Chapter 33: Metamorphosis (Second Update)

"Just a double-team. You should be able to break through it, so why do you need my help?" He Bin couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

"The coach gave me three minutes to score 21 points, or I'll be benched for the next game. Please, I'm begging you." Xia Chiyi pressed his palms together in a sincere plea.

"Twenty-one points? Is Coach Ling insane?" He Bin covered his face with a towel and mumbled, "I'll help you, stop trying to act cute!"

"Help him? How?" Chen Chuan asked, puzzled while wiping away sweat.

"I don't know. Hey, how do we do this?" He Bin pulled Xia Chiyi back.

Xia Chiyi crouched slightly in front of He Bin and whispered, "Your presence is the greatest bait. Just help me cover on defense."

He Bin’s expression cleared. "Got it!"

The referee signaled that the timeout was over, and both teams returned to the court. Watching Xia Chiyi’s retreating figure, Ling Huanzhen smiled. "This kid finally knows how to ask for help instead of fighting alone!"

"But... basketball was never a sport for one-man shows, was it?" assistant coach Cheng Qing remarked.

As soon as play resumed, Xia Chiyi was indeed double-teamed. No matter how much he twisted and turned like taffy, he couldn't shake them off.

Suddenly, He Bin approached Xia Chiyi, signaling for a pass.

"Oh no—" Li Shuyun rushed over to defend.

Xia Chiyi feinted a pass, suddenly changed direction, and wove right through them. When he slammed on the brakes at the three-point line, the Normal University coach felt his heart sink, and the entire audience erupted in cheers.

Xia Chiyi sank his fourth three-pointer and turned around to happily high-five He Bin.

From then on, Xia Chiyi and He Bin were a perfect match, acting as the team's dual-threat shooters.

While Xia Chiyi was being double-teamed, He Bin stayed close, leaving the opposing defenders unable to distinguish whether Xia Chiyi was faking a shot to pass, or faking a pass to shoot!

Together, they easily racked up eight points in one minute, leaving the Normal University side fuming.

Ling Huanzhen smiled. It seemed Xia Chiyi and He Bin had taught themselves how to operate as a dual-guard backcourt.

In the final minute, Xia Chiyi found his rhythm. He constantly shifted positions near the opponent's three-point line, nearly causing the two players tracking him to trip over their own feet.

By the time Normal University realized what was happening, He Bin delivered a brilliant pass to the corner. Xia Chiyi, left completely unguarded, rose up and once again pierced through Normal University’s hoop.

"When did that guy run to the corner? I didn't even notice!" Ye Chaoying’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

Before this, Xia Chiyi would return to the dorm every night looking like a dead dog, and Ye Chaoying had pitied him immensely. Now, it didn't look like he was suffering at all. Such training results were enough to make anyone jealous!

Ling Huanzhen glanced at Zhou Zhexiao. "How much time is left?"

"46 seconds," Zhou Zhexiao replied.

"The kid needs two more three-pointers to reach 21 points." Ling Huanzhen felt very comfortable.

A roar suddenly erupted from the crowd. Xia Chiyi pulled the ball back sharply from left to right, causing his two defenders to collide. He then arrogantly dribbled away.

"Stop him! Stop him!" The Normal University coach was screaming until his throat felt raw.

Li Shuyun jumped from behind Xia Chiyi to swat the ball away, but he hadn't expected it to be a fake. Xia Chiyi created space and calmly shot. When Li Shuyun landed, he could only roar in frustration.

"Wow, it’s raining three-pointers in the gym." Pang Shuai, clutching his DSLR, captured many elegant shots, genuinely feeling that his brother looked incredibly cool.

As Xia Chiyi retreated with his teammates to defend, he looked at He Bin and said, "One more?"

"Bring it on." He Bin pulled at his collar to wipe off sweat. Honestly, working with Xia Chiyi was exhilarating.

Li Shuyun, refusing to be outdone, charged into Ningchang University’s territory with two other sharpshooters. He tried to mimic Xia Chiyi’s strategy, keeping Ningchang’s defenders guessing whether he would pass or take a three-pointer.

When Shuai Bei challenged him, he did indeed pass. As He Bin rushed to defend and the opponent prepared to jump for a three, Xia Chiyi yelled to Du He, "Guard the paint!"

Unexpectedly, the shot didn't come. Instead, the ball was passed back to Li Shuyun, who was cutting toward the hoop!

Du He felt incredibly relieved by Xia Chiyi’s reminder; had he left the paint, he would have left an opening.

Li Shuyun gritted his teeth and forced a layup.

"Bang!"

The sound made the hair on Li Shuyun’s arms stand up. The ball had been stolen by Xia Chiyi again.

He had been in the paint just a moment ago—how did he get there? Li Shuyun was stunned.

"Xia Chiyi’s positioning is incredible!" Ye Chaoying, on the bench, was so excited he was scuffing his feet on the floor. "He saw that Li Shuyun would cut to the hoop, arranged for Du He to assist Shuai Bei in the double-team, correctly anticipated the pass, and got into position beforehand—"

By now, Xia Chiyi had reached Normal University’s three-point line. The opponents had completely lost their spirit; they couldn't even jump to intercept, forced to watch as Xia Chiyi’s seventh three-pointer went in.

Exactly twenty-one points.

"That’s insane!" Ye Chaoying was ecstatic. He felt that even if it were him, he couldn't have managed that kind of movement.

The third quarter ended. Ningchang University had reversed the situation, overtaking Normal University. Their opponents huddled around their coach with heads bowed, their momentum clearly gone.

As Xia Chiyi walked back, he seemed to be glowing.

"Coach Ling, did I pass?"

"You got 21 points. As for whether your braking and shooting release time are up to par, you'll have to ask him." Ling Huanzhen gestured toward Zhou Zhexiao.

Zhou Zhexiao had the tablet on his lap, using his other hand to scroll through Xia Chiyi’s phone.

"Let me see." Xia Chiyi went to grab the tablet, his fingertips nearly brushing against a very sensitive area, making his hair stand on end.

That was close... If he had actually touched him, Zhou Zhexiao would probably have choked him to death.

To avoid any misunderstanding, he poked the back of Zhou Zhexiao’s hand with his finger. The other man didn't move an inch. "Don't push it, you guy. Holding my data and scrolling through my phone? Are you a team tyrant?"

Hearing Xia Chiyi’s accusation, Ling Huanzhen nodded in empathy. You described it perfectly; this guy used to be a total team tyrant. I don't know what you admire about him!

Zhou Zhexiao tossed the phone back to Xia Chiyi. Only then did Xia Chiyi see that Zhou had been using his WeChat account to summarize his performance for Jiao Yingfeng: 7 for 7 on three-pointers, 3 minutes elapsed, average braking time 0.4 seconds, shooting release time 0.5 seconds, 3 assists, 4 steals. The goal was met.

Xia Chiyi sat next to Zhou Zhexiao, looking at the "thumbs up" emoji Jiao Yingfeng had sent back, and sat there grinning like an idiot.

As the final quarter began, Ling Huanzhen tapped the back of Ye Chaoying’s head. "Go on, go on. If I don't let you in now, you'll wear the soles of your shoes out."

"Oh yeah!" Ye Chaoying sprang up like a gopher bursting out of its hole.

Xia Chiyi winked at Fu Chenxue. "Congratulations, Ye Chaoying won't be sticking pins in your effigy anymore."

Fu Chenxue exhaled and slumped in his chair. "No wonder I had a headache, a neck ache, and a stomach ache. So that was Ye Chaoying’s curse!"

As the fourth quarter started, the audience noticed Xia Chiyi had been benched and began to shout in dissatisfaction.

"Let that number 15 kid back in! I want to see him shoot!"

"You only let him play for three minutes? Is Ningchang University looking down on Normal University?"

"Be careful, you're going to get crushed in the final quarter!"

"We want to see it rain three-pointers!"

Even Xu Mi wanted to join in the shouting—after all, she had only recorded three minutes on her DV, which wasn't enough to edit.

Conversely, the Normal University team breathed a sigh of relief.

"He’s finally off..."

"We couldn't defend him at all. I almost ran out of breath chasing him..."

Hearing his teammates, Li Shuyun frowned and said coldly, "Can you have a little pride?"

His teammates fell silent. The coach took a breath, his expression turning serious. "Ling Huanzhen taking number 15 off means he thinks three minutes was enough to checkmate us. Do you find that honorable?"

Li Shuyun turned to look at Ye Chaoying. "Even if we wanted to give up, it won't be that easy. Believe me, they’ve already sent out their fastest point guard. Unless you don't mind being mocked until graduation."

"Let's go! Just treat it as gaining experience for next year!"

"If Ningchang University can look down on us like this, we'll have to wear pots on our heads just to go downstairs for takeout."

"We have to at least take a piece out of them!"

The Normal University players gritted their teeth, reigniting the battle.

Although the audience had initially clamored for Xia Chiyi, when the fourth quarter opened and Ye Chaoying flashed through the opponent's formation like lightning, passing three people in a row, the audience's "affection" shifted quickly.

Ye Chaoying reached the basket, engaged Li Shuyun head-on, and calmly passed the ball to He Bin waiting in the corner. He Bin caught it and easily drained a three.

The crowd became lively again.

"Ningchang University is pretty good! They’ve got that three-point kid and this super-fast dribbler. They might actually have a shot this year!"

"Duh, if there weren't good talent, why would Ling Huanzhen stay at Ningchang University?"

Meanwhile, Zhou Zhexiao rested his hand on the back of Xia Chiyi’s head and said, "You wanted to learn the logical thinking of a point guard, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"Ye Chaoying’s logic is typical. His vision is vast; he doesn't just see the opponent in front of him. With just a quick glance, he can predict He Bin’s movement and create opportunities for him."

"But you’re different." Zhou Zhexiao turned his face. For a moment, Xia Chiyi thought their noses might touch.

"My difference..." Xia Chiyi’s eyes lit up as he realized, "I get it... My field of vision is narrow. My target is either the rim or a specific teammate."

"Mm." Zhou Zhexiao nodded slowly, signaling for Xia Chiyi to continue.

"If you're on the court, my first thought is to link up with you inside and out to score."

"Mm."

"If Ye Chaoying is by my side, I think of speed, rhythm, and steals..."

"That’s right."

"If I’m paired with He Bin, I think about helping on defense near the three-point line to deceive the opponent... My choices have always been one-on-one." Xia Chiyi said.

"But Ye Chaoying can weave a network of his own. Everyone plays a role in this web. He sees every cut and off-ball movement, like playing chess, with countless permutations and combinations."