The third day of the qualifiers began. After two days of brutal elimination, over ninety percent of the registered teams had been knocked out. Those who remained on the battlefield were all elites who had survived tens of thousands of bloody battles. The atmosphere of the competition had transformed from initial novelty and chaos into a highly tense, cutthroat, and white-hot state. Every match was crucial for advancing further and securing a valuable ticket to the City Finals.
At the Riot Games headquarters command center, the number of matches displayed on the large screen had significantly decreased, but the level of attention was unprecedentedly focused. The technical team no longer needed to deal with a massive number of concurrent issues but instead dedicated their efforts to ensuring the absolute stability of critical matches. The referee team also became more concentrated, as any dispute they handled could directly determine the fate of a strong team.
Qin Feng's gaze swept across the screen, which marked several highly watched team IDs: 'Broken Army,''Spark,' and several other teams that had demonstrated dominance in different competitive regions. He knew that from today onwards, the entertainment value and tactical depth of the matches would experience a qualitative leap.
At ten in the morning, the battle rekindled.
In their first match today, the 'Broken Army' team finally encountered their strongest challenge since the start of the tournament—a team named 'Dragon Soul.' This team played a stable style, excelling at defensive counter-attacks and late-game team fights, and their core ADC player (ID: Taciturn) was particularly renowned for his astonishing damage output in team fights.
In the early game, 'Broken Army' still tried to open up the situation using their strong mid-jungle synergy. However, 'Dragon Soul's' defense was airtight, with extremely tricky vision control, neutralizing Wang Hao's (Gui Shu) early Gank attempts multiple times. The economies of both sides remained very close.
"They're very stable, hard to catch," Wang Hao said in voice chat, his tone a little less relaxed.
"We're not afraid of the late game, their composition is stronger in the late game," Han Feng (Sharp Edge) calmly analyzed, "Look for an opportunity to force Baron, draw them out for a team fight."
Thirty minutes into the game, both sides engaged in a decisive battle around the fifth Dragon (Dragon Soul point). 'Broken Army' initiated the Dragon, and 'Dragon Soul' quickly gathered. Just as the Dragon's health was at its lowest, 'Dragon Soul's' support flashed in, landing a perfect area-of-effect crowd control ability on three members of 'Broken Army'!
"Oh no!" the commentator in the official live stream exclaimed, "'Broken Army' has three members controlled! Taciturn's ADC is starting to deal damage! The damage is explosive!"
It looked like 'Broken Army' was about to collapse due to this fatal control. At the critical moment, Han Feng's mid-laner (Orianna) used Flash to reposition, pulling off his Ultimate Ability [Command: Shockwave] at extreme range! Although he only caught two people, it precisely interrupted Taciturn's most crucial damage rhythm!
"Sharp Edge! It's Sharp Edge who stepped up! That life-saving Ultimate Ability!" the commentator's voice was hoarse.
At the same time, Liu Zhen's (Mountain) top laner stood like a rock at the very front, absorbing tons of damage; Sun Yu's (Piercing Cloud) ADC and Li Rui's (Bulwark) support frantically dealt damage from the flanks. The team fight ended in a tragic three-for-four trade, with only Han Feng and Sun Yu of 'Broken Army' surviving with low health, but they successfully defended the Dragon Soul and repelled their opponents.
This team fight made all the viewers break out in a cold sweat. 'Broken Army' was not invincible; they could also make mistakes and fall into tough battles. But the difference between top-tier strong teams and ordinary strong teams lies in their ability to turn the tide in adversity through individual skill and team synergy.
Ultimately, 'Broken Army' narrowly secured this match with superior subsequent minion wave management and resource control. Although they won, the news that their undefeated streak was nearly broken quickly spread throughout the player community.
Another dark horse, the'Spark' team, continued their miraculous performance. Their core ADC, Chasing Star, after two days of dazzling play, received focused attention from opponents, being continuously targeted during the Ban/Pick (hero ban/select) phase.
However, the'Spark' team demonstrated their tactical diversity. When their ADC was restricted, their mid-laner (ID: Ink Stain) stepped up, using Twisted Fate, and with his global support capabilities, he drove the entire game's tempo, helping the team open up opportunities on other lanes.
"We can see that the'Spark' team is not a team that relies solely on a single core!" the commentator analyzed, "When Chasing Star was targeted, Ink Stain's Twisted Fate carried the early and mid-game tempo! This team's tactical reserves and team resilience are quite astonishing!"
'Spark' team once again advanced with little drama, and their dark horse quality, tested by strong opponents, became increasingly real.
Not all teams were as fortunate as 'Broken Army' and'Spark.' More matches were filled with the regret of falling short and the tragedy of giving it their all.
A team named 'Indomitable,' after battling an opponent for nearly fifty minutes, lost a crucial vision control, allowing their opponent to steal the Elder Dragon, ultimately losing with regret. At the end of the match, there was silence in the team's voice chat, with only the captain hoarsely saying, "I'm sorry, brothers, it was my command issue."
Another team, 'Old Boys,' composed of several long-time friends, in the final decisive team fight, their support, to cover the ADC's retreat, resolutely turned back to fight, sacrificing his life to buy time for his teammates. Although their base was ultimately pushed down, that friendship, transcending victory and defeat, moved all the viewers watching through the OB perspective.
On the forums, in addition to praise for the strong teams, there was also respect for the defeated.
"The 'Indomitable' team, though defeated, fought gloriously! They were too tenacious!"
"The 'Old Boys' support made me cry; this is the spirit of esports!"
"Keep going! Come back next year!"
The third day of matches concluded, and the City Finals spots for various competitive regions were progressively determined. Teams that reached this stage were already considered 'one in a million' elites. They not only possessed strong individual skill but also had a nascent tactical system and excellent team cooperation.
The official announcement released the promotion list for the City Finals. Behind the densely packed team IDs were countless days and nights of training, the sweat of team synergy, and the agony and joy between wins and losses.
Qin Feng carefully reviewed this list, especially the several marked key teams. He knew that the chaotic phase of the qualifiers was over. Next would be the more standardized and challenging City Finals. These city champions, who had fought their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, would represent their respective cities and embark on the journey to the Regional Finals, launching a new round of assault towards the stage of the National Grand Finals.
The three-day long qualifier, filled with intense battles, finally settled. And the more fierce, more eye-catching battle of the city-states was about to unfold.