his deep eyes remaining completely calm.
"Let them change whatever they want." His deep voice echoed in the lounge. "As long as the minion waves are still intersecting, the outcome won't change."
Just then, the door to the lounge was gently pushed open.
Rita, in high heels and a fiery red fitted dress, strode in like a burning flame. She wasn't scheduled to commentate today; she had come to watch the game as a family member.
"Brother Mo! You played so cool!" Rita completely ignored Ah Chen and Xiao Yue, who were staring wide-eyed at her, and plopped down next to Su Mo. She naturally took his arm, her peach blossom eyes full of admiration. "I was watching you solo kill Poppy from the audience just now, and my voice got hoarse from shouting."
Su Mo turned his head slightly, looking at her cheeks flushed with excitement, and reached out to tuck her slightly messy hair behind her ear.
"Didn't bring any water?" he asked gently.
"I brought it, but I just wanted to drink yours." Rita said coquettishly, taking a sip of the warm water from Su Mo's thermos directly from his hand, and not forgetting to give Ah Chen a smug look.
Ah Chen and Xiao Yue exchanged a glance, silently turned around, and pretended to discuss tactics.
"Ahem..." Mingkai coughed twice tactically. "Rita, be mindful of your behavior. We still need to discuss tactics later."
Rita pouted, but still obediently let go of her hand and sat up straight.
The break time passed quickly, and the referee came over to notify the contestants to come on stage.
"Let's go, second round. Let's finish this quickly." Su Mo stood up, picked up his thermos, and his eyes instantly turned cold and focused.
When he took the stage again, the cheers from the audience were even louder than in the first game.
The large screen then switches to the ban/pick (BP) interface for the second game.
"Welcome back! EDG is currently leading 1-0! In the second game, JDG is on the blue side, and EDG is on the red side!" Wawa announced loudly.
Miller stared intently at the screen: "Let's take a look at JDG's draft adjustments for this game. In their first three picks, they banned Maokai, Azir, and Taliyah! Just as Coach Abu predicted, JDG abandoned their five-ban strategy for top laners and instead targeted EDG's mid-jungle synergy!"
Zz1tai chuckled from the side, "This draft is interesting. JDG's idea is that since they can't ban all of Mozi's heroes anyway, they might as well let him pick a conventional one and we'll go head-to-head with him in lane."
EDG banned Kai'Sa, Sejuani, and Nautilus in their first three picks, continuing to limit LNG's two carries and their ability to initiate fights.
Enter the first round of picking.
JDG made their first pick and locked in the extremely strong jungler of the current patch without hesitation—[Vi]!
"Vi! Kanavi has picked up his signature lock-on jungler! This champion, when paired with a dive composition, poses a huge threat to the backline."
EDG's first and second picks were Lee Sin and Varus respectively. Achen got Lee Sin to ensure early jungle skirmishes.
JDG added a bot lane duo of Xayah and Rakan on the second and third floors. A classic Phoenix Legend combination, possessing both self-preservation and teamfight initiation capabilities.
EDG picked support [Lena] on the third floor to counter Vi and Rakan's aggressive engage.
The second round of banning players begins.
In their fourth and fifth picks, JDG shifted their focus back to the top lane, banning Fiora and Renekton.
EDG banned Ahri and Sylas in the fourth and fifth picks to limit Knight's ability to engage with assassin champions.
Second round of picking.
On the fourth floor of JDG, Knight locked in Syndra to ensure lane priority and burst damage in the mid lane.
On the fourth floor of EDG, Xiaoyue added [Orianna], a very solid farming lineup.
Now, all the suspense has converged on the fifth floor of the red team! EDG's counter pick!
"The usual top lane fighters outside include Camille, Jax, and even Ornn," Miller analyzed. "Let's see what Mozi will pick. JDG hasn't picked their top laner yet, so they'll probably pick a tank to withstand the pressure."
However, an extremely wild icon lit up on JDG's fifth-floor top laner's position!
"For Freljord!"
【Berserker - Olaf】!!!
locking!
"Olaf!! 369 locked in Olaf on the fifth floor!!" Wawa exclaimed in shock. "JDG isn't going to play defensively this game! They're going to go head-to-head with Mozi in the top lane! Olaf has extremely strong lane pressure in the early game, and his ultimate grants immunity to crowd control, making him a great counter to typical light warriors!"
Zita slapped his thigh: "369's gone crazy! Last game Poppy got treated like a dog, this game he's pulled out a mad dog to bite! Mozi's counter pick is a bit tough, what's a good pick to play against Olaf?"
EDG's match lineup.
Mingkai stared at Olaf's icon, his brow furrowed. "This Olaf pick is a bit annoying. He's immune to crowd control when he uses his ultimate at level six. If we pick Camille or Jax, a head-on fight might backfire. Mozi, how about we pick Kennen to stall for time?"
Su Mo held the thermos and took a sip of water.
He looked at the unrestrained Olaf icon opposite him, a mocking sneer curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Mad dog?"
He put down his cup and quickly typed a few pinyin characters in the search bar.
A profile picture that sent chills down the spines of the entire audience, commentators, and even teammates suddenly lit up on the fifth floor of the red team's building!
"I am the storm on the battlefield!"
[Kennen, the Heart of the Tempest]? No! A flash of light, and the portrait changes!
"I will show you what true cruelty is!"
【Shadow of War - Hecarim】(Centaur)? ? No, that's not right either!
Under everyone's gaze, the portrait finally settled on an extremely abstract hero that had almost disappeared from professional matches.
It was a small mummy wrapped in bandages, with empty eyes, looking extremely miserable.
"I thought you would never choose me..."
【The Mummy of Sorrow - Amumu】！！！
locking!!!
The entire venue fell into a deathly silence.
Three seconds later, a deafening roar erupted, loud enough to blow off the roof of the stadium!
"Holy crap!!!!"
Wawa's voice cracked on the commentary booth, and he almost fell off his chair: "Amumu?!?! Mozi, on the red side, in the fifth pick counter position, against 369's mad dog Olaf, locked in Amumu top lane?!?!"
Miller clutched his head in disbelief, even questioning his own eyes: "This champion can go top lane?! He's a complete liability in the jungle! No mobility, no sustain, and he's as fragile as paper in the early game! Against Olaf's axes, wouldn't Amumu just get tower-dived and killed easily?!"
Zizai, standing nearby, burst into laughter, slamming his fist on the table as he laughed: "Hahahaha! This is hilarious! This is absolutely hilarious!! Is Mozi doing scientific research on the professional stage?! Top lane Amumu versus Olaf? What... what kind of tactical system is this?!"
In JDG's battle zone, 369 stared at the image of Amumu with a mournful face and his brain completely shut down.
"He...he picked Amumu?" 369 stammered, turning to look at the coach.
Coach Homme's face turned pale and then red. He had racked his brains for a long time to devise a draft strategy, hoping to force Su Mo to pick a tanky warrior.
As a result, the opponent countered by picking the most unreasonable jungle tank hero to go top lane!
"Don't panic!" Homme suppressed his shock. "Amumu top lane is a joke! He's slow at pushing lanes and weak in duels! 369, you control the lane this game, go straight over the minion wave at level one and kill him! Kanavi, after you finish your red buff, go top. If this Amumu dares to step out of the tower even half a step, kill him!"
The chat room was completely flooded with comments.
[Holy crap? Am I seeing things? Top lane Amumu?]
[Did the seven-time champion drink fake alcohol? Isn't this selection practically a gift?]
Olaf vs. Amumu, isn't this just like cutting melons and vegetables?
[If Mozi wins this game, I'll wash my hair while doing a handstand!]
[This is ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous! But this is the playoffs semifinals, is it really okay to do this?]
[What does "Amumu top lane" even mean? I can't even imagine who this champion can beat. Is he trying to make the enemy cry?] (End of Chapter)