Chapter 31: RNG’s Perfect Draft, Chen Yan Locks In the Void Walker

In the commentary booth, WaWa and Miller were analyzing the situation. When the topic shifted to EDG, their tone lacked confidence. Even a casual observer could see that RNG held a higher win rate this season.

"However, it's not like EDG has no chance at all," Miller, a die-hard EDG supporter, said with a forced smile. "EDG still has their heritage. If they can leverage their operational strengths, I believe there's an opening, and besides..."

Just as Miller was about to mention that EDG had made a substitution, WaWa suddenly covered his headset with his hand. A moment later, WaWa announced, "The producer just informed us that for this match, EDG has chosen to swap their mid-laner, with Chen Yan starting."

The camera cut to Chen Yan at the perfect moment. He flashed a bright, confident smile at the lens. The live chat was flooded with comments praising his looks, along with many fans spamming "Up for the Yan Army." Without anyone realizing it, Chen Yan’s streaming fanbase had grown significantly. However, the rest of the viewers found the "Yan Army" spam quite annoying.

"Yan Army? Where did these stray dogs come from?"

Some viewers recognized Chen Yan as the player who had helped EDG defeat OMG in his previous outing. "This mid-laner is actually decent; he turned iCon into 'Cold Dish'."

"But he hasn't played in a long time. Who knows how much of his skill he still has?"

"You think RNG is the same as OMG? Xiaohu is going to pull his hair out."

"Do you even know the true weight of the 'Spring Emperor' Xiaohu?"

The chat was filled with debate. Most, however, felt that EDG's last-minute substitution was nothing more than a desperate struggle. Coupled with the fact that the fallout from EDG's poor performance at the World Championship had not yet faded, the stream was almost entirely biased toward RNG.

On stage, WaWa and Miller exchanged glances, both seeing a mix of awkwardness and amusement in the other's eyes. Changing the roster right before a match—especially replacing the team’s star player, Scout—meant they didn't hold high hopes for EDG either. Still, they had always been lenient toward newcomers and, instead of saying anything disparaging, they took the initiative to support Chen Yan.

"Many of you might be unfamiliar with Chen Yan, but during the series against OMG, he played Cassiopeia and Lucian. Not only did he take two consecutive MVPs, but he also set the record for the highest damage share in a single game during the Spring Split, a record that remains unbroken to this day."

"We hope Chen Yan can recreate that brilliance and deliver a spectacular match today."

At that moment, the screen flashed, transitioning to the Ban & Pick interface.

"Alright, without further ado, the draft has begun. Let’s look forward to a fantastic duel between these two sides."

As the commentators finished, both teams began their bans in rapid succession. Everyone watched the screen intently, and the atmosphere suddenly turned tense. EDG had chosen the red side, while RNG took the blue side.

For the bans, RNG immediately locked in Ashe, Malzahar, and Cassiopeia.

EDG responded with bans on Elise, Graves, and Lee Sin.

"Damn it!" mlxg cursed loudly upon seeing the bans, "Those bastards, are you kidding me? Targeting me like this?"

The referee stepped in immediately to warn him against using such language. His teammates couldn't help but laugh.

The atmosphere on the EDG side was much less jovial; the players sat with grim expressions. When Nofe saw that Chen Yan's signature Cassiopeia had been banned, he couldn't help but scratch his head vigorously.

Chen Yan smiled and said, "Don't panic, these bans are actually fine."

He wasn't just trying to comfort Nofe; he truly believed it. Cassiopeia was only one of his signature picks, and forcing a ban out of the opponent was a good thing. What surprised Chen Yan, however, was how cautious RNG was. He had expected them to underestimate him due to his newcomer status, but it seemed he had miscalculated. What he didn't know was that RNG had long been suppressed by EDG and held a unique obsession with defeating them; they were never going to take the match lightly. But it didn't matter—RNG's targeting wasn't fatal.

"Let’s see what they pick first, then we'll decide how to respond..." Nofe nodded.

The next moment, RNG locked in Caitlyn.

"Let’s go with the Shadow Isles combo," Chen Yan asked the bot lane duo directly. "What do you say? Can we play that?"

Zet and Meiko looked at each other and nodded. These were signature heroes for both, so they were naturally comfortable with them. EDG immediately locked in Kalista and Thresh.

"It's happening!" WaWa and Miller were excited. "EDG’s bot lane pick is quite aggressive—are they going all-in?"

"But RNG shouldn't back down either, especially since they have Uzi in the bot lane..."

As they spoke, RNG locked in Karma and Gragas.

EDG’s third pick was Sejuani.

The first phase of the draft concluded. Looking at the team compositions, the two sides were fairly evenly matched: a herbivore-style jungler paired with an aggressive bot lane. However, Chen Yan was considering the position of the Karma—a hero that could be flexed, and RNG was known for their proficiency in flex tactics.

"Your concern is valid," Nofe agreed. After the second round of bans, he had Mouse pick first, saving the counter-pick for Chen Yan.

In truth, Chen Yan didn't insist on a counter-pick. If it didn't affect his lane match-up, he didn't mind letting his teammates have a more comfortable game. But this time, that clearly wouldn't work.

"Galio, Shen, or Jarvan IV—pick one?"

Mouse gave a bitter smile. What difference did it make? But he was used to it; whenever Scout played, he usually ended up on these types of champions.

"Shen, I guess."

Shen was locked in.

RNG saw that they hadn't baited EDG into a trap, but they didn't mind; the Karma pick was a low-risk gamble. If it worked, great; if not, no loss. Xiaohu muttered, "Is it really necessary to use tricks against a rookie?"

Subsequently, RNG locked in Ryze and Camille.

Camille? Chen Yan paused for a moment before realizing. Letme wasn't always a "support-style" top-laner; early on, he played carry champions, and Camille was one of his signatures. He only transitioned to tanks because the team needed him to. However, Letme's so-called "signatures" were not on the same level as those of top-tier aggressive top-laners. The difference lay in the pressure applied. TheShy would have a lane advantage and dive towers to kill and dismantle the structure; Letme, even with a lane advantage, would at most exert pressure on the minion wave.

Still, from RNG's draft, Chen Yan sensed something: RNG was utilizing a hybrid of a dual-solo lane system and a tower-pushing strategy. With this composition, RNG had multiple ways to win, whether in the early, mid, or late game. It was clear that to beat EDG, RNG was holding nothing back and bringing out their trump card.

Nofe realized this too, his expression turning incredibly grim. RNG's draft was so solid that it was hard to find a weakness. Just looking at the team compositions, EDG was already at a disadvantage.

The chat was flooded with comments saying "It's over."

However, EDG had one final pick left. Everyone watched to see if they could pull off a stroke of genius. As time ticked away, EDG remained indecisive. Finally, just before the timer hit zero, a change appeared on the screen.

"Balance must be preserved."

The Void Walker—Kassadin!

Seeing this champion, the two commentators gasped in surprise.

"Kassadin?!"