Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

"The third quarter of the game between the Dogs and the Foxes begin—both looking more determined than ever," Mark Li said, setting the tone for the second to the last quarter of the night.

"This game will determine who will go to the loser bracket and who will have a certain spot in the semi-finals," he continued.

"The Feng Foxes are now back from the holding room. I hope they had a good talk because the Shizi Dogs are choking them at this point."

Coach Ben glared at the commentator, but Mark ignored him and continued speaking into the microphone.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Will there be a change in their line-ups?" he asked. "It seems like there is!"

"Yuze is out of the game and is now replaced with Zeren."

The people started murmuring among themselves, wondering why they had taken out their best player in the team.

However, Lina knew better than to let Yuze play for four quarters once again. He needed all the rest he could get if he wanted to play for a longer time.

"Meanwhile, in the Feng Foxes, they're trading Ding Bocheng for their rookie center, Junfeng!"

Bocheng, despite feeling reluctant, knew that he had to rest. Moreover, Yiming was still in the game, so he decided to put his trust in them.

The five of them went to their positions, with the new player, Junfeng, guarding Kai this time.

Meanwhile, Yiming decided to focus on Zeren, whom he also deemed a threat because of his advancing shooting skills.

Kai and Junfeng stood face to face, with the latter having a confident smirk playing on his lips.

"Kai Guo, huh?" he asked in a taunting tone. "I've heard about you."

Kai raised both eyebrows in inquiry.

"Just not on the court," Junfeng smiled. "I heard about you on the streets and how you're good at fighting. You better not beat me up now."

Kai mirrored his smirk before shaking his head.

"Don't worry. The only thing I'll beat you in is this game," he confidently said.

Junfeng continued to smirk as the ball was passed to Yiming.

Right off the bat, the tension between Junfeng and Kai was insane. Maybe it was because of their similar builds, but they seemed to be monster rookies on the floor. Their height was similar, too, making it harder for both of them to execute the plans that they had in mind.

Kai's eyes narrowed as he tried to decipher Junfeng's playing style. This was the first time he was playing with him, and he also didn't play during the practice game, so he had no clue what to expect.

However, with his next action, which sent the ball flying out of bounds, Kai realized what kind of player Junfeng was.

He was the epitome of the Feng Foxes—a fouler.

Kai felt his wrist ache from Junfeng's action. It throbbed since Junfeng nearly bent Kai's arm with the amount of strength he had used.

Unfortunately for him, Kai's body was nearly made out of steel. So, after a few seconds, Kai's wrist was already back to normal.

The referee blew the whistle, and Junfeng raised his hand, admitting to his foul without any remorse. Then, the game continued with Shizi's possession once again.

Lina bit her lips as she continued watching the game from the bench.

For some reason, there was a nagging feeling inside her mind that told her that the new player was bad news. She was also unfamiliar with him, but from the looks of it, he wasn't afraid to foul at all.

Meanwhile, Kai was disappointed since Junfeng hadn't fouled him when he was about to shoot.

He still needed two more free-throw shots before he succeeded in his weekly mission, so Junfeng coming into the game might actually be good for him...

...or so he thought.

With Junfeng keeping Kai preoccupied and with Yuze out of the game, Yiming was given more time to shine.

Yiming seemed to be more careful around Kai, probably avoiding fouling because he wanted to keep playing in the game. In fact, their starting players didn't embody their 'fouling' reputation at all.

They were quite safe players.

However, their other teammates definitely weren't. Kai felt like he was transported back to their practice game, where multiple players tried to foul their team and even ended up causing Shang's injury.

With another charging foul, Kai fell to the ground, his tailbone hurting from the impact.

Junfeng once again raised his hand while those at Shizi High's side started cursing him loudly.

"What kind of play was that?"

"That was definitely intentional!"

Meanwhile, Shang shook his head. He knew that Kai had a stronger body than his—arguably the strongest in their team. However, he still wanted him to be careful.

Junfeng, although lacking in skill, was the type of player who only thought about his short-term goals.

He didn't care about fouling, and it appeared that he wanted to stop the Shizi Dogs from scoring at all costs.

Yiming, despite knowing that Junfeng was deliberately fouling Kai, ignored the nagging conscience inside his mind and played to his fullest.

With Kai Guo out of his hair and with Yuze on the bench, he was able to play to the best of his ability.

Sure, Zeren was a better shooter than Kai, but his defense was definitely worse.

With that, the third quarter continued with the favor going to the Feng Foxes.

58-49.

"I told you," Sir Dao said from the bleachers, crossing his arms in front of his chest with a confident smile. "This team still needs Yuze. They can't keep up now that he's gone."

The Shizi Dogs were getting frustrated.

However, undoubtedly, Kai was the most frustrated person on their team.

Before Kai could even start dribbling the ball, he was already toppling to the ground.

Junfeng's leg was right underneath him, causing him to trip and fall to the cold, hard floor.

Junfeng, knowing that this could be his final blow, expected Kai to stay on the floor.

However, much to his surprise, Kai stood once more, a small frown forming on his face.

For a second, Junfeng got scared. However, he knew that Kai wouldn't try anything violent on the court—that is if he wanted to continue playing for the Shizi Dogs.

However, the emotion that dominated Junfeng's mind was annoyance.

Why the hell was Kai still standing despite his numerous attempts to bring him down?