Star Sea Team managed to reverse the Kunlun Decisive Battle with a scare, powerfully advancing to the semifinals. The strong adaptability and tactical depth they displayed temporarily silenced all their doubters. However, the charm and cruelty of esports lie in the fact that it never lacks new focal points and topics. In another highly anticipated quarterfinal match—Forbidden City Peak versus Jinneng Esports—an unexpected incident pushed the event organizers into the spotlight.
In this match, Forbidden City Peak, as a veteran champion, held a clear advantage in strength. But the young men of Jinneng Esports, relying on the audacity of youth, caused considerable trouble for Forbidden City Peak in the first game, even achieving a small economic lead in the mid-game.
Close to thirty minutes into the game, both sides engaged in a prolonged struggle for vision and minion wave control around the fourth small dragon—a critical Infernal Dragon—near the mid-lane river. The atmosphere was as tense as a drawn bowstring; any misstep in positioning could trigger a teamfight that would decide the game's outcome.
Just at this critical moment, the director's camera suddenly focused on the Forbidden City Peak's player booth. Their ADC player, "Meteor," suddenly raised his hand, signaling something to the referee behind him. The referee quickly approached, and after a brief exchange, a startling scene unfolded—player "Meteor" actually stood up directly and, accompanied by the referee, quickly left the competition stage, heading towards the backstage aisle!
"Uh... we see that Forbidden City Peak's ADC player 'Meteor' seems to have left his seat?" Caster Commentator's tone was full of uncertainty and surprise. "Is this... a equipment issue?"
Yaoyao was also stunned: "At this point in time... it should be a temporary pause allowed by the referee. But a player directly leaving the stage, this situation is relatively rare in previous matches."
The entire audience was in an uproar, buzzing with discussion. The game screen entered a paused state, displaying the words "Game Paused, Please Wait." The players of Jinneng Esports also looked bewildered, exchanging glances, unsure of what had happened.
After a long few minutes of waiting, "Meteor" hurried back to his seat, accompanied by the referee, and put on his headphones. The game resumed shortly after.
However, these few minutes of pause completely disrupted the rhythm of the game. The young players of Jinneng Esports, originally tense and fully focused on the strategic play, seemed to have a bucket of cold water poured on them by this sudden interruption, and their state showed a clear slackening. The experienced Forbidden City Peak, on the other hand, used this opportunity to readjust their tactical arrangements.
Shortly after the game resumed, Forbidden City Peak seized a minor positional error from Jinneng Esports, with their support initiating a perfect 0-for-3 teamfight, then taking the Baron, completely reversing the early-game parity, and ultimately winning the first game.
After the match, a brief announcement released through official channels stated that Forbidden City Peak's ADC player "Meteor" was allowed a brief departure due to "urgent personal physiological needs," after assessment by the referee.
"Bathroom?!"
As soon as this news broke, it immediately caused an uproar in the player community!
"What the heck? Going to the bathroom in the middle of a game? Is that even allowed?"
"The timing of this pause is too coincidental, isn't it? Right before a critical resource teamfight?"
"Was it a tactical bathroom break? Call a pause to adjust when the situation looks bad?"
"It's so unfair to Jinneng Esports! They were on a hot streak, and now they're all cooled down!"
"Is it allowed by the rules? If it is, then in the future, can anyone who's at a disadvantage just ask to go to the bathroom?"
Waves of questions and criticisms poured in. Especially the fans of Jinneng Esports were furious, believing that Forbidden City Peak exploited a loophole in the rules to execute a "tactical pause," which severely impacted the fairness and spirit of competition. Although Forbidden City Peak, relying on their solid strength, also won the subsequent two games cleanly, advancing to the semifinals with a total score of 3:0, this "bathroom pause" incident cast a shadow over their victory.
In the VIP viewing area, Qin Feng's brows were tightly furrowed. He had witnessed the entire incident. When he saw the player leave the stage, his first reaction was not amusement, but caution.
"Nonsense!" Lin Haoming, sitting next to him, spat softly. "What kind of behavior is this? A top-tier professional event, and a player runs off to the bathroom in the middle of a game? It's a joke if it gets out!"
Qin Feng didn't speak immediately. His fingers gently tapped the armrest of his seat, his eyes sharp. He recalled similar controversial incidents that occurred due to imperfect rules in the early days of the esports industry in his previous world before he transmigrated. For example, the famous "K Cup Bathroom Incident," "unplugging the network cable," and so on. These incidents not only caused huge public outcry at the time but also caused long-term damage to the event brand and the professional image of the esports industry.
"This isn't the player's problem," Qin Feng slowly began, his voice low. "It's our problem, it's a problem with the rules."
Lin Haoming looked at him.
"We only stipulate that the game can be paused if there's an equipment issue, and we have player conduct guidelines, but we lack clear, detailed regulations and restrictions for such 'non-equipment, non-technical' emergencies, especially situations that could be exploited to affect the game's rhythm," Qin Feng analyzed calmly. "The referee has too much discretionary power. When is leaving the stage allowed? How long can they be gone? Is it permissible to request a break before a critical resource spawn or during the build-up to a teamfight? None of this is explicitly regulated."
He seemed to foresee even bigger problems that this loophole might cause in the future. If this time it was "physiological needs," what about next time? "Physical discomfort," "excessive psychological pressure"? If a team frequently uses such ambiguous rule areas to request pauses when at a disadvantage, disrupting the opponent's rhythm, where is the fairness of the game? Where is the seriousness of the competition?
"Star Sea Cup, at its core, is still in its nascent stage," Qin Feng sighed. "We focused on the venue, lighting, stage design, and broadcasting technology, but we have obvious shortcomings in these most basic and critical aspects of event rules and management systems. This is our dereliction of duty as organizers."
After the match, as Qin Feng expected, discussions about the "bathroom pause" incident intensified online. In addition to questioning Forbidden City Peak, more criticism began to target the event organizers, Riot Games, and the Star Sea Cup organizing committee.
"What are the event organizers doing? They can't even fix this rule loophole?"
"So unprofessional! It feels no different from an internet cafe tournament!"
"Hope the official statement can provide a clear explanation and subsequent rule improvements!"
"If the World Championship is like this, wouldn't it be an international embarrassment?"
These criticisms, though harsh, were all valid. Qin Feng had his assistant compile the main online criticisms and immediately convened an emergency meeting with Zhao Dong, the event operations manager, the chief referee, and the legal counsel.
At the meeting, Qin Feng didn't blame anyone, but instead placed the compiled online public opinion directly on the table.
"Everyone, this is the most important lesson we need to learn for the Star Sea Cup right now," Qin Feng stated directly. "We must admit that we have serious deficiencies in the rigor of event rules and execution details. This incident is a warning, but also an opportunity."
He proposed several directions for urgent rule modifications and additions:
First, clarify the application conditions and procedures for "non-technical pauses." Strictly limit players to briefly leave the stage for personal reasons only under extremely special circumstances and after strict review by the head referee, and this will incur a deduction of one valuable pause from that team.
Second, establish "critical time windows." During specific in-game moments (such as 1 minute before major resource spawns, or periods deemed critical for strategic play by the referee team based on game status), no non-technical pause requests will be allowed in principle.
Third, stipulate time limits for departure and accompanying personnel. The departure time must be strictly limited and accompanied by official staff throughout to ensure no unauthorized communication.
Fourth, establish a mechanism for penalizing violations. For suspected abuse of rules, the event organizers reserve the right to investigate and impose penalties, including but not limited to warnings, fines, and even forfeiture of the game.
"These rules must not only be immediately added to the Star Sea Cup's subsequent competition regulations, but also serve as an ironclad law for any major events we organize in the future, especially the Star Sea Cup Global Invitational!" Qin Feng declared emphatically. "We must send a clear signal to everyone: events organized by Riot Games are serious, fair, and professional competitive stages, and any behavior that undermines the spirit of competition is absolutely not tolerated! Any loophole that could affect the fairness of the game must be closed!"
After the meeting, the event officials quickly issued a carefully worded announcement, admitting oversights in event management details, thanking players for their oversight, and publicizing the urgently revised competition rules, clarifying strict control over "non-technical pauses."
The release of this announcement timely quelled most of the public outcry. Players saw the official's proactive attitude in responding to and solving problems, and although the controversy surrounding Forbidden City Peak did not completely disappear, the focus shifted more towards acknowledging the improved rules.
Qin Feng stood by the window of his office, looking at the brightly lit stadium below. He knew that organizing a top-tier esports event was like crafting a precise instrument; any minor malfunction in a gear could affect the entire system's operation. This "bathroom controversy" had taught him and the entire team a profound lesson.
The path to a world-class stage requires not only passion and dreams but also an incredibly rigorous set of rules and systems as its foundation. And he had to ensure that this foundation was indestructible.