The Mysterious Treasure Chest Opens!

That night.

Bayer Leverkusen's official website and social media accounts heavily covered their victory in the opening round of the season.

Among them,

Leo Kang's appearance in the final moments of stoppage time took up a quarter of the coverage.

The Factory's fans were displeased and flooded the comments with complaints.

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[God, is Leo Kang Völler's biological grandson? No one has ever received this kind of treatment at The Factory!]

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[I'm sure they aren't related by blood. Leo Kang is more handsome!]

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[In the years Völler has been in charge, he's practically turned our club into China's lapdog. The money we make over there isn't even as much as the supplies we donate!]

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[Leo Kang is very talented, but he's still young and may not be able to handle the intensity of the Bundesliga. I suggest the club let him train with the youth team for another two seasons! Now give the number 10 shirt back to Çalhanoğlu!]

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[Give the number 10 shirt back to Çalhanoğlu!]

Office.

The young assistant dejectedly handed over a report. "Boss! Only twelve of Leo Kang's number 10 shirts have been sold in China since he joined the club."

Völler said in delighted surprise, "Wonderful! This is a beautiful start!"

The young assistant's face darkened.

He truly could not understand the sporting director's way of thinking.

After hesitating for a moment, he added, "The fans are very upset about the shirt-number change. The coaching staff is also worried it will affect Çalhanoğlu's mood."

"Boss! Our Champions League qualifier in a few days is very important! Mr. Schmidt said Leo Kang cannot be included in the Champions League squad. You know, we can only take seven substitutes to Old Trafford."

Völler tapped the table and shook his head. "The Bundesliga isn't the J League on some island. Shirt numbers can't be changed midway through the season. Don't bring this up again! As for the Champions League qualifier, Leo Kang must be in the squad! And he must get playing time! Manchester United has an enormous Chinese fanbase!"

The young assistant: "..."

He no longer knew how to relay this to Schmidt.

Looking across Europe's five major leagues, Völler was the only sporting director with such immense authority.

Völler lit a cigar and smiled. "Our opponent isn't Ferguson's Manchester United."

"If Schmidt can't beat a Manchester United in the midst of rebuilding and transition, then he should get lost!"

After training, Leo Kang returned to the first-team dormitory.

No matter how luxurious the facilities were,

none of the first-team stars lived there.

He was about to open his door when he suddenly heard someone call out.

"Hey! New guy, shouldn't you say hello to me?"

He turned around.

There stood a blond young man in casual clothes.

The other man did not seem particularly hostile.

It was just a little awkward.

Leo Kang tried hard to recall his name. Was he nineteen-year-old Brandt?

"You don't know me? Fine. I've just recovered from an injury, and I won't officially report back to the first team until tomorrow!"

"We're both broke bastards living in the dorms! If you need anything, just ask. This is my turf!"

Brandt punched Leo Kang lightly in the chest, trying his best to put on the air of a big brother.

After tossing him a bag of chocolate, he slipped into the dorm next door.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the mission: Bundesliga debut!]

[Mission reward being issued]

[Congratulations, host, for obtaining: Mysterious Treasure Chest ×1!]

A treasure chest wreathed in black mist floated in midair.

This was a mysterious treasure chest that could only be obtained in the Champions League, and even then only with a tiny chance!

He hurriedly checked the reward pool.

[0.0001%: Cruyff "The Saint of Football" Module.]

[0.0001%: Beckenbauer "Superhuman Libero" Module!]

[0.001%: Platini "King of Free Kicks" Module!]

[0.001%: Messi "Dreamy Footwork" Module!]

[0.001%: Ronaldinho "Devil's Curve" Module!]

[...]

There was no random hair-growth tonic or latex gloves!

The dazzling array of football star modules was impressive.

It was just that Leo Kang could not quite make sense of those drop rates.

Were Beckenbauer and Cruyff really that much stronger than the players who came after them?

After carefully studying the names of the modules, he roughly understood.

For example, Messi's was merely a step-frequency module for "Dreamy Footwork"; it did not include Messi's abilities in other areas.

Cruzff's and Beckenbauer's modules, on the other hand, absolutely contained their all-around abilities at their peaks.

[Mysterious Treasure Chest opening]

[Congratulations, host, for obtaining: Mihajlovic "Bogovo Missile" Module!]

[Additional attribute increase: Ball Control +3, Defense +5, Set Pieces +??]

[He was Yugoslav football's final elegy.]

The mysterious treasure chest immediately billowed with black smoke.

It surged madly into Leo Kang's body.

An indescribable, agonizing pain shot through the back of his head.

Scenes of devastating free-kick goals emerged one after another in his memories.

Half an hour later.

He climbed up from the floor.

He was drenched in cold sweat.

The classic clash between Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester United

dated back to the Champions League semifinals of the 2001/02 season.

The first leg ended 2-2.

The second leg ended 1-1.

Bayer Leverkusen eliminated Manchester United on away goals and advanced to the Champions League final.

The head coach at the time was old man Topp.

That year's Champions League final would forever be remembered in football history.

Because Zidane produced the masterpiece known as Celestial Flight.

In the blink of an eye,

more than a decade had passed.

Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester United met again, but their strengths were no longer what they had been.

Both teams had finished fourth in the Bundesliga and Premier League respectively last season, failing to qualify directly for the Champions League.

They had to battle through the playoffs to reach the main tournament.

The Bundesliga and Premier League media quickly began their "war."

The two teams' mascots were innocently caught in the crossfire.

Bild rigorously analyzed the gap in strength and tactical styles between the two sides, accompanied by an image of Lion Brian madly chasing Red Devil Fred.

The Sun dug up a series of scandals involving Bayer Leverkusen's senior management, accompanied by an image of Red Devil Fred wearing a scarf and holding a knife and fork, with a cartoon lion's head on the dining table.

Fans from both sides also suddenly erupted into a fierce argument across European online communities.

As they argued,

the retired Beckham got dragged into it too.

Manchester United fans claimed that Çalhanoğlu's free-kick technique imitated Beckham's!

Bayer Leverkusen fans retorted that Çalhanoğlu's free kicks were far, far better than Beckham's!

Three days later.

Bayer Leverkusen training base.

The assistant coach read out the final player's name on the Champions League playoff squad list.

"Leo Kang!"

Schmidt's expression darkened.

He did not dare defy Völler's arrangement.

BellArabi sneered. "Völler must have been Chinese in his past life. If we fail to qualify for the Champions League proper, well, what I mean is, does the club have no interest at all in the Champions League broadcast revenue?"

"Shut up! Don't act like a woman!"

Schmidt roared angrily.

He glanced at Leo Kang.

A twisted thought arose in his heart: the arrival of that Chinese kid had brought signs of infighting into the locker room.

Why does he bully you and not anyone else?

The Bayer Leverkusen manager took a deep breath and quickly crushed that thought.

He patted Leo Kang on the shoulder and offered a few words of comfort.

Çalhanoğlu chewed gum and looked up at the sky.