The moment the ball hit the back of the net.
Everyone was still stunned, but Lu Yang had already begun running in excitement.
He had done it!
He hadn't lost!
He ran toward the corner flag, taking long strides before launching himself into the air.
Then he turned around midair and showed his back to the cameras and the spectators in the stands.
Boom!
As his feet hit the ground, he descended like a god of war.
His arms hung naturally at his sides, his back slightly arched.
No one had ever celebrated like this before, and no one knew what it meant.
But... for some reason, that celebration ignited everyone!
A deafening roar erupted from the stadium!
"GOAL!!!"
"It's in!!!"
"What a bizarre curve! A perfect free kick!"
"Lu Yang has won the game! There's no time left, Turris has no time left!"
"This is the first time Lu Yang has taken a free kick during a match, and the first free-kick goal of his career!"
"Ladies and gentlemen, you're watching the Serie D clash of the season, the thirty-eighth round match between San Remo and Turris. In the ninety-fifth minute, Lu Yang killed the game with a perfect free kick, completing a hat trick and leading San Remo to a comeback!"
"Four to three! San Remo leads four to three!"
"Turris's players can hardly believe it. They could accept a draw, but they can't accept a defeat!"
"Lu Yang has descended like a god! At this moment, he is the king of Serie D!"
"The wound at the corner of his eye is bleeding again. It's a stark reminder to everyone just how terrifying an injured beast can be!"
"Anyone who watched this match will surely agree with my assessment of Lu Yang: he's the toughest man in Italian football!"
"San Remo's players have all charged onto the field. They're celebrating like crazy!"
"In half a season, they've gone from the relegation zone to the top of the league. This is the wildest points run in the history of Italian football!"
"Congratulations to San Remo! They've won the first trophy in the history of the club! This is a momentous achievement!"
"Congratulations to Soto. When he took over San Remo midway through the season, no one had faith in him. Everyone thought The Butcher didn't know how to coach a football team. But Soto proved them all wrong. Not only does he know how to coach, he knows how to win titles! He brought his winning pedigree to San Remo, on Italy's northwestern coast!"
"Congratulations to Lu Yang, the hero! San Remo's eternal hero! Eighteen goals and twelve assists—he's Serie D's most efficient player this year, and there's no contest!"
"Congratulations to Moric. As the team's tactical core, he led them to the league title alongside Lu Yang, proving that even a short player can have his day! That he can shoulder great responsibility! With six goals and seventeen assists, he's also claimed this year's Serie D assist crown in just half a season!"
"If they had another half-season together, Lu Yang and Moric would surely break a whole string of Serie D records. But unfortunately, they won't get the chance. Next season, they'll be moving up to Serie C with San Remo!"
"Congratulations to Vedian. His goal today sounded the charge for San Remo's comeback, and proved that he never shrinks from the big moments! He's this year's Serie D Golden Boot winner! His record of more than twenty-five goals and ten assists this season is simply perfect. He's had a wonderful season, and a bright future ahead of him. Let's wish him all the best!"
"Oh... Lu Yang is sprinting! He's refused to celebrate with his teammates and is heading for the stands! My goodness... it's Sophia!"
For some reason, at the most thrilling, most exhilarating moment of his life, Lu Yang only wanted to find the woman who had cried for him in the stands earlier, celebrate with her, hold her close, and tell her not to cry because they hadn't lost!
Dodging his teammates, Lu Yang climbed over the barrier and rushed to Sophia.
Without a moment's hesitation, the two embraced tightly.
"Don't cry. Sophia, when you don't cry, you're the most beautiful woman in the world!"
After who knew how long, Lu Yang and Sophia slowly calmed down. As he looked at her, he began to feel a heat spreading through his body.
Sophia, too, had moved past her initial excitement and was growing shy. A flush quickly spread across her cheeks.
"So I look ugly when I cry?" Sophia asked anxiously. She had cried in front of the whole country, after all.
"When you cry, Sophia, you're only the second most beautiful woman in the world." Lu Yang delivered a line of charmingly cheesy romantic talk.
Maniero gagged beside them.
But Sophia was completely enchanted, lost in his words.
She looped her arms around Lu Yang's neck and slowly leaned her lips toward his.
Everyone around them—the fans, the reporters—was dumbfounded.
So were the people watching on television.
Every camera was, without a doubt, pointed at the two of them.
Their image appeared on television stations across the country.
Online, people who could post instant messages expressed their anguish in words.
"My god! Why Sophia?!"
"No! She's my goddess!"
"Good heavens, is Sophia dating Lu Yang?"
"I can't take this!"
"Lu Yang was the hero who scored the goals, so why do I only want to fight him right now?"
"We've lost! All the men in Europe have been beaten by a sixteen-year-old Chinese boy..."
"I don't know why, but I actually think they're meant to be!"
"Yeah, they look great together, both in terms of looks and figure. Maybe the only things that don't match are their ages and social status."
Sophia's lips were drawing closer to Lu Yang's. They were almost touching.
At that moment, all of Europe seemed to be hoping something would happen, while also dreading it.
Honestly, the men of Europe probably weren't ready to lose Sophia.
"Hey!"
Just then, a voice from nearby shattered the moment.
Lu Yang turned toward it. A football came flying his way.
He caught it.
"This is the ball from your first hat trick, and our first championship ball! It took me ages to get it for you!" Moric stood behind the barrier, grinning. "No need to thank me. It's what I should do."
Lu Yang was a little stunned.
Well...
Maybe he really should thank him?
But...
Before Lu Yang could react, Sophia snatched the ball and rushed at Moric. She slammed it into his head and snapped furiously, "Thanks a lot—on behalf of your whole family!"
The fans burst into laughter.
Even Sophia couldn't help laughing, despite herself.
The whole stadium was filled with joy.
Even Turris, the defeated team, had only lost a trophy. Compared with promotion, a title sometimes seemed unimportant. Besides, Turris's players had truly been beaten into submission by Lu Yang.
There was no shame in applauding and laughing for a strong opponent.
Even Diego Talista, Turris's center-forward, who had watched Lu Yang take the free kick, score, and celebrate from the players' tunnel, raised the corners of his mouth.
He had actually lost.
Lost to a sixteen-year-old Serie D player.
Wasn't that ridiculous?
"Lu Yang... then I'll go find you in Serie A and get my revenge. We'll meet on the Serie A field, won't we?" Talista walked heavily into the players' tunnel with his teammates.
The league organizers were setting up a temporary stage on the field. Meanwhile, the media were making the most of the time to interview San Remo's coach and players.
There were so many legendary moments in this match worth savoring!
Reporter: "Soto, what were you and Lu Yang arguing about earlier?"
Soto: "We were arguing over his health. His injury looked so frightening that anyone would have thought he needed medical treatment right away, not a match. But Lu Yang is different. All he cares about is the game."
Reporter: "Oh? Then why is he standing hand in hand with Sophia right now, gazing into her eyes? He must care about Sophia, too."
Soto: "Don't mention Sophia in front of me. This should have been the happiest, most successful day of my life since I retired, but... I think every man in Europe can understand how sad I am right now. Let's get back to football, or else..."
Reporter: "All right. What did you think of Lu Yang's performance today?"
Soto: "That was a superstar-level performance! No one could have played better in this match. Not me, not Maniero, and not Carlisle, Ancarelli, or Perotta... no one! Only him, only him!"
Reporter: "Don't get so worked up. Calm down. Are free kicks Lu Yang's secret weapon? How did he train them?"
Soto: "How can I not be excited? Who wouldn't be? I don't know how he trains his free kicks, but if he asked, I'd let him do anything on the field! Because he never lets anyone down!"
Soto was so excited that he could barely keep his hands still.
There was a reason for his excitement.
Many people thought San Remo had worked a miracle this season. In the hundred-year history of Serie A, no team had ever gone from relegation trouble to a title in half a season!
But only Soto knew that this was just the beginning.
A storm belonging to San Remo had only just begun.
This summer, San Remo's Transfermarkt budget was... two million euros!
Two million—what did that mean?
Last year, the average Serie A team's transfer spending was around seven million euros, but most of that came from the northern giants: Juventus, Milan, and Inter Milan. The average spending of an ordinary Serie A team was actually only around three million.
San Remo wasn't far behind them anymore.
As for Serie B, the average transfer spending last year was under one million euros.
And Serie C didn't even bear mentioning. It was less than two hundred thousand!
San Remo would be playing in Serie C next season.
On paper, their squad would completely outclass the competition!
Serie C wasn't San Remo's goal at all!
Of course, Soto wouldn't casually reveal any of this to outsiders.
That was why no one else could understand his excitement.
Before long, the awards ceremony began.
It was simple enough: they put up a stage, everyone went up to receive their medals and trophy, then they took a group photo together.
But everyone from San Remo was thrilled.
For all of them, apart from their coach Soto, this was their first time winning and lifting a trophy!
Every single one of them!
As soon as the ceremony ended, Lu Yang left the stadium with Sophia and headed straight to the hospital.
The wound at the corner of his eye needed to be treated again.
At the same time, news of the San Remo Miracle winning the title spread rapidly across Europe.
Serie D itself didn't have that kind of reach.
But Sophia did!
<Sophia, the Kiss of Europa, Shows Up at the Stadium for a Serie D Prospect>
<Europe's Goddess Weeps for Him; Serie D's Tough Guy Bleeds on the Pitch!>
<The Toughest Man in European Football! The Strongest Waist in the World! Certified by Sophia's Embrace!>
<Sophia Gives the Entire Crew a Day Off—All Because of a Serie D Football Match!>
<Sophia's Rumored Boyfriend Revealed—He's a Footballer!>
<A Double Miracle! Club Wins First Title in Its History, and Its Starting Defensive Midfielder's Girlfriend Is Sophia?>
<An Older Woman-Younger Man Romance! Sophia Falls for a Footballer?>
<Twelve Years! Sophia's Boyfriend Is Twelve Years Younger—and Still a Minor!>
<They Can't Share a Room! Sophia's Boyfriend Is Under Eighteen, So They Can Only Have a Platonic Relationship!>
Never underestimate a goddess's influence.
Just as all of Asia had sighed and wailed when Lin Zhiling, Satomi Ishihara, and Yui Aragaki announced their relationships, the men of Europe wailed after Sophia's "romance" was exposed.
Of course, "romance" was just what the media called it.
The truth was that Sophia and Lu Yang still hadn't commented on the matter.
They hadn't taken things that far.
But thanks to Sophia, footage of San Remo's match spread far and wide.
When Turris scored, Sophia looked troubled.
When Lu Yang was injured, Sophia looked worried.
When Lu Yang argued with Soto, insisting that he wanted to play, Sophia broke down in tears.
When Lu Yang received treatment at the side of the field and told Moric to hold the team together, Sophia shook her head over and over, tears streaming down her face.
When Lu Yang returned to the field like a king, Sophia bit her lip, her eyes full of concern.
When Lu Yang scored his first, second, and third goals, Sophia cheered, screamed with wild excitement, then threw herself into Lu Yang's arms!
Someone edited it all into a short video and uploaded it to YouTube.
Its views shot past one hundred thousand in no time.
Within a day, it had surpassed a million.
In three days, it had reached five million!
It was a viral sensation.
Searches for Sophia, Lu Yang, San Remo, champion, relegation, Soto, Maniero, and Moric skyrocketed.
Among them, Moric was surprisingly hailed by many as a "benefactor"!
Everyone who watched the video knew that if Moric hadn't interrupted them at the end, Sophia might well have kissed Lu Yang.
Even if they knew that moment would come sooner or later, it was better for it to come a day later than a day sooner.
Moric had done a good deed!
At the hospital.
Ding! You have fully completed Superstar Legacy—The Butcher Soto. You have received the superstar-level skill "Soto—Perpetual Motion Machine." Your height has increased by 2 cm!
"Soto—Perpetual Motion Machine. You run tirelessly, forever chasing the person you used to be, never stopping. Special effect: when you run more than 10 km in a match, you gain a 3% boost to one ability. Over 12 km, the boost is 5%. Over 15 km, it's 10%!"
"Ding! Your intimacy with Soto has reached 99."
"Ding! You've scored the first hat trick of your career and received 2 random gift packs."
"Ding! You've scored a free kick for the first time in your career and received 1 random gift pack."
"Ding! You've become this season's Serie D Interception King/Tackle King and received 2 random gift packs."
"Ding! You've won this season's Serie D title and received the championship gift pack!"
Lu Yang stared at the dense cluster of notifications before him, so happy he almost fainted.
Until...
Lu Yang: "Sss... Doctor, please be gentle... Could you give me some anesthetic?"
Doctor: "Huh? Don't you usually refuse anesthetic? I watched you play. You're so tough!"
Lu Yang: "Actually, I'm fine with anesthetic... Ow, ow, ow... Anesthetic, quick, quick... I can't take it..."