Chapter Seven: A New Proposal—to Conserve Energy!

Two or three hours later, Jiang Hong pulled out his phone and swiped it open—he was eager to see what kind of chaos the guys on the Tieba forum had stirred up.

Logging into the web version of Tieba, his private message notifications were blindingly red. He clicked into his thread, and good heavens, the comment section had exploded like a fireworks factory:

"I suggest the OP go to the neighborhood tennis courts and play three sets against the retirees. If you win even one, I’ll eat my racket—and I'll boil it first for the calcium."

"Beat Federer and kick Nadal? I suggest you buy a world map first to see where Switzerland and Spain are, so you don't find yourself unable to locate the tournament when you turn pro."

"Less than a year of training and you want to win a Grand Slam? This right here, folks, is rare, early footage of a human failing to domesticate a tennis ball."

"Stop roasting the OP, guys. He’s probably just trolling; this thread is more entertaining than a pro match. I move to have this post pinned!"

"Seconded. I’ll bet fifty cents the next thing the OP says is, 'Actually, I’m a hidden tennis genius; I was just pretending before.'"

"I’ll bet a dollar the OP deletes this post and runs away by tomorrow, name change and all."

Jiang Hong chuckled—these people had "sarcastic wit" etched into their DNA, but he had prepared himself for this. He was suddenly curious: would the system accept these kinds of suggestions?

"Open panel."

A shimmering blue interface popped up before his eyes:

[Ding! Suggestion received: Play against the senior group at the neighborhood tennis courts. Completion reward: Unknown (Accept/Decline?)]

[Ding! Suggestion received: Buy a world map to study geography. Completion reward: None (Accept/Decline?)]

[Ding! Suggestion received: Delete the post and change your account. Completion reward: None (Accept/Decline?)]

...

A string of bizarre suggestions scrolled by. Sure enough, even the system felt some of them weren't worth recording. Jiang Hong was even more amused—as long as online suggestions could be recorded, he’d have an endless supply of wool to shear.

He kept scrolling, finally digging a serious response out of the pile of mockery from a junior moderator with the ID "Tennis Kid":

"Honestly, looking at your title, I thought you were a genuine genius, but since you've been training for less than a year, I don't know your actual level. I can only offer standard advice:
1. If you really want to improve, find a coach to learn how to serve.
2. Fitness is the foundation; I suggest jogging five kilometers every day.
3. Do 500 reps of side-to-side running and swing practice to improve your speed and your forehand/backhand.
Master these first, then talk about specialized training."

Others immediately jumped in below.

"The mod is taking this seriously? The OP is obviously here for a laugh; he can't actually do what you're suggesting."

"Exactly. Five kilometers a day plus 500 swings? If he can keep that up for three days, I’ll livestream myself eating racket strings."

"Don't jinx it, man. What if the OP is actually a beast?"

Simple insults, ultimate enjoyment!

Jiang Hong skipped over the mockery and stared at the junior moderator's advice. He passed on the first point; domestic coaching standards were uneven, and he couldn't access the top-tier ones anyway. He could train faster with the system.

But the last two were very useful.

New prompts immediately appeared on the panel:

[Ding! Suggestion received: Jog five kilometers every day. Completion reward: Stamina +1, Cash 100 Yuan (Accept/Decline?)]

[Ding! Suggestion received: Do 500 reps of side-to-side running and swing practice. Completion reward: Speed +2, Forehand Technique +1, Backhand Technique +1, Cash 100 Yuan (Accept/Decline?)]

[Ding! Suggestion received: Earn 1 ATP point. Reward: Treasure Chest (Accept/Decline?)]

Jiang Hong raised an eyebrow—his forehand and backhand were exactly what he needed to improve, so he had to accept those two. As for the suggestion to earn an ATP point, while the treasure chest was tempting, it was still too far off. He knew he’d get there eventually, but he decided not to record it for now to avoid clogging up his slots.

Currently, he had three training tasks recorded, leaving only two slots left. But these three were enough to keep him spinning like a top. Looking at the screen, he could almost see his technique soaring.

...

As the sky grew dim, Jiang Hong got up to head out.

"Hey Jiang, going out for food? Bring me something back!" Li Hua said without looking up from his computer, mid-battle.

Jiang Hong smiled. "I'm going for a run. Want to join?"

Li Hua shook his head like a rattle. "Running in this heat? You must have a masochistic streak. No way!"

Jiang Hong didn't press him and left the dorm.

"Hua, what's up with Jiang lately? Always heading out early and coming back late," his roommate Gao Hu asked curiously.

Li Hua kept his eyes on the screen. "Not sure. He’s been playing tennis every day like he’s possessed."

...

Despite being young and strong, he’d practiced a thousand serves at noon, draining his stamina. Jiang Hong hadn't really trained his fitness before, usually just running a kilometer for PE class. His tennis movement was, at best, passive exercise.

After a simple warm-up, he started his jog. The first five laps were easy, but by the sixth, his mouth was dry and his saliva kept flowing. He remembered that before his rebirth, he had tried to lose his belly fat and had looked up a mountain of running advice online. He hadn't expected to use it after transmigrating.

This was what you call "being prepared for a rainy day"!

What? You ask how the weight loss went? It wasn't Jiang Hong’s fault; it was just that he kept running into "midnight run assassins" on his route. After five days, he’d actually gained three pounds, so he gave up on night running.

The sweet, sour, bitter, spicy, salty, savory, and numbing flavors of that experience were known only to him.

Jiang Hong steadied his breathing rhythm—two steps inhale, two steps exhale.

After finishing the sixth lap, his body felt lighter. He maintained his pace, arms swinging naturally, landing on the balls of his feet. By the eighth lap, his lungs felt like they were about to explode, and his legs felt like they were filled with lead. A voice in his head urged him: "Take a break. It won't make a difference."

"Panel!"

[3420 meters / 5000 meters]

Seeing the numbers tick up, Jiang Hong suddenly felt a surge of energy. Often, people can't persist simply because they can't see the goal. For Jiang Hong, if he couldn't even finish a 5k run, he’d be dead on his feet halfway through a match. He’d become a joke who could "only win the first set," and the guys on the forum would roast him until his family graves smoked.

Even if just to protect his parents, he had to keep going.

...

"Hoo—"

[Jogging: 5000 / 5000 meters]

Jiang Hong stopped abruptly, and the system notification chimed right on cue:

[Ding! Detected that the host has completed the suggestion. Rewards are being distributed...]

[Rewards distributed. Please check.]

He was soaked, as if he’d been fished out of a pool, but he didn't stop immediately, choosing to walk slowly around the track to cool down.

"System, add the points!"

Stamina points were applied immediately: [Stamina: 45 → 46]

Though he didn't feel a sudden explosion of energy, his body did feel lighter. This visible progress was as addictive as leveling up in a game. Once he turned pro, he’d definitely have to go back to the forum and show those guys what "true satisfaction" really felt like.

He wondered if the netizen who wanted to eat racket strings was still around. Back then, netizens weren't just all talk like they would be in the future; they actually dared to own their words. Jiang Hong silently followed the user who had made the bet.