LOL: What does it mean to torture players?

Seeing this scene on the field, the factory manager grinned, with a hint of gloating:
"Haha, we were just saying that GRF's draft was a mistake, and they definitely didn't know how to deal with T1's strategy. But look, they just copied T1's lineup!"

Su Mo couldn't help laughing, and lightly tapped the screen with his finger, analyzing:
"This is where young people have an advantage. They are bold and willing to try new things. They are also incredibly quick learners. They know how to assess situations and adapt flexibly. If they lose, they can immediately learn from their opponents and use the experience against them."

In this game, Faker was forced to use Akali to fight against Chovy's aggressive Crocodile. Although Faker was able to hold his ground in the lane with his rich experience and the stealth mechanism of Akali's W skill "My Secret! Xia Shuai", it was not easy for the opponent to target him.

However, the control of the middle lane was firmly in the hands of Chovy's Crocodile. The pressure from the middle lane spread to the top lane like a tide.

Khan's days in the top lane were not so good. Under the crazy targeting of GRF's mid and jungle crocodile and spider, he was almost beaten into a "cash machine", the number of deaths continued to climb, and the top lane defense tower was destroyed early.

The economic gap widened rapidly like a snowball. In stark contrast to T1's steady operation after gaining an advantage, once GRF gained an advantage, its offensive rhythm and snowballing ability were much more rapid, full of the sharpness and pressure of a young team.

The factory manager was amazed and said with a hint of surprise: "These young people are really brave! I think T1 is in big trouble this time."

He pointed at Chovy's equipment bar on the screen, "Look at what Chovy is wearing. Black Cleaver, Giant Nine, Bloodthirster, three pieces of pure damage equipment, without even a bit of defense. How brave! Is he trying to maximize his damage and penetrate T1 in one wave?"

As expected, GRF, who had gained the advantage, worked hard and rolled the snowball like a tiger coming down the mountain. They easily took down the first Baron and further expanded their economic advantage. Although the first wave of advancement with the Baron buff failed to make the final decision, the advantage was already unshakable.

The second dragon spawned, and GRF no longer gave T1 any chance to breathe. They set up vision and ambushes near the dragon pit in advance, successfully luring T1 to come and investigate, and then decisively started a team fight. With a huge equipment lead and perfect team fights, GRF crushed T1 like a whirlwind, flattened the base crystal in one wave, and tied the score to :!

"Huh..." Su Mo stretched his body and loosened his stiff neck. When he turned around, he suddenly found a figure behind him.

Looking closely, it turned out to be Meiko.

Meiko saw that she was discovered, but she was not embarrassed. Instead, she came over with a smile and asked curiously, "Brother Mozi, Director, what are you watching? So engrossed? I just came here after training."

Su Mo pointed at the screen and said, "I'm watching the LCK finals, T1 vs. GRF. It's really exciting."

Meiko also became interested after hearing this. He quickly dragged a chair and sat next to Su Mo. While watching the BP screen, he muttered, "Oh? The LCK finals. No wonder you guys are watching so seriously. It must be very exciting." He suddenly pointed at the hero selected by the GRF support position on the screen and asked in surprise, "Hey? Volibear support? What kind of new strategy is this? Any explanation?"

At this time, the BP of the fourth game had ended, and GRF had locked up the top lane Bear for Lehends in the support position.

Su Mo pondered for a moment and analyzed, "In addition to causing damage and slowing down, Volibear's E skill also has a special effect, which is to interrupt the enemy's displacement skills. I guess GRF chose Volibear as a support mainly to target heroes with displacement skills such as Rakan, Azar, and Faker's Akali in the T1 lineup, and to play a counter-restrictive role."

Upon hearing this, Meiko's eyes widened with disbelief: "Ah? There is such a saying? Volibear's E can interrupt displacement? Is it true? Just for this reason to choose him?" Obviously, this unpopular knowledge point was beyond his cognition.

The main reason is that this hero is rarely played.

Su Mo continued, "GRF's support player Lehends is a very creative player. He can be said to be the inventor of LCK's 'sexy tactics'. He likes to research and develop some non-mainstream heroes and play styles, and often achieves unexpected results. He chose the bear as a support, which must be his own understanding and tactical considerations. He should not be underestimated."

Meiko suddenly understood and said jokingly, "Oh - so that's how it is! Then he is just like you, Mozi, both of them are canyon inventors! They specialize in researching weird things."

Entering the game screen, the situation Su Mo described soon occurred. T1's support Luo activated his ultimate skill "Fleeting Glimpse" and combined it with his W skill "Grand Debut" to try to initiate a team fight, aiming directly at the GRF back row's bear. T1's jungler also came from the flank, ready to cooperate with Luo's first move to focus fire and kill the bear in seconds.

Just as Luo was about to spread his wings and take off, Lehends' Volibear decisively used his E skill "Supreme Roar"...

However, an embarrassing scene happened! Perhaps because of nervousness or misjudgment, Lehends released Volibear's E skill too early! Luo's W skill "Grand Debut" was still flying in the air and had not landed, but Volibear's E skill had already hit the open ground, without any interruption effect. As a result, Luo successfully landed, gorgeously charmed and knocked Volibear away, and with the damage of his teammates, he instantly killed Lehends' Volibear on the spot.

"Hahahahahaha!" In the lounge, Meiko and the factory manager couldn't hold back any longer after seeing this scene, and burst into deafening laughter at the same time. The two of them laughed so hard that they fell backwards, and at the same time, they cast their eyes towards Su Mo, their eyes full of teasing.

Su Mo touched his nose and smiled calmly, "Why are you two looking at me like that?"

Meiko suppressed her smile and said nothing. The factory manager was outspoken and pointed out directly: "You were so sure in your analysis just now, saying that Volibear's E skill could perfectly counter Luo's initiation of a teamfight, and you made it seem like the real thing, but what happened? You were outshined by Luo! It turns out that this theory was a fake!"

Su Mo complained helplessly: "Hey, he made a mistake in his operation, okay? Can you blame me for this? If he had waited until Luo's W skill was about to land before using E, he would definitely be knocked down from mid-air and interrupted it."

The factory manager winked and imitated Su Mo's tone, saying in a sarcastic tone: "I believe you, I don't believe you! I know you are anxious, but don't be anxious, explain slowly, we are listening!"

Su Mo rolled his eyes in annoyance and was too lazy to argue with these two bad friends.

However, even more outrageous things are yet to come.

In the middle of the game, T1's jungler roamed to the bottom lane again, preparing to gank. At this time, Lehends's Volibear was checking the vision near the river. Seeing this, T1's support had an idea and deliberately placed a true ward at the entrance of the jungle near the river bushes.

When Lehends's bear saw the glittering true eye, it was as if he had discovered a new continent. He walked straight towards the true eye, as if he wanted to eliminate it.

However, he was so busy approaching the True Eye that he didn't notice that several T1 warriors had already ambushed in the bushes next to the True Eye! When he realized what was happening and wanted to turn around and run away, it was too late, and he gave away another life.

“Pfft—hahahahahaha!” Meiko couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into laughter, almost crying. “This bear… did he want to be a ‘fishing law enforcement officer’? In the end, he got caught instead! The T1 guys are so mean, it’s just like a hunter placing a bait covered with honey next to a trap, and this bear just stupidly walked right over it. It’s so funny!”

Su Mo was also amused by this funny scene. Lehends bear's slightly clumsy gait, his "giving away heads" behavior, and Meiko's vivid metaphor really looked like a greedy bear falling into a trap carefully laid by a hunter, full of comedy effects.

However, in a crucial team battle more than ten minutes later, the scene that Su Mo had described before finally appeared!

T1's Luo once again seized the opportunity, activated his ultimate and combined it with his W skill "Grand Debut", trying to force a team fight and break up GRF's formation. Just as Luo was about to land gorgeously and exert control, Lehends's bear's eyes flashed, and a precise E skill "Supreme Roar" was released in time. With a roar, an invisible shock wave spread out, and Luo was forcibly knocked down in mid-air, interrupting his entry!
Although Luo quickly responded by using Flash after being shot down and forcing his way into the field to exert control, he was interrupted once after all and his momentum was lost. At this time, T1, with its huge economic advantage, was already in a position to pursue victory, so this interruption did not fundamentally change the direction of the team battle.

Seeing this, Su Mo raised his eyebrows proudly and said to Meiko, "What do you think, Tian Ye, am I right? Volibear's E skill can indeed be used to interrupt Luo's teamfight. This time, T1's advantage is too great. Even if their initiative is interrupted once, it doesn't matter to the overall situation."

Meiko was stunned, and then exclaimed: "Wow! Brother Mozi is awesome! He's really good! I have to study this bear support carefully later, maybe I can use it in future competitions!"

The factory manager muttered quietly to the side: "Although it was interrupted, it seems to be useless. Didn't we still lose this team battle? T1 almost pushed it to the ground."

As the factory manager said, T1 continued to accumulate advantages in this game. Unlike the previous two games, T1 played more actively and unrestrainedly in this game. It was no longer a simple operation, but frequently looked for opportunities to face GRF head-on. Surprisingly, T1 won every team battle, and the advantage was growing like a snowball.

Su Mo analyzed with a deep gaze: "T1's confidence has been fully demonstrated. After GRF's loss in the last game, their mentality may have been a little unbalanced. Moreover, look at T1's lineup this time. They have three dragon souls and a huge economic lead. There is no suspense in the team battle. What can GRF do to fight them?"

As expected, in the subsequent games, T1 completely entered the crushing mode. They easily took down the Baron, and their economic advantage once exceeded 1. With the Baron Buff, T began to advance in an all-out manner, and GRF's defenses were like paper, being crushed one by one.

In the end, GRF barely organized any decent resistance and had their base crystal flattened by T1 in one wave.

Meiko stood up, clapped his hands vigorously, and praised sincerely, "T1 won - and successfully won the LCK Summer Championship! Li Ge is still you Li Ge, and it turns out that the old ones are still the wisest!" He paused and said with emotion, "I have heard many commentators and analysts say that the three talented mid laners of the new generation of LCK - Chovy, Showmaker, and Dove, are all gifted, with sharp operations and deep hero pools. They have a good chance of taking over from Faker and becoming the new banner of LCK."

"What's the result?" Meiko shook his head. "In the end, in the most crucial game, it still depends on Faker's performance. These young people are still a little immature."

Su Mo agreed, "Indeed. Chovy, Showmaker, and Dove are all top players in terms of their individual skills and hero pools. But they also have their own problems: some players are not good at handling teamfights and tend to get carried away; some players' overall view and command ability are still a little lacking. They are not like Faker, a 'hexagonal warrior' who is perfect in all aspects such as operation, awareness, experience, mentality, and leadership."

At this moment, the factory manager suddenly seemed to remember something, slapped his thigh and exclaimed: "Hey! Wait a minute! In this case, T1 will once again become the No. 1 seed of the LCK region and represent LCK in this year's S game? Then our LPL's main enemy in the world game now, won't it be... Faker and his T again?"

Su Mo heard this and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips: "What else do you think?"

Upon hearing this, a complex emotion flashed across the factory manager's eyes, and he murmured to himself: "I feel... I feel as if I'm back to... the year of S6." That year, EDG was invincible in China, but failed in the world championship, leaving behind endless regrets.

Upon seeing this, Meiko quickly stepped forward, patted the factory manager on the shoulder, and said jokingly in a nonchalant manner: "Don't be afraid, MingKai! Things are different now, we won't repeat the tragedy of S6! Don't be afraid, relax, Brother Mozi is here!" He looked at the factory manager with a "concern", as if he was afraid that the factory manager's "Faker phobia" would relapse, and he seemed to have turned into a professional psychological masseur.

The factory manager rolled his eyes at him in annoyance and said, "Go away, I'm just expressing my feelings. Don't act like you're really scared."

After watching the LCK finals, everyone had a brief exchange of words and then went back to their intensive training.

A few days passed in a flash, and the battle drums of the LPL Summer Finals finally sounded amid everyone's anticipation!
At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the sun was shining brightly. The EDG players packed their bags, set out from the training base, boarded the team bus, and headed straight to the competition site.

As the bus slowly approached the entrance of the stadium, Su Mo looked out the window and saw that the stadium was already crowded with people. Countless enthusiastic fans were queuing up in an orderly manner to enter the venue, holding up various cheering signs and banners in their hands, most of which were printed with EDG's team logo and Su Mo's eye-catching ID - "Mo".

Meiko looked at the bustling crowd outside the window and couldn't help but exclaimed: "Wow! There are so many people! It's really more lively to play games in China. The atmosphere is really exciting!"

The factory manager also came over to take a look, then turned around and patted Meiko's shoulder meaningfully: "Today's final depends on your performance, Tian Ye! Such a big stage is prepared for you, don't let me down!"

Hearing this, Meiko raised her lips and retorted, "Hey, Mingkai, from what you said, you don't want to be a 'deserter' and don't dare to go on stage, right?"

This really irritated the factory manager. He stiffened his neck and retorted, "What do you mean by deserter? Can you speak? FPX's strength is not enough for me to play in person! Do you understand?" He turned to look at Su Mo, seeking his approval, "Right, Xiao Mo, you must think so too, right?"

Su Mo suppressed his laughter, nodded repeatedly, and agreed seriously: "Yes, yes, yes! Mingkai is right! We are not going to play strategically!"

"Hahahahahaha!" Meiko couldn't hold back any longer and burst into hearty laughter.

After the bus came to a steady stop, Coach Abu stood up and said, "Okay, guys, we're here. Grab your stuff and get ready to get off the bus!"

Su Mo put on his backpack and got off the bus first. However, as soon as he stood firm, he suddenly found that a group of people appeared not far in front of their bus. The group lined up and blocked their way.

That is a standing posture... belonging to a strong person!

The five young men had different postures, some with their hands on their chests, some with their hands on their hips, and some looked eager to try, as if they had just landed on Earth from a distant planet and had not yet fully adapted to the gravity environment here, revealing an inexplicable sense of humor.

"Brother Mozi! It's Brother Mozi! Brother Mozi is here!" A familiar and cheerful voice sounded, and Doinb came trotting happily among the five people like a gust of wind.

Before Su Mo could react, Doinb rushed to him, extended his hands enthusiastically, and held Su Mo's hands tightly, saying rapidly: "Brother Mozi! What a coincidence! I didn't expect that our FPX's opponent in the finals would be you, EDG! Brother Mozi, you... probably won't play today, right? Can you give us FPX a chance first, let us win two games first, and then you can consider playing? Please, Brother Mozi, you should have a good rest down there first, and watch our wonderful performance!"

The other EDG players also got off the bus one after another. The manager walked up to Doinb and said hello, "Player Jin, long time no see."

As soon as Doinb saw the factory manager, he immediately put on an exaggerated expression and shouted loudly: "Factory Manager! It's a living factory manager! The only designated double champion jungler in LPL, Clearlove7! My idol!" He changed the subject and said to the factory manager, "Factory Manager, you should play, right? I haven't played a game with you for a long time. How about you come up and have a good competition with me? I'm really looking forward to it!"

The factory manager was confused and raised his eyebrows. He asked, "Hey, Jin Gugu, what you said is not right. You just told my Xiao Mo not to play, and now you keep inviting me to play. What do you mean? Are you treating me differently?"

Doinb rolled his eyes and immediately revealed a sly smile, saying cunningly, "Hey, Director, it's been a long time since I last played against a legendary player like you, so I miss you so much and want to play against you! It would be so great to play against you!"

Meiko couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Mingkai, don't listen to his nonsense. He just thinks you're easy to bully and that it will be easier for FPX to win if you're on their team!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the team members around him could no longer hold back and started to laugh, covering their mouths. The atmosphere suddenly became relaxed and happy.

The players of the two teams walked into the competition venue side by side amid friendly banter and laughter, then waved goodbye at the fork in the road and went to their own exclusive lounges.

After entering EDG's lounge, Su Mo casually threw his backpack on the sofa, took out his mobile phone, and habitually browsed various major e-sports information websites.

At this point, the summer playoffs in major regions around the world have basically come to an end, and LPL is the last region to decide the summer champion.

Su Mo read with great interest many foreign media interview articles about famous players and teams in their respective regions.

The first thing that caught my eye was naturally the news about the LCK region. This time, the T1 team once again staged a miracle. Starting from the first round of the playoffs, they defeated all opponents and won the LCK Summer Championship again with a feat of "one against four". This achievement undoubtedly shocked the entire League of Legends e-sports circle. Countless fans and media cheered. The former king T1 seemed to be about to return to the top of the world.

Naturally, the media would not miss this hot topic and conducted an in-depth interview with T1's core player Faker. The content of the interview was also released online as soon as possible.

The host asked: "Faker, congratulations on leading your team to win the LCK Summer Championship again! It must have been very difficult along the way? After all, your team didn't even make it to the S League last year."

Faker's answer was calm and humble: "I don't think this is a very difficult thing. As long as our team can play to its full potential, we will definitely get a satisfactory result. Last year's World Championship, I didn't play well and failed to lead my teammates to the World Championship. I feel very sorry for this."

Su Mo was slightly stunned when he saw this. He clearly remembered that the reason why Faker and his SKT missed the S game last year was mainly because of the serious internal strife and chaos in the team, the frequent rotation of the lineup, the unstable tactical system, especially the performance of the jungler position was a disaster, and there was even an outrageous situation that restricted Faker's performance. Faker's own starting position was not absolutely stable. In short, it is no exaggeration to describe SKT last year with the word "chaos". Many of these problems are not something that Faker can decide alone. But now he has taken all the responsibilities on his own initiative. This responsibility and mind made Su Mo a little moved.

Su Mo continued to read.

Host: "As we know, the LCK region has not won any international championship for nearly three years. This is undoubtedly a big blow to the LCK, which once dominated the world. The mentality of many fans, players, and even practitioners within the LCK has changed because of this. What do you think about this?"

Faker pondered for a moment and replied: "Indeed, the mentality of the LCK region has changed a bit. In the past, for our LCK region, we are the strongest region, and the S-League championship naturally belongs to us, there is no doubt about that. However, the emergence of the EDG team has changed everything. They have taken away two S-League championship trophies and four MSI championship trophies from our LCK in a row. Of course, I don't think this is a bad thing."

He paused, a sharp light flashing in his eyes: "Perhaps, the LCK in the past was too proud and conceited, and failed to notice the rapid growth and progress of other regions in time. I believe that the current LCK has been completely awakened by EDG."

Host: "So, what do you think of the other two teams that will represent the LCK region in this S game - DWG and GRF?"

Faker replied: "DWG and GRF are both excellent teams. They are both very young, full of vigor and enthusiasm, and the players' individual skills are almost flawless. They may lack some experience in major competitions in terms of decision-making and operations in some key games. However, these can be compensated and grown through time and games, and I believe they have a promising future."

Host: "What is the goal of the LCK region for this S game?"

Faker's tone became firm and powerful: "The S-League championship is very important to our LCK region. Therefore, we must do our best to fight for it. We are ready to face all challenges."

The host changed the subject and asked with a hint of gossip, "We heard that Faker seems to have a pretty good relationship with EDG's starting top laner Mo. You should have his contact information, right?"

Faker nodded: "Yes, we have each other's contact information."

The host asked, "Do you keep in touch often? For example, share your experiences in the competition?"

Faker looked a little confused when he heard this, and replied, "Well... not really. I don't think Mo is the type who particularly likes to chat online."

Su Mo was stunned when he saw this, and thought to himself: What's going on? I don't like chatting? What kind of weird stereotype is this? He thought about it carefully. Since he and Faker exchanged contact information, they really haven't had any substantive communication. The main reason is that it doesn't seem necessary. Usually everyone has their own training and competition tasks to be busy, which is very tiring. Unless it's during the international competition, but then everyone is in the same venue and can communicate directly in person, so there is no need to chat online.

After reading this interview with Faker, Su Mo gave a four-word evaluation in his heart: modesty and self-confidence. These two seemingly contradictory words are perfectly unified in Faker. Modesty is a manifestation of his personality charm, a kind of cultivation deeply rooted in his heart; while self-confidence is the mentality that he should have when facing any challenge as a top professional player.

Su Mo was still not satisfied and continued to look through the news from other regions. As a result, he found another very interesting interview, the protagonist of which was Perkz, the soul of the G2 team.

Su Mo was also mentioned in this interview.

The host asked: "Perkz, in this year's MSI Mid-Season Championship, G2 team unfortunately lost to EDG team and missed the finals. After the game, the scene of you shedding tears on the spot left a deep impression on the global audience. Many netizens teased you online, saying that you should not provoke Mo player before the game, and the loss of MSI was your punishment for provoking him. In this year's S game, your G2 team is very likely to meet Mo player and his EDG again. Do you have anything to say about this?"

Perkz faced the camera, his signature confident smile appeared on his lips, and he answered in a decisive tone: "This time, I'm going to make him cry!"

"Pfft——Hahahahaha!" Su Mo couldn't hold back any longer when he saw this, and burst out laughing. This Perkz was truly an absolute "master of making a scene", always able to say something shocking and create all kinds of topics.

The comment section below this article is naturally a sea of ​​joy, with all kinds of ridicule and ridicule emerging one after another:

"A-P is here to stir things up again! The classic pre-match rant segment! This time, I guess I won't be beaten to tears by Mozi again, right?"

"Hey, Brother Mozi is really exhausted! Not only does he have to work hard on the court to win the game, but he also has to distract himself off the court to comfort his opponent who was beaten to tears. It's too difficult!"

"I boldly predict that if G2 meets EDG again in this S game, Perkz will probably die on the spot during the game!"

"Ah P is just like that. Just get used to it. How can you play e-sports without a sense of humor?"

Su Mo continued to read other interview articles with great interest and found an interesting phenomenon: no matter which region the interview was from, as long as the topic involved the S game, he and his EDG team would almost always be mentioned to some extent.

This is very similar to Faker before the S8 season. At that time, Faker was the absolute focus of the global League of Legends e-sports circle. In every S game, all teams and players would regard him as the biggest opponent and ultimate goal, and all media would try every means to take advantage of his popularity. In an interview article, the level of attention is completely different if Faker is mentioned or not. Even a team from the wildcard region can get a lot of attention to a certain extent if Faker is mentioned in the interview. On the contrary, even if it is an interview article from the LPL region, if there is no content related to Faker, not many people may really care.

And now, Su Mo seems to have replaced Faker's position to some extent and become the new "world's number one". Everyone has begun to gain popularity and traffic by "mentioning Mo" in interviews.

Su Mo was watching with great interest when suddenly Coach Abu's voice came from the door: "Okay, guys, it's almost time, get ready to go on stage!"

Jiejie, Scout, Iboy, Meiko and Ray, the five starting players immediately stood up, packed their equipment and prepared to set off to the competition stage.

Su Mo waved at them and said with a smile: "Everyone, come on! I'll be waiting for your triumphant return!"

Meiko turned back confidently and made an "OK" gesture to Su Mo: "Don't worry, Xiao Mo! Hurry up and arrange a restaurant for the celebration banquet. We will treat you to a good meal when we come back!"

Iboy pretended to be serious and scolded: "How dare you, Tian Ye! Did you call him Xiao Mo too? You have no respect for your elders!"

"Hahahahaha..." The lounge was once again filled with the players' relaxed and happy laughter. Amid the blessings and teasing of their teammates, EDG's starting five left the lounge in high spirits and embarked on the journey to the finals stage.

Su Mo and the factory manager stayed in the lounge as usual, watching the game on the big screen.

The two teams took the stage one by one amidst the thunderous cheers from the audience. Then, the indispensable pre-match promotional video segment began.

The opening shot of the promotional video was naturally given to the LPL's card character - Su Mo. He was seen wearing an EDG team uniform with two championship stars printed on it, with deep and firm eyes. Under the spotlight, he slowly spoke a few lines with great momentum and style.

Unfortunately, the protagonist of this promotional video did not appear on the competition stage today.

The factory manager looked at the handsome close-up of Su Mo on the screen and couldn't help but mutter sourly, "Tsk tsk, every time there's an LPL promotional video, you're the first one to appear. Don't you think it's boring? Can't you change it up a bit?"

Su Mo turned around and looked at him with a half-smile. "Why, Mingkai, are you jealous? How about letting you take the lead next time?"

Upon hearing this, the factory manager immediately waved his hand in a reserved manner and declined, "Well, it's not that I have to come. I just think that every promotional video is just you alone, which seems too monotonous and lacks some variety. Of course, if the director team insists on me being the spokesperson for LPL, for the glory of the region, I will not refuse."

Su Mo knew the factory manager would say that, so he smiled evilly and said, "Forget it. After all, a promotional video still relies on looks and skills. If you take the lead, I'm afraid the audience won't watch any more after watching the beginning."

[Get Torture Points +40 from Clearlove]! (End of this chapter)