"Did you finish posting all the recruitment notices?"
Behind his desk, Ethan Yang's gaze was dark. It was obvious that the owner of Crown Club had not been in a good mood lately.
There was a document on the desk.
The title read [Joint Statement by the Techmasters on Proposal No. 1 Regarding Xinyan], with his signature underneath. Leon Li had no idea what it was and did not dare look too closely.
"Snowpeak and I have completed your task, but Stella Club's logistics department will tear those notices down soon. There's nothing we can do to stop that."
"That has nothing to do with you." Ethan Yang waved a hand indifferently.
He had tried plenty of methods to poach people from Stella Club. For example, he had tried cutting off Stella Club's resource supply, only to discover that Stella Club was backed by Longteng Group. He could not cut them off at all.
He had also intercepted some of the drivers and coaches who went to apply at Stella Club. As a result, a bunch of trash drivers and trash coaches ended up in his own club, and he had to come up with excuses every day to slowly fire them. Even then, applicants still kept appearing at Stella Club. That method clearly would not work.
He had even sent his club's Mecha Girls to persuade Stella Club's Mecha Girls.
And yet...
Stella Club's Mecha Girls basically never went out.
When they did go out, it was for team-building activities, leaving no opening to slip in at all.
After going back and forth like this, he had almost started to give up.
The only thing that had brought him a little comfort recently was that things at the prison were going well.
Julian Ziliang's backer had been transferred away.
Right now, that person was overwhelmed and too busy saving himself to care about anything else.
Danny Qiang had successfully moved into the prison.
Every three days, he would write a report about his friendly interactions with Julian Ziliang, adding a bit of amusement to Ethan Yang's leisure time.
So when it came to sending Leon Li and Snowpeak to paste up recruitment notices, Ethan Yang was not especially invested. Whether they actually poached anyone no longer mattered. He only wanted to see Leon Li voluntarily break his own bottom line and prove he could carry out orders.
Judging by the results, it seemed to have worked. Locking Snowpeak in confinement for three days had clearly made this stubborn brat much more obedient.
"Boss, I heard Derek Su is taking part in the Xiangshan Advanced Race. Let me and Snowpeak go," Leon Li volunteered.
He felt that a comprehensive track like Xiangshan was perfectly suited for him and Snowpeak to show what they could do. If Derek Su brought Stella, they might even be able to win.
"You two should stay at the club and train properly. Or during the Xiangshan Advanced Race, go run a few more training matches and bring in some activity funds for the club." Ethan Yang shook his head. "You don't need to worry about the Xiangshan Advanced Race. Leon Li, you've already qualified for the Panlong Mountain Circuit anyway, so this opportunity will go to another driver in the club."
"Boss, why not consider letting me go to the Xiangshan Advanced Race?"
A voice suddenly rang out.
Leon Li and Snowpeak both jolted slightly.
They looked toward the source of the voice.
At some point, a small figure had appeared on the office sofa. It was a very young, delicate-looking boy with a rather ridiculous mushroom haircut, giving him an overall air of foolish innocence. But the moment anyone met his eyes, they would feel deeply uncomfortable.
Those eyes flickered with malice and cunning.
Like a coiled venomous snake!
Crown Club's newcomer, Swain Li.
He had been sitting on the sofa since long ago.
It was just that neither Leon Li nor Snowpeak had noticed him when they entered the office.
His presence was frighteningly weak.
And sometimes, having little presence could be a weapon too.
"You?" Ethan Yang frowned and said unhappily, "Swain Li, why are you joining in the commotion? You and Silver Mirror are secret weapons. Exposing you to Stella Club too early will put us at a disadvantage."
"Boss, I understand what you're thinking." Swain Li stood up and walked to the desk, a cynical smile lifting his face. "But Boss, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. My understanding of Derek Su and Stella is still limited to video footage. I've never raced him myself, so how would I know his true strength?"
"Derek Su will definitely use Stella in the Xiangshan Advanced Race, and he'll use Stella in the first segment of the provincial-level track too. This Xiangshan Advanced Race is the perfect chance for Silver Mirror and me to thoroughly understand Derek Su and Stella! Don't forget what Silver Mirror's special skill is!"
Silver Mirror was Swain Li's primary Mecha Girl.
Her special skill was very easy to understand.
But also completely absurd.
It was copy.
She could copy the target Mecha Girl's special skill and inherit the target Mecha Girl's strongest attribute.
The duration of the skill was affected by Endurance. The higher her Endurance, the longer it lasted. At present, on a normal road track with no collisions, Silver Mirror's special skill could last a full two hours!
That was more than enough to complete a long-distance race.
Seeing Ethan Yang hesitate, Swain Li pressed on. "Don't you want to know Stella's exact situation? Being able to see a Mecha Girl's highest stat is an ability unique to Silver Mirror. If Stella is a top-tier Mecha Girl, then through copying, Silver Mirror can also learn Stella's special skill. Our understanding of Mecha Girl special skills is usually fairly general, but Silver Mirror can describe them in precise wording... In other words, as long as we race Stella once, we can turn the initiative into an overwhelming initiative!"
He knew Stella had no special skill. He said that only to strengthen his argument and convince Ethan Yang to let him take part in the Xiangshan Advanced Race.
Originally, Ethan Yang had planned to keep both Swain Li and Leon Li hidden, while sending some random club drivers to Xiangshan and Mermaid Bay just to go through the motions.
But he had to admit,
Swain Li's words truly tempted him.
One race would not cost them anything. There was nothing to lose. As long as they raced once, they could obtain more intelligence on their opponent!
In that case, sending Swain Li and Silver Mirror to Xiangshan did seem better than keeping them hidden. Perhaps the card that was Swain Li and Silver Mirror was not suited to being concealed, but rather to being played openly.
Once he thought of it that way,
Ethan Yang suddenly felt much clearer.
"You and Silver Mirror will go to the Xiangshan Advanced Race."
After a pause, he added, "Don't use your full strength. Win if you can. Lose if you can't. Our target is the provincial-level track. The Xiangshan Advanced Race doesn't matter at all!"
"Rest assured."
Swain Li lowered his head and bowed respectfully.
But in his heart, he did not respect Ethan Yang as much as he appeared to.
In his eyes, Ethan Yang was already old. He had lost the sharpness of a driver and long since lost his spirit of adventure. No matter what he did, he pursued stability.
Then again, that fit most Techmasters. Once they gained power and a longer life, they became increasingly lazy and complacent.
Once you were on the track, you raced to win.
A cold gleam flashed in Swain Li's eyes beneath his bangs.
The Magician was just like those arrogant, self-important "genius" drivers who liked giving themselves ridiculous nicknames but never took their opponents seriously. He had seen far too many people like that.
At the Xiangshan Advanced Race, he would trample him completely underfoot.
Then, on the provincial-level track, he would crush him head-on!
That man held the titles King of Knox and The Magician. He was a proper celebrity. And the higher someone like that was lifted, the worse they looked when they fell, just like the opponents Swain Li had faced in the past.
Now the tide had turned.
It was time for The Magician to fall from his pedestal.
And the Godslayer...
would be him and Silver Mirror!
...
...
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