USA, Los Angeles, California
Kayce Lee nodded with satisfaction looking at his body data in the basic training hall within the Dream Training Space.
Height: 200cm(6.56ft)
Weight: 97kg(213.8lb)
Wingspan: 215cm(7.05ft)
Standing Reach: 270cm(8.85ft)
After 5 years with the Dream Training Space, Kayce's body had finally reached it's optimal state.
At 5:30 Am, Kayce woke up punctually. Feeling the abundant energy of his young body, Kayce got out of bed, thinking "youth was truly great".
Compared to his mundane previous life, the current Kayce was also the 'Chosen One' with a system. He was handsome, had excellent grades and was recruited into UCLA.
Kayce was well-known since he averaged he averaged an impressive 18 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in last year's NCAA tournament as a freshman.
Hearing his roommate Holiday's snoring, Kayce felt a bit speechless.
"We agreed to do extra training this morning! You even said you wanted to see the 4 AM sun in Los Angeles. Your mamba spirit is really unreliable!"
Jogging through the quiet campus, Kayce recalled the wonderful life he had lived these past few years. This was a parallel world similar to Earth, with many similarities but some details in its development were different.
For example, Michael Jordan had retired midway through his career but had not gone to play baseball.
For example, Kayce's former roommate Russell Westbrook, successfully entered he NBA last year and was still drafted by the Thunder.
Despite some resemblance in this world to the other, there were instances where he felt lost at times, especially since this world lacked some popular songs of his past life, he had almost embarked on a singing career in a moment of youthful impulsiveness.
It wasn't until Kayce came to LA and joined Santa Margarita Catholic High Scholl basketball team that his life trajectory completely changed.
Initially, Kayce only wanted to enrich his academic life. However, the very night he joined the basketball team, he had a dream. In this dream, he appeared in a sci-fi style basketball court.
The basketball court showed different practice options in a holographic projection panel, when Kayce selected the shooting practice, he felt he had entered a completely digitized training ground.
After starting his jump shots, Kayce perceived his jumping height, release speed, exertion level, and so on. Looking at the relevant data and optimization suggestions that appeared before his eyes, Kayce was a bit stunned.
He then tried dribbling drills and strength training. These digitized training methods fascinated Kayce. In the empty training hall, Kayce muttered to himself, "A dream-like training space?"
Calling up the Dream Training Space control panel again, Kayce selected an option that somewhat baffled him: "Restaurant".
Although it displayed "Restaurant," upon entering, there was only a bar counter. No food, and only one type of drink could be ordered: C+ grade functional beverage, brand named 'Future'.
Kayce curiously ordered a cup. It was light blue, non-carbonated, and looked good, but one sip and he immediately passed out. The taste was like a combination of Moxie and Diet Pepsi mixed with toothpaste.
When Kayce woke up the next day, he felt a faint discomfort in his stomach. But when he trained, he discovered that his body seemed to have truly changed. Especially during strength training, he once again found the sensation of smooth exertion he experienced in the Dream Training Space System.
That night, Kayce entered the Dream Training Space again. Now he knew he was about to take off.
During his freshman year of high school, Kayce improved rapidly, making his coach exclaim, "Genius!"
The training in the Dream Training Space allowed Kayce to build a solid foundation and compensate for technical deficiencies. And the C+ grade functional beverage not only gradually strengthened his body but also helped him recover his stamina!
During his junior and senior years of high school, Kayce completely broke out, teaming up with Klay Thompson to lead Santa Margarita Catholic High School to the league championship game for two consecutive years.
In his senior year, he even led the team to a championship with an undefeated record. Averaging 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists per game, he surpassed the then-somewhat-famous James Harden to be selected for the All-Western Region First Team!
Success could not be achieved without hard training, and the C+ grade functional beverage required continuous strength training to be effective.
Basically, Kayce was the "Gym Rat" within the team. During college, he unlocked the B- grade functional beverage, which was light green and looked a bit ominous.
The taste was still unique, somewhat like Moxie mixed with cooling oil, and drinking it still often led to unconsciousness.
Maintaining excellent condition throughout his freshman year at UCLA was entirely thanks to the functional beverages from the Dream Training Space System!
Rapid recovery of stamina was truly too important.
Kayce, while jogging, gradually brought his thoughts back. Seeing a beautiful figure ahead, he quickly sped up to run beside her and greet her.
"Hey, Annie, you look really beautiful today. How about we have lunch together? There's a new place nearby, and the food is great!"
Anne Hathaway looked at the strong, handsome young man in front of her, her heart filled with joy, but she showed no emotion on her face.
"What a terrible excuse. Are you asking me out? Kayce, I know you're going to practice today, and I don't want to be gossiped about by your cheerleader fans."
"Come on, Annie, I know you don't care about those people at all. I admit last time with Britney, it was my fault!"
Britney was the captain of the cheerleading squad and also a fan of Kayce, the fervent kind, with an intimate relationship.
Last year, Britney saw Kayce and Annie on a date, and Britney completely lost it, lashing out at Annie for a whole year.
"Don't mention her to me. I'm going to my advisor's to do an experiment today. I don't have time to date little boys."
Anne Hathaway haughtily sped off, leaving Kayce with a beautiful view of her back.
Kayce sighed in his heart, "One fan can create ten haters." Britney and her group of girls were truly a bit much to handle.
The Anne Hathaway of this world had a similar appearance to the big star from Earth in his previous life. What was different was that the current Annie was a renowned academic overachiever, currently pursuing a master's degree in biology.
He needed to keep the big tree, but also maintain the forest. Kayce decided to grasp both, firmly. After being rejected by Annie, Kayce decided to eat a lot after his morning run to soothe his wounded heart.
He would also pack some for his roommate Holiday, after all, he helped block a lot of drinks at last night's Party.
Around 7 AM, he headed straight to the cafeteria, devouring fried eggs, bacon, sausage, and hash browns.
"I wonder if Holiday is awake yet. I have to report to the team soon, and he'll probably get yelled at in his dazed state."
Kayce thought to himself.
Returning to the dorm, he found the door open. Kayce pushed it open and saw Holiday passionately kissing a white girl.
"Uh, it seems I came at the wrong time," Kayce said, speechless.
The white girl was startled and shyly ran into Holiday's room. Holiday just shrugged , "No, you came at exactly the right time."