Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

The boys were stunned to silence as they internalized what Coach Muchen had just read.

It seemed like their feelings were getting tossed left and right. They were disappointed with the single-elimination format, but they felt resurrected after it was revealed that two teams would come from each state!

"Have they done this before?" Kun asked with wide eyes.

"This is a first," Yuze muttered, feeling hope swell in his heart.

He felt like their chance to participate in the finals had just increased a hundredfold!

The players didn't think it could get even more shocking than that.

However, it did.

"You missed something," Lina said, pertaining to a small text at the very bottom of the notice.

"Specific instructions for Jilin City," she read out loud, taking the initiative.

"The North and South division shall be disregarded as per the advancement of the games. Instead, all schools will randomly play against each other regardless of division."

"Holy crap! Then does that mean..."

Shang couldn't even finish his statement as Lina scrolled through the schedule of the games.

A large bracket was shown, and at the very top was their name.

Then, under it was their opponent—a team they hadn't played with before.

"The Hushui Alligators," Yuze muttered.

"Oh, crap!" Jet exclaimed. "Can't we play against the Daxue Dolphins again?"

Kai frowned in confusion. He didn't know much about the Huishi Alligators since they were from the Northern bracket during the Winter Cup.

Kai also knew that they were able to make it to the semi-finals, but they lost against the Yin Yang Knights.

"Are those guys still good?" Renren asked. "I only watched your games during the Winter Cup."

"Aww!" Kun exclaimed. "You actually have a soft spot for us!"

Renren rolled his eyes. "Just answer my question," he grumbled.

"They're still good," Dylan said, capturing their attention once more. "In fact, it seems like they're even better this year."

"Seriously, why does he know all of this stuff?" Tony muttered.

"The Huishi Alligators had always stepped foot into the semi-finals—always," Dylan continued.

"And if it weren't for the dreaded Yin Yang Knights, they would easily take the crown in the Northern bracket. Although, they would definitely lose against the Feng Foxes."

"But that's besides the point," Dylan said. "What you need to know is that the Huishi Alligators had always been aggressive players. Right, Lina?"

Lina nodded in agreement. "We haven't played with them before due to our circumstances, but Dylan is correct. They live up to their name—the Alligators. They have the most aggressive playing style in the entire city...but they're not like the Feng Foxes who aren't afraid to foul out their extra players."

"They're just very strong in general," she continued.

"They have placed fourth consistently for the past years. However, during the Winter Cup, they managed to beat the Xing Stars and placed third, and that is attributed to their new first-year player—Qiang Mao."

A shiver ran down Jet's spine as soon as Lina said his name.

"His name literally stands for 'strength.' If that doesn't say anything about him, then I don't know anymore," Shang chimed.

"Qiang Mao? I don't think I've seen him before," Kai remarked.

"Oh, you definitely have," Shang said. "He's the biggest guy during the opening of the Winter Cup."

Kai's eyes widened. "He's that guy? He's a first-year student?"

Shang and Jet nodded while chuckling.

"Although, it's funny that you're also in disbelief. I also thought you were older than me when I first met you," Jet remarked.

"Yes, that's him," Lina confirmed. "He has the body of a sumo wrestler and the height of a basketball player. He has been indestructible on the court for a while now. Someone is even looking into his stats and if it's enough to get him into the Elite Five."

"What the heck," Jinping muttered. "Is that how good he is?"

"Yes," Yuze said. "I've seen one of his games, and it's very hard getting past him. He can even stop two players at the same time. The Yin Yang Knights also had a hard time against them because of Qiang."

"Anyway," Coach Muchen said, clearing his throat. "It seems like we have a strong opponent for the very first game. As you can see here, our school is at the very top of the list, so this means that we're most likely going to be the opening game, too."

"Dang, I got chills," Andy said. "It hit me that the Interhigh Preliminaries are finally going to start."

"There's still around two weeks," Yuze said. "We'll continue to strengthen our skills until that time."

"That's right," Muchen said. "Let's not think about the Alligators right now. Instead, let's focus our attention on the practice game we have with the Yin Yang Knights. They have beaten the Alligators countless times, so if we beat them, then that means we'll have an easier time against the Alligators."

"So, for now, focus on training without getting hurt," Muchen reminded. "I'll see you on Monday."

The players nodded and started packing their belongings.

Kai went to Lina and helped her store the projector.

"Do you think we'd be okay?" he asked.

Lina turned around, and although she still felt pretty bitter after Suzy hugged him, she smiled and nodded.

"I believe so," she said.

"Just as long as nobody gets hurt, then we'll be alright," she said.

Kai nodded. "I hope so."

"Let's go?" Lina said.

Kai agreed and followed after her.

They exited the court, stuck in comfortable silence.

However, Kai halted when his mission was finally revealed.

[Incoming Mission!]

"It's been a while," he muttered.

[It's time for a treasure hunt!]

[Gather these items before the Interhigh Preliminaries starts:

1. A precious rock from the city's public basketball court.

2. A ballpoint pen from the doctor's office.

3. Merch from an opposing team.]

[Each item costs 15 XP]

[Failure to gather the items before the Interhigh Preliminaries will entail a decrease of the same amount of XP.]

[Happy hunting!]