SSD 61. Qinghuo vs Kongxin: A Battlefield Without Gunfire

The stands had erupted into a storm of chatter. Every spectator on-site was roused by the match unfolding before them. A dark horse up against a seeded team, yet it was becoming clear that the seasoned powerhouse still held the upper hand. With absolute strength and overwhelming dominance, Kongxin’s performance was simply too dazzling.

That wave of excitement in the audience stood in sharp contrast to the silence weighing down the Qinghuo bench.

No one spoke. Each of them sat there lost in thought, motionless, as if the will to push forward had been drained from their bodies.

As much as they hated to admit it, they had run out of ideas.

The atmosphere was stifling.

No one knew how much time passed before He Jiang finally rose to his feet and shattered the frozen stillness.

“Let’s try that strategy from last time.”

Four pairs of eyes turned to him. He Jiang’s voice was steady.

“The one we used in the first match against Shuanglan.”

Little by little, their memories began to resurface. During the game against Shuanglan, they had used the very strategy He Jiang was now proposing. It had turned the tide and helped them seize a decisive advantage.

“Maybe it really will work,” Pan Yuan added with encouragement. “Come on, let’s give it another shot.”

Zhu Xuyao glanced at Pan Yuan. In the end, he clenched his jaw and stood up first.

“I’m in.”

Right after him, Fang Ruihan, Wen Qin, and Xu Fanming all rose from their seats. Eventually, all five of them were standing.

At this point, there was nothing else to try. Desperate times called for desperate measures. They had no other options left.

All that remained was to go all in. Maybe there was still one last chance to turn the game around.

Just before they returned to the court, Xu Fanming found himself staring absentmindedly across at Kongxin’s bench. Fang Ruihan walked over and asked,

“Fanming, what is it?”

Following Xu Fanming’s gaze, he saw the five Kongxin players gathered around their coach. As always, Tan Ren wore his gentle smile. The others, though mostly silent, looked relaxed and at ease in front of their coach.

The man standing with them was short, only around 170 centimeters tall. He was a bald middle-aged man in a coach’s uniform, his face animated with energy. When he smiled, deep laugh lines formed on either side of his mouth. He patted Peng Ning on the shoulder and said something to him, making Peng Ning scratch his head in embarrassment. Eventually, light smiles appeared on all their faces. The atmosphere was warm, almost casual.

Xu Fanming murmured, “Captain, why hasn’t our coach come back yet…”

Fang Ruihan was silent for a moment. Then he lifted his head and glanced across at the opposing bench. A flicker of nostalgia appeared on his face. “That man is Coach Yang. Actually, our Coach Qiu and he go way back.”

“They do?” Xu Fanming blinked. “What do you mean?”

“They graduated from the same school,” Fang Ruihan said with a faint smile. “Both of them are outstanding coaches, and they used to be close. Back then, they would even have the two teams train together.”

Xu Fanming frowned. “Then doesn’t that make it even more important for Coach to be here today?”

Fang Ruihan let out a quiet sigh. “He must have his reasons. We lost to Kongxin in last year’s match. And we all know… he was the one who took it the hardest.”

“And now he’s disappointed in us, so he just decided not to come this year? Out of sight, out of mind?” Xu Fanming’s brows furrowed, his voice brimming with frustration. “How can he do that? He’s the coach for the entire team.”

Seeing that Xu Fanming was getting worked up, Fang Ruihan quickly raised a hand and made a calming gesture.

“That’s not it. Don’t jump to conclusions.”

“Whatever the reason, it’s still a fact that he’s absent from such an important game.” As he continued, his voice grew quieter. “You said it yourself, last year’s loss to Kongxin brought so much shame. All the more reason for him to be here today. Even if he didn’t have some amazing strategy to teach us, he could at least cheer us on…”

Fang Ruihan’s eyes stung with emotion. The thought had crossed his mind as well. Last year, it had been their first competition. The coach had fought alongside them, had laughed and grown with them. But this year, all of a sudden, they were on their own. They had no choice but to charge into battle alone, fumbling their way forward and learning through pain.

Still—

“That’s enough. Talking about this now won’t change anything.” Fang Ruihan patted Xu Fanming’s shoulder. “What happens outside the court won’t decide the outcome. Fanming, for the rest of this match, we can only rely on ourselves.”

The game resumed.

There were only three minutes left in the second quarter. They still had a chance, did they?

No matter what, they could no longer afford another defeat.

Qinghuo regained possession. Just like in their match against Shuanglan, Wen Qin brought the ball past half court. As he advanced, the players quietly shifted into formation, their positions aligning into a sharp arrowhead on the court.

Fang Ruihan and Zhu Xuyao were stationed on either side of the three-point arc, while He Jiang and Xu Fanming held the two ends of the paint. Across from them, Tan Ren was guarding Fang Ruihan, and Zhu Xuyao was being watched closely by Yuan Dan. Inside the paint, Xu Fanming was locked down by Zhuo Chang, while He Jiang faced Xing Yunyang.

And standing in front of Wen Qin, with a faint smile on his lips, was Peng Ning.

Even Pan Yuan on the sidelines could feel the tension crackling in the air. She drew a sharp breath.

If everything went smoothly according to He Jiang’s plan, then Wen Qin would first pass the ball to Fang Ruihan outside the arc. Zhu Xuyao would use the distraction to break free of Yuan Dan and slip into the paint. That step should not be difficult for him. Fang Ruihan would then pass the ball to Zhu Xuyao, making it look as if he were about to take the shot and draw Xing Yunyang’s attention. Then Zhu Xuyao would pass the ball to He Jiang under the basket, giving him the perfect chance to break through Xing Yunyang’s defense and dunk it in before anyone could react.

But the real question was, could Wen Qin get past Peng Ning’s defense?

After that harrowing one-on-one earlier, Wen Qin had already drawn one foul, and now understood just how formidable Peng Ning truly was. If he could not even take the first step, the rest of the plan would collapse entirely. Whether He Jiang’s tactic could turn the tide of the game now depended on whether Wen Qin could overcome his fear and take that first step forward.

At that moment, Wen Qin was filled with hesitation.

His knee, scraped raw from the earlier fall, still throbbed faintly with pain. He looked up at Peng Ning, who loomed imposingly in front of him, and tightened his grip on the basketball.

What now? How was he supposed to overcome this mountain standing in his way and get the ball out?

He bit down hard on his lip. Time was ticking by. There was no time left to think.

Dribbling forward, he suddenly clutched the ball in both hands and aimed for the floor between Peng Ning’s outstretched legs, throwing the ball low. It was a move he had seen his teammates use many times. By bouncing the ball off the floor to send it through the defender’s stance and catching it again on the other side, he could slip past the defense.

But he was wrong.

What he had not anticipated was that, while Peng Ning was momentarily surprised, he immediately understood his intent the moment Wen Qin made his move. Before the ball even touched the ground, Peng Ning swept out his hand and cut it off, successfully snatching it back.

There was no expression on Peng Ning’s face. He merely muttered to himself, “Monkey fishing for the moon?”

Pan Yuan off-court could only stare in disbelief. Was he seriously giving the move a name right now?

Wen Qin’s face went pale. The four other teammates on the court froze in place.

Had the plan failed already, right from the first step?

No. This was their final chance. If they could not pull it off, if they failed again…

Peng Ning let out a faint smile, dribbled the ball once, and brushed past Wen Qin’s shoulder, ready to run it across to Qinghuo’s side of the court.

But then, his brows furrowed. His pupils contracted.

His hand was empty.

Peng Ning whipped his head around and saw that Qinghuo’s No. 6, Xu Fanming, had somehow slipped behind him and seized the opening to steal the ball cleanly from his hands.

Wen Qin’s eyes went wide. The crowd roared again. The long-awaited reversal had happened!

Xu Fanming had no time to think, no time to calculate. He reacted on pure instinct, charging forward with two hurried steps. Before he could steady his footing, he threw the ball in a wide, unbalanced arc toward Fang Ruihan.

Smack. It crashed into Zhuo Changyi’s hand.

His tall figure cast a heavy shadow over Xu Fanming’s face. His grip on the ball faltered. Zhuo Changyi seized the moment, using sheer force to strip the ball away and, in the same movement, sent Xu Fanming sprawling hard onto the ground.

Like the mantis stalking the cicada, only to be caught by the oriole behind, within seconds, the momentum shifted again. Players from both teams dove in, one after another, vying for the ball with relentless aggression. Step by step, collision after collision, it felt like they would fight until every limb was bloodied.

The brutal match was far from over.

Xu Fanming groaned from the pain, forcing himself up on his elbow, still trying to lunge for the ball in Zhuo Changyi’s hand. Fang Ruihan could not stand to watch any longer. He charged forward and stepped in front of Zhuo Changyi to block his path. Qinghuo’s captain met him with eyes burning with restrained fury, startling Zhuo Changyi enough to falter.

In that moment of hesitation, Fang Ruihan swiftly reached in and snatched the ball. At the same time, Zhu Xuyao, who had long been waiting for his moment, gritted his teeth and finally broke through Yuan Dan’s defense.

The ball left Fang Ruihan’s hand and flew to Zhu Xuyao, who was now in the paint. Though the start had been chaotic, everything was finally falling into place according to plan. Off the court, Pan Yuan stared with wide, anxious eyes, unable to stop herself from praying silently. Please, just this once, let it succeed.

Zhu Xuyao caught the ball and raised it above his head, faking a shot. He stayed alert, scanning the court with the corner of his eye.

Surprise flickered across both Yuan Dan and Zhuo Changyi’s faces.

Good.

Now, as soon as Xing Yunyang made any move toward him, he would pass the ball. If a direct attack would not work, then he would rely on his coordination with God He to seize this precious two points.

One—

Zhu Xuyao’s palms began to sweat. What was going on? Why was Xing Yunyang staring directly at him, yet not making a single move? Did he not care that Zhu Xuyao had already broken through the paint and could score at any moment?

Two—

Had Xing Yunyang already seen through their entire plan? What now? Should he change course and shoot instead of passing? No, he had to make a decision fast, or risk violating the three-second rule in the paint.

Then suddenly, Xing Yunyang moved. His body leaned in Zhu Xuyao’s direction. Zhu Xuyao seized the moment like a man granted a pardon. Just before the three-second mark, he flung the ball toward He Jiang.

But the moment He Jiang caught the ball, his brow tightened. Something was off.

The ball had barely touched his hands when Xing Yunyang snapped back with explosive force, retracting the foot he had just stepped out with. That lean from before had only been a feint.

“Whoa, a trap within a trap!”

“Wait, what just happened? Was that Kongxin’s No. 15 baiting Qinghuo’s No. 13 into making that pass?”

“Incredible read on the play!”

While the crowd gasped in admiration, the hearts of the five players from Qinghuo sank lower and lower.

It was over. Everything had reset.

It was finished. Every effort they had made, the carefully calculated play, all of it unraveled in the final step.

All their hopes, sweat, and struggle… wasted.

He Jiang’s hand began to grow cold. His expression hardened. Just how much power was this man still holding back? Why was it that no matter what they did, they still could not overcome him, not even once?

Were they really no more than helpless ants to Kongxin, crushed at a whim?

No. It was already over. There was nothing more they could do to turn the tide.

“He Jiang!”

A shout exploded across the court. Xing Yunyang’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. He Jiang snapped his head up and met Xu Fanming’s eyes. They were blazing, intense, filled with unyielding fire.

“Pass it to me.”

They had fought side by side for so long that He Jiang could read those four words from Xu Fanming’s burning eyes without a sound. His chest gave a sharp tremble. His eyes stung.

Xu Fanming had already picked himself up from the floor, charging back into the paint and taking position in prime territory under the basket, ready to receive the pass and drive it through the net.

“When did Qinghuo’s No. 6 get there?”

“He’s so fast, so tough!”

He Jiang’s hands shook. “Fanming.”

Always full of fight. Always unwilling to lose. This was his small forward.

He Jiang summoned everything he had left and hurled the ball past Xing Yunyang’s outstretched defense.

Xu Fanming caught it with gritted teeth.

The ball landed in his grip. For one suspended second, the world fell away. The noise, the heat, the fury surging in his chest, everything disappeared. He raised the ball above his head, adjusted his footing, and closed his eyes.

He staked everything. His sweat, their last shred of hope, and all of Qinghuo’s pride, and hurled the ball.

Smack!

The ball veered off course. It spun wildly, slicing toward the referees’ table on the sidelines. The staff nearby flinched and scattered. The court dissolved into a flurry of confused motion.

Xu Fanming stood frozen, his mind blank. Slowly, he opened his eyes and saw Yuan Dan, drenched in sweat, standing beneath the rim. His lips pressed into a tight line as he lowered his hand.

BEEP—BEEP!

The second quarter was over.