Initial Funds

Time passed second by second. After forty minutes, Luo Qing and the others were practically dazed.

"Let me make just one shot..."

They were nearly insane. Throughout the entire game, they hadn't managed to make a single basket.

A living, breathing goalkeeper had spread his arms and blocked every shot, swatting away every dunk.

The man standing six feet two beneath the basket was like an impregnable cliff, rejecting every one of their scoring opportunities.

Every single one...

"My God, are Luo Qing and the others going to be shut out?"

"I've never heard of a basketball team shutting out their opponents."

His physical ability was too strong. In front of him, Luo Qing looked like a child.

Even if others had this height, when they jumped and touched the ball, they could at most deflect it a little. Mo Qiong, however, could slap it straight down.

Guarding the basket, unless they shot too high, Mo Qiong could easily turn their attempts into rebounds.

As for the shots he couldn't block, Luo Qing and the others still couldn't score with their skill. Especially later on, their mental states completely collapsed. They grew timid when facing Mo Qiong, as if they were looking at a monster guarding the way ahead.

The final result was that the Basketball Club scored not a single point.

Luo Qing looked at the scoreboard, where an incredibly glaring score was displayed.

0:12.

From beginning to end, apart from Mo Qiong making four baskets, no one else had scored.

That score had appeared not long after the game began, remained unchanged throughout the entire match, and lasted until the end.

What the hell was this? Neither the students from the Basketball Club nor those from the other clubs on the sidelines had expected such an outcome.

They had agreed that if the Football Club could make four baskets, they would give them the two hundred thousand yuan.

And as it turned out, it really was four baskets—one neither more nor less.

Actually, when they heard the game would last the full forty-eight minutes, the people on the sidelines basically knew what Luo Qing wanted to do.

Rack up points, ruthlessly rubbing them in Wang Xiong and the others' faces.

No matter how many points Wang Xiong and the others scored, he would definitely crush them by ten or twenty times.

Then, after losing by a ridiculously wide margin, they would take the two hundred thousand as if it were charity.

Of course, aside from Wang Xiong, the others probably didn't care. As long as they got the money, that was enough.

If someone had money, what did it matter if they wanted to save a little face? Thus, perhaps some people on the team had seen through it, but no one stood up to say anything.

Who could have guessed that this basketball game, which everyone had thought was about enduring a brutal defeat for the money, would actually be won?

And by such a fantastical score, too. Four baskets meant exactly four baskets.

What did twelve points count for in basketball? No one had ever heard of winning with twelve points, but then again, the Basketball Club had been completely shut out.

"You're really something, Magic Ball. That skill of yours is genuinely terrifying."

When the game ended, Wang Xiong had the loudest voice and was the most excited. His face and neck were flushed as he spoke at the top of his lungs.

Mo Qiong braced himself on his knees and panted. "Pretty impressive, right?"

"Haha, no complaints here. Come on, let's go have a drink." Wang Xiong was ecstatic.

He glanced at Luo Qing and saw that Luo Qing's face was pale, his entire body drenched in sweat, and his eyes fixed blankly on Mo Qiong.

He had played basketball for so many years and had suffered crushing defeats before, but never one this brutal.

Moreover, Mo Qiong clearly didn't know how to play basketball.

Throughout the entire game, Mo Qiong hadn't even dribbled the ball or gotten past anyone. He had simply stood beneath the basket like a goalkeeper.

Mo Qiong not only couldn't dribble, but even his shooting posture was nonstandard. He used the throwing technique from soccer.

Even when defending, he used nothing but a goalkeeper's movements, somehow overpowering every one of their shots in such a terrifying fashion.

It made him question his entire life: What the hell have I been playing all these years?

No one suspected that there was anything wrong with Mo Qiong's technique. They only felt that he had been hiding his abilities deeply.

Han Dang took the opportunity to boast. "Ha, Magic Ball doesn't even know how to play basketball, yet he still shut you all out. Now you know how we won this afternoon, right? Magic Ball's talent was so incredible that a sports school coach personally invited him to play in the Chinese Super League, saying he had world-class talent..."

Everyone erupted in an uproar. No wonder he looked so much like a goalkeeper when defending the basket. It turned out he was a super goalkeeper.

As for the world-class talent, everyone treated that as a joke, but he could probably really play in the Chinese Super League.

"The Football Club has a real powerhouse now."

"Did you see him swat Luo Qing flying just now? He knocked Luo Qing sliding two meters away!"

"How much strength must there be in that palm? If he ever got into a fight, one slap would probably knock you unconscious..."

"And those reflexes. Tsk, tsk. I heard he practices archery? Could it be that he trained himself into a one-armed powerhouse?" the bystanders remarked.

Before, they hadn't known that the Football Club had such a powerhouse. Now that they did, everyone immediately understood the situation.

Every department and every year had its influential figures. Once someone was famous or had a special talent, everyone would know about it.

Mo Qiong had always kept a low profile. Although he had the nickname God of Archery, only a few people close to him had truly witnessed his archery and dart-throwing accuracy.

Besides, the school didn't even have an archery club, so naturally, few people had paid much attention to him.

But now, no one dared to underestimate Mo Qiong, much less provoke the Football Club.

The Football Club now had a powerhouse who could hold down the fort. From now on, whenever people mentioned the Football Club, they would think of Mo Qiong.

If the Football Club encountered any trouble, people would think, They have Mo Qiong. Who knows how this will turn out?

Wang Xiong knew exactly how much prestige the Football Club would have in the future. He couldn't help looking smugly at Luo Qing, wanting to say something.

Unexpectedly, Mo Qiong was quick-eyed and quick-handed and grabbed Wang Xiong directly.

Mo Qiong said, "Enough, enough. I played soccer and basketball today, and I'm nearly exhausted. Didn't we agree to just have fun?"

"Huh? But the..." Wang Xiong still wanted to say that they hadn't gotten the money.

But Mo Qiong forcibly interrupted him and wouldn't let him speak.

Mo Qiong lowered his voice. "He'll send it over himself. Don't complicate things again, all right? Have you forgotten why we played this game? It was because you went around saying whatever you pleased."

Wang Xiong froze and hurriedly shut his mouth.

If he started shouting about wanting money again, it would turn into gambling again.

"Don't worry. The worse and more humiliatingly Luo Qing lost, the less he would dare delay paying us. He'll make sure the money reaches us at a speed beyond our expectations. He can't afford to lose face anymore. He doesn't care about the money. Right now, he definitely wants to settle this as quickly as possible and preserve his reputation as someone who keeps his word and can afford to lose," Mo Qiong said.

Wang Xiong thought that made sense. After his previous lesson, he immediately became much more low-key.

After settling Wang Xiong, Mo Qiong had clearly become the Football Club's leader. He turned around and said, "Luo Qing, that score was a carefully arranged handicap. Come have a drink with us?"

"Hm?"

Everyone was surprised. After winning, the people from the Football Club hadn't thrown out any harsh words or trampled Luo Qing's pride. Instead, they had invited him to drink.

A handicap? Who were they kidding? Even if Luo Qing had really held back, he wouldn't have handicapped himself down to zero points!

Still, the invitation gave Luo Qing a way out.

His face was pale, and he hadn't known whether he should leave dejectedly. Staying on the court was unbearably awkward, but leaving immediately would look too pathetic.

In this stiff atmosphere, Mo Qiong's invitation to drink suddenly gave him something to do.

"Uh... Sure." Luo Qing went along with it.

All he wanted now was to leave the basketball court with some dignity. Obviously, no one believed Mo Qiong's words, but at least on the surface, they allowed him to retain a little pride.

After losing this badly, what more could he ask for?

Seeing that there was no more show to watch, the two teams that might have fought to the death had gone off to drink together. What reason did the spectators have to follow? They dispersed soon after.

Suddenly, Mo Qiong spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

She was a graceful girl with a light, elegant bearing.

She looked somewhat familiar at first glance. Only after taking a closer look did he recognize her: Wasn't she the girl who had danced onstage earlier? She had merely changed clothes and makeup, which was why he hadn't recognized her right away.

"Uh, has she been watching me play this whole time?" Mo Qiong stared at the girl as he walked.

The girl had been secretly watching him with an admiring expression. When she suddenly realized Mo Qiong was looking at her, she shuddered.

The expression on her face instantly disappeared. She looked flustered and seemingly shy.

Mo Qiong felt awkward and quickly looked away.

It's been so long. Why haven't that impulse and passion faded at all?

Mo Qiong thought about returning to the seaside. Everyone was in high spirits, but Luo Qing and the others couldn't stay. They had one drink and then said their goodbyes.

They had accepted Mo Qiong's way of giving them an out and come to join everyone in the cheerful gathering, but they simply couldn't drink with the others while sitting there.

"I've transferred the money to you. I'm leaving first."

Luo Qing took the initiative to pay and hurriedly led his people away. Mo Qiong had shattered his composure, and he wanted to put an end to the matter and make it fade into the background.

Naturally, he didn't want to get tangled up in it any longer. With Mo Qiong's reminder, Wang Xiong didn't say much either. Everyone happily received the two hundred thousand, and after stealing the limelight that day, there was no need to keep pestering them.

"Brother Luo, that guy is genuinely terrifying." After they had gone some distance, Xiao Liu spoke in a low voice.

Luo Qing turned around and stared deeply at Mo Qiong.

"He's been at the school for two years without ever showing his abilities. I never heard that the Football Club had someone like him."

"Look into him."

Xiao Liu understood and said, "Got it, Brother Luo."

"You understand nothing!"

"Huh?"

Luo Qing said seriously, "Without him, if it had been that idiot Wang Xiong, who knows how things would have ended today."

"This person doesn't want to become enemies with us, and I naturally don't want to provoke him either. Still, there's no harm in finding out more about him."

After Luo Qing left, Wang Xiong divided up the money cleanly and decisively.

Everyone who had participated in the game received twenty thousand yuan, transferred directly to their accounts.

Mo Qiong took out his phone every now and then, wanting to see whether the money had arrived.

That twenty thousand yuan was extremely important to him. His mind was filled with plans, and without money, he would have to take many more detours.

Twenty thousand wasn't enough to do very much, but as initial capital, it was sufficient.

He could buy some equipment and tools, or take trains all over the place. At least he would have money to pay the bills.

Without that twenty thousand, what could he do with the hundred yuan he had? A hundred yuan could keep him alive at school for quite a while, but once he left campus, it was barely different from having no money at all.

After waiting a full two hours, just as Mo Qiong thought the money might not arrive until the next day, twenty thousand yuan suddenly appeared in his account.

"It's here!" Mo Qiong was thrilled.

But then he froze, because he saw that exactly twenty thousand yuan had arrived. That meant Wang Xiong had thoughtfully covered the transaction fee himself.

Mo Qiong smiled knowingly and said nothing.

"Come on! Drink!"

"Cheers!"

While drinking and having fun with everyone, Mo Qiong went online and ordered fifty GPS units.

Yes, fifty!

For this, he browsed several relevant online stores. The average price was about one hundred and fifty yuan each, for a total cost of more than seven thousand five hundred yuan.

The twenty thousand he had just received had instantly dropped by nearly half, yet he didn't feel the slightest pain.

Although he was accustomed to being poor and was even somewhat stingy in his daily life, at that moment he spent seven thousand five hundred without blinking.

Because he believed that he could definitely earn it back tenfold or a hundredfold.

"Money doesn't need to be plentiful. As long as I can't spend it all in this lifetime, that's enough. I'll start by earning a hundred million."