Era of Mist

At some point, large crowds of Japanese people had formed on the streets of Tokyo. They gathered together, their emotions running high. A few organizers were deliberately shouting slogans, pulling more people in their direction. Speaking in Japanese, they marched along, handing out flyers.

"The Celestial Emperor has abandoned us!"

"The Royal Family has left us on this isolated island to fend for ourselves!"

"The cabinet has collapsed, the government is at a standstill, and foreigners are running rampant!"

"Our nation is in peril! Who can save us from destruction? With the ruin of our nation and our people at hand, who can protect us?"

"Japan for the Japanese! Tokyo for the people of Tokyo!"

More and more people joined the shouting, attracting pedestrians from the streets and residents from the buildings alongside the road. These onlookers, whether dejected, numb, or dispirited, gradually grew resentful and agitated from the chanted propaganda. The crowd swelled as more and more people joined the procession.

"The end is nigh! All will be cleansed!"

"Who can save us?"

"Only the Savior!"

"The divine has descended, the Savior has arrived in the mortal world. Only the Savior can save us, only the Savior can grant absolution!"

"Believe in my Savior and be free from sickness and disaster!"

"Believe in my Savior and receive eternal life!"

The religious propaganda merged with the procession. There were even some bizarre-looking priestesses shaking bells and channeling spirits within the crowd, preaching a mysterious faith. Japan is a multi-faith nation where the number of religious adherents is greater than the total population, meaning one person might follow several religions simultaneously.

In times of chaos, evil runs rampant. This Savior Sect, preaching on the streets, was just one of many such groups. Religious proselytizing on the streets of Tokyo was commonplace. This time, however, the crowd began to surge, intentionally or not, toward the race course.

"Hey, hey! What’s with all the pushing?!"

The teenagers watching the race were naturally unhappy, but facing this fanatical crowd, they were a bit intimidated and didn’t dare to be too confrontational.

WHOOSH—

In the blink of an eye, Lady Pe was the first to rush over. The crowds on both sides suddenly grew agitated, trying to block the road. But Lady Pe weaved nimbly, slipping past them and continuing on.

Tokyo Wolf followed close behind. The people blocking the road became denser. But Tokyo Wolf had no intention of slowing down. Instead, he gave a savage grin and charged straight at the crowd. The people screamed and cursed but still scrambled out of the way.

The third racer approached.

Suddenly, someone from the roadside threw a bicycle. It landed directly in the path of the motorcycle. The racer had no time to react and slammed into it, sending both bike and rider flying.

CRUNCH!

Amidst the cacophony of shattering parts, both bike and rider went tumbling sideways through the air, mowing down a large swathe of the crowd. This time, the fuel tank didn’t leak, so the motorcycle didn’t explode, but blood began to spread. Screams erupted, and the crowd descended into greater chaos.

The fourth bike arrived.

Someone by the roadside suddenly swung a club. The racer was moving too fast for a solid hit, but the glancing blow was enough to make the motorcycle lurch violently. It shuddered and veered straight into the crowd by the road.

The screams spread and multiplied as the crowd grew more panicked and chaotic.

The fifth person sped over. It was Death Fire.

There was no attack, no incident. Death Fire shot past, completely unimpeded.

The sixth, Shi Tiexin.

He had already overtaken the previous sixth-place racer on a turn.

CLICK. He downshifted, bleeding off a little speed. In his vision system, the pedestrians weren’t being outlined; the scene was simply too chaotic. Outlining them all would probably just be a blinding mess of lines.

But just then, a commotion on the roadside caught Shi Tiexin’s attention. Suddenly, something in his driving interface was highlighted with a red outline. Judging by the silhouette, it was a person.

The next moment, that person shot out onto the road!

It didn’t look like they ran out willingly; they had been shoved. Flailing their arms and legs uncontrollably, the person tumbled onto the road, becoming a human roadblock.

"AHHH—!!"

As they screamed, the blinding headlight shone on their face. The person instinctively covered their head, curled into a ball, and shrieked in terror. But with a WHOOSH, in the absolute nick of time, the heavy motorcycle wrenched into a sharp turn. With the agility of a deer leaping through the forest, the bike gave a miraculous shudder, and its wheels roared past just over the person’s skull.

Other than a face full of hot exhaust, they were completely unharmed.

"Huuuh..."

Shi Tiexin couldn’t help but take a deep breath, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

’If the driving interface hadn’t highlighted them in advance, if not for the 14% agility boost, if not for my already profound-level driving skill, if not for... if not for that person being short and ducking their head like a turtle at the critical moment, what happened to Red Samurai would have just been repeated on this innocent bystander.’

After the tension came anger.

’Who the hell just did that? Was it an accident or intentional? To be precise, it was definitely intentional, but who was the target?’

Shi Tiexin’s intuition told him someone was pulling the strings. ’Are the remnants of the New Rangyi trying to get revenge, or is a competitor on the track playing dirty tricks? None of that matters.’

’The only thing that matters is winning!’

’No matter what, I have to win first. Only the victor receives the Celestial Golden Light. The Celestial Golden Light brings power, and only power can crush this conspiracy!’

VROOOM! He floored the throttle, his speed climbing once more as he accelerated in pursuit.

Meanwhile, back at the starting line, the crowd was in an uproar.

"It’s those lunatics from the Savior Sect!"

"How could they run into the Savior Sect people right now?"

"Oh my god, someone’s down! Send people to help, quick!"

"Send a couple more guys to chase those Savior Sect idiots away!"

The fallen racer had his own lackeys, who hastily jumped on their bikes and sped off. But Ah Fei felt something was off. He looked left and right, then quietly slipped into the crowd, changed his clothes, and pulled down the bug-eye sunglasses on his head. Looking like an ordinary punk, he sauntered over toward the Dead Fire Gang. His intuition told him to keep an eye on the Dead Fire Gang’s people for now.

On the streets of Tokyo, the race continued.

After passing through the chaotic area blocked by the cult’s followers, Shi Tiexin accelerated forward.

"Boss, there are only three people ahead of you now: Lady Pe, Tokyo Wolf, and Death Fire."

Guo Bing’s voice came through the earpiece. Shi Tiexin’s expression didn’t change as he continued to accelerate. The streets of Tokyo were full of narrow roads and sharp turns, which was perfect for Shi Tiexin to show his skills. After just a few turns, the taillights of the third-place racer appeared ahead. It was that strange and sinister Death Fire.

’Judging by his riding form, his skill is average. He’s no remarkable racer. Not worth my attention.’

Accelerating, Shi Tiexin shot past Death Fire without even a glance.

But in the instant Shi Tiexin passed him, Death Fire’s expression twisted into a savage grimace. He reached into his jacket and grabbed something. When he pulled his hand out, he was holding a black pistol.