Chapter Summaries

Huang Chong rode a long climb with Zhang Yi’s cycling team, hoping to prove he could keep up well enough to join. He stayed with the group despite many teammates being dropped, leaving Liu Junjie stunned by how well his build suited climbing.

• Chen Guangming advised Huang Chong to manage his gearing, cadence, and energy before the climb to Prince Peak.
• Huang Chong said the gentle gradient felt manageable and explained that his power-to-weight ratio had reached over 2.8.
• As the group climbed 20 kilometers toward Prince Peak, Huang Chong stayed at the back and never took a pull, but did not get dropped.
• Liu Junjie saw that many teammates had fallen behind while Huang Chong remained with the group and wondered how someone with his build could climb so well.

Huang Chong pushed through an HC-class climb after the system offered rewards based on the distance and difficulty he completed. At the foot of Prince Peak’s final hairpin section, Zhang Yi was impressed by Huang Chong’s ability and decided he would recruit him even if he could not reach the summit with the group.

• The system gave Huang Chong a climbing mission that offered greater rewards for completing a longer, harder route, and he decided to ride the full 20-kilometer climb.
• Huang Chong kept pace with the strongest riders as the group approached Prince Peak, despite his fatigue and sustained high effort.
• Three female riders admitted they could not keep up on the coming hairpin climbs, and Zhang Yi told them to ride together at a comfortable pace.
• Zhang Yi noticed Huang Chong was still holding the pace of his strongest riders and was surprised by the newcomer’s climbing ability.
• Zhang Yi decided he would take Huang Chong into his team even if Huang Chong fell behind on the final climb.

Huang Chong impressed Zhang Yi by staying with him on Prince Peak’s steepest climb, despite his limited power and lack of professional training. Zhang Yi reached the summit first, and Huang Chong finished only a little over ten seconds later, while the other riders trailed behind.

• Huang Chong passed Wang Qiang and the other riders on the steep section and continued climbing with Zhang Yi.
• Wang Qiang and the others fell behind as Huang Chong and Zhang Yi opened a gap on the 12% gradient.
• Huang Chong assessed his climbing speed and compared his 200W power with the abilities of top riders.
• Zhang Yi reached Prince Peak first, and Huang Chong arrived a little over ten seconds later.
• Zhang Yi praised Huang Chong’s climbing, and Huang Chong modestly said he was still far behind the captain.

Zhang Yi assessed Huang Chong’s climbing ability and explained the power-to-weight standards for professional cycling. Huang Chong joined Headwind Cycling Team and left Zhang Yi with a confident prediction about China’s future riders.

• Zhang Yi confirmed Huang Chong had ridden for less than a year and praised his climbing power, endurance, and recovery.
• Huang Chong asked Zhang Yi about the power-to-weight ratio required to become a professional rider, and Zhang Yi said riders generally needed to approach 5.0.
• Huang Chong planned to gain race experience through amateur events before working toward a professional career.
• Huang Chong reassured Zhang Yi that Chinese riders would join UCI WorldTour teams, and Zhang Yi welcomed him to Headwind Cycling Team.

Huang Chong joined Zhang Yi’s informal Headwind Cycling Team after impressing the riders with his climbing. Zhang Yi revealed that Huang Chong had stayed with him throughout the climb and was nearly as strong uphill, leaving the team stunned by their new member’s ability.

• Zhang Yi explained the Headwind Cycling Team’s rules and invited Huang Chong into its WeChat group.
• Huang Chong promised to attend team activities on time and considered training with nearby teammates on weekdays.
• Liu Junjie, Wang Qiang, and Chen Guangming reached the summit and teased Huang Chong about dropping them on the climb.
• Huang Chong said Zhang Yi had beaten him after the final bend, so the riders initially relaxed.
• Zhang Yi clarified that he had only gained a small lead on the nearly flat finish and said Huang Chong was nearly as strong as him at climbing.
• Wang Qiang and the others were stunned by Huang Chong’s climbing ability.

After completing the HC climb up Prince Peak, Huang Chong gained 20 Basic Optimization Points and a Heart-rate Threshold Enhancer, then raised his FTP to 224 W. As the cycling team began descending toward Lin'an District, the system assigned him a new challenge to average at least 25 KM/H and safely pass 10 hairpin turns.

• Huang Chong ended the climb after reaching Prince Peak and received 20 Basic Optimization Points and a Heart-rate Threshold Enhancer for completing twice the required distance on an HC climb.
• Huang Chong added all his points to FTP, increasing it to 224 W and his power-to-weight ratio to 3.11.
• Huang Chong drank the foul-tasting Heart-rate Threshold Enhancer while the delayed Headwind Cycling Team riders continued climbing toward the summit.
• Zhang Yi gathered the riders at the summit, reminded them to descend safely, and led them back toward Lin'an District.
• Huang Chong chose to descend behind Wang Qiang and the stronger riders, and the system challenged him to average at least 25 KM/H while safely passing 10 hairpin turns.

Huang Chong safely descended Prince Peak, clearing its hairpin turns with unexpectedly polished technique. The system then refreshed his reward for the descent challenge.

• Huang Chong read that the system’s new Brain Reaction Enhancer could improve his reflexes and thought about the dangers of high-speed descents.
• Huang Chong recalled his fatal cycling accident in his previous life and resolved not to take unnecessary risks.
• Huang Chong descended Prince Peak smoothly, using controlled lines and safe cornering technique while following Wang Qiang and Chen Guangming.
• Liu Junjie praised Huang Chong’s cornering and questioned how he had become so skilled after less than a year of cycling.
• Huang Chong attributed his descending ability to riding the mountain roads around Xianyun County.
• After Huang Chong cleared every hairpin turn, the system refreshed his reward.

After a fast descent at Prince Peak, Huang Chong’s cornering ability was reassessed at 64, earning him optimization points and a Mental Reaction Enhancer. He took the enhancer after the team returned to Lin'an District and discovered that his reactions and ability to anticipate movement had improved.

• Huang Chong learned that the system had reassessed his cornering ability at 64, placing him at the seasoned amateur cyclist level.
• Huang Chong considered training on more climbs and descents and hoped to take part in an amateur race with the team.
• Huang Chong waited until the team had returned to Lin'an District and reached a restaurant before taking the Mental Reaction Enhancer.
• Huang Chong caught Wang Qiang's slipping chopsticks before they hit the floor and realized his reactions had become faster.
• Huang Chong sensed that he could anticipate which dishes the other team members would reach for.

After riding with Liu Junjie and the others, Huang Chong returned to work at the bike shop, where Li Zifan praised his maintenance of a mountain bike and recommended learning mountain biking. The system then prompted Huang Chong to learn the Front-Wheel Lift technique.

• At lunch, Huang Chong stuck to low-calorie food while Liu Junjie and the others admired his discipline, then they split up to head home.
• Huang Chong returned to Du Wei’s home, found him asleep, and went to work at the bike shop under their new piecework arrangement.
• Liu Chaoyang thanked Huang Chong for helping with the shop’s busy workload and discussed the high cost of modern bicycles with him.
• Li Zifan test-rode his serviced YETI SB-150 and praised its condition, then learned that Huang Chong had performed the maintenance.
• Li Zifan encouraged Huang Chong to try mountain biking and explained how to begin learning its techniques.
• The system prompted Huang Chong to learn the basic bike-control technique Front-Wheel Lift.

Huang Chong discovered that the system could award specialized optimization values and asked Li Zifan to teach him mountain-bike skills. After over a hundred attempts, Huang Chong learned the Front-Wheel Lift and received the system’s rewards, with a bonus available when he first performed it on a road bike.

• Huang Chong realized that specialized optimization values could improve individual weaknesses faster than Basic Optimization Points alone.
• Huang Chong asked Li Zifan to teach him the Front-Wheel Lift, and Li Zifan agreed and demonstrated several mountain-bike techniques.
• Li Zifan explained how shifting his center of gravity backward lifted the front wheel, then taught Huang Chong additional handling skills.
• After Li Zifan left, Huang Chong practiced the Front-Wheel Lift on a BMX bike and succeeded after more than a hundred failures.
• The system rewarded Huang Chong with optimization points and trauma ointment and offered five additional specialized values for his first Front-Wheel Lift on a road bike.

Huang Chong mastered the Front-Wheel Lift on both a street trials bike and a road bike, then completed his first fat-loss goal. The system began his second-stage mission after rewarding him for losing five kilograms.

• Huang Chong practiced the Front-Wheel Lift with Li Zifan’s guidance until the system recognized that he had mastered it.
• Huang Chong struggled to perform the move on a road bike, then earned five Specialized Bike-Handling Skill Optimization Points when he succeeded.
• Huang Chong used a Training Recovery Energy Gel for his exhausted, bruised legs and left Du Wei’s bike shop after closing it up.
• Huang Chong watched the Tour de France with Du Wei, where Michael Matthews won the stage and Vingegaard and Pogačar finished far behind.
• Huang Chong weighed 70 kilograms the next morning, and the system announced that he had completed his first-stage fat-loss goal and unlocked the second stage.

Huang Chong focused on losing weight and practicing bike-handling skills while Du Wei challenged his progress and offered him equipment. After a day at the bike shop, Huang Chong prepared to practice a track stand, and the system assigned him a 30-second challenge.

• Huang Chong told Du Wei he had lost 5 kg, and Du Wei confirmed his weight had dropped to 70 kg on the scale.
• Huang Chong explained that he planned to reach 60 kg, while Du Wei doubted he could do so without losing power and challenged him to race around West Lake.
• Huang Chong refused Du Wei's challenge because he planned to practice mountain bike handling skills before joining a cycling event with Zhou Ming.
• Du Wei offered Huang Chong bikes and parts from the shop, and Huang Chong said he had already learned to lift the front wheel and would practice a track stand next.
• After work, Huang Chong took a trials bike outside the shop, and the system set a mission to complete a 30-second track stand for rewards.

Huang Chong learned the track stand and received a restorative ointment from the system, which strengthened his resolve to pursue cycling through his own efforts. He continued practicing Li Zifan’s mountain bike techniques, but the rear-wheel lift took three days and caused many falls.

• Huang Chong examined the Fast-Acting Muscle-and-Bone Repair Ointment and decided to claim it as protection against future injuries.
• Huang Chong practiced the track stand for nearly two hours and successfully learned the technique, earning optimization points and the ointment.
• Huang Chong showed Du Wei the track stand and explained that Li Zifan had taught him mountain bike handling techniques.
• Du Wei praised Huang Chong for befriending Li Zifan and described the influence of Li’s family, but Huang Chong rejected the idea of relying on connections.
• Huang Chong practiced the remaining techniques and took three days to master the rear-wheel lift after numerous crashes.

Huang Chong learned more mountain bike handling techniques, gained permanent physical upgrades, and raised his FTP while losing weight. After Du Wei invited him to ride at Qiandao Lake against Zhou Ming, Huang Chong confidently vowed he would not lose.

• Huang Chong learned Rear-Wheel Lift, took the virus immunity drug, and transferred the technique to his road bike.
• Huang Chong learned Bunny Hop and took an enhancer that raised his extreme anaerobic threshold.
• Huang Chong's weight fell to 65 kg while his FTP climbed to 242 W, giving him a power-to-weight ratio of 3.72.
• Du Wei praised Huang Chong's progress, questioned his muscular build, and invited him to ride at Qiandao Lake with Zhou Ming on Sunday.
• Huang Chong accepted the challenge and vowed to eat Du Wei's 100-inch TV screen if he lost to Zhou Ming.

Huang Chong mastered all five beginner mountain bike handling techniques, improved his cycling ability, and took a pill that strengthened his cardiopulmonary capacity. He traveled with Du Wei to Zhou Ming’s Qiandao Lake event, where he discovered the cycling race was mainly a party and business gathering; the chapter left him listening to Du Wei urge him to flirt with the guests.

• Huang Chong learned the Dolphin Hop, bringing his bike-handling ability to 73 points after mastering all five beginner mountain bike techniques.
• Huang Chong swallowed the Heart-Nourishing Lung-Strengthening Pill and considered how far his optimized body could take him without the System.
• Huang Chong and Du Wei traveled to Chun’an a day early for Zhou Ming’s 50-kilometer Qiandao Lake race.
• Huang Chong found that Zhou Ming’s cycling event was largely a waterside party attended by wealthy guests and cycling girls.
• Du Wei defended the event as a social and business gathering, pointed out the champion’s prize, and encouraged Huang Chong to approach one of the women.

Huang Chong joined Du Wei at Zhou Ming’s gathering, where he focused on the cycling race’s prize money and the chance to fund better equipment. After Zhou Ming challenged Huang Chong’s professional ambitions, they agreed to settle the dispute in the race the next morning.

• Huang Chong decided the 28,888-yuan championship prize could help him upgrade his bike, which he considered inadequate for serious competition.
• Du Wei and Huang Chong arrived at Zhou Ming’s gathering and joined the group for drinks and dinner while the others discussed business.
• Zhou Ming recognized Huang Chong as the former shop visitor who had talked about competing in the Grand Tours, and Du Wei defended his friend’s dedication and brought him to prove himself.
• Zhou Ming challenged Huang Chong to win the next morning’s race, saying he should stop talking about the Grand Tours and Monuments if he could not take the championship.

After Du Wei explained why Zhou Ming resented being unable to pursue cycling, he warned Huang Chong not to throw away a sure chance to win. The next morning, Huang Chong joined a fifty-kilometer race against Zhou Ming, Du Wei, and other riders, and the system tasked him with winning the first victory of his career.

• Du Wei told Huang Chong that Zhou Ming's parents would never allow him to make a career of cycling, and that Zhou Ming's anger came from his lack of freedom.
• Du Wei warned Huang Chong never to deliberately lose when he had a chance to win, and Huang Chong thought of Roglič's defeat in the 2020 Tour de France.
• Huang Chong returned to his room after caring for the drunken Du Wei.
• The next morning, Zhou Ming explained the rules for the fifty-kilometer race, with an aid station at the twenty-five-kilometer mark.
• Du Wei challenged Zhou Ming to a rematch, and Little Rice Grain started the race at 6:30 a.m.
• Huang Chong stayed with the group as the system prompted him to win the first victory of his career for 15 Beginner Optimization Points and a Daily Training Gift Pack x1.

Huang Chong escorted Du Wei through the opening climbs of Zhou Ming’s deliberately hilly race course, but Du Wei struggled and urged him to chase Zhou Ming’s group alone. Huang Chong surged away at 40 KM/H, leaving Du Wei stunned by his sudden strength.

• Huang Chong and Du Wei started Zhou Ming’s race, and Du Wei began struggling on the first two climbs as Zhou Ming’s group pulled ahead.
• Huang Chong kept his pace low to help Du Wei, despite finding the effort easy with his improved fitness.
• Du Wei admitted he could not keep up and told Huang Chong to chase Zhou Ming’s group while he rode on alone.
• Huang Chong accelerated to 40 KM/H and disappeared ahead, leaving Du Wei amazed at how much stronger he had become.

Huang Chong chased Zhou Ming’s group through the mountain stages while Du Wei was stunned by Huang Chong’s dramatic improvement. Zhou Ming’s paid support riders believed they had secured an easy win, but Huang Chong caught them on a 5% climb.

• Du Wei watched Huang Chong sustain a much faster pace than before and wondered whether losing weight had transformed his cycling ability.
• Huang Chong pursued Zhou Ming’s five-rider group after they disappeared into the forested climbs.
• Zhou Ming’s four paid riders took turns setting the pace and supplied him with drinks and energy gels at Ganwu Village.
• Zhou Ming refused to slow down, believing Du Wei and Huang Chong could not catch them.
• Huang Chong reached the foot of the 5% climb and, maintaining 240W, caught up with Zhou Ming’s group.

Huang Chong used repeated climbing attacks and superior recovery to wear down Zhou Ming and his hired riders, then narrowly beat Zhou Ming at the mountaintop finish. He claimed the first victory of his career and received optimization points and a training gift pack.

• Huang Chong attacked on the climb, but Zhou Ming's hired rider followed and the group caught up with him on the descent.
• Huang Chong launched a second climbing attack that exhausted the rider chasing him and left Zhou Ming's group struggling.
• Huang Chong recovered quickly and, despite having enough strength to break away, held back to avoid humiliating Zhou Ming outright.
• Huang Chong drained Zhou Ming's remaining support riders on the final climbs, then edged Zhou Ming by about one bike length at the finish.
• Huang Chong received 15 Basic Optimization Points and a Daily Training Gift Pack for winning the first race of his career.