Chapter Twenty-Eight: Making Headlines!

For a team to forfeit halfway through a match was unprecedented since the city began hosting basketball tournaments. Still, the judges on site more or less understood Fourth High’s mindset.

There was simply no way to continue—the game had become a one-sided slaughter. No. 1 High was already strong enough, and with the near-unbeatable Chen Feng, they utterly crushed Fourth High.

As the match ended, a satisfied smile lingered on Chen Feng’s face. But after a few steps, he suddenly frowned and glanced down—his shoes had long since given up, bursting at the seams under the strain.

Without drawing attention, Chen Feng quietly swapped out his shoes. Yet almost immediately, he felt a strange discomfort—the new pair felt painfully tight.

On the school bus, Chen Feng narrowed his eyes and quickly opened the Extraction System.

Host Name: Chen Feng
Gender: Male
Height: 175cm
Weight: 100kg
Achievement Points: 88.

“I’ve grown taller?” Chen Feng was taken aback, instinctively reaching up to touch his head. The weather was growing ever warmer, and he’d already switched to short sleeves, so he hadn’t noticed the change.

Those shoes had endured much—he’d worn them for so long, it was a wonder they’d lasted until now.

It had been less than half a month since he’d acquired the Extraction System, and he’d already gained three centimeters. Who knew how much more he’d grow? If his height could break 1.8 meters within a month, then his weight wouldn’t be an issue.

A group of them rode the bus back to school. Their coach, Chen Ping, smiled at the players, “Chen Feng, Fang Chenghao, Lin Hang—don’t rush off. Let’s all get together for a meal and celebrate properly!”

“No, thank you, sir. I have some family matters to attend to. I’ll be off,” Lin Hang replied, his demeanor uneasy.

His voice faltered; even Chen Ping frowned slightly, sensing something off. Lin Hang had seemed odd on the court, too—at first, Chen Ping thought he was at odds with Chen Feng, but now it appeared Lin Hang truly had his own troubles.

“All right, you go ahead,” Chen Ping didn’t press.

The main basketball team members followed Chen Ping to a food stall just outside the school. Chen Ping, a modestly paid teacher, couldn’t afford much. As they left, Chen Feng caught sight of Lin Hang slipping into a narrow alleyway.

“That’s not the way to his house,” Chen Feng thought, puzzled, but he didn’t dwell on it and followed the others to the food stall.

He wasn’t the type to bully others when in a position of strength. Even after gaining special abilities, Chen Feng remained kind and good-natured, never abusing his powers.

Meanwhile, Lin Hang entered the alley, where Li Wei had been waiting.

“Smart kid. If you dared not come, hmm…” Li Wei glared at Lin Hang, his tone casual but menacing. “You should know what would happen if your school found out you hired street thugs to break a fellow student’s legs!”

Lin Hang shuddered, fear spreading across his face. “Brother Li, how much are your medical bills?”

A sly smile played on Li Wei’s lips. “Medical bills? Eight of my buddies are in the hospital. Three thousand each for preliminary checks—twenty-four thousand in all!”

***

After eating and drinking his fill, Chen Feng limped home, took off his shoes, and massaged his feet until the blood flowed freely again. Only then did his soles feel comfortable. He realized it was time to buy a pair of basketball shoes.

He couldn’t afford a real pair, but maybe a cheap knockoff from a street stall would do.

After stretching a bit, Chen Feng felt that with a few more games, he’d earn enough achievement points to exchange for the genuine Super Soldier Serum, like Captain America’s.

The next morning, Chen Feng went early to school for training. Coach Chen Ping hurried over, “Chen Feng! Chen Feng!”

“Yes, sir?” Chen Feng asked, puzzled.

Chen Ping beamed, “Good news! You made the news! Look!”

He whipped out his smartphone and pulled up a news article, which featured a photo of Chen Feng slamming the ball into the hoop.

On the news?

Chen Feng opened his Extraction System at once. To his surprise, only two more achievement points had been added.

Just two points for making the news?

He was surprised. Logically, being in the news should have brought more attention and thus more achievement points. Why so few?

Then he realized: this wasn’t major news, just a small local piece with little coverage—hardly something to catch many eyes. It was a miracle Coach Chen Ping even found it.

There was no chance for this to go viral. Sure, his dunk looked impressive, but to the average person, it would elicit no more than, “Oh, a high schooler who can dunk.” Beyond that, nobody cared.

Only basketball enthusiasts might pay attention, but even they were more interested in professional athletes. Who would care about a high school match?

Usually, the only spectators were parents and students from the same school; true outsiders were few and far between. Even yesterday’s face-off between No. 1 High and Fourth High only drew a bit more interest—otherwise, twenty spectators would have been a good turnout.

Chen Feng himself was unfazed, but his teammates crowded around him with looks of admiration, as if this were a tremendous honor.

“Chen Feng, do your best! If we win first place in the city, we’ll get extra points for physical education college entrance exams!” Fang Chenghao clapped him on the shoulder, grinning.

“Well, actually, I’d rather take the college entrance exam,” Chen Feng replied with a smile.

“College entrance exam?” the group echoed, surprised. Fang Chenghao recalled that Chen Feng had always excelled academically, once forcing even their teachers to admit they were wrong.

“You’re not like us,” Fang Chenghao sighed. “But I still think you should go to a sports school. Your talent’s too good to waste. If you keep it up, you might even make it to the NBA and become a real basketball star!”

Chen Feng scratched his head, laughing. “I don’t think so. Basketball is just a pastime for me. As for going to the NBA, who can say what the future holds?”

Fang Chenghao shook his head with a wry smile. “It’s a pity, though. Your basketball talent is incredible—your three-point accuracy, your jumping, your dunks. I’m taller than you and can’t do what you can. Not playing seriously would truly be a waste.”

“It’s no great loss,” Chen Feng replied, shaking his head. He knew clearly that basketball was just one way to earn achievement points. There were many other ways; there was no need to rely on basketball alone.

He would gain more abilities in the future. As long as he kept improving, his achievements would continue to surprise others, and achievement points would pour in.

“All right, let’s not get complacent,” Coach Chen Ping said with a smile. “We’ve got more matches ahead. Work hard—win the next four games and we’ll be champions!”

“What’s there to worry about? We have Chen Feng!” a teammate piped up. “How could we lose?”

“Quiet!” Chen Ping snapped. “Just because we have Chen Feng doesn’t mean you can rely on him completely. Don’t you need to train yourselves? From today on, double training!”

A chorus of groans rose from the team. Chen Feng just smiled, silently donning his weighted gear. “I’ll just train like this.”

Watching Chen Feng, Coach Chen Ping fell into deep thought. Though he’d just scolded the others, he had to admit—Chen Feng was an exceptional player.

That teammate wasn’t wrong—with Chen Feng, how could they lose?

He glanced at Chen Feng again and let out a quiet sigh. The more one succeeds, the easier it is to lose oneself. He hoped Chen Feng would remain steady and not become lost in success.

Perhaps he was worrying needlessly. So far, Chen Feng hadn’t changed much.

If there was any change, it was that the boy seemed a little slimmer and a little taller than before.

(The protagonist is about to get taller, more handsome, and richer. Dear readers, do you have any more recommendation votes, likes, or favorites to support him?)