may be forced to start the upcoming split without one of the central pieces of their roster. The team’s toplaner, , announced on Thursday on Weibo that he felt the need to take a break. The organization accepted his request and will promote academy toplaner Cheng “IN YOU” Zihao for the coming weeks to give 369 time to recover.
A few days earlier, rumors had already begun circulating about a possible step back from 369. After a difficult start to the season in which Top Esports were eliminated from the playoffs just outside the top four, the team was also affected by the match-fixing controversy involving Yang “Naiyou” Zijian, an incident that shook both the league and the League of Legends community.
In his message, the toplaner—who has been part of the roster since 2024—expressed confidence in his replacement: “ZUIAN is a very strong player, and I will help him with his experience. Once I’ve adjusted in all aspects, we can work together to help the team achieve better results.†At just 20 years old, ZUIAN has already had some experience in the league, having played a few matches in 2024 for before joining Top Esports Challengers last year. He also started for the team during the most recent Demacia Cup.
Top Esports later confirmed on Weibo that they had decided to promote their academy toplaner. The team is scheduled to return to competition soon, opening the new LPL split this Saturday against Invictus Gaming. At the same time, the roster is also competing in the Esports World Cup 2026 China Qualifierwhere they already suffered a first loss against . They will face Invictus Gaming again at a later date, yet to be announced, in order to keep their qualification hopes alive
