The edges of the cards glowed in different colors, seemingly representing the quality of the templates.
Gray, green, blue, purple, gold.
Li Luo froze for a moment.
Why couldn't he have them all?
He hated gacha games with probability mechanics the most. They could easily awaken a person's gambling urges.
"Give me a Golden Legend!"
He reached out and poked the air.
A white beam that had appeared out of thin air lit up in a cycle among the five cards.
Gradually, the cycle sped up and up.
In the end.
The white beam slowly came to rest on the golden card.
Li Luo was overjoyed.
He did not know anything about Bundesliga legends, but gold definitely meant the best.
The other four cards scattered with the wind. The golden card emitted a blinding glow, and the broad, imposing silhouette of a man slowly emerged.
[Congratulations, you have obtained: Matthäus's Peak "Hexagonal Midfielder" Template!] [Attribute increases: Heading +40, Ball Control +40, Passing +40, First Touch +40, Shooting +40, Curve +40, Defense +40, Tackling +40] [Iron War God.] [The engine of Germany's steel torrent.] [The most complete German midfielder of the 20th century, the most untamable lion.] [It would be better if this guy were mute.]
Football novice Li Luo paused. Who was this guy? He seemed to have seen that name while researching last night.
Whatever.
This felt incredible!
The golden peak template had raised almost every attribute related to touching the ball.
He suddenly felt like he was about to graduate.
Although his single-digit passing, first touch, dribbling, and shooting had only risen to the forties, he was already very satisfied.
Any improvement was a good thing.
Still, something seemed off with the attribute panel?
[Heading: 98]
Huh?
With the Spatial Awareness module and a heading attribute of 98, would he be unstoppable?
No.
He was only 173 centimeters tall.
The Chinese teenager was no longer a complete beginner. Last night, he had learned about the kings, saints, and emperors of football history.
Maradona was 168 centimeters tall.
Cruyff was 176 centimeters tall.
Those two football legends both had excellent heading and jumping ability, and each had produced stunning headed goals, but... when facing tall defenders, neither could gain much of an advantage in aerial duels...
His thoughts were interrupted. The system notification did not stop.
[The German Conquest Route is about to begin.] [When you play for a Bundesliga club, you may collect the Shock Value of everyone present.] [For every 100,000 Shock Value, you will receive one opportunity to exchange for a Star Player Blind Box.] [Star Player Blind Box: Upon opening it, you may obtain a star player's skill module. For example: Beckenbauer's "Outside-Foot High-Arcing Long Pass" module.]
There was too much information.
Li Luo's mind could barely process it.
His phone rang again, and he pressed the answer button.
"Li, I'm sorry, but the club is going to loan you to the Bundesliga this season..."
On the other end of the call.
Giggs and Manchester United's management staff wore regretful expressions.
The Red Devils' crown prince, who loved the club deeply, would surely feel disappointed upon hearing this news, right?
Even though the Volkswagen Group was offering Li an incredibly generous loan salary.
Even though the Volkswagen Group would give him an astronomical endorsement contract for GG.
Even though Wolfsburg would be playing in the main stage of European competition this season, while Manchester United still had to endure the qualifying rounds.
How could all those material things possibly outweigh Li Luo's love for the club?
Click.
The call ended.
Giggs turned around and said, "Li agreed immediately."
"He didn't ask why?"
"No. But I guess he'll be sad for quite some time. He asked whether he needed to attend training tomorrow. I told him to rest first and prepare for the medical."
Cheshire.
Ferguson had quite an appetite today and finished an entire plate of Italian food.
He took a sip of red wine.
An assistant stepped forward and said softly, "Sir, everything is proceeding very smoothly."
"Mm. Hecking will definitely guide him back onto the proper development path. Like De Bruyne, Li won't become some assembly-line workhorse player."
"You're right, Sir. All-round development means all-round mediocrity. Talent would be erased."
News reports quietly began appearing across China's internet.
<Wolfsburg calls off negotiations with Chinese Super League club; midfielder surnamed Zhang misses out on playing abroad.>
<The path for Chinese players to play abroad remains difficult.>
<Why is it so hard for Chinese players to set foot on European pitches?>
The comment section.
-[Wouldn't it have been better if the Chinese Super League club had let him go earlier? They dragged things out with Wolfsburg for two years. Letting the player go over there to gain experience would have been good. He could train with stars from the top five leagues and experience the intensity.]
-[The news keeps analyzing this supposed dilemma of playing abroad, looking for one reason after another... Honestly, these players just aren't good enough. If they were good enough, they'd have gone abroad long ago. What dilemma is there?]
-[Those Korean media outlets are using this to mock us again. Just wait until the Asian Cup in a few months.]
-[Why do Korea and Japan have so many players abroad? I really don't get it. We're all Asians.]
-[Wolfsburg are very strong. That blond kid called De Bruyne is absurdly good at passing. If they had a striker with incredibly strong heading ability, I can't even imagine how terrifying this team's dominance would be!]
Suddenly.
A piece of news exploded like a bomb, creating massive waves across China's internet.
<Manchester United's 18-year-old prospect Li Luo officially joins Wolfsburg on loan.>
Night fell.
Li Luo returned to the Manchester United dormitory after finishing a day of individual training, football tucked under his arm.
Children's Soccer Fundamentals was still playing on his phone screen.
The forty-point attribute boost was enormous.
In terms of controlling a football, he felt as though he had gone from kindergarten to fourth grade.
Worthy of Matthäus's peak template. It could drastically improve the overall ability of someone who had never played football.
However.
During the coming Bundesliga journey, he would very likely embarrass himself in training and make people question him.
"Don't be afraid."
"Improve slowly."
No matter how badly he played, he had to endure one season first. Then he could see whether he could accumulate enough Shock Value to exchange for module rewards.
The Chinese teenager no longer felt the confusion and panic he had at the beginning.
The few lingering traces of anxiety quietly transformed into motivation.
He turned on his computer and seriously studied theory while watching tutorial videos from active football stars.
A few days later.
Manchester Airport.
Giggs and a group of Red Devils members came to see Li Luo off.
"Take care of yourself, Li."
The Manchester United legend wanted to say more—things like discipline, restraint, no fooling around, no sleeping with women...
But after thinking about it carefully, what right did he have to say any of that?
"Manchester United will always be your home."
"Mr. Van Gaal didn't come, but he said you can email him anytime if you run into something you don't understand..."
Rooney looked deeply worried and suddenly cut in, "Oh, right. Protect your balls when you get to Germany. I hope you come back in one piece."
Quite a few Red Devils fans had gathered outside the security line.
Team flags fluttered.
Scarves printed with the club crest were raised high overhead.
They had come to see off Manchester United's crown prince.
Li Luo nodded seriously. "I'll definitely come back next season."
Once he went to the Bundesliga, he might no longer receive the superstar treatment he had at Manchester United, where everyone rallied around him.
Like other talented players who left the land of their youth academies, he would face incomparably brutal challenges in a new environment—adapting to the dressing room, adapting to the team's tactical system...
He had to work hard to overcome those difficulties and adapt.
At last.
The Chinese teenager waved and bid everyone farewell.
Wolfsburg.
Allofs and the staff were extremely busy.
"The highest standards. The grandest welcome."
"Don't simply regard Li as a Manchester United talent. He represents the entire Chinese market. Countless gods stand behind him."
"His loan to Wolfsburg is a commercial demand from the Volkswagen Group."
"The club must treat him like a god, understand? No player is allowed to bully him."
"The Chinese market accounts for 40 percent of Volkswagen's global sales. Volkswagen is about to begin localizing its technology for the Chinese market. Li is very important to us."
Previously, Wolfsburg had been willing to persist in negotiations with a Chinese Super League club for two years over an ordinary Chinese player.
Let alone a Manchester United talent like Li Luo.
He had scored on his Premier League debut.
His performance in the Bundesliga certainly could not be too bad.
Wolfsburg's manager, Hecking, remained troubled.
There were many problems to solve:
How was he supposed to coach a talented player like Li Luo?
Would Li Luo be dissatisfied with the coaching staff's training methods?
How should he arrange Li Luo's position?
And how should possession be divided between him and De Bruyne...?
Before you continue