Chapter Summaries

Li Fei orchestrated a buzzer-beating play that gave the Western Conference a five-point lead and made Jordan realize he had underestimated the rookie. As the second quarter began, Jordan ordered Pippen to show Li Fei “a little of Chicago’s hospitality.”

• Li Fei’s passing helped Barkley score an and-one while Rodman focused on winning rebounds, disrupting the Eastern Conference’s defensive plan.
• With eight seconds left in the first quarter, Li Fei sent a high pass toward the corner, where Barkley saved it back toward the basket and Rodman finished with a buzzer-beating dunk.
• Jordan realized Li Fei had used his pride to open up the Eastern Conference defense and turn Barkley and Rodman into a coordinated threat.
• Jordan stood on the sideline and told Pippen to show Li Fei “a little of Chicago’s hospitality” in the second quarter.

Li Fei used Pippen’s dirty foul and Barkley’s intervention to score amid a brawl, then faced Jordan and Pippen’s increasingly physical defense. The chapter ended with Li Fei trapped at the top of the key, smiling as Jordan reached to steal the ball.

• Jordan overpowered Li Fei in the post, scored, and taunted him as a rookie.
• Pippen and Jordan double-teamed Li Fei, and Pippen tried to grab him by the neck as he slipped past them.
• Barkley slammed into Pippen to stop the foul, while Li Fei collected the loose ball and scored an uncontested layup.
• The referee called a flagrant foul on Pippen and a technical on Barkley, and the teams continued their increasingly physical play.
• Jordan and Pippen trapped Li Fei at the top of the key, and Li Fei smiled as Jordan reached for the ball.

Li Fei orchestrated another dazzling Western Conference score before the second half became increasingly hostile. A rebound collision between Rodman and Pippen sparked a confrontation that drew in Barkley and O'Neal, while Rodman and Pippen traded accusations and Jordan rushed to intervene.

• Li Fei fooled Jordan and Pippen with a pass to Rodman, who set up an alley-oop for Olajuwon.
• The second half grew rough as Barkley scored over O'Neal and taunted him.
• Jordan and Pippen double-teamed Li Fei, forcing him to pass to Barkley, whose shot bounced off the rim.
• Rodman and Pippen battled for the rebound, and Pippen struck Rodman in the nose with his elbow.
• Barkley charged Pippen, O'Neal shoved Barkley, and Rodman confronted Pippen over their history in Chicago.
• Jordan rushed toward Pippen as Rodman and Pippen moved closer, but he arrived too late to stop their argument.

Li Fei exploited a court-wide brawl to make it appear that an Eastern Conference backup had attacked him, escalating the fight between the teams. Jordan recognized that Li Fei had orchestrated the chaos and the apparent injury, leaving him to confront Li Fei at the center of the melee.

• Rodman shoved Pippen, triggering a fight that drew players, coaches, referees, and security onto the court.
• Li Fei stepped into an Eastern Conference backup guard’s path and fell when the guard tripped over him and struck his chin.
• A referee mistook the collision for an attack on Li Fei and pointed blame toward the Eastern Conference bench.
• Barkley pinned Pippen and accused him of attacking Li Fei, while O’Neal charged at Barkley and ignited a larger brawl between both teams.
• Jordan pushed through the chaos, pieced together what had happened, and realized Li Fei had set the trap.

After the brawl, Li Fei outmaneuvered Jordan by pretending to be an innocent victim, leaving Jordan furious but unable to accuse him publicly. Li Fei then rose and walked straight toward Jordan, setting up another confrontation.

• Jordan crouched beside Li Fei and questioned him, while Li Fei acted confused and injured.
• Jordan realized Li Fei was performing for the cameras but held back from accusing him of faking.
• Jordan ordered the referees to eject the backup guard, and they also ejected Rodman and Pippen.
• Li Fei's teammates helped him up as he presented himself as a shaken victim, believing he had damaged Jordan's composure and the Eastern Conference's morale.
• Li Fei stood without help, brushed himself off, and walked toward the Eastern Conference bench.
• Jordan turned to face Li Fei and demanded to know what stunt he was trying to pull.

Li Fei knocked Michael Jordan unconscious with one punch during the All-Star Game, shocking the arena and threatening the NBA’s public image. After all six players involved were ejected, the Western All-Stars won, and Li Fei was named MVP.

• Li Fei confronted Jordan and knocked him out with a punch to the jaw.
• The stunned crowd, commentators, players, and Commissioner David Stern watched as Jordan lay unconscious on the court.
• The referees ejected Jordan, Li Fei, Pippen, Rodman, O'Neal, and Barkley, and the All-Star Game resumed with reserve players.
• The Western All-Stars defeated the Eastern Conference All-Stars 145–112, while Li Fei finished with 46 points, 14 assists, and 9 rebounds.
• The host announced Li Fei as the 1996 NBA All-Star Game MVP amid stunned silence.

After Li Fei knocked Michael Jordan down in the All-Star brawl, the Western players celebrated while the Eastern locker room seethed over the humiliation. Jordan left with Pippen and O'Neal to confront the Western All-Stars and demand answers.

• O'Neal and Barkley gleefully reenacted the brawl as Li Fei quietly wiped his uninjured knuckles and said Jordan had been too close.
• Li Fei recalled that he had planned to strike Jordan in response to Jordan's pregame insults, seeing the punch as a declaration of war.
• Pippen fumed over being pinned down, while O'Neal privately wondered at Li Fei's cold, deliberate violence.
• Jordan's team doctor diagnosed a mild concussion and bruised jaw, and Pippen urged him not to let the assault go unanswered.
• Jordan stood, told Pippen and O'Neal they were going to get answers, and led them toward the Western All-Stars' locker room.

Jordan confronted Li Fei in the West locker room over the punch, while Li Fei said Jordan had started their conflict with trash talk and cheap shots. Outside the room, the media and fans erupted into opposing arguments over the incident, as the private confrontation threatened to shape the league's future.

• Jordan kicked open the West locker room door and confronted Li Fei, who still held the MVP trophy.
• Barkley taunted Jordan, but Jordan ignored him and demanded that Li Fei stand and explain himself.
• Li Fei told Jordan that he had provoked him on the court and that he had answered Jordan's declaration of war in his own way.
• The Chicago Tribune condemned Li Fei's punch, while the Los Angeles Times portrayed it as a justified challenge to Jordan's arrogance.
• Sports commentators and online fans argued fiercely over whether Li Fei or Jordan was at fault, while the locker room confrontation continued behind closed doors.

Li Fei stood his ground against Michael Jordan in the Western All-Stars’ locker room, and Jordan’s attempt to attack him sparked a brawl among the superstars. After the fighters separated, Jordan demanded apologies, while Scottie Pippen fixated on Dennis Rodman as the source of the chaos.

• Jordan mocked Li Fei’s MVP trophy and threatened him, but Li Fei set it down and said he had more claim to it that night.
• Jordan punched at Li Fei, but Charles Barkley caught his fist and taunted him about losing to Li Fei and Barkley.
• Pippen lunged at Barkley, Rodman charged in, and Shaquille O’Neal blocked Rodman, turning the locker room into a brawl.
• After the fighters separated, Jordan demanded that everyone apologize to him and Pippen, but Barkley mocked his demand and called for Jordan to apologize instead.
• Pippen’s anger grew, and he fixed his gaze on Rodman, blaming him for stirring up the fight.

Dennis Rodman attacked Scottie Pippen after Pippen demanded he kneel to Michael Jordan, and the locker-room fight erupted into a live broadcast when the door burst open. Li Fei stayed beside the MVP trophy as Jordan charged at him again, while Charles Barkley kept Pippen pinned down.

• Dennis Rodman laughed at Scottie Pippen's demand and charged at him, while Charles Barkley shoved Michael Jordan and reignited the brawl.
• A player crashed into the locker-room door, and reporters filmed Barkley fighting Shaquille O'Neal, Pippen grappling with Rodman, and Jordan struggling to pull O'Neal away.
• Li Fei stepped back beside the MVP trophy and presented a weary, helpless expression to the cameras as the fight went live around the world.
• Michael Jordan charged at Li Fei, and Charles Barkley continued pinning Scottie Pippen down and punching him.

Li Fei and his allies trapped Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O'Neal in a trash can, then loaded them into a garbage truck. Li Fei drove toward a landfill as police launched a citywide chase, intending to humiliate the three stars rather than kill them.

• Li Fei used the slippery locker-room floor and a chair to knock Jordan down, while Barkley hurled Pippen onto him and Rodman drove O'Neal into the pile.
• Li Fei, Barkley, and Rodman shoved Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal into an industrial trash can, and Rodman put on its lid.
• Li Fei kicked the can and slammed its lid shut, trapping the three men inside despite Barkley's warning that someone might get hurt.
• Li Fei recruited Barkley and Rodman to carry the trash can to a garbage truck, paid the driver, and took the wheel.
• Bob called 911 to report the kidnapping, and Li Fei sped away as police cars and helicopters pursued the truck.
• Li Fei steered toward New York's largest landfill, intending to make the three stars experience being treated like garbage.

Li Fei dumped Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O'Neal at Fresh Kills Landfill before slipping away as police and media closed in. David Stern feared the three had been killed, then learned they were alive and vomiting in the garbage.

• Li Fei watched Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O'Neal tumble from the garbage truck and vomit at Fresh Kills Landfill.
• Li Fei tossed away the truck key and left the landfill as sirens and helicopters approached.
• David Stern panicked over the kidnapping and feared the NBA's stars had been killed and buried under garbage.
• An NBA public relations director told Stern that Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal had been found alive.
• A league employee reported that the three men were in the landfill's central area, vomiting after swallowing garbage.

After Li Fei dumped Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal at a landfill, the NBA faced a worldwide PR crisis over the incident. Stern tried to persuade Jordan to treat it as a misunderstanding, leaving Jordan silent as Stern proposed an internal punishment instead of a criminal case.

• Li Fei had Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal transported in a modified garbage truck to a New York landfill, where they emerged sickened but unharmed.
• Stern learned that news coverage and public reaction had turned the incident into a global scandal, and he considered the publicity a possible opportunity for the NBA.
• Jordan called Stern and demanded that Li Fei receive serious punishment, saying the incident had humiliated the players and the league.
• Stern argued that the truck had been safe and called the incident a malicious prank, warning Jordan that treating it as an assault could expose him to further public scrutiny.
• Jordan fell silent after Stern suggested settling the matter internally with a fine and suspension.

Michael Jordan rejected David Stern’s attempt to call the Garbage Truck Incident a misunderstanding, but knew taking it to court would expose him to further humiliation. Stern decided to suspend Li Fei for five games and prepared to present the punishment as strict enforcement while turning Li Fei’s return into a ratings event.

• Jordan hung up on Stern, then smashed his phone and raged over being trapped in a garbage truck and dumped at a landfill.
• Jordan accused Stern of protecting the league’s business interests rather than him, but feared a court case would force him to relive the humiliation publicly.
• Stern called team owners and described the incident as a malicious prank rather than a criminal case.
• Stern settled on a five-game suspension for Li Fei, believing it would appease the league while building anticipation for his return.
• Stern instructed the PR department to arrange a press conference in half an hour.

The NBA suspended Li Fei for five games and fined him $50,000 after the altercation, while ruling that Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O'Neal had started it. Jordan erupted in fury at the verdict and grabbed his MVP trophy.

• The NBA announced that Li Fei would receive a five-game suspension and a $50,000 fine for stuffing Jordan into a garbage truck.
• Li Fei watched the announcement in Phoenix and judged the punishment lighter than he had expected.
• The league issued a fuller ruling, saying Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal had instigated the altercation and suspending each of them for three games and fining them $50,000.
• The league suspended Charles Barkley and Dennis Rodman for two games and fined them $25,000 each for inflammatory social media statements.
• Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal watched the ruling at Jordan's mansion, where Pippen and O'Neal reacted in disbelief.
• Jordan smashed his glass, shouted at Stern, and seized his MVP trophy.

Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal raged over their suspensions and fines after Li Fei humiliated them, while fans and sports media celebrated the incident. The three stars left the chapter determined to destroy Li Fei, turning their rivalry into a personal war.

• Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal complained that the league had blamed them and punished them after Li Fei threw them into a garbage truck.
• Jordan's agent, David Falk, explained that the league had framed the incident as an over-the-top prank to soften public backlash, but Jordan rejected his reasoning and smashed his phone.
• Jordan vowed to destroy Li Fei on the court with his own hands.
• Knicks fans in a New York bar cheered the league's ruling and celebrated Li Fei's defeat of the three stars.
• Sports forums and ESPN's Pardon the Interruption mocked the incident, while Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal seethed over becoming a public joke.
• Jordan, Pippen, and O'Neal recognized that their conflict with Li Fei had become a fight to the death.

News of Li Fei shoving Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Shaquille O'Neal into a garbage truck spread across China, turning him into a folk hero and the Bulls-Suns rivalry into a cultural spectacle. The Suns celebrated Li Fei’s sudden fame, while Brian Colangelo feared Jordan’s desire for revenge would make their next meeting dangerous.

• Haozi and his dormmates read a repost about Li Fei’s garbage truck incident and laughed at the Bulls stars and the league’s ruling.
• Chinese internet users celebrated Li Fei and recast the Bulls-Suns rivalry as both a Chu-Han conflict and an Ultraman battle.
• The NBA’s attempt to calm the uproar backfired, and Jerry Reinsdorf angrily demanded an explanation from the league.
• Li Fei’s fame boosted the Suns’ visibility and sales, but Brian Colangelo worried that Jordan would take the public ridicule onto the court.

The Bulls returned from suspension and crushed the 76ers, with Jordan warning that the real hunt had not begun. In Phoenix, Li Fei learned that companies wanted to profit from the prospect of his facing Jordan, leaving him wary of the commercial attention.

• The Bulls ended their losing streak by defeating the 76ers 128–82, as Jordan scored 51 points, Pippen recorded 25 points and 10 assists, and O'Neal grabbed 21 rebounds.
• Jordan told reporters the victory was only a warm-up and that the real hunt had not begun.
• David Falk showed Li Fei endorsement offers from Sega, Pepsi, McDonald's, and Bandai based on his Ultraman image.
• Li Fei told David Falk that the companies were buying a chance to watch him face Jordan and the Little Monsters.

Li Fei turned his endorsements into a public challenge to Jordan, demanding the ads run at the United Center, while the league’s suspension failed to slow his popularity. His “Junkyard” sneakers sold out amid a worldwide frenzy, leaving a young Bulls fan ready to wear them at Jordan’s home court.

• Li Fei told David Falk to sign every endorsement deal on the condition that the ads play during halftime of the next game against the Bulls at the United Center.
• Fans embraced Li Fei as “Ultraman,” and his online popularity surged despite the league’s suspension and fine.
• Li Fei’s brand released the brightly colored “All-Star” sneakers, which fans renamed the “Junkyard” colorway.
• Crowds lined up in New York and Chicago to buy the sneakers, and the shoes sold out as fans rushed into the stores.
• A boy in a Bulls number 23 jersey got the last pair, then told his father he would wear them at the United Center because the war had begun.

After Li Fei's Junkyard sneakers sold out and eclipsed Air Jordan, Michael Jordan and Nike reacted to their defeat. Li Fei ordered Feixiang Sports to invest its profits in flagship stores across overlooked Rust Belt cities, aiming to build a nationwide brand.

• Michael Jordan watched footage of Junkyard's success, smashed his television, and learned from Stephen Dowrey that the sneakers had sold out while Air Jordan sales lagged.
• Nike executives compared the declining Air Jordan sales with the soaring Li Fei I sales, and Phil Knight ordered a sweeping investigation into Feixiang Sports.
• Li Fei rejected celebrating or spending the profits and told Isaac to invest every penny in the company.
• Li Fei marked Rust Belt cities such as Akron, Flint, and Gary as locations for flagship stores so young basketball fans could buy his shoes locally.
• Li Fei described the stores as churches in a war of faith, and his team saw his plan as the beginning of a nationwide Fei empire.