If soone were to interview Li Wei, a complete novice in the world of football who stepped into this realm just in April, what would he regard as the most important lesson he had learned?
Li Wei would reply, "The atmosphere of the ga."
Whether as a forr cross-country runner or a mixed martial arts fighter, the atmospheres he had experienced were different, especially in cross-country running, which often required battling alone in solitude.
However, football was not like that.
The sight of a hundred thousand people in frenzy at Bryant Denny Stadium needs no further description, and even during regular training sessions, one could feel the fervor of the town and university—cheers and screams everywhere, a constant shock for soone used to the sounds of wind, water, and leaves as a cross-country runner.
His roommate, Hunter, gave Li Wei a valuable piece of advice—
Noise-cancelling headphones.
Hunter did it to look cool, admiring the swimrs or soccer players who took the field with headphones on; but Li Wei took the advice seriously for the noise cancellation, and he'd grown accustod to the company of headphones.
Today was no exception.
After learning from Mr. Know-It-All Humphrey that the AT&T Stadium was likely to hit a new record in attendance, Li Wei brought along his recent treasure number one.
He put on his headphones early, ignoring the clamor outside the bus, yet he could still feel the fervor of the scene through the slight vibrations of the seat.
Compared to intrasquad gas and warm-ups, today Li Wei was more composed. Over the past four months, the continuous training through the McCoy and Peterson templates at different fields and ho grounds, combined with the accumulation of virtual ga experiences, was not entirely ineffective.
Arrival.
Li Wei waited briefly, but seeing that the other players were all quietly seated and motionless, he turned back to look at everyone.
Given the large number of players in a football team, they usually boarded the bus in groups—two buses for the offensive group, two for the defensive group, mixed with mbers of the Special Duty Group across four buses; so teams even needed five buses, mixing so special duty personnel or main players into the coaches' bus.
At that mont, Li Wei didn't see the joker Humphrey; Clark, sitting to his right, was nervously swallowing. Li Wei didn't think too much about it and stood up to lead the way off the bus—
There were still three buses waiting to unload.
Clark's eyes widened as he called out anxiously, "Li Wei!"
"Ronnie!" Hertz called out.
Clark anxiously closed his mouth.
Li Wei gave Hertz a aningful look, then reassured Clark with comforting eyes and continued moving forward as the bus door opened.
Rustling, rustling.
A murmur of whispers rose from behind him, mixing laughter and secret talks, bustling with excitent—without even speaking, the elation and fervor in their expressions were clearer than ever, no need to be overly smart to guess—
The ti had co for the veterans to "school" the rookie.
Clearly, this was a prank.
Earlier, Li Wei had been wondering, until now the team mbers still routinely called out "rookie," even those who had just entered the university from high school weren't spared. Given Li Wei's experience in football, he indeed was a rookie, so was it not unusual they hadn't orchestrated a prank or roughhouse?
Unusual.
Now it seed, it wasn't that there weren't any, but rather they were waiting for an opportunity, and today, it had co.
Li Wei, his face calm and composed, ready to et challenges head-on as they arrive.
Following the eager gazes of Hertz and others, one could notice that their target was likely the photographers' team or the frenzy of journalists ahead.
However, compared to Li Wei, the young players on the Offensive group's bus weren't faring much better.
Over the years, Crimson Tide Storm had always been the center of NCAA discussions, but the last wave of championship heroes had all graduated. It was sowhat unexpected that this new group of players had clinched the nationwide championship last year. They were unused to such a spectacle, and the dia had focused primarily on Derrick Henry at that ti, making the current chaos quite overwhelming.
Li Wei, on the other hand, appeared particularly calm, having stepped out of the bus as soon as the doors had opened.
Whoosh.
A throng of hosts, cara lenses, microphones, lights, and more surged forward, bustling and bustling about, quickly surrounding Li Wei.
Instantly, Li Wei's impressive height was conspicuous. Usually, in the team, a height of 6.1 feet (185 cm) seed quite ordinary, nothing special; but now, he imdiately "rose" out of the crowd.
"Excuse !"
The microphone, thrust toward Li Wei as though it was Jing Ke stabbing the King of Qin, nearly stuffed into Li Wei's mouth, while the host Samantha Pond tiptoed to secure her position at the forefront.
This ABC football host, unlike others who might be intimidated by the height and physique of football players, was definitely not. She had married Christian Ponder, a quarterback who played for multiple NFL teams, in 2012.
Maybe Pond wasn't a top player, but this quarterback, who joined the League in 2011, was a genuinely decent guy with many friends in the League. By association, everyone was also on good terms with Samantha and willing to show her so favor.
The young man before her wore sunglasses, his palm-sized cheeks covering most of his face; he wore headphones, his head nearly swallowed by gear, completely obscuring his face.
But in that hurried mont, Samantha Pond couldn't care less. The NCAA teams had too many staff, and she had to be decisive and focus on her priorities, or else the interview was going to turn into a disaster.
"What are your expectations for the new season? How do you view the team's prospects for defending the championship? With Derrick Henry gone, can Li Wei take up the team's ground offensive mantle, and can he inherit Henry's mantle?"
Li Wei slightly lifted his chin—
So, was this the scene everyone was anticipating?
He didn't need to look back; probably every guy on the bus had beco a erkat glued to the windows, eagerly watching the show unfold.
Not just the first bus, but the doors of a second bus had also opened, revealing Humphrey's head stealthily peeking around.
It seed, the well-inford Humphrey might have caught wind of sothing.
Yet, Li Wei had no particular reaction, his expression calm, he gestured behind him with his hand, "He's in the back."
Having said that, he pulled his headphone back down and proceeded forward.
Cool and composed, unflustered. Chapter Discover:
Samantha didn't doubt or stop the player from leaving, signaling the cara crew to continue focusing on the bus door, aiming for the next player.
And Li Wei?
He didn't linger or hesitate, re-entering his world, leaving behind a solitary, brisk figure. Fans on either side of the player's tunnel entrance surged like a tide, shouts and screams interspersed, the swelling heatwave enveloping that figure, submitting to him entirely.
The world, thus, lay prostrate at his feet.
Despite the noisy, tumultuous scene, there erupted a solemn and mournful atmosphere, as if from scenes of "I am Legend" with Will Smith and his dog setting out alone, vividly coming to mind.
This scene, like a world-renowned painting.
Humphrey: Damn, tricked by him again.
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