A Valiant Life

This incident, to Lin Fan, was nothing much. However, it was causing waves on the Internet.

An Internet celebrity named ’Accepting all big girls for wives’ immediately re-posted the incident. At the same time, he even added a post of his own.

"The big brother carrying the video camera has left me utterly stunned. Currently, in our nation’s athletics scene, Hu Fei Yun, after reaching his peak, declined drastically in the international rankings. But as of today, this video camera-carrying brother has emerged out of nowhere. With that speed of his, I dare to guarantee that no one else in the world can compare to him. Even that Seidel will have to move aside. I wonder if the Sports Department has any plans to respond to this incident. They shouldn’t just let go of such a talent."

A lot of people commented on this thread. One netizen even started a poll on whether everyone agreed with this statement or not.

The people who had watched the Shanghai World Championships live all cared about the nation’s sports achievements. Some of the netizens didn’t care at all but this piece of news was too dramatic. As such, it garnered the interest of many netizens.

A man who was carrying a video camera had run faster than the world champion. Such a topic was sure to have a huge impact and raise intense discussion on the Internet.

This post was instantly liked by countless people.

"There’s nothing wrong with that statement at all. It sounds very logical."

"Motherf*cker, the person who ran so fast is just a reporter. If he becomes a professional athlete and goes through specialized training, won’t he be able to run like he’s flying?"

"Requesting the Sports Association to recruit him as an athlete."

"Nothing wrong with this statement at all, buddy."

...

No matter how frenzied the discussions online were, what troubled Lin Fan was still why the Encyclopedia task wasn’t completed yet.

It didn’t make sense!

As Lin Fan made scallion pancakes for the townsfolk, his mind was occupied with this matter. But even after a period of time, there was no sound from the Encyclopedia. It made him very frustrated.

Fraud Tian approached him and asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Lin Fan replied, "You wouldn’t understand."

"If you don’t tell me, how could I understand?" grumbled Fraud Tian.

Slowly, the ten servings of scallion pancakes were all done and sold.

And gradually, several of the townsfolk read and understood the sheet of paper on the wall. Lin Fan gained a few Encyclopedic Points.

"Master Lin..." Chu Yuan came over with a face full of smiles. The previous day’s events had been too astonishing. And the video captured by Master Lin was indeed very good. At that point, the spotlight wasn’t on those athletes anymore, instead, it was on Master Lin.

All the discussions online were about what Master Lin had done.

Lin Fan asked in a surprised tone, "Why are you so free to come here? Is there no competition today?"

Chu Yuan grinned and replied, "Someone took over me. I want to take a break today. Master Lin, will you go and become a national athlete after today?"

Lin Fan was at a loss. If the Encyclopedia task was completed, he definitely wouldn’t need to become an athlete. However, if it wasn’t completed yet, would he have to force himself to become an athlete?

"I’m not sure. I’ll decide when the time comes."

What Lin Fan meant was that he would let the incident ferment for a while. He was in no rush. There was a chance that one day, things would suddenly change.

Chu Yuan said, "Master Lin, if you become an athlete, then all the awards in the athletics scene will go to you."

Lin Fan laughed, "What rubbish are you spouting? If I were to compete, once I start running, you won’t even see a shadow of me."

Chu Yuan laughed awkwardly. He hadn’t expected Master Lin to not be humble at all. But there was nothing wrong with what Master Lin said. If he really competed, he would surely get first place.

"Master Lin, I’ll secretly tell you this. I heard that on the sports council’s side, they are discussing you," said Chu Yuan discreetly.

"Discussing what about me?" Lin Fan was startled. Then, he became delighted. Surely, they were discussing whether they should let him become an athlete. But after thinking about it, Lin Fan thought that as long as the task was completed, he would back out immediately. He was sure about that.

"About you becoming an athlete, of course! But it seems like they’re still debating. Some of them agree with letting you join while some aren’t so agreeable." said Chu Yuan.

Lin Fan looked at Chu Yuan with a strange look and asked, "How did you know that?"

Chu Yuan laughed, "Gossip. I heard all of this from gossiping."

The terrifying power of gossip.

Suddenly.

A series of voices came from afar.

"That’s Master Lin, the man who was running like the wind while carrying the video camera."

"He really is here."

"We have to get some information. This is big news!"

Lin Fan and Chu Yuan looked afar. It was a sea of black. A large group of reporters was charging towards them and they were all there for Master Lin.

After the previous day’s race, there was more to gossip about Lin Fan than about Seidel and the rest.

Furthermore, the reporters had already interviewed the athletes the day before. They saw, in the eyes of the athletes, looks of disappointment and deep frustration.

It was supposed to be a joyful athletics competition but such a marvel had appeared out of nowhere, stealing all the attention. He had even run faster than all of them while carrying a video camera.

They were going to be laughed at by everybody.

Seidel was a very self-confident man. Especially after winning that race, he was good enough to be named ’The Fastest Man on the Planet’. Moreover, because the race was hosted by Shanghai, China and he managed to defeat the host country’s athletes on their own territory, he should have been proud enough to say that he was the greatest.

Yet, at the previous afternoon’s interview, he was very subtle. He kept emphasizing that friendship was the most important and racing came second. It was as if he was afraid of being presumptuous.

Because that f*cking video camera-carrying Lin Fan had already left a darkness in his heart.

In an instant, Lin Fan was surrounded by reporters.

The surrounding townsfolk were all exhilarated. They all gathered around. They had never thought that reporters would come to Cloud Street to conduct an interview. All the townsfolk wanted to be captured by the camera.

"Master Lin, you ran so fast yesterday. May I ask what’s the fastest that you can run?"

"Master Lin, Seidel was defeated by your speed. He thinks you are the world’s fastest man. What are your thoughts on that?"

"May I ask, Master Lin, whether you will become a national professional athlete?"

"With your speed, if you become a professional athlete, you will surely set a new insurmountable standard."

The reporters all asked questions one after another. Each of their cameras was pointed towards Lin Fan’s face, leaving him helpless.

He had long gotten used to situations like these. It wasn’t the first or second time he was surrounded by reporters. He was very calm, it was as if he wasn’t bothered by this at all.

"If you have questions, ask them one by one. Don’t rush," said Lin Fan calmly. He had a strong presence that shook everyone.

The reporters were startled. Then, someone shouted, "Master Lin, how fast can you run?"

Lin Fan smiled. "Very fast. Extremely fast."

The reporters were helpless. He may as well have not replied.

"Master Lin, will you become a professional athlete?"

This was the question that they were most curious about. At that moment, each of them held their breath as they awaited Master Lin’s reply.

Master Lin thought about it for a moment. This question was a little tricky.

The task wasn’t completed yet. If he said something too firmly, it would be troublesome.

"This..." Just as Lin Fan was about to reply, suddenly, a beautiful sound rang out.

The corners of Lin Fan’s mouth curled up into a smile. Confidently, he said, "I won’t become a professional athlete."

Uproar!

The reporters were stunned. They hadn’t thought that Master Lin would decide not to be a professional athlete.

Meanwhile, Lin Fan’s heart was beating furiously. The task had been completed!

Indeed, by letting the news spread and finally reaching its peak, the task had been completed with ease.

A rather serious reporter asked, "Master Lin, with your ability, why aren’t you willing to compete for our nation’s pride."

Lin Fan steadily gazed at that reporter and replied, "I can tell you that me not joining track and field competitions is for the good of those competitions. If I were to become a professional athlete, I would be first in every race and the rest would only be able to compete for second place. What meaning would that have?"

Gasps of shock!

A reporter asked, "Master Lin, don’t you think that’s a little arrogant? There are so many top athletes in the world. How can you guarantee that you would be first?"

Lin Fan smiled, "That’s not arrogance. That’s self-confidence. A man needs to have self-confidence. Of course, I’ll accept challenges from the world’s athletes but I have to warn them to be mentally prepared first because I wasn’t joking... I really run exceptionally fast."

Chu Yuan: "..."

Townsfolk: "..."

Reporters: "..."

Motherf*cker. This Master Lin is too f*cking arrogant.

At that moment, Lin Fan’s heart and soul were immersed in the sound of the task notification. He wondered what knowledge would be unlocked next.