Chapter 28: A Race Between Life and Death 14

Chapter 28: A Race Between Life and Death 14

In the night fog, Pei Yi began to race recklessly.

He knew the dangers, of course.

But there's a slight difference from real-world racing. In reality, he knows that any mistake could be fatal. But in the game, it's uncertain, even Lu Zai Chuan and the others don't know—because players who truly die can't tell them.

What would be the real-world impact if an accident occurred in the game?

But 250 mph was a speed he could accept, a speed at which he could ensure safety. He was confident and assured.

Lu Zai Chuan and others thought he was courting death, but he wasn't; he wouldn't continue if he truly had no confidence.

As he sustained 200 mph for half an hour, the system announced, [Player Pei Yi, for maintaining 200 mph for half an hour, 2 points rewarded.]

[Player Pei Yi, for maintaining 250 mph for half an hour, 2 points rewarded.]

Pei Yi glanced at the notification, wondering about 300 mph. So, this was what the system meant by additional points. They had to be earned on the track.

After a few more laps, Pei Yi gradually got the hang of the track's layout. There were eleven curves, each a crucial point for saving time.

Upon entering one of the deadly curves, he encountered Mao Beibei. Clearly, the man was fast but mediocre in skill, leaving a significant gap. Pei Yi overtook him on the inside, leaving him in the dust, and sped away.

Mao Beibei cursed under his breath but didn't dare speed up. This was an S-curve, after all; go too fast, and the car might fly off the track!

Pei Yi maintaining such high speeds even out of curves is either a genius or a madman.

The other seven drivers could only watch Pei Yi's frantic speeding, helpless. The car crash in the first half still haunted them, the vehicle brutally split in two, flames shooting higher than anything, with no chance of survival for anyone inside.

They all secretly hoped Pei Yi would crash at those speeds.

Meanwhile, at the pit stop, drivers from the first half gathered to watch the live broadcast, unanimously believing Pei Yi had gone mad, acting as if he had a death wish. Either his driving skills were exceptionally strong, or he no longer valued his life.

They all had driven it; they knew the track might seem easy but was far from it, with its series of bends followed by long, sweeping curves.

Yet, despite the difficulty, they watched Pei Yi "surpass himself." On a "zigzag" section of the track, Pei Yi's speed soared from 250 mph to over 300.

Liang Qing watched, mouth agape, unable to help but exclaim, "This guy is incredible!" What does 300 mph even mean? The car's engine at its limit, roadside scenery blurring past, invisible. Covering 300 kilometers in an hour means traveling 83.33 meters per second. That's around the speed of a regular train, which is about 240 mph.

At such speeds, control over direction is crucial; too heavy or too light a touch could send the car flying off course due to inertia.

The live chat was abuzz.

Those who came to mock Pei Yi stopped laughing, even forgetting to praise him. Everyone was gaping at the screen in astonishment.

Watching Pei Yi and his car, they genuinely felt what "A Race Between Life and Death," "Heart-stopping," truly meant. A moment's inattention could lead to disaster.

Yet, the gap was closing, from initially over sixteen laps behind to ten, then eight...

Approaching a particularly long curve, forming a ninety-degree angle, just looking at it seemed challenging.

When everyone thought Pei Yi would slow down, he didn't.

"My God, he's going to fly off the track!"

"Too fast! He hasn't slowed down yet!"

Just when everyone expected Pei Yi to crash, he didn't. Instead, he decelerated just before entering the curve, then accelerated back to around 250 mph midway through the bend.

His control over speed, how much to brake, how much throttle to apply, when to brake, and when to accelerate, all represented theoretical limits of driving. Most people wouldn't dare even contemplate such maneuvers until seeing Pei Yi do it, making observers exclaim that driving could be approached in such a way, and the car could be handled like this!

Upon entering the straightaway, his speed returned to 300 mph. Approaching curves, he raced like this, seizing time, and the more he played, the more exhilarated he became. Many times everyone was on edge before Pei Yi slowly turned the steering wheel.

The car and he had become one. When is a man at his most handsome? Surely, one moment is while racing.

"So handsome... indescribably so."

"This driving skill, truly admirable."

After driving at 300 mph for a while, the system announcement was heard by all.

[Player Pei Yi, for maintaining a speed of 300 mph for half an hour, is awarded 2 points.]

6 points scored. With this trend, a sure win for the championship.

Meanwhile, someone started a thread on the forum specifically to analyze this.

"Generally speaking, each point in JC is hard to earn. It has been analyzed that in a single instance, 30% are easy questions, 30% are medium, 30% are hard, and the remaining 10% are impossible tasks.

"So far, 'A Race Between Life and Death' has a total of 40 points available. The first quiz round, worth 10 points, I consider medium difficulty. The second round, a single-lap speed race, is easy, and the third round, high-speed racing, is hard. The third should be considered an impossible task since everyone knows, failure means resetting points to zero.

"Pei Yi didn't do well in the medium and easy tasks but always breaks through the hard ones. It was the same with the HL instance. The death photo was also unlocked later. It feels like if he had done well in the first and second rounds, 'A Race Between Life and Death' would have been a full-score clearance."

Comments flooded below the post—

"He's still speeding, with less than an hour left. He's only about three laps behind the leader now. I bet the other groups are panicking, wishing they could speed up too!"

"Hahaha! Seeing Pei Yi overtaking them one by one, and they can't do anything about it, feels so good."

"That feeling of helplessness could become a lifelong shadow for them. That's the power of real strength, terrifying strength. Bad luck, I might surpass you next time, but real strength is solid."

Everyone focused on Pei Yi's live stream while also commenting on the forum.

"Mao Beibei tried to overtake Pei Yi but was no match, even got shaken off and nearly crashed."

"That feint was beautifully executed, truly a god of inner-lane overtaking!"

"My God, I initially thought it was luck for Lu God to team up with Pei Yi, but now I'm looking forward to their collaboration. It will be unparalleled!"

As everyone was getting excited, the sky rumbled, and it started to rain.

Everyone knows driving in rain is challenging. Pei Yi must switch to rain tires, or he'll risk slipping and crashing.

But there wasn't much time left.

Lights flashed continuously in the pit stop as someone pulled over to change tires.

Lu Zai Chuan walked to the door, rain streaming in from outside. The person arriving wasn't Pei Yi, but Mao Beibei.

Removing his helmet, he appeared extremely frustrated. He had repeatedly tried to overtake Pei Yi but couldn't even get close to his tail. Not only did he fail to overtake, but Pei Yi's several feints also nearly made him crash into the guardrails, scaring him into reducing speed rather than daring to race on the same track again.

This man was too sharp! His car was like a sword, striking whoever he wished under his control. To play with cars to this extent and not pursue professional racing seemed a waste.

Lu Zai Chuan didn't wait for Pei Yi. By then, others had also arrived, all requesting to change to rain tires.

At this point, being caught up by Pei Yi, or catching up to him, wasn't the priority anymore. Staying alive was.

While they were changing to rain tires, Pei Yi's car passed the pit stop without stopping, splashing up a great deal of rain, all over their cars.

That red Ferrari, with a crown emblem on it.

These were the last two laps. From here, Pei Yi officially surpassed them all.

The others watched helplessly as he overtook them, their eyes widening. To be left in the dust, they now understood the feeling, not even in the same league!

As they prepared to set off again one by one.

The system voice sounded again, clear and distinct, heard by everyone,

[Player Pei Yi, for maintaining a speed of 350 mph for 10 minutes, is awarded 2 points.]

350 mph!! He had sped up again!!!

The only thought among the crowd was that this man had truly gone mad.

The rain was getting heavier!

Not just them, everyone couldn't believe someone would dare play with speed like this.

Unable to restrain himself, Lu Zai Chuan sent Pei Yi an instant voice message, which the system would directly relay, "Have you lost your mind, speeding up to 350 mph in the rain?! The last two points are definitely an impossible task. Don't be foolish! You've got enough points already, no need to accelerate further!!"

He knew Pei Yi might pursue the last 2 points. But he's already the champion, with 10 points for the championship, plus 8 points earned on the road, totaling 27 points! He's surpassed many, no need to risk further.

But there was no response.

Some viewers in the live stream, too scared to watch, while others held their breath.

At 350 mph, he broke the record, creating a miracle that likely won't be surpassed for years to come.

Pei Yi's mileage was around 1800 kilometers, far ahead of everyone else, with just 20 minutes left until the game's end.

Because broadcasts were too distracting, Pei Yi had the system muted early on and couldn't hear Lu Zai Chuan's message.

He looked forward intently, either tireless or perhaps too tired to care.

The windshield wipers whirred wildly as rain streamed against the glass.

All he could hear was the roar of the engine and the pressing of the gas pedal, the motor's sound was delightful, rumbling along with the rain outside, like a symphony.

Pei Yi didn't glance at the dashboard; from start to finish, he only wanted to surpass himself, keeping pace with his rhythm, matching the music's tempo, alternating highs and lows, fast and slow.

He felt as if he was back at 18, when everything was turning upside down, driving on the highway just like that. What was his speed back then? He had forgotten. He only remembered, at that time, he,

On an endless road, lost himself, pushing speed to his limits.

Racing against time, speeding against death.