Showdown?
Everyone’s attention was focused on one spot and the atmosphere of the entire court became serious.
The basketball association’s players even clenched their fists unwittingly and had impassioned looks on all their faces.
“Looks like Captain really is angry this time.”
“The kid might probably find it embarrassing to keep on refusing now.”
“I don’t believe that guy can really play basketball. Captain will crush and humiliate him!”
“President may have been scammed by a conman, it’s time to expose the conman’s true face!”
…
The players clearly had a lot of confidence in Qian Sen and could not resist muttering a remark or two.
Pan Heng’s eyes lit up too. “That sounds good. Let Zhang He have a good look at what he’s doing!”
“Yeah, he has taken the bull by the horns but has no way out anymore. As long as Qian Sen teaches that Ye Lingchen a lesson, Zhang He will be able to have a good look at reality.” Qin Yuan nodded and then said, “He’s lost his mind because he’s hoping too much for a rise in China’s basketball.”
“Sigh, when I was his teacher, there’s one phrase that I always emphasized—taking things one step at a time. The most important thing in basketball is the foundation. The effort is more important than talent. Don’t dream of quick success. He obviously didn’t listen!” There was a hint of bitterness in his face, and it was incredibly uncomfortable to watch his once-excellent disciple change so drastically.
“Rising stars in basketball are never easy to find, yet he pinned his hopes on an unremarkable young man. He’s delusional,” Qin Yuan said.
Zhang He trembled and looked at Ye Lingchen with a hint of pleading in his eyes. It was as though he was yearning for Ye Lingchen to give it another shot.
Ye Lingchen glanced at Qian Sen nonchalantly. The latter’s combative look elicited a smile from the former.
Thump, thump, thump!
The basketball landed on the ground and produced a series of sounds. Ye Lingchen dribble the ball casually and remarked, “If you want to fight, let’s fight!”
By the time he finished talking, he had already dribbled the basketball to the center of the court. Qian Sen sneered and walked into the court.
Standing at a height of 1.93 meters, Qian Sen was exceptionally tall. He had an obvious advantage when he stood beside Ye Lingchen and two of them were on vastly different levels.
“Their height difference is too extreme. It’s surely a one-sided affair if they compared their basketball skills.”
“That guy doesn’t look like he’s made for being a basketball player, but he actually took Captain’s challenge?”
“Yeah, Captain is holding in his anger now. Maybe he’ll torture the guy. I’m starting to pity the kid.”
…
At the same time, Pan Heng and Qin Yuan had already come down from the second floor. They shot Ye Lingchen a wry look, as though they already foresaw how everything was going to turn out.
“I apply for special training with the martial arts division every year, just for the sake of basketball. All to develop my explosiveness and jump strength to its fullest. You? On what grounds are you comparing yourself with me?” Qian Sen’s eyes were like a knife. “With this showdown, I’ll show the President how wrong he is!”
Ye Lingchen looked calm and said, “Cut all the crap. Hurry up and start, I’m pressed for time!”
“Oh, don’t worry, the game will end very quickly!” Qian Sen said coldly, “Dribbling is the foundation of basketball. How about we start with dribbling?”
Ye Lingchen nodded nonchalantly. It did not matter much to him.
He tossed the ball casually to Qian Sen. “You first.”
“Hehe, sure!”
Thump, thump, thump!
On the court, the sound of the basketball hitting the floor became louder all of a sudden. Qian Sen lowered his stance and bounced the basketball quickly. His eyes were like that of a tiger, eyeing each and every one of Ye Lingchen’s moves.
He did not dribble too fancily, but the muscles in his body were already tensed up, while all of his nerve endings were heightened to maximum sensitivity. Whatever the circumstance might be, he was able to react quickly and keep the ball in his possession.
Ye Lingchen kept still and merely looked at him indifferently. He seemed to be watching Qian Sen rather than defending.
Thump, thump, thump!
The sound of the basketball’s bounces resonated in everyone’s hearts. The two guys made only the simplest of movements, yet that alone was sufficient to impart uneasiness into the atmosphere.
“Does he not know how to defend? He’s just going to stand there?”
“What is Qian Sen doing? Why not break through such a simple line of defense?”
Many players gulped involuntarily and watched on nervously.
However, if one took a closer look, tiny beads of sweat were already forming on Qian Sen’s forehead during that brief passing moment.
Deep down, he was under a tremendous amount of pressure when facing Ye Lingchen, much more than what any onlooker could see.
Although Ye Lingchen was merely standing there, in Qian Sen’s eyes, Ye Lingchen’s figure seemingly grew bigger and bigger. In the end, it felt like a mountain was blocking him.
Ye Lingchen was obviously not as tall as he was, but that was the kind of illusion that Qian Sen saw.
The various possibilities of dribbling past Ye Lingchen swirled in Qian Sen’s mind. However, each of the scenarios returned the same answer—impenetrable!
Ye Lingchen’s defense was impenetrable!
At that moment, all his skills seemed to be for naught, as he was unable to dribble past Ye Lingchen!
Once this sensation came into being, it could no longer disappear. In fact, it intensified, as if attempting to make him collapse.
Thump, thump, thump!
Finally, Qian Sen’s accelerated his dribbles and lowered his gaze. He did not believe it! He had to dribble past Ye Lingchen!
The next moment, his figure leaned to one side and his legs moved toward Ye Lingchen’s left. However, the basketball flew to Ye Lingchen’s right almost concurrently with his movement.
Fake dribble!
The rapid change in speed was to fool Ye Lingchen before dribbling past him from the right!
Amazingly, the basketball he was dribbling suddenly disappeared the instant he passed Ye Lingchen, His entire body turned stiff and he froze on the spot!
Everyone else present was similarly stunned!
That included Pan Heng and Qin Yuan!
Thump, thump, thump!
The dribbling sound continued, but it was Ye Lingchen who was in possession of the ball. It was an ordinary dribbling technique, but it made everyone’s pupils contract at once.
Was Qian Sen…dispossessed?
Did Ye Lingchen really steal the ball away with such ease?!
That… How did he do that?!
Everyone’s mind went blank, what they just witnessed was so unbelievable that their brains were unable accept that fact.
“My turn! Now, you defend.”
Ye Lingchen’s voice was calm, as though his actions were merely trivial.
Cold sweat rolled down Qian Sen’s forehead. He gulped hard and stood opposite Ye Lingchen, steadying himself in a defensive posture.
His voice was hoarse and his arms were open. “Come at me. Don’t hesitate!”
He was not going to let himself fail again.
“Qian Sen’s defense couldn’t be that easy to break, right?” The other players’ initial confidence was completely lost.
“It’s hard to dribble past a stationary opponent. Even though Ye Lingchen can stop Qian Sen, it doesn’t mean that he can break through Qian Sen’s defense.”
Pan Heng set aside the slight humility he had earlier and frowned. “Based on an analysis of their height and body shape, the probability of Ye Lingchen breaking through Qiansen’s defense is almost zero.”
“No! The possibility is one hundred percent!” Zhang He’s face turned red and his eyes lit up as he spoke up to correct Pan Heng.