Badge Unlocked!

His parents saw him off at the airport.

Before boarding, Sun Hao noticed that his father's expression had been strange the whole time.

He felt like he had seen that look somewhere before, but he couldn't remember where.

When his mother went to the restroom, his father suddenly leaned close to him.

"Things are different abroad than they are at home. Take it easy over there, kid."

As he spoke, his father quickly stuffed a box into his bag.

It happened so fast that Sun Hao didn't see what it was.

And when he tried to look, his father stopped him.

That curiosity stayed with him until he boarded the plane.

Once he got to his seat, Sun Hao eagerly opened his backpack.

He took it out, and the moment he saw what it was, his face flushed bright red.

It was actually a box of...

What kind of person was his dad?!

No, what did his dad take him for?!

Was that any way to educate a son?!

And he was only fifteen!

That was downright insane!

He turned to check that Raul wasn't paying attention to him, then let out a long breath.

If Raul had seen it, his impression of him would have dropped by a lot.

He opened the bag again and took out the note inside.

It had been beside the box, probably stuffed in together with it.

He read the note, and his expression became rather complicated.

He wanted to laugh, yet for some reason, his eyes stung a little.

"You brat, you probably don't know that the thing in your pocket two years ago made your old man kneel on a washboard for a whole week. You could've bought Durex, Jissbon, or Okamoto, but why did you have to buy an Indian brand? Even with a hundred mouths, I couldn't explain it. You're growing up now, so remember to protect yourself when you're out there."

Such a small matter had caused such terrible consequences back then, yet his father had held it in for two years before bringing it up on an occasion like this.

And even then, he had only said it to remind him to protect himself.

A father's love was silent.

This note was perhaps the best proof of it.

The flight attendant began making announcements. Sun Hao collected his thoughts and put his bag in the overhead compartment.

Not long afterward, the plane entered the runway and began to take off.

Watching the city outside the window gradually shrink away, Sun Hao's heart still stirred with emotion.

It wasn't only because of the note his father had left him.

He was also heading for Spain, a place he had never set foot in before. Its culture and environment would both be new challenges for him.

"Take a look at this."

At that moment, Raul, who had ignored him ever since they boarded, handed him something.

Sun Hao accepted it and saw that it was the team's tactics manual.

After handing it over, Raul went back to his own work.

Sun Hao didn't ask any questions. He opened his thermos and started flipping through it while drinking Goji Berry Tea.

It should have been the Youth Team's tactics manual. It was extremely comprehensive.

Although Sun Hao had been an assistant coach in his previous life, he had usually only been responsible for team training and hadn't been involved much with tactics.

But after playing in leagues for the past two years, his understanding had improved considerably from the beginning.

The clearest sign was that the basketball IQ on his system's Attribute Panel had risen from 51 at the start to 59.

On a scale of 100, that was close to passing.

He could roughly understand and follow most ordinary tactics.

But this manual was more complicated than he had imagined.

Even the lowest-level youth league was like this. European basketball truly deserved its reputation for putting tactics first.

Raul hadn't given it to him because he thought highly of him. He probably just didn't have anything else with him.

Still, Sun Hao read it with great interest.

The persistent training of the past two years had not only strengthened his body, but also honed his patience.

If he didn't understand something, he would slowly work through it.

Every little bit he understood made him feel that he had improved a little.

The flight from Guangzhou to Madrid took more than ten hours.

Apart from occasional rests, he spent most of the time studying tactics.

Time slipped away without him noticing. He flew from day to night, then from night back into day.

By the time even Goji Berry Tea could no longer keep his back from aching, the plane finally entered the airspace of Madrid, Spain's capital.

"Congratulations, Host, for obtaining the 'Basketball IQ (Bronze)' Badge."

At that moment, the system's notification suddenly rang out in Sun Hao's mind.

It had come without warning, even more abruptly than when the system had first appeared.

But it sent his spirits soaring.

Besides basic attributes, the Demon King System also had Badges.

Over the past two years, his basic attributes had steadily increased, but there had been no movement at all from the Badges, as if they didn't exist.

He hadn't expected one to suddenly unlock now!

Surprises were always things that made people happy!

He entered the System Space and brought up the Attribute Panel.

In the basketball IQ section, a Badge icon had appeared in the upper-right corner.

Basketball IQ (Bronze): Slightly improves understanding and application of basketball techniques and tactics.

There was also a progress bar beside the Badge.

As he looked at it, the system automatically provided an explanation.

There were two types of Badges. The first type could not be upgraded; once unlocked, they were obtained permanently and could not advance further.

For example, "Emperor's Wrath," used for negotiating with management; "Pat Your Head," which increased teammates' Affinity; and "God of Basketball," which increased influence.

There were relatively few Badges of this type, and their unlock conditions were rather demanding.

The second type, by contrast, could be upgraded after being unlocked, and was the more common type of Badge.

The "Basketball IQ" Badge he had just unlocked was one of them.

These Badges were divided into four ranks: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Hall of Fame.

Their effects increased accordingly. Bronze provided a slight improvement, Silver an effective improvement, Gold a major improvement, and Hall of Fame a significant improvement.

For example, his newly unlocked "Basketball IQ" Badge slightly improved his understanding and application of techniques and tactics.

Each rank required certain conditions to advance. "Basketball IQ" needed mastery of techniques and tactics.

In other words, only by continuously improving his tactical abilities would the Badge's experience keep rising until it leveled up.

That seemed to explain everything.

He had been an assistant coach in his previous life. Even if he hadn't specialized in tactics, his tactical understanding had definitely been stronger than that of ordinary people.

Combined with the tempering he had received in league play over the past two years, it was like reaching the bottleneck of a breakthrough in a fantasy novel.

This tactics manual from the Real Madrid Youth Team was the final technique that helped him break through!

After leaving the system, Sun Hao looked at the tactics manual again.

It was hard to describe in words, but the most obvious change was that he could now understand parts that had previously confused him.

He had been studying it before, but now he could read through it quite smoothly.

The feeling was truly like catching his first glimpse of the path in a fantasy novel.

The change might not have been great, but it could benefit him enormously!

At that moment, Sun Hao suddenly felt that coming to Europe had truly been worthwhile!

He couldn't help laughing out loud.

This wasn't just a surprise. It was a huge surprise!

Raul finally put down the work in his hands. Seeing Sun Hao's delighted expression, he couldn't help shaking his head.

"We're almost there."

But he didn't say anything else, merely packing up his things as he reminded him.

Sun Hao nodded, put away his thermos, and prepared to make a name for himself in Spain.

Thanks to Gudu de Xiaohuoqiu, john, Qingxiao Oppa, Weiyi Zhishou, Rooney Diwobao, Bao Qing Fisherman, Piaomiao Xunlong, Jiansu Baopu, Your Happy Sorrow, Moshang Jun, Like a Salted Fish, and Ling Tian Feichen for the rewards. Thank you, big shots. Muah, love you all~

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