There was not enough time. The power system affected everything. Without original factory specs or specialized equipment and measurements, making rash modifications would only create more problems.

Besides, this entire system had already been designed and refined countless times by professional engineers when it left the factory and during its modifications, all tailored to the client’s demands. There was no need to overdo it.

Despite that, there was still plenty Ji Jue could work on.

First, he used Deus Ex Machina to further elevate the creation’s spirituality and essence. Then, through Fluid Alchemy, he adjusted the material properties of the frame, chassis, suspension, and tires.

When the external properties of matter aligned closer to its essence, what emerged was an enhancement that felt almost innate, as if it had always been that way. Though it was only a temporary treatment and the effects would gradually fade, getting through tonight would be no problem at all.

Limited by the material itself, even after enhancement, the car’s overall strength, toughness, hardness, and other metrics could only be increased by about sixty percent. But with Ji Jue reinforcing and refining it in real time, its safety and stability were pushed to the absolute limit.

Since he’d taken the money, he was going to make sure nothing went wrong. For the hard-won bond between him and Mr. Chen, forget racing on Lotus Mountain tonight. Even if it meant charging through blades and fire, he’d carry this car across the finish line!

For friendship, for passion, for victory! And for the remaining payment!!!

***

Night fell, and the sky filled with scattered stars.

Outside Cliff City, at Lotus Mountain, along the usually deserted mountain road after dark, vehicles from the road administration had already parked at both ends. Maintenance trucks kept their lights on as workers pulling overtime carried warning cones and black-and-yellow crash barrels onto the road, setting up “Road Maintenance” signs and cutting off traffic from both sides.

Then, as if they saw nothing at all, they simply let one luxury car after another cross the cordon and drive up the mountain.

The younger workers, while setting things up, couldn’t help but gaze enviously at the taillights disappearing into the distance. The older foremen, meanwhile, were already used to it, lighting cigarettes, standing in the wind, occasionally spitting to the side when they had a moment, completely indifferent.

As everyone knew, the richer and more idle people were, the more they tended to get into hobbies with extremely high barriers of entry. Over time, those naturally formed tight-knit circles. Cliff City had plenty of clubs, but one as high-end as Mr. Chen’s supercar club? There probably weren’t many like it.

Young, good-looking, wealthy, with too much free time, and owning cars that could hit four or five hundred kmph, the way they played went far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

“Honestly, even though the club’s a bit chaotic, it’s not that bad overall. Everyone comes from money, and they’re mostly here to socialize. No one’s clueless enough to bring out pills or that kind of stuff. Aside from racing, most of the time we’re just meeting up to play sports, go for a drive, get familiar with each other. If there’s money to be made, we make it together. After working together long enough, even surface-level friendships count.

“Even if there’s a fight, people usually part on good terms. Worst case, they just stop hanging out together. Situations like today, where someone gets completely humiliated, are pretty rare.”

Mr. Chen sat in the driver’s seat, doing his best to keep the speed at around fifty kilometers per hour, focusing intently on controlling the car.

For some reason, he felt like Kunpeng was especially aggressive tonight. Just a light press on the accelerator would send the speed shooting past a hundred, forcing him to scramble for the brakes, which was starting to make Ji Jue in the passenger seat feel dizzy.

“Ugh, that Mu bastard ... ever since he showed up, the whole club’s gotten messy. The vibe’s completely changed. A lot of friends don’t even want to come out when there’s an event anymore. Even when we do meet, it feels distant.” He sighed gloomily. “If this keeps up, I’ll have to go hang out at the yacht club instead. I don’t even know how to fly an airship, so that’s not really an option. Hey, Mr. Ji, why aren’t you saying anything? Feeling unwell?”

No, I’m perfectly fine. It’s just that my fragile, broke dude’s heart has taken a bit of emotional damage[1].

Ji Jue had nothing to say. He just wanted to cough up a mouthful of blood right onto Chen Yubo’s face.

All he wanted to figure out now was this: out of the three million, how much counted as labor fees, and how much should be compensation for emotional distress. There wasn’t a single cent in there that wasn’t deserved, right?

Before long, the car came to a stop by the roadside. Ahead, amid the pitch-black mountain ridges, rows of streetlights glowed, illuminating the winding road that stretched into the distance.

Not far away, there was a cluster of luxury cars, the kind you’d usually only see at auto shows. Someone had even set up a stage, and under flashing lights, high-energy electronic music was already blasting.

There wasn’t just a DJ on site. All kinds of service staff moved through the crowd, carrying trays and handing out champagne. If this weren’t some remote mountain, Ji Jue would have thought he’d walked into a high-end hotel or a gala.

Once people had enough money, they learned how to have fun. As for playing like these rich second-generation heirs, Ji Jue knew that was never going to be his life. If he had that kind of time and money to burn, wouldn’t it be better to save up and buy a workshop core instead?!

Despite the lively atmosphere, Ji Jue couldn’t shake a sense of distance and detachment. Everyone had the same two eyes and two ears, yet what they wanted to see and hear belonged to entirely different worlds.

He pushed open the car door and murmured, “Pretty lively, huh.”

As one of the main figures of the night, Chen Yubo’s arrival drew most people’s attention. Among the crowd was a young man in a shirt already soaked with alcohol, half-open to reveal his chest. He grinned widely, one arm slung around his female companion, his smile full of mockery.

“Oh? I thought you weren’t coming tonight, Mr. Chen.”

In spite of his opponent’s taunts, Chen Yubo’s closer friends in the club had already gathered around, greeting him warmly and patting his shoulders in encouragement:

“Mr. Chen, don’t lose face[2] out there.”

“Yeah, get your head in the game.”

“That’s the spirit, go for it!”

Amid the cheers and support from his companions, Chen Yubo grew even more excited.

With a sharp tug, he ripped off his tie, no longer holding back the pent-up frustration and anger in his chest. Striding forward in big steps, he went from zero to full aggression in an instant, pointing straight at his opponent’s nose and shouting, “Bastard, you son of a—!”

Ji Jue’s face twitched. He instinctively paused and stepped in front of his boss to shield him. He was here to help with a proxy “account carry,” not to get into a real-life brawl. Sure, if he really wanted to, he could just grab a shotgun from Horsey behind them and wipe out everyone present. But what would be the point?

Every single one of these rich young men and women came from powerful families. Even the slightest injury would be trouble. If someone got punched and cried about it for days, their parents would definitely get involved, and Ji Jue could already imagine the endless headaches that would follow.

Fortunately, before things could escalate into a fight, people on both sides had already stepped in and pulled the culprits apart. After all, plenty of bets had been placed tonight. If one of them ended up in the hospital, would the race even still happen?

Mu Jiang[3]’s expression darkened. His anger flared for a moment before he forced it back down. “Loser, don’t push your luck. Other people might be afraid of your family, but I’m not!”

“Afraid? You think I need ‘luck?’”

Held back by others, Chen Yubo was already completely fired up, unleashing everything onto his opponent. “You’re just some idiot who couldn’t make it in Tide City and got kicked out like trash. What gives you the right to strut around here in Cliff City? You want to race? Let me tell you, if I want to lose, I’ve got plenty of ways to burn money. But if you want to win? Not a chance!”

“Yeah! Go, Mr. Chen!”

“Well said!”

“Beat him up!!!”

The surrounding crowd erupted as many of the onlookers got excited, waving and shouting encouragement. Watching this, Ji Jue felt like he was going crazy. Damn, where did all these chaos-loving instigators come from? People watching the drama really didn’t care how heated things got, huh?

Still, after all these years of friendship, there were at least a few who genuinely cared. They leaned in from the side, quietly warning their friend, “Mr. Chen, take it easy. That guy’s a bit... off.”

“I asked around the other day. Mr. Li lost in a really strange way.”

“That kid’s probably got some dirty tricks up his sleeve. Be careful.”

“Relax, relax.” Chen Yubo instinctively glanced back at Ji Jue, who stood not too far away, and his confidence immediately surged. “I’m fully prepared. ‘The Tide City Racing God?’ Total trash! Tonight I’m gonna make him lose everything and crawl back to Tide City with nothing!”

His impassioned declaration stirred up cheers and applause once again. While Ji Jue wiped his sweat, he caught a fleeting trace of concealed spirit fluctuation within the crowd. He turned his head sharply, scanning for the source, and his gaze landed on Mu Jiang’s side, on that stunningly seductive female companion.

Sensing his gaze, the woman looked back at him and froze for a brief moment. In that split second of eye contact, both of them seemed to understand something.

Damn, I ran into someone in the same line of work! You’re here taking outsourcing jobs too, aren’t you?!

But unlike Ji Jue’s calm smile and slight nod, the woman in the red dress had nothing but darkness in her pitch-black eyes. Her face twisted with hostility, like a silent warning that said, Stay out of this. Don’t get in the way.

Ji Jue’s smile didn’t change. He responded with the same warm, easygoing expression, utterly unconcerned.

Ah, looks like I just got threatened?

Under the flickering lights, he tilted his head slightly, the gentle smile on his face now veiled by a layer of shadow that refused to lift.

Now they were really pushing it.

1. Oh, mine just did as well lol. ☜

2. "Losing face" (diū liǎn, 丢脸) in Chinese culture is the loss of social reputation, prestige, and dignity, going beyond simple embarrassment to damage a person's ability to function within social hierarchies. It represents a threat to one's social image, often caused by public humiliation, disloyalty, or public failure. ☜

3. “穆” carries meanings of serenity, respect, and solemnity, often associated with calm dignity or a quiet, restrained character. It can also suggest something orderly or reverent in tone.

“疆” refers to borders, frontiers, or vast territorial space, and often evokes imagery of wilderness, frontier lands, or large open regions.

To me, the name “穆疆” creates a contrast between calmness and vastness, giving it a feeling of quiet strength set against something expansive and untamed. It sounds serious, slightly austere. ☜