Chapter Thirty-Four: Meritorious Service and Reward

When Mo Shu opened his eyes again, he was already lying on his own bed in the team’s quarters. Wang Yining was sitting nearby, her bright, limpid eyes fixed intently on him.

“Whoa! You startled me. Why are you so close? Did you sneak a kiss while I was out?” Mo Shu joked, feeling considerably lighter in spirit.

“Hmph—don’t flatter yourself, you narcissist!” Wang Yining retorted with a pout.

Mo Shu sat up and rolled his neck, glancing at the clock on the table. It was already half past ten in the morning.

He must have been unconscious for nearly ten hours. Judging by the fact that Wang Yining had stayed by his side all night, she must not have returned to her room either. This realization made him feel a twinge of guilt.

“The team doctor already checked you. You were just a little frightened, nothing serious. Wash up, get changed, and come downstairs. Someone brought you a banner first thing in the morning,” Wang Yining said, having already laid out clean clothes for him. She flashed a flirtatious smile, opened the door, and headed downstairs.

Who still gives out banners in this day and age? Mo Shu couldn’t help but find it both amusing and awkward.

Once he was washed and dressed and made his way downstairs, he was shocked to find the team lounge packed with police officers. For a moment, he thought he must have committed some grave offense.

“Mr. Mo Shu, on behalf of our entire division, I’d like to express our sincerest gratitude!” It turned out the middle-aged officer who had ridden in his car the night before was actually a division chief. Mo Shu couldn’t help but admire the man’s steadfast presence—holding such a position of authority and yet still fighting on the front lines at his age.

Life is strange, Mo Shu mused. He’d only ever seen citizens present banners to police officers or doctors—people who save lives and protect the public. Never did he imagine that, as a racing driver, he would one day be thanked by the police. It was both humbling and exhilarating.

“Heroic Deeds, Champion of the Circuit!”

The eight golden characters blazoned on the crimson banner filled Mo Shu with a sense of worth. Just as he was privately basking in pride, a long-lost voice echoed in his mind.

“Ding—
Congratulations, host, you have received a reward for your heroic actions.
From now on, you may upgrade the Supreme Spirit Ring by gaining reputation.”

The Supreme Spirit Ring? Was it the faintly purple ring that both he and Wang Yining wore? Mo Shu touched his finger thoughtfully.

“Host, you are correct.
Your current reputation is 1,350, which means 1,350 people in this world have expressed admiration for you.
You now meet the requirements to upgrade your ring. Please proceed as you see fit.”

Mo Shu hadn’t expected that, after so many races, only 1,350 people had become his fans. Clearly, it is impossible to please everyone.

As the system finished its explanation, a purple icon he’d never seen before flashed in his mind. Upon clicking it, the Supreme Spirit Ring interface opened.

“Ring Level: 0. Upgrade requires 1,000 experience points. Upon upgrading, all of the host’s skills will be slightly enhanced.”

Without hesitation, Mo Shu pressed the upgrade button and was instantly filled with a refreshing, almost reborn sensation.

His reputation now read 350/10,000. Mo Shu exclaimed, “Miss System, does that mean I need more than 9,000 people to acknowledge and appreciate me for the next upgrade?”

“That’s right. Is that too many?” the system replied.

Mo Shu opened his mouth to complain but swallowed it—he would simply have to keep working hard.

Opening the skills interface, he found that every skill icon now glowed with a faint purple light. Not currently in a race, and with no car at hand, he couldn’t test his racing skills, so he selected “Eagle Eye Analysis” for target observation.

Activating the skill, Mo Shu immediately noticed an improvement. Where before he could only observe one target at a time, now he could observe three simultaneously, each with a small “Stare” button.

Upon pressing “Stare,” the data for a single target became more detailed. However, for ordinary people without a system, the information was limited to physical state, health monitoring, and other data unrelated to racing.

Mo Shu was delighted. His greatest desire was to target Black Mirror. With this “Stare” function, perhaps he could finally discern whether Black Mirror was also system-possessed and uncover his skills. This would be of immense value in planning race strategies against him in the future.

By now, the police officers who had come to thank him were bidding farewell to Zhang Aimin. Mo Shu hurriedly closed all his interfaces and went to thank each officer in turn.

Once everyone had left, Mo Shu felt utterly drained.

Since returning from Stuttgart, he’d hardly had a moment’s rest. Over the next few days, he was scheduled to film a sponsor’s commercial, and immediately after that, the fourth round of the championship awaited him. The mere thought was exhausting—this was the first time Mo Shu realized that being a celebrity was anything but easy.

Still, there was something to look forward to: once the commercial aired, his reputation might skyrocket, making future ring upgrades far less daunting.

...

In the weeks that followed, Mo Shu completely shook off the shadow of his previous defeat.

He shot sponsor commercials, official driver portraits, and team promotional videos.
He was interviewed by TV stations, radio programs, and online media alike.
The whirlwind of commercial activities gave him a full taste of celebrity life.

Several reality shows even invited him as a guest, but with the race schedule looming, Wang Yu declined all on his behalf.

By the fourth round of the GTCC, Mo Shu was back in top form.
First in practice, pole in qualifying, and he led the main race from start to finish, claiming victory with a margin of over thirty seconds.

One morning, Mo Shu awoke to find his reputation had soared past two million. Delighted, he leveled up the Supreme Spirit Ring several times over.

The only disappointment was that Black Mirror’s detailed data remained a blank slate.

Mo Shu sensed that Black Mirror was no ordinary rival. Perhaps, since he and Wang Yining had joined forces, they complemented each other well enough to have a chance at defeating him. If it came down to a one-on-one duel, the odds would be far less favorable.

His hunch proved correct. In the fifth round of the GTCC, despite taking pole position, Mo Shu was soundly defeated by Black Mirror, and by a large margin.

Black Mirror finished a staggering one minute and twenty seconds ahead, reclaiming the lead in the individual standings.

In that race, Wang Yining’s car suffered a mechanical failure and she was forced to retire early, leaving Mo Shu without his “Tank Aura” protection and vulnerable to a relentless assault from both Black Mirror and Ai Chixiang.

Only in the final laps did Mo Shu manage to shake off Ai Chixiang, but by then, Black Mirror had already extended his lead. Even with Mo Shu’s prodigious skill—making up over fifty seconds in a single lap—he was ultimately powerless to turn the tide.

With the fifth round concluded, only three races remained in the 2017 GTCC season. If Mo Shu and the Stellar Racing Team wished to claim the championship, they would need to win two out of the remaining three. Otherwise, Kunsheng Racing and their lead driver, Black Mirror, would successfully defend their title, establishing the “Kunsheng Dynasty” as both the youngest triple champion team and the youngest triple champion driver in GTCC history.