score maniac

Chapter 49: Super VIP Privileges

Marksman Talent?? Looking at this skill tree, Gu Yu was completely baffled and didn’t know what to do at first. The flashing icon that had just appeared before Gu Yu was the button to enter the skill tree interface. Upon entering, Gu Yu immediately saw a notification. “Congratulations!” Huge text appeared in the center of his screen, flashing gold—it looked just like a “R-tier” gift pack from a third-rate Chinese browser game. “Super VIP Privileges Claimed Successfully!” Super VIP privileges?? Gu Yu recalled that when he first encountered the system, it had mentioned the term “Super VIP,” but hadn’t said a word about this skill tree. Perhaps this skill tree icon had been in the corner of his vision all along, but he simply hadn’t noticed it. But this also proved that the icon hadn’t been glowing before. Now that it was glowing, anyone who’d played games knew that usually meant he could learn a skill or that something new had changed. The change Gu Yu received left him pleasantly surprised. With a “ding,” Gu Yu pretended to stretch his limbs and tapped the “View Privileges” button. A pop-up window appeared, and the text on it immediately caught Gu Yu’s attention. “Super VIP Privilege: Unlock any one of the three skill trees to unlock all skills for a ten-minute trial!” Holy crap, only ten minutes! Holy crap, I can unlock an entire skill tree! In an instant, two thoughts flashed through Gu Yu’s mind. Fortunately, the very next second, he saw an “Activate” button flashing at the bottom of the notification bar, and he finally let out a sigh of relief. If he could choose to activate it, that meant the trial period hadn’t started yet. That way, he wouldn’t have to sit on the bench like an idiot, wasting those precious ten minutes. “Three skill trees—interesting!” Putting the notification bar aside for the moment, Gu Yu tried navigating the skill tree interface and discovered there were indeed three skill trees listed, each with its own distinct focus. The “King of the Paint” skill tree was clearly designed for breaking through the Frenzy Demon. The skill names were similar to those in many games, and there were so many development paths that Gu Yu was dazzled. At the very top of the “King of the Paint” list was the ultimate skill for this tree, named “Burning Soul.” As the name suggests, once you reach this stage, your attacks in the paint will be as unstoppable as a burning soul. The “Back-to-the-Basket Master” skill tree, on the other hand, is designed for players who excel at playing with their backs to the basket, and it also offers multiple development paths. The announcer’s voice carried across the nation via the broadcast. At halftime, the Kings were trailing by a significant margin. Even though Evans played like a demon upon entering the game, racking up 18 points as if he were slicing through butter, his style of play remained somewhat self-centered. The Kings’ players at other positions barely touched the ball. With the team’s overall offense stalling, the Mavericks’ lightning-fast backcourt duo capitalized on fast breaks, gradually widening the lead. Even at this point, Gu Yu still hadn’t seen a single minute of playing time. This pattern continued as both teams rotated players and tried various lineups, yet the Mavericks maintained their advantage. Midway through the third quarter, the Mavericks went on a 9-0 run, widening the lead to 24 points in one fell swoop. It looked like the rest of the game was about to turn into garbage time. “Damn it…!” A timeout was called, and as the Kings players returned to the bench, they were all visibly dejected. Especially Cousins—his brow furrowed into a deep “川” shape, and he was on the verge of cursing. “We can’t even grab rebounds, and they keep hitting us on the fast break—what the hell are you guys doing?!” Tyreke Evans actually had a point. He didn’t mention a word about his own offensive struggles, instead shifting the blame onto his teammates. But since he was the team’s star, the role players dared not speak up—they could only glare at him fiercely and let it go. “It’s clearly because you’re playing so selfishly…” “Terry, take a breather!” Before Gu Yu could finish his sentence, the sharp-witted Westphal promptly interrupted, waving his hand to make a substitution and benching Evans: “Everyone, don’t feel any pressure from here on out. Go out there and play loose. Gu, you’re in!” “…That’s more like it!” Finally getting his chance to play, Gu Yu’s eyes lit up as he immediately stood up and stretched, looking full of confidence. Without so much as a glance at the haughty Evans, he let out a smirk: “We’re only down by 24 points—we’ll be back in the game in no time…!”