After Crystal Palace's FA Cup third-round match against Charlton ended,
at the post-match press conference, head coach Holloway was directly questioned by the media.
He made it clear:
> "Crystal Palace has been able to charge ahead this far, not because of my brilliant coaching,
but purely because we have a true, bona fide super genius in our squad!
He not only possesses generational talent and technique,
but is also a once-in-a-century leadership prodigy.
He hasn't just led the players and fans—he's led us coaches too!"
As soon as the interview was released, it exploded across English football.
Media and fans focused in sharply:
> "That super prodigy who burst onto the scene at Crystal Palace... is actually taking on coaching duties too?!"
This revelation was explosive—
and instantly catapulted Kai's fame across England and even Europe.
But in truth, this entire moment was strategically engineered by Mendes,
with prior coordination from the Crystal Palace board and coaching staff.
Mendes had demanded the club spare no effort in building Kai's off-pitch profile.
All of this was aimed at one goal—helping Kai secure this year's Golden Boy Award.
In terms of raw ability alone,
Mendes believed Kai fully deserved the award.
The only shortcoming was that Kai's professional career had been too short—
just half a season, with no major team honors yet.
By comparison,
Manchester City's Italian wonderkid Mario Balotelli
had already won the Champions League earlier that year with Inter Milan.
So Mendes's strategy to flip the script was simple:
Let Kai dominate on the pitch, while off the pitch—blitz the media.
Overwhelm the narrative. Beat Balotelli in influence.
The club had no objections—
Holloway himself didn't even feel like he was exaggerating.
> "I'm just telling the truth," he said.
And whenever Kai-related news began to lose heat,
Mendes would subtly use the media to downplay other Golden Boy contenders.
It was a give-and-take game—lowering others to boost Kai.
This was Mendes's specialty.
Back in the day, he once talked down Pep Guardiola to elevate Mourinho...
and even went so far as to slander Maradona to raise Cristiano Ronaldo's profile.
---
Now that Mendes had entered the battlefield—
Raiola was never going to sit idly by.
The two most powerful football agents in the world
began a media duel that made fans gasp—
"The Clash of Titans" was now underway!
Using the press as their weapons,
they launched a ferocious PR war.
Kai and Balotelli—became the center of Europe's football spotlight.
European fans couldn't get enough.
At this rate,
this year's Golden Boy Award would be full of suspense and drama.
Even fans far away in China had never seen such spectacle:
> "What's going on here?" "Kai vs. Balotelli!" "Mendes vs. Raiola!" "Brothers, we lads finally have a reality show worth watching! This is better than New Year's!"
---
That night,
after finishing a private training session,
Kai returned to his room to settle his system rewards.
Upon leading Crystal Palace to victory in the FA Cup third round,
he saw that his main storyline reward chest had upgraded—
from White to Gray Tier.
Sure enough, the rewards for this quest line were based on how far he advanced in the FA Cup.
Every time they knocked out an opponent and reached the next round,
the reward would level up one tier.
And if they won the entire tournament,
he would get the Black-Gold Chest, the ultimate prize!
Kai was fired up.
He knew just how terrifying those Black-Gold Chests could be.
From the last few matches,
he had earned 10 Attribute Points and one God-Tier Card.
Currently, his short passing, duels, stamina, and long shots had all reached or exceeded 80,
so he could no longer allocate attribute points to those areas.
After thinking for a bit, Kai dumped all 10 points into speed:
> [Speed: 66 → 76!]
As the season progressed,
transitions between offense and defense in matches became increasingly frequent.
Having great speed would allow him to better organize the team and break defensive lines.
With 76 speed, he'd have no problem in the Championship...
but against Premier League teams, it might still be a bit lacking.
Just then, Kai looked at his new God-Tier card:
> [God-Tier Speed Card! (Usable 3 times per match)]
His eyes lit up!
After reading the card description,
he immediately understood its value:
He would have three chances per match to temporarily break the human limit on speed—
becoming the fastest person on Earth during those moments.
Human top speed?
The only benchmark he had was the legendary Jamaican sprinter.
And now he could break that speed, three times, in a single game!
> "If I run into elite teams with explosive wingers or pacey forwards, this card will be a game-changer!"
Kai glanced over his "arsenal" of cards.
He now had three God-Tier cards:
10-second Infinite Dribbling Card
20-minute God-Tier Interception Card
Brand-new God-Tier Speed Card
These were his hidden weapons, reserved only for critical matches.
He would never waste them in regular league games—
only in dire situations.
> "Save the blade for the sharpest battle."
And with the FA Cup progressing,
Crystal Palace would soon face Premier League teams.
The Championship and the Premier League—were worlds apart.
He had to prepare well in advance.
But even Kai didn't expect it—
the encounter with a true powerhouse was coming...
much sooner than he thought!