The moment Jun-Yu twisted the throttle, the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R roared to life.
From the very first lap, his performance was extraordinary. Jun-Yu immediately took the lead, with Ming-Yu riding close behind him. Before long, he completed the second lap just as flawlessly.
At Hua-Long Team's pit box, the crew continuously relayed instructions through the radio. Watching Jun-Yu's incredible performance, hope began to shine in their eyes.
But suddenly, something changed.
Jun-Yu's riding became strangely unstable.
For some reason, he could no longer control the motorcycle as smoothly as before. It felt as though the front brake had become unusually stiff.
Je-Lin: "Jun-Yu, slow down! You'll be thrown off the bike if you keep riding like that!"
The team's chief mechanic spoke urgently through Jun-Yu's headset.
Ignoring the warning, Jun-Yu leaned aggressively into the next corner, taking an enormous risk instead of reducing his speed.
Je-Lin: "What's wrong? Why are you losing control? Slow down! You won't survive the race like this!"
As soon as Je-Lin finished speaking, Jun-Yu entered another corner.
Following his mechanic's advice, he tried to reduce his speed—
But then he felt it.
The brakes had completely failed.
"If I shift down now, everyone will overtake me... The race will be over."
Pushing the thought aside, Jun-Yu focused entirely on the race.
The speedometer was approaching 300 km/h.
At this speed, even the smallest mistake could mean a horrific crash—or immediate retirement from the race.
For the next several minutes, he fought desperately just to keep the motorcycle under control.
Taking corners became increasingly difficult.
The entire circuit echoed with the deafening roar of more than thirty-five racing motorcycles.
Every time Jun-Yu leaned into a corner, his knee skimmed the asphalt.
Watching his riding, the entire Hua-Long Team fell silent in shock.
For quite some time now, Jun-Yu had stopped following the team's instructions and was fighting the race entirely on his own.
But how much longer could he keep this up?
The blazing afternoon sun scorched his vision.
The violent vibrations, the relentless wind pressure, and the exhaustion building throughout his body pushed him closer and closer to his limit.
---
Meanwhile...
Inside the operating room, the doctors had begun treating Shu-Yang's reopened wound.
Dr. Yu-Tong and several nurses worked frantically to stabilize him.
Yet it seemed as though Shu-Yang's condition was refusing to respond to their efforts.
Even with an oxygen mask covering his face, every breath came as a painful struggle.
If this continued, his heart might stop at any moment.
Dr. Yu-Tong already knew the problem.
Until Shu-Yang's torn stitches were repaired, he would never be able to breathe properly.
Yu-Tong: "Nurse, increase the IV fluids."
---
On one side...
Jun-Yu was risking his life to save his friend's career.
On the other...
Cruel fate was threatening the life of the very person Jun-Yu was trying so desperately to protect.
---
Watching the telemetry screens, Tian-Xiang suddenly grabbed Je-Lin's headset and spoke directly to Jun-Yu.
He had noticed something terrifying.
Jun-Yu's rear tire was overheating.
Smoke was pouring off the tire, and every time the motorcycle leaned into a corner, its metal footpeg scraped across the asphalt, sending showers of bright orange sparks flying.
Tian-Xiang: "Jun-Yu! Return to the pit immediately! No championship is worth your life! Come back! We can't allow you to risk yourself like this. If you keep pushing, you'll definitely crash before the final lap!"
The warning echoed through the earpiece inside Jun-Yu's helmet.
Jun-Yu: "Only five minutes remain until the final lap... Please don't withdraw me from the race. I want to keep fighting. I won't crash."
After ignoring the team's instructions for so long, Jun-Yu immediately realized from Tian-Xiang's tone that they intended to retire him from the race.
---
Since the university was closed for the holiday, Shin-Yue was at home practicing programming.
However, none of her code seemed to work today.
Unable to find the error, she opened the Youku app to search for a solution.
Before she could type anything, a livestream suddenly appeared on the homepage.
"National CRRC Championship — Jun-Yu Live."
Jun-Yu wasn't only Shi-Han's weakness.
He was the crush of countless young women.
Shin-Yue was no exception.
The moment she saw Jun-Yu racing live, she completely forgot about programming and became absorbed in the thunderous roar of motorcycles.
---
At the same time...
Inside Xin-Xing Company's luxurious headquarters in Luoyang, Jun-Kai was analyzing database reports.
Suddenly—
The office door burst open.
Without waiting for permission, Board Director Zhi-Qiang hurried inside.
Zhi-Qiang: "Sir! Sir! Prince Jun has appeared on live television! He's racing in the National CRRC Championship... and something doesn't seem right!"
Jun-Kai froze.
Jun-Kai: "What?! Prince Jun? Shu-Yang actually dragged my boy into this..."
He immediately stood up.
Just then, his phone rang.
As soon as he answered, Tian-Yu spoke from the other end.
Tian-Yu: "Sir... we've just received news from the hospital. Officer Shu-Yang's condition has deteriorated. He's been transferred back to the ICU."
Before Tian-Yu could finish, Jun-Kai slammed his fist onto the desk and lowered his head.
It looked as though every ounce of hope had left him.
---
The final lap.
Jun-Yu was completely exhausted.
Sweat streamed down his forehead beneath his helmet.
The blazing sun had drained every last bit of his strength.
Hours of fighting the wind at extreme speed had made every breath painfully heavy.
Yet the champion had still not been decided.
Three motorcycles approached the final straight.
Ming-Yu remained in first place, followed closely by two other riders.
Across the circuit, the announcers declared that one of them would almost certainly become this year's champion.
"No... Whether I win or lose, I won't allow a traitor like Ming-Yu to become champion today."
With that thought, Jun-Yu twisted the throttle one last time.
The motorcycle surged forward with another burst of acceleration.
His chest trembled violently.
He knew that this final gamble no longer threatened only Shu-Yang's career—
It threatened his own life as well.
Ming-Yu was only meters away from the finish line...
Then—
Like a bolt of lightning—
Jun-Yu shot past him at breathtaking speed.
The entire Hua-Long Team heard the commentator's voice erupt through the speakers.
«"Final lap! Ming-Yu is still leading... but Jun-Yu is accelerating! Incredible speed! Both riders have entered the final straight! Jun-Yu is attempting an overtake... and... and... YES! He crosses the finish line first! Unbelievable! The rookie rider Jun-Yu steals the lead at the very last moment! According to the official decision of Race Control... this year's National CRRC Road Racing Champion... is Rider Jun-Yu! Congratulations!"»
The Racing Authority officially announced the result.
Although Jun-Yu was a rookie, he already had countless supporters.
The moment the announcement echoed across the circuit, the grandstands erupted into deafening cheers.
But only a heartbeat later...
The celebration fell into complete silence.
At one corner of the grandstand, Shi-Han's face turned deathly pale.
With tears in her eyes, she cried out—
Shi-Han: "Jun-Yu! Jun-Yu! Jun-Yu, wake up! You're our champion! Please... wake up! You still have to receive your trophy! Jun-Yu!"
Shi-Han didn't know much about motorcycle racing.
Throughout the race, she had believed Jun-Yu was simply riding with incredible confidence.
She never realized he had been fighting a mechanical failure the entire time.
The instant he crossed the finish line—
His motorcycle crashed.
Flames burst from the rear tire as the bike slid across the asphalt.
Amid the deafening roar of thousands of spectators, her desperate voice never reached Jun-Yu.
---
Hao-Yarn: "Rescue team! Put out the fire immediately! Bring Jun-Yu back to the pit! Move!"
Following the director's order, the rescue crew rushed toward the burning motorcycle.
After crossing the finish line, Jun-Yu had intentionally leaned the motorcycle over, released the throttle, and allowed it to slide safely away from the racing line.
But now...
He couldn't even lift his head.
After enduring such violent forces at extreme speed for so long, both his body and mind had reached their absolute limit.
His final sprint had cost him everything.
His words broke apart between painful breaths.
Without someone's help, he could no longer even remain conscious.
Drawing several deep breaths, he whispered weakly—
Jun-Yu: "Shu-Yang... I did it... I protected... your career... your honor... your trust... your dream... and... everything... we've been waiting for..."
The moment those final words left his lips, Jun-Yu collapsed motionless onto the track.
Within seconds, the rescue team reached him and carried him away.
A heavy silence settled over the circuit.
Moments later, the Racing Authority made another official announcement.
«"Dear racing fans, we are deeply saddened by the unexpected accident involving Rider Jun-Yu. We will conduct a full investigation into the cause of the crash. To all participating riders, please remain calm. Although it appears that Jun-Yu intentionally laid the motorcycle down after crossing the finish line, if the investigation concludes that this was an unavoidable racing accident, the official race result may be subject to review."»
★★★
Dear readers, are you excited to find out how the race will end?
Tell me honestly—is it really possible to win your very first professional race?
And what happened to Shu-Yang? Will he survive?