Era of Mist

Chapter 238 -237: Fujiwara Jizhen, the Green Car God

「Ten minutes later.」

Sakuragi Kenji had a look of utter bewilderment on his face.

Watching the cheering crowd, watching the dejected opponent who had no choice but to admit defeat, and watching the humble Shi Tiexin who kept saying, “Excuse me, I have to get back to my studies,” Sakuragi Kenji was stunned speechless for a full two minutes.

‘If you’re so damn good at racing, what the hell are you studying for?!’

‘Don’t you know you’re wasting your talent!’

Watching Shi Tiexin, who was the center of everyone’s attention, Sakuragi Kenji felt a dazed sense of familiarity. Memories from decades ago flooded his mind.

He watched Shi Tiexin with a complicated gaze. After a long hesitation, Sakuragi Kenji finally made up his mind.

Shi Tiexin didn’t know what Sakuragi Kenji was thinking. He just kept to his own rhythm, studying while using his spare time to dominate the streets. The many experts ranked above him were swiftly defeated with unstoppable momentum. At the same time, the rewards of Celestial Golden Light grew larger and larger.

The bigger the race, the higher the skill level, and the greater the recognition, the more Golden Light he received. Whether Shi Tiexin challenged them one by one or in a group, he crossed off the names on the blackboard one after another, and the Celestial Golden Light rolled in.

After upgrading his basic fist techniques last time, he only had seventy-four points left. But with his continuous victories, his reserves of Celestial Golden Light Melting Fluid quickly refilled to eighty points, then broke through ninety, and continued to rise steadily with each race. After winning the last race, the second-ranked driver was unseated. Five points of Celestial Golden Light descended, and the Golden Light within the award certificate finally reached a full one hundred points.

The entire award certificate icon was filled to the brim with the golden liquid, without a single gap remaining. It looked like an award forged from pure gold, its dazzling shimmer a delightful sight.

This golden award suddenly emitted a soft glow, then WHOOSH, it condensed and shrank. Like a real certificate, it was posted to the side of his field of vision. The Celestial Golden Light from his victory had not only filled the first hundred points but also had two points left over. At that moment, another identical, illusory award certificate appeared, holding the two extra points.

A faint, barely-there speck of gold sloshed at the bottom of the new certificate, a sight that would make anyone with OCD extremely uncomfortable.

And that was it.

Shi Tiexin stared intently at his entire visual interface system, waiting for a long time, but he saw no further changes.

Sigh…

He had thought that filling up an entire award certificate would trigger some kind of buff or grant an additional attribute. He never expected it would just be blandly stuck to the side before a new one appeared.

Shi Tiexin suddenly lost all interest.

‘Forget it. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have saved it up. Besides, that empty certificate with just two points sloshing around is really bugging me.’ Shi Tiexin decided to immediately cash in the remainder for more power.

With a thought, the progress bars for the basic Essence Nourishment Technique, Déjà Vu Driving Technique, and Scattering Hand Explosive Chamber appeared simultaneously. These were the only three skills he possessed that weren’t yet perfected.

Basic Essence Nourishment Technique: Profound, ninety-seven. It would reach ninety-nine on its own in another two days.

Déjà Vu Driving Technique: Profound, ninety-eight. This one would also max out in a day or two.

Scattering Hand Explosive Chamber was still at the Good level.

Shi Tiexin considered his options for a moment, then immediately spent the two points of Celestial Golden Light on Scattering Hand Explosive Chamber. This move was powerful and quite useful. Moreover, it was incredibly difficult to practice without using Golden Light.

What? Practice the Explosive Chamber in a secret realm and then exit to heal?

Heh, if only it were that simple. It wasn’t that Shi Tiexin hadn’t thought of it; he believed many who knew this move had tried. But unfortunately, it didn’t work. When the Saint of Space-Time created the secret realms, they clearly weren’t intended for practicing such self-destructive martial arts.

It was fine for a Martial Artist to use it in a duel and gain insights that improved their technique. But if you entered a secret realm with the express purpose of getting free medical treatment, it was completely useless.

You could find loopholes in rules written on paper, but not in the rules engraved by a Saint. There was no customer service, no one to complain to. There was no way around it. It didn’t make sense, just as it was impossible for Shi Tiexin to create a pirated secret manual. The possibility was completely sealed off.

So, Shi Tiexin went ahead and spent the two extra points on Scattering Hand Explosive Chamber.

SWISH! The progress bar for the Explosive Chamber shot up, reaching the Excellent level in the blink of an eye, and stopping at Excellent, seventy-three. The Profound level was now in sight. This single Scattering Hand move consumed less Golden Light than Déjà Vu.

Shi Tiexin felt a slight change. It seemed the strain of using the Explosive Chamber was lower, and its flexibility was higher. He was tempted to try it out, but he ultimately suppressed the urge.

He wasn’t afraid of the pain, but his race against the Car God was the day after tomorrow. He felt he should show the Car God proper respect by facing him in his best condition.

Sakuragi Kenji appeared beside him.

“You’re racing Fujiwara Jizhen the day after tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm…” Sakuragi Kenji mulled it over for a moment before saying something that took Shi Tiexin by surprise. “As you are now, you can’t beat Fujiwara Jizhen.”

Shi Tiexin looked at Sakuragi Kenji in astonishment. “What do you mean?”

“Come with me.” Sakuragi Kenji beckoned. “I’ve seen you race, but have you ever seen Fujiwara Jizhen race? I’ll take you to see him, so you can confirm it with your own eyes.”

「Twenty minutes later.」 The sun was bright. Shi Tiexin and Sakuragi Kenji stood in the spectator stands of a professional racetrack. In this day and age, very few people practiced on professional tracks. But right now, a motorcycle was speeding around the course.

It was a green-painted Kawasaki. The rider wore a green racing suit and a green helmet. Man and machine were one, streaking across the track like a green arrow.

WHOOSH! Amid a piercing roar, the green rider sped past the long straightaway in front of the stands, leaving only a fading echo in his wake.

WHOOSH! The wind kicked up by the motorcycle blew across their faces. Sakuragi Kenji looked at Shi Tiexin. “See that? That’s Fujiwara Jizhen, the Car God of the streets.”

Shi Tiexin nodded gravely. “Seeing is believing. He really is amazing. To be precise, he’s on a completely different level from everyone ranked below him.”

This number one was countless times stronger than the number two he had just defeated.

“That’s why they call him the ‘Car God’.” Sakuragi Kenji explained as if reciting from memory. “Fujiwara is a true racing genius. Before he was a rider, he was a freestyle gymnast who won a national silver medal, so his balance and coordination are extraordinary. He was also a competitive frisbee sharpshooter, so his wrist strength, stability, and dynamic vision for tracking fast-moving targets are all top-tier.”

Shi Tiexin was a little surprised himself. “He’s that incredible?”

“There’s more. He’s not just some common thug who hangs out on the streets. He used to be a real professional racer and won first place in the preliminaries of the All-Japan Motorcycle Grand Prix.”

“First in the preliminaries? What about the main event?”

“There was no main event. The government collapsed, the corporations fled, and the race was canceled. Fujiwara Jizhen never got the chance to truly win the championship.” Sakuragi Kenji sighed with regret. “The times we live in forced a genius professional racer who should have achieved great things onto the streets to become a so-called Car God.”

“Becoming a Car God is better than becoming nothing at all.” Shi Tiexin watched the speeding green blur, carefully calculating his odds of winning, and finally came to a conclusion. “Fifty-fifty. He’s professionally trained, and his form is too perfect. He’s better than a self-taught guy like me. I’m at a disadvantage there.”

Ultimately, Déjà Vu was a technique for delivering packages, so of course it was very different from professional track techniques. And this Fujiwara Car God was truly an expert; he had to face the facts about their respective strengths and weaknesses.

But Sakuragi Kenji shook his head. “That part is actually fine. On a professional track, you wouldn’t stand a chance. But in a street race, his technique actually holds him back. Your real disadvantage isn’t the rider, but the ride.”

“The bike?” ‘Could my Black Venerable really be inferior to his Green Arrow?’

“Yes, the bike. Fujiwara Jizhen’s bike has been professionally tuned, but what about yours? You don’t even have a cylinder pressurizer!” Sakuragi Kenji looked at him, speechless. “You didn’t really think you could beat a professional racing machine with a consumer-grade bike, did you?”

“That’s true.” Shi Tiexin hadn’t paid attention to this issue before because he had crushed all his opponents. “I’ll find someone to modify my bike.”

“There’s no time. In such a short period, no mediocre mechanic could get it done. However, you’re in luck.” Sakuragi Kenji wore a proud expression. “You have me!”