Chapter 288: To Put What You Have just Learnt into Practice
Xiao Luo's Trumpchi continued to maintain its lead through the winding sections of Wild Wolf Mountain until finally, they had come to the stretch just up ahead. It was a two-kilometer straight section of the course. This was where it'd start getting a little challenging for the Trumpchi as it had its limitations, both in the power output its engine and the drag coefficient of the car. The large SUV had a top speed of two hundred kilometers per hour on the straight and could go no faster than that.
This was where the supercars of Lei Shijian and Shen Qingyan would have the advantage, and they immediately floored their gas pedals the moment they got into that portion of the course. They were both going at roughly three hundred kilometers per hour, almost as fast as the high-speed rail.
The two supercars streaked along the straight like a couple of phantoms, one in the front of the other, and quickly chipped away at the Trumpchi's hard-earned lead.
"The supercars are showing us what they're made of at this moment. We can see that Wolf King and Queen are chasing down the Trumpchi like two wild beasts. The lead that the Trumpchi fought so hard to get is quickly diminishing, and they're now getting closer, barely twenty meters away... oh, alright, forget I even said that...
"When they got to the gasoline drums, Wolf King and Queen had overtaken the Trumpchi, one after the other, and once again, they're back to the same situation they were in during the previous laps. Oh, the Trumpchi is lagging far behind now; that didn't take too long! There's no way that it can compete with a supercar. But, we never know; there is still a possibility that it might snatch the lead position again as the race progresses. After all, wouldn't you all agree that a 'God' is driving the Trumpchi?"
The tall and skinny young man provided a running commentary on the mic, keeping the crowd well informed. His entire face was dripping with sweat from all the hard work of shouting, and blue veins were bulging visibly from his neck and forehead. He had been screaming excitedly into the mic since the race began, and his voice was slowly getting hoarse.
Nobody in the crowd cheered along with him any longer. The Trumpchi was now more than fifty meters behind the supercars, and this distance would only keep increasing from hereon. Although the Trumpchi had managed to catch up in the last lap, nobody was sure that it would be able to catch up again this time around.
"Oi, you got to give the Trumpchi some screen time this lap, I'll break your damn car if you don't give it some."
"Right, you have to give it some screen time. I want to watch the Trumpchi drift, I really admire its technique."
"We don't care if you skip Wolf King and Queen's screen time, but you have to give the Trumpchi some coverage. Otherwise, I don't care what kind of support or backing your video team has, I'll go get myself a machete and chop all of you to death."
Suddenly, a sizeable group of fans became aggressive. Clenching their fists, they ran up to the tall and skinny young man shouting at him. They were diehard fans of the Trumpchi now, and there were also countless posts appearing in the forum, many of them threatening to do something drastic if the Trumpchi was not given more air time.
Under pressure from the crowd, the video team had no choice but to track the Trumpchi using the drone. When the huge screen displayed the Trumpchi's daring maneuvers to enter and exit corners at unbelievable speeds, drifting while ignoring the laws of the centripetal force, even members of the video team were stunned. They immediately used the drone to shoot a 360-degree coverage of the Trumpchi.
To cheers from the crowd, the huge screen was now showing multiple perspectives of the Trumpchi. There were shots from above, both the side views and even from the front. The live feed provided detailed views of every stage of the Trumpchi—at the point of initiating the drift, sustaining the slide, and powering through the exit points of each corner. Not only was the Trumpchi speeding through the Wild Wolf Mountain course, but It was also capturing everyone's hearts and imagination, bringing to the event a unique and aesthetically pleasing performance that stirred the soul.
"Wow, this is way too beautiful... his drifting skills are just way too beautiful!"
"There's no wavering or hesitation at all; after completing the drift, he powers through at full throttle. The transition between the drift and the straight-ahead position is superb."
"Everyone is saying that the Trumpchi has overcome gravity and the centripetal force. No, it's more accurate to say that, when it comes to the Trumpchi, these factors don't apply to it!"
Everyone found the Trumpchi amazing and admired the beauty of its elegant drifts and speedy, high-risk maneuvers. The Trumpchi was now a legend; it was like it was possessed by the spirit of Wild Wolf Mountain.
As Lei Shijian and Shen Qingyan were racing against one another, they were also constantly checking their rear-view mirrors, fully aware that the Trumpchi was capable of catching up at any given moment.
As soon as they arrived at the Devil's Corner, a glaring light came up from behind them once again!
"Damn it, I knew he was going to be able to catch up!"
A tone of agitation could be detected in Lei Shijian's hoarse voice, for the Trumpchi was like a nightmare that refused to leave him. And, no matter what he did, he just couldn't seem to get rid of it.
"Boss, what should we do?" the medium-built man in the passenger seat asked. With a five-million-dollar wager hanging over their heads, Lei Shijian's co-driver was frantic as it was a large sum of money to compensate.
"What do you mean by that? There's still a long way left to go, and as long as I don't make any mistakes, it's going to be really hard for him to overtake me. Even if we take ten thousand steps back, and, on the off-chance, he does overtake me, I can easily reclaim the lead on the straight course right up ahead. There's no need to panic at all!"
Lei Shijian said with great confidence, and he was convinced that he had everything under control. He wasn't very concerned about the Trumpchi, but he knew he had to pay close attention to Shen Qingyan. Now that he was in the lead, he only needed to ensure that Shen Qingyan could not overtake him, and he was going to make it impossible for her to do so. Considering the disparity in the skill levels between Shen Qingyan and him wasn't significant, the NOx injection system that he had installed before this competition would have a crucial part to play. It was put in there precisely for him to use against Shen Qingyan at the Devil's Corner. Without installing an injector of her own, there was virtually nothing Shen Qingyan could do to overtake him.
"Alright, we've once again arrived at the thrilling Devil's Corner. We can see that Wolf King and Queen will be entering the corner soon. And, right now, the Trumpchi is roughly sixty to seventy meters behind them, so it is almost impossible for it to be able to do anything at the Devil's Corner this time. But, let's pay close attention to Queen's car—she seems to be trying a maneuver... is it possible that she might come up with something incredible here?
Here it is, without engaging his nitrogen injector, Wolf King has chosen the outer lane to negotiate Devil's Corner. We can see that he's drifting into this bend now... yes, very swift and good control there. Wolf King is definitely not bragging about his skills. He's worthy of being hailed the King of the Wild Wolf Mountain. Oh, no... no, no, no, oh, my God, what do I see here? Queen has actually taken the inner lane, and she's initiated her drift. What is she... she can't possibly be having thoughts about trying to overtake Wolf King from the inside, can she?"
The commentator's words immediately stirred the crowd up, and everyone was on the edge of their seats. The fans following the race were not amateurs and were very knowledgeable about the course. They knew how terrifying the Devil's Corner was, and many were convinced that drifting at this speed, and without the NOx injection system to compensate for the centripetal force, Shen Qingyan was going to lose control of the car. Of course, the Trumpchi was an exception since a 'God' was driving that car.
Did Queen have god-like skills as well? Well, they'd soon find out...
Everyone had their eyes glued to the huge screen, watching in trepidation as the Maserati negotiate Devil's Corner. They were really curious to know if Queen could do what the Trumpchi did and manage an inside drift at this notorious bend. If she succeeded, she would beat the Wolf King at the turn and come out on top.
"She's entering the corner now. Queen chose to take the corner using the inner lane, and she has initiated the drift now... that's the power of a supercar, just look at that—there's a lot of torque spinning those wheels. She's powering in on a shift lock, and she's caught up to Wolf King now... but she's oversteered, one side of her car is already off the ground! Oh, no... don't tell me a tragedy is about to occur, is Queen done for here? Don't tell me we are about to witness something terrible to this pretty lady?"
The commentator was yelling into the microphone with his voice gone hoarse, and everyone was feeling the rising tension.
"Is this woman crazy as well?"
Lei Shijian muttered, glancing at the Maserati in horror. There was only one driver who had successfully made the inner lane drift at the Devil's Corner without using a nitrogen injection system, and that guy was now behind the wheels of the Trumpchi, catching up on them from astern. Out of all the myriad possibilities, he never imagined that Shen Qingyan would be tried to overtake him from the inside. Was she losing her ability to think clearly because she refused to lose?
At that precise moment, Shen Qingyan shouted, "Stabilize now!"
She released the handbrakes and counter-steered the wheel vigorously. The Maserati was about to flip when it suddenly regained stability, and Shen Qingyan managed to keep the car on the track.
...
"Incredible! Queen has kept her car under controlled—she has managed to stabilize her Maserati at the very last second; she has not lost control of her car, folks! The car did not flip over... it did not flip over... it did not flip over... I'm even repeating this three times—it's just unbelievable! Okay, the car is still on the track, and Queen has taken the same approach as the Trumpchi, mimicking it to every detail. Did Queen closely observe the Trumpchi taking the Devil's Corner in the previous laps? She must have figured out from there the best way to power slide into the inner lane drift. If that is the case, then our Queen is a true master racer in her own right!"
The commentator, a tall and skinny man, was ecstatic as he enthusiastically screamed in the mic, keeping the crowd abreast with the ongoing action and sharing his insights on matters of interest. "Look, the Queen has overtaken Wolf King and regained the first place! Well, well... what can we say here. If there's one phrase to describe Queen right now, it would undoubtedly be—pick yourself up from where you've fallen," he waxed, "Mastering the Devil's Corner is the key to winning in this circuit, and as long as the queen makes no major mistake from hereon, and just maintain her lead, then she will win this race hands down."
"Nice one, Queen!"
"She is absolutely fantastic!"
Although many people were behind the Trumpchi as a result of its amazing performance, many of them were still happy to see Shen Qingyan do well, so they all started cheering loudly for her.
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"You picked it up from observing him?" Su Li asked.
"Yup, that b*stard is quite a freak! To be honest, nobody ever tries to go on the inside at the Devil's Corner, and I wouldn't have tried until I saw him do it. After watching him closely, I figured out how."
Shen Qingyan openly admitted how she managed to pull it off. At such a sharp and narrow bend, most drivers would've preferred to shift down to initiated the drift, but Xiao Luo chose to power over instead and induce the oversteer right at the turn. This required a sudden and quick increase in power, and it had to be just the right level, or his car would have gone into a spin. That was what she had observed in Xiao Luo's perfect drift through the inner lane, and she applied it precisely as he had done.
Su Li listened but remained quiet. She looked back, hoping that Xiao Luo would come roaring behind them in his Trumpchi. Her expectation of Xiao Luo was naturally higher now, with the recent revelation of his many talents.
Lei Shijian was seething in his Porsche as he couldn't believe that Shen Qingyan had passed him, and refused to accept that she had. "That b*tch actually pulled off such an advanced technique! I thought I had this race in the bag with the NOx injection system, but she still managed to pass me at Devil's Corner... what the f*ck!" he snapped.
"Boss, it's okay. Even if Queen wins, so what? It's the Trumpchi that we can't allow to win, or else it will cost us five million dollars to settle the bet we made," his co-driver moaned.
"Damn, didn't you see that even when he caught up at Devil's Corner in the last lap, I still managed to overtake him before the end of it. In this lap, we've already passed Devil's Corner, and I don't even see him yet. He's still far behind, and he can't catch up, fat chance he's going to pass me!" Lei Shijian scowled.
"I know, I know... but please just be careful, boss, that dude's freaky as f*ck."
"Stop being so noisy, you're f*cking annoying me!"
Lei Shijian glared hard at his co-driver, and that was enough to shut him up immediately.
In the Trumpchi, Su Canye was pouting and throwing up a tantrum like a crybaby. "We can't win at all, the difference between those sportscars and this domestic Trumpchi is like heaven and hell. You can't possibly make up the large difference even with your skills," he cried.
"Can you keep that useless mouth of yours shut for once?"
Xiao Luo snarled at Su Canye as he kept his eyes on the road, feeling vexed and finding the incessant whining from Su Canye unbearable. The Trumpchi was now heading towards Devil's Corner, and Xiao Luo was once again taking the inner lane at breakneck speed as he prepared to make the turn.
Su Canye didn't stop whining as he found something else to carp about. "Brother-in-law, you're going too fast, it wasn't this fast the last time... slow down, slow down! If we take the curve at this speed, we're done for. Please, slow down, I don't want to die at such a young age!"
It didn't stop Xiao Luo at all, and as Trumpchi continued to accelerate, the engine started to roar like a beast at it homed in on the inner lane.
"Please, God... and Gods of all faiths, please bestow upon me your divine protection and save this poor soul!"
Su Canye shut his eyes and gritted his teeth in terror. He held on tightly to the handrail, and just like most men in the face of extreme danger, he started to pray to the Gods he so often neglected.
Back at the foot of the Wild Wolf Mountain, the large screen showed the Trumpchi speeding into Devil's Corner. The commentator could immediately guess what it was trying to do. "Here's our Dark Horse, the Trumpchi, once again! It's literally flying into Devil's corner, look at that speed... and it looks like it wants to repeat that beautiful maneuver again, drifting through the inner lane, but it seems to me this time the speed is a tad too quick. Can he make it?"
Just as he finished speaking, the Trumpchi's rear swung forward as it initiated the drift...
The commentator got back on the mic, his voice louder this time as he spoke with more urgency. "Okay, the Trumpchi has started to drift into the curve now. He powers over and uses his clutch to induce drift, that's how he does it. Look at that control... it's sliding perfectly, and he needs quick hands to control the steering wheel, very little room for error there," the commentator explained, "What a beau... oh, wait, there's a situation here. Oh, no, the left wheels are off the ground! Oh my god, how could this happen? Did he steer into the turn too early? Didn't the last time go pretty smoothly?"
Suddenly, everyone's attention was on the screen, and they all held their breaths in trepidation.
The left wheels of Trumpchi started to lift higher off the ground, then without any warning, the entire car flipped over the outer guardrail and flew off the cliff.
"Oh, my God! It's bad, the Trumpchi has flipped over the cliff, and it's at least a four hundred meters fall; even an immortal would not survive if he fell from there. Oh my God, let's pray for the best—may our legend be safe tonight!" The commentator grieved, for when he saw the Trumpchi flying off the cliff, he could hardly control the emotion in his voice. Even as a commentator, he somehow had a strong personal attachment to the Trumpchi.
The Trumpchi is done for!
Falling off the cliff meant instant death, and nobody could save them, not even a legion of immortals.
But, things took a shocking turn, for the Trumpchi did not plummet to the bottom as everyone thought, but started spinning like a tornado towards the other side of the road. It seemed like it had spun off by leveraging on the rotational force of the flip.
"Oh my gosh, I...w-what did I just witnessed here? The Trumpchi is flying in the air; it's like something out of an anime flick—like 'Bakusō Kyōdai Let's & Go!' It's like Victory Magnum's 'Magnum Tornado!'" the commentator raved. He was hysterical, screaming excitedly into the mic with his voice trembling from shock and disbelief.
The crowd was in a stupor and was completely dumbfounded. Whether at Wild Wolf Mountain of following through the online forum, no one could believe what they saw, and they all just started cheering hysterically. They had all just witnessed a miracle!
"What did I just see, the Trumpchi...it was leaping over the cliff!"
"A divine being must have taken control of the steering wheel of this Trumpchi, it must be!"
"Is this actually an acrobatic car show?"
When they all witnessed could only happen in the movies, or so they thought, until tonight. This was unprecedented and simply unbelievable.
The commentator quickly regained his senses and got on the mic again. "There's a U-shaped curve right after the Devil's corner, and the road after the bend is only twenty meters away from where the Trumpchi went over. If the Trumpchi can somehow land on that road, it would find itself at least two hundred meters ahead of Queen and Wolf King... from last to first place. Oh, my gosh, this is insane!"
...