Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

Friday finally arrived, marking the day of the long-awaited practice game between Shizi High and Feng Arts High.

The players from Shizi High got down from Shang's dad's truck, an old beat-up tractor-trailer used to transport vegetables. Fortunately, Yuze allowed the second-string players to accompany them as moral supporters, so Kai excitedly got down from the truck along with his current teammates.

He was in a good mood because his stats had increased during the past week due to his hard work. Now, he was on another level—Advanced Beginner. He didn't have a lot of XP yet; however, he believed that this was another step to fulfilling his wish of becoming a champion.

"Good luck on the game today, son," Shang's dad called, waving goodbye to the team.

Shang smiled at his dad while the other players bowed in gratitude.

"Shang's dad is still the kindest ever," Kun chimed. "He's been driving us to games since Shang was a freshman!"

"He's a great man," Dylan said.

"He is," Shang smiled, feeling proud of his father. "Sometimes, I feel guilty because I can't help much with the farm. However, my dad always tells me to focus on basketball, so I'm doing just that!"

Kai smiled to himself. Shang's relationship with his dad seemed very precious.

As the trailer-tractor drove into the distance, the players of Shizi High finally focused on the view before them. The other players, despite seeing Feng Arts before, were also amazed by the improvements in their facilities.

They entered the gates and saw that the school grounds had manicured lawns, vibrant flower beds, and a majestic fountain at the center. Surrounding it were students reading books like they were straight out of the movie, while the sound of the water trickling from the fountain created a serene atmosphere.

"It's my first time here," Dylan muttered. "I don't think I want to go back to Shizi High now."

Mingze nodded, his mouth agape. "Our school looks like a pig pen compared to Feng Arts. I can't believe we're being deprived of such privileges."

Kai looked around his surroundings and found their facilities impressive, too. However, he was calmer than some of his teammates because Huolan High, the school he used to attend, also had a similar ambiance to Feng Arts High.

Yuze, looking the most unfazed by the environment, glanced down at his watch.

"Let's head to the gym. The game will start in less than half an hour, so the Feng Foxes might already be there," Yuze said, capturing their attention.

The players all nodded before following Yuze through the school grounds.

As they walked, people stopped and stared, their curious gazes following the visiting team. It was clear that they weren't accustomed to seeing outsiders in their midst, especially not from a school like Shizi.

"Why did Feng Arts agree to a practice game with Shizi High out of all teams? I understand why they set a schedule with Yin Yang, but really, is it Shizi High? That's a joke!"

"They could have agreed to a practice game from a top-five school instead."

"I think they agreed because Yuze's still on the team. You know that he's the saving grace of Shizi High."

"Still, do you think its fair that our precious team is wasting their time on a team like this?"

The whispers and murmurs followed them all the way to the basketball court, yet they paid them no attention.

The team stopped walking when they finally saw the three large covered basketball courts in front of them.

"Dang, Feng," Kun sighed. "They have three basketball courts now?"

"What the heck do they even use the other two for?" Jinping asked out of curiosity.

"The newest one is for their first-string players," Yuze, being the only one who had seen all three courts, responded. "The oldest one is for their second-string players. Meanwhile, the one in the middle is where they host matches."

"So, we'll go inside this one then?" Zeren asked.

Yuze nodded, once again leading his teammates inside the large gymnasium.

As soon as they entered, they were baffled by the difference in their current facilities. The gymnasium was impressive, with gleaming hardwood floors and state-of-the-art equipment.

However, what truly caught their attention was the crowd gathered in the bleachers. The first floor of the gym was almost brimming full, with spectators eager to witness the showdown between one of the weakest and one of the strongest teams in the city.

Lina scanned the crowd with furrowed brows, her mind racing with questions.

Then, she turned to Yuze, poking his forearm.

"Are you sure this is just a practice game?" she asked.

"I'm sure," Yuze responded, although sounding unsure.

He was certain that if this practice game was held at Shizi High, then the audience would be as sparse as Jinping's eyebrows. If in the instance that more students came, then they would support the Feng Foxes rather than their own basketball team.

So, seeing the seats filled with more than a hundred students from Feng Arts High was really surprising. It seemed like they really took basketball seriously in this place.

"Looks like we've got quite the audience," Kun remarked, intense nervousness heard in his voice.

"Yeah, no pressure, right?" Shang quipped, already feeling breathless.

While the others were busy ogling the crowd, Kai glanced at the players of Feng Arts, clad in green jerseys, and watching them with hawk eyes.

Kai tilted his head to the side, narrowing his eyes to get a better look at the team. He was trying to look for Yang Yiming and Dong Chunlei, the players that Lina told them to watch out for.

However, at that moment, Kai noticed something else—the underestimating stares of the players on the bench, some of them even having humorous expressions.

"Who even agreed to play with Shizi High?" one of them asked.

"Yeah. It's not like we can learn anything from them," another chimed.

Even though Kai couldn't hear their conversation, he could guess that they weren't saying pleasant words toward their team. It was pretty obvious in the way they huffed and scoffed as the players of Shizi High made their way to their bench.

Kai placed his worn-out bag on the farthest part of the bench, ignoring the belittling stares of the Feng Foxes. Then, just as he was about to sit, his system appeared right before him.

[Incoming Weekly Mission!]