Chapter 581: Hard to Surpass
"Hidden Mission: Create a Rookie Season Record.
Mission Description: As a rookie quarterback in your first season, you have made a brilliant debut with an outstanding performance. But compared to other rookies, as an undrafted rookie and a Chinese-American player, you have to face more challenges and doubts. You must fight back with a strong performance and prove your ability!
Mission Requirements: Unlimited.
Mission Rewards: Base Skill Points + (1-30); or Special Skill Points + (1-15); or unlock the hidden attribute 'Aura'; or unlock the Skill Point Exchange System.
Failure Penalty: None. This is a passively triggered mission."
Without a doubt, this was the strangest mission ever. The mission requirements were unlimited? There were as many as four different reward options? More importantly, there was no failure penalty? Even for a hidden mission, this was incredible! But didn't it also mean that the difficulty of the mission was far beyond imagination?
Because hidden missions were truly elusive, and he still hadn't figured out a clear pattern, Lu Ke wasn't in a hurry to check the mission's completion. Instead, he carefully read the additional explanations for the mission requirements and rewards, and things gradually became clearer.
To put it simply, this was a hidden mission with a set minimum but no set maximum. The so-called "unlimited mission requirements" meant that as long as Lu Ke broke a rookie season record, the hidden mission would be automatically triggered, and he would receive a reward. But as the number of records broken and the extent to which they were broken increased, the mission rewards would also increase, with no upper limit.
The so-called mission rewards were not chosen by Lu Ke himself but were gradually unlocked based on the number and quality of the records broken. Not only the types of rewards but also the actual distribution of each reward were also variable. The system would judge the completion of the mission and give the corresponding rewards. This was a bit exciting!
In other words, this was the system's judgment of Lu Ke's rookie career. Lu Ke was a little nervous, and his excitement and anxiety coexisted. Putting aside the opinions of professional media, fans, teammates, and coaches for now, this was the system's judgment, and it was undoubtedly the most objective and direct. Furthermore, what standards did a football superstar certified by the system need to meet? Even as calm and composed as Lu Ke was, his heart was now beating violently, pounding against his chest as if it was about to burst out.
"Bang"! A loud bang, like a spring thunder, exploded in his ears. Lu Ke was startled and looked up sharply. He saw Aldon and Crabtree burst in, laughing and shouting loudly in the locker room, followed by a large group of teammates who crowded in. The locker room, which had been silent a moment ago, suddenly became bustling with people.
"Bambi, what are you doing sitting here? Hey, your right hand looks suspicious. Were you doing something private just now?" Aldon shouted boisterously. "What, did this scene awaken your memories?" Lu Ke's retort immediately made everyone else start to cheer, and the locker room became even more boisterous.
After a lot of joking around, Lu Ke went to the physical therapy room and started his ice bath. His attention was refocused, and he continued the work he had started. After summoning the system, he quickly browsed the hidden mission and, this time, without hesitation, clicked on all the remaining unread messages, one by one.
"Ding! Congratulations on completing the hidden mission. Base Skill Points +24."
"Ding! Congratulations on completing the hidden mission. Special Skill Points +12."
"Ding! Congratulations on completing the hidden mission. Unlocking the hidden attribute: Aura."
"Ding! Congratulations on completing the hidden mission. Unlocking the Skill Point Exchange System."
First, all four mission rewards were received, which meant that Lu Ke had broken enough rookie season records. He could be said to have completed the mission goals by 100%, setting a benchmark that all other rookie quarterbacks would find difficult to surpass.
Second, the base skill points and special skill points did not reach the maximum value. The completion rate should have been 80%. At the same time, besides unlocking the hidden attribute, he did not get any extra specified special skill points, which meant that there was still room for improvement in a single rookie season record. As for which one it was, passing yards? Number of interceptions? Completion rate? Or the number of touchdowns? That remained to be seen.
But one thing was for sure: Lu Ke had a phenomenal and hard-to-surpass rookie season. It was not only unprecedented, but it would probably also be a record that would never be broken. It was not until this moment, when he saw the gains from the system's hidden mission with his own eyes, that the feeling of reality became clear. He could vaguely hear the sound of his blood boiling!
He took a deep breath, and then another deep breath. His turbulent emotions calmed down, and Lu Ke then took a good look at his total gains after the regular season ended.
Base Skill Points: 41
Special Skill Points: 14
Unknown Special Skill Pack: 1
Skill Point Lottery Ticket: 1
Unlocked Hidden Attribute: Aura; Unlocked Skill Point Exchange System
Development Gift Pack: 1; Comprehensive Training Pack: 1
Two weeks ago, after the tough game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at home, Lu Ke had a great harvest. He thought that was the end of the harvest season, but after receiving the season rewards today, he realized that there was always a higher mountain to climb and that he should never underestimate the system's limits. At the same time, he should never underestimate his own limits. From the completion of the hidden mission, it seemed that he still had room for improvement! So, did this mean that he had to work even harder next season?
Before officially adding skill points, Lu Ke cleared out the other related rewards. First, he opened the special skill pack, and it was the rarest "Bullet Time," which added one use. Next, he opened the skill point lottery ticket. In the "0-20" reward range, Lu Ke only drew two base skill points, which meant that he gained a total of 43 base skill points today.
It was clear that his luck was in the negative state today. Otherwise, given the huge rewards from the hidden mission, how could the skill point lottery ticket be so stingy? But at least he avoided the disappointment of getting zero points, so his luck wasn't too bad, at least it hadn't hit rock bottom.
Next, he opened the hidden attribute, Aura. This was a very interesting hidden attribute that was similar to the special skill, "Amplification Aura." When using the "Amplification Aura" skill, he could increase the state of all offensive players by 10% for five minutes. This was a skill that could quickly boost the state of everyone in a short period of time, but the effect was limited, as it would quickly return to normal afterward. But the hidden attribute, "Aura," was similar to leadership, dominance, and influence. It could also boost the team's state.
In the post-game interview today, the journalist mentioned this. When Lu Ke was the starter and when Alex was the starter, there was a clear difference in the performance of the San Francisco 49ers. On one hand, it was the quarterback's ability to command his own teammates, which had an amplification effect. On the other hand, it was the quarterback's ability to intimidate the opponent's team. As long as this quarterback was on the field, they had the possibility of turning the game around and dominating it.
This was a very, very rare attribute. It was related to ability, but only indirectly. It was more of a game temperament, a kind of resilience that was good at erupting in desperate situations, the courage to fight on the edge of a cliff, and the guts to face challenges in times of crisis. Veteran quarterbacks who had been in the game for many years had a certain deterrence after years of fighting. This was one type. Rookie quarterbacks who were not afraid of the tiger had a kind of aggressiveness and momentum that was a kind of "Aura." In a specific game, a little-known quarterback suddenly burst into a Super Saiyan-like state, becoming invincible. This was also a type of "Aura."
Now, the system had specially marked it as a hidden attribute. Unlike the instant burst of a special skill, a hidden attribute had a subtle effect. It seemed weak, but it could tenaciously cover the entire field and gradually accumulate an advantage. Although the effect was not clearly visible, it changed the course of the game from the inside out.
So far, Lu Ke had unlocked three hidden attributes: Prediction, Luck, and Charisma. All of them were like this, and the current "Aura" was no exception. Although Lu Ke couldn't be sure what the amplification ability and range of "Aura" were, he was certain that the higher the value, the stronger the amplification ability for his own team and the stronger the suppression ability for his opponents.
However, when Lu Ke's eyes fell on the initial value of "Aura," his expression was quite strange. He pursed his lips and then raised them. The initial value of "Aura" was only 55. Lu Ke had thought that after a season of training and growth, he had already proven himself and had the ability to be a leader on the field. Especially when he faced the journalists today, he seemed to genuinely believe it, and he only spoke with humility. But now, it seemed that his "Aura" wasn't even good enough to pass. At most, it could only have a slight effect on the offensive line.
On second thought, as an undrafted Chinese-American quarterback, he had been moving forward with controversy in his first season. After the season ended, he could only be said to have proven himself, and his leadership and deterrence were far from being enough, so 55 points seemed reasonable. Lu Ke had always placed limited importance on hidden attributes because they were not as clear and concise as skill attributes. They were more of a state of mind. But now, it seemed that hidden attributes were an important way to improve the quality and depth of the game.
To put it simply, when a top player is in a bad state and has no feel for the game, and all his skills and abilities cannot be brought into play, how can he win the game? Hidden attributes like "Prediction," "Luck," "Charisma," and "Aura" would become the key to turning the tide in a difficult situation and even the key to winning.
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