Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

The silence on the court was deafening. The ball bounced once, twice, echoing in the stillness as it dropped cleanly through the net. Kai stood there, arm still outstretched in his shooting form, almost like he was frozen in time. The scoreboard has been updated. 62-63. The Shizi Dogs were back on top. For a moment, it felt like the entire world had stopped. The crowd was stunned into silence, breaths collectively held. It was as if no one could comprehend what had just happened. The commentator's voice, usually booming with excitement, came out as a whisper. "Here goes our passing king," he muttered in disbelief. "Kai Guo, taking the shot… Why did he wait until now?" Jian was already sprinting back to guard Andy, but he stopped dead in his tracks, eyes snapping to Kai. The realization hit him like a punch to the gut. He had left Kai wide open. He had underestimated him. He had thought Kai wouldn't shoot. Lina, sitting at the edge of her seat, whispered under her breath, "He actually did it." The Elites in the audience leaped to their feet, the shock written plainly on their faces. Kai had made a choice no one expected, and it worked. "What is he?" Max muttered, eyes wide and disbelieving. "An enigma?" Yuze, watching from the sidelines, let out a slow, impressed laugh. He didn't need to be on the court to understand the gravity of what Kai had just done. The decision was bold, reckless even, but it was perfect. The kind of move only someone like Kai could make. David finally found his voice again. "Kai Guo! He's done it again, folks. A crucial three-pointer when everyone least expected it! The Shizi Dogs take the lead. This kid is going places! I don't know what had happened in the past minutes, but it seemed like everyone was wrapped around his fingers!" Kai lowered his arm, and that familiar smirk tugged at his lips. He was calm, but inside, his heart was racing. It wasn't only the shot that made him feel this way—it was also the system message that blinked in his vision. [New level: Enigma: (184/600)]. [New upgradeable skill roster. Open?] Kai blinked, the prompt almost taunting him. He could feel the power surge through him—the exhilaration of leveling up. But this wasn't the time to celebrate. He glanced at the timer—less than three minutes left in the quarter. There was no room for distractions. Just as he was about to ignore the prompt, the Juren Champions called for a timeout. Their coach, looking frustrated, called for them. Johnny Wang, too, couldn't believe his eyes. His usually cocky smirk was replaced with a blank expression. Jian stormed off the court. He sat heavily on the bench, elbows on his knees, and buried his face in his hands. He couldn't believe it. He had seen Kai as an open book, but somehow, he had missed this. Chaoxing, who usually maintained a carefree, almost playful demeanor, snapped. His smile was gone, replaced by a scowl that no one had seen before. "Don't you understand what this means?" Chaoxing said, his voice low. "Don't you know the implications of this? We're going to lose!" Jimmy, sitting at the edge of the bench, seemed lost. He hadn't recovered from his earlier fumble, and now his confidence was shattered. He couldn't even meet Chaoxing's eyes. Jian looked up. "We're not going to lose," he muttered, shaking his head. Chaoxing slammed his fist into his palm. "This isn't like before, Jian!" he snapped. Jian's eyes darted towards the Shizi Dogs, where Kai stood, hands on his hips, looking back at them with that infuriatingly calm smile. It seemed like the tables had been turned. He couldn't understand it. That should have been him. Kai should have been exhausted. Yet there he was, looking like he had the entire game under control. "What is he thinking?" Jian muttered to himself, fingers raking through his hair. "That was a bait," Chaoxing finally said. "I only realized it now, but I think he set up the perfect play to trick us into thinking he wasn't going to shoot. Then, when we least expect it, he had taken control of the game." He raked his fingers through his hair. "Ah, this is so frustrating." Kai turned away from the bench, wiping sweat from his brow. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a brief moment. The feeling of leveling up had sharpened his senses and made him acutely aware of everything on the court. He opened his eyes and saw his teammates gathering around him. Lina was the first to approach, her face lit with excitement. "You did it," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "You actually did it." Kai nodded, but he wasn't smiling anymore. "We're not done yet," he said simply. "Two more minutes—and a whole quarter. That's still plenty of time." Andy jogged up, clapping a hand on Kai's shoulder. "Man, I don't know what you did, but that was insane," he laughed, his voice breathless. "I thought for sure you were going to pass every time." "That was the plan," Kai said, his smirk returning. "I just needed them to think that." Jinping glanced at him and shook his head. "You're one evil bastard, you know that?" Meanwhile, as the coach of the Juren Champions instructed them on a new play, Jian couldn't find it within himself to listen. To be fair, he hadn't listened up until now. He usually did it on his own. He believed everything would be better if he followed his own skill. Natural talent. That was what he had. Why would he work hard when he already had the talent that most people would go bald for? It didn't make sense! Why go to a library when you already know all of the content in the books? However, at that moment, he felt like there was a part of a library that he still hadn't unlocked. Or maybe it was always there in front of him; he just never utilized it. "I hate feeling like this," he muttered, his mind going into the trenches of his thoughts. To where it all started.