Shock Value Gained!

Dawn broke as Wolfsburg's training ground lay veiled beneath a gauzy curtain of rain.

In what should have been dry Lower Saxony, a fine drizzle fell without pause.

Li Luo was not late; he arrived right on time.

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After changing into his kit and football boots, he stepped onto the training ground.

He suddenly noticed that the sensation of his feet pressing into the turf was different from Manchester's.

The Wolfsburg coaching staff warmly gathered around him. "Sharp-eyed, Li. The Premier League and Bundesliga have different climates. During this season, we use turf with coarser blades and denser roots."

"You'll need some time to get used to it."

Having studied footage of the Chinese prodigy in Manchester United's youth team, they had formed a fixed impression: Li Luo's ball control, passing, and footwork were all highly refined. He was an Xavi-type or Pirlo-type player and would need some time to adapt to the pitch.

"Mm."

Li Luo nodded and silently committed the information to memory.

Not far away.

The Wolfsburg first-team players paused their warm-up drills and curiously sized up the newly arrived Chinese boy.

"Huh? That guy's so short!"

"Clean face, no big beard—he looks like a kid."

"He is a kid."

"Li's the shortest player in our first team, right? Lucky him. Low center of gravity, quick footwork. I watched that UEFA Youth League final—his control of the game and dribbling were excellent."

"Vieirinha is short too, but his beard is thick."

They meant no malice in commenting on Li Luo's height. From a tactical perspective, they saw him as a potential game-breaker.

The head coach, Hecking, interrupted his players' conversation with a stern face. "Quiet! The rain is not an excuse for us to slack off! Tomorrow's opponents won't relax just because they get wet!"

His tone was severe, his expression fierce.

Then he turned around, put on a kindly smile, and jogged over to greet the Chinese prodigy.

The Wolfsburg players immediately shut up and resumed warming up.

The team doctor had advised the coaching staff that training in the rain could cause colds, but the suggestion was always firmly rejected.

Over time.

Even the club executives had grown used to it. The previous head coach, Magath, had imposed training sessions of utterly insane intensity, practically working the players to death.

The players had no complaints. What was a little rain? Compared with other clubs, Wolfsburg's current training intensity was perfectly reasonable.

The rain slanted down, carrying the scent of earth and the chill of wet grass.

Li Luo's black hair looked as though it had been sprinkled with tiny grains of sugar.

He smiled politely and greeted the Wolfsburg head coach.

"Good morning, Mr. Hecking!"

At those words.

Hecking smiled and nodded in reply, his mood instantly easing. He had a good impression of Li Luo: gentle, polite, and pleasant when he smiled. Unlike that troublemaker from Arsenal, and even less like De Bruyne, who had waited for him to speak first.

He took the medical report handed over by an assistant coach and muttered, "Hmm? Having trouble acclimating?"

"Coach, I'm not having trouble acclimating."

"Good, good lad!"

Li Luo answered instinctively, then took the training bib handed to him by a staff member and joined the warm-up.

Not far away.

A Wolfsburg assistant coach blew the whistle to begin the small-sided match.

The rain grew heavier, and the turf became increasingly slippery.

The players' ball control, technical movements, and passing were all affected.

Even De Bruyne, with his elite passing ability, made mistakes.

Li Luo stood at the sideline with several teammates.

He was not nervous at all now.

The Spatial Awareness module in his mind spun wildly.

This time.

He would no longer run around blindly like a headless fly.

The training match reached the 12th minute.

De Bruyne delivered an exquisite long pass, the ball carving a rainbow-like arc through the fine rain.

The 190-centimeter Bendtner surged forward.

Thud.

The wet turf sent the big man crashing heavily to the ground.

The ball splashed as it landed, then rolled weakly out of bounds.

The Arsenal Emperor grinned as he climbed back to his feet, turning to give the Belgian prodigy a thumbs-up.

De Bruyne shyly returned the gesture.

The Wolfsburg coaching staff at the sidelines nodded in satisfaction.

"Rain affects visibility."

"Bendtner was half a beat slow to start, but looking back, his running route was very sensible. As expected of a talent from Arsenal's academy—top-tier Spatial Awareness."

"De Bruyne's ability to read the game is also top-tier."

"The other players have been affected quite a bit."

"Send Li on!"

"Put him on De Bruyne's team!"

Beep!

Li Luo pulled on an A-team bib and jogged onto the pitch.

His teammates did not expect much. The rain was too heavy and the turf too slippery; a nimble young talent who excelled at passing, controlling, dribbling, and shooting would not pose much of a threat.

Hecking thought the same.

"Li still needs time to understand our formation changes and tactical system, to gradually integrate."

"Even for a genius, everything here is unfamiliar to him. He needs time to adapt to everything at Wolfsburg."

"Take it slowly."

"I'm not in a hurry."

Not nervous at all.

Completely not nervous.

Li Luo's expression was calm.

The Spatial Awareness in his mind had already perfectly broken down Wolfsburg's changing formations.

Every scrap of information on the pitch was under his control.

The rain would conceal the shortcomings of his footwork attributes, which were only a little over 40.

The match continued.

The ball continued to kick up strings of droplets across the grass.

Both teams' formations constantly shifted with the players' movements.

A group of assistant coaches shouted from the sidelines:

"Li, over there!"

"Push forward, Li!"

"Drop back, drop back, Li!"

They were trying to help Li Luo adapt to Bundesliga turf, integrate into his new environment, and fit into the dressing room.

Gradually, everyone began to realize something was wrong. Their brows furrowed, their expressions turning astonished.

Li Luo's positioning was even more sensible than what they were shouting.

His timing was earlier than when he could have heard their voices.

No!

It was... Li Luo's brain was faster than theirs!

Hecking's mouth fell open.

The substituted Arsenal Emperor, Bendtner, widened his eyes. This kid's Spatial Awareness... The Sun hadn't made it up out of thin air. Those Swansea City players weren't idiots.

The players on the pitch were secretly shocked as well. This kid's vision... isn't affected by the rain? His positioning is too sensible—so sensible it looks like the result of a computer's precise calculations.

The more De Bruyne played, the more bewildered he became. Before every reception or pass, he would see that Li Luo had already appeared in the most suitable position, creating the safest passing lane with the best angle for him.

"Hey, Li Luo even raises a finger to remind his teammates where to run!"

"A genius!"

"A super genius!"

"A commander!"

"The rain affects Li Luo's passing, first touch, dribbling, and shooting! But it can't hide his vision, reading of the game, positioning, awareness, off-the-ball movement..."

Hecking and the assistant coaches all jolted.

Everyone wore the same expression: They'd struck gold!

"Right."

"Have you noticed that Li's way of handling physical duels is very sound too?"

"It's a modern approach to physical duels."

"He may be short, but he's very good at using his core strength. He uses his backside very effectively."

"Yeah, it's incredibly sound. Manchester United's academy really has something."

Over the past decade, Europe's youth training manuals had been updated at a rapid pace. Every year, outdated elements were removed. Many young players had already formed their technical habits, and flaws in certain movements had become ingrained, making them difficult to correct.

Manchester United was no exception.

Those exceptionally gifted stars would not be affected.

At this moment, no one knew.

Li Luo had only recently begun learning to play football, and his manual... was the latest edition.

Ten minutes later.

Li Luo noticed a teammate behind him win possession.

In an instant.

He immediately burst into motion.

His physical attributes were excellent. At 173 centimeters tall, with a low center of gravity, he was extremely quick off the mark.

Cruyff had once said: Speed was not simply about running fast, but about starting earlier than your opponent.

"Transition!"

"Get the ball to Li, quick!"

The assistant coaches became excited again.

Gustavo completed the interception and passed to De Bruyne.

The latter was utterly stunned.

There was no need to calculate the lead on the pass at all...

Smack!

The moment the ball left the ground.

Li Luo's figure happened to surge past the opponent's defensive line.

He wasn't offside.

"One-on-one!"

"This kid's football IQ is fucking insane!"

The B-team goalkeeper was a little dumbfounded.

At first, when he saw Li Luo—who had yet to familiarize himself with Wolfsburg's tactical system—take the field in an A-team bib, he thought this training match was unfair.

Now, seeing Li Luo nearly slip and fall while controlling the ball, then charge at him one-on-one, he still thought this training match was unfair.

The distance closed rapidly.

Li Luo watched the B-team goalkeeper rush out.

Damn it.

I made a mistake on that first touch just now. It exposed the flaw in my ball skills, which are only in the forties.

Facing a one-on-one now will expose my weaknesses in ball control and finishing even more.

The next moment.

He made another mistake while carrying the ball forward; his stability in combining with the ball was far too poor.

The touch was going wide...

The B team goalkeeper carefully watched the movement of Li Luo's shoulders.

A feint?

A real move?

In the end, he feinted himself off balance and fell to the ground.

He tried to brace himself with his hands, but the turf was slippery, and he fell again.

In everyone's eyes, Li Luo and the ball split apart, each veering off along a different path.

"A knock-and-run!"

"Wow!"

Li Luo went around the fallen goalkeeper, touched the ball again, and gently rolled it into the empty net.

Clap clap clap!

Everyone applauded.

Hecking and the assistant coaches looked at him with approval.

Even his teammates couldn't help giving him a thumbs-up.

With the torrential rain and the rain-washed turf, no one doubted Li Luo's skill on the ball.

[The Bundesliga journey has officially begun...]

[Shock Value +1]

[Shock Value +1]

[Shock Value +1]

[...]

Li Luo stared blankly at the Shock Value notifications that kept appearing.

The system notifications did not stop.

[Football Star Blind Box reward pool confirmed: Bundesliga stars.]

[Beginner benefit: The first Bundesliga Star Blind Box exchange costs only 40 Shock Value.]

[Every subsequent exchange requires 100,000 Shock Value.]