Derek Su and Richard Cheng, who were at the very front of the track, also noticed the Path of Glory.
They both guessed that Lucy Luo had arrived, and that the Path of Glory was Eternity's skill.
But they still had not seen Eternity catch up. It was impossible for her to close a gap of several hours, so all they could sense was the psychic energy fluctuation. They could not determine the specific effect of the special skill. Besides, Richard Cheng and DL-02 had no attention to spare for that. Derek Su and Imperial Scale, meanwhile, were focused on preparing their countermeasures against Richard Cheng and DL-02.
They were almost at the end of the ring-road circuit.
The time had reached 11:57 p.m.
...
"Richard Cheng, the chance is here!"
DL-02 could already see the end of the track. Once they left the ring-road circuit, the course would open into a wide wilderness. At that point, it would be open ground in every direction. No matter how good Imperial Scale was at blocking, could she really block a track over a hundred meters wide?
"Two hundred meters ahead, left hairpin!"
After the hairpin came a long straight for acceleration.
From there, it would only take about two minutes to finish this stretch and leave the ring-road circuit.
Hearing DL-02's voice, Richard Cheng's hand trembled slightly on the control stick.
He was a battle-tested driver, but at this moment, he still could not help feeling nervous.
He could already picture it. As long as he overtook Imperial Scale and Derek Su on the road ahead, he might be able to keep them suppressed from that point on. On a wide track, Derek Su's skill would have limited effect, and he would not be able to keep blocking them. Imperial Scale had already shown her special skill, and in a direct contest with DL-02, she could not gain an advantage in speed.
So...
Overtaking meant victory.
He and DL-02 would pull even farther ahead of Imperial Scale and Derek Su!
With that thought in mind, Richard Cheng's gaze grew even firmer.
If he won the championship, DL-02 would agree to become his Mecha Girl.
He stepped on the throttle, and DL-02, who had kept a one-car-length distance from Imperial Scale the whole time, began closing in.
Just as Richard Cheng and DL-02 thought everything would go according to plan, Imperial Scale suddenly braked up ahead, her speed dropping sharply.
Since nothing like this had happened before, and because the two cars were so close together, by the time Richard Cheng realized he needed to brake as well, it was already too late. Watching the black rear end grow larger and larger in his vision, he instinctively shut his eyes.
BANG!
The deafening crash exploded beside his ears.
At the same time came DL-02's cry of pain.
Richard Cheng felt the world spin around him, but thanks to DL-02's high Impact Resistance and stability, the terror of losing control quickly faded.
When he opened his eyes, his view had already shifted slightly away from the track.
Imperial Scale was directly ahead, still driving forward normally.
But DL-02 was covering her forehead with one hand, clearly in pain.
Richard Cheng's heart tightened when he saw that, and he hurriedly asked, "Are you okay?"
He reached out to help her, but she swatted his hand away.
DL-02 raised her head. A large bump had risen on her forehead.
A fierce light flared in her deep-blue eyes as she glared at Imperial Scale ahead, teeth clenched.
"Damn it! You sneaky bastard!"
That braking move just now would not be judged as an active collision.
So after rear-ending Imperial Scale like that, DL-02 had not gained Super Armor. Not only did it hurt, but her front end had been knocked crooked too.
If her Impact Resistance had not been high enough, she might have already slammed headfirst into the unfinished building beside them.
Imperial Scale slowed down again.
This time, she went even slower, almost like a functional Mecha Girl.
She was clearly doing it on purpose.
DL-02 ground her teeth until they creaked, but there was nothing she could do.
Seeing DL-02 being bullied like this, Richard Cheng felt a surge of anger rise in his chest.
He frowned and suggested, "Let's confront them. We can't lose to them in momentum!"
"Confront them, my ass!" DL-02 snapped at Richard Cheng. "Slow down!"
Richard Cheng flinched at the shout, lowered his head, slowed down, and obediently followed behind Imperial Scale at a crawl.
But inside, he felt wronged.
If she wanted him to slow down, fine. Why did she have to yell so loudly...
DL-02 held back her anger.
She was waiting for the moment they left the ring-road circuit.
The two Mecha Girls entered the hairpin one after the other.
Neither side was going very fast, so taking the corner was naturally no challenge.
Even Richard Cheng, with his poor technique, was not left too far behind by Derek Su.
But the instant they exited the turn, Derek Su released the handbrake and floored the throttle.
Imperial Scale roared out of the corner at full power, charging toward the exit of the Florida ring-road circuit.
Richard Cheng drove DL-02 and followed close behind.
...
Looking at DL-02 swallowing her anger in the rearview mirror, Derek Su was full of confusion.
Seriously, she could endure that?
She still was not going to come up and clash with him?
Nothing else aside, DL-02 and Richard Cheng's emotional stability alone was something he could learn from.
In truth, that brake just now had not been intentional.
He had only slowed down to stall for time. Who told Richard Cheng to react so slowly? If it had been Derek Su, he could have braked almost in sync with the vehicle ahead. That way, even if he hit it, the impact would not be too severe.
And DL-02's Super Armor failing during that rear-end collision had given Derek Su a rough idea.
Most likely, DL-02's special skill required her to actively ram something in order to trigger Super Armor.
A passive collision caused by the vehicle ahead braking, like what had just happened, could not trigger the special skill.
However, knowing that did not mean much.
Once they were out of the ring-road circuit, he really had no way to stop DL-02. He could predict his opponent's actions on the track, but if the opponent decided to drive sideways, there was nothing he could do about it.
"But I'm waiting for time.
And you... what are you waiting for?"
Derek Su murmured to himself as he gripped the control stick.
In the rearview mirror, DL-02's deep-blue headlights flickered.
Only the roaring of engines filled the wind.
Both Mecha Girls remained silent.
Imperial Scale looked calm, while DL-02's eyes were cold.
The exit of the ring-road circuit was right in front of them.
Whoosh!
The two Mecha Girls rushed out of the circuit one after another.
What entered their sight was an endless wilderness.
As the view opened up, the track widened too, expanding from two lanes to six. Beyond that, they could also choose to drive through the surrounding wilderness, which was covered in tropical plants and scattered gravel.
The Mermaid Bay Advanced Race did not have a fixed route.
They could take any path they wanted.
Excluding certain corners, staying on the track was actually the shortest route.
"Overtake!!" DL-02, who had endured it the entire way, finally felt free. A savage grin curled across her lips as she roared in a hoarse voice, "Overtake Imperial Scale ahead of us! Overtake her, overtake, overtake, overtake, ahhhhh!!"
With a road this wide, what could Imperial Scale possibly use to block her?
Richard Cheng did not dare slack off. His blood was surging too. The race was only halfway through. With DL-02's speed advantage in the second half, how much of a gap could they open? The championship was practically theirs.
But Derek Su was extremely cunning.
If they wanted to overtake, they still had to be careful.
His eyes lowered.
He watched Imperial Scale's movements closely, not daring to act rashly.
After watching race footage before, he had long known that Derek Su's predictive ability was extremely strong.
What came next would be a thrilling psychological battle.
Then...
First, he gave it throttle and caught up behind Imperial Scale.
He pushed the control stick left, making it look like he wanted to overtake from the left, then immediately cut back right. After that, he cut left again, then right again, driving in an S-pattern.
After completing that whole sequence, he thought that even if Derek Su did not fall for it completely, he would at least have to move a little. As long as Derek Su and Imperial Scale moved, they would expose an opening.
But Imperial Scale ahead did not even twitch.
Richard Cheng was dumbfounded.
What was this supposed to mean?
Could it be...
Derek Su had predicted his prediction of his prediction?!
...
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