The thirteen base points were spent once again. Considering that this week's game was also a loss, the desire to rapidly improve his skills became urgent again. Although the situation on the field was constantly changing and the outcome of a game was unpredictable, at least Lu Ke could stick to his guns and take the first step toward victory.
So, Lu Ke didn't go to sleep right away. Instead, he entered the tactics room to study how to use the beginner cheat. He brought up the game footage from today's game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
For professional players and professional teams, studying their victories was very important. They had to understand their winning formula in order to develop more variations and replicate the results. But studying their losses was even more important. Only by understanding their weaknesses and shortcomings could they continue to improve and avoid making the same mistake twice.
After that, he checked the games from the previous three weeks of the regular season and completed the relevant settings. Then he exited the system, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.
The San Francisco 49ers were busy building a new stadium, so their funds were relatively limited. Also, there were no top-tier superstars on the team.
The most famous was Patrick Willis. This linebacker had been selected to the Pro Bowl for four consecutive years since he entered the league in 2007, including his rookie season. He was, without a doubt, the most well-known player on the team. But even Willis didn't have any special privileges on the team. So, the entire team took economy class back to San Francisco.
The seats in the economy class of the flight couldn't be adjusted, and the space was cramped. Lu Ke had to curl up his legs and get stuck in an awkward position. In addition, the air was a bit bumpy, and his sleep was never very sound. He was half-asleep and half-awake when the plane slowly landed in San Francisco.
Bobby Engram walked down the aisles, waking up the sleeping players, and the cabin gradually became lively.
Through the small window of the plane, you could see the dark blue sky slowly rising along the horizon. A creamy yellow glow outlined the city's skyline, exuding the warmth and tranquility of home, with its arms open, waiting for their return. The chattering discussions could be heard, and the team seemed to be slowly recovering from the loss.
Lu Ke gave a big stretch, stood up, and stretched his legs. After being folded for a few hours, the blood in his calves needed to circulate again. At the same time, Lu Ke brought up the beginner cheat in his mind. The countdown clock at the door of the tactics room had been reset to zero, and it probably wouldn't start again until after midnight.
The summarized information was placed next to it. It wasn't a list or notes as he had imagined, but a small orange box that looked like a Rubik's Cube. It gave off a soft glow, like a gently flickering bonfire in a cold winter with a sky full of snowflakes. It made him want to reach out and touch it.
But Lu Ke didn't even have time to touch the physical object. With just a thought in his mind, the orange box exploded like fireworks. The orange light, like snowflakes, fell all around and finally disappeared into the air. Then, he felt as if something had been stuffed into his brain, and a feeling of swelling came over him.
However, it only lasted for a short while, and then it subsided.
After that, Lu Ke couldn't help but close his eyes and calm down. The feeling was very strange, as if he had watched four hours of game footage with his own eyes. A huge amount of information came flooding in all at once, and he couldn't distinguish it all at once, but it appeared in his mind in a clear and well-organized manner.
This feeling was truly strange and interesting.
The only regrettable thing was that the beginner cheat only lasted for four hours. If he could, Lu Ke would be willing to stay offline for 24 hours a day. Then, with the massive explosion of information all at once, would he be choked and pass out?
Just thinking about it made him a little excited.
"Lu Ke, Lu Ke!" Just as Lu Ke was about to organize the knowledge he had gained from the four hours of game footage—digesting and analyzing it would still take a while—a voice called out to him, interrupting his train of thought. He turned around and saw Aldon Smith.
Aldon waved his hands vigorously, trying to get Lu Ke's attention. After succeeding, he laughed and teased, "You're suddenly spacing out. Are you thinking about Sophie? She's in the back row. Don't you guys need a little private time?" The other teammates all chimed in.
Lu Ke's expression didn't change. "If you know that, why don't you guys hurry up and leave us some space? You should know, there's an old Chinese saying that if you ruin someone's chance at love, you won't be able to get it up for ten years." Lu Ke's knack for speaking nonsense with a straight face stunned Aldon, leaving him frozen in place and at a loss for words.
Logan and Marcus next to him held back their laughter, but they couldn't hold it in forever. After a little "pfft," they looked at Aldon's dumbfounded expression and burst into laughter.
Aldon scratched his head. "So, is there really such a saying in China?"
Justin Smith, who was standing next to him, bumped Aldon's shoulder. "Idiot, this is America. Even if there is such a saying in China, it has nothing to do with you. Besides, can't you tell? Lu Ke is just joking."
Only then did Aldon realize what was going on. He gritted his teeth and shook his fists. "Bambi! You're dead!" But this kind of intimidation was useless. The others all started cheering him on, and Aldon immediately deflated. He looked at Lu Ke helplessly, and after thinking about it, he couldn't help but burst into laughter himself. "Those old guys just said they're going to a bar tonight to drink. You know, this is the only night we can relax. What do you say, want to come with us?"
Monday was a regular day off, so they could drink tonight, sleep in tomorrow, and relax a bit. Starting on Tuesday, they would probably start watching game footage and enter another game preparation cycle. So, Sunday was the only window.
However, Lu Ke was a special case. He was running at full speed and training at full capacity seven days a week, never letting up, not even on Monday. Previously, Lu Ke had never attended the team's Sunday get-togethers, and of course, he had never been invited. The only gatherings Lu Ke ever had were training sessions with other rookie players, where they would gather to watch game footage and study their playbooks together.
"Tonight?" It had been two months since Lu Ke joined the team, and this was the first time he had received an invitation.
Before, Colin Kaepernick had already integrated into the team, and he had invited all the players to a bar party several times to foster camaraderie. But Lu Ke was never on the invitation list.
Aldon laughed. "Yeah, tonight. You don't have to be so tense all the time. Sometimes relaxing for one night and then getting back to it can have a better training effect."
"Bambi!" A deep voice came from the left. It was Patrick Willis. "Come with us tonight. I heard Aldon say you're a heavy drinker. What do you say, want to have a drinking contest tonight?"
"Yeah, come show us what you've got tonight!"
"When we get there, let's go head-to-head. Whiskey or tequila?"
"Pfft, with your drinking capacity, you'll be throwing up out the back door after two beers. Little girls can drink more than you."
...
The other players all started teasing and the atmosphere became lively. It was clear that after Willis spoke up, everyone agreed. This was the first time Lu Ke was entering the inner circle of the veteran players and truly becoming a 49er.
"Sure, no problem," Lu Ke said with a laugh. "The only thing I'm worried about is that you guys are all terrible drinkers!" Just as everyone was about to start complaining, Lu Ke raised his hand to stop them and added, "Erguotou! I'll bring a few bottles of Erguotou, and I guarantee I'll knock you all out! Anyone who doesn't believe me, come and try it!"
Chinese baijiu was always one of the ultimate challenges for alcohol enthusiasts. Some people liked it, and some people hated it, but there was no denying that the high alcohol content was the best test for gentlemen of alcohol. Among them, Erguotou was especially famous.
"Oh, oh, oh, Bambi has thrown down the gauntlet!" Logan and Marcus, who loved to cause trouble, started to stir things up. In an instant, all the players started to get loud. A group of hot-blooded men gathered together, and the party could start anytime, anywhere.
Fortunately, even though the team didn't charter a private jet and instead took a regular commercial flight, because there were so many people on the team, almost everyone on the flight was a member of the San Francisco 49ers. This prevented a disaster of disturbing other passengers.
"Dear passengers, the plane is preparing to descend. Please return to your seats and fasten your seatbelts..." The flight attendant's in-flight announcement timely stopped the party from starting early.
Turning around, Kip Claggett laughed to himself as he looked at the bustling and excited players. When he turned his head, he saw Jim Harbaugh with a calm expression. "What? Aren't you going to advise them? They might all be drinking, which means they might all be causing trouble."
Jim just shrugged carelessly. "It's a good thing that the team's atmosphere is finally changing. Didn't you say it? It's also a good thing to let the players vent their emotions." He looked completely unconcerned, which left Kip helpless.
After the plane landed successfully, it was a little after 10:00 PM local time. The party hour for bars was just beginning. The San Francisco 49ers players were all excitedly discussing which bar would be the most fun to go to, or which block of bars was the best.
Compared to games and tactics, parties were clearly more appealing. Almost everyone was chattering and expressing their opinions. They collected their luggage and still hadn't stopped talking when they left the airport. But when they walked out of the arrival hall, the players' steps all came to a halt.
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