Chapter 22: Season 8, IG Wins the Championship, the Entire Internet Erupts!

Outside the player training room.

The group from Shark Live was walking and chatting with Ah Bu. Having achieved their goal and seeing that it was getting late, they needed to head back.

Leaving the EDG Esports Club, Director Xu Lei let out a long sigh inside the taxi, his eyes reflecting a hint of deep emotion. "I never expected it to cost 11.5 million. When we arrived, I thought 500,000 would be enough to seal the deal."

"Director Xu, how do you intend to explain this to the company?" the legal representative asked with some concern; the price had far exceeded their expectations.

Xu Lei shook his head and couldn't help but laugh. "Explain what? Lu Ziyang’s live streaming data, retention, and popularity speak for themselves. One million-plus followers on the first day and 45 million in popularity value. Such numbers are the best explanation."

"Besides, I chatted with Lu Ziyang briefly. The kid isn't very old, yet he is humble, well-mannered, steady, and composed."

"I, old Xu, have seen too many so-called 'potential stocks' in my time. A person like him is destined for greatness. Furthermore, in this era of valuing appearances, Lu Ziyang has a face even more handsome than an idol star; he will never have to worry about a lack of popularity."

"Even if he were just a pretty face at EDG, he would likely be able to capture a massive fan base without lifting a finger. And he’s not just a pretty face! I don’t even know what kind of chemical reaction his caliber will trigger in the esports scene."

Xu Lei looked out the taxi window. The night was deep, and neon lights flickered everywhere along the streets of Shanghai. He muttered to himself, "In this clash, our Shark has completely defeated Wolf Fang. Just wait for that guy surnamed Zhou to cry!"

At this moment, Xu Lei likely did not realize that signing Lu Ziyang for 11.5 million would become the most successful business negotiation of his career.

...

1:00 AM.

Lu Ziyang had already secured a 13-game winning streak without a single loss.

The night was late, and many of his viewers had work or school, so the popularity value in the chat began to wane.

Just then, Jelly sent him a message:

"VitalityLittleJelly: (Exhausted) I can't keep going, I'm so sleepy. Are you going to keep playing?"

"Lu Ziyang: You're still a patient, get some rest early. I'm getting ready to log off too."

"VitalityLittleJelly: Tomorrow then?"

"Lu Ziyang: Okay."

"VitalityLittleJelly: Alright, you get some rest too. (Goodnight)"

After waiting a moment, Lu Ziyang finally replied with two rare words: "Sweet dreams."

"VitalityLittleJelly: Sweet dreams (Moon)"

Meanwhile, on the other side of Shanghai.

In Lujiazui, the most golden area, inside a high-rise at Tomson Riviera—the most expensive residential complex—a girl sitting in front of a computer stretched lazily like a cat.

Though she wore loose cartoon pajamas, her elegant curves were clearly visible as she stretched.

She leaned on the computer desk with both hands, stood up on one foot, and then picked up the single crutch leaning against the desk to walk out of the bedroom.

The living room was incredibly spacious, a standard large-flat layout.

The floor-to-ceiling windows faced the Pearl Tower, the iconic landmark of Shanghai.

In her line of sight, she saw a beautiful woman of indeterminate age wearing glasses, hunched over her work.

"Chuxia, why aren't you asleep yet?"

The woman heard the door open and, seeing the young girl walk out of the bedroom, immediately set aside her work.

She hurried to her side, supporting her with gentle words, "Why did you stay up so late today? The doctor specifically told you that you cannot stay up late right now, you know."

The girl, called Chuxia, had a very tall figure and looked about thirty percent like the woman; she was beautiful in an almost surreal way.

Hearing this, a bright smile appeared on the girl’s sharp, delicate, oval-shaped face. "Mom, I want to eat tangyuan tomorrow morning."

"Alright, I'll have Auntie Wu make them for you."

The woman couldn't bear to scold her, but still cautioned, "You cannot stay up late next time, you hear? You have the college entrance exam in half a year, and your leg injury needs more rest."

After a moment of thought, the woman added:

"Mom knows you truly love music and have achieved great results. Your father and I both support you. We are always reassured by your grades, but as long as the college entrance exam isn't over, you can't be careless, do you understand?"

"I know, I know. I just want to eat the tangyuan you make yourself. If you won't make them, I'll have to make them myself." The girl said, acting like she was pouting.

"This girl, why did she suddenly want to eat tangyuan out of the blue?" The woman was a bit puzzled, but she agreed helplessly, "Mom knows. I'll make you the tangyuan before I get back to work, okay?"

"Mom, you're the best to me. I want red bean paste filling!"

Bai Chuxia leaned her head on the woman’s shoulder, a curve forming at the corners of her pretty mouth.

That flawless face wore a rare, peaceful smile, as she thought to herself, "Lu Ziyang, I never expected we could get in touch again. This is wonderful. We can consider this a reunion, right?"

...

"Achoo!"

Lu Ziyang had just finished his first live stream.

He suddenly couldn't help but let out a massive sneeze. Rubbing his nose, he felt puzzled, "Who the hell is thinking about me?"

"Congratulations, Ziyang, a massive success for your first stream!"

Meiko, sitting next to him, looked full of admiration. "You are truly too strong."

"Hahaha, thanks, Brother Tian."

Lu Ziyang nodded with a smile. EDG had no substitute support player, which meant Meiko would likely be his partner in the future.

"Nothing to thank me for, you're being too polite, I'm just telling the truth."

Meiko smiled and said, "By the way, we start training matches tomorrow. How did the coach arrange things for you?"

"Not quite sure yet. Waiting for the notification!"

Lu Ziyang hadn't thought too much about it. He believed EDG hadn't signed him just to watch the water cooler; likewise, he possessed absolute self-confidence now.

The schedules of most professional esports players were quite chaotic.

If there were no matches, they basically woke up at noon to start training, continuing until late into the night.

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, Lu Ziyang had been at EDG for nearly a week.

During this period, all sorts of new regulations were rolled out at EDG like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

It was evident that after crashing out in the Round of 16 during the S8 season, the EDG management had reflected on their mistakes and were determined to forge a brand-new EDG team.

First was improving the players' schedules.

This had become a hard rule: no flipping days and nights. They had to sleep early and rise early, putting the players' health first.

Over the past few days, Lu Ziyang had fully integrated into the EDG family.

The club was gradually terminating contracts with their Korean imports while simultaneously scouring the LPL for new talent and strong local players.

As for Lu Ziyang, aside from his daily training matches, he would stream on Shark in the evenings, duo-queuing with Jelly. During this time, his Korean server account had already reached level 30, effectively starting his climb up the ranked ladder.

To date, he had accumulated 77 wins with zero losses, reaching Diamond I.

In these 77 games, Lu Ziyang hadn't died a single time! Every match was won cleanly and decisively, without the slightest pressure.

This terrifying, cheat-like dominance shocked countless viewers, and the EDG management as well.

Ah Bu became even more convinced of how correct his decision to sign Lu Ziyang had been.

In training matches, Lu Ziyang’s performance was equally terrifying—steady, unstoppable, and invincible.

EDG’s original ADC, iBoy, had completely moved to the substitute position, and Lu Ziyang’s priority within the team was rising higher and higher.

Everything was going far more smoothly than imagined.

Besides that, during this time, the S8 World Championship was still in full swing.

The LPL's IG team had pulled off a massive upset in the quarterfinals.

As a dark horse, they defeated the LCK’s number one seed, KT, and in the subsequent semifinals, they easily cut down G2, the team that had knocked RNG out of the S8 Worlds.

Tonight, in the S8 Finals, they defeated the LCS's FNC team with a crushing, unstoppable momentum—winning the S8 World Championship!

Yes, they had done it.

They created a miracle and broke history.

They secured the first-ever S-series championship trophy for the LPL region. This victory was incredibly significant, and for a moment, the whole country erupted!

Various trending lists, and even WeChat Moments, were flooded by IG.

Esports had broken through barriers once again.

People told each other the news, wantonly venting the joy in their hearts.

In the EDG Esports Club viewing area, the entire space was packed with people. The moment IG won the championship, the club erupted, the cheers sounding as if they might blow the roof off the building.

Among the crowd, only Lu Ziyang seemed slightly out of place. He instinctively clenched his fists, his expression complex.

Some intense emotion seemed to surge in his deep eyes, only to be instantly suppressed.

For the awards ceremony that followed, Lu Ziyang chose not to keep watching and instead went to the training room alone.