The smoke of the Star Sea Cup group stage had just cleared, and what followed was the highly anticipated draw ceremony for the Top 16 knockout stage.
Under the gaze of countless players, through an open and transparent drawing process, eight fate-deciding matchups were revealed:
Forbidden City Peak (A1) vs. Steel City Will (C2) - A clash between the Imperial Capital's king and steel-like tenacity.
Star Sea Team (B1) vs. Dragon Soul (A3) - A showdown between an officially backed team and a northern powerhouse.
Phantom Team (D1) vs. Beichen (A2) - A contest between capital's rising star and a Tianjin veteran.
Shu Road Mountain (C1) vs. Misty Rain of Jiangnan (B2) - A confrontation between the West's unpredictability and Jiangnan's elegance.
Veterans (A2) vs. Jinneng Esports (B2) - A direct clash of experience and vitality.
Laofu Hotpot (B3) vs. Changan Prefecture (C3) - A meeting of a trending team and the ancient capital's heritage.
Shining Star (B3) vs. Kunlun Decisive Battle (C3) - A battle between two platform-backed teams.
Qiming Team (D2) vs. [Another team from the tie-breaker] - A grassroots dark horse facing an opponent who also fought their way through a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
(Note: To simplify the narrative, some teams are represented by their regional position instead of specific names; the actual draw must ensure that teams from the same group avoid each other.)
Every matchup was full of highlights and suspense.
In particular, Qiming Team's draw was not the best, but not the worst either, avoiding several championship favorites and giving them a slim chance to continue creating miracles.
As soon as the draw results were announced, the player community immediately launched into enthusiastic analysis and predictions, with the popularity of betting threads on major forums skyrocketing.
Just as all eyes were focused on the upcoming brutal knockout stage, at Riot Games headquarters, a strategic meeting concerning the future development of the game was simultaneously underway.
Qin Feng sat at the head of the table, with the large screen in front of him displaying various data reports for the Star Sea Cup—astonishing watch times, explosive community discussion, and the increasingly mature and diversified tactical systems demonstrated by the major teams.
What he saw was not just the immediate success of the event, but also the bottomless potential and vitality of league of legends as a competitive game.
"Gentlemen," Qin Feng's voice drew the attendees' attention away from the event data, "the Star Sea Cup has proven that our competitive framework is successful, and player and market enthusiasm are unprecedented.
But this enthusiasm needs continuous fresh blood and broader strategic space to maintain and stimulate."
He switched the screen display, showing an internal research report on the correlation between the number of champions, game tactical diversity, and player activity.
"Currently, our champion pool, after steady expansion, has reached a good number.
But to support higher-level, more global professional esports in the future, and to provide ordinary players with endless freshness and exploration fun, we must look further."
He threw out a goal that invigorated many of those present:
"I request that the planning department take the lead, in coordination with the art, technical, and balance teams, to launch a long-term plan—after the Star Sea Cup concludes, through several version updates, gradually expand the total number of league of legends champions to one hundred and thirty!"
A low gasp rippled through the conference room.
One hundred and thirty champions!
This meant designing and releasing dozens of brand new champions on top of the existing ones!
This was an astonishingly vast undertaking.
"Mr. Qin, is this goal too aggressive?" Wu Tong, the planning director, cautiously spoke, "The design, balance, and integration of new champions into the existing system all require extremely long cycles and repeated testing.
Planning such a large number at once carries significant risks and pressure."
"I am not asking for it to be achieved overnight," Qin Feng explained, "This is a long-term blueprint, a direction we need to work towards in the next one to two years.
What we want is not a simple accumulation of numbers, but that every new champion must possess unique mechanics, a clear role, and be able to bring new chemical reactions and tactical possibilities to Summoners Rift."
He elaborated on the strategic significance of this decision:
"First, enrich tactical dimensions.
More champions mean more complex BP (Ban/Pick) meta-games, more diverse team compositions, and more unpredictable match outcomes.
This will greatly enhance the spectating experience and suspense of professional matches."
"Second, extend game longevity.
For ordinary players, the continuous release of new champions is key to maintaining game freshness and attracting returning players.
Every new champion is a new topic, a new journey of exploration."
"Third, solidify the ecological barrier.
When our champion pool is deep enough and our tactical system complex enough, it will be harder for latecomers to imitate and surpass us.
This will form one of the most robust moats of our game ecosystem."
He looked at Chen Ran, the art director, and Li Ming, the technical director: "This is a huge challenge for art and technology.
We need more imaginative and culturally rich champion designs, and we need to ensure that the client can still run stably and smoothly after a significant increase in champion numbers.
But this is also an opportunity, an excellent chance to make Runeterra even richer and more colorful."
"We will establish a dedicated 'Champion Expansion Project Team'," Qin Feng finally decided.
"During the Star Sea Cup, preliminary concept design and underlying technical pre-research must begin.
As soon as the tournament ends, we must be able to immediately launch the first round of new champion development, moving towards the goal of one hundred and thirty champions at a steady pace."
After the meeting, within Riot Games, a new engine, transcending the current tournament, quietly started.
A group of elite planners and designers temporarily stepped away from intense match spectating, dedicating their energy to conceptualizing the future champion universe.
Meanwhile, on the main stage, inside the Magic City's competition venue, the war drums for the Top 16 had already begun to beat.
The BO3 single-elimination tournament offered no room for retreat.
The first match between Forbidden City Peak and Steel City Will was about to ignite a new wave of viewing frenzy.
Qin Feng knew that his esports empire not only had to win every battle in the present but also had to pave a sufficiently wide and long runway for the future.
The champions' expedition never stops.