Guo Hao frowned the entire time as he finished reading through all the explosive gossip.
A five-match winning streak was, of course, something to celebrate. There was no doubt it would hit the trending topics.
With this level of buzz, he could finally give headquarters something to report on. Even if the results weren't there yet, at least people could hear the noise.
At the very least, no one would be packing up and leaving just yet.
But the real problem now was still Knight…
TES's official Weibo had completely exploded, with comments already surpassing fifty thousand.
No matter what, they had to talk to the person involved and understand the situation firsthand.
"Damn it, not a single one of these guys ever gives me peace of mind."
From the Spring Split until now, it had been nonstop stress.
Earlier, it was Lin Fan not training properly, streaming Infinite Borders every day. Fans couldn't accept it and launched wave after wave of attacks, demanding an explanation.
Later on, Lin Fan proved it on the stage—playing those games didn't affect his competitive form at all.
The criticism gradually died down, replaced instead by regret.
Such talent, not training seriously—what a waste.
For a naturally gifted player like that, the club could only take a hands-off approach.
Luo Sheng had spoken to him privately: as long as there was even one game where he underperformed, old and new accounts would be settled together, and Lin Fan's training would be strictly regulated.
But so far—over ten games played—there hadn't been a single chance.
Instead, it was Knight. Every time he played, he underperformed. Today, they finally won, and then this kind of mess exploded.
Guo Hao picked up the desk phone and pressed a button.
"Call Knight to my office."
…
When Knight heard that the manager wanted to see him, he jolted in fright and walked out of the training room in a daze.
Da Huang glanced over. Seeing Knight already far away, he quickly asked,
"Do you think what they're saying on Weibo is true?"
"Whether it's true or not, don't gossip," JackeyLove snapped, glaring at Da Huang. "Especially when it's about our teammate."
Da Huang immediately lowered his head.
JackeyLove frowned.
Knight's form had been terrible lately. On top of that, his whereabouts had been erratic—and now the public fight with his ex-girlfriend…
There was an eighty or ninety percent chance it was real.
As a pro player, bad character was one thing. Losing games was another. Even after being teammates for so many years, JackeyLove couldn't stand on Knight's side this time.
Fan-ge was better.
After matches, he went straight back to base and nowhere else.
And he was even older than them, yet never thought about dating.
Thinking about himself, he hadn't been able to endure loneliness last year either.
Sigh… by that logic, he wasn't a pure pro either.
After winning the championship in 2018, his hunger for titles had indeed faded.
Even if others couldn't see it, his form really had declined.
That wouldn't do.
It was time to push harder again.
Looking at Lin Fan fighting away in Infinite Borders, a strange fire ignited in JackeyLove's heart.
"Mark, let's extend practice to 3:30 tonight?"
"I'm fine with that," Mark replied, a little surprised, but extra practice in duo queue was a good thing.
In matches, it always felt like something was missing.
Mostly it was a lack of synergy—when Mark went in, JackeyLove didn't; when JackeyLove went in, Mark couldn't keep up.
Every time they had to communicate mid-fight.
The flow just wasn't smooth.
Kills that should've happened often slipped away.
That was a real pity.
Right now, the bot lanes they'd been facing weren't top-tier, so they could still suppress them with individual skill.
Joining midway and reaching this level was already impressive.
But later on, in the playoffs…
Against elite bot lanes like EDG and RNG, playing like this would likely get them crushed.
The good thing was, there was still time to adjust.
Knight left the training room—and never came back.
—
No one paid much attention to it.
With JackeyLove taking the lead, everyone threw themselves fully into training.
…
Early the next morning, Guo Hao posted a response on his personal Weibo.
"I personally think Knight is a very simple player—so simple that he can't even order takeout…"
He didn't use the official account, clearly leaving himself an out. Anyone with eyes could tell there was probably an issue.
Everyone was waiting for even bigger bombs to drop.
But during this time, the attacks on Knight didn't slow down at all.
In esports, results speak.
TES's recent winning streak had nothing to do with him. When they lost, it wasn't always his fault—but he definitely carried a big share of the blame.
Before, there was no opening to criticize. Now that there was, people went all the way in.
At this point, there were only two words to say: well deserved.
Still, the league wouldn't stop just because of one person's scandal.
In Week 7, TES had two matches—Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m.
Seeing TES's upcoming opponents, fans silently checked both matches.
Both were must-watch.
First was Friday against BLG.
There was a chance—maybe—for JackeyLove versus Uzi again after two years.
Just thinking about it was exciting.
The officials clearly knew what fans wanted, scheduling it right in the prime-time Friday slot.
BLG's official Weibo also knew exactly what fans wanted to see—and directly posted a picture of Uzi.
At a glance, it seemed like Uzi might finally play.
But when the starting roster was announced, disappointment followed.
It was still Doggo.
BLG really knew how to toy with fans' expectations.
Angry fans exploded.
"If you're not letting Uzi play, why did you sign him?"
"What you love becomes your life—someone continue the line."
"Chen Rui xxx."
"TES rise up—destroy BLG!"
Whether Uzi haters or fans, everyone sided with TES at that moment.
Only one sound remained in the arena—TES.
If BLG didn't hit the trending topics today, then TES would.
TES were blazing hot, while BLG were under massive pressure.
Even under normal circumstances, the gap between players was clear. With this pressure difference, it became even worse.
Under the pressure from JackeyLove and Mark, Doggo's mechanics started to warp.
Even with Crisp backing him up, mistakes kept happening.
A lane kill occurred in under three minutes.
"The pressure's too much for him."
"I'll gank mid at six. FoFo can't do anything to me."
With such a huge bot-lane advantage, it was obvious where the breakthrough point was.
And Lin Fan had picked Twisted Fate this game.
A roaming monster.
Bot lane became an ATM.
Exactly the kind of game JackeyLove loved.
Before ten minutes, the bot turret fell. JackeyLove held five kills.
After that, the bot duo rotated mid. With Twisted Fate applying constant side-lane pressure, the advantage snowballed.
Game one ended at just twenty-two minutes.
In game two, sides were swapped.
BLG might've adjusted well in the break, but mid lane pressure was overwhelming—Lin Fan's Syndra completely dominated FoFo.
At twenty-seven minutes, BLG's nexus exploded.
TES took another win, extending their streak from five to six.
Their record finally evened out at 6–6.
People suddenly realized—
At this moment, the only two teams in the LPL with winning streaks were V5 and TES.
And they were set to face each other on the final day of the week.
Which meant one of those streaks would end.
The suspense—
Was saved for Sunday at 5 p.m.!