Chapter Eight: Gaining Achievement Points!

In that instant, every eye was fixed on the basketball, each heart filled with anticipation—would the ball go in or not?

Swish!

The basketball sailed through the net—the shot was good!

Chen Feng gasped for breath, exhaustion crashing over him like a wave. In that moment, all his strength seemed to abandon him; with a dull thud, he collapsed to the ground, slipping into unconsciousness.

In those brief five minutes, Chen Feng had utterly depleted his energy reserves.

“Hurry! Quick, get him to the infirmary!” cried Sun Minghai, the homeroom teacher, hastily calling to the students around him.

Fang Yue rushed over to Chen Feng’s side in a panic. Never before had she felt so anxious, but seeing Chen Feng faint before her eyes sent a sharp pain through her heart.

Lost?

Lin Hang stared at the result of the game in disbelief, a crushing sense of humiliation welling up inside him. He had actually lost—to Chen Feng, the one everyone had written off as useless. For someone as proud as Lin Hang, this was simply unacceptable.

“Chen Feng, Chen Feng, are you alright?” Fang Yue knelt beside him, her face etched with worry.

“Fang Yue, why... why do you care about him? Why do you care about him?” Lin Hang suddenly roared at her, his anger boiling over as he watched the scene unfold. Fang Yue was not only the belle of Class Six but also one of the most beautiful girls in the entire grade. Secretly, Lin Hang had always harbored feelings for her.

But his voice was drowned out by the commotion around him, rendering him insignificant. All he could do was watch as Fang Yue and several classmates helped Chen Feng up and headed toward the infirmary.

Lin Hang felt utterly defeated.

***********

Mm...

Chen Feng’s consciousness returned quickly. As soon as he moved, an overwhelming soreness radiated from every muscle in his body—there wasn’t a single part that didn’t ache.

“You’re awake?” came a gentle voice at his ear.

“Mmm.” Chen Feng lifted his eyelids to see where the voice had come from. Seated elegantly nearby, a woman in a white coat crossed her legs and regarded him. She was about thirty, voluptuous, and exuded the charm of a mature woman.

It was Bai Bingxin, the school nurse.

“Miss Bai,” Chen Feng croaked, his voice hoarse and weak.

“Here.” Bai Bingxin handed him a cup of warm water with vitamin C dissolved in it. “You fainted from temporary cerebral hypoxia. It’s nothing serious, just drink plenty of fluids.”

“Th-thank you.” Chen Feng tried to reach for the cup, but to his dismay, he found he lacked even the strength to lift his arm.

Noticing this, Bai Bingxin smiled, set the cup aside, and moved to help him sit up. But with Chen Feng’s weight and her own delicate build, she found it no easy task.

She supported his back with both hands, and Chen Feng was keenly aware of the softness pressed against him—a sensation both delightful and distracting. Her faint, elegant fragrance filled his senses, sending his hormones into overdrive.

Heaven have mercy on our protagonist Chen Feng—for as long as he could remember, he’d never experienced such intimate contact with a woman. Not even when Fang Yue applied ointment for him the other day had she touched him.

Despite the agony in his muscles, another part of Chen Feng’s body reacted with uncontrollable fervor, swelling and hardening even as pain coursed through him. His face flushed bright red in embarrassment.

At last, after helping him sit up, Bai Bingxin wiped sweat from her brow and, after feeding him a cup of water, spoke in a calm voice, “Rest well. You’ll be fine. And, by the way, it’s best not to entertain any... ideas right now.”

Pfft!

Chen Feng nearly spat out his water. He lowered his head, unable to meet Bai Bingxin’s gaze. “S-sorry.”

“It’s alright,” she said easily. “Just focus on resting.”

Chen Feng mumbled his assent, though his heart was pounding with excitement as he opened his Grand Extraction System. If his guess was correct, he should have earned Achievement Points by now.

Immediately, the virtual interface appeared before his eyes.

Sure enough!

Chen Feng’s heart raced. In his profile, the Achievement Points had climbed to ten. Ten points! He felt a twinge of disappointment—it seemed a paltry reward, considering he had showcased his basketball skills before so many people. But at least he had confirmation: Achievement Points were earned by gaining others’ recognition and admiration in a particular skill.

But only ten points? Wasn’t that a bit stingy?

He couldn’t help but grumble to himself. Still, it was better than nothing. Extracting the serum from Captain America only required twenty points—he was already halfway there.

How exhilarating!

Chen Feng couldn’t help but look forward to the next game—how many Achievement Points would he gain then?

His thoughts raced. If he repeated this a couple more times, wouldn’t he be rolling in points?

But after a moment of excitement, Chen Feng quickly sobered. Years of insecurity had taught him to consider things from a pessimistic angle. He soon realized there was a flaw in his plan.

His greatest weakness was stamina.

Lasting even five minutes on the court had been a miracle. If he played a full game, he was certain he’d be utterly miserable.

He moved his body slightly but still felt weak all over. Rest was what he needed most.

Lying back down, his mind became more active. How else could he earn Achievement Points? Continuing with basketball seemed unlikely—after all, academic performance was the main focus in high school, and the next basketball match wasn’t for another month.

“Why not extract knowledge instead?” The idea sparked instantly.

Since Achievement Points came from surprising and impressing others, if he excelled academically, wouldn’t that earn him admiration too? The monthly exams were just days away—if he performed brilliantly, he might gain a windfall of points.

Excited by the thought, Chen Feng quickly took action.

“Grand Extraction System, scan the entire school for the top students in Chinese, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Politics.”

He chanted the command silently.

Immediately, countless faces flashed across the screen before him, all teachers from the school. Extracting their knowledge only required one Achievement Point each.

As he was about to proceed, Chen Feng hesitated. The Extraction System had a range—he could only target those within it.

Why not expand the range to the entire nation?

The idea had barely formed when Chen Feng spoke, “Grand Extraction System, expand to nationwide coverage.”

Beep!

To his surprise, the system coldly rejected him. “Host level insufficient. Request denied.”

“How about the entire province?” Chen Feng tried.

Again, the system denied him.

“The whole city then?” he persisted.

Rejection once more. Chen Feng frowned. “Alright, then cover the Xue’er District.”

“System expanding coverage. Screening in progress,” the mechanical voice intoned.

Excitement bubbled up in Chen Feng. The Xue’er District was home to a prestigious national university not far from his school. By covering this district, he would also include the university.

A torrent of information appeared on the screen. Chen Feng was startled—all of them were university professors. What truly surprised him was that extracting their knowledge still only required one Achievement Point.

Was knowledge really so cheap?

It seemed incredible. Extracting knowledge from Fang Yue cost one point, from his school teachers also one point, and now even from university professors—still just one point.

It was astonishing.

But no matter—Chen Feng couldn’t suppress a smile. If he was going to extract knowledge, he’d choose the highest quality available.

If you’re spending a dollar, you might as well buy something good.

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