Dominate the Super Bowl

Chapter 426: 425 Exclamations of amazement Chapter 426: 425 Exclamations of amazement Boom!

With a loud bang, colorful paper fireworks danced through the air, painting the Jacksonville sky close to midnight with a magnificent hue.

A vibrant, seductive peacock blue unfolded unbridly against the rich darkness of the night.

The award ceremony reached its climax—

The 2017 season, the AFC Champions, belonged to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Ah!

The Old Oak Tavern had completely lost its mind; everyone broke free from the shackles of their chairs, reacquainting themselves with the strength of standing on two legs as they raised their arms high:

Jumping, cheering, shouting.@@novelbin@@

Ahhh!

West could no longer control himself, clenching his fists and screaming with all his might.

Then, turning around.

West found Provo in the crowd, looking stunned, and shouted at him, forgetting himself.

“That’s our team!”

“Chris, do you hear that?

That’s our team!”

Provo tried to muster a smile, only to realize that his eyes were already brimming with tears.

He looked at West’s flush face, at the friends in the tavern who were abandoning all reason in collective ecstasy, and finally at Anderson, who stubbornly lifted his chin to watch the TV screen, feigning composure to hide the disarray in his eyes.

An indescribable emotion broke through just like that.

This time, Provo didn’t wipe away his tears.

For the first time in a long while, Provo didn’t hide his dishevelment and vulnerability.

He didn’t wound every warm thing that came close like a hedgehog; instead, he just smiled and confidently displayed himself.

Suddenly, Provo raised his arms high and shouted.

“Soar!”

Who could’ve thought that such a simple word could contain countless emotions, displaying the surges and passions of the heart in full force?

Ah, ahhhh.

Roaring, fervent passion, boiling blood, smiles blooming amid hot tears.

The next second—

“Soar!”

The entire Old Oak Tavern shouted in unison, the smiles, the cheers, the joy all blending into a volcanic eruption of happiness.

Perhaps the gloomy winter haze that enveloped Kansas City was finally showing a glimmer of dawn.

They truly weren’t greedy.

Really, just one playoff victory was enough; to win before falling into another playoff losing streak was all they dared to hope for, knowing full well that advancing to the playoffs was an accomplishment in itself.

In the bitter long winter of Kansas City, even a tiny spark of hope was a luxury.

But!

However!

One victory.

Two victories.

And then, three victories.

Ascending to the top of the AFC!

This was far beyond expectations.

They believed.

They believed dreams could come true, that tomorrow would come, that the future would be brighter—like a naïve child, they wholeheartedly believed in miracles.

Sometimes, it’s not bad to naively believe in fairy tales.

Life is tough, very tough indeed, and they all knew that the Chiefs’ victory couldn’t change the plight of unemployment; but at least, dreams made life bearable.

They were still persevering, still fighting, still not giving up—

Moving forward without pause.

As for the Super Bowl?

Whatever the outcome, they would stand behind their team and fight shoulder to shoulder.

The point wasn’t whether they could keep their streak all the way, but that they were still fighting, still running, still soaring.

That was enough.

Clearly, they were ready.

Super Bowl, take note—the Chiefs are coming!

…

“This, is history.”

“I’m not talking about the series of records Li Wei authored as an Asian running back, nor the history he created as a rookie in the American Conference finals, although those numbers are astounding and have entered the annals of history.”

“But.”

“Beyond this, setting aside the labels of Asian or rookie, Li Wei and the Kansas City Chiefs are still making history.”

“This is only the second time since the millennium that an American Conference champion is named something other than Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, or the Baltimore Ravens.”

“The last time such a feat was accomplished was by the Oakland Raiders in the 2002 season.”

“That year, the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens wasn’t John Harbaugh, Ben Roethlisberger hadn’t yet entered the League, Peyton Manning was still rebuilding the Indianapolis Colts, and Tom Brady was considered a flash-in-the-pan player.”

“That year, the Oakland Raiders were still the dominators of the AFC West, while their arch-rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs, were still searching for hope of revival.”

“However, after that, the Oakland Raiders fell into a long trough of thirteen consecutive years without playoff appearances, which is currently the longest record of absence in the playoffs in the League and also the longest in the big four sports leagues in North America, ending only last season.”

“Now, following their arch-rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs have claimed the American Conference crown after fourteen years, and the whole world has changed dramatically.”

“Perhaps, all this is a coincidence, or perhaps not.

The only certainty is that the Oakland Raiders, without a doubt, do not wish to witness this scene, yet who knows what sparks will fly when the two teams meet next season.”

“Clearly, we are witnessing history.”

Not just the fans, but in the commentary box, Nantz and Romo were also marveling.

At the start of the 2017 season, this scene was completely unexpected, even when the Kansas City Chiefs scored an upset over the New England Patriots in the opener, it did not change people’s predictions about the progress of the season.

But now?

Indeed, the world of competitive sports is always full of surprises.

New York, ESPN, “Inside the League” studio.

They were on standby.

Since the live broadcast rights weren’t with ESPN, they didn’t need to do a live show simultaneously; however, once the game ended, they needed to tape a program immediately and review the game.

If you looked closely, you would notice that Bart was missing.

“Oh, Blair is outside smoking, he needs to clear his head.”

Bart, with a cigarette in hand, wore a face etched with confusion and perplexity.

Indeed, he had predicted the outcome of the American Conference finals correctly, but why couldn’t he be happy about it?

Was it because Li Wei was still moving forward?

Because Li Wei’s season-long performances of proving people wrong hadn’t ended yet?

Because for once, his predictions had failed to go awry?

And moreover.

God, the Super Bowl predictions, what should he do?

Worry, it truly is deathly worrying.

Deeply, Bart took another drag of his cigarette.

Across mountains and rivers, Romo seemed to hear Bart’s struggle, comforting his colleague in his own way.

“Without a doubt, the 2017 season is subverting all predictions step by step.”

“Both conference finals were upsets.”

“The Philadelphia Eagles won as underdogs against the Minnesota Vikings to top the National Conference, extinguishing the Vikings’ great dream of being the first team in history to compete for the Super Bowl Champions on their home field.”

“The Kansas City Chiefs triumphed over the Jacksonville Jaguars as underdogs to claim the American League title, with the Jaguars, as the hottest favorites, hitting a wall; after the game, they had a lot of issues to summarize.”

“So, ‘Dark Horse VS Dark Horse’.”

“Two dark horses are meeting in the Super Bowl showdown, now it’s a matter of who can persist to the very end.”

“It’s a fifty-fifty chance, truly, this will be anyone’s game.”

“Before the season started, if someone had told me that the Super Bowl matchup would be the Philadelphia Eagles versus the Kansas City Chiefs, I would have told him that his joke wasn’t funny, but now, I am the joke.”

“However, this doesn’t mean the Super Bowl isn’t worth looking forward to.”

“In fact, it may be the most unpredictable and possibly the closest match in fifteen years, and I’m already chomping at the bit.”

“Whew, I’m very much looking forward to Li Wei’s performance.”

Bart: …Tony, nice knife work.