Chapter Four: Slam Dunk by Mitsui

Splash!

The system’s display screen began to flicker once more, but this time, the characters that appeared were obviously of a lower tier—Sherlock Holmes, Conan—and finally, the interface settled on its selection.

The character that appeared made Chen Feng’s eyes widen in surprise.

Character Source: “Slam Dunk”
Hero Level: Level One
Character: Hisashi Mitsui
Abilities Available for Extraction: Basketball Skills (Specialty: Three-Point Shot), requires four achievement points
Fighting Ability, requires one achievement point
Japanese Language, requires one achievement point

“It’s actually him?” Chen Feng’s heart raced with excitement. “Slam Dunk” had been his favorite classic anime as a child—fiery and inspiring, woven through some of his fondest childhood memories.

Hisashi Mitsui had been the ace player at Wushi Middle School during junior high. In the county championship finals, his team was once trailing, but under Coach Anzai’s guidance, Mitsui led them to victory and was named MVP.

In high school, grateful to Coach Anzai, Mitsui refused the invitation from Ryonan High and joined Shohoku High, coached by Anzai. However, during training, Mitsui’s leg injury recurred, forcing him to leave behind his beloved basketball and fall into delinquency. Later, with help from his friends and Coach Anzai, Mitsui returned to the team and became a core player.

“Coach, I want to play basketball!”

Even now, Chen Feng could still recall that line.

To be honest, while his favorite characters in “Slam Dunk” were Hanamichi Sakuragi and Rukawa Kaede, the one who moved him most was Hisashi Mitsui. Mitsui possessed a powerful will and an unwavering desire to win; the three-point storms he unleashed in numerous games were often the key to Shohoku’s comeback and victory.

Basketball skills, including the three-point shot, required four achievement points.

Chen Feng narrowed his eyes in contemplation—should he extract it or not?

Though the Super Soldier Serum from Captain America was tempting, Chen Feng knew that, relying solely on the achievement points awarded monthly by the system, it would take four months to gather enough. How, then, could he obtain more achievement points?

He had some ideas about how achievement points could be earned, but they would need to be tested.

“System, extract Hisashi Mitsui’s basketball skills!” Having made up his mind, Chen Feng spoke up immediately.

A radiant light began to swirl around Mitsui, and then a white glow shot directly into Chen Feng’s body. Suddenly, he sensed a flood of new knowledge—basketball techniques, various skills—and, more importantly, he felt subtle changes in his physique: his muscles seemed just a bit tighter, more solid.

He even looked a tiny bit slimmer.

Chen Feng glanced at the display screen, where his body stats showed his weight had dropped from 108kg to 107kg—he’d lost a full two kilograms.

“Haha, not bad at all!” Chen Feng grinned. “I never expected the system to help me lose weight for free!”

“System, save Hisashi Mitsui!” Having extracted Mitsui’s abilities, Chen Feng immediately chose to save him. After all, there was still the Japanese language and fighting skills that could be extracted, not to mention Mitsui’s stint as a delinquent might have some residual usefulness. And with five available slots, he’d only used two so far.

With a thought, the scene before his eyes faded, and Chen Feng found himself back in his own room.

Exiting the system, he stretched comfortably. Whether it was a side effect of transforming into the Hulk or not, he now felt utterly exhausted.

Forget it—time to sleep!

With that, he shut down his computer and lay down. He’d expected to be too excited to sleep, but as soon as his head touched the pillow, drowsiness overwhelmed him and he drifted off.

In his sleep, Chen Feng drooled a little.

He had a spring dream—he dreamt that he became slimmer, more handsome, and charming, and then he was doing all sorts of shameless, adult things with the class beauty, Fang Yue, and his own goddess.

At dawn, his biological clock woke him right on time.

After a quick wash, Chen Feng glanced at his parents’ room. They were still asleep—last night’s overtime had worn them out—so he didn’t disturb them. He grabbed a piece of bread from the table and wolfed it down in a few bites, then gulped down a big glass of milk.

Just before heading out, he checked the mirror. The bruise around his eye was still there, but it wasn’t swollen or painful anymore.

Wheeling his bicycle out, Chen Feng paused in surprise to see a striking figure waiting by the roadside—it was Fang Yue.

He glanced at her, then mounted his bike and set off for school. He didn’t believe for a second that Fang Yue was waiting for him. Sure, he’d rescued her the night before, but deep down, Chen Feng was still a deeply insecure person—even with the Extraction System, that hadn’t changed.

Such insecurity isn’t something that can be transformed overnight.

“Chen Feng, wait for me!” Fang Yue suddenly called out.

“Hm?” Chen Feng braked, surprised that she’d actually stopped him. Turning to look at her, he forced a smile. “You mean me?”

Fang Yue rolled her eyes. “Of course I mean you. Is there anyone else here?”

Scratching his head, Chen Feng asked, “Did you need something?”

“Thank you for last night!” Fang Yue gazed at him with gratitude. “If it hadn’t been for you, I probably would’ve been bullied!”

“It’s—it’s nothing,” Chen Feng stammered, waving his hands. “I—I couldn’t just stand by and watch you get bullied.”

His nerves showed in his halting speech. He was never comfortable in these situations; years of insecurity had left their mark, and now, with the class beauty waiting for him and thanking him, Chen Feng felt all the more nervous.

“Let’s go together!” Fang Yue smiled sweetly at him.

“Okay, okay!” Chen Feng nodded hurriedly.

As they passed the spot from the night before, both instinctively stopped. Only now did Chen Feng realize the terrifying aftermath of his transformation into the Hulk. The ground was pulverized, and the wall bore a deep indentation—faint memories told him that was where he’d hurled one of the attackers.

The two had crashed together and slammed into the wall, shattering it.

In Hulk mode, sometimes he retained his senses, sometimes not. That night, he’d been nearly mindless. Fortunately, his transformation only lasted ten seconds; any longer, and the destruction might’ve been even worse.

“Sir, what happened here?” Chen Feng asked an elderly man out on his morning walk.

“What happened? I’m not sure, either!” The old man shook his head. “All I know is, last night there were noises like a monster roaring. This morning, I saw four people lying here—punks from the area who’ve caused trouble for plenty of young women. When I came by, the four of them were barely alive!”

“What?” Chen Feng was stunned. A chill ran through him as the thought flashed in his mind—what exactly had he done last night? Then another worry crept in—would someone suspect him? Would they lock him away in a lab as a test subject?

“They got what they deserved!” the old man snorted. “From what I saw, their bones were basically shattered. When the ambulance came, they were barely breathing. The doctor said there wasn’t much hope. I suppose it’s heaven’s punishment for them!”

“They’re dead?” Chen Feng froze, icy dread crawling up his spine. He’d actually killed people—four in one go. Even if he’d lost control, the reality was hard to accept.

Too preoccupied to ask more, Chen Feng simply continued toward school with Fang Yue.

“What happened last night, anyway?” After a long silence, Fang Yue finally spoke.

Chen Feng forced a bitter smile. “I honestly don’t know. I was knocked out by them, and when I came to, everything was already like this. I’m not really sure what happened.”

Fang Yue didn’t suspect anything else. After all, Chen Feng had always been so ordinary—it was impossible to imagine him suddenly turning into a cape-wearing superhero. Of course, he hadn’t become Superman, but the Hulk.

“Chen Feng, why have you given up on yourself?” Fang Yue changed the subject.

“Given up on myself?” Chen Feng was silent for a moment. “Why do you say that?”

“You know, back in junior high, your grades weren’t so bad. You made it into No. 1 High, which means you’re capable. Why not study hard, why give up on yourself?” Fang Yue’s voice was gentle but earnest. “You weren’t always like this.”

Chen Feng didn’t reply. In truth, his grades in junior high had been above average, and during the high school entrance exams, he’d performed exceptionally well and made the cutoff for No. 1 High. But after entering, his grades plummeted, and he began to gain weight, gradually becoming the person he was now. Fang Yue felt that this wasn’t who Chen Feng was meant to be—if he could keep up back then, there was no reason he couldn’t now.

(During the new book period, I ask for everyone’s support—every favorite, every recommended vote means a lot to Feng Shao. After two failed novels, I know it’s cost me popularity, but I believe in myself, and in “Super Extraction.” If you enjoy it, please add it to your favorites and join the Super Extraction group: 63482040.)