Chapter 240: Chapter 239: Champion Plunderer Upgrade (21 more)
However, as the law of diminishing marginal utility applies, the greater the genetic superiority, the smaller the optimization effect becomes. Therefore, the differences in appearance, physique, and physical attributes among members of families with a heritage of certain years are relatively small.
Of course, children from ordinary families need not worry. While they may not have the inheritance of superior genes from generation to generation, the wonderful thing about biology is that there is still the potential for mutations.
And more often than not, it’s the mutants who are the top-tier individuals.
Those with breakthroughs in appearance, height, physical strength, or who have thoroughly unlocked certain genetic locks, can certainly rise to the top.
Moreover, it is these individuals who often drive advancements in major sports and technology sectors. They are the true geniuses, with a higher potential than those who are artificially created.
"Ding! Your burst speed, stride frequency, and leg strength limits have been unlocked by +5!"
Deng Kai’s limits in these three data points have now reached 90, 95, and 90 respectively!
The key point is that he was already strong in these aspects; this enhancement simply elevated his strengths. His attributes in football, which could only be considered above average, now have the chance to become excellent in the future.
However, even so, there is still some distance between him and those genetically mutated football geniuses.
Bale’s speed, Messi’s stride frequency, Carlos’s leg strength, Drogba’s physical robustness—these are the real monsters.
"Ding! A large amount of unused training poles and other items have been detected. Choosing to recycle can be converted into Progress Points, which can be used to upgrade the Champion Plunderer Medal!"
"You choose to recycle training poles*472, earning Progress Points..."
"You choose to recycle energy drinks*376, earning Progress Points..."
"You choose to recycle Cech’s hockey stick*1... You have cancelled this recycle..."
"You choose to recycle medical bandages*102, earning Progress Points..."
"You have successfully used Progress Points to upgrade the Champion Plunderer Medal."
"Champion Plunderer Medal (Silver): Can be equipped. Does not occupy an equipment slot. Upgradable, current level: Silver. Each championship won increases overall ability by one percent! After the boost, individual attribute ratings can reach a maximum of eighty. Attributes over eighty will not be affected. Special ability for the silver medal acquired: ’Counterattack From Now’ (11)!"
"Counterattack From Now (11): When you transform the opponent’s ball possession into your own within your defensive area, the team’s next eleven passes become extremely difficult to lose."
In the end, Deng Kai just couldn’t bear to melt down Cech’s hockey stick.
After all, it’s a rare wearable drop from a football star.
Wouldn’t it be a bit of a loss to simply recycle it as scrap?
It’s said that hockey is the only sport where fighting is legal, so even though the stick is useless, wearing it makes Deng Kai feel very reassured when playing football.
Before the upgrade of the Champion Plunderer Medal, the attribute limit was seventy-five.
And many of Deng Kai’s attributes had already reached this level, so the increase wasn’t that significant for him.
But now that it has reached eighty, the improvement is considerable.
Because so far, Deng Kai has no attribute that has directly reached eighty.
His highest is short passing at seventy-nine.
Then comes ball control and stride frequency at seventy-seven, agility at seventy-six.
Following are advantages in attributes like seventy-two, seventy-one, and so on.
Of course, there are also a bunch of mediocre attributes around the sixties.
And there are attributes like tackling, blocking, and clearing that are defensive weaknesses.
However, the unfortunate part is that the improvement for the bronze level was three percent for each championship.
But for silver, it is reduced to one percent per championship, a discount.
It could be said that it was trading the upper limit for enhanced performance, choosing the future over the present.
After all, if Deng Kai kept seeing the effects of the bronze medal for one or two more seasons, he wouldn’t need the medal’s effects anymore because his own stats would surely surpass the limits of the medal by then.
...
June 10th, 2000.
The European Championship spectacularly kicked off.
Sixteen teams divided into four groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the knockout rounds.
Belgium, as one of the hosts, got the games underway, facing off against Sweden at the Emperor’s Stadium in Brussels.
In the end, the Belgians defeated Sweden 2-1.
Historically, in major cup competitions around the world, the host’s opening match is more often won than lost.
In fact, in the history of the World Cup, no host nation had lost an opening match, except for Qatar in 2022.
This European Championship, Deng Kai and Ronaldo were already well-off, so they went to the stadium and watched most of the matches in person.
During a series of matches for Portugal’s national team, Deng Kai and Ronaldo even appeared in the player’s family area, enjoying an excellent view of the game.
For matches involving Spain, France, Italy, and others, the two were invited by some of the stars to watch the games from the luxury of a private box, a truly enjoyable experience.
And the cameras at the stadium often gave them screen time.
Then the commentators would introduce to the European Championship’s viewers, "Oh, the camera is now focused on Deng Kai and Ronaldo, they’ve come to watch the game too. Some fans might find them unfamiliar, but these two are the hot new superstars of Portugal."
"They led their team to win both the Portuguese League championship and the Portuguese Cup, and it’s rumored they’ll get playing time in the Primeira Liga next season!"
Of course, for the first few matches, Hathaway was there with Deng Kai.
This made Ronaldo absolutely furious.
Watching them being lovey-dovey, sharing popcorn in a feed-each-other manner, don’t they have their own hands?
And the two of them sharing the same cup of milk tea, aren’t they scared of bacterial infections?
What infuriated him the most was the goal celebrations, so what if you score a goal, Hathaway? Why the over-the-top kissing with Deng Kai? It’s just a football game; what would happen if it were a basketball game?
Fortunately, after a brief unpleasantness,
Hathaway returned to the United States to participate in auditions and shooting a new film.
That movie’s offer wasn’t even considered by Hathaway’s agent initially.
Hathaway had joked with Deng Kai about it, "Shooting that kind of movie is really hard, of course, I’m not afraid of it, and I could try, but my agent thinks it really doesn’t fit with the roles I usually play."
"You must realize that even in The Lord of the Rings, the Elven princess character I played was more like a decorative piece, I just needed to look pretty."
"But that offer involves not only harsh shooting conditions but also a lot of fight scenes."
"Comparatively, I think Demi Moore or Angelina Jolie would indeed be more suited than me."
Deng Kai asked, "That certainly isn’t fitting, wait... which movie are you talking about?"
Hathaway, "It’s the film adaptation of a game, ’Tomb Raider’."
"Oh... this..." Deng Kai was taken aback, "If it’s that movie, then I actually think it could be shot."
Hathaway looked at Deng Kai.
"The game is very popular, and if the movie performs poorly, then it’s the fault of poor game-to-film adaptation. If it performs well, then it’s due to your strong ability to bring about that transformation," said Deng Kai, "And if it really does well at the box office, there will definitely be a second and third part."
"Having a steady output of work is very beneficial for movie stars; it helps maintain your market exposure. You won’t face the awkward situation of being completely forgotten if you don’t have films to shoot for a couple of years."
