Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

Huang Chong was now used to the system’s sudden detection prompts.

Based on his understanding, he had pretty much figured out that this thing only ever appeared in two scenarios:

First, whenever he was personally engaged in a cycling-related activity, the system would monitor his personal situation and issue a task.

The other was when he was being guided by someone else during a cycling-related activity; the system would detect this "objective environment" and also issue tasks and requirements.

All in all, it was an incredibly intelligent hack that could comprehensively detect everything related to his cycling, constantly boosting his personal stats and helping him shore up his weaknesses.

’Match his pace and stay with him for at least 10km?’

Huang Chong glanced at the text floating before his eyes and didn’t think much of the requirement.

He knew Dewey’s skill level. He was a little better, but not by much.

Now that Dewey had offered to break the wind and pull for him, he was confident he could keep up even if Dewey pushed their average speed past 30 km/h.

After all, drafting behind someone was a completely different concept from pulling at the front.

With someone blocking the wind resistance for him, his power output could be significantly lower.

For example, putting out 170W of power, a man of his 75kg weight might only barely manage an average speed of 30 km/h riding alone.

But while drafting behind someone, he wouldn’t need 170W at all. He could probably maintain a 30 km/h average with only about 150W.

"Old Du, since you want to show off, let’s see what you’ve got. Don’t worry, no matter how fast you go, I’m sticking to your wheel today."

Huang Chong’s words immediately fired Dewey up.

’This kid’s got a big mouth!’

He’d been cycling for over a year. While he didn’t train with the high intensity of a Professional Cyclist every day, he still got on his bike at least three days a week.

For an amateur rider, that training load was more than enough. At the very least, it allowed him to maintain an FTP of nearly 180W without any issue.

"Old Huang, you better back up that talk. Let’s do some laps around West Lake. I want to see just how many you can hang on for!

But I’ll give you a fair warning: if you can’t keep up, tonight’s punishment is you have to drink a 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola and eat a whole roast chicken!"

Dewey laughed, a youthful, competitive fire igniting within him. He stomped on his pedals, and his two powerful legs instantly brought their speed up to 32 km/h.

Huang Chong was no stranger to the West Lake loop. He even knew that one lap was about 12km and the route was entirely flat.

For amateur cycling enthusiasts, riding in circles could get boring, but for daily training, the roads here were fantastic.

Plus, it wasn’t far from their bike shop, making it perfect for regular training rides.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he decisively increased his power output to stay with Dewey. His enhanced heart rate immediately shot up from a Zone 2 endurance pace, climbing several dozen beats to the top of Zone 3, nearing his Zone 4 threshold.

However, as the time and kilometers ticked by, Huang Chong quickly adapted to Dewey’s pace. He not only held his wheel securely, but his power output and heart rate both stabilized.

[You have drafted for 1km. Please keep it up!]

...

[You have drafted for 5km. Please keep it up!]

...

[You have drafted for 10km. Detection task complete. Do you wish to end the training session and collect the system reward?]

...

By now, Dewey was getting carried away. He knew for a fact that Huang Chong’s ability was nowhere near his own. So when he finished nearly one full lap of West Lake and found the guy still glued to his wheel with no sign of falling behind, his damn competitive spirit flared up!

’Can’t shake you in one lap?’

’Fine. Let’s do another one.’

’I refuse to believe a rookie like you can maintain this power output indefinitely.’

He resolved to make Huang Chong admit defeat himself.

So he maintained his 180W power output and started the second lap.

When Huang Chong saw the system’s prompt, he noticed it hadn’t issued the reward directly but had asked him a question. He couldn’t help but remember the doubled reward from his novice test.

’Does this mean if I don’t end the task myself and exceed the required distance, I can get a doubled reward?’

With that in mind, and also thinking of Dewey’s "extremely vicious" high-calorie punishment of coke and roast chicken, he decisively replied:

’Continue training. Do not end ride!’

Besides, he didn’t feel particularly tired after drafting Dewey for one lap. It was just 12 kilometers of Zone 3 riding—only moderate intensity.

And so, the system didn’t interrupt his ongoing task. Instead, just like before, it reported his progress punctually every 5km:

[You have drafted for 15km. Please keep it up!]

...

[You have drafted for 20km. Please keep it up!]

...

[You have drafted for 25km. Please keep it up!]

...

"Old Huang, I really underestimated you. You’ve got some real power today, managing to hang on for two whole laps. But you must be close to your limit, right?"

Dewey said temptingly to Huang Chong, who was riding behind him, all while continuing to pound the pedals:

"If you give up now, I can consider lightening the punishment. You’ll only have to drink the 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola, you can skip the fried chicken. How about it?"

"Cut the crap. I’m feeling great. You think you can make me drink coke after just two laps around West Lake? Not a chance!"

In truth, Huang Chong wasn’t that concerned about winning or losing. He was purely curious about how big the system’s reward would be if he just kept riding.

But he knew Dewey’s personality. The guy was a hothead who would fly off the handle at the slightest provocation. So, to keep him pulling at the front, Huang Chong decided to rile him up some more:

"Let’s just see how long you can maintain this 32 km/h average speed!"

"Damn it, still putting on an act for me, huh? Fine, I guess I’ll have to teach you a lesson today, so you learn your place! Two laps aren’t enough to make you eat a spicy burger, is that it? Then I’ll do another one. You’d better hang on!"

Among amateur riders, Dewey was genuinely skilled. He kept pulling at a 32 km/h average, and aside from occasionally slowing down to avoid other cyclists, he maintained a high power output the entire time. It was pretty damn impressive.

Keep in mind, he had never done any structured training. He didn’t watch his diet at all—eating and drinking whatever he pleased. His weight was always creeping up, yet his power never dropped. That was a rare talent.

However, after grinding out a Zone 4 threshold pace for nearly three and a half laps—a full 40km—around West Lake, he finally couldn’t take it anymore. He started to slow down, grabbed his water bottle, and began to chug from it. Then he said:

"Alright, alright, forget it. I’m not on my game today. I admit it, kid, you’ve got some talent for cycling. No wonder you want to be a Professional Cyclist.

Shit, you’ve only been riding for a month, Old Huang, and you managed to hang on for a 40km high-intensity ride. Even though you were just drafting, that’s still way too fast to be improving, don’t you think?

I remember it took me a full six months to go from a 25 km/h average to a stable 30 km/h average."

Huang Chong wasn’t surprised to see Dewey slow down and call off the bet.

That was just his personality: straightforward and able to take a loss in stride.

He could talk a big game before a race, but if he lost, he’d admit it without any fuss. He was completely shameless about it—no blushing, no racing heart, just incredibly thick-skinned and carefree.

He chuckled and replied:

"So, Old Du? Did I keep my word or what?

You let me draft off you and still thought you could drop me? You really underestimated me!

Believe it or not, even if you kept that same power output for another two or three laps, I could’ve still hung on."

"Yeah, yeah, I believe you," Dewey said, nodding repeatedly, though his tone showed no sign of a defeated man. "It’s all just talk, so whatever you say goes."

"I can’t hold a Zone 4 pace for 50 kilometers, though. If I did, I’d be stuck in bed tomorrow, unable to get up.

Nope, I really overdid it today. I need to find a girl for a foot rub, then get a full-body oil massage to ease some of this lactic acid buildup!

You in, Old Huang? I saw you did alright today, so it’s on me!"

As he spoke, a knowing, mischievous smirk appeared on Dewey’s face.

In his past life, Huang Chong would have agreed in a heartbeat and gone with him.

Foot soaks and massages were, after all, the best ways for a Professional Cyclist to relieve fatigue and lactic acid buildup.

Riders on World Tour Teams, for example, would almost always have a professional masseuse hired by the team to give them a full-body massage after every stage.

But with the system, Huang Chong didn’t need to bother with all that.

More importantly, setting aside the question of whether the place Dewey wanted to go was even legitimate, the recovery benefits from a massage at that kind of "entertainment center" were likely negligible.

In fact, an accidental "misfire" there might even end up making him more fatigued.

So, he politely declined, shaking his head.

"I’ll pass. There’s just enough time for me to go home and take a shower. I might even be able to catch the live broadcast of the most exciting final stage of the Tour de France!"

...