Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

"We sold out all our merch!" Kun happily exclaimed as they made their way inside the waiting room.

The others beamed after the good news broke out.

"That's a first," Jet said. "Did many people buy the merch?"

"Well," Kun said, placing his hand under his chin. "One person brought a lot because she really wanted Kai's—"

Lina stepped on Kun's foot before he could even finish his statement, causing him to exclaim in pain.

"What the heck?" he exclaimed, looking at her with wide eyes. "What if I suddenly get injured or something?"

"You'll live," Lina coldly said. Stay updated with My Virtual Library Empire

"Anyway, we have around 15 minutes left until the start of the game," she said.

Before she got to her pep talk, she turned to Coach Muchen, who appeared more serious than usual.

"Coach," she smiled. "How was the blind date?"

Coach Muchen sighed. "Let's not talk about it."

"Oof, it was bad," Jet said, unable to read the room. "Heard you got catfished."

"How did you—"

Then, he shook his head, not even finishing his statement. "Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore. We have an important game tonight."

The players became serious as they gathered in a circle.

"I'm sure all of you have a story with the Feng Foxes," he continued. "They're a team you've never beaten before. However, you are also not the team you were before."

"You'll be able to do this," he continued, looking into their determined eyes.

The players nodded in agreement, feeling a fire ignite within their chests.

"Hands in!" Lina exclaimed, placing her hand at the very bottom. Coach Muchen quickly followed, causing a domino effect among the other players.

"Shizi Dogs!" Lina excitedly shouted.

"Fight, fight, fight!" they all said in unison.

Meanwhile, in the waiting room next to them, silence reigned.

Chunlei smirked when the Shizi Dogs' chant was heard in the room.

"Well, our opponents are fired up," Coach Ben chuckled. However, nervousness was heard in his voice, which made Yiming frown.

"Coach?" he asked. "You alright?"

Coach Ben cleared his throat. "Of course," he said with resolution.

"How about you, guys?" he asked, the nervousness leaving his body.

Chunlei stood straight and stretched his body. "We were born ready."

The original starting players of the Foxes turned to each other with determined gazes, and then they collectively nodded.

"We've beaten those dogs before," Kexin smirked. "We'll be able to do it again."

"We're going full force, right?" Shilei asked with a small frown.

"Yes," Bocheng said, cracking his neck. "We can't afford to slack. We've seen how the alligators fell prey to those dogs."

"That's right," Yiming said. "Let's not make the mistake of underestimating them again. They have new members, so we need to be careful around them, too."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Chunlei," Yiming called, capturing the latter's attention.

"Hmm?" Chunlei hummed.

Yiming looked into his eyes.

"Don't hold back."

***

The court was filled to the brim, with various people from different cities gracing Jilin City's court.

Sir Dao looked around the court and couldn't believe his eyes. He was sitting next to Miss Cherry, who seemed really excited.

"Can you believe this?" Sir Dao asked. "There's so many people wearing pink."

Miss Cherry turned to the old man with a smile. "I like pink," she said.

"Well, I don't," Sir Dao said. "It hurts my eyes."

Miss Cherry chuckled awkwardly as she observed Sir Dao's neon orange jumpsuit.

"Sure," she muttered.

"Anyway, I'm really excited to watch the boys play. This is my first time watching a game," she added.

"Me too," another teacher chimed.

"Well, our team has always lost, so there was no use going to the games," Sir Dao chuckled.

Miss Cherry turned to him with wide eyes. "Why are you here then?"

Sir Dao froze before coughing out loud.

"It's because you guys invited me, of course!" he exclaimed with a red face. "Aside from that, I don't have any reason to watch the game."

"Sure," Miss Cherry said; however, it didn't seem like she believed what he had just said.

Just then, the lights dimmed inside the court, and the atmosphere became tense.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Mark said, his voice sending chills down the crowd's spine.

"The long-awaited moment is finally here!"

"Let us welcome our teams!"

With his statement, the spotlight focused on the two entrances on the right side of the court.

The doors opened at the same time, revealing the two captains of the opposing teams.

Deafening screams filled the venue, making some cover their ears.

The girls from Juren High looked around the court with amazement.

"Basketball's a big deal in Jilin, too?" one of them muttered.

The players made their way inside the court. The screams became louder as Chunlei appeared. He waved his hand at the audience, making his supporters squeal.

However, the cheers were completely covered when the last player of Shizi High finally entered the court.

"He's here!"

"It's Kai!"

"Oh goodness. He really is good-looking."

"Pfft. He's the guy everyone's raving about? What a joke."

"I know that you're miserable because he looks better than you."

"Go Shizi Dogs!"

Kai paused for a moment, just looking around the venue.

He felt like his world had stopped. Standing in the middle of the court, he saw how the division of pink and green was equal.

Only a few months ago, green dominated the court.

He only dreamed of filling it with their school's color.

However, at that moment, he was seeing it with his own eyes.

"What is that guy doing?" Zeren muttered.

Chunlei chuckled and leaned against the younger player. "He's really amusing, isn't he?"

Zeren clicked his tongue and looked away.

Meanwhile, the Shizi Dogs looked at the dazed Kai with exasperated expressions.

"He looks like a main character," Jet remarked.

Yuze clicked his tongue. "Kai, come here!"

However, it seemed like Kai couldn't hear them. He still stood at the center of the court, feeling amazed by it all.

"He's not listening?" Jinping muttered.

With that, he picked up a ball from the side of their bench and smirked.

Without any hesitation, he threw it toward Kai's way, specifically aiming at his head.

The others didn't even have the time to react.

In a split second, the ball landed on Kai.

However, it wasn't on his head.

Instead, the ball was right in his palm, gripping it with his gaze still focused on the crowd.