Chapter 67: KD's Declaration of War! The Main Mission Begins!
"Well played, Chen! Perfect debut, man. Keep that up and you're my Michael Jordan!"
After getting home from his explosive NBA debut, Chen Yan picked up a call from his agent, Bill Duffy.
Now, Bill was usually the calm and composed type, but tonight? Chen's performance had him sounding almost jittery.
With Greg Oden—the No. 1 overall pick—ruled out for the season before the games even began due to a knee surgery, Chen Yan had quickly become the top rookie in Duffy's client list. And tonight, Chen delivered. Big time.
Dropping 30 points in your debut, regardless of the system, is no easy feat. Sure, Phoenix's run-and-gun style helped, but at the end of the day, buckets are buckets.
After wrapping up the call with his agent, Chen's phone didn't stop buzzing. His parents. Taylor Swift. A bunch of old NCAA teammates. Everyone was reaching out after his breakout performance.
But all that attention? It didn't stress him out. Quite the opposite. The love and support gave him even more fuel to go harder.
He was just about to crash for the night when another call came in—this time from "Slim Reaper" himself.
"Chen, why's your phone been busy all night?" Durant's voice carried a hint of mock annoyance. He'd called 11 times with no answer.
Chen laughed. "Man, you wouldn't believe how many people blew up my line tonight."
KD didn't miss a beat. "I saw the game. You were insane! Did you see Pierce's face out there? Dude looked like he was ready to cry."
Durant was still salty over Pierce and the Celtics—he remembered all the shade Pierce threw when KD got shipped off. So watching Chen Yan cook Pierce? That was personal.
After the Suns-Raptors game ended, Durant had already jumped on his burner Twitter to throw some subtle shade at Pierce.
"Haha, KD, you really called me just to roast Pierce?"
"Please. I called because even though you showed out tonight, Rookie of the Year is mine. I'm claiming it now."
Oh? A challenge?
From teammates to rivals—Chen Yan was actually loving the storyline.
But friendly competition was a good thing. Iron sharpens iron. As long as Durant didn't start clowning him on social media if he lost...
"Alright then, KD. Let's keep it fair and square."
"You better bring it. I'm not losing to you!"
"You talking real bold, but hey—go drop 30+ like me first, then we can talk."
The two started jawing back and forth like true hoopers. With Oden out for the year, everyone knew this year's Rookie of the Year race was a two-man sprint: Chen Yan vs. Kevin Durant.
Most other rookies didn't have the juice—or the platform. Chen was thriving in Phoenix's uptempo offense. Durant, meanwhile, was Boston's chosen one, with full green light to shoot from anywhere.
The rest of the rookie class? Yeah, they weren't eating like that.
Just as Chen Yan hung up the phone, something pinged in his head—the system had updated.
Main Mission Updated!
Chen originally thought the main storyline wrapped up after he'd won the NCAA title. Nope.
Main Mission: Win the 2007–2008 NBA Rookie of the Year!
Reward: All attributes +1
Bonus Skill: Curry's Signature Skill - Splash Domain
(This skill allows the host's three-point percentage to ignore distance drop-off within 9 meters of the basket.)
Boom!
Chen Yan pounded the bed in excitement.
A full attribute boost? On paper it looked simple. But in reality? It was massive. Some of his stats were already over 90, and leveling those up needed 20 or even 50 honor points. This reward alone was saving him hundreds of points!
And the Splash Domain? Game-changing.
To put it plainly: he could now pull up from half-court like it's nothing.
In this era, nobody had the guts to shoot from that deep—not regularly. But if Chen Yan started bombing from half-court like it was a free throw? He'd change the game.
Of course, that required elite three-point shooting first.
He quickly opened his stat panel and used the 9 honor points from tonight plus one he saved earlier. With 10 points, he gained 2 attribute upgrades and dumped them into his three-point shot.
Three-Point Rating: 84
Let's go!
Step one: boost the stat.
Step two: unlock the Splash Domain.
Chen was fired up. Rookie of the Year? Now that felt like destiny.
But that wasn't all. The system also dumped a bunch of new side missions on him tonight.
They ranged from legit:
Win your first Player of the Week
Win your first Player of the Month
To straight-up wild:
Roast KD using a burner account
Drink Scarlett Johansson's bathwater in front of KD
Get a random female fan pregnant
Drop a single with Taylor Swift
Some were serious. Some were jokes. Some were just plain absurd.
But hey, there was no penalty for skipping them. Complete one, and you'd get a random reward—could be attribute boosts, star skills, exclusive gear from the system's shop, or even life skills.
Next morning, Chen Yan woke up to find himself plastered all over the internet.
He didn't just make headlines in the States. Back in China, he was trending everywhere.
He pulled up one of the forums and saw post after post hyping him up. The college crowd especially loved his style—flashy crossovers, quick step-backs, filthy ankle breakers. And yeah, he looked good doing it.
He soaked in the love, but he kept his ego in check.
One good game doesn't define a career.
He remembered stories like Tony Wroten, who had a crazy debut but disappeared in the league.
And there was Michael Carter-Williams, who dropped 22-12-9-7 against LeBron's Heat in his first game. Everyone thought he was the next big thing.
Now? Gone from the league.
After washing up, Chen Yan laced up and headed straight for the training gym.
Yesterday's highlights? They were already in the past.
Time to work. Again.
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