"Welcome to the All-Star System! Alert: host has received five basic points, not yet allocated! Alert: please select items to add points to; Alert: please select items to add points to; Alert: please select items to add points to..."
Lu Ke felt a splitting headache. His mind was filled with a cold, flat, robotic voice. It sounded like a hallucination, or just noise, and he couldn't tell the difference. A throbbing pain echoed in his head, making him dizzy and his vision blurry. To make matters worse, it wasn't the only sound. Logan's incredibly excited voice was relentlessly pounding his eardrums like drumsticks, and the constant thudding wasn't helping at all.
"Lu Ke, can you hear me? Three-on-three! Quarterback, receiver, defensive player! Three-on-three! Let's teach that arrogant guy a lesson! Let's show them what a real pass is!"
"Alert: please select items to add points to."
"Passing, an uncontested pass, that's your strong suit! Bambi!"
The overlapping noises, along with the chaotic sounds around him, made Lu Ke feel like his head was about to explode. "Logan, quiet! Quiet!" he shouted repeatedly. "What's going on? Why a three-on-three contest?" At the same time, he called out casually, "Passing! Passing!"
Then, the cold voice in his head changed its message. "Please select a passing item: short-pass accuracy, mid-pass accuracy, or long-pass accuracy."
"Long-pass!" Lu Ke rubbed his temples, trying to ease the stabbing pain.
Back in high school, he was a quarterback, and his best skill was long-pass accuracy. He could consistently create miracles. But after entering college, his slender physique and limited talent made him weak in physical confrontations. In training and games, he would get sacked before he could even unleash his long-pass power.
Given the choice, Lu Ke instinctively chose the long pass. But the rigid, mechanical voice in his mind didn't stop, repeatedly asking, "How many points? How many points?"
"All of them! All! All!" Lu Ke, annoyed and exasperated, roared. A series of voices then sounded in his mind: "Points added, complete; System integration, step one, complete." That was it. The cold voice finally disappeared completely, and Logan's excited and noisy voice became clearer.
"Bambi? What? What are you even saying? Are you okay? You didn't get a concussion, did you?"
As the noise faded, the headache gradually subsided. Lu Ke slowly regained his composure. "Screw off, I'm fine!" He looked up again, his vision gradually clearing. "What did you say just now? Three-on-three, a one-on-one showdown? To teach Kevin Prince a lesson, right?" Despite the disjointed words, Lu Ke managed to grasp the information.
Although Lu Ke had no idea how things escalated to this point and felt like he was being forced into an impossible situation, he was never afraid of a challenge or confrontation. "You're saying I get to choose the receiver and the defensive player?"
"Yes!" Logan nodded repeatedly. "Choose your own receiver and choose the opponent's defensive player!" After saying this, Logan's eyes widened, and he started hopping in place with a fawning expression, like a puppy, almost sticking his tongue out.
Lu Ke couldn't help but laugh, shaking his head slightly. Then, he composed himself and said seriously, "Logan, can you be my receiver?"
"Of course! Of course!" Logan raised his right hand high, then looked around and gestured to a non-existent audience like the Statue of Liberty. Then he forcefully bumped Lu Ke's shoulder and ran toward the field, shouting loudly, "Logan Newman, Lu Ke's receiver! Rahim Moore, the opponent's defensive player!"
"An excellent choice!" Kevin, standing in the middle of the field, said with a sneer. "At least you chose two first-string players to increase your chances of winning. I guess you really need that boost because this is a doomed attempt for you."
Now that the headache was gone and he was fully lucid, Lu Ke walked over and said with a smile, "Are you saying you could complete a pass even if you chose two scout players?" No curses or insults were needed. The simple rhetorical question, full of sarcasm, immediately put Kevin in a tough spot.
Kevin glared at Lu Ke, shut his mouth tight, and turned away without a word or response. He then silently chose two other definite starters from the first team, one as his receiver and the other as the opponent's defensive player. Winning was the most important thing! A scout player was just a scout player, good for nothing. Kevin wasn't that stupid.
The three-on-three drill was very simple: the quarterback completes a pass, the receiver catches it, and the defensive player is responsible for covering the receiver and trying to break up the pass. Before the official pass, the quarterback and receiver discuss the receiving route and passing strategy. This not only trains the quarterback's passing accuracy and tactical awareness but also trains the receiver and defensive player's awareness of space.
It was a two-way drill.
Anthony Jefferson, a coaching assistant, stepped forward. Besides daily training, he was also in charge of the scout team. Head Coach Rick was still furious, his anger unpacified. He stood on the sideline, arms crossed, and said nothing. So, the burden of officiating the contest fell to Anthony.
"Let's start the drill now. Kevin, you're up first," Anthony announced, his gaze then falling on Lu Ke's shoulder with a hint of helplessness and concern, shaking his head.
Such a showdown was completely unnecessary. One was an official player, the other a scout player. The gap between them was insurmountable. But Anthony also knew that this was not about winning or losing but about calming down all these hot-blooded young men.
As expected, Kevin went on the field and stood at the twenty-yard line on the right side. Without a defensive player pressuring him, his footsteps were as light as a butterfly's, dancing freely on the field. After targeting his route, he threw the football without hesitation. The ball arced through the air like a flash of lightning, heading straight for the receiver's location.
As the defensive player, Rahim immediately moved in close, trying to break up the pass, but he was a half-step too slow. He watched helplessly as the opponent caught the pass, only arriving a moment too late and slamming into the receiver's shoulder. But it was already useless.
Thirty yards. It was a perfect thirty-yard pass, easily and accurately sent from the twenty-yard line to the middle of the field. It was like a goalie's long kick in soccer, a sharp sword slicing through the sky and piercing a heart, accurately received by the receiver. It was truly an eye-opener!
"Yeah!" Kevin raised his hands high, unable to contain his excitement, cheering and shouting. Then he clenched his fists, roaring with passion, bending over and using all his strength. "Ahhh!"
A thirty-yard pass—that was a rare successful pass for Kevin as well! Fast, accurate, and perfectly timed, the entire pass was flawless. It was a superb performance!
After the conflict and the chaos, his pent-up emotions were finally released. That damned scout player was just a scout player! He wasn't incompetent; he was just a little distracted. Even tigers have their naps, let alone an average athlete. The scout player was just a lunatic, a wild madman who treated practice like a game, and it was utterly foolish!
That scout player could never complete a pass like that! Never! Now, that trash should understand that the gap between them was huge and impossible to bridge! The damned trash!
Leaving the field, Kevin lifted his chin high and looked at Lu Ke through his nostrils. His condescending, contemptuous, and derisive gaze was undisguised. He then raised his right hand, giving a thumbs-up, and slowly, slowly, turned his wrist to point his thumb down, his eyes locked on Lu Ke.
After completing this series of gestures, he laughed triumphantly. He didn't pay any more attention to Lu Ke, instead turning and talking cheerfully with his friends, as if the rest of the contest was a foregone conclusion and not even worth watching.
Standing beside Lu Ke, Logan constantly cheered him on. "Dude, don't worry! It's just thirty yards. That's nothing. You can do it, believe in yourself, you can!" Logan clenched his fists and waved them excitedly.
Lu Ke ignored Kevin, who was acting like a clown. He took a deep breath and gave Logan a confident smile. Physical confrontation wasn't his strong suit, but a superhuman long pass was. "Of course I know! Remember? That pass we tried in eleventh grade? What do you say? Should we try it again today?"
"What?" Logan's eyes widened in disbelief, but then he started cheering. "You're a maniac! But I love a maniac like you! It's no problem for me, but what about you? Is your arm strength and accuracy okay? Back then, we only succeeded once, and it was pure luck. We tried to replicate it afterward but never managed to."
"Then let's try our luck again today!" Lu Ke said boldly. "We have nothing to lose, even if we fail." Lu Ke shrugged carelessly. After all, he was a scout player and would always be one. Things couldn't get any worse. "But I don't like to lose! Let's give it our all and complete this pass! You'd better run fast, even faster!"
Logan winked at Lu Ke and patted his chest with a loud thump. "Trust me! Dude, I believe in you, too!" Without another word, Logan turned around and ran to the other end of the field.
Under the gaze of all the players, Logan ran farther and farther. After crossing midfield, he still didn't stop. He was now past the spot where Kevin's pass had landed, and Logan was still running. Everyone was stunned!
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