Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

It was the middle of summer, so the peak daytime temperature in Hangcheng could approach 40°C.

For anyone wanting to exercise outdoors, they had to do it early in the morning or in the evening after the sun went down.

But for mountain cycling, an early morning start was a must, so the Windward Team’s departure time was set very early.

5:30 AM: Meet at the entrance of the Lin’an District Museum.

6:00 AM sharp, all members depart together. Latecomers will be left behind.

When Huang Chong saw the time information from Wang Qiang, along with the special emphasis on the captain being strict about punctuality, his impression of the Windward Team was actually quite good.

As an amateur team, its members were mostly office workers from all walks of life, and even some students. It was actually very difficult to manage every member’s personal habits.

An overly strict system would often make it impossible for the team to function.

But Huang Chong could guess that even though he hadn’t met this captain named Zhang Yi, as a former Professional Cyclist, he must have retained some professional habits after retiring.

For instance, a strong sense of punctuality.

For him, this wasn’t a restriction at all; on the contrary, it was a welcome development.

If he wanted to be a Professional Cyclist, being too lax was ultimately a bad thing.

’Five-thirty in the morning to meet up in Lin’an District... that’s really early. Good thing it’s summer. The sky starts to brighten up after four, not even five yet.’

Huang Chong thought for a moment, then spoke to Dewey, who had his days and nights reversed and was now in the living room with a game controller, waiting for his late-night snack while grinding in a game:

"Old Du, tomorrow morning, I have to be at the Lin’an District Museum entrance to meet up at 5:30.

It’s about 50 kilometers from our place, and there probably won’t be any public transportation that early.

Can I borrow your car? I should be able to get back before noon!" 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

After seeing the message from Wang Qiang, Dewey’s first reaction was actually to join Huang Chong for the Tour of Zhejiang Western Sky Road. Unfortunately, he hadn’t had enough rest, and his legs still felt weak. Plus, the Zhejiang Western Sky Road had long climbs, with its highest point, Taizi Peak, reaching an altitude of over 1,500 meters.

If he went along, he would definitely fall behind and hold everyone back, so he dismissed the idea. He pointed to a keychain hanging in a nook of the shoe cabinet by the door and said to Huang Chong:

"Car keys are by the shoe cabinet. Help yourself. The tank is full, and you can come back whenever. Anyway, I’m going to pull an all-nighter to beat this game, so I’ll probably be sleeping all day tomorrow and won’t need the car."

Huang Chong nodded. ’That’s my bro, for sure.’

But after a moment’s thought, he couldn’t help but mention:

"Old Du, tomorrow is Saturday. You probably shouldn’t stay up all night. What if Wu Fang asks you to go out shopping and you’re asleep? How could she not know you were up all night gaming?"

To this, Dewey just gave a nonchalant smile and replied:

"Don’t worry, bro. Even if she wants to go shopping, she won’t ask during the day. It’s way too hot in the summer.

Besides, she’s been really busy lately and doesn’t have time to just drop by. She’s been working overtime for the past few weeks.

I won’t give the game away. You just focus on your ride!"

Seeing his usually carefree and simple-minded friend be so meticulous and thorough when it came to his love life, Huang Chong was filled with a sudden sense of awe.

’You really can’t judge a man by his appearance!’

"Alright, since you’ve got it all planned out, I’m heading to bed."

With that, Huang Chong returned to his room, set an alarm, and got ready for bed.

But before falling asleep, he pulled up the system panel and, while on his bed, didn’t forget to complete the planking task.

The result was about what he expected. No matter how he gritted his teeth and pushed on, he could only hold the plank for a minute and a half before his abs felt like they were being torn apart, forcing him to collapse onto the bed.

’Damn it, this is way too hard!

How do those monsters who can plank for twenty or thirty minutes do it?

Are their abs made of steel?’

Huang Chong shook his head helplessly. He simply couldn’t imagine it.

Fortunately, the system task was very user-friendly. It hadn’t set a ten-minute goal, so he was able to complete it successfully.

[Congratulations! You have completed the one-minute plank.]

[Reward received: 2 Basic Optimization Value points, Abdominal Muscle Enhancer x1]

...

Compared to the rewards from earning a medal of honor, these basic rewards no longer excited Huang Chong much.

Only the appearance of a new support potion gave him a little bit of anticipation.

’An Abdominal Muscle Enhancer... I wonder if taking this thing will get rid of my gut and give me an eight-pack and V-lines instantly?’

Lying on his back, he patted his already shrinking stomach and downed the new support potion in one gulp.

Although he had only been dieting for two days, of the 2.7 kg he had already lost, besides the excess water weight from the first day, the change in his stomach was undoubtedly the most significant.

For men who were slightly overweight, it seemed the stomach and face were the first to gain fat, while the limbs didn’t change much.

And once they started losing fat, the face and stomach were also the quickest to slim down.

But it was clear that the system’s reward potions didn’t have the exaggerated, one-step-to-perfection effect he had imagined.

He could feel the abdominal muscles beneath his skin growing firmer and tighter.

But the effect on his physical appearance was minuscule.

Without a doubt, this Abdominal Muscle Enhancer could only strengthen his abdominal muscles; it couldn’t simultaneously burn away the excess fat layered between his skin and muscles.

But for Huang Chong, this was no big deal. Having his internal abdominal muscles strengthened first was already a huge boon.

As for the fat that was making him look out of shape, he would be able to burn it all off soon enough.

When that time came, whether he wanted an eight-pack or V-lines, they would surely appear.

However, what surprised and delighted him more than these results that required time to accumulate was that as his abs got stronger and his core strength increased, his Sprinting Burst—previously a major weakness—had imperceptibly increased by another 3 points, now reaching 50.

’So many pleasant surprises in a single night, this is incredible!’

Huang Chong was now so excited he could barely sleep.

He truly hadn’t expected that after riding a hundred kilometers with all his might, he would trigger so many system rewards, causing an almost earth-shattering transformation in his body.

Now that his abs had been enhanced, his personal strength was even greater.

He knew that among the various critical functions of core strength that Wang Qiang and the other two had described, there was one they hadn’t mentioned.

A stable core not only improved a cyclist’s sprinting burst ability, but it also provided immense help when facing terrifyingly steep slopes—say, gradients of ten or twenty percent—when a cyclist needed to stand up and rock the bike.

Right now, Huang Chong didn’t have much chance of competing with others in a final sprint, but climbing out of the saddle was right around the corner.

For example, on tomorrow’s Tour of Zhejiang Western Sky Road, when facing the long, steep slopes of Taizi Peak and Maxiao Ridge, it would be impossible for him to pedal seated all the way up the mountain with his current leg strength without getting out of the saddle to stand and pedal.

It was as if the system had given him a buff right when he needed it most.

’I wonder what the average skill level of the Windward Team members is?

Oh well, never mind about them. All my weaknesses have been optimized to some extent tonight. There’s no way I’ll still be the weakest one!

Let’s see if I can go head-to-head with Wang Qiang and the other two on tomorrow’s ride!’

Huang Chong forced himself to stop overthinking, closed his eyes, and drifted into a deep sleep.