Ambiguous Relationship - Chapter 22 - Sweet Dinner

Eric Maddox, a 70-year-old American retired football coach once hailed for his tactical brilliance, now forgotten by time—closes his eyes for what he believes is a normal nap in his quiet Florida retirement home.But when he opens them, he's not staring at ceiling tiles, instead, he's on a touchline.Wearing boots in the rain.With players running on the pitch, fans jeering behind barriers, and the smell of cheap turf pellets in the air.“What the hell is this?”He’s twenty-five again, but it’s not Earth. It’s a world where football reigns supreme. A world where the sport is religion, its practitioners, deities in cleats. Coaches are revered, players are worshipped, and even the kit man gets treated like royalty.But there's one catch: none of it is familiar. The clubs, the players, the leagues, the competitions, and even the currency—they're all different. Alien. Like waking up in a dream where the rules are the same, but the language is foreign.As if that wasn’t enough, the body he’s now in? A youth coach with a laughable win record, a looming divorce, and a measly fifty thousand in the bank that his ex-wife is fighting tooth and nail to take. All of it.Just when the spiral seems inevitable, a monotone chime pierces the noise.[Initiating Golden Finger…][…45%… 75%… 100%][System Integration Complete.][Welcome, host. You are now bound to the Pro Manager System. Objective: Dominate the Football World. A new era begins]From washed-up has-been to chosen one of destiny, Eric Maddox is about to trade arthritis pills for tactical boards, and shuffleboard for Prestigious Cup glory.Because in this world, tactics are power.And on this touchline, he’s about to become a god.

Thousands of years ago, the great abilities of the three teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Demonism decided on a place for becoming immortal. Three thousand years ago, a Taoist was close to becoming immortal. Three hundred years ago, the Daqian Dynasty was established, and chaos is expected in another three hundred years. In this era, the path to immortality opens; a celestial swordsman freezes fourteen states with one sword, a heavenly Daoist maiden seeks eternal life, a naturally born Holy Son claims to be invincible, and a Buddhist Holy Monk saves all sentient beings.Gu Wen lives as a beggar, enters a household as a servant, witnessing the disordered world, drifting aimlessly.In a world filled with divine beings, he alone is a mortal.However, a lowly origin is not a disgrace; striving through the grand path, even as a common man and mundane son, he can still be the foremost in the world.“Mortal Gu Wen, my Dao is euqaling the heavens!”

A s*ave boy, Ram, who assassinated an enemy commander to end a war.Jedrik, the great chieftain of the North.Demion, the prince of the South.Charlon, the duke’s daughter.The blood oath they forged plunges a seemingly ended war back into chaos.

“I suddenly discovered that this world is dangerous today.” Bai Zhi looked grave as he typed out a line of text on his computer.

“When I went out today, I came across some poor guy getting bitten by another person. Luckily, a few brave guys rushed out to bring the criminal to justice, but when the person who was bitten struggled to stand up, he was immediately beaten to the ground by one of those who had supposedly saved him—and then, they called the police! I’ve watched more than enough modern movies to know what happened. The zombie was taken out before the virus could spread.”

“Last time, you told us about a few guys saving humanity from an alien invasion… This time, it’s a zombie outbreak?”

There was an exasperated response from the chat box.

“So how was that dangerous?”

“There are also several girls who are fighting tooth and nail for a piece of me! It’s totally Hell in here, don’t you think it’s dangerous!?”

“???”