Chapter Six: An Extraordinary Heart

“Hello, Wang Lie.”

Wang Lie opened the apartment door to find a radiant smile greeting him.

He froze for a moment—when he heard the knock, he had thought it was his father returning.

With limited mobility, he leaned on his crutch and limped over to the door, grumbling to himself about his father’s carelessness. Knowing he’d just had surgery not long ago, how could he go out to buy things without taking the key?

But when he opened the door, it wasn’t the familiar face of his father he saw, but a stranger beaming at him.

As Wang Lie’s eyes met the stranger’s smiling face, that smile seemed to possess a strange power, gripping his gaze unrelentingly.

When he finally snapped back to reality, he found himself sitting in the cramped living room with the stranger.

He sat at the dining table, while the stranger lounged comfortably on the worn sofa, even crossing his legs as he surveyed the modest apartment during Wang Lie’s brief distraction.

Wang Lie blinked in confusion, then alarmed: “Who are you?! How did you get in here?!”

The stranger, hearing the question, withdrew his curious gaze and smiled at the young man inside.

“I am a traveler. As for how I got in—that’s unimportant. What matters is… first,” he raised a finger, “I bear you no ill will. Secondly,” he raised another finger, “I am here to ‘help’ you, Wang Lie.”

※※※

Outside the door, the visitor’s smile grew wider, tinged with mockery as he saw Wang Lie’s stunned expression. “Your face really brings back memories…”

Still not fully composed, Wang Lie looked a bit lost. “I didn’t expect it to be you… Have you come back from your travels?”

By the end of his sentence, he had completely recovered from the shock of seeing an “old acquaintance.”

“I won’t travel again until your story is finished,” the traveler answered, then peeked into the villa behind Wang Lie and teased, “Shouldn’t you have invited your guest inside first, Wang Lie?”

The remark stirred unpleasant memories in Wang Lie. “I was still waiting for you to perform that ‘how I got in is unimportant’ trick again.”

Though he said that, he stepped aside to let the visitor enter.

“Ha, I hadn’t figured out how to convince you to let an uninvited guest in at the time. So that was the best I could do…” The traveler laughed as he stepped inside.

Wang Lie closed the door behind him, then turned to see the other man standing in the hallway, studying a gigantic photograph.

At the center of the photo stood Wang Lie on the lush green turf of Redstone Stadium, wearing the Sophol United jersey. He smiled slightly, leaning forward with both hands resting on the table before him.

On the table lay a dozen or so trophies in a neat row.

“The League Cup, FA Cup, Community Shield, Premier League, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup, Premier League Golden Boot, Champions League Golden Boot, Ballon d’Or, and World Footballer of the Year. These are the major honors you won within a single year.”

The traveler recited each trophy like treasured knowledge and sighed, “I’ve been following you closely, Wang Lie. When I first helped you, it was because I was curious: if China’s most gifted player had a healthy body, how far could his career soar…”

He shook his head. “I must admit, your career has blown my mind. I thought you would peak as Asia’s best, but you pushed your talent to the limit—no, beyond your natural limits. You’ve truly reached the summit of world football.”

As he spoke, his eyes lingered on the Ballon d’Or and World Footballer trophies in the photo.

“Amazing, truly amazing. You’ve become a legend…”

Despite the traveler’s lavish praise, Wang Lie showed no arrogance, only sincerity. “I’ve always wanted to thank you in person. My achievements today are all because of your help back then.”

Upon hearing this, the traveler turned to him with a teasing look. “Do you still think that was ‘help’ from me?”

“Isn’t it? Your help meant I suffered no lasting damage after two severe knee injuries, and you ensured I wouldn’t get seriously hurt again during my career. Don’t you know how devastating injuries can be for a professional player?”

Wang Lie spoke matter-of-factly, genuinely believing it. “Without injuries, I could maintain good form throughout my career without long absences. After all, only by playing can I win victories and championships.”

The traveler nodded. “Makes sense. But, what was the price?”

Wang Lie froze. “Price?”

※※※

“But what was the price?”

Wang Lie looked at the stranger sitting on the sofa, furrowing his brow in suspicion.

“Price?”

“Yes, what was the price? You said it was all so good—you guaranteed no lasting damage after my two major knee injuries, and that I wouldn’t suffer severe injuries going forward… I don’t believe you’re just that kind-hearted. Isn’t that how novels and movies always put it? Making a deal with the devil. If it’s a deal, then I have to pay something, right? Otherwise, why would you help me?”

The self-proclaimed traveler laughed. “If this is a deal with the devil, why aren’t you afraid? Not only that, you seem eager…”

“If you can really do it, I don’t care if you’re devil or angel. I just want to know what I’m paying for. Usually, it’s some years of lifespan…”

The traveler cut him off with a smile. “What if you have to pay with as many years as your career lasts?”

“Years equal to my career length? How am I supposed to know how long my career will last?”

“So settle it after you retire. Ten years shorter if your career lasts ten years, fifteen years if it lasts fifteen.”

The young Wang Lie didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he looked down at the two glaring scars on his left knee, like ugly centipedes crawling there.

Then he said, “Fine! I’ll do it! I probably don’t have many years left in my career anyway. If it can be extended by ten or fifteen years… even if I lose fifteen years of life, it’s no loss.”

He purposely looked at the traveler as he spoke, as if worried the other might doubt his sincerity.

“That’s not ‘no loss.’ There’s a big difference between dying at ninety and seventy-five, and even more so between eighty and sixty-five.”

“Then I still do it!” Wang Lie answered without hesitation, resolute.

Seeing his seriousness, the traveler couldn’t help but laugh. “Relax, I’m not taking your lifespan. I’m not interested in that. Actually, I won’t take anything from you; instead, I’ll give you something…”

He pointed to Wang Lie’s left chest. “You will have a heart that never stops, tireless and extraordinary. Under its influence, you will obsessively pursue victory and success. You won’t tolerate failure or mediocrity. Goals, wins, honors, and championships will never satisfy you unless you reach your ultimate dream. Otherwise, even after retirement, you will live forever in regret and dissatisfaction, gloomy and joyless.”

After he finished, Wang Lie didn’t reply immediately. He waited a moment, then, seeing he said nothing more, asked in surprise, “That’s it?”

The traveler nodded. “That’s it. If you want, you can call that the ‘price.’”

Wang Lie laughed upon confirmation. “What kind of price is that? Even without your so-called ‘extraordinary heart,’ I would always chase victory and championships. My father and I came to Europe to play football not just for money—we had bigger dreams. If I don’t fulfill my dream, I won’t retire. Even if I do, I’ll regret it for life. My dream is…”

The traveler suddenly raised a hand to interrupt. “Stop. Don’t say it. I don’t care what your ultimate dream is. Whatever it is, you know it yourself. You can’t fool it anyway.”

He pressed his hand against Wang Lie’s chest.

※※※

“Price?”

Facing a stunned Wang Lie, the traveler teased.

“Yes, the price. You’ve won many championships, reached heights no Asian player has before, made countless Chinese fans’ dreams come true. Your career is envied by many—you’re the ‘winner in life’ to millions…

“But you don’t have many close friends; you part on bad terms with every team you’ve been on; you have 400 million fans online, but even more who hate you.

“Your success silences them, but you can’t succeed forever. Once you descend from the peak, those who hate you will come for you from all directions, just like now. Have you checked online? Many are cheering that even your former teammates are distancing themselves from you. You’ve been abandoned everywhere online…”

The traveler spread his hands.

“In the end, you’re just not a likable guy.”

Wang Lie answered calmly, “I don’t care whether they like me or not. I just want to win.”

“Exactly! That’s it! That’s the spirit!” The traveler clapped his hands together.

Then he turned back to the photo on the wall. “In 2030, you led Sophol United to an unprecedented seven-trophy haul. At thirty-one, you won the Ballon d’Or, giving your doubting former club a resounding slap in the face… A grand slam of club and individual honors. I thought that would be your career peak, but it seems your ‘extraordinary heart’ remains unsatisfied.”

Wang Lie also looked up at his image in the photo. “Because that’s not my dream. It’s just a roadside view on the path to my dream.”

“Then why hang the photo so prominently? Right at the entrance to be seen immediately. Isn’t it to show off, out of satisfaction and pride?”

Wang Lie shook his head. “No. It’s to remind myself: since I’ve done it once, I can do it again.”

“I don’t even know if it’s the ‘extraordinary heart’ or just who you really are.”

The traveler sighed deeply and continued:

“Well, actually, when you opened the door just now, I had already taken back your ‘extraordinary heart’…”

“I told you, even without that ‘extraordinary heart,’ I’m still… huh?” Wang Lie was about to emphasize it’s not a price, but when he understood what the traveler said, he froze.

“The ‘extraordinary heart’ was once one of your secrets to success, but now it’s become a tormenting poison. I guess you don’t see it as a price; you might even see it as a gift. You were too young then, only twenty. How could you know that every gift of fate comes with a price?”

Wang Lie found it ridiculous and waved his hands. “No, no, no. Don’t use that tired cliché. Shouldn’t the so-called ‘extraordinary heart’ be a quality every successful person must have? Have you ever seen anyone succeed by lying flat and giving up? As for poison… I don’t think of it as poison, only a side effect. You said you’re a time traveler; look back in history—anyone who’s done great things wasn’t a ‘nice guy.’”

“You’re right, Wang Lie. Every great achiever in history had luck but also some basic qualities for success, and inevitably some character flaws. But what if their ‘side effects’ were influenced by the ‘extraordinary heart’? Just like you.”

The traveler pointed at the photo on the wall.

“Don’t you think you’re too hard on yourself? Any other player would be proud of these achievements, but you just treat them as mere scenery. Others see trophies as honors; you see them as whips.”

Wang Lie frowned, lost in thought. The traveler said nothing more, just stood quietly.

After a long moment, Wang Lie shook his head and said, “Of course I’m proud and happy about my achievements and honors, but that doesn’t conflict with using past glory to fuel my drive.

“I understand what you mean, but I disagree. You say successful people are influenced by the ‘extraordinary heart,’ but I think it’s because of them that the ‘extraordinary heart’ exists—if it really does, it was created by predecessors, not the other way around.”

The traveler smiled. “Are you trying to debate which came first, the chicken or the egg?”

Wang Lie shook his head. “No, I’m not getting into that. I don’t care which came first. I don’t know about the past, but I know myself. I truly thank you for keeping me from serious injury after I turned twenty; that’s been a key to my achievements. But the ‘extraordinary heart’…

“If you really took it back, then so be it. It doesn’t matter to me. I’m still me. I won’t just lie down and rest because you took it away. Like I said before, I won’t stop until I fulfill my dream.

“Even if there is such a thing as an ‘extraordinary heart,’ it’s my own, not something given to me.”

Before finishing that sentence, he paused briefly and looked directly at the traveler.

The traveler recalled that gaze—identical to when Wang Lie accepted the idea of paying lifespan as the price.

At that moment, just like now…

Thinking this, the traveler said, “Actually, I came this time to take back the ‘extraordinary heart’ and end our deal early. I think you’ve done enough—

“You single-handedly changed the ecological niche of Chinese players in world football; you rewrote the ‘racial theory’ in football; you reached heights unprecedented for Asian players; you paved the first path on a barren land for those who came after…

“You’ve done so many incredible things. If in the end you have to live your life in regret and guilt, that wouldn’t be fair. At least, I don’t think you deserve such an ending.”

Though it sounded like the traveler was speaking on Wang Lie’s behalf, Wang Lie was ungrateful. “Ending? What ending? I haven’t even decided to retire yet.”

The traveler smiled. “Now I believe that ‘extraordinary heart’ really belongs to you. It’s just a shame you have a mortal body despite it…”

“So I thank you for keeping me from serious injury.” Wang Lie was still grateful for that.

The traveler shook his head. “Even without serious injury, you still have a mortal body. Some players in football history had few serious injuries, but their talents might not have been as great as yours… But neither they nor you can stop aging—that’s nature. However…”

The traveler suddenly fell silent, seeming to ponder something deeply.

Wang Lie didn’t ask what he was thinking.

The traveler didn’t pause long, soon continuing, “But look at me—I don’t exactly follow the laws of nature. So, to hell with nature.”

Wang Lie blinked.

Ignoring his reaction, the traveler went on, “This is a last-minute decision. I’ve decided to give you one final gift—you can rest assured it’s not some hidden deal with a price tag, nor any cost or side effect. It’s just my personal thanks for allowing me to witness such an inspiring story. Of course, this gift’s effect isn’t huge; it just gives you a possibility. How far it goes depends on your own effort.”

Wang Lie was speechless, still trying to grasp how things had come to this.

“I saw online someone said you’re not only unwilling to lose but also unwilling to grow old, which is why you’re in such a tough spot now. I think he’s right, but… who says you’re old?”

The traveler looked at Wang Lie with a smile.

“From now until the next World Cup, as long as you score a certain number of goals in official matches—note, friendlies and warm-ups don’t count—your body will grow younger by one year for each milestone. But how many years you can get younger depends on how many goals you score in the end.”

The traveler’s voice echoed in Wang Lie’s mind—really echoed, making his head buzz.

Unlike before, when Wang Lie first heard this stranger say he could heal his twice-injured left knee without lingering effects and keep him from major injuries thereafter, his initial reaction was doubt, suspecting a joke.

Otherwise, he might have picked up his crutch and chased the fraud out.

But now, with eighteen years of career as proof, Wang Lie believed every word the traveler said.

If this mystic claims to do it, then it must be possible!

That’s why his head buzzed and his heart pounded wildly.

Because he knew now, he could truly reverse time!

If he could really grow younger by a few years…

Wang Lie didn’t dare imagine how beautiful that would be.

Since he dared not imagine it, he just stared fixedly at the traveler, his gaze almost frightening.

His voice trembled as he asked, “How many goals to get one year younger?”

The traveler shook his head. “I don’t know. You’ll have to find out yourself…”

Seeing Wang Lie’s doubt, he explained, “But it won’t be some unrealistic condition, like needing a hundred goals for one year younger. Just score goals. Isn’t that your specialty, reigning top scorer?”

Wang Lie asked again, “Since you took back that ‘extraordinary heart,’ does that mean I could get seriously injured again?”

The traveler waved his hand. “No, no. The ‘extraordinary heart’ was the side effect. I only removed the side effect. Your body still won’t suffer serious injury.”

Wang Lie exhaled deeply, then stared at the traveler. “If you want to see a good show, then watch closely.”

The traveler smiled. “I’m looking forward to it. Don’t let it fall flat.”

※※※

P.S. During the launch of this new book, please give it your support with bookmarks, votes, and continuous reading. Thank you!

Also, I can assure you this book is an incredibly thrilling read—truly exhilarating!

The beginning may be a bit harsh, but that’s only because after the opening chapters, there won’t be any more hardship…

Please look forward to it!