F1: The Making of a Racing God

Chapter 28 This is powerful

During the more than one month that he was recuperating at home, apart from his daily exercise and driving practice, Shu Long's life was basically in a state of idleness.

He had originally planned to run some individual races in other series of events during the holiday, but with his current mental state, who knows if he might fall asleep while driving, so he had no choice but to put the plans on hold.

During this time, in an effort to distract himself, he tried a series of ways that young people his age often use to pass the time, such as playing games, listening to music, and reading novels. But the damn term "photographic memory" turned all of this into a source of pain.

Whether he wins or loses playing games, whether he's excited or angry, these emotions can swirl in Shu Long's mind for at least twenty hours.

Listening to music is another story altogether. While it can be quite soothing, when you find that even after you take off your headphones, the exact same melody keeps relentlessly playing, it's not exactly a pleasant experience.

Fortunately, humans are always better able to adapt to adversity than they imagine. As the days passed by in agony, a term called "empty" quietly appeared on the system panel.

Perhaps because of the high intensity of the continuous torture, the progress of unlocking the [Emptiness] skill was quite fast, and the achievement was reached in less than three days.

Most of the terms activated by Shulong previously were related to improving brain efficiency, and this "emptying" effect is basically the opposite of them.

As the name suggests, this is a state of extreme relaxation, and it is also a term with a permanent effect and a high priority.

The combined effects of several affixes, such as "Photographic Memory" and "Sharp Eyes," which were almost like permanent abilities, have now become active skills that require the user to concentrate a certain amount of energy to take effect.

This can be described as a timely rain, which solved Shulong's immediate crisis almost instantly.

Of course, there are side effects too. Shu Long was already a bit lazy and averse to trouble outside of racing, and now that this "empty space" has appeared, it's only gotten worse.

Generally, unless he has three or four things he absolutely needs to do, he'd rather leave them piled up than waste energy on them individually. When he finally has to go out, he insists on finding the easiest route before he sets off, not wanting to take even one extra step.

From a sunny, athletic boy, he degenerated into a shut-in at lightning speed.

This is a microcosm of everything Shulong has gained this summer.

The family members felt a bit of a headache, but Shu Long's condition was at least much better than before, when he would run to the top floor in the middle of the night, turn on the treadmill, and run all night before collapsing in bed.

On September 13, the most crucial World Championship finale of the year was held in Le Mans, France.

To avoid performance issues caused by time difference in the last competition, Shulong didn't even go to register for the new school this time, and came here almost twenty days in advance to prepare.

I also took a vacation.

Fortunately, the effect of the "empty" keyword is really quite powerful. Shu Long now feels like he's in such great shape that he's bursting with energy, almost to the point of being overly energetic.

After several days of overcoming obstacles, Shulong finally regained its qualification to start from the front row pole position after a one-stop hiatus.

It's been so long.
Today's final performance is as important as the score on the college entrance examination, and even Shu Long couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Just like if you get into a prestigious university with high scores, you can not only access unimaginable resources for growth, but the tuition fees can also be surprisingly cheap.

If you end up only being able to attend a third-tier vocational college, regardless of the teaching quality, the tuition fees will most likely be exorbitantly expensive.

If they can be noticed by some sponsors or youth training systems, then everyone will be happy.

If not, given the current situation of Shu Long's family, they can only support him in high-level karting competitions for a few more years at most. Investing more would be unaffordable and pointless.

One thing to remember is that as a driver gets older, their potential will decline year by year in the eyes of those who look down on them. If they can't do it now, their hopes will only become more remote in the future.

Alternatively, they could take a gamble and participate in the F4 for a year. Several teams have already contacted Shulong privately, but without sponsorship or youth training support, the expenses for a year of racing are beyond just a matter of financial pain.

"Son, are you sure you're not sleepy at all right now?"

"I'm not sleepy at all."

"You don't feel heavy?"

"I don't feel heavy, but your excessive concern makes me feel a bit heavy."

"What about American ginseng tablets? Those stuff gives you energy."

"Look~" Shu Long spat out the half-dissolved lozenge on his tongue to show his father.

"Then let's have another Red Bull. It should be just the right amount of energy to work when you go on stage later."

As if they had rehearsed countless times, Shu Xiong skillfully pulled a yellow jar from his waist bag, and a sweet and sour aroma wafted out.

That would be a good option!
Because Zhang Xin had always forbidden him from touching coffee or energy drinks, saying that they could affect a child's development, Shu Long, who had only ever had a taste each time, was now very eager for them.

I happily took it from my father's hand, and was just about to take a small sip to savor the taste when a snicker suddenly came from the side.

An old man with gray hair, whose eyes looked slightly different sizes, perhaps due to his age and loose skin. His ambiguous smile and scrutinizing gaze made people feel somewhat uncomfortable.

"Red Bull? Would you mind letting me see it?"

"If my dad didn't buy a pirated copy, it should have been Red Bull."

Shu Long was somewhat confused, but he still handed over the energy drink that was almost in his mouth. Shu Xiong, who was next to him, did not stop him, perhaps because he recognized the person in front of him.

The old man acted strangely. After taking the drink, he didn't drink it. Instead, he put on a pair of aging glasses and started looking at the ingredient list. He found that it was all printed in Chinese, so he handed it back untouched.

This time, Shu Long was dumbfounded, because he suddenly remembered that in elementary school safety education class, Lao Wu had repeatedly emphasized that one should never drink or eat anything that a stranger had handed to them that had already been opened.

Is this even drinkable?
Although on the surface it seems the old man didn't have time to do anything, magic tricks aren't all about hand speed. What if he managed to slip something unclean inside using his skills?

The past two years of competition experience have indeed been relatively smooth sailing, but one can't help but worry about the possibility of something going wrong. In this foreign territory, it's hard to guarantee that no one will be envious of Shulong's current achievements.

Did you receive sponsorship from them?

"Even without it, would anyone want to sponsor go-karting?"

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Shu Long felt that the old man's usually stiff expression seemed to have thawed a little. The lack of sponsorship wasn't really surprising; initially, Shu Xiong didn't dare make a big fuss about it, and later it wasn't really necessary.

Business partners with whom you frequently do business might be willing to give you some face and make a small investment as a token of appreciation, but that's about it.

From the perspective of the domestic automotive industry, such an investment will not yield any returns in the short term; it is essentially just spending money to satisfy a hobby.

Favors are the hardest to repay. Unless you're in dire straits, as long as you can still manage, I doubt anyone would want to go around accumulating a mountain of favors.

The old man said no more and was about to leave, but before he had taken two steps, he seemed to remember something and turned back, tossing Shu Long an unopened blue and white jar.

"Drink this, it's potent!"

This time he really left, and didn't do what Shu Long had imagined—that he would personally watch Shu Long drink it and then reveal a ferocious and terrifying smile on his face.

Just now, Shu Long had a little conspiracy theory going on, thinking that maybe the other party was planning to give him some performance-enhancing drugs or something, and then arrange for some people to do random urine tests after the competition. But it seems that's not the case.

"My dad? Say something! Is this drinkable?"

"Drink? Oh, you can drink! This Ao Niu, I was afraid your mom would say I didn't dare buy it for you at first, it's even more energizing than our yellow canned drink! What did that old man say to you just now?"

Is this what you meant when you asked the question?
Shu Long felt that his father was even less guarded and unreliable than himself. So, besides not understanding what he was saying, he didn't realize that his father's behavior was unusual either?

Fortunately, he had at least gotten a similar conclusion from his father, so Shu Long stopped worrying about it. But he still carefully wiped the bottle opening, pulled the tab, and took a sip.

Better safe than sorry. I remember watching the Adventure Tigers movie before, and they even did something like this. They would put the medicine on the outside of the can, and then press the pull tab on the bottle to dispense the medicine.

It tastes like carbonated Red Bull, a bit more sour than the yellow can, and a little spicy on the tongue.

After listening to Shu Long's explanation in fits and starts, Shu Xiong felt a surge of excitement. It sounded like some sponsor had taken a liking to his little darling.

Moreover, from the very beginning, Shu Xiong felt that the old guy looked familiar, as if he had seen him in some scene a few times before, and that he must be some important person.

However, Shu Xiong was a bit face-blind when it came to the appearances of these foreigners, and since he couldn't guess them for the time being, he simply stopped worrying about it and decided to make sure that nothing unexpected happened in this competition.

The moment to prepare for the race has finally arrived.
The organizers were quite thoughtful; considering the strong sun, they arranged for a friendly older sister to hold an umbrella for each driver.

A pair of pale, white thighs were stuck on the track. How could a group of young men in the prime of their youth withstand such stimulation? Shu Long could even vaguely hear that the breathing of the guy next to him under his helmet had become a bit heavier.

Fortunately, Shu Long was in the first row, so as long as he didn't deliberately turn his head, he couldn't see anything, which meant he didn't have to worry about it.

Moreover, these foreign women are too big; according to Shu Long's own aesthetic, he prefers petite and cute girls.

[Would you believe me if I said this has nothing to do with being overshadowed by Gan Mengning's height when I was a child?]

The warm-up lap started as indicated by the traffic lights. Shu Long slowly rubbed his tires back and forth on the track, but he always felt that the second-place runner behind him seemed to have a strong desire to perform today, and would occasionally aggressively step on the gas to show off.

Shu Long recognized this person; he was a German driver who finished third in this year's KZ2 European Championship.

However, Shu Long had not specifically studied German and had not had much communication with him, so he probably hadn't offended him.
This actually has little to do with whether or not they provoked anyone. If they just wanted revenge, then Shulong's performance this year should have made them take defeat for granted.

Humans are ultimately creatures whose emotions are swayed by hormones; this person's current state is called being "hormonally driven."

Return to the starting grid, park properly, wait for the lights to turn off, and then start running.

Then the yellow flag
There was a collision at the back, which involved about five cars that ended up sideways on the track.

Shu Long slapped his steering wheel in exasperation. His rare perfect start after four months had been ruined. But he could only obediently follow the flag signals to slow down and lead the large group of cars behind him slowly along the track.

Fortunately, go-karts have a relatively simple structure, unlike Formula One cars which often leave behind a mess of broken parts. Apart from two cars that were forced to retire due to severe chassis damage, the remaining three were able to follow behind and rejoin the race as usual.

Soon, Shu Long received the signal that the game was about to restart and waited intently for the moment the green flag would be waved.

The green flag had barely been waved when Shu Long, as the lead driver, hadn't even started accelerating when a roar of an engine, which should never have come at that moment, came from behind him.

The riders on the track today are definitely not in good form.

Once the green flag is waved, the timing of the restart is controlled by the driver in the lead row. In principle, the drivers behind can only rejoin the race when the lead row begins to accelerate.

This may be related to Shu Long's habit of starting immediately as soon as the green flag is waved in previous races.

The French home driver in third place was too eager to show off, and tried to start at the last minute but misjudged the timing and floored the accelerator, crashing into the chassis of his German friend Granhard.

Granhard's race car first spun around, scraping the rear of Shulong's car in the process. Then, due to his instinctive revving of the engine to save the car, the rear wheels, which started spinning wildly, caught up with Manfred's front wheels, and the entire rear of the car flew high into the air.

A few months ago, Shu Long might have thought, "I can win even if I fall asleep during the competition, what could be worse?"

Yes brothers, yes!
Shu Long felt like he had the worst luck imaginable. The moment his car swerved sideways, he tried to salvage the situation, but then a shadow suddenly loomed over him in the corner of his eye, and the rear of Granhard's car slammed straight into him.

Instinctively raising his hand to block, Shu Long vaguely heard an unsettling cracking sound coming from his body, followed by a "buzz" in his head, and then he felt as if his entire right side of his body had gone completely numb.

It's a yellow flag again.

The event's safety officers hadn't gone far at all; they immediately surrounded the group and inquired about their situation.

Shu Long was speechless at the moment. He only briefly checked the car and found that it did not seem to have suffered much damage before waving for them to move aside.

Gritting his teeth, he gripped the clutch and, with his right hand which seemed somewhat unresponsive and completely powerless, shifted gears again, stubbornly catching up with the tail end of the yellow-flag car formation.

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(End of this chapter)