5. OT Roster

"The transfer window's closed and there's still no news from River." In the OT training room, top laner Song Zhixu listlessly typed on his keyboard. "Do you guys think he's unemployed this season?"

The jungler next to him, Ah Deng, was at a crucial moment in the dragon-stealing phase when he failed to use Smite and exclaimed in frustration, "Ugh, why am I so unlucky?"

Song Zhixu walked past him and asked, "Old Wen, have you been online lately? Do you know about River leaving the team?"

The assistant, Lao Wen, whose real name is Zhou Wen, has a mild and easygoing personality, just like his name.

He usually ignored Song Zhixu, but today, when the topic turned to River, a player he admired, he surprisingly chimed in:

"He most likely won't have a team to join. The transfer window closed too quickly, and even if a club wanted to contact him, it was too late. River is actually doing well in this situation. Rather than settling, it's better to rest for half a year and look for a team next year."

"Tsk tsk, how pitiful, KUG is really inhuman."

After Song Zhixu finished speaking, he suddenly perked up as if he had just thought of something, "Hey, do you think River might come to our team? We're currently short a mid laner, aren't we? What if he suddenly loses his mind, or gets hit on the head by a cup, and decides to come to our team?"

"River won't be joining our team."

Zhou Wen firmly believes: "Players of his caliber focus on competing in the World Championships, while OT does not have that capability."

Song Zhixu found chatting with Lao Wen particularly boring, as he found it completely unimaginative.

He looked past Lao Wen and at the people inside.

"Hey, Shenju, the transfer window's closed and we still haven't signed a mid-laner. Do you think our team is going to disband? Where are you going after you disband? Are you going home to inherit the family fortune?"

Shen Ju's fingers flew across the keyboard as he was busy hurling insults and had no time to pay attention to him.

After the game ended, the system banned his chat system without hesitation, and he was even reported and his account was suspended for two days.

This is the second account he has had banned this month.

Both accounts have dropped to Diamond 1. In this version, it's harder than eating shit for an AD carry to climb the ranks in solo queue.

Shen Ju exhaled a breath of stale air and left the training room without looking back; even the lowered brim of his hat couldn't hide the coldness emanating from him.

Song Zhixu was a little scared. "What's wrong with Shen Ju lately? He's so angry he's about to overturn the club. Just a few days ago, he got into an online argument with Lao Mao, a streamer with millions of followers, and got himself into a mess."

Zhou Wen knew some of the facts. He looked thoughtfully at Shen Ju's back and said, "Shen Ju may really have to go back to inherit the family business. Last time I heard Lao Du say that his father gave him a final order: if he doesn't achieve good results this year, he will go abroad to study and never touch e-sports again."

Everyone in the industry knows that Shen Ju comes from an exceptionally wealthy family and is a true heir to the industry.

It is said that several big investors in the industry have close relationships with Shen Ju's family and treat him like a junior. Even if they offend him, they will not take it to heart. This is why he is unbeatable in the league and other clubs have to give him some leeway.

However, Shen Ju is also known for his rebellious nature. He refuses to follow any of the paths his family has laid out for him, and he even refuses to join the e-sports team his family has arranged for him. His family has tried everything to stop him, but to no avail. They have no choice but to give him three years, and this year is his last year.

"It's possible that Shen Ju is really leaving."

There was a moment of silence in the training room.

The jungler, A-Deng, was wearing headphones and had no idea what they were talking about. He just kept typing away on the keyboard and said in frustration, "How did the dragon get stolen again?"

Although Song Zhixu was the team's buffoon and always the one making the fun of things, he still felt a little uneasy at the thought that his teammates of many years might leave.

But he didn't have time to feel sorry for others. "Forget it, I'm just a maid. Why should I feel sorry for my master who lives a life of luxury? I'd better think about which sweet potatoes I can use to support myself..."

...

The transfer process is very complicated, especially for a player of Lin Jiang's caliber.

Duren spent nearly a week working on everything before the transfer window closed.

After resolving the internal issues, they still needed to explain the situation to the outside world. Duren discussed with the operations department for a long time, but still couldn't figure out how to announce Lin Jiang's joining.

They're afraid that making it too big of a fuss might cause KUG fans to turn against them, especially since even someone as big as Alike only briefly joined KUG.

If we don't make it grand enough, we're afraid Lin Jiang will feel uncomfortable. After all, a big shot like him is here, so we have to show our appreciation, right?

He subtly probed, and Lin Jiang replied, "Let's keep it simple, I don't care about these things."

This reassured Duren, who personally edited the promotional message that very night, thanking Lin Jiang for joining and announcing the roster for the Summer Split.

Starting top laner: OT_Metoo (Song Zhixu)

Starting jungler: OT_lamp (Jiang Mingwei)

Starting mid laner: OT_river (Lin Jiang - Captain)

First launcher: OT_sgod (Shenju)

Starting Support: OT_Winker (Zhou Wen)

Substitute jungler: OT_xiaoyu (Zheng Yu)

Originally, few people looked at OT's roster. Even their own fans would just glance at it and send a perfunctory message of encouragement.

Almost half an hour after the official Weibo post, someone noticed something was wrong with the list: "Holy crap, why is Lin Jiang doing overtime?"

The hashtag #LinJiangJoinsOT# quickly became a trending topic.

Before clicking on the trending topics, everyone thought: Impossible, absolutely impossible.

After clicking on the trending topics: !!! Are you kidding me!

No one knows how OT signed Lin Jiang, and the comments section is full of "I'm bowing down to him".

There are 17 teams in the LPL, and Lin Jiang is clearly a top player who is aiming for the World Championship. He should be playing for a top-five team in the league, not an OT team that was at the bottom of the Spring Split!

What is Lin Jiang thinking?

After the list was released, Lin Jiang's phone was bombarded with calls. He turned off his work number and only kept his personal number active, but messages kept pouring in.

Mao: You f***ing... you had a stroke?!

Yu Ge: If I had known you were going to OT, I would have let you join our team.

Zeng Yuan: My God, the sinking team you're talking about is OT?

Clever Guy: Holy crap, are you serious?

Awen: Is there something the OT has on you that they can use against you...?

To avoid trouble these past few days, Lin Jiang hasn't been streaming, playing ranked games, contacting his friends much, or replying to messages.

The moment the list was announced, what followed was not tension or panic, but a sense of reassurance that gradually settled into reality.

This is the path he has chosen. Now that he has made the decision, he should take the bold step forward.

He took out his phone and sent a message to Duren: Manager Duren, everything is ready. When can I join the team?

Durren: Great, let's do it tomorrow if possible!

Lin Jiang: Okay.

He exited the chat interface, opened the OT official Weibo account, and casually reposted it: "Let's move forward hand in hand."

...

At this moment, there was chaos within OT. Duren had done a good job of keeping it a secret, and the matter was so outrageous that the team members didn't even consider it.

When Duren suddenly dropped a list in the group chat, Lin Jiang's name was listed as the starting mid laner, leaving everyone stunned.

Ah Deng: "Ah, Lin Jiang is coming to our team?"

Song Zhixu: "Impossible, absolutely impossible! It must be Old Du's trick!"

Zhou Wen: "Lin Jiang can't possibly come to OT."

Then substitute Zheng Yu shouted, "Hey, look at the official Weibo!"

Song Zhixu opened the official Weibo account and saw Lin Jiang's repost, finally realizing belatedly: "Holy crap, Lin Jiang really came to our team...!"

"Clatter!" Zhou Wen dropped the mouse from his hand. This usually composed man practically pounced on his phone to check it. "River really came?"

Before becoming a professional player, Zhou Wen often watched Lin Jiang's matches, and later, when he became a professional player, he was determined to emulate Lin Jiang.

Unfortunately, the gap between him and the other party was too great, and they had never crossed paths before. He never expected that Lin Jiang would come to OT.

"Oh My God!"

Am I dreaming?

Undeterred, Song Zhixu ran over and ripped off Chen Ju's headphones. "Brother, you don't need to go back to inherit the family fortune! Our team got a mid-laner! Let him carry you!"

Shen Ju was suddenly pulled away, and his mistake led to a counterattack.

He was about to say something like, "How dare you take me on a ride?" when he saw the phone being handed to him clearly display: OT_river (Lin Jiang).

Shen Ju thought he was seeing things. He took the phone, zoomed in on the picture, and confirmed that it was indeed Lin Jiang's name.

Song Zhixu's voice rang in my ears: "Hahaha, brother, are you surprised? Old Wen said OT really hit the jackpot this time. If it weren't for KUG's contract renewal, Lin Jiang would never have come to our team!"

"Yesterday I was worried about what would happen to our team if you left, and then Lao Du pulled this stunt on me!"

Shen Ju stared intently at the names on the list.

Linjiang, river.

Anyone who plays professionally would have heard of this name, and Shen Ju was no exception. Back when Lin Jiang was playing in the World Championship, he and his roommate stayed up all night in front of the computer, anxiously and expectantly waiting for the match to begin.

Among so many professional players, Lin Jiang has always stood out. He is confident, strong, tolerant, and gentle. His skills and character are so perfect that he is the dream of almost every professional player.

Shenju criticized everyone in the league, but he never criticized Lin Jiang.

Every time it's his turn, whether it's a favorable or unfavorable situation, Lin Jiang will single-handedly take the lead.

When things are going smoothly, he carries the load. When things are going against him, he shoulders the burden.

And then there's the classic line: "It's okay, I'm here."

Later, Shen Ju started playing professionally and was Lin Jiang's teammate in an online friendly match.

When he was exposed all the way and his opponents revealed their cards to taunt him.

He will never forget what Lin Jiang, who was already a top player at the time, said in a voice chat: "It's okay, AD, go to my mid lane and farm, get some farm."

...

Thinking about all this, Shen Ju suddenly felt a little uneasy. He returned the phone and subconsciously listened to his teammates' conversation.

"Slap me now, see if I'm dreaming."

"This is Lin Jiang! I'd die happy just to be on his team!"

When he was young, he envied the KUG team members for having such a good captain, and thought how wonderful it would be if he had one too.

Four years have passed in the blink of an eye, and Lin Jiang, who was so perfect in his memory, has actually come to his team and become his captain.