SSD 56. Qinghuo vs. Kongxin: A Tough Battle

The whistle blew. The game was on.

The ball shot into the air, and at its peak, Xing Yunyang leapt and slammed it away with a powerful palm.

“Damn!” Pan Yuan shot up from her seat in alarm. “He Jiang was half a step too slow!”

The ball spun midair before landing cleanly in the hands of a waiting teammate. He Jiang looked up, startled, and caught sight of the name across the red jersey. Zhuo Changyi.

They had lost the jump ball.

“Fall back!”

Fang Ruihan’s voice rang out from behind. Everyone quickly refocused and sprinted into defensive positions.

The one now holding the ball was Kongxin’s small forward, Zhuo Changyi, No. 7, with the parted haircut. Xu Fanming recognized him immediately. As a fellow small forward, something in him sparked. He locked onto his target and quickly closed in. But the moment he stood in front of Zhuo Changyi, he was struck by the difference. This guy stood at 188 centimeters, a good few inches taller than him.

Xu Fanming glanced around. A 182-centimeter point guard, a 185 shooting guard, a 190 center, and a power forward breaking past two meters… Somehow, he had become the shortest one on the court.

What kind of demon lineup was this…

He swallowed hard, just as a cold, cutting gaze swept across his field of vision. He looked up sharply, and locked eyes with Zhuo Changyi.

After crossing half court, Xu Fanming quickly cut in to block his path to the paint. That would shut down a direct drive, but as he narrowed his eyes, he began to read the situation. Pass, shoot, or break through, what would Zhuo Changyi choose?

“Xing Yunyang is definitely the ace of Kongxin.”

That had been Fang Ruihan’s words during training camp. The team had gathered in a circle to study game footage and strategy.

Fang Ruihan had spoken seriously. “No matter what, you must always keep an eye on him. Even the smallest motion can reveal a lot.”

“Xu Fanming!”

He Jiang’s voice suddenly rang out from behind. Xu Fanming snapped out of it and jolted back to focus. In front of him, Zhuo Changyi’s eyes darkened, and in the next instant, he faked low with a one-handed motion—

Xu Fanming’s whole body tensed. A fake-out. It was a pass!

Just as Zhuo Changyi finished the fake and swung the ball upward, ready to pass it toward Xing Yunyang near the paint, a hand suddenly shot up in front of him, blocking his view and trying hard to disrupt the play.

Xu Fanming.

Zhuo Changyi frowned, then abruptly switched directions. The ball shifted smoothly from his left hand to his right, and in the next second, it sailed high over Xu Fanming’s head in a sharp, clean pass.

His defense had been broken.

At that moment, Xing Yunyang was still being tightly guarded by He Jiang. He Jiang saw Xu Fanming get passed and narrowed his eyes. Bracing his back firmly against Xing Yunyang’s body, he reached out with both hands, trying to intercept the ball before it landed.

Then, he heard something.

A faint laugh, like it came from just behind his ear. It slipped past like wind, barely there.

He Jiang’s heart skipped.

Something was wrong.

He squinted sharply and roughly calculated the ball’s trajectory. It looked like it was going to land about two meters ahead of them. That couldn’t be right. Had the pass just fallen short? But passing was basic. Someone like Kongxin’s small forward shouldn’t be making a mistake like that.

Unless it was intentional all along.

Which meant Xing Yunyang might not be the real target at all.

And if that was the case, He Jiang needed to block him even harder.

He felt the steps behind him shift left. He tilted his weight that way, trying to cut him off, but Xing Yunyang had already slipped past on the right. Before He Jiang could recover, the other man had burst around him in a clean, explosive break.

Shit.

Smack!

The moment of hesitation had cost him. Xing Yunyang caught the ball cleanly.

All eyes locked onto the court.

Xing Yunyang was a dangerous center. Tall, powerful, and technically precise. To let him take control this early in the game tightened every player’s nerves.

Watching He Jiang scramble to follow, Xu Fanming’s mind fired off a single thought.

Help defense.

Get in there and help!

If they didn’t stop him now…

Xu Fanming took off running toward Xing Yunyang. In his head, he quickly ran through the possibilities: He Jiang cutting off the drive, both of them teaming up to block him, or Xing Yunyang breaking past both of them. What then?

He looked up, and in that instant, locked eyes with Xing Yunyang.

A steady gaze. Confident, almost amused.

It was the look of someone saying, Now.

Xu Fanming froze.

It was a signal, subtle but practiced. A cue shared between teammates.

And the one it was meant for… was Zhuo Changyi, standing just behind him.

They were going for a backdoor cut.

“Kongxin doesn’t just have Xing Yunyang.”

When Fang Ruihan had said that, his expression was grave. Every member of Qinghuo had drawn in a sharp breath. “Kongxin’s threat level is beyond anything you’ve ever imagined.”

In that instant, both He Jiang and Xu Fanming froze. Zhuo Changyi, who had been blocked by Xu Fanming a moment ago, suddenly broke free and darted toward the basket.

So Xing Yunyang had only been a decoy for Zhuo Changyi’s screen.

But by the time they realized it, it was already too late. Zhuo Changyi, using his explosive speed, had pulled ahead of the defenders and was charging straight for the rim. Xu Fanming whipped his head back and forth in a panic. It was already too late to double-team Xing Yunyang, and he could not switch back to guard Zhuo Changyi either. At this point, there was only one option left.

A cold sweat broke out across Xu Fanming’s back. He turned to He Jiang with an urgent look in his eyes.

That’s right. The play wasn’t over yet. As long as the ball was still in Xing Yunyang’s hands, as long as He Jiang could lock him down, as long as—

He Jiang’s gaze sharpened. He lunged, reaching out to intercept the pass. But Xing Yunyang’s dribbling was lightning-fast and fluid, shifting the ball from left to right, then from between his legs to behind his back… It was seamless, like his body and the basketball were fused as one. There were no gaps to exploit. He Jiang couldn’t find a single opening.

Just as Zhuo Changyi broke through Qinghuo’s defense and reached the ideal spot beneath the hoop, Xing Yunyang made the pass. He Jiang narrowed his eyes.

At the exact same moment, He Jiang threw his arm out with everything he had, moving purely on instinct. It was as if a gust of wind had slammed into his ears.

Huh?

Wait, where was the ball?

He jolted back to his senses, staring at his empty palm in shock. Then he looked up, and what he saw froze his limbs and caught his breath in his throat.

The ball had already cut clean through the paint and landed perfectly in Zhuo Changyi’s hands.

The Qinghuo players were all visibly shaken. For a moment, no one reacted. It was too late. They were about to lose two points. In that flash of a second, just as the ball was about to be slammed into the hoop with a powerful three-step layup, a bright figure burst out from under the basket.

It was Xu Fanming.

He lifted his chin stubbornly, his lips pressed tightly together. He reached toward Zhuo Changyi’s raised right arm, aiming to block the shot. He wanted to stop the ball clean out of the air. A bold, flying block. Zhuo Changyi’s eyes widened slightly, startled by the sudden appearance of that fuzzy head.

Maybe Xu Fanming really was fast. Maybe his vertical really was strong.

But then, Zhuo Changyi’s expression smoothed out.

He gently pushed with his fingers, sending the ball from his right to his left. Xu Fanming’s block missed completely. The next moment, the ball was already in Zhuo Changyi’s left hand. A seamless midair switch.

Then, with his left hand, he pushed the ball straight into the hoop.

Opening points went to Kongxin. Two to zero.

A perfect combo, dazzling movement, a smooth switch-hand layup, beautiful on-the-spot adjustment. The crowd roared.

The stands erupted, but on the court, He Jiang and Xu Fanming looked as if they had just taken a bucket of cold water to the face.

Xu Fanming was still dazed. It was his first time going for a block and being outmaneuvered by a simple hand switch. He could not help but marvel at the opposing small forward’s adaptability, then turned to look at He Jiang.

He Jiang stood at the sideline with a dark expression, saying nothing.

That moment just now, how had Xing Yunyang pulled that off?

It had been a long time since He Jiang felt this kind of frustration from losing. Whether it was against Yangsheng or the Shuanglan, he had always been able to pinpoint the other team’s fatal flaw easily.

But today…

Even the most basic support pass was full of unexpected variations. This opponent was playing in a completely different league from the ones they had faced before.

Was he the one with a fatal flaw now?

“Hey.”

A familiar voice pulled He Jiang out of that freezing fog in his head.

“…Hm?”

He looked up into Xu Fanming’s familiar eyes, and his heart suddenly trembled.

“What are you spacing out for?” Xu Fanming stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly curled his lips into a smile. “You’re the one who told me to take the game seriously.”

He Jiang blinked. Then the corners of his lips gradually lifted, and his eyes grew clearer.

Xu Fanming smiled too, then turned back onto the court and ran after Wen Qin, who was bringing the ball down. He moved to screen for him, helping him cross half court.

He was all in now.

Once He Jiang had finished smiling, he looked up again at Xu Fanming’s focused back and murmured in a daze.

“You’re right. The game… is still going.”

This was only the beginning.

Wen Qin crossed half court and passed the ball straight to the fired-up Xu Fanming. Xu Fanming looked up and took in the layout on the court. He Jiang had locked down Xing Yunyang. Fang Ruihan had covered Zhuo Changyi.

Now was the time.

Xu Fanming took a big step into the paint. Wen Qin passed him the ball in perfect rhythm. The moment he caught it, Xu Fanming’s heart ignited.

The real show was about to begin. He was going for his signature Euro step layup.

Xu Fanming glanced at the help defender who had finally arrived. The name on his chest read “Peng Ning,” the shooting guard from Kongxin. Xu Fanming smiled, the corners of his mouth curling with confidence. He controlled the ball and charged into the paint with wide, swaying steps, using a feint to effortlessly shake the defender off his back.

Peng Ning blinked his wide eyes, then looked up to find that Xu Fanming had already pulled far ahead.

The Euro step was a swaying, zigzagging advance that easily misled defenders and drew them into the trap of misjudging the direction. But to execute it properly required strong fundamentals and a practiced sense of performance.

Xu Fanming had always been quite confident in his theatrics on the court.

With the hoop drawing closer, close enough that he could reach out and touch it with a single leap, Xu Fanming narrowed his eyes into a smile. In his heart, he silently shouted, “Watch this, Daddy is about to give you all a Dragon Crossing the River.”

But at the very moment he leapt into the air, a blurry black shadow suddenly swept across his vision. In that split second, Xu Fanming abruptly felt the ball vanish from his hands. His pupils shrank.

A sharp impact struck his shoulder, knocking him slightly off balance. The jolt of pain made him turn around quickly, and what he saw was a figure he knew all too well, dribbling the ball that should have been his.

“Number 5…” Pan Yuan was so tense she nearly forgot to breathe. “He actually stole the ball from Fanfan.”

Fang Ruihan was stunned as well. He turned his head to glance at He Jiang. “Isn’t that…”

He Jiang watched the swiftly moving figure on the court and slowly said his name.

“Yuan Dan.”

Number 5, Yuan Dan, who had always lingered silently on the edges of the team, suddenly erupted with a stunning steal. Xu Fanming stood frozen, staring at his empty hands, the chill spreading through his entire body.

Yuan Dan, who had always gone unnoticed. Yuan Dan, whom he had once looked down on.

Now, with barely any effort, Yuan Dan had stolen the ball from him and dragged him down from the heights of his own delusion.

“Kongxin doesn’t only have Xing Yunyang. There are other good players too… the difficulty of facing Kongxin is far beyond what any of you can imagine.”

At this moment, Xu Fanming began to understand what that sentence meant.

Yuan Dan drove into the paint with the ball, took three quick steps, and scored.

4 to 0.

The gap was starting to widen.