Chapter 1 Awakening

Li Kang woke up and found himself in the bedroom of the first team's dormitory.

A faint sound of special effects came from the living room.

His teammates were probably playing games.

The club, worried that his life was too boring, had equipped him with a game console and a bunch of discs a few months ago.

Li Kang had intermittently finished the game "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt."

A system prompt quietly sounded.

[Ding, congratulations on completing the mission: Defense of North Rhine!]

[Personal Rating: SSS!]

[Mission rewards are being distributed!]

[Congratulations on obtaining: Bayern Legend · Platinum Treasure Chest!]

This reward definitely contained many good modules.

Bayern's historical legendary superstars were countless.

Li Kang quickly glanced at the prize pool.

[Beckenbauer "Dominance Aura" Module!]

[Robben "Cut Inside to the Max" Module!]

[Müller "False Nine" Module!]

[Neuer "Sweeper Keeper" Module!]

[...]

A dazzling array of modules was overwhelming.

The platinum treasure chest floated in mid-air, emitting a dazzling light.

[Treasure chest opening...]

[Personal performance rating too high! Triggering hidden module reward!]

[Congratulations on obtaining: Toni Kroos "Precision Guidance" Module!]

[Does he belong to Bayern legends? This is a question worth pondering!]

[Additional attribute increase: Passing 87 → 94!]

The platinum treasure chest was immediately shrouded in black mist.

Rolling black smoke frantically poured into Li Kang's body.

The back of his head went slightly numb.

Memories of arcs soaring across the sky flashed in his mind.

The system's prompt wasn't over.

["North Rhine Conqueror" progress complete! Achievement upgraded!]

[Congratulations on obtaining the "North Rhine Hero" achievement!]

[Permanent special effect: When you step onto the green fields of Cologne, Mönchengladbach, and Leverkusen, all attributes increase by 8%!]

....

That night.

The mid-season standings of the five major leagues were released, and sports news trended on social media!

《Bundesliga: Leverkusen defeats the Bundesliga giant, takes half-season championship!》

《Premier League: Blue Foxes miracle! Leicester City myth!》

《La Liga: MSN hits the post four times! Barcelona loses the lead, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid take advantage of the counterattack!》

《Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain's position is unshakable!》

《Serie A: "Little World Cup" Replays Glory? Napoli and Lazio rise abruptly! Juventus dethroned!》

《Due to cold weather, the Ukrainian Premier League enters winter break early.》

The number of likes, shares, and comments soared!

-[Is it too late to bet on Leicester City to win the Premier League now? The odds aren't low!]

-[Don't waste your money. The Premier League doesn't have a winter break, and Leicester City's bench depth isn't enough! They'll soon be exhausted! Manchester City and Arsenal will overtake them!]

-[The safest bet is still Leverkusen winning the Bundesliga. Li Mingdeng is giving you money; don't you want it?]

-[Serie A has shown signs of recovery this year. Napoli's "Death Trio" is awesome! Full power! The Champions League next season will be fun!]

-[La Liga is exciting this season. The scores of Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid are neck and neck!]

-[The Christmas battle is in a few days!]

.....

Among the winter breaks of the five major leagues, the Bundesliga is the longest. Players will have 45 days of vacation this year!

The reason is simple: It's too cold.

This year's Premier League still has no winter break. Even if there is a 10-day break, there is still the FA Cup during that time.

The winter breaks for La Liga and Serie A are about 10-15 days.

The happiest players are those in the Russian Premier League and the Ukrainian Premier League. The winter break in these two regions is as long as 90 days...

Leverkusen training base.

The cold wind was biting, and snow was falling heavily.

After the team had a light scrimmage,

Old man Toppmöller announced the news of the holiday!

"Be careful to control your weight!"

"You can call the coaching staff if you encounter any problems!"

"If there are a few more fat people on the team after the holiday, I will kick their butts hard!"

"Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!"

Clap clap clap!

The team immediately applauded!

The little assistant led the photographer and ran forward with Spring Festival couplets and *Fu* characters (good fortune).

Leverkusen attached great importance to the Dragon Country market and would film a Chinese New Year greeting video in advance.

Son Heung-min, leaning on a crutch, suddenly said, "Li, come back to Korea with me. The training base there has good conditions!"

Havertz quickly denied this suggestion, "I still want to take Li to the hot springs!"

Brandt said, "Li, I have to go back to Bremen, and I'll bring you pork sausage later!"

Çalhanoğlu racked his brains, thought for a long time, and stuttered, "Li, I'll bring you roasted whole lamb..."

....

The next morning.

Li Kang was the only one left at the huge training base.

He didn't go anywhere.

He had originally planned to go back to his home in La Masia.

His adoptive mother, Sofia, resolutely refused, giving the reason that the winter transfer window was a sensitive period, and the media reporters would exaggerate the fact that Li Kang was secretly contacting the Barcelona management, intending to return, and these negative reports would be very detrimental to the Leverkusen club.

She said she would make time to visit her son.

Aunt Sofia was not easy. She took a child to La Masia when she was young. Because she had some beauty, she was always rumored to be having an affair with some man, but she lived a very upright life.

Li Kang took a shovel and cleared the snow. After clearing a patch of grass, he began to train.

Before long.

His whole body was steaming with white mist.

A series of violent explosions.

Awakened the drowsy security guard.

"Is it thundering in the middle of winter?"

....

The winter transfer window officially opened.

Chinese Super League (CSL) tycoons dominated the front pages of major media outlets!

The high transfer fee of 267 million euros stunned the European giants!

Even the investment of the China League One teams completely defeated the powerhouses of the five major leagues!

What was even more exaggerated.

The European media was also frightened by the terrifyingly high prices of internal transfers between Chinese players in the CSL and China League One.

Ukrainian Premier League Golden Boot winner, Teixeira, became the protagonist of the winter transfer window, joining the CSL for 50 million euros!

Chinese Super League fans cheered, the transfer targets were all top European players in their prime!

In this historical period.

The majority of fans still had the last bit of confidence in the national football team.

They believed that high investment would definitely bring high returns!

After the heat faded, people refocused on Europe.

The major powerhouses were not very interested in winter signings; most were minor adjustments.

Among them.

The loan information between Southampton and Leverkusen did not attract the attention of the media.

Soon after.

The young Dutch center-back, Van Dijk, was about to land in North Rhine.

.....

Christmas in North Rhine is different from in the United States.

There's no Santa Claus here.

The club staff had placed an Advent wreath in Li Kang's dormitory.

It was a decoration woven from branches of fir trees.

Four candles were placed in the middle of the wreath.

They would be lit in order each Sunday that followed.

After dinner.

Li Kang and his little assistant, Dino, Teacher Berenta, and Teacher Zhang came to Leverkusen's "Christmas Market."

For various reasons, several people could only spend the holiday in Leverkusen.

"Li, I declare that your winter vacation homework never existed in this world!"

"I suggest you try a glass of mulled wine. You'll be 18 next year!"

"Hurry up and put on a hat. Black hair can't keep you warm!"

Star-like small lights adorned the surrounding houses.

The streets were lined with a dazzling array of handicrafts and snacks.

No vendors cared whether you were a star player. They all offered Christmas blessings when they met.

Li Kang bought a handmade scarf.

This was his first Christmas in North Rhine, and perhaps his last.