Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

Kai took in his surroundings, the others conversations fading into the background as he appreciated the scenery before him.

The training facility's football field was filled with the sizzle of meat on grills, the laughter of friends, and the competitive energy that was always present when young athletes came together.

Smoke curled up lazily from the barbeques, filling the air with the rich scent of roasting beef and pork. Around the grills, people were huddled in groups, talking, eating, and some even playing their respective sports without equipment.

It was a lively scene—one that brought out the best in everyone.

"This is the life!" Chunlei exclaimed as he settled on the bleachers.

Girls from the cheerleading squads were scattered across the field, chatting animatedly or playfully teasing their male counterparts.

Bright lights illuminated the area, giving everything a warm, festive glow, while the sounds of upbeat music pumped from a speaker somewhere near the grills.

In one corner of the field, a group of young basketball players stood huddled together, their expressions serious despite the lighthearted setting.

These were the boys from Juren High, specifically the young first-year players.

"Has the guy been found out yet?"

"Nobody still knows who he is."

"He's a really great player, though."

"I heard some girls are already interested in him."

"What? But they haven't even seen him!"

Jimmy, who was forced to interact with his same-age peers by Chaoxing, sighed in frustration when they kept talking about the mystery guy who supposedly dunked against Donghai of the University of Shanghai.

"I heard they even went home early because they were so embarrassed by their loss," another said.

Jimmy groaned, having enough of it.

"It's been three days. Why are you guys still talking about him?"

Then, he scanned the field, hoping to catch sight of someone in particular.

He was already feeling frustrated that an unknown first-year player was getting all the compliments from nearly everyone, and now, his teammates couldn't seem to drop it, too!

"Because Chaoxing said he was great," one of the boys replied, his tone almost defensive. "Do you know how hard it is to be called 'great' by him?"

Jimmy sighed heavily, rubbing his temples in exasperation. "Have some pride, will you? You're from Juren High. We don't talk about nobodies like that."

The others murmured among themselves, saying how Jimmy was no fun.

Meanwhile, Jimmy glanced around the field once more, having enough interaction with the group. When he finally spotted Chaoxing, he saw that the boy was surrounded by Jilin players.

"He's been hanging around with those Jilin guys too much lately," Jimmy muttered, shaking his head. He couldn't understand why Chaoxing would want to spend time with the players from another team, especially when it didn't benefit Juren in any way.

They didn't even hold up a candle to them! Jimmy would understand if it was with the Yin Yang Knights! But then again, Chaoxing had always been different, more open to new friendships than the rest of them.

Meanwhile, the Shizi Dogs still couldn't believe that their school's cheerleading team was there.

Lina pursed her lips when she saw Suzy's familiar figure.

"How did they manage to come all the way here?" Kun asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"The school probably gave them money," Jet said. "Lucky them."

Shang chuckled. "Well, they've always been the school's prized possession, along with the Shizi Snakes."

Jet clicked his tongue. "We ended up second in the Preliminaries. Aren't we prized possessions now? Or do we need to win the Nationals for that to happen?"

As they spoke, Suzy caught sight of the team and waved enthusiastically. Her eyes lingered on Kai, who was standing a little apart from the others, looking down at his shoes. When he felt her gaze, he looked up briefly and offered a small smile in return before his attention drifted back to his shoes as if he had something more pressing on his mind.@@novelbin@@

Lina, who had been standing nearby, noticed the exchange. "Our cheerleading team is also competing in the Nationals," she said, trying to hide the sadness in her voice. "They're a great team, too."

"Whatever," Jet replied, his focus solely on the food. "Let's eat! I'm craving meat."

With that, the group began to move towards the grills.

The field was crowded with athletes, but the scent of the barbeque was too tempting to resist. As they walked, the buzz of conversation around them grew louder, and it wasn't long before they started picking up on some of the murmurs.

"Who's that guy?"

"He's so handsome."

"I've never seen him before."

"He's not from the main building."

The whispers weren't directed at her, but Lina couldn't help but notice.

She pursed her lips, realizing that the focus of the whispers was Kai. She knew he was oblivious to the attention, his mind elsewhere, probably still stuck on basketball.

"I think they're whispering about us," Jinping confidently said.

Jet was about to debunk his claim when Renren placed his hand over his shoulder.

"Let him live in his own delusions," he said, causing Jet to shake his head in amusement.

Kai, for his part, barely registered the comments. His mind was indeed elsewhere, distracted by the thought of someone he had been hoping to see tonight.

His gaze swept over the field, moving past the groups of athletes and cheerleaders, searching for that familiar face.

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But no matter where he looked, there was no sign of the person he was looking for.

Jian Niu.

Chaoxing briefly mentioned that he would come, so Kai was expecting him to have arrived. He was preoccupied with training for the last couple of days, so he didn't have the chance to look for him.

Yet, it seemed like he still didn't arrive.

Kai's focus drifted back to his teammates as they neared the grills, the smell of charred meat and savory sauces growing stronger. But even as they reached the barbeque, his eyes continued to wander, still searching the crowd for any sign of Jian Niu.

Just as they were about to dig into the food, Kai felt a slight bump against his shoulder. He looked up, startled, and found himself face-to-face with Chaoxing.

The other boy had stopped in his tracks, a look of surprise on his face.

"Sorry," Chaoxing said quickly, but as he lifted his head to meet Kai's eyes, something changed in his expression. His eyes widened slightly, and recognition flickered in them.

The two had met before, when they had just arrived, but Chaoxing felt something different when he bumped into him just now.

"Is it you?" Chaoxing asked.