Hearing Absolute Shadow's words, Derek Su and Stella both froze.
By now, they had already noticed that Path of Glory had disappeared.
That matched their pre-race analysis of Eternity-01. Eternity was undoubtedly a powerful Mecha Girl, but once she activated her skill, she couldn't afford even the slightest disruption. A minor collision was enough to cancel it, and she definitely wouldn't be able to use it again for a while.
Stella was different. With her 180 Boost Charge, she could keep refreshing her skill as long as her engine didn't blow.
With Eternity-01's special skill already canceled, she theoretically shouldn't have been faster than Stella, much less capable of making up the lost time.
Absolute Shadow's next words answered their question.
[Eternity overclocked.]
Derek Su's eyes met Stella's in the rearview mirror.
Overclocking was a fairly obscure concept.
"Wait, she's pushing herself that hard?" Derek Su exclaimed. "That debris on the track was from Eternity, right? She's that badly injured and can still overclock?!"
Overclocking was indeed a state that allowed a Mecha Girl to exceed her normal potential once her emotions reached their peak, but it also forced her body into extreme overload. Any Mecha Girl would be utterly exhausted afterward.
For Eternity to overclock while already injured showed just how astonishing her fighting spirit was.
[You have no idea how much pressure you and Stella have put on the other competitors.]
Absolute Shadow's helpless voice came through the walkie-talkie.
[The moment the host announced Stella's instantaneous speed, three competitors withdrew from the race.]
Derek Su: "..."
Seriously? They quit just because of that?
Looks like this year's competitors aren't exactly strong under pressure.
As they spoke, Derek Su steadily piloted Stella out of Panlong Pillar and raced toward the final section of the course, Longmen Pass. He remained in constant contact with Absolute Shadow, keeping track of the time gap between them and Eternity in real time.
None of them knew that the organizer's office had already descended into chaos.
"How could there be falling rocks?!" Patrick Wang's expression was grim as he slammed the table. "Didn't you conduct a risk assessment before the race?"
Every staff member in the conference room lowered their head.
Before a race, every dangerous section of the track had to undergo a risk assessment. Areas prone to collapses or rockfalls were strictly reinforced and then subjected to stress testing to make sure no accidents occurred during the competition.
"Mr. Wang, calm down."
An elderly man sitting across from him wore an amiable expression.
He was dressed impeccably, with a silver badge from the Techmasters' Alliance pinned to his chest. His hair and beard were meticulously groomed, making him look every bit the refined old gentleman.
He smiled and said, "There's no competition where we can guarantee that nothing dangerous will ever happen. Even weather forecasts can be wrong. No one wanted our competitors to encounter falling rocks on the track."
"That boulder was half a person's height!" Patrick Wang stared coldly at the old man. "Even if it shattered, the pieces scattered across the track would still be the size of a human head. At the speeds these competitors are traveling, hitting one could cause devastating injuries to both the Mecha Girl and the pilot!"
"Mr. Wang, the survey team is back," his secretary whispered beside him.
Only then did Patrick Wang's expression ease slightly.
As soon as the rockfall occurred, he had immediately dispatched a survey team to inspect the area.
The rocks on the track couldn't be removed, since doing so would affect the fairness of the race.
However, to prevent a catastrophic accident, Patrick Wang still ordered the announcer to warn every competitor about the loose rocks at left turn No. 27 on the downhill section of Panlong Pillar.
Two men dressed head to toe in mountaineering gear entered the room.
Patrick Wang looked up. "What's the situation? Was the reinforcement inadequate?"
Someone would definitely have to answer for this.
Right now, the priority was determining exactly what had caused the rockfall.
The pressure generated by a Mecha Girl passing at high speed could theoretically trigger falling rocks, but the odds of dislodging a boulder half a person's height were extremely low.
"There's nothing wrong with the reinforcement," one of the survey team members explained. "We inspected every reinforced section of Panlong Pillar. The rocks were secured properly. There's no way they should have rolled down. But..."
The two surveyors exchanged a glance.
The man in front pulled a lead box from his bag. Sealed inside was a strangely shaped metal component resembling a screw. Its surface was covered in intricate patterns woven together in an incomprehensible way.
"We found this on Panlong Pillar." The surveyor held the lead box out for Patrick Wang to see. "This component is highly radioactive. It didn't come from a Mecha Girl, and there's no way the workers who reinforced the rocks would have been carrying something like this. So it must have appeared during the race."
Patrick Wang took the lead box.
He examined it for a long time but still couldn't figure out what it was.
Still, as a Techmaster, he could sense the radioactivity coming from the metal component. For an ordinary person, carrying something like this around would be practically suicidal.
Could the rockfall have something to do with this metal component?
For no apparent reason, a sense of unease welled up inside Patrick Wang.
Fortunately, Eden was nearby at Panlong Mountain. She should know what this thing was.
...
Longmen Pass.
The final stretch of the first section of the Panlong Mountain Circuit.
The entire section was built along the cliffs. Sheer drops plunged away on both sides, with the raging Dragon's Breath Waterfall far below and towering mountains surrounding the course.
Sunlight poured through gaps in the clouds. Under the Tyndall effect, light and shadow intertwined into countless blades of radiance descending from the heavens, then merged into a vast golden canvas as they approached the ground and spread across the track.
ROAR—!!
A silver phantom burst into that golden canvas.
The tranquility shattered beneath the roar of the engine as light and shadow danced in the gale.
"Absolute Shadow, how far behind are Stella and I now?"
Inside the cockpit, Derek Su tightened his grip on the control stick and saw Path of Glory once again.
But this time, Path of Glory extended only toward the finish line instead of covering the entire track.
Racing toward death for a chance to live?
Those two really were giving it everything they had.
In the Stella Club's Operations Department, Absolute Shadow glanced at the real-time data on the large screen.
Based on their average speeds, Stella was roughly two seconds behind Eternity.
Eternity's speed was still climbing after entering Longmen Pass. She was pushing at full throttle.
That meant Derek Su and Stella would undoubtedly go all-out on the straightaway as well.
But could Stella still activate her special skill one more time?
Absolute Shadow gritted her teeth and ultimately made a decision that went against everything her ancestors stood for.
She picked up the walkie-talkie and spoke urgently.
"Mr. Su, Eternity-01 is moving incredibly fast! You're already thirty seconds behind!"
"What?!" Derek Su and Stella were both dumbfounded.
T-Thirty seconds already?
Even with overclocking, she couldn't possibly be that ridiculous!
Was Eternity-01 really a Mecha Girl and not a fighter jet?!
"Master!"
At Stella's shout, Derek Su sighed and glanced at the Sovereign Engine.
Its blowout rate had already climbed to 30%.
A one-in-three chance...
Five kilometers remained.
In the rearview mirror, Stella's gaze was unwavering.
"Let's gamble!"
The Sovereign Engine activated once more.
BOOM—!!
Stella merged with the light.
She streaked across the cliffs, racing toward the finish line!
...
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