Basketball: Starting from Defeating LeBron James

　　Lin Feng sprinted to the free-throw line, his leg muscles tensing like a fully compressed spring!

　　"Hyah—! Dunk——!!!"

　　He roared, using all his primal strength to leap straight up from the ground like a pulling onions from dry land!

　　Whoosh——!!!

　　"Buzz!!!"

　　Taylor felt her mind go completely blank in an instant!

　　She looked up at the red figure in disbelief, watching him soar into the air as if propelled by rocket boosters!

　　That height... that sense of suspension... even more outrageous and stunning than her own brother's jumps, after watching him play basketball for years!

　　"Oh my god..." Her cherry lips parted, only able to mutter unconsciously, "Th... that's amazing... that jump..."

　　But at this moment, Lin Feng, flying through the air...

　　Felt... something... a little... off?

　　"Hmm? Why does the center of the hoop... seem... a bit to the left?"

　　"Hey? This height... fuck?! I think I jumped too high, damn it!!!"

　　"Shit!!!"

　　A chill instantly shot from the soles of his feet (even though he was in mid-air) to the top of Lin Feng's head!

　　His brain was instantly flooded with the character "danger"!

　　Pupils dilated in shock!

　　His handsome face, once etched with overconfident "I'm invincible" arrogance, was now hurtling forward at a terrifying 80 miles per second—carrying the full momentum of his sprint—unstoppably crashing into...

　　That innocent, hard, cold slab that represented the hoop's last shred of dignity...

　　The backboard!!!

　　"BOOM——————————!!!"

　　The gym seemed to reverberate with the tragic echo of that "boom."

　　Taylor Swift stared, dumbfounded, at the red figure sliding slowly down the backboard in a spreadeagle position (the "human sticker" effect gradually fading). Her little heart nearly stopped from fright!

　　Like a frightened bunny, she darted over "tap-tap-tap," her voice trembling with tears:

　　"L... Lin Feng! A-are... are you okay?! Y-your head! Is it still there?! What about your nose?! Y-your face... is it flattened?!"

　　(Her small hands hovered nervously, wanting to touch him but daring not to, circling him in a panic)

　　Lin Feng sitting paralyzed the floor (his butt felt like it had split into eight pieces), his head buzzing, stars dancing before his eyes. His nose ached faintly, and there was a metallic taste in his mouth... but the moment he heard the goddess's tearful concern!

　　"Whoosh!"

　　A strange surge of strength propped him up, and he straightened his back abruptly! (Though his waist ached so badly it twitched)

　　He roughly wiped a streak of what looked like nosebleed with the back of his hand (pretending it was sweat), then forced a "tough guy" smile (though his gums might have been split), revealing a row of white teeth (luckily unbroken):

　　"F-fine! Just a little incident!" His voice wavered, but he tried to sound robust. "Ahem... th-the backboard's quality is good! R-really durable!"

　　(Inner thoughts screaming through tears: Fuck, that hurt like hell! I almost died on the spot! But I can't lose face!)

　　Watching him in this sorry state—looking like he'd "smoked seven orifices" (literally)—yet stubbornly trying to save face, Taylor felt both heartbroken and... oddly endearing?

　　She quickly pulled out her small handkerchief (with a sweet fragrance) and gently dabbed at the dust (and suspicious red liquid) on Lin Feng's face. Her sapphire eyes sparkled even brighter than before!

　　"Even though... even though the dunk didn't work this time..."

　　 (Lin Feng: Ouch, that stings!)

　　She suddenly changed tone, her little face flushing with excitement, her voice rising an octave:

　　"But! Lin Feng! That height you jumped! Oh my god! Is that even humanly possible?! It's just... just way too amazing!!!"

　　(Her small fists clenched and waved excitedly, as if she'd witnessed a miracle!)

　　Bombarded by this wave of praise from his goddess, Lin Feng felt the pain in his body instantly subside by 80%!

　　Ah! Taylor praised me! She saw my strengths! She doesn't think I'm embarrassing! She even thinks I'm super amazing!

　　A warm current (mixed with residual nosebleed) surged in his chest. He stupid scratched the bump on his forehead:

　　"R-really? Hehe... it's... it's okay, I guess?"

　　(Inner voice: More! Keep praising me! Don't stop!)

　　"Okay? It's super amazing, okay?!"

　　Taylor hopped up and down excitedly, like a enthusiastic fangirl witnessing her idol's god-tier move, her golden hair bouncing with each jump:

　　"Lin Feng, you should join the basketball team."

　　Lin Feng was momentarily confused: "Huh... r-really?"

　　"Yes!!! Absolutely!!!"

　　Taylor bounced even more excitedly on the spot,

　　"You have to join the basketball team. You're incredible—seriously, incredible."

　　As she spoke, Taylor's thoughts instantly drifted to her own brother—who'd been struggling in NCAA games, losing again and again, his face nearly permanently creased with worry.

　　Her brother's lonely back... the sighs after each failed layup attempt... that exclaimed with emotion,"The team needs a real talent monster"...

　　They flashed through her mind like a slideshow.

　　The next second!

　　She suddenly turned to look at the tall guy in front of her—bruised and swollen-faced (but with insane jumping power), the one who'd just face-planted into the backboard (but oozing with potential)!

　　A beam of holy light "swish" cut through her thoughts!

　　Savior!

　　It's him!!!

　　Taylor clasped her hands together in front of her chest, her eyes as devout as if worshipping the arrival of a true god. A deafening roar erupted in her heart:

　　"Brother! Your hard days are over! No more crying! I, Taylor Swift, have found the savior for your basketball team!"

　　...

　　In the corridor of the teaching building, sunlight lazily spilled over the polished floor.

　　A tall, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted guy sauntered over, his jacket unzipped to reveal a white T-shirt with a basketball print underneath.

　　Long Er, Long San, and Long Si were squatting in the corner splitting spicy strips when they caught sight of him—all of them choking collectively.

　　Whoa! This guy's at least 1.95 meters tall, with shoulders as broad as a door panel. He walks with such flair, like a male model stepping out of a poster!

　　As the handsome guy passed by, the three of them swiveled their necks in unison, their eyes nearly popping out like ping-pong balls.

　　Long San swallowed hard: "Damn... His height's on par with Lin Feng's, huh? 'All legs below the neck' must've been invented for him."

　　Long Si pushed up his glasses: "Judging by the uniform, he's a freshman? Never seen a first-year this cocky before."

　　Just then, the guy walked past two girls carrying books. They'd just stolen a glance when they immediately blushed, ducked their heads, and bit their lips—even holding their textbooks upside down.

　　Long Er, clutching half a spicy strip, scowled more and more the longer he watched, his cheeks puffed out like a toad:

　　"Look at that smug look! So what if he's a bit handsome? What's so great about him! The more I look, the more he ticks me off.""

　　...

　　The classroom reeked of the pungent smell of drip ointment.

　　"Ow——! Be gentle! Dude! Are you trying to murder me to inherit my sports socks?!"

　　Lin Feng lay on the desk, howling like a wounded animal. A pale bandage was stuck to his forehead, shaped eerily like a flattened tic-tac-toe board.

　　Long Yi was holding a cotton swab dipped in the eye-watering ointment, "gently" dabbing it onto the bruise under the bandage. He grinned menacingly and pressed down hard:

　　"What are you howling for! You weren't afraid to slam your face into a backboard, but you're scared of a little ointment? Suck it up! I'm just putting some oil on that 'titanium alloy skull' of yours for maintenance! Otherwise, next time you crack the backboard, we'll have to pay for it!"

　　"Argh——!"

　　Lin Feng winced in pain, pressing his forehead against the edge of the desk and grinding his teeth.

　　"Shut up! Don't mention the backboard! That was... that was me testing the venue's earthquake resistance!"

　　Just then!

　　"Squeak——"

　　The classroom door was pushed open gently!

　　A beam of holy light (or was it just sunlight?) shone right at the doorway!

　　Blonde sweetheart Taylor, like a fairy descending with her own BGM and soft-focus filter, poked her little head in. Her sapphire-blue eyes were filled with concern:

　　"L... Lin Feng? Is your injury... feeling better?"

　　Whoosh——!

　　Lin Feng, who'd just been moaning like he was about to die, seemed to be injected with ten tons of super serum in an instant!

　　He did a "carp leap," springing straight up from his chair! His back no longer ached! His waist no longer hurt! He couldn't even feel the big bump on his forehead!

　　Lin Feng straightened his 198cm "steel frame" and even patted his chest hard, making a dull thudding sound.

　　His smile was so bright it could blind Long Yi's titanium alloy dog eyes:

　　"Taylor! Don't worry! It's nothing! Totally fine now!"

　　His voice was loud and full of energy,

　　"See! As lively as a dragon! Ready for another three hundred rounds... uh, of basketball!"

　　(He almost let slip that he wanted to go crash into the backboard again!)

　　Long Yi was so shocked by this face-changing trick that he dropped his cotton swab, and directly spoke up to expose him:

　　"Taylor! You'd better worry about whether that backboard is broken! I suspect this guy's skull is made of some special custom material!"

　　Taylor Swift let out a "pfft" laugh, automatically filtering out Long Yi's roast.

　　She hopped over to Lin Feng like a little rabbit, looked up at him, and excitedly announced the big news:

　　"Lin Feng! Lin Feng! I signed you up for the basketball team!"

　　Taylor's little face was flushed with excitement, but then she remembered something and twisted her fingers a little awkwardly:

　　"Although... my brother said, 'Guys without perseverance or the ability to endure hardship should just stay away'... but!"

　　She suddenly looked up, her eyes extremely determined, like two little burning suns, staring straight at Lin Feng:

　　"I think you absolutely! Absolutely have what it takes! You'll definitely make it in! I believe in you!"

　　(She clenched her little fist tightly and made a cheering gesture!)