He walked a few steps forward and also saw the football wreckage that had exploded into pieces, once again validating his thoughts.
Damn, this is too terrifying...
The entire football had shattered into numerous fragments, its outer layer had become much thinner, and judging by its state, it had simply burst apart when the pressure reached its limit.
The scene alone was enough to make one shudder.
Soon, the others were ready for training, except that the fallen goalpost was still being dealt with.
It wasn't as simple as just propping it up; it required some reinforcement. Fortunately, they wouldn't need that goalpost for the rest of the day.
And when the staff went to inspect it, they discovered a startling sight.
The surface of the iron post in the center of the goal's crossbar had a large area dented inward. In the dim light of night, no one had noticed, but under the bright daylight, it was extremely obvious.
These staff members racked their brains, unable to figure out what could have caused such a dent. They surmised it must have been that one impact that caused the goalpost to topple.
After two people managed to prop the goalpost back up, they discovered that the dent on the crossbar wasn't the only problem; the entire crossbar had a significant curve to it!
Behind the small dents lay even larger ones, the entire crossbar had been smashed into an arc by the football, which only became more apparent now.
Could this goalpost still be used?
After discussing with their superiors, they finally decided to replace it with a new one!
At this moment, Cao Baming finally saw the terrifying dent, and even he was somewhat surprised; the extent of it truly looked extraordinary.
With that, a flash of inspiration struck him.
Heavy shots could be considered one of his specialties. Before, when he had weaknesses, he naturally prioritized addressing them, as they were his vulnerabilities and avenues enemies could exploit and magnify.
But now, he had grown stronger step by step, and his current state had no apparent weaknesses. In that case, he might as well leverage this opportunity to enhance his strongest asset.
To perfect it!
In the World Cup, even Carlos dared to challenge Cao Baming's heavy shots, even believing his own abilities were on par with his.
This was a significant issue and absolutely unacceptable.
The system's choice was still available, and there was no longer any need to hesitate. Breakthrough: Shooting Master!
The system responded promptly and began its upgrade.
Subsequently, the various effects of the breakthrough were reported, and overall, they were considerably stronger than a simple upgrade.
Crucially, a new characteristic was added: when shooting, an additional line would appear, indicating a new option and a signpost for the future.
What Cao Baming cared about most, however, was the thirty percent increase in shooting power. This was far more than just a few more guaranteed goals; it was unrestricted and effective anywhere.
To increase power by another thirty percent on top of his current strength – how terrifying would that be? The bent crossbar of the goalpost was the clearest proof.
No further explanation was needed; everything was simple and clear.
Buoyed by his happiness, Cao Baming eagerly wanted to try it out and walked back onto the field.
...
The fans of Tang Country were still immersed in the joy of their World Cup victory.
Had they truly won the World Cup?
Did simply getting second place count as a great victory? Wasn't that a form of defeat?
However, nearly a month had passed since the final results were announced, and everyone had forgotten the twists and turns of the final, the agonizing feeling of hope being extinguished mercilessly at the last moment.
That tear seemed to have been left on the day of the final forever. Now, everyone was celebrating optimistically, as if victory belonged to Tang Country, as if Cao Baming had become the greatest player in football history.
The actual outcome was no longer important.
Tang Country had not lifted the World Cup trophy, and Cao Baming was far from being hailed as the greatest player in history. In fact, he might not even win the Golden Ball this year.
Even if he won the Golden Ball, he would still be six awards away from Messi's seven.
The road ahead was long, but dreaming felt good, and people preferred to live in their dreams.
Under Cao Baming's personal reforms, the atmosphere of Tang Country's football had improved slightly, and the scouts he had appointed had gained some standing within the association.
The most important matter was the selection of the head coach.
The next World Cup was still a long way off, but the Asian Cup was less than a year away.
Considering that they achieved second place in the World Cup, only to be defeated by those insignificant Japanese in the Asian Cup, or even fail to qualify for the finals, would be a huge embarrassment.
If that happened, they wouldn't just be ridiculed by their opponents, but by the entire world!
The position of head coach had to be managed carefully. Cao Baming knew there were a few responsible individuals leading the team.
Ten days after the recruitment notice was posted, several resumes had already been received.
The high-ranking officials of the Tang Country team carefully reviewed them and then sent them to Cao Baming.
According to the previously agreed-upon terms, the responsibility for the resumes was clearly stated: no matter what, Cao Baming himself had to make the final decision, so the resumes naturally had to be sent to his email.
The first round of review was now complete, and Cao Baming's inbox had accumulated seven resumes, or applications, which he hadn't had time to look at yet.
Training ended early that day.
Cao Baming drove back to the villa alone in the Rolls-Royce minivan he had won in a bet.
The car still held a lingering scent of Henry.
However, the scent wasn't particularly unpleasant. Its advantage was that it constantly reminded him of how glorious the bet had been, allowing fond memories to surface at any time.
Upon returning home, Cao Baming decided to check the emails that had piled up over the past couple of days.
He went to his study, picked up his laptop, and headed towards the entrance.
There, a workspace was perfectly situated, where sunlight always streamed in, falling onto the seat. It was essentially a bay window-like platform with a small table beside it for coffee.
After turning on the computer, he found the shortcut on the desktop, one of which was for email.
Cao Baming had anticipated receiving a lot of messages from Tang Country, but upon seeing them, he was still astonished.