Chapter 62: Zhou Zhexiao: I Have Heavier Tastes Than You

"What the hell! Who does this guy Xia Chiyi think he is? How dare he brag about crushing us by sixty points!"

"He's just a freshman! Does he think he can ascend to immortality just by joining the varsity team and playing a few basketball games?"

"So everyone at Ningchang University loves to talk big! Now I finally understand how they managed to score over a hundred points against Qincheng University!"

Thus, the next morning during practice, while Xia Chiyi was warming up on the sidelines, Gao Chong, the captain of Chujiang University, marched over with several of his teammates.

"Which one of you is Xia Chiyi?" Gao Chong demanded, hands on his hips, chin tilted up as his gaze swept across Ningchang University's sparse lineup.

"It's him—"

"It's him—"

"Right there, that's him—"

Xia Chiyi looked up to find his teammates all pointing directly at him. Was this what it felt like to be universally condemned?

Gao Chong chuckled lightly, staring down at Xia Chiyi. "So it's you? You're the one running your mouth about crushing us by sixty points?"

Xia Chiyi raised his head and realized that not only was Gao Chong exceptionally tall, but the entire Chujiang University team resembled a legion of giants. He suspected their average height must be around 190 centimeters.

"I... I never said that..." Xia Chiyi shook his head immediately, looking completely bewildered.

Gao Chong laughed, and his teammates behind him joined in.

"You were speaking loud enough when you made the claim. Why are you backing down now?"

Gao Chong pressed heavily onto Xia Chiyi's shoulder with an intimidating grip, preventing him from standing up. "Forget sixty points. Can you even score six points against us?"

Not far away, Shuai Bei frowned. He stood up, matching Gao Chong's height, grabbed Gao Chong's wrist, and said coldly, "Hey, how many points he's going to crush you with—won't we find out in a minute?"

The two locked eyes, tension crackling between them.

"What's this?" Shuai Bei retorted. "Does Chujiang University think they can't win on the court, so you've switched to fighting? Relying on a numerical advantage?"

Gao Chong made a sound of annoyance, let go, and walked away with his teammates.

"A bunch of clueless fools. Why don't they look in the mirror to see what they're actually worth?" one of the players tossed back over his shoulder.

Ordinarily, Ye Zhaoying and the others would have just gloated, enjoyed the misfortune, and watched Xia Chiyi make a fool of himself.

But having someone talk down to them like that was a completely different story.

Gao Chong slapped that player hard on the back. "Ningchang University doesn't know any better, but do you have to be so tactless with your words?"

"Oh, right, my bad, talking about mirrors and pissing is so uncivilized. Let me correct myself—we should politely ask them to pick up a mirror and take a good look at themselves!"

Ye Zhaoying stared wide-eyed at their receding backs, slinging one arm over Xia Chiyi's shoulder. "I don't care, I officially demand that you crush them by sixty points!"

Xia Chiyi sighed helplessly. "I only need thirty points to get my Kentucky Fried Chicken reward; I don't need to score sixty..."

Shuai Bei also placed a hand on Xia Chiyi's shoulder, squeezing firmly. "Leave the rebounds to Du He and me. Just shoot with peace of mind."

Xia Chiyi stared at Shuai Bei in disbelief. "I really, truly never said anything about scoring sixty points!"

Du He tightened his shoelaces, his expression turning grim. "It's not about whether you said you'd crush them by sixty points anymore. It's about someone dragging our pride through the dirt."

Xia Chiyi turned to Zhou Zhexiao. "You... you talk some sense into them. Calm down! We still need to stick to the tactical game plan!"

Zhou Zhexiao glanced sidelong at Xia Chiyi. "You managed to score over five hundred on the college entrance exams, what's sixty points?"

Xia Chiyi clutched his head in despair. His teammates had lost their minds. Truly out of their minds.

Ling Huanzhen was chatting with Chujiang University's coach when he saw this scene, feeling a faint trace of embarrassment.

Coach Chen of Chujiang University chuckled while holding his insulated mug, saying with an indulgent tone, "Your players certainly have ambition. But regardless of whether it's an official match or a practice game, there is only one person capable of crushing our Chujiang University by sixty points."

Curiosity piqued, Ling Huanzhen asked, "Who?"

"Li Sucheng from Qingda University." Chujiang University's coach gently tapped Ling Huanzhen's chest with his mug, adding with a meaningful look, "That's youth training team caliber."

Ling Huanzhen smiled faintly. "Oh, so it's him. Does that mean..."

"What?"

Ling Huanzhen stroked his chin. "If someone here really could crush your esteemed school by sixty points, would that mean they've reached youth training team caliber too?"

Coach Chen's smile faded bit by bit. "Bringing CBA arrogance into collegiate coaching simply doesn't work."

Ling Huanzhen smiled, shoved his hands into his pockets, walked over to his players, pressed down on the top of Xia Chiyi's head, and lowered his voice. "You're going to crush them by sixty points for me."

"Coach Ling, why are you doing this too?!" Xia Chiyi's head was buzzing; he felt like everyone around him had been cursed.

"If you pull it off, then from now on, regardless of whether you sneakily eat pizza, fried food, barbecue, or any other junk, I will never proactively snitch to your master." Ling Huanzhen raised his palm.

"Really?" Xia Chiyi's face was full of suspicion.

"Spit and make a pact, break this oath—"

"You'll go bald instantly!" Xia Chiyi's eyes widened.

Ling Huanzhen froze. What a vicious curse to lay upon him, but he had no choice: "Break this oath, and I'll go bald instantly!"

"And—"

"And what?" Ling Huanzhen's brows furrowed.

"You have to perform a girl group dance for us!"

As soon as Xia Chiyi said those words, everyone else nearby burst out laughing.

"Is this for real? If so, I am two hundred percent behind you!" Hearing the words "girl group dance," Ye Zhaoying's heart surged with excitement.

Du He rubbed his fingers together. "Really?"

The smile on Shuai Bei's face couldn't possibly be more obvious. "Well, that's ultimate team motivation right there! Coach Ling..."

The next second, the back of Shuai Bei's head was smacked. Ling Huanzhen swept a warning glare across the entire team. "You dare plot against me? Did you eat leopard guts for courage in your training meals lately?"

"A girl group dance is acceptable," Zhou Zhexiao's voice suddenly chimed in.

Ling Huanzhen gritted his teeth, thinking: You damn well don't even know what a girl group dance looks like, yet you're joining Xia Chiyi in stirring up trouble!

He poked Xia Chiyi's forehead. "If you dare lead a mutiny again, never mind fried chicken, if you even eat a single mini grilled sausage, I'll report you myself!"

"Alright, alright, let's save the girl group dance for next time!"

Xia Chiyi gave Ling Huanzhen a light punch to the chest, then hopped in place to loosen up.

The match officially began. Du He and the opposing center stepped up for the tip-off.

In the match against Qincheng University, Du He had been forced to leave due to sheer exhaustion, which remained a deep scar on his pride.

This time, during the jump ball, he let out a roar that shook the rafters, and the resounding smack of his palm hitting the ball stunned the entire gym.

Ye Zhaoying caught the ball, immediately dribbled across the mid-court line, and stayed alert, ready to pass at any moment.

Gao Chong, Chujiang University's captain, was assigned to play tight man-to-man defense against Xia Chiyi. With his long arms spread wide, Xia Chiyi stopped dead in his tracks the moment he crossed the halfway line, closely tracked by his opponent.

Gao Chong thought: You want to score? I won't even let you get close to the three-point line!

The entire Chujiang University team, including their coach, expected Ye Zhaoying to pass to Zhou Zhexiao. Instead, Xia Chiyi suddenly sprinted toward Ye Zhaoying. Ye Zhaoying flipped the pass, Shuai Bei blocked the trailing Gao Chong, and Xia Chiyi leaped from where he stood and released the ball—swish!

The people from Chujiang University were stunned, Gao Chong included.

He was still so far away from the three-point line! And why shoot the instant he caught the ball? Didn't he need to adjust his stance? Didn't he need to aim?

Aside from Li Shunchuan, was there really anyone else who could shoot this fast?

Gao Chong tugged at his jersey, realizing with a start that a layer of cold sweat had broken out across his skin.

"He shot from that far out..."

"When he shook off Gao Chong, his speed was terrifying!"

"If his range is that deep, he's impossible to guard!"

Yet, what their coach was truly worried about wasn't Xia Chiyi's range, but his release speed.

If his eyes hadn't deceived him, from the moment Xia Chiyi executed a sudden stop to the release of his shot, it had scarcely taken a single second.

"How's your shooting touch today?" Ye Zhaoying pointed his index finger at Xia Chiyi.

"No idea yet!" Xia Chiyi answered honestly.

Ye Zhaoying grinned widely. "Alright then, just take a few more shots and find out!"

Energized by the target of crushing their opponents by sixty points, the entire Ningchang University team united with unprecedented cohesion.

Ye Zhaoying intercepted a pass, disrupting Chujiang University's fast break, and the ball found its way back into Xia Chiyi's hands.

Gao Chong, after all, was a veteran of major tournaments. He quickly calmed himself: I've guarded Li Shunchuan, I've even guarded Lu Yingnan. Compared to them... you're still a greenhorn!

With a fluid crossover dribble, Xia Chiyi drove forward. Gao Chong lunged to block, but Xia Chiyi countered with a step-back jumper, creating distance and lofting a delicate shot.

Swish! It went in again!

Ye Zhaoying broke into a whistle. He hadn't expected that after just a few days of practice, Xia Chiyi had completely mastered Li Shunchuan's step-back move.

Gao Chong cast a sideways glance at Xia Chiyi. The freshman's expression remained entirely calm, as though pulling off such an agile step-back was second nature to him.

Shortly after, Shuai Bei aggressively grabbed a rebound and shoveled the pass to Zhou Zhexiao.

Zhou Zhexiao's dribbling drive was like a hot knife through butter, surging straight toward the opponent's paint. Chujiang University's double-team defense was child's play to Zhou Zhexiao; although he could easily have executed a floater, he flicked the ball backward instead, passing it out to Xia Chiyi waiting beyond the arc.

"It's that shooter again!"

"Someone shut him down!"

Gao Chong sprinted toward him, but Xia Chiyi used another crossover to evade him, executed a lateral hop, and launched another shot.

Thud—thud—thud—

Gao Chong heard the echoing thump of his own heartbeat. The guy's release speed was simply inhuman.

Even in their arrogance, Chujiang University's players now realized that this fellow claiming he would crush them by sixty points possessed the genuine skill to back it up.

Coach Chen of Chujiang University immediately called a timeout to adjust tactical assignments and settle his team's tempo.

Yet, less than twenty seconds after the game resumed, Zhou Zhexiao and Ye Zhaoying ruthlessly broke through the defense yet again, continually feeding the ball to Xia Chiyi. By the end of the first quarter, Xia Chiyi had already sunk eight field goals.

"Is that guy Xia Chiyi a machine? His release is too fast... What are his stats right now?" Gao Chong wheezed heavily as he asked the team scorekeeper.

"Eight for ten, and all of them were three-pointers."

The players exhaled heavily.

Someone muttered, "Is he actually going to crush us by sixty points?"

Coach Chen, gripping his insulated mug, saw his expression darken as his voice dropped low. "No matter how accurate a shooter is, even an NBA superstar, stamina dips by the middle and late stages of a game. Shooting forms start to break down. Hardly anyone can maintain their first-quarter form throughout."

Gao Chong looked at his coach, voicing his lingering unease. "That Xia Chiyi's shooting rhythm is too fluid. When I was guarding him one-on-one, I constantly felt like I was a beat behind."