At 2:30 PM, the S10 World Invitational Tournament officially commenced at the Seoul Esports Center.
This esports venue could accommodate tens of thousands of spectators. Due to Korea's developed esports industry and many people following esports, coupled with today's match featuring the duo Choi Hyuk and Park Won-seok, the venue was packed. Many fans held up support posters and light sticks for Choi and Park, cheering for them on-site.
The second floor was the player rest area and commentary area. Official commentators from various countries each had a designated zone for live streaming. Yao Mu, commentating abroad for the first time, felt slightly nervous seeing commentators from different countries around. Qi Dongyu comforted her quietly: "Ignore the audience behind you; just treat it like a domestic match."
Yao Mu took a deep breath, revealed a smile, nodded to indicate she was fine.
The two began their live broadcast commentary: "Hello, viewers and friends, good afternoon! We are at the Seoul Esports Center in Korea, at the S10 World Invitational Tournament venue! I'm the official commentator, Brother Dong."
"I'm the official commentator, Mu Mu."
"Today at 2:30 PM, the World Invitational will officially begin. This edition's rules are the same as previous years, featuring single events, including duo matches and solo matches. Our China region players are only participating in individual matches this year. Though somewhat regrettable, the players are in good form; we look forward to them achieving good results."
"This afternoon's opening match is the Korean ATB team's Choi Hyuk and Park Won-seok duo against the European HERR team's Pegg and Arnold duo…"
Backstage, Ye Shaoyang arrived early at the preparation room.
Chairman Qiu helped Chi Shuo apply for a team consultant pass, allowing him to accompany everyone to the preparation room.
Seeing the close-ups of Choi Hyuk and Park Won-seok on the big screen and the excited fans on-site, Ye Shaoyang couldn't help leaning close to Chi Shuo's ear: "Putting the Choi-Park duo in the first match of the opening ceremony shows the organizers are very confident in their skills, completely unafraid of an upset?"
Chi Shuo said indifferently: "After all, they're the world's best mid-jungle duo in Korean media's eyes."
Ye Shaoyang smiled: "True. For Korean fans, having their ace duo play the first match is indeed an auspicious start, quite face-giving."
The duo match was intense. Choi Hyuk and Park Won-seok didn't disappoint their fans, cleanly winning 2-0.
Soon, it would be Ye Shaoyang's turn. He picked up his own keyboard and mouse, stood up to head to the main stage. Chi Shuo also stood, looking into his eyes, saying softly: "Do your best. Waiting for your good news."
Ye Shaoyang nodded at Chi Shuo, thinking: I won't let you down.
Beside them, Xie Weiyu, Zhou Jiawen, and Cheng Xing also cheered for Ye Shaoyang. Chairman Qiu said: "Lieyang, you're the first player from our China region to appear. Regardless of win or loss, play well!"
Ye Shaoyang said seriously: "Understood. I won't let down the China region."
He turned and walked toward the main stage, steps steady and firm. Chairman Qiu watched his back, couldn't help but sigh: "Lieyang's mentality is really good; first time competing abroad, yet not nervous at all?"
Chi Shuo slightly lifted the corners of his mouth: "He's thick-skinned; never nervous about anything."
Even when being marked, he remained calm, smiling and saying thank you after.
Sometimes Chi Shuo couldn't help but wonder if Ye Shaoyang was naturally missing a nerve?
…
Due to many players in individual matches, this afternoon featured matches from Groups A~D, with Groups E~H scheduled for the evening. It wasn't possible to have every match on the main stage. Therefore, the organizers divided the main stage into several sections, with four split screens broadcasting simultaneously.
Official commentators from each country could switch the feed to their own country's participating player's screen, broadcasting the match to domestic viewers. This didn't interfere with match progress and allowed domestic viewers following individual matches to watch their country's players—killing two birds with one stone.
At 3:30 PM, the first matches of Groups A~D began simultaneously.
In the soundproof booths across the four sections of the stage, players completed preparations. Most players brought their own peripherals; suddenly switching keyboards could lead to operational errors.
Ye Shaoyang calmly connected his own keyboard. Domestic viewers seeing this familiar keyboard flooded the bullet chat area with comments—
[Set an alarm on time to catch Yangyang's match]
[Silver Dragon Group has good foresight; even advertised this keyboard abroad!]
[Yangyang's pure white keyboard is beautiful; I bought one too.]
[I think Xiao Xing's rainbow RGB keyboard will be more eye-catching during matches~]
The keyboard flashed by on camera, followed by the camera focusing on Ye Shaoyang's face.
Even competing abroad, his expression remained calm, a smile still at his lips. After connecting the keyboard, his long, pale fingers danced rapidly across the keys, adjusting keyboard sensitivity—the hand speed like dancing on the keyboard. The bullet chat instantly filled with "envy esports players' hand speed!"
Yao Mu said excitedly: "Next up is the individual match group stage. Our China region's four players participating in the World Invitational—the grouping situation, I believe everyone already knows. Lieyang is in Group C. Players in the same group include one jungler, two fighters—truly a 'group of death,' all quite strong."
Brother Dong said: "Yes. Mid laners are squishy after all; 1v1 against assassins and fighters doesn't have much advantage, and tower-pushing speed is very slow. Fortunately, Lieyang is very skilled with assassin mages and has strong tactical awareness; he can still fight."
Just then, the venue erupted with deafening screams. Some girls held megaphones speaking Korean; domestic viewers only understood the word "oppa."
Yao Mu said: "The on-site screams are intense; fans are cheering for the Korean player Kim Min-jun in Group A. Our Lieyang competing abroad, fans can hardly attend, but it's okay. Viewers in the live stream can cheer for Yangyang in the bullet chat."
The bullet chat area was immediately flooded with cheers.
Mixed in were some mocking comments: "Cheer for what? I doubt Lieyang can even advance from the group stage." "A squishy mid laner playing individual matches is just feeding kills, right?"
Yao Mu continued: "Today's match opponent is from Japan, Kiriyama Takuya. This player is the jungler from championship favorite team MOK, also the most outstanding jungler in the Japanese region's S10, with many MVP awards, currently as famous domestically as the veteran player Fujita."
Brother Dong said: "Yes, his regular season record is impressive. He once got a pentakill with an assassin, frequently securing triple or quadra kills in late-game to turn the tide. Strong individual skills. Today's duel between Lieyang and Kiriyama Takuya will be very interesting! Both players are ready; let's enter the first match!"
World Invitational individual match, Group C, first match: TH-Sunshine vs. MOK-Kiriyama.
After the match interface loaded, the entire hero pool was open to both players.
Mid laner versus jungler PK, no issue of stealing each other's heroes. Who picks first, who picks second during selection is also a skill. Swapping at the last second to mess with the opponent's mind, or confidently locking early—ultimately, victory still depends on skill.
Kiriyama was a very cautious player. He preselected [Fist King]. Ye Shaoyang followed by preselecting [Abyssal Lord]. These two heroes dueling have about a 50% win rate.
[Fist King] has stun control, can burst down [Abyssal Lord] in one combo. Disadvantage: after bursting, skill cooldowns are relatively long. [Abyssal Lord]'s advantage: has shadows, displacement, flexible control. Disadvantage: no control.
After preselecting heroes, Kiriyama didn't press ready. Ye Shaoyang didn't either. Both waited until the last second of the countdown auto-ready, clearly to prevent opponents from suddenly swapping.
But until the end, neither swapped.
Yao Mu said: "Confirmed! This round: Fist King vs. Abyssal Lord! Both are high-burst heroes: one physical assassin, one assassin mage. Everyone can guess who will win?"
Brother Dong said: "Personally, I think Fist King has a slightly higher chance. With fast enough hand speed, flashing in with a punch stun, one combo can burst the mage. However, Lieyang took [Purify] this round. After being stunned by Fist King, he can instantly Purify, swap with shadow to escape. So, not necessarily."
Yao Mu said: "Yes, it depends on who reacts faster!"
Match began. Both simultaneously arrived mid, minions also simultaneously departed from bases.
The 1v1 map is a narrow rectangle, only one lane. Each side has two towers, with some ambushable bushes nearby—a very simple, straightforward duel map, same as the arena map in the online game.
At start, both silently cleared minions to farm.
Ye Shaoyang stayed under his tower, using shadows to clear waves.
If [Fist King] wanted to fight him, he had to come under the tower.
Seeing his opponent never leaving tower range, Kiriyama wondered: Doesn't even dare leave tower? So timid? Wasn't this Omega player said to be very fierce?
In the domestic live stream bullet chat, countless anti-fans seized the chance to mock—
[Won't even leave tower; Lieyang quickly found a new way to embarrass internationally?]
[He really doesn't move at all, like AFK under tower!]
[The Abyssal Lord that got pentakills domestically? Goes abroad and instantly becomes a coward?]
[Your country's players become cowards at world tournaments; several seasons in a row, long lost confidence.]
Lieyang's fans didn't want to argue or explain with them.
Those who truly liked Lieyang knew he was a very composed player. During the regular season, there were times he stabilized early, farmed silently, then suddenly emerged later to wreak havoc.
So, before the match outcome, no one dared say Lieyang would lose.
Everyone watched the screen nervously.
Time ticked by. Both sides cleared minions rapidly. Finally, [Fist King]'s body first glowed with level-up light—Kiriyama Takuya, a very cautious, detail-oriented player. Moreover, [Abyssal Lord] kept using shadows to clear, slower than [Fist King]'s Q skill.
Thus, using his faster clear speed, reaching level 6 before his opponent, he suddenly Flashed in, using his ultimate to stun [Abyssal Lord] hiding under tower!
Bypassing shadows to directly kill the main body—for a jungler, this is basic operation.
Kiriyama was confident he could burst his opponent.
Seeing Ye Shaoyang's [Abyssal Lord] stunned by a punch, viewers' hearts jumped to their throats. However, the moment the opponent Flashed in, Ye Shaoyang instantly activated Purify, cleansing [Fist King]'s control, immediately following with E skill to swap with his black shadow—
Viewers saw him suddenly reverse-swap to a distant location. The marks spawned along the linear path just cleared the enemy tower's minions. He deliberately let [Fist King] take one tower shot.
Kiriyama Takuya sensed the strangeness and immediately used displacement to retreat.
Yet at that moment, [Abyssal Lord] precisely reached level 6.
What awaited Kiriyama was Ye Shaoyang's hand-speed-burst shadow summons. Three shadows shot out like lightning, instantly stacking 7 marks on [Fist King].
Limit-burst hand speed, incredibly precise operation!
Mark detonation. [Fist King], already down to about 80% health from tower shots, instantly died.
——First Blood!
Ye Shaoyang secured first kill.
The live stream flooded with "666."
The previously mocking anti-fans vanished. Lieyang's fans finally held their heads high.
[Lieyang not leaving tower, waiting for opponent to tower dive and feed!]
[This Kiriyama underestimates our Yangyang? Actually tried to tower dive and force a kill?]
[Where are those calling Lieyang a coward? Lieyang is indeed timid—timid enough to instantly Purify and counter-kill his opponent!]
Yao Mu looked at this scene in surprise: "Could it be Yangyang calculated the timing, deliberately luring the opponent into a trap? He reached level 6 1.5 seconds later than his opponent."
Brother Dong said: "I can understand Kiriyama's thinking: himself at level 6, opponent not yet 6. In most cases, a level 6 assassin can solo kill a squishy mage. Unfortunately, Lieyang reacted too fast: reverse displacement, clear minions, stack marks—such complex operations completed within 1.5 seconds, not only dodging Fist King's damage but also counter-killing!"
Yao Mu said excitedly: "Yes! Individual match victory conditions: either destroy opponent's Nexus or solo kill opponent three times. Lieyang already got 1 kill, one step closer to victory!"
After respawning, Kiriyama Takuya rushed to mid as fast as possible.
He found Lieyang again under his tower, appearing leisurely with a "I'll just AFK under tower, let shadows clear waves" attitude, as if telling his opponent through action: You don't move, I don't move. You move, I counter and take your life.
Kiriyama Takuya frowned. Only then did he realize he'd encountered an opponent with an extremely strong mindset. From now on, he had to be even more cautious.
Match continued. Both quickly cleared mid waves. Repeated clearing, positioning made viewers even more tense. No one knew when the two would launch a sudden attack…
Match reached the 10-minute mark. Just then, Ye Shaoyang suddenly moved.
He consecutively sent out three shadows, fastest speed catching up to [Fist King], instantly stacking full marks. Kiriyama turned to stun, only to find the stun ineffective?
Ye Shaoyang pressed R for mark detonation, cleanly taking the opponent's head.
Yao Mu was stunned for a moment before reacting: "Yangyang activated Purify early! Purify's effect: removes control and grants immunity to control for the next 1.5 seconds. He Purified early, then suddenly swapped with shadow. [Fist King] couldn't control him; flashing to escape was too late; got burst down by Lieyang's combo!"
Brother Dong said: "Lieyang's item build is also interesting. This round, he went pure crit build. Started directly with Magic Penetration Boots, Blasting Wand. The moment he launched the sudden attack was precisely when he completed his third damage item, Mage's Ring, stacking crit chance to the limit, burst very high!"
Yao Mu said: "Yes, Lieyang's speed was too fast. He caught Kiriyama from a blind spot, Purified, and initiated the assault. Kiriyama caught off guard, killed! Lieyang already has 2 kills!"
Kiriyama Takuya's expression turned somewhat ugly.
Being solo killed once could be called an accident; being solo killed twice meant he was just bad!
He narrowed his eyes, took a deep breath to calm himself.
Mid wave met. [Abyssal Lord] still squatted under tower clearing. Kiriyama took a long detour, reached the side bush. The moment his opponent sent out shadows to clear, he directly Flashed under tower, one combo bursting Lieyang!
This time, he capitalized on [Abyssal Lord]'s skill wind-up when casting shadows, applying control during the brief freeze frame—timing grasped accurately. Ye Shaoyang inwardly gave him a thumbs-up.
After respawning and returning to lane, Ye Shaoyang glanced at the bush positions.
He pretended to send a shadow to scout the left bush. Instead, he scouted the left bush but in the next instant suddenly summoned two shadows to attack the right side—
And Kiriyama's [Fist King] was hiding right there.
Ye Shaoyang seemed like he had wall hacks. Kiriyama couldn't believe his opponent guessed his position and blindly attacked him? He clearly switched to the other bush?
In reality, last night during duels with Chi Shuo, Chi Shuo often switched bushes.
This was a pattern Chi Shuo summarized after watching Kiriyama's regular season match recordings in Japan—Kiriyama never stays in the same bush when ambushing; he frequently changes spots.
He just initiated from the left bush, killed Ye Shaoyang. So, when Ye Shaoyang respawned and returned, he definitely switched to the right bush. Ye Shaoyang's blind attack this time正好 hit Kiriyama, chunking him to low health, forcing Kiriyama to recall to base.
What Kiriyama didn't expect: just after leaving base, he was intercepted head-on by three shadows!
Ye Shaoyang actually took advantage of the wave reaching the tower, hiding in the bush between the opponent's inner and outer towers.
Kiriyama walking on the path between his own inner and outer towers thought it safe, only to get ambushed by [Abyssal Lord]'s burst, instantly killed!
Kill score 3:1.
Lieyang got 3 kills, winning the first game.
Looking at the golden "Victory" on screen, Ye Shaoyang lifted his hands from the keyboard, smiling as he rubbed his fingers.
Chi Shuo's practice with him last night was quite effective.
His earlier prediction guessed Kiriyama Takuya's position, chunked him low, sent him home. He deliberately saved his ultimate, then when Kiriyama was full health rushing forward, ambushed unexpectedly, taking the opponent's head.
Individual matches aren't just about mechanics; they're also about tactics.
Whoever is better at tricking others is more likely to win.
Kiriyama completely didn't expect his opponent to ambush in the bush between inner and outer towers. Lost the first game very unwillingly, but no choice; match rules are such.
He quickly adjusted his mindset, pressed ready. Losing one game is fine; coming back from 0-1 to 2-1 would be more interesting. He'll just use his signature heroes to fight back!
After a short break, the second game began.
This round, Kiriyama directly locked [Stealth Rogue], showing his confidence with this hero.
Ye Shaoyang smiled, locked [Shadow Warlock], taking Flash as his skill.
Domestic viewers seeing this were surprised—
[How deep is Yangyang's hero pool? He didn't even use Shadow Warlock in regular season, right?]
[During the match against Jingzhe, Fangfang used this hero.]
[Shadow Warlock can also stealth, though stealth duration is short. Feels this game is risky.]
[Have you all forgotten Captain Chi?]
[Captain Chi is also in Korea. Stealth Rogue is Captain Chi's signature hero!]
[Yangyang coordinates with Captain Chi daily; definitely understands Stealth Rogue well. There's hope to win this game.]
Domestic viewers also cared greatly about match results. Though individual awards aren't as convincing as team awards, bringing back an individual championship would still be quite face-giving!
Seeing Ye Shaoyang's choice, Yao Mu said: "Shadow Warlock vs. Stealth Rogue, with equal skill, chances are about 50-50. Both heroes can stealth. Stealth Rogue's stealth lasts longer; an exclamation mark appears overhead when close. Shadow Warlock's stealth is brief, no indicator."
Brother Dong said: "Comparing burst, Stealth Rogue has higher burst. Shadow Warlock's damage output among assassin mages isn't top-tier (T0), which is key to his low pick rate in regular season. But advantage: can stealth in combat, and stealth skill cooldown is relatively short, suitable for frequent ambushes and harassment."
Yao Mu looked at the big screen expectantly: "This is my first time seeing these two heroes PK in a world tournament. Let's enter the second duel between them!"
Seeing his opponent's choice, Kiriyama Takuya was slightly stunned. Thought Lieyang would bring out his commonly used [Illusionist], but he picked a stealth assassin mage with lower damage output than Illusionist.
You stealth, I stealth, playing hide-and-seek?
Stealth Rogue burst is high; you stealth for 3 seconds is useless; Rogue can still burst you down.
Kiriyama Takuya was very confident.
After the match started, both cleared minions to farm. Ye Shaoyang again squatted under tower, appearing timid. But Kiriyama knew this was just psychological warfare to make opponents lower their guard.
This was a very fierce Omega player. Squatting under tower wasn't timidity; he was searching for the best timing to strike. Experienced it last game; this round Kiriyama played even more cautiously, not leaving tower before level 6 either.
Thus, both stood under their towers, watching each other's minions trade skills, only last-hitting when minions were low.
They peacefully farmed for a while. This time, Ye Shaoyang reached level 6 first.
Unlike the first game's defensive counterplay, this round he played very proactively. Flash + stealth, suddenly Flashed onto Stealth Rogue's face, one combo chunking Stealth Rogue to low health, then returned to his original position!
Shadow Warlock's combo was very stylish. To viewers, it looked like Ye Shaoyang suddenly advanced from far away, hit the opponent with a combo, then returned to his spot—speed fast as lightning, human eyes couldn't even catch his afterimage. The opponent didn't react before losing 80% health!
Kiriyama Takuya looked at his health bar, frowning slightly.
Ye Shaoyang had already returned under tower. This hit-and-run harassment playstyle was extremely annoying. Minion wave cleared; even if he tower-dived to force a kill, he'd lose his life.
In team fights, 1-for-1 isn't a loss. In individual matches, 1-for-1 isn't necessary.
If he waited for another opportunity, next minion wave arrives, [Shadow Warlock]'s Q, W, E skills would be off cooldown. With 20% health, the opponent could easily kill him with any QW combo.
For safety, better recall to base for health.
Kiriyama Takuya made a very cautious decision: recall to base.
When he returned to lane to clear, Ye Shaoyang again squatted under tower. He took advantage of Kiriyama advancing to clear, stealthed up, hit a combo, then stealthed back. By the time Kiriyama wanted to counter, he was already under tower.
Continuous harassment—truly endlessly annoying!
Can't let him control the tempo like this anymore. Kiriyama decisively activated his ultimate, fastest speed displacement to burst the opponent. But Ye Shaoyang timely used Flash, escaping with a sliver of health.
The situation temporarily eased. But treating symptoms, not the root cause. Next, Ye Shaoyang continued using [Shadow Warlock]'s short stealth cooldown advantage, frequently popping out to harass.
You never knew where he'd appear—sometimes suddenly on your right, sometimes left, sometimes behind—like an elusive ghost.
Players with weak hearts might be scared to death.
Kiriyama Takuya played many matches in Japan. This was his first time encountering such an infuriating playstyle—deliberately tilting opponents, right? Made one want to crawl through the internet for a real-life PK.
He took a deep breath to stay calm. But Ye Shaoyang's ambushes were truly unpredictable. Taking advantage of Kiriyama advancing to last-hit, he suddenly Flashed up, one combo bursting Kiriyama, sending him home.
——First Blood!
This game's first blood again went to Ye Shaoyang.
Yao Mu glanced back at the soundproof booth at Ye Shaoyang's calm expression, excitedly said: "Lieyang seized this opportunity perfectly! The stealth + Flash combo, appearing behind Stealth Rogue unexpectedly!"
Brother Dong laughed: "Lieyang calculated skill damage very precisely. Just now, Stealth Rogue's health was around 80%. He finished his combo, confidently turned back. This build's damage was刚好 enough to kill."
Yao Mu said: "He must have practiced this a lot privately! This frequent stealth harassment playstyle has completely disrupted the opponent's rhythm."
In the following match, Ye Shaoyang controlled the tempo, quickly snowballing gold.
Stealth Rogue can stealth, yes, but Shadow Warlock can also stealth. Moreover, Shadow Warlock has longer attack range, shorter stealth CD; tempo faster than Rogue's.
Kiriyama tried hard to find opportunities, ambushed, killed Lieyang once, salvaging some pride.
Both fought over细节. By the 15-minute mark, kill score was already 2:2.
One more kill to win! Kiriyama took a deep breath, prepared to recall for health, come back full health to force a kill. However, just as Kiriyama pressed recall, Ye Shaoyang sneaked around from the side bush. Seizing the moment Kiriyama's recall was channeling, he suddenly Flashed under tower, killed the recalling Stealth Rogue!
Kiriyama Takuya: "…"
This works?
A squishy mage, tower-diving to kill a recalling opponent—reasonable?
How did he see I was recalling? Does he have wall hacks?!
Kiriyama Takuya looked dumbfounded, staring at the "Defeat" popping on screen. He couldn't believe he lost just like that? First game kill score 1:3, second game 2:3? He actually lost to a rookie mid laner?
Kiriyama Takuya sat before the computer, unable to recover for a long time.
Ye Shaoyang stood up, smiling, and came over proactively to shake hands. Only then did Kiriyama react, standing up politely and shaking hands with Ye Shaoyang, looking at him with a complicated expression.
In the live stream, fans excitedly spammed "666," bullet chat flooded with it.
Backstage viewing area, Chi Shuo lifted the corners of his mouth happily.
Japanese players still underestimated Yangyang.
Assassin, what of it? Ye Shaoyang is notoriously headstrong; even against tanks, he'd dare to go in and kill you.
While you think he's hiding under the tower, silently farming, he's already observed the minute details, analysed, and grasped your match rhythm—skill cooldowns, item build, and recall frequency—all calculated clearly in his mind.
Seemingly like he has wall hacks, guessing what you're doing without vision. Actually, it's all推测 and calculation based on details.
Think recalling under tower is safe?
Yangyang says: Your recall has a channel time—too slow. I'll just send you home myself.