In the virtual training ground, under the bright lights, Gao Nuo sat cross-legged on the ground, seriously communicating with the system.
"System, Erik ten Hag told me about my current problems today. He said…"
After listening to Gao Nuo's description, the system sighed quite humanly, then said, "Alas! I know this bald man; he's indeed good at coaching young players, but his vision is still a bit narrow. Since you already know, I'll be direct."
Gao Nuo's heart rejoiced; it seemed he was about to know the answer to his problem. "Hurry up and tell me. Actually, I still don't understand why you kept it from me."
The system's voice returned to calm. "host, you must understand that you are an existence with this system. Although my presence is a bit low and I haven't given you any golden fingers, remember this: your potential here has no upper limit. No matter what position you plan to play, I can train you to be the strongest, even if it's a goalkeeper."
Gao Nuo's face was full of black lines. You can brag, but get to the point. Why would I play as a goalkeeper for no reason?
As if understanding Gao Nuo's expression, the system then cut to the chase.
"host, that bald man was wrong about one thing. You weren't affected by the national team, but by the Challenge Road. Originally, you were in a period of attribute explosion, and a large number of matches could allow you to quickly master your abilities.
However, two tactical styles and different teammate support led to a deviation in your understanding of the game. Later, I reduced your Challenge Road attempts, but a bottleneck period was inevitable; I just managed to make it come a bit later."
Gao Nuo still couldn't help but ask, "Then what should I do?"
The system answered unhurriedly, "The host only needs to persevere and break through the barrier, and there will be a significant improvement. This system will build you into a truly all-around forward; you don't need to have any concerns."
The system's data processing was definitely fine. From a rational perspective, Challenge Road clearly accelerated Gao Nuo's growth, and continuing to break through the bottleneck was his best choice. However, with the League reaching this stage, and the competition for the Golden Boot, he felt immense pressure.
With only four matches left, if Gao Nuo remained in his current state, even if he didn't care about external opinions, he couldn't ignore the penalty for failing the system's mission.
Gao Nuo continued to struggle, "System, can't I slowly get through this bottleneck period? Just as Erik ten Hag said, by first leveraging my strengths."
The system's tone was somewhat dismissive, "The bald man told you to abandon the target man playstyle. While this would allow you to quickly regain your form, it would also mean giving up the opportunity to improve in that area. It's not his fault for being short-sighted; it's because he can't determine your future. This system is different. Your training and matches played in a year are double that of others. After all the data processing, your positioning is already very clear; there's no need for a conservative, slow transition."
Seeing that Gao Nuo was still unwilling, the system decided to explain in more detail. "You know Cristiano Ronaldo, right? He also slowly moved forward from midfield: wide midfielder, winger, forward. He couldn't complete the transition from midfield to forward all at once. This process required continuous accumulation in training, constant practice in matches, and repeated attempts. This took a long time, but the final result was very successful."
Gao Nuo's eyes lit up, waiting for the system to continue explaining.
"You can imagine, if someone could force Cristiano Ronaldo to directly change his positioning and style, appearing on the front line earlier, then he might have scored even more goals, and his historical status would be even higher. This system has already saved you half the time, and the positioning is so accurate. What else is there for you to be conflicted about?"
The system's tone had become much more human-like, but it had virtually no emotional intelligence. It utterly failed to understand Gao Nuo's internal struggle.
Gao Nuo wouldn't be foolish enough to discuss emotions with the system. After weighing the pros and cons, he still chose the path arranged by the system. After all, the incredible authority of the system was unshakeable.
With the doubts in his heart resolved, the next step was one word: "persevere"!
Continuing to push through the bottleneck, Gao Nuo remained in a slump during the third match, but he also felt his own progress, as if he was on the verge of a breakthrough.
Back on the Manchester United training ground, after a heavy defeat to Nottingham Forest, the Manchester United players were undergoing penalty runs.
Gao Nuo ignored Erik ten Hag's somewhat regretful gaze and diligently completed his training goals. With one week until the next match, he was 'cultivating' with all his might.
On May 4, 2024, in the 36th round of the Premier League, Manchester United narrowly defeated Newcastle United 1-0 with a last-minute goal from Rashford, maintaining a 3-point lead at the top of the table.
Gao Nuo was substituted in the 65th minute. His performance showed signs of improvement, with one shot hitting the crossbar and going out of bounds. However, this was not enough to silence fans and media, and Gao Nuo still received a lot of criticism.
Erik ten Hag, who had always supported Gao Nuo, was also running out of patience. The team was in a crucial stage and had no time for Gao Nuo's willfulness. In an interview, he said, "Even though we are very willing to support Gao Nuo through this period, his goal drought has indeed caused us considerable trouble. Perhaps we will address this issue during the holiday. For the upcoming matches, I will need to observe Gao Nuo's performance in training to decide if he will continue to play."
Just like in cultivation novels where the protagonist always needs a life-or-death battle to break through a bottleneck, Gao Nuo's current situation was similar. The fans and coach turning against him, either out of love for the team or under media pressure, meant that Gao Nuo truly didn't have many opportunities left.
Still not heeding Erik ten Hag's advice, Gao Nuo also set aside the concerns of Bruno and Casemiro. He felt that he was on the verge of success.
Finally, the day before the next match, on the 30th stage of Challenge Road, facing the three formidable defenses of 2011 Juventus, Gao Nuo scored two goals with both headers and kicks, completing his personal breakthrough.
A profound and mysterious feeling emerged. Gao Nuo felt he had found a balance between height and speed, able to sweep everything aside on a counter-attack and break through defensive encirclements. Words couldn't describe this magical feeling; only those two goals let him know that he had indeed undergone a transformation.
The first green player card he drew was Wu Lei. Seeing his national team teammate, with whom he had a good understanding, further brightened Gao Nuo's mood.