Chapter Thirty-Five: The Kiss of the Whirlpool

Kunsheng Dynasty! Mo Shu had no intention of helping the other side realize their wish, and, as luck would have it, fate was not unkind to him either.

At a critical moment—on the day of the sixth round, when one more defeat would have left the Star Team with only a glimmer of hope—Mo Shu was delighted to discover that his reputation points had just reached over three million.

Of course, the Supreme Spirit Ring once again leveled up, and at that moment, the System Lady popped into his mind.

"Host, congratulations! You have upgraded the Supreme Spirit Ring to level 10. From now on, each level-up will require one million experience points, and every ten levels, the ring's quality will increase. Currently, the ring's quality has been upgraded from ordinary to excellent. Please keep striving!"

As the Supreme Spirit Ring was upgraded to "excellent," Mo Shu noticed a change in his "Eagle Eye Analysis"—he could now view Black Mirror's profile.

"Black Mirror, U-level system, specialized in creating turbulence and surprise attacks. Signature skill: Vortex Kiss."

So that's it. In an instant, Mo Shu understood why Black Mirror had flipped his race car, and he also realized how, in last year's final GTCC race—a championship fraught with controversy—Black Mirror had managed to wipe out the Jiangbei Citizen Team.

"U-level? System Lady, is that much stronger than my S-level?" Mo Shu tried to recall his and Wang Yining's rankings.

"U-level stands for 'ultimate,' S-level stands for 'super,' and K-level stands for 'killer.' Do you understand now?"

Mo Shu, unconvinced, pressed further: "Why is Black Mirror ranked one level higher than me?"

The system sighed and replied slowly, "The problem lies with me. I am, after all, an S-level system. Many of the enemies who destroyed our homeland back then were U-level after turning rogue."

"So, you mean the U-level system in Black Mirror's mind is the nemesis of you and your kin?" Mo Shu hadn't expected so many vendettas and entanglements in the world of systems.

"Black Mirror is ruthless and cold-blooded—it's very likely that our nemesis has taken over. But not all U-levels have turned bad; for example, our leader and our chief of operations are both U-level, but they've been missing for a long time... perhaps already... ah..." The system sighed again.

"System, what exactly is your kind?" Mo Shu could not suppress his curiosity.

The system was silent for a while before speaking: "It's complicated. To put it simply, we are beings of psychic energy living in the five-dimensional universe. That's the closest way for you to understand it."

"I can't understand it at all..." Mo Shu was completely lost.

"If you live for a few more billion years, you'll get it." This time, the system actually gave a soft laugh.

"Alright, anyway, thank you, System Lady. Without you, I wouldn't be where I am today."

It was the first time the system had spoken to Mo Shu at such length about anything beyond skills. Perhaps their long companionship had bred a deeper trust.

"It's nothing, Host. Without you, I would still be terribly lonely today."

These words from the system touched Mo Shu deeply. His mind filled with a flood of memories, playing in reverse through his head.

Those who loved him, those he loved, those who had helped and encouraged him, even those who had looked down on him, bullied him, or dealt him crushing blows to his confidence—all appeared before his eyes, vivid and fresh. Mo Shu could not calm down for a long while.

Whether good or bad, smooth or difficult, lucky or unfortunate, Mo Shu suddenly felt grateful for everything he had experienced. It was precisely the sum of all these things and people that made his life so rich, meaningful, and valuable.

"Is this the enlightenment given to me by the psychic beings of the five-dimensional universe?" Mo Shu whispered to himself, his eyes brimming with tears.

Not far away, Wang Yining called out, "You goof! What are you getting all sentimental about now? Come over here and help me and the mechanic swap on a set of soft tires!"

"Oh, alright, coming..."

Whenever Mo Shu was with Wang Yining, he seemed to turn into a brainless "little servant," but his recent bout of self-reflection had indeed come from the heart.

On the battlefield of the GTCC, Mo Shu was steadily maturing, and at critical moments, he could be as "cold-blooded" as needed, never hesitating.

Now that he understood Black Mirror’s skills, he could prepare ahead of time. He and Wang Yining worked out an almost flawless strategy, doing their utmost to avoid situations where either had to fight alone. They advanced and retreated together: when behind, Mo Shu would help his teammate chase down the opposition; when ahead, Wang Yining would hold the line, making the Superstar Team unbreakable.

Thus, in the sixth and even the seventh rounds, the Kunsheng Team could do nothing against them, forced to watch as the pair of racing lovebirds crossed the finish line hand in hand twice, with Mo Shu, Wang Yining, and Geng Hua dividing the limited podium spots between them.

After the seventh round, Black Mirror, in a fit of rage, smashed his helmet—echoing a famous football saying:

"There's not much time left for Team Kunsheng!"

After this fierce battle, before the final GTCC race, the Tianhai Grand Prix, the Star Team finally topped both the individual and team leaderboards.

Zhang Aimin was overjoyed. This was his first team, and in its debut GTCC season, it had taken the lead for the first time. If Mo Shu and Wang Yining could keep up the momentum and clinch the championship, the team's honor roll would gain a glorious new first place.

Time to celebrate! With a month to go before the Tianhai round, the Star Team had to let loose and enjoy at least one wild night.

As always, the gathering was at the "RAL" restaurant in Nanshan City. Everyone's faces beamed with joy and excitement—except for one couple, who seemed out of place, their expressions unusually calm. That couple was Mo Shu and Wang Yining.

Not only did they need to maintain peak competitive form for the all-important final at Tianhai, but the system had also just issued a new temporary mission.

"Both hosts are to travel together to Italy and seek the Eternal Engine Core."

Neither of them had the slightest clue what the Engine Core was. Among all the car parts, there was nothing by that name. Wang Yining even called a friend in Italy to ask if such a term existed in any local dialect.

Naturally, they found nothing. The system offered no further hints, so the two decided that with about a month left before the final, they might as well make a quick trip to Italy. After all, as race car drivers, it was only right to visit the home of supercars.

And so, a spontaneous journey began. The two huddled in a corner of the "RAL" restaurant, poring over travel routes.

Italy was long and narrow, one of the largest countries in Europe. Where exactly should they look for the "Eternal Engine Core"? That was the biggest problem facing them.

Mo Shu suggested they go to Modena, the birthplace of supercars, while Wang Yining felt the mission seemed unrelated to Modena.

Since they were to seek the "Eternal Engine Core," Wang Yining proposed they start simply and logically, beginning their search in Italy's capital, that "Eternal City"—Rome.