Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"They built it themselves?"

No, they should have assembled it themselves after it arrived. Even assembling it themselves is impressive, let alone integrating it into a car. It's truly something only professionals can do, though the integration is a bit lacking. The sheer number of buttons is mind-numbing. But this is just a 'test paper,' and they don't have the luxury of integration and optimization. Given more time, they should be able to create something even more impressive. This car is fascinating, very fascinating.

"So, drive? Do you want me to step on the gas?"

[Just leave it to me, okay. okay.] Apollonia's voice suddenly stopped, and the car that had just started suddenly vibrated.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"It's okay. It's not a big deal. We're about to go out. Put your hands on the steering wheel and pretend."

Apollonia drove the six-wheeled racing car smoothly out of the garage and into the racing track opposite the garage.

As Han Xingzhi had said, the racetrack was small, occupying only a small corner of the campus. Although it was located in the prime area of Yujing, the land of the garrison could not actually be bought or sold, so the "luxury" of this land was only theoretical.

The racetrack is laid out like a go-kart track, with a 200-meter straight, a large U-shaped bend, and a series of small bends, basically covering all the classic road conditions that may appear on the track.

But each one was too small, and the entire test track could only be used as a "practice exercise." The real training was held at the Wutaishan Circuit next door, just across the street from the school, and you could even drive from the garage to the track yourself.

The small test track didn't allow Apollonia to fully demonstrate its capabilities. But that was a good thing, because Shangluo was a little scared.

This is real racing. For someone who doesn't even have a driver's license, the experience is quite thrilling.

Chapter 91 Driving

"Be careful," Qi Yuan handed him a helmet. Somehow, he saw a hint of hope, anticipation, and expectation in the monitor's eyes. As the team's manager, she was the one who cared the most for the entire team. Many people joined mid-career, but she was the only one who took over the manager role directly from a senior in her first year.

This is a difficult job. Besides the skills, you have to take care of everything, and you can't let your own level fall behind. Also, the agent isn't the captain, so when the credit is distributed, he doesn't get the full share.

Of course, it doesn’t matter to the Longjiang team whether they deserve credit or not, because they haven’t won for a long time anyway.

She still remembered the moment she'd inherited the race car from the previous class, it wasn't this car. Han Xingzhi, the Qigong practitioner, and many others were gone. Despair was written across the team's eyes, but they had to bravely compete—the race was held annually, but the cars weren't always replaced. The current car had been assembled just a year before Han Xingzhi took on the role of technical director, and many parts were still being fine-tuned.

The debugging alone scared away three groups of drivers. This is a car that no one dares to drive. The mess of buttons alone would make even the most trained driver's scalp tingle.

In theory, this is far more complex than flying a fighter jet. A fighter jet's flight is stable, and combat operations require only a few levers and buttons. But the road conditions are incredibly complex, and this car's front wing, rear wing, fans, and six suspension systems all need to be adjusted in real time. Even if Nezha, with his three heads and six arms, sat inside, he'd still need a few hands to respond to all the commands in real time.

But Shangluo was here. Since conventional methods couldn't be used, then at least some metaphysical methods could be used. She didn't know if it would work, but what if it did?

Han Xingzhi waved the green flag and the car officially started on the track.

Apollonia was indeed in first gear, driving at a leisurely pace on the track, according to her daily driving schedule.

The wind blew into the open cockpit, bringing the scent of summer grass and trees.

"Ah, it feels good. The sun is shining brightly today, isn't it?"

[Yes, yes] Apollonia clenched her teeth, not looking like she was driving leisurely at all.

"Hey, is there something wrong with you?"

"It's not me, it's this car," she uttered through gritted teeth. "To think that a middle school student's creation could possess such a powerful machine spirit! They must have poured sweat and effort into this car, projecting their own strong will into its body."

"Hey, hey, hey, is something going to happen? Why is this machine spirit going against you?"

[Machine Soul. Machine Soul is angry! He believes that racing is a glorious sport. Students across the country view the competition as a stage test of their lives, and they all work very hard. But you let go of the steering wheel and drive automatically, which is not fair to the other contestants. He wants to uphold justice for the other contestants! He is so right! The more right he is, the more powerful he is. I don't have enough phlogiston, I can't suppress it! She]

"Why are you talking like I'm a villain?" Before he could finish his words, a huge push hit him from behind, reminiscent of that rocket launcher. Then came a series of five hairpin turns.

[Hold on tight! I'm fighting with Him for the infiltrating phlogiston circuit. Hold on to the handrail. I'm turning!]

"Then could you please step on the brakes! Is this matter so important?!"

"I don't believe I can't even tame a car. I want to fly a plane. Got it! I'll deal with the car, you deal with the machine spirit! I'll treat the symptoms, you'll treat the root cause. You go beat it up! Beat it until it's down! We'll turn it into a specimen! You have your hammer with you, right?"

"Why does he sound more and more like a villain? Actually, I think he makes a lot of sense. Well, I can only be a bad guy for once. Sorry, racing brother." He gripped the steering wheel lightly -

Anger, resentment, and a burning sense of justice emanated from the steering wheel. If this car were personified, it would likely be a passionate high school student. Shangluo also confirmed that everything he did was truly for glory, for the competition, and to ensure that the event could proceed with dignity.

His temples seemed to be.

Shangluo looked back and it seemed to be behind the cockpit, and he needed to lean out to touch it.

"Oh! Captain Qi, look! He still says he can't drive! He still says he can't drive! It's amazing! He's as passionate as this car, and he can drive every corner with precision. We found the right person!"

"Yes, very good," Qi Yuan remained calm, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up - with this talented racing driver, all problems seemed to be solved. The Longjiang team's decades of hard work were finally bearing fruit in this competition.

But the next second, her eyes widened.

"Ah, Squad Leader Qi, is he leaning out? Is he doing some acrobatics? He's leaning out, is he driving with his feet?! It's true that masters are professionals. So professional."

After sticking his head out for three seconds, Shangluo retracted his head:

"No. It's too shaky for me to hit."

【稍等.等我5秒，等我跑完这第3圈。5、4、3、2、1我已上线，感觉良好。】

The vibrations suddenly stopped, and everything was silent. The engine ran steadily in the back, and the machine spirit that had been resisting stubbornly just now also fell silent.

[Training complete. I've already finished sampling the track data. No need to distract myself with driving; I've written a small program to make it drive itself. No matter how strong it is, it's just a machine spirit. I can use my free hand to suppress it. Shangluo, I'll leave the finishing blow to you. Give it a hammer and silence it completely.]

"Alright." Shangluo felt more and more like he was bullying a righteous high school student. He leaned halfway out, reached back, and struck him from behind with a hammer.

In an instant, Shangluo felt as if something tense had disappeared. Apollonia had completely taken control of the car.

The car came to a steady stop at the starting point. Shangluo removed the steering wheel and handed it to Qi Yuan, who stood there stunned.

"Shang Shangluo," she pointed at the car and asked, "Why did you lean over and knock on it just now?"

"It's okay, it's just a minor problem. I can fix it while I'm driving. Director Han, your car is very good. Very good."

"No, no, no, you're the director." Han Xingzhi waved his hands repeatedly. "Shangluo, good man, brave man! I'm counting on you from now on! Our team is counting on you! As agreed, I'll do the job for you. Don't refuse. Everyone has an invitation anyway. Being a director only adds a little fame, I don't care."

Shangluo hesitated. Not because of his position, but because of the car. He looked back at the car and could sense the smoldering flame of justice that had just been extinguished. He felt a sense of indignation towards the car.

"I can be the technical director, because there are indeed some technical issues that need my attention. But before that, the team is short of two drivers, right?"

"Yes," Qi Yuan replied, "In fact, we can adjust internal positions on our own, but the technical director needs to report separately. So you can also drive as the technical director, it's not a problem."

"I actually have a great candidate to recommend. I can provide backup for the event, but we can also add another driver so we can back each other up. First, let me ask, can someone from the Wutaishan Training Institute next door be invited to join us?"

Qi Yuan thought for a moment and said, "In principle, yes. Although we have no connection in terms of running schools, we are theoretically two parts of the same school, and the campuses are connected."

"Ah, that's easy. We can have two drivers, right? Wait a minute, I'll call someone right away. If it's him, the car won't have any problems even with the hatch. The car will be happier, too."

Chapter 92 Driver

"Wait a minute, I'll make a call now."

He pointed at the jade token. Han Xingzhi understood; he, too, had one. Furthermore, he was the only person of his age in Shangluo who could fully utilize the Fetion token's functions. Lu Liang couldn't use it without first eating radish to "recharge" himself. Qi Yuan could make do with it, but because he couldn't access the display interface, he could only use limited functions.

But after looking through his contacts, he has added quite a few people. From top to bottom:

akashic records

The beautiful Apollonia

Unknown contact (actually Daozu. But after using "Knock Knock" five times that night, the contact name disappeared at some point. Shangluo remembered that it was written as "Sun Palace Taidan Yan Guang Yu Ming Tai Yang Di Jun" instead of Fei Yuan Zhen Jun or Wan Shou Di Jun. He almost didn't recognize it.)

The following are in order:

Zhu Xianxun (using the default gray blank portrait, but adding sunglasses)

Lu Huaiyang (profile picture is a lotus)

Lao Wu (profile picture is Wubing) who looks at the back door

Lao Liu who is watching the warehouse (his profile picture is Liu Tiao)

Wen Yuan was last in line, her avatar a red-haired cartoon character from the popular Yujing middle school comic "Super Wang Lingguan," featuring the protagonists Wang Shan and Wang E. While it was a classic Wang Lingguan story, it incorporated modern urban themes and transformation elements. Wang Lingguan dyed his hair red, a color the school would never allow.

Shangluo remembered watching a bit of it, but since he couldn't catch up in Yangzhou, he didn't bother to read it. The premise was interesting, though. Whether the protagonist was Wang Shan or Wang Evil depended on which form he transformed into. Wang Lingguan would switch between the two forms during battle, employing different spells. Each form even had its own "protagonist group," with the black and white groups even battling it out.

Wen Yuan's avatar shows him in his evil form, wearing a black robe. He can use his evil form spells.

He had just intended to add Squad Leader Qi, but she couldn't see the interface, so she couldn't add a contact and could only listen passively. She would have to wait until she got home and ask her father to help her.

Shangluo found Wen Yuan's conversation thread—he felt Wen Yuan was the most suitable person to drive this car. While he could provide some backup for the race, he didn't want to have to lean out to fix the car every time he ran. While he wasn't completely unable to drive, he preferred to leave professional matters to professionals. He, the "technical director," only needed to be a backup, no problem.

"Are you there? I need a favor. Are you free this afternoon to test drive the car?"

After typing quickly on the keyboard, he sent it to Wen Yuan.

One second, two seconds, three seconds. 30 seconds.

"Something's not right. I remember this guy always had the sign in his hand. Why didn't he answer it for so long?"

"Maybe he didn't hear it," Apollonia reminded him. "It seems not everyone can activate the vibrate function like Daozu. You sent it without a ringtone, so he might not hear it if it's in his pocket."

"Tsk, then just call. The phone rings. If he's really busy, he'll hang up."

He pressed the phone button and dialed the switchboard:

"Hey, who are you looking for?"

The lazy operator's voice was still on the other end of the line. Shangluo asked him to help transfer the call to Wen Yuan, but the other party just said "hmm" and connected the call to Wen Yuan.

In two seconds, the call was connected.

"Wuwu. Wuwu. Wuwu." Wen Yuan's crying voice was heard from the other end of the phone.

"Hello, Shangluo?" He sobbed before continuing, "Wuwuwu, what's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with you? Why are you crying?"

"Wuwuwu, I'm telling you, Master Sa is dead. Wuwuwuwu."

"Master Sa? Which Master Sa?" He was so scared that he opened the discussion group of Jinyiwei Nanzhen and confirmed that there was no one with the surname Sa in it.

"Who else could it be? Of course it's Wang Lingguan's master: Sa Shoujian, also known as Sa Tianshi. Waaaaah, let me tell you, when Wang Lingguan was trying to subdue the Golden Dragon Shears, they suddenly split in two, separating Wang Shan and Wang E. They then faced off on the Songjiang Radio Tower. While they were arguing, Master Sa helped them block the 12x Hunyuan Qigong Cannon from the Three Sisters. Master Sa fell from the Songjiang Tower into the Huangpu River! Waaaah~~~ Master Sa is dead. In the last episode, Master Sa was poisoned by a Gu that 'melts upon contact with water.'"

Suddenly, the operator shouted, "Can you two talk about comics offline? This line is important! If you have anything to say, tell me now!"

"Ah, sorry, sorry." Shang Luo bowed into the phone, not knowing who he was bowing to. "Well, Wen Yuan! Check Fetion! Check Fetion! I'm hanging up first!"

He quickly pressed the hang-up button. He didn't want to be scolded twice for the same thing.

Wen Yuan waited 10 seconds after hanging up the phone before replying:

"right away."

It took 10 seconds to type three words. Shangluo is not sure how others use it, but it seems that typing is indeed very difficult.

He went to the beverage machine to buy a bottle of Coke and stood at the intersection waiting. Five minutes later, Wen Yuan appeared at the intersection with tears on her face.

"Why did you arrive so quickly?"

"I just realized our garage is right next to yours, just across the wall. I just circled around and if I had known I would have just climbed over the wall. It would have taken less than 20 seconds."

"That's convenient. By the way, let me ask you, are you busy this afternoon? Can you come test drive the car?"

"Busy, too busy! I'm so busy that I can't get away." Wen Yuan answered firmly, as if wasting a minute here was a crime.

"Then why are you here? Oh, weren't you reading a comic book just now? What on earth were you doing?"

"Well, here's the situation. You're holding a Formula One car race here, right? We also have a tank race. The tank crew is three: me, Lu Liang, and our assistant. But the assistant just transferred to another school, apparently because the imperial examinations in Yingtian were difficult. Anyway, there are only Lu Liang and I in the crew now. Logically, we should practice tank maintenance this afternoon. We need to take the tracks and engine apart and put them back together."

"Don't you have a maintenance team? We have 20 people in our fleet."

"No. Where's the maintenance team? We're practicing maintenance and repairs in a battlefield environment, and all work can only be done by the crew. But, alas, without one person, it seems there's no point in practicing anymore. So I should have been very busy this afternoon, but I just couldn't, so I just lay in the cockpit reading comics. No one could find me anyway. So, you called me, so I came. Of course I can come, but! But! I have a small request! I can come, but you have to go too."

Chapter 93 Exchange

Wen Yuan raised a hand. "So you want me to drive, right? You've found the right person! The Leilangtian Sutra I practiced is specifically designed for high-intensity driving. Even if your car is more complicated than a fighter jet, I can handle it with ease. As long as you're willing to trade with me and there's no conflict in your schedule, you can participate in both races at the same time."

"So, how exactly does the exchange work?"

"How about you come over and be the driver's right? I'll join your team and you'll join ours. Two plus one, counting you as one, will make a perfect three-man crew—and I can't find anyone else besides you at this point. Everyone else has already formed a team and has been practicing for two and a half years. You come over to ours and be the driver's right."

"What does Che You do? What do the other two do?"

"Lu Liang is the left driver, the commander. She's responsible for command, observation, and communications. I'm the driver, driving. If you're the right driver, you'll be operating the turret. You don't need to reload, there's an automatic loader inside the turret. You just sit there, aim, and fire."

"But I still have to help you maintain it, right?"

"It's okay, it's okay. Lu Liang and I can handle the maintenance. You might not be able to move the tracks. Also, I'll need your guidance when I repair the engine. Any guidance is fine. How's that?"

"It's okay. Not a big deal. Is it allowed by the rules?"