novelODS Chapter 53: They didn't offer the price I wanted!
Chapter 53: They didn't offer the price I wanted!
The concerns of NB's management are not unfounded.
Established powerhouses like EDG, IG, LGD, and even WE will all join the competition.
As a new team that just started its League of Legends division this year and obtained LPL league qualification, they have seen the development of LPL over the past two years from a third-person perspective.
At the end of 2015, the LPL was, strictly speaking, at a crossroads where collapse and awakening were intertwined.
After being defeated by LCK management again in 2014, clubs across the country opted to bring in Korean players, ushering in an era of spending money to acquire talent.
They thought they could turn things around and at least bring a trophy back to the region, becoming the first team in League of Legends to gain popularity.
However, aside from winning the Mid-Season Invitational, the highly anticipated "money-driven warships" were almost completely wiped out at the S5 World Championship. LGD and iG both failed in the group stage, and only EDG barely made it into the quarterfinals.
This crushing defeat was like a bucket of cold water, completely shattering the almost manic dream of the "era of South Korean aid" that had lasted for the past year.
But it was precisely in this wave of reflection that the emergence of Crush, and the "operational performance" currently being staged in the City Championship, almost instantly broke through the psychological defenses of all club managers.
You should know that before this, the "arms race" in the LPL region had already reached an astonishing level.
Take Jian Zihao, the former star ADC of the OMG team, as an example. During the transfer rumors after the summer regular season this year, his value was once speculated to be as high as 5000 million yuan.
Although the numbers are somewhat exaggerated, and UZI, as a two-time LPL World Championship runner-up, saw his individual competitive value decline during his time with OMG, his seven-figure salary is definitely a given.
Furthermore, the salaries of top-tier Korean players are astronomical. For example, Imp's annual salary at LGD is reportedly as high as 1000 million, far exceeding that of domestic players.
For clubs, even training a single player can cost 200-400 million yuan a year. Given this frenzied financial climate, Crush's asking price will only be higher.
"Crush is a smart player!"
Each company has influential figures in the esports circle, so obtaining Huya's platform secrets might be difficult. However, to get information about the recent marketing campaign for Crush, which was all at his own request, and to connect it to his performance in the City Championship, which was completely different from that of an ordinary seventeen-year-old prodigy, is quite possible.
It's not difficult to figure out the owner's true purpose.
Of course, it's good that there's demand for Crush!
Whether it's the marketing of "one god leading four noobs" and the two-week comeback, or the operational tactics of the city championship, it all just shows that Crush is waiting for a high price, waiting for a club that can really afford to pay.
Although the pressure of competition is a bit high, it's still better than a child being stubborn and insisting on sticking to BJBS to the death.
……
"Seriously, you should consider EDG!"
"A substitute?"
"Not a substitute. To be honest, our current starting mid laner, Pawn, has some injury problems, and it's definitely not going to be able to play consistently next year. Crush, if you're willing to come, we can definitely give you a starting opportunity... That's right, the S4 champion mid laner will be your backup."
"We're incredibly generous with our annual salary—a base salary of five million!"
"You don't need to worry about the team's leadership. Although we're used to playing a bot lane-centric strategy, it's perfectly fine for Clearlove to learn from Bengi and gank mid more often. Clearlove himself has stated that he only wants a world championship..."
"Training or competition?"
"Abu won't interfere. The club is already considering promoting him further to a managerial position. In the future, if you want, we will restructure the entire EDG team, from your tactical philosophy to your individual playstyle, around you."
"Thank you, I will consider it seriously. There is still a third of the City Championship schedule left, and I will give your club a reply before then."
Fu Shiyan hung up the phone.
He exhaled a breath of stale air: "Phew~"
It has to be said that in this era of full-scale capital investment, the treatment offered to players is increasingly extravagant.
As BJBS continued their winning streak in the City Championship and their operational tactics became increasingly sophisticated, more and more clubs came knocking on their door.
EDG is just one of them.
A base salary of five million, the absolute core of the new S6 season, and even the promise of power in the training and competition team—it sounds incredibly exciting.
In addition, the offers from WE, NB, and RNG were even more substantial.
Some offer annual salaries as high as 9.1 million, while others come with generous terms such as team profit-sharing rights or even partnerships with the club's brand.
Of course, let's leave RNG out for now.
They were originally in the second team, but they didn't even get to play a few training matches. Not only were their salaries deducted, but the coach even paid for their taxi fare when they left. Only an idiot would consider them.
"Xiao Fu, don't just agree rashly on a whim. Think it over carefully, think it over carefully..."
Inside the office, Boss Mo saw his precious mid-laner return after finishing a phone call and quickly tried to persuade him.
"I know, boss. These numbers sound daunting, but getting them won't be easy."
"Furthermore, they didn't offer a price that truly appealed to me!"
Fu Shiyan knew perfectly well why LPL clubs were flocking to him at this time and were willing to offer him such an extravagant contract.
The most painful blow to the management of LPL teams from the disastrous S5 World Championship was that they thought they could win by spending money to buy the strongest players, but in the end they couldn't even understand how they lost.
We were brutally beaten by the operations team in 13 and 14. You say we don't know how to play operations? We accept that.
But this year, LPL practically bought out LCK and learned their operational strategies, yet they still couldn't even beat Europe and North America at the World Championship. What's the reason for this?
Therefore, what he deliberately displayed from Rank to City Championship brought the first bombardment to LPL was his tactical brain and coaching attributes.
This is fundamentally different from any top-tier fighter on the market today.
While all teams were trying to replicate the precise, instrument-like operations of LCK teams, the gameplay he presented in the City Championship was an authentic, seamless Korean-style operation.
Other things might not have a significant effect for a while.
The problem is, the operation of LCK...
LPL viewers and coaching staff are all too familiar with this – it's the ultimate suppressive force that has crushed the entire LPL for three years.
Not to mention that the World Championship was being held simultaneously, and the comparison group was being played on a loop in the Huya live stream.
More importantly, he wasn't coaching star players, but four ordinary players who were Master rank just a few weeks ago.
This means that the young man with the ID Crush can independently complete the entire process from tactical planning and on-field command to team coaching. Buying him is equivalent to simultaneously acquiring a top-tier coach, an on-field commander, and a cornerstone with unlimited potential for team building.