At eight o'clock in the evening on May 16, Snake arrived in Paris.
Later, the staff who had been waiting here took them to a hotel near Villette Park.
After getting off the bus that Japan OT had found, the group walked towards the hotel.
The temperature during the day was almost 20 degrees Celsius, but the temperature difference here was not small, and it was a bit cold at night. When Li Hao and others got off the bus, they also put on their coats.
Team members from FNC, KZ, and FW are also arriving one after another. This trip was arranged by Riot Games, and the teams arrived in good order. We will go to the venue to rehearse together tomorrow.
Riot staff member John smiled and said to them:
"Later, everyone will put their belongings in the room, and then you can go to the restaurant on the third floor. We have prepared a sumptuous dinner."
"That's very unique. I hope you like it."
The translator helped translate it, and Zuo Wu smiled and replied "Thank you".
"Is there something to eat?"
"Um."
Flandre smiled and said, "I happen to be hungry."
Li Hao saw the wise man standing there, rubbing his temples, so he walked over and asked:
"Xiangzi, what's wrong?"
"Motion sickness?"
"without."
Lin Weixiang replied: "There is a slight swelling and pain. It should be caused by flying on a plane. It is not a big deal."
"I see you are hungry."
Liu Qingsong took his suitcase over as he spoke, with a friendly expression:
"You go to the restaurant first, and I'll bring your things up."
Da Chongming was very moved and said, "Good brother, I will help you get points in the early hours next time."
"Brother Hao, shall I bring your things up?"
Zuo Wu came over.
"no, I'm fine."
Li Hao smiled: "I just happened to go to the bathroom."
When a group of people went upstairs, they happened to meet the members of the FNC team.
"The King!"
Caps called out and came up to say hello very familiarly.
Li Hao also waved to him, and everyone got on the elevator together.
"We'll have a training match tomorrow, so don't hold back."
Caps was beaten to a humiliating record by Li Hao in the group stage, but this guy really didn't take it seriously.
"Of course not. I play every training match very seriously."
Bibabu next to Caps revealed angrily: "Caps, you should know that he is telling lies, right?"
"certainly."
Caps nodded, "Your performance in training matches and official matches is completely different."
He whispered to Li Hao again: "So, Ngbuk always says that you are an old fox and the most calculating professional e-sports player. Well, this is a kind of praise. He asked me to learn from you."
"Ha ha."
"Coach Ngbuk misunderstood me too deeply."
"Human energy is limited. As we grow older, investing more energy in e-sports events will consume more and more energy. I just manage it a little bit, otherwise I may become drowsy during official games."
Li Hao said with a deep tone: "After all, in the entire elimination, you can't find any player older than me."
"The future is yours. I just try my best to make my current self the best, but I may be eliminated by this era at any time."
"You can understand what I mean, right."
Hearing this, Caps' expression changed slightly.
He compared himself with Li Hao. Li Hao was six years older than him! He was a truly living fossil-level veteran.
Who among the players of the same era can still maintain dominance like TheKing?
Extremely self-disciplined and diligent, these are labels familiar to the outside world.
But when he actually listened to Li Hao's oral narration to him, the profound feeling was obviously different from what he heard from other places and the results he got after careful consideration.
There will inevitably be fluctuations in my heart.
Even Bibabu next to Caps fell silent.
The hat emperor's eyes looked brighter at Li Hao, with more admiration.
"TheKing, you are really amazing."
He joked again: "Then don't blame me for killing the killer in the training match!"
…
They chatted for a few more words, and then Li Hao learned another news.
Since the group stage, Cap King has won another title in the LCS division, "Happy Man".
You are happy, your opponents are happy, and your 0/11 record makes this title more secure.
Just to show off, people like Pochet have to wear masks of pain.
"Brother Hao, what did they just say?"
"Actually, it's nothing."
Li Hao dragged his suitcase out of the elevator, turned his head and smiled at Flandre:
"They mentioned playing in training games."
"Bibab said he would beat you as a Harabi."
"Ha" a certain gun raised his head proudly.
When Li Hao and the others arrived at the restaurant, Chris and Da Chongming, who had come earlier, had already brought the food to them.
"What is this long thing?"
This is my first time to eat Black Angel. The color and length are similar to those of fried dough sticks.
Zuowu Science Popularization said: "This is a French baguette, an irreplaceable staple food in the eyes of the French. In fact, there is not much secret. It is made of flour, water, salt and yeast."
"Just make do with a little."
The service at the Japanese OT is really good. As John who led the way said, this meal is very French.
Marinated with garlic salt and roasted at a low temperature, the stewed confit duck is a famous French dish, paired with some potatoes and vegetables.
Li Hao tasted it and found it tasted pretty good.
However, he came from Jinling after all.
Li Hao still feels that things from his hometown are better.
…
After a night's rest, Snake and other teams came to the knockout venue the next morning.
Unlike the group stage in Berlin, Germany, with the arrival of the knockout stage, M privately moved to the Zenith Arena in Paris.
Compared with the venues that can barely accommodate a thousand people in the group stage, the venues in the knockout rounds can be said to be very impressive.
The Paris Zenith Stadium was opened in 1989. It is the first building in the world with a freely opening and closing roof. It holds many professional baseball games and professional football games every year.
There are many passionate audiences here, they come from all over the world, but most of them are local LCS audiences.
The elimination round has not yet started, but Japan OT officially announced that all tickets were sold out, and then started a plan to add seats.
The atmosphere before the game was already extremely strong!
You can imagine what a lively scene it will be when the game actually starts!
Facing the shouts of tens of thousands of spectators, it is not surprising that if you do not have a strong psychological quality, your hands and feet will shake.
When they arrived at the venue, they could see a building supported by a red frame. There were many screen-like designs on the front, and a huge M private poster was pulled out from both ends.
In front of it is a square filled with pedestrians.
When the major teams arrived, Japan was still doing activities here.
Seeing the team's players getting out of the car to familiarize themselves with the venue, many fans waiting here cheered.
In addition to local FNC fans wearing orange uniforms, there are also many people with small stickers of 'Theking' on their bodies or faces.
Especially the young lady here.
Lin Weixiang asked in confusion: "Brother Hao, why do you still have so many female fans abroad?"
Before Li Hao could answer, Liu Qingsong interrupted:
"Of course Brother Hao is tough enough."
"So, you need to change your painting style."
"How to change it?"
Li Hao joked: "Under normal circumstances, when you complete a wave of beautiful kills or beautiful operations, the director will give you the camera."
"Just show your toughness in front of the camera."
"For example, roar, beat your chest excitedly and then roar, slam the table to trigger Wei Jiang's passive, and the eye of death. In short, it is conveyed to make people feel your emotions."
"right!"
Brother Wolf helped: "I think you can make a glaring King Kong expression."
Flandre and Black Angel were both snickering, but Smart seemed to really listen.
After entering the venue, you can see the central stage, surrounded by seats and a huge screen hanging above it.
There are many big lights on the top, but they are not fully lit yet.
Following the staff, they came to the backstage and went through the admission process several times.
For Snake, these things have long been familiar. This is not their first time competing in the World Championship.
Angel was a little surprised: "When the time comes, there will be spectators down there, right?"
"Um."
"And the sound will be very loud and will pass through your headphones. It may be boos, laughter, applause, or calls for MVP."
Flandre smiled and said: "Xiao Tao, welcome to the World Championship."
Black Angel patted his chest, feeling a little excited.
Flandre hugged his shoulders and boasted: "Actually, this is nothing."
"In 2016, Brother Hao and I competed at the Staples Center. In 2017, we entered the Olympic Stadium and then the larger Bird's Nest stage, which was cheered by more than 100,000 spectators!"
"Carry in such a big scene, think about how exciting it would be."
"Brother Qiang, aren't you nervous?"
"Of course I was nervous at first, but then I got a lot better after seeing more of it."
Flandre gestured in the direction of Li Hao: "I also asked Brother Hao this question at that time, because he was killing people at the Staples Center, just like playing Rank."
"How did Brother Hao respond?" Black Angel was very curious about that kind of history, especially after hearing Flandre's story.
After all, out of the five players who competed in S6 back then, apart from Li Hao, only Flandre is left. Although Brother Crystal has not retired, he has suffered from an old injury recently and has not played in games for a long time.
Looking at the spacious venue of M Private, Flandre showed a look of reminiscence: "I remember very clearly, Brother Hao said to me at that time"
"If you are completely immersed in the game, you won't hear any interference. The only thing you need to remember is to win the game!"
"..."
From the mouth of Brother Holy Gun, the young Black Angel learned more about the past.
Learn about the detailed events that happened on the scene and behind Snake during the darkest years of the LPL.
At that moment, Black Angel felt a heavy feeling in his heart.
He looked at Li Hao who was talking to Lin Weixiang on the stage in the distance. While admiring him, he also thought
Brother Hao still dominates all major competitions, but his age is there.
In the future, when Brother Hao is not around
Can I carry Snake's banner in the mid lane?
Unlike other teams, Snake's mid laner role is destined to have a heavy task.
Once you get into this position, you will be compared to the best players in the league.
Black Angel smiled bitterly, feeling that he still had a long way to go.
The giant's steps were very long, and he had short legs. He didn't know how long he would catch up.
…
After finishing rehearsals and recording some shows, there will be activities that come with Riot.
For example, interact with some lucky viewers, sign autographs, and take photos.
Give gifts from Roit to some viewers, send blessings, etc.
Around noon, the official took care of the meal.
They walked around backstage, fixed some computer equipment, and then returned to the hotel.
There is a special training room on the fifth floor, with four small rooms that are specially separated, one for each team.
Although the place is not big, it is no problem to play training matches.
Like Snake, KZ, FNC and FW are all in the training room.
The four teams also trained with each other and got to know each other better.
Although the understanding here does not have strategic value.
But even if you discover one of the other party’s eye-catching habits, it’s still a profit.
The uniforms of each team are also more nervous. The knockout round is different. If you lose, you go home directly. There is no second round reversal.
Until 6 o'clock in the evening on May 18th, BJ time, the semi-finals officially begin.
After the on-site host accepted it, the game between Flash Wolves and FNC began.
Li Hao was sitting backstage, holding a thermos cup in his hand, concentrating on the big screen.
After playing the last training match with FNC last night, Cap King said to him solemnly:
"TheKing, wait for me in the finals. Caps will defeat you in the finals and take over the title of number one mid laner!"
Li Hao is quite interesting in retrospect.
Because the Hat King didn’t have too bad intentions when he said this. He must have listened to his words in the elevator that day.
This guy may think he is very tired, and then wants to take the lead and share the burden.
Thinking of this, Li Hao couldn't help but laugh.
The King of Hats not only has a good attitude, but is also quite cute.
If Flash Wolf is third or fourth, Snake will most likely choose Flash Wolf as his opponent in this wave.
KZ can leave it to LCK to specify the dry crusher.
The European audience at the scene was very impressive. After all, FNC was playing at home, and the loud shouts really made the venue tremble.
Black Angel lamented in the background, 10,000, oh my god, 8,000.
This atmosphere, damn!
This made Flandre laugh heartlessly.
What’s interesting is that Caps’ family members came over for today’s FNC game, and the news from Europe even reported on it.
The Cap King’s parents came to watch the game and wore FNC team uniforms.
The team uniform of Hat King Dad is obviously specially designed, with a series of domineering letters written on the back:
"CAPS.DAD"
It seems that the 'Happy Style Man' is able to do so because he inherited it from his father.
Despite having the home court, FNC unfortunately lost the first game in the 32nd minute.
In the second game, Ou Cheng’s War Goddess made a great contribution, scoring four kills in a 26-minute team battle!
The entire venue was in a state of excitement, almost creating M's second pentakill.
Unfortunately, Halabi's Ornn flashed over the wall and escaped.
FNC took dragons continuously, accumulated a huge advantage, and ended the game in the 31st minute.
With one against one, the two sides entered the battle of Tianwang Mountain.
In the group stage, Flash Wolves and FNC defeated each other, and their strengths were already similar.
When FNC won Tianwang Mountain and made the entire Paris venue go crazy, Ma Bao exploded in the fourth game, using the rock bird to score super statistics of 8/0/3!
The fifth decisive game was exciting, and FNC once had the advantage in the early stage.
However, what makes European audiences a little heartbroken is that
Caps, the heroic figure in this series, made a major mistake in the 23rd minute.
Snake Girl's greedy attack on R failed and she took the initiative to lose her head.
Li Hao was stunned backstage. This
Send a wave in the mid-term, a classic Hat King moment!
Flash Wolf was so happy that the War Horse coach in the background jumped three feet high with excitement and wanted to kiss Caps hard on the face.
Good brother! It has to be you!
I’ll treat you to pineapples next time you come to Baodao.
The King of Hats raised his hand, and the Lightning Wolf killed the Snake Girl and got the chance to gain the dragon.
Others in FNC have harassed in the past. If they only harass in this wave, or let go of the baron, FNC can still fight with its previous advantage.
However, some people were unwilling to do so.
Pochet stood up!
Gun in hand, follow me!
Kill the lightning wolf and grab the dragon!
German military flag, dragon collision!
Pochet's prince took the lead and rushed into the dragon pit, while Ou Cheng and others were forced to follow.
As a result, the dragon was killed by Momo and N with a difference of only 200 health, and the Lightning Wolf counterattacked on the spot.
Mabao's Ryze killed everyone and took three heads in a row!
FW played 1 for 4, and directly destroyed the high ground in the middle with the Baron Buff.
This wave caused FNC to completely collapse.
At 29 minutes and 9 seconds, the screen in front of King Hat turned gray, and soon the crystal exploded.
Flash Wolves defeated FNC and entered the M private finals stage!
At that moment, Ma Bao's eyes turned red and she jumped up from the contestant seat with excitement.
Starting from the Orange Bear team that fell to the quarterfinals in S3, every time Mabao has been in the World Championship, it has been either the quarterfinals or the top 16. The best one was the semifinals of M Private last year.
This time, I finally broke the curse and touched the floor of the World Championship finals!
This has always been a dream stage for mommies, and this moment has finally come true!
Mommy was so excited that she wanted to cry.
The rest of the Lightning Wolves were celebrating crazily. Coach War Horse, as if he had drunk War Horse, rushed from the backstage to the front court to share the joy with the wolves.
In comparison, FNC is extremely depressed.
Ou Cheng silently licked his wounds.
Local audiences must also accept the reality that their team has been eliminated.
"Flash Wolf advances!"
"Next, it's Snake and KZ's turn to fight between China and South Korea!"
"..."
The next morning, inside the Grand Hotel Villette.
Li Hao met Caps in the restaurant. He was neatly dressed and seemed to be waiting for someone.
When Li Hao came down for breakfast, Hat Huang waved to him with an apologetic smile.
Li Hao is sure.
The person Caps is waiting for is himself.
"TheKing, I will go to watch today's game, and my parents, we will cheer you on."
"Thank you, Caps."
Li Hao looked regretful and said: "It's really a pity that you are in the semi-finals. You are only one step away from the finals."
"In that situation, you have every chance of reaching the finals."
"It's okay, if you lose, you lose."
Caps said calmly: "We will come back in a better attitude."
"It's just a pity that the previous agreement doesn't count. I can't keep my promise. I'm sorry."
Li Hao couldn't help laughing when he saw the Hat King's appearance as a savior.
"It doesn't matter Caps, sooner or later it will be you who will carry the banner."
The King of Hats nodded and said sincerely: "I hope you can win the game."
"Because I really want to defeat you with my own hands. Although it is difficult, I will have a very clear goal."
"Challenging the number one player in the league is really exciting! My parents have always encouraged me to do this. I told them your story and they all thought you were strong."
The hat emperor scratched his hair: "What makes me a little angry is that after knowing your stories, they have become your fans, and even replaced the tags with my ID on their clothes with your ID.
"
Li Hao: ""
You were stabbed in the back by your old parents, and there's nothing I can do about it.
However, the King of Hats was strong enough, and he said:
"I will think of more ways to make myself stronger in the summer split."
Li Hao hummed and patted Caps on the shoulder:
"I hope we can have a better encounter in the S8 arena."
…
May 19, 2018.
BJ time is six o'clock in the evening.
The Zenith Arena in Paris was packed with seats! The whole venue was buzzing with the noise of the fans!
The densely packed crowd of heads and the tapping of the luminous support sticks made the place below rumble~!
M private semi-finals, the fiery battle between China and South Korea has officially begun!