My Soulmate is A Libero
The match hadn’t even started, but the venue was already buzzing with excitement. There was noise and discussions everywhere, with fans from different countries even getting into arguments.
The volleyball court echoed with the thumping sounds, showcasing the sheer power of the men’s teams who were about to compete for the Olympic gold medal.
Since he started his career as an MMA commentator, Wu Di never imagined he would be commentating on the Olympics. Fate worked in mysterious ways, and he not only switched to volleyball commentary but was now at the Olympic venue, preparing with his colleagues for the official start of the match.
In Olympic finals, it’s not always the most exciting or challenging match, as some strong opponents might have been eliminated in the preliminary rounds. Additionally, after a high-intensity schedule, many athletes’ physical and mental condition, as well as their health, might have deteriorated significantly.
A longtime fan with the online username “Green and Fresh” had also come to the venue. She murmured, “But they all look so spirited.”
Her fellow male volleyball fan, Ye Xue Xue, replied, “They’ve probably used sealed injections.”
The women’s volleyball match had already started and was now in the fourth set, with no result yet. However, the match between China and Serbia was intense, and both teams had players who received sealed injections before the game. Even though competitive sports were non-contact, some insiders who knew how many sealed injections the girls received began to feel a sense of bloodshed in the air.
Ye Xue Xue’s mother had become a women’s volleyball fan this year. She was well-informed about the women’s volleyball second setter. After watching half of the match, she messaged her daughter, saying that the other team had definitely used sealed injections.
Ye Xue Xue thought that the men’s volleyball team probably did the same, but she didn’t know if Chunxiao had received any injections.
Qin Chunxiao did consider whether to get sealed injections for his shoulder and wrist but was chased away by the team doctor. “You don’t need it to that extent. Here, take this painkiller, and don’t bother me while I’m working.”
Tong Shulan, Ding Rong, Qiao Mingming, Gao Depi, Kong Duojin, Li Ling, and You Ziyu were all taken to get sealed injections. Tong Shulan received four injections, in her calf and knee. After the injections, she collapsed onto the bed and moaned, completely devoid of strength. Ding Rong, Qiao Mingming, and Gao Depi received three injections each, Kong Duojin had two, and Li Ling and You Ziyu each received one.
Their health issues included but were not limited to strained back muscles, Achilles tendonitis, bursitis, tenosynovitis, arthritis, traumatic synovitis, and some of them had even experienced stress fractures due to excessive training in the past.
Wang Yan said, “Luckily, I prepared enough supplies in advance. Ah! In principle, the injection frequency for sealed injections should not be less than once a month. Hormone medications have side effects. What if joint calcification occurs?”
A top hurdler in the past, who was once at the peak of his career, had been tormented by joint calcification. If it weren’t for the Olympics, Wang Yan would never have allowed them to go through this.
Qin Chunxiao grabbed You Ziyu and said, “I know about your shoulder, but how did you manage to sneak in here?”
You Ziyu smiled bitterly, “Big bro, I pay a price for using a high-rotation underhand serve too. If I don’t get an injection, you’ll see me making service errors in the finals.”
After the sealed injections were completed, there was some localized pain and discomfort. However, the pain would disappear in at least two or three days afterward. Some individuals might also experience numbness at the injection site. It all depended on individual constitution and the doctor’s technique.
During the warm-up period for the match, they appeared to be in a similar condition to their usual selves, and in some cases, even better.
Today, the Chinese team was wearing red jerseys, with Qin Chunxiao standing among his teammates in a blue one. The Russian team was in blue jerseys, with the libero wearing a white one.
He recognized that young man in white, named Yegor. He had participated in Nikolai’s winter camp and had impressive skills. Standing at 1.85 meters tall, he used to be a setter, but his defensive talent had shone during the winter camp. Now, it was not surprising that he had been promoted to the libero position by Nikolai.
Nikolai had always been excellent at discovering talent and was unafraid to promote newcomers.
Both the Russian and Chinese teams had similar situations, with a mix of experienced players and emerging talents from the younger generation. They had been playing together for a long time, forming excellent chemistry. In both teams, there was only one newcomer: Yegor for the Russian team and Huang Mi for the Chinese team.
“Two teams with extremely high completion rates, both in their championship window, are competing in the Olympic final,” Nikolai said, looking at Newton.
Newton nodded in agreement. “Indeed, it’s a great era for volleyball, and fans from both our countries are in for a treat.”
The Chinese volleyball fans in this alternate reality couldn’t have imagined how their men’s team had fallen in 2020. Similarly, the Russian volleyball fans in this reality wouldn’t have expected the Russian team to lose to Italy due to defensive flaws during the Tokyo Olympics.
However, it was thanks to Second Li in the Russian Super League that Nikolai and Anton managed to improve their defense. In the same way, during his time in the Russian Super League, Qin Chunxiao had also contributed to improving their defense. The result of his teachings was Yegor’s addition to the Russian team as a libero.
As the match began, everyone held their breath. Russia won the serve, and their player number 3, Franco, a seasoned attacker, stepped up to serve. He used to be a bit erratic in his early years but had an explosive performance during the Rio Olympics, helping the Russian team progress further against strong opponents.
Franco had become more stable in this Olympic cycle and was already the reliable core of a team in the Russian Super League. His serves were powerful, and although he wasn’t particularly famous, he was among the top ten servers in men’s volleyball.
With a loud bang, the volleyball was smashed into the Chinese team’s side. Qin Chunxiao squatted down swiftly, catching the ball with his hands, and sent it upwards to Li Ling.
Qin Chunxiao was intimately familiar with the brutal attackers on the Russian team, thanks to the experience he gained while playing in the Russian Super League, just as he had been exceptionally professional when facing the Brazilian team.
#Libero’s level is determined by how many hits they’ve taken#
Wu Di commented, “Qin Chunxiao receives the first ball, Li Ling sets, and Qiao Mingming spikes. Russia’s double block.”
In the world of attackers, the more famous and skilled you were, the tougher your environment became. This was because if you were good enough, when you went for a spike, the opponent would send at least two blockers to stop you. For someone like Roman, the undisputed leader among the Five Great Beasts, when he went for a spike, the opposing side often had three pairs of arms and brawny forearms and biceps appearing at the net, each stronger and longer than the last.
Qiao Mingming’s current status could be considered as “the best among those below the Five Great Beasts.” He leaped towards the net, and both Roman and Ruslan went up to block.
Little did they know that Qiao Mingming was merely feinting. He waved his hand through the air, and by the time he landed, You Ziyu had already jumped from outside the three-meter line for a back-row spike, landing the ball on the Russian team’s three-meter line.
Even Yegor couldn’t block it.
Li Laiheng said, “You Ziyu scores with an excellent timing differential.”
China scored, leading 1:0.
【Watching high-completion-rate teams play is so enjoyable. This Gua Team is truly exceptional! Their timing is perfect.】
【Tu Langqi managed to trick Roman’s block, haha, our Tu Langqi is making progress!】
【I think I’ve figured it out; sometimes, you can think of Squid as the second main attacker for the Gua Team. Many teams only see him as a server and forget to guard against his spikes.】
【After all, Squid has the best physical condition on the whole team. He stands at 2.14 meters, with a wingspan of 2.25 meters, and he’s muscular too. His static talents are close to those of the Beasts.】
【Unfortunately, Squid’s dynamic talents are lacking. His vertical reach is only 3.55 meters. But that’s understandable; anyone who can reach above 3.70 meters in a vertical jump is a freak among freaks, and
exceeding 3.80 meters is incredibly rare.】
Roman calmly observed the three-meter line and waved to Yegor, indicating not to worry. Then he turned to Qiao Mingming and said, “A good show of force.”
Qiao Mingming didn’t understand English with a strong accent, so he looked puzzled and asked, “What?”
Li Ling leaned over to the team captain and whispered, “He says you and Squid have good coordination.”
Qiao Mingming immediately smiled brightly at Roman and said, “Sank yu, sank yu.”
Roman didn’t seem pleased. What, you’re giving us a hard time and feeling proud of it? Well, just wait; we’ll return the favor!
He turned and walked back to his position. While still chatting with Second Li, Qiao Mingming said, “Roman’s not bad, you know.”
Second Li agreed, “He’s quite good.”
But when the new round began, everyone became serious. Once again, You Ziyu went for a spike. This time, Yegor received the ball, and Anton immediately set it to Roman. Roman silently leaped to a terrifying height, and even though the Chinese team quickly organized a three-person block, Roman managed to spike the ball over their hands!
Qin Chunxiao sprinted, but the trajectory of the ball changed suddenly. Roman immediately spiked it to a corner of the court opposite to where Qin Chunxiao was heading. Surprisingly, while facing a three-person block, he still managed to execute a line shot!
To make such a spike in the Olympic final, the technical skill required was enough to astonish those who understood the game.
Although Qin Chunxiao was extraordinary, he couldn’t immediately turn around and chase a ball moving at speeds over 100 kilometers per hour because, by the time he turned, the ball would already be hitting the ground.
He halted his sprint and looked at Roman. “Nice retaliation.”
Roman chuckled lightly. “Well, I’ve gotten to know you pretty well.”
Having faced each other many times in the Russian Super League and the World Club Championships, both Qin Chunxiao and the Russian team had become proficient at handling each other. Ask any player who made it to the Russian national team, and they would tell you about the countless times they had been tormented by Misha Qin in the Russian Super League. When it came to breaking through Misha Qin’s defense, almost every player on the Russian men’s national team had a blood-curdling story to share.
The strength of a shield would drive the evolution of a spear, and the evolution of a spear would make the shield work even harder. This relationship could also be used to describe the connection between attackers and defenders.
Wu Di commented, “Roman has earned numerous honors for the Russian team with his powerful attacks. His height is an unsolvable problem on the volleyball court. Even the Brazilian team can only counterattack with equally strong hits, unable to defend effectively…”
The Russian team’s high-powered attacks represented absolute height and strength. But the Chinese team could!
During their training camp, Newton collected information on Russian players based on the experiences of Qin Chunxiao and Li Ling in the Russian Super League. He tailored the training to prepare for the Russian team. Perhaps at that time, Coach Newton had a hunch that the Russian team would be China’s biggest rival.
After the training camp, not only did the Chinese team improve their coordination, but they also created a shield strong enough to face the Russian team.
Kong Duojin had the most accurate judgment of the blocking timing in the team. He formed a blocking lineup in front of the net, centered around him. No matter how tall the opponent was, as long as he timed his jump right, there was a possibility of blocking the opponent’s spike or restricting their attack route!
If Fu Biyang were here, their blocking combination could effectively limit Roman. However, the current issue was that Fu Biyang had dislocated his fingers!
Although Aizimet was also a good blocker, his physical condition wasn’t as superior as Fu Biyang’s. Currently, both of them were struggling at the net.
The inability to effectively limit Roman in blocking increased the pressure on Qin Chunxiao, forcing him to go all out in the first set. He had to use his banned moves frequently.
Roman, on the other hand, knew precisely how to counter Qin Chunxiao. He constantly altered the trajectory of the ball mid-air, specializing in hitting difficult angles, making Qin Chunxiao run all over the court, exhausted.
The person behind this tactical arrangement, Nikolai, remained silent. He was well aware that if the Chinese team wanted to compete with the Russian team, their only way was through defense. The most direct approach to defeat them was by completely breaking down their defense. This year, the Russian team had a stroke of luck, and their previous journey had been difficult but manageable. Most importantly, the Chinese team’s solid middle blocker, Fu Biyang, had timed his finger injury quite conveniently.
The strategy of forcing the opponent to play banned moves until they broke down might not be honorable, but if it could bring home an Olympic gold medal, professional players and coaches with a sense of professionalism were willing to do it!
Now, it all depended on whether Roman’s shoulder would give out first during frequent changes in the ball’s trajectory or if Qin Chunxiao’s leg joints would wear down first. Based on Misha’s frequent use of banned moves in the Olympics, Nikolai believed that his strategy had a higher chance of success.
King against king, battle against battle. Qin Chunxiao and Roman both went all out from the beginning, and the other SSR players on the court were not idle either.
While Roman and Qin Chunxiao were facing off, Second Li, Qiao Mingming, and You Ziyu launched an attack against the Russian team’s defense. According to the tactics arranged by Newton before the game, the Russian team had a strong offense but a weaker defense. This was China’s opportunity. While Qin Chunxiao and the blocking team held down Roman, others had to seize the chance to score.
However, what no one expected was that Yegor’s defense was rock-solid, and the Russian team’s setter, Anton, had been a defensive specialist during his earlier days at the Hamster Club. With Second Li’s passes, Qiao Mingming, and You Ziyu, the Russian team managed to withstand the attacks from the Chinese team.
China had a stronger defense, while Russia had a stronger offense. With a balance between them, the situation on the court became a deadlock.
Two strong teams, both fully prepared through closed-door training, were fighting fiercely, taking one point after another. Like fierce beasts tearing into each other, the score reached 27-28, with the Russian team holding a set point. Winning one more point would secure the first set for them.
Newton clenched his teeth, knowing that in an Olympic final like this, every set was crucial. If they let the Russian team take the lead in one set, it would become even harder to catch up.
Chang Xiaolei began to take deep breaths and reassured himself, “It’s okay, it’s okay. When they played against the Brazilian team before, Xiaozai was able to save three set points in a row. It’s just one set point; he can definitely handle it.”
Qin Chunxiao shared the same belief.
At this moment, it happened that Soso was standing in the service area. He tossed the ball skillfully, and although the float serve was known for its unpredictability against free players, it couldn’t deceive Qin Chunxiao. He raised both hands and made a high-quality reception as usual.
Li Ling immediately set the ball, and Kong Duojin began his approach. However, in this critical moment, Ruslan, the Russian team’s talented opposite hitter, appeared in front of Kong Duojin. His sturdy arms acted like an iron wall, blocking the ball.
As fellow members of the Hamster Club, Ruslan had a deep understanding of Li Ling’s thought process. He had instinctively anticipated the ball’s trajectory and successfully blocked it earlier.
Ruslan remembered Nikolai’s advice before the game, “To beat the Chinese team, we need to break Misha first, make their defense collapse, so you need to keep attacking to undermine the Chinese team’s morale and increase the pressure on Misha.”
As Ruslan watched Qin Chunxiao, who was like a penguin sliding on ice, he skated forward, palm touching the floor, attempting to scoop up the ball just before it landed.
But the ball ultimately fell just 2 centimeters away from his fingertips.
27-29, the Russian team won the first set.
Qin Chunxiao pounded the floor and then got up.
This was the first time Ruslan had achieved such a result when facing Qin Chunxiao, a legendary free player who was not tall but had once made him look up to him. Ruslan muttered to himself, “We need to put pressure on him.”
Youth & Bittersweet Aftertaste
Link Ke Bacaan
Serina merupakan siswi SMA penyendiri dan memiliki kompleksitas karena demam panggung. Karena trauma masa lalu, Serina yang suka menari terlalu takut tampil di depan umum. Walau begitu, ia memiliki identitas lain yang tidak diketahui oleh siapa pun. Dia merupakan pemilik akun di balik sosok misterius ‘kelinci_putih’, tiktoker yang kontennya berisi video-video dance cover dengan satu juta follower. Menjadi tiktoker membuat Serina lupa dengan sosok pecundangnya di dunia nyata. Namun, demi menggaet hati cowok paling populer di sekolah, Serina memutuskan masuk ekskul dance untuk mengatasi demam panggungnya dan membangun kepercayaan diri.
Tojoillust 