Zhang Song trailed off. But Li Quanyuan had already read between the lines—a world championship wasn't entirely out of the question!
Yes, the nation had risen. The emphasis on ordinary gold medals wasn't as fanatical, or even as frenzied, as it had been ten or twenty years ago.
But the crucial point was that this gold medal was for track and field—
As the most direct and primal of sports, a track and field gold was, without a doubt, the most prestigious medal at the Olympics. There was no other contender.
This medal symbolized the upper limits of humanity! It symbolized human potential.
Back then, "Liu the Sprinter," the hundred-meter hurdles champion, had shaken all of Asia, and even the world! He became the pride of the yellow race.
If, if they could produce a track and field champion…
…it would have extraordinary significance, whether for the school, the province, the nation, or even the world.
"Alright, this student… I'll look into him." Li Quanyuan took a deep breath. Even for him, this was no small matter.
"What a pity…" Zhang Song suddenly said with great regret. "If we had discovered this kid earlier and started training him from a young age! Who knows, we might have already won a track and field gold in the last Olympics."
"A person's peak time for training and getting stronger is in their youth… Even if he starts training now, it's already too late. I'm afraid the best he could do is just barely break a world record."
Li Quanyuan: "..."
'Are you even listening to yourself?!'
...
「Ten o'clock at night.」
Chu Bamboo lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. The sounds of his roommates' gaming session filled his ears.
He had insomnia. The reason, of course, wasn't the noise from his roommates' game—he was used to that. His insomnia was due to the influence of the dream.
'Dreams becoming reality… What should I do with my future?'
'Explore the truths of ancient Chinese civilization? That's a given! And what about developing myself in the real world? Should I bring back the popular novels, songs, and other things from the other world to get rich?'
'Or maybe just casually break a world record in the real world? Then, as long as I maintain a good public image and don't do anything heinous… I could easily land a bunch of endorsements and make a fortune? Hmm, that sounds even easier than plagiarizing novels and songs.'
Chu Bamboo's thoughts raced. His cheat ability had truly arrived. Wealth and status seemed to be within easy reach. The future he had fantasized about during his edgy teenage phase seemed attainable if he just wished for it… yet, at this moment, he didn't feel that sense of excitement.
That one sentence from Lin Xia kept echoing in his mind.
'If it really is the future, if there's really going to be a war… if everything is really going to be destroyed… then that destruction, whether it's from war or something else, will it happen in my generation… or sometime later?'
Lost in his thoughts, Chu Bamboo gradually drifted into a state between waking and sleeping, finally succumbing to slumber.
...
"Good morning, Jing'an City."
Chu Bamboo walked out of his residence, stretched lazily, and surveyed the familiar surroundings. He counted down silently in his head, 'Three, two, one!'
A basin of water came crashing down from the adjacent building. A bald old man who happened to be passing by was soaked to the bone. He wiped the water from his head and roared angrily at the floor above, "Who did that? Have you no decency?! Get out here! Not even a single word of apology? Where are you?! Dammit, just you pray I don't find out who you are!!"
'Bank first?' Chu Bamboo's mood was cheerful as he walked on with a spring in his step.
The pedestrians on the street were a mix. Some wore linen clothes, some wore suits, some wore Zhongshan suits, and others wore ancient Tang-style robes. There were even some extremely flamboyant outfits.
It was like a massive cosplay event, a mishmash of ancient, modern, and futuristic elements all jumbled together.
A steam-powered car rumbled past Chu Bamboo, its smokestack spewing water vapor, adding the unique charm of a steampunk civilization to the world.
The buildings along the road were no more than four stories high, and many were just converted shanties.
A few simple frames combined with some canvas tarps made a room. People stood in long lines, waiting to fetch water from a public tap, while others went to the public latrines to empty their chamber pots.
"Mr. Zhu, good morning!"
"Well, look who it is! Brother Bamboo is here! Good fortune to you."
"Brother Zhu, you helped my family out so much the other day! Why don't you come over for dinner tonight?"
Someone recognized Chu Bamboo, their face lighting up with joy as they greeted him. The sound of their voice drew more attention…
"Brother Zhu, have you had breakfast yet? How about a couple of buns?" From the Yang Family Bun Shop, a simple and honest-looking old man hurriedly pulled a few freshly baked buns from the oven, ran over, and handed them to Chu Bamboo.
He looked to be in his forties or fifties. The cloth tied around his head was soaked with sweat, and the lines on his face spoke of a life of hard labor. Although he was more than a decade older than Chu Bamboo, he called out the name "Brother Zhu" without the slightest hesitation—not out of fear, but with only respect and affection.
The people who had been waiting in line at the bun shop didn't get angry about this.
In fact, a few people in the line even bowed slightly to Chu Bamboo, their faces filled with gratitude.
Chu Bamboo simply gave a calm nod and accepted the buns.
"…You sly dog, Yang San Lang!" The chef from the wonton shop next door darted out, cursing. "You sure are quick on the draw."
Yang San Lang—or to be more precise, Third Master Yang—stood up straight, glanced sideways at the wonton chef, and looked smug.
"Master Bamboo, come have lunch at our place!" the chef from the noodle shop next door called out. His kitchen faced the street, and a turn of the head revealed him waving.
"I will if I have time." Chu Bamboo nodded, said nothing more, and walked away. This seemingly impolite gesture didn't seem to disappoint anyone.
Clearly, he held extremely high prestige in this place.
In the dream, Chu Bamboo's time was roughly synchronized with the real world.
For example, the real-world Chu Bamboo was a college student, and in the dream, he was also seventeen or eighteen years old.
He had grown up bit by bit from a child in the real world… Similarly, he also had a childhood, adolescence, and youth in the Dream World. He had grown up bit by bit in this world, too!
With his ability to reset the dream, he had done many reckless and incredible things!
He had helped many people, and he had also "taken care of" many people…
After all, in his eyes, resetting was just like loading a save file in a game.
Of course, it was precisely because he had previously treated it like loading a save file that in the dream's main timeline… Chu Bamboo still tried to be a good kid filled with positive energy. In this main timeline, the impression others had of him wasn't that of a ruthless killer!
As for why people treated him this way… Well, when Chu Bamboo was about eleven or twelve, the environment was too chaotic and he was often going hungry. So, he used his informational advantage to provoke a war between the gangs that were running rampant in the shantytown district. Using a few little tricks of his own, he rallied a few of the toughest people in the district and drove the gangs out…
He also happened to set up a small grassroots autonomous organization. And after a process of continuous trial and error to perfect the system, he spread it to the other shantytown districts.
Yep, he did all that when he was eleven or twelve. No big deal. At thirteen, he got tired of handling so many things and just let it all go!
So, he had a tiny, little, not-worth-mentioning bit of prestige throughout the shantytown districts.
The moment he finished off the two buns, Chu Bamboo happened to walk out of the shantytown district.
The scenery changed dramatically!