With that solo kill, the livestream chat instantly descended into chaos.
"Holy shit, Rise of Kingdoms Bro is really this insane? I thought you guys were just hyping him up before."
"That's brutal, isn't it? A level-one solo kill? Syndra solo-killing Azir at level one! Two words: absolutely absurd. Even novels wouldn't dare write this."
"At this rate, Knight might really be warming the bench forever."
…
In TES's practice room, Luo Sheng had been a little worried after his team got caught by FPX's level-one setup. Tian being targeted early meant TES had zero early-game tempo, and the lanes would have to rely entirely on individual performance.
But in the very next moment, the situation flipped. Lin Fan landed several consecutive Qs, crushed Azir's HP, found the solo-kill window—and seized it, killing him outright!
The minion wave had been on the map for less than thirty seconds. Checking the timer, it was only 2:22.
So damn clean.
Lin Fan!
Luo Sheng was already shouting his name in his head.
Meanwhile, Knight—who had been pressed onto the substitute bench today—watched everything unfold on the big screen and couldn't help but curse inwardly.
What the hell kind of positioning is that? Just walking straight into the Qs? Afraid you won't get solo killed or something?
Braindead. FPX spent a fortune to buy this guy back from the LCK? They might as well grab a mid laner from a city league—it couldn't possibly be worse than getting solo killed at level one.
At least no matter who it was, they wouldn't die like that at level one.
"Tian, he's going to teleport back up. Just come over directly—we have more than enough damage. We can dive him."
"Playing Azir into Syndra and starting Corrupting Potion? That's just disrespecting me."
"Got it, I'm on my way."
Listening to the team's comms only made Knight feel worse.
Tian was actually willing to play lapdog for this guy?
Didn't your jungle already collapse? Go farm! Why are you coming just because he called you over?
What if the dive fails? Wouldn't that be a complete collapse?
And Syndra's HP wasn't exactly healthy either. Yes—go dive and just hand over a double kill to the opponent.
Knight glanced over at Luo Sheng.
Luo Sheng's expression had grown serious and focused.
Because this play was indeed extremely risky.
If something went wrong, not only would the earlier kill advantage vanish, but the jungle would collapse entirely.
Still cursing the minions, Gori teleported back to lane immediately after respawning. Having been solo killed at level one, he was completely broke.
Seeing Syndra at less than half HP, he wasn't too afraid.
After all, Syndra had no Flash and no Ignite now. Even if he got stunned, her damage wouldn't be enough. He swaggered straight out from under the turret.
It was obvious the opponent wanted to shove this wave into tower, then recall to buy items.
If that was the plan, then he had to stand firm—freeze the wave as much as possible and force the opponent to lose more experience.
You can have the gold, but I'll take the level lead.
With a level advantage, even if the item gap wasn't small, laning wouldn't be that stressful.
As for the opponent's high skill-shot accuracy—that was just because he got stuck among minions and couldn't dodge properly.
Gori chalked the solo kill up to bad luck.
Just farm up. Later on, in teamfights, Azir's impact far exceeded Syndra's. Then he'd prove himself.
Clid glanced toward mid lane. Without hard crowd control, and with Syndra's positioning clearly wary of him, there was no need to waste time mid. He also needed to hurry back to secure his own blue buff.
Jarvan's clear speed wasn't fast. If he invaded, the timing would be perfect to catch him.
If he could catch Jarvan, he could chase him down all the way.
"Gori, watch your lane. After pushing this wave, he's probably recalling."
"No problem. I'll freeze it. He solo killed me, but I'm not losing out."
Clid took one last look mid, then steered Graves back toward his blue buff. As a farming jungler, securing his own camps came first.
Meanwhile, after finishing red buff, Jarvan immediately slipped into the brush on the opposite side of the blue buff—clearly eyeing it, or perhaps setting up a mid gank.
With no Flash and not even level three yet, Azir would be declared dead the moment he got EQ'd into the air.
Gori, however, was completely oblivious to the danger. He smugly froze the red side wave just outside his tower, looking smugly at Syndra, who seemed unsure what to do.
"Freezing this wave will make you lose everything. You took Ignite instead of Teleport—I know you're anxious, but relax."
And at that very moment, from the shadows at the side, a man in golden armor emerged, shouting "Demacia!"
Chapter 56: What Are You Going to Fight Me With?
With this solo kill, the live chat in the stream room became extremely chaotic.
"Holy shit, Rise of Kingdoms Bro is actually this fierce? I thought you guys were all just hyping him up before."
"Too ruthless, right? A level one solo kill? Syndra solo killing Azir at level one! The whole thing is just two words: ridiculous. Not even novels would dare write it like this."
"At this rate, Knight is really going to wear that bench seat through."
...
In the TES lounge, Luo Sheng had been a bit worried when the team got outmaneuvered by the enemy's level one strategy. With Tian getting targeted in the early game, it meant TES would have no tempo in the early stages—the lanes would depend entirely on the players' individual performances.
But then, in the next second, the winds shifted. Lin Fan landed several consecutive Q abilities to whittle down Azir's health, creating a solo kill opportunity that he seized and delivered a killing blow!
You have to understand—the minion waves had only been up for less than thirty seconds, and looking at the clock it was only two minutes and twenty-two seconds.
Badass!
Lin Fan!
Luo Sheng was already shouting excitedly in his mind.
And Knight, who had been relegated to the substitute bench today, watched everything unfold on the big screen and couldn't help but curse internally: What the hell kind of positioning is that? Walking right into every Q ability, huh? Afraid he won't solo kill you?
Brain-dead idiot. And FPX spent big money to buy this guy back from the LCK, when they might as well have grabbed some mid laner from a city-level league to fill in. Too ridiculous.
At the very least, no matter who came, they wouldn't have been solo killed at level one like this.
"Tian, he's going to Teleport back up. Just come over directly, our damage is more than enough. We can tower dive him."
"Playing Azir against Syndra with Corrupting Potion—that's looking down on me way too much."
"Alright, I'm coming right away."
Especially listening to the team's internal voice comms now made Knight feel even more uncomfortable.
Tian is actually willing to be this guy's dog?
Didn't your jungle just collapse? Go farm, why are you coming over just because he called you?
What if the tower dive fails? Won't you be completely done for?
Plus, Syndra's health isn't exactly healthy right now. Yes, they should try to tower dive and then hand over a double kill to the enemy.
Knight then observed Luo Sheng for a moment. Luo Sheng's facial expression had become somewhat serious and focused.
Because this play was indeed very risky.
If something went wrong, not only would the one-kill lead be gone, but the jungle would completely collapse as well.
After respawning, Gori immediately Teleported back to lane while still cursing at the minions. Having been solo killed at level one, he really didn't have much money on him.
Landing and seeing Syndra with less than half health, he wasn't too afraid.
Mainly because this guy had no Flash and no Ignite—even if Syndra stunned him, the damage wouldn't be enough. So he swaggered out from under the tower.
It was obvious the enemy wanted to push this wave of minions into the tower as much as possible, then recall to update their items.
Since that's what he wants, then I must be tough and hold the wave as much as possible to make the opponent lose more experience. You can have the gold, but I want the level advantage.
With a level advantage, as long as the item gap isn't too large, laning won't have much pressure.
As for the enemy's high skill accuracy, it was completely because he'd gotten stuck in the minion wave with no way to dodge.
Gori attributed this solo kill to bad luck.
Farm first. Once farmed up, his teamfight value would far exceed Syndra's, and then he could prove himself.
Clid glanced at mid lane's situation. Mainly, he had no crowd control, and with how Syndra was positioned, she was clearly being wary of him. There was no need to waste too much time in mid lane, and right now he was in a hurry to get back and watch his blue buff.
Jarvan's jungle clear speed wasn't fast enough. If the enemy invaded, the timing would be just right to catch him there.
If caught on the spot, they could chase him to death all the way.
"Gori, be careful in lane. After the enemy pushes this wave, they should be recalling."
"No problem, I'll just hold the wave. Even though he solo killed me, I'm not really losing out."
Clid took one last look at mid lane, then controlled his Graves to run toward his own blue buff. These jungle camps only became his once he cleared them; if he didn't clear them, they might get stolen.
As a farming-oriented jungler, ensure your own farm first.
Having finished red buff, Jarvan immediately ran to the brush on the other side of blue buff to crouch, seemingly having designs on this blue buff or perhaps preparing to gank mid lane.
An Azir without Flash and not yet level three—if hit by an EQ knockup, his death sentence could be declared.
But Gori hadn't noticed the danger approaching at all. Instead, he was quite smugly holding the red side's wave of minions about to enter the tower, looking triumphantly at Syndra who didn't know what to do.
"Holding this wave will make you lose so much! That's what you get for taking Ignite instead of Teleport. I know you're anxious, but don't panic yet."
But at this moment, from the shadows on the side emerged a man in golden armor shouting "Demacia!"
Seeing this figure, Gori felt his butt go cold.
Not good—getting jabbed by this spear-wielding man would definitely make his ass bloom, no doubt about it.
Especially with no mobility, he was destined to be unable to dodge this burly man's Cataclysm.
Why do men have to get so close with other men?
But Tian didn't give him much time to think. His EQ combo sent Azir soaring to heaven, followed by an auto-attack triggering Conqueror, combined with red buff's burn—half his health was gone instantly.
The Syndra behind didn't need any other extra actions. A Q ability placed right under the chicken's feet, then a simple Scatter the Weak to stun him, followed by Force of Will to pick up the dark sphere and throw it for a chilling strike.
Jarvan didn't even need to tank tower damage. One more tap, combined with Syndra's follow-up auto-attack, and the Desert Emperor's health bar was emptied once again.
Having Teleported down and held the wave for less than half a minute, he'd just been smug for a moment before heading back to base for another hot shower.
He wasn't sure if sand would crack after being soaked in water too long, but Gori himself was about to crack. He had Teleported back to lane wanting to hold a wave, which meant he wouldn't be able to eat the next two large waves either.
Thinking about this made his heart bleed, wishing he could slap himself twice.
Wouldn't it have been better to just summon sand soldiers and eat a few minions after landing? Why did he have to showboat like that?
Azir already had massive pressure laning against Syndra in the early game—normally you'd have to stall until twenty-five minutes.
At the end of the day, they're mages from two different systems: one bursts, the other sustained damage.
The early game damage isn't equal, and in this situation Azir had no business trying to arm-wrestle with Syndra.
Let alone a Syndra holding two kills.
Everyone knew—mid lane was completely unplayable now.
The item panel clearly displayed the gap between the two mid laners.
Azir: Corrupting Potion, Dark Seal.
Syndra: Doran's Ring, Dark Seal, Blasting Wand, Boots.
Rise of Kingdoms Bro might as well grab Gori by the collar and shout: What are you going to fight me with?
TL: If you want to read ahead by at least ten chapters, patreon.com/EdibleMapleSyrup