Chapter 6

On the track, Zhang Guan stood on the starting blocks, feeling somewhat nervous.

"Take your marks, get set!" The starter raised the starting pistol, and all the athletes, including Zhang Guan, assumed their starting positions.

It had to be said that the two months of starting training had been very effective for Zhang Guan. At least in terms of starting posture and the direction of force, he had caught up with other professional athletes.

Finally, the gun went off, and the eight athletes on the track dashed out of the starting line. At this moment, Zhang Guan activated the "Sprint" skill.

However, at the instant of the start, Zhang Guan was in the last position. Professional athletes generally had a reaction time of less than 0.2 seconds, while Zhang Guan's current reaction time was about 0.1 seconds slower. After all, it was only two months of training, and Zhang Guan had not yet fully reached the level of professional athletes in terms of starting reaction time.

Coach Yu, watching from a distance, frowned. As a national team coach, he naturally knew that an athlete's starting reaction time was closely related to their state at the start. However, every professional athlete had undergone extensive training, and their muscles and bodies had already memorized the starting actions, almost forming a conditioned reflex. For excellent professional athletes, even if their state at the start was poor, their starting reaction time would not be slower than 0.2 seconds due to their muscle memory and conditioned reflexes.

In professional men's 100-meter races, the only explanation for an athlete's starting reaction time being slower than 0.2 seconds was a lack of focus at the start. Lack of concentration during a competition was a major taboo in any sport, and in a 100-meter race, it was an unforgivable mistake. Coach Yu turned his head slightly to look at Old Chen, but found a faint smile on his face, a look of great satisfaction.

Coach Yu did not know that Zhang Guan's original starting reaction time was even worse. Being able to improve his starting reaction time to within 0.3 seconds in just two months had already made Old Chen very satisfied.

"What's wrong with Old Chen? His disciple's mind wanders at the start, and he's still so happy!" Coach Yu felt puzzled, then shifted his gaze back to the track, only to find that Zhang Guan had already caught up with the first place.

"What's going on? How did he catch up! His speed is so fast! This is the speed of top domestic athletes." Coach Yu's eyes widened. As the best coach in the country, he was extremely sensitive to the athletes' speed, so he made a precise judgment in just a moment.

...

The next few groups of athletes waiting to compete were also watching from the sidelines.

"What's he doing, charging so hard from the start? It's just the preliminary round, no need to go all out!" one athlete said.

"Very normal, after all, it's the first group. Without a clear advantage, it's better to secure a top-two finish and advance to the semi-finals," another said.

"But this kid's speed is really fast. This kind of speed doesn't seem like a newcomer, but I've never seen him before."

"Neither have I..."

"Wait, this speed is a bit ridiculous, isn't it?"

As the discussion continued, Zhang Guan was already approaching the finish line. Even without the boost from the "Sprint" skill for a short distance, Zhang Guan undoubtedly crossed the finish line first. The time in his mind stopped precisely at 10.38 seconds when he crossed the finish line.

Then, Zhang Guan looked at the display screens at the finish line, which showed his final time of 10.38 seconds.

Two months ago, Zhang Guan's hand-timed 10.3 seconds would have been about 10.54 seconds with electronic timing. Now, his electronic time of 10.38 seconds was 0.16 seconds faster than two months ago, almost entirely due to the improvement in his start.

"Turns out the national competition is just like this." Zhang Guan let out a slight sigh of relief, and his nervousness vanished completely.

...

"10.38 seconds!" Coach Yu exclaimed.

This time might not be impressive ten years later, but at the time, it was a remarkable achievement. Last year, only three people in the country had run under 10.40 seconds. Zhang Guan's 10.38 seconds would have placed him in the top four in the country last year.

Under the athlete selection system and rating system in the country, Coach Yu, as a national team coach, was well aware of all the top athletes in the provinces. However, Zhang Guan was clearly an exception. Even after recalling the excellent first-class athletes, Coach Yu found no similar information.

Coach Yu looked at Old Chen, who had a satisfied look on his face, and asked, "Old Chen, where did you find this good seedling?"

Old Chen held up two fingers and said, "Two months ago, I found a gem in the national second-class athlete test."

"Second-class athlete test?" Coach Yu's eyes widened in surprise. To him, the level of a national second-class athlete was like a child's play. Then, Coach Yu recalled the "two months" Old Chen mentioned.

"Two months ago, he participated in the second-class athlete test? Is he a newcomer?" Coach Yu immediately grasped the key point.

"Yes! He is seventeen years old, in his second year of high school, and only started sprint training a few years ago. He has been under my formal training for only two months," Old Chen nodded and then asked, "Surprised?"

"Not just surprised, I'm shocked." Coach Yu paused, then continued, "Old Chen, give me this kid's file later! The national team needs some fresh blood."

...

On the track, as Zhang Guan completed the race, the beginner's task was also completed.

The system prompt appeared again: Task completed, reward: 1 skill point.

Then, the system's voice sounded: "Skill points can be used not only to learn skills but also to upgrade skills. You can now try upgrading your skills."

The sprint skill icon appeared in the center of the system interface, and the task prompt instructed Zhang Guan to upgrade the sprint skill. Zhang Guan immediately upgraded the sprint skill.

"Upgrade successful, sprint skill upgraded to expert level, skill effect improved: significant increase in straight-line running speed, duration 20 seconds."

In the system, the originally green skill icon had now turned blue. The "significant increase in straight-line running speed" replaced the "certain increase," and the duration had increased from 10 seconds to 20 seconds, doubling the time.

"From 10 seconds to 20 seconds, it means the sprint effect can cover the entire 100-meter race. So, for the last segment, I can also enjoy the skill boost," Zhang Guan thought to himself.

A new task prompt suddenly appeared:

Now that you have an expert-level skill, you are no longer the same. The path to the peak of life has been opened. Accept the challenge!

Beginner's task: Break a national record once.

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