TCWSITD – Chapter 55.1

Chapter 55 has 3 parts; 55.2 and 55.3 will be uploaded today at 20:00 and 21:00 EST.

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Chapter 55.1 – Worlds Semifinals

Zhang Mingying’s reckless playstyle quickly shattered the enemy’s rhythm. The more SPG played, the more baffled they became. How could the score be 0-0, yet OT was playing with the momentum of a 5-0 lead?

SPG had never seen such a playstyle and started to get intimidated. They unknowingly switched from offense to defense.

Zhang Mingying successfully invaded the jungle, leaving their own jungle camps for his teammates. Lin Jiang could farm the F6 (Raptors), and Shen Ju could take the Krugs, gaining an economic and experience lead over the opponent.

After being targeted for three games, Lin Jiang finally had his moment. He dashed in with W, chunking half the enemy’s health. The opponent, unwilling to give up the wave, could only play defensively and call for their jungler.

Lin Jiang calmly farmed, then suddenly Flashed forward, landing a precise chain.

The Flash startled everyone, but upon reflection, if the chain landed, it was a guaranteed kill. Lin Jiang was going for blood!

The enemy refused to give up first blood and Flashed away to escape.

But Lin Jiang still had his W ready. He followed the Flash, landing right on top of the enemy and locking them in place!

LeBlanc’s chain has a brief elasticity window—only simultaneous movement keeps it from breaking. Lin Jiang’s W was a perfect prediction.

The domestic commentators exclaimed: “river’s mechanics are insane! Locked down the enemy, what do you think? Is he going for a kill?”

But this was happening right under the enemy turret!

SPG’s mid laner’s expression changed.

What was Lin Jiang trying to do?

Could he be trying to dive under the turret to kill him!

For any professional player, getting solo-killed under the turret was the ultimate humiliation, an absolutely unforgivable offense!

SPG’s mid laner was thoroughly provoked by Lin Jiang. After being immobilized, he immediately chose to counterattack just as his jungler was closing in for the kill, determined to make Lin Jiang pay for his recklessness!

The moment his skills were unleashed, Lin Jiang didn’t linger in the fight. Instead, he used his ultimate to replicate W and escape beyond the turret’s range, causing all of his opponent’s skills to miss.

Did Lin Jiang really give up?

Just as the mid laner thought he was safe…

Suddenly, a sharp bang rang out!

Lin Jiang abruptly turned back with an AQA combo, perfectly triggering Electrocute and instantly taking him down.

First Blood!

Lin Jiang walked straight out of the turret’s range. Despite diving for the kill, he had only taken a single hit from the tower, leaving his health still hovering around half!

SPG’s mid laner’s face instantly paled, his fear and hatred for Lin Jiang reaching its peak at that moment.

Such meticulous play!

LeBlanc’s chain can only immobilized, not stunned. Although it locked him in place, he could still deal skill damage from where he stood.

At that point, Lin Jiang had already chased deep enough. If he had taken even one hit from his opponent’s skills, he would have been counter-killed.

But Lin Jiang’s brilliance lay in the fact that the moment he immobilized his enemy, he immediately used his ultimate to replicate W and escape in the opposite direction, dodging not only his opponent’s damage but also the turret’s attacks.

Then, turning back to finish him off and exiting the turret’s range, all while taking just one turret hit!

Their jungler had arrived, but thanks to Zhang Mingying’s invasion, he was only Level 4. There was no way he could kill Lin Jiang now. In fact, he risked being outplayed and killed himself, so he had no choice but to retreat.

Domestic commentators went wild: “river just completely dismantled SPG’s mid laner! Flashing in without hesitation, leaving no room for survival!”

There was another subtle detail. The reason Lin Jiang Flashed in was because his opponent had already adapted to the timing of his W. Flashing was faster than W. Lin Jiang’s Flash-engage was calculated to guarantee a 100% kill.

Was this the same player from the first three games?

SPG’s mid laner was stunned. He began to wonder if Lin Jiang had been intentionally baiting him earlier, setting him up for this humiliating moment.

A tower-dive kill was already a disgrace. No matter how well he had played before, it would all be overshadowed by this moment.

And this was OT’s match point. To embarrass himself right at the start dealt a massive blow to his team’s morale.

Korean netizens were already flooding forums with criticism. They had expected SPG to send home LPL’s last remaining hope, yet against an OT in such poor form, they were losing so pathetically!

Everyone deemed it unforgivable.

[If you lose, just revoke your citizenship.]

[We always considered you the second-seed, but now it’s clear you’re only fit for third.]

[The ‘Twin Tyrants’ are a joke. We told you not to expect anything from them.]

[They’re just the third seed-team.]

Korean trolls were far more aggressive than domestic ones, putting immense pressure on the players.

The expressions of the five on stage grew increasingly grim. Already struggling in a difficult match, they made two consecutive mistakes during the mid-game.

Against Lin Jiang, a single mistake meant game over.

He flashed in with W, unleashing a full combo to eliminate the isolated enemy AD. The arena erupted in deafening cheers. Even in a foreign land, the passion from home was palpable.

Lin Jiang noticed the ringing in his ears begin to fade, the blurry spots before his eyes slowly dissipating. His form improved with each play, culminating in an enemy team wipeout that led them straight to the enemy high ground.

The match ended in just 25 minutes. Shen Ju in the bot lane hadn’t even fully exerted himself yet before Lin Jiang and Zhang Mingying led the team to a decisive victory.

After the match, everyone celebrated excitedly except Shen Ju, who rubbed his wrist with a strange feeling. He couldn’t shake the thought that Lin Jiang had taken that risky engage just for him.

OT’s performance in this match started rough but soared later. While the early games weren’t pretty, the last two fully showcased their brilliance.

Shen Ju’s aggressive engage in the third game, Lin Jiang’s turret dive kill in the fourth game—both were highlight moments, so dazzling that everyone forgot the unpleasantness of the first two games.

That’s the nature of esports—no matter the process, only the result truly matters.

Domestic fans went wild. Commentators in the broadcast room finally dared to hype them up, and Old Mao, the big-name streamer, sighed in relief. “They won! I knew they couldn’t lose, right? If they’d lost, I would’ve exploded on the spot…”

“OT’s form was shaky at first, but let’s be honest. Even at their worst, their bottom line isn’t low. As long as Lin Jiang and Shen Ju are standing, you can always believe in them.”

That simple statement—“you can always believe in them”—hit home for everyone. They finally understood why they loved watching OT’s games so much. No matter how desperate the situation, as long as Lin Jiang and Shen Ju were still in the fight, that spark of hope never dies—it grows, ignites, and spreads like wildfire…

#OTAdvancesToSemifinals

The news quickly blew up, trending across social media.

A guaranteed top-four finish sounded much better than an all-quarterfinal exit. Even the most disheartened netizens gradually calmed down.

Seeing the renewed engagement, the league capitalized by promoting OT. Behind the scenes, they reached out to teams that hadn’t gone on break, asking them to delay vacations and help OT through this tough period.

TG and YIG agreed without hesitation, partly because they’d built good rapport with OT, and partly to salvage their own reputations after their Worlds exits.

Soon, other teams like SNG and XIG also pledged cooperation.

As the last hope standing, OT now bore the weight of the entire region’s expectations. Fans prayed they’d carry LPL’s spirit to the very end.

OT’s advancement meant SPG’s elimination. In their post-match interview, SPG’s players tearfully apologized, begging for forgiveness.

Korean netizens unanimously responded: No forgiveness!

They viciously attacked SPG, even denouncing the players’ nationalities.

Witnessing this frenzy, everyone slowly realized the absurdity of it all.

It seems that after SPG lost, LCK was also left with only one remaining team! So it’s the same as LPL now, huh?

[Hahahaha, the pot calling the kettle black.]

[No wonder they suddenly lost their cool. Their sense of superiority is gone.]

[LOL, so we’re actually on the same starting line as LCK!]

[Why do I suddenly feel less nervous?]

[What else can I say? OT is just awesome.]

[Here’s an international joke: the last remaining team.]

Of course, jokes aside, when it comes to the competition itself, OT’s schedule was still brutal.

The four teams advancing to the semifinals were all the first-seeds from the four major regions. OT will first face WAG, the first-seed from Europe. Even if they win, they’ll then have to take on either Korea’s first-seed or North America’s first-seed—none of these teams were easy opponents. Some foreign analysts even claim that OT was the weakest among the four semifinalists.

But still, was it polite to say that?

How can you call them the weakest before the matches even start?

As the sole remaining team from LPL, OT naturally received the full support of the entire online community. LPL may not have much else, but it certainly had no shortage of players. Any taunts from other regions were immediately met with overwhelming backlash.

Most people felt that this year’s World Championship was fiercely competitive, and OT making it to the semifinals had already exceeded expectations. Even if they lose in the semifinals, it wouldn’t be too embarrassing.

After all, TG’s massive upset already took care of the embarrassment. Every additional match OT plays was just adding to their honor.

The public opinion had eased, which was good for both the players and the officials. Now, all that’s left is to focus entirely on preparing for the semifinals.

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