Birth Of The Crafts-God

"Joker, be careful. Activate your dispersion screen as soon as you get in. If you can't hold on, use the stellar protection cover." The man in charge of communication said.

Because of the unique qualities of the black water pillars, there was a need for drivers to have transparent light shields that could both protect them from the corrosive effects of the black water and the force of the ascending pillars. A one-for-all shield was possible, but it would consume more energy and could also affect the speed of the shuttle.

So, the conventional route some of the vestige-smiths in the third league thought up was to deploy two different shields for the shuttle. As there were two different protection screens, changes could be made to them to achieve energy-conservation mode without harming the functions of the shields. Also, depending on the situation, the driver could deploy only one shield at a time —typically the protection screen that shielded them from the black water's corrosive effect. As for the other shield, it would be on standby, consuming a negligible amount of energy.

"Don't worry about it. I know what to do." Callus responded.

This was his first performance in the K1 drift racing league so it was natural for his teammates to be worried about him. However, Callus was confident in his skills; he had to be otherwise he won't be able to persevere.

*Whoosh*

It didn't take long for the second group to finally enter within the region of the black waters of Monotone Lake. The ascending black pillars immediately greeted the group while the drivers reacted to them.

Many of the drivers in the K1 league were experienced and had driven on this track before, so they wouldn't fall easily. Only a few were newcomers to the league, but they did make preparations and carry out tons of training routines.

"The racers are currently showing their mettle. At this rate, it would take more than just this to take them down." The assistant commentator said.

Many in the audience also thought the same. The spectators at home also felt that this might be true, after all, the racers seemed to not be having a hard time here. Even the first group that had gone in while accelerating, were still yet to encounter any difficulties.

At this time, the short tempered vestige-smith, who went by the name Angus, sneered.

"The outer region is always a piece of cake for them. Even the newcomers shouldn't find it troublesome with enough preparations, much less the vets."

"Indeed. After the one hundred kilometres mark (62 miles), the danger would rise substantially." Another vestige-smith in the team nodded.

A second later, the main commentator seven said the same words, urging the spectators to keep their eyes peeled for when the situation would take a turn.

A couple of minutes later, the first group had finally approached the core area. Even from a distance, they could see the ferocious towering pillars of black water that occasionally shot into the air. Some times, more than ten could be spotted in an instance within the same region.

The spectators, who could finally witness this scene, were astounded and some couldn't help but feel frightened on behalf of the racers. These were the spectators who were new to the K1 drift racing league. However, even the old-timers were excited by this after all, this was where the race became more 'interesting.'

"Young miss, please slow down."

The chief of communication for the Yoko-bunny team advised the driver. The man had refrained from doing so when she sped into the lake as he had judged there would be no troubles for her within the outer region. However, the core region was a different story, as even the veteran racers would be forced to take it easy here; much less the young miss who was driving in this track for the first time ever.

"This is the best time to widen the gap since they'd be forced to slow down. I'll be pushing the defences to one hundred percent and relying on them for the first few tens of kilometres. This should be enough."

"But your energy would be devoured at a rapid rate if the defences are at full power while you're driving at nigh top speed. This can't work." The man shook his head.

"And what about it?" The young lady asked.

"If it's not enough, I'll add in my own energy."

Most of the drift racers were stellar practitioners. One reason for this was because stellar practitioners were stronger and had better reflexes and reactions than an ordinary hyuman. Another reason was because they possess stellar energy which could be used in emergency situations to either protect their lives or improve the performance of their racing shuttles; after all, racing shuttles were vestiges and stellar practitioners were the best fit to utilise a vestige.

"This..." The man didn't know what to say. The young lady's words had pretty much covered all possible angles.

"Only one minute." The man finally relented.

"That's all I need." The young lady smirked.

At the same time, the other racers were communicating with their teammates on their strategies. In drift racing, the importance of a team and the crew wasn't to be underestimated. Even if the racer was the team captain, they still had to consider their teammates and listen to advice, since these were the people who wanted to see them succeed the most.

"Focus on stability. Our racing shuttle was designed with this in mind. The defence is superior to most, but don't let this trump card out at least until the second and final lap."

The head of communication for the Lugo Vido Autos team informed the driver, Mason, about their strategy. The latter nodded and began to slow down as he approached the core area.

The two experienced racers in the first group similarly decelerated, not wanting to take the risk.

In the end, only the young lady from Yoko-bunny and Red Devil from team Red Mouse, held their speed. As such, a gap began to form between the two sides as the two daredevils began to pull away from the others.

Naturally, the spectators could all see this happen.

"Oh my god. Th, they aren't slowing down."

"Insane. Do they want to die?!"

Due to the fact that the five racers were close to the core area, the camera had panned out and the spectators could see the scenery of the core area. Compared to the 'small' outer region of about one hundred kilometres or so, the core region was much larger and reached a staggering two hundred and twenty kilometres (136.7 miles).

With the frequency of geyser eruptions being so short, this width of area was known as the black death zone. Usually, most racers would move at a speed between 120 km/hr (74.6 mph) to 240 km/hr (149 mph). This meant that it would take them between two hours to fifty five minutes to cover the core area.

However, if someone were to maintain a speed above 300km/hr, they would complete the course within at least forty four minutes. Saving eleven minutes of time was definitely advantageous in a race.

Nonetheless, even though most racers knew this, it would only be possible if one had the ability. As such, many thought that the two drivers ahead were crazy, especially since they were new to the K1 league.

Immediately they entered the core region, Red Devil and the young lady were surrounded by eruptions of the underwater geysers. However, they managed to speed past most of them with only a few clashing against their shuttles. Nonetheless, with the defence measures in place, their shuttles only rocked a bit as they tore through the pillars of black water.

"Incredible. Even after getting hit at least four times within thirty seconds, they are still standing strong." The commentator said.

Red Devil proved to be more skilled by withstanding only four hits while the young lady received six.

Regardless, for a shuttle's defence to withstand four geyser hits in thirty seconds, their protection screens had to be quite powerful and advanced. However, there was still the underlying issue of energy consumption.

'I have to make it.' The young lady gritted her teeth as she switched from a display system to a direct transmission for her sensors.
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The display system would have the results of the sensors displayed on a screen, which usually floated by the side of the driver's face, typically in front of their left eye. On the other hand, a direct transmission would send the information straight to their brain.

Naturally, direct transmissions were much faster and better. But having so much information sent to the brain while at the same time needing to process it in the midst of a race through such a risky terrain, was a challenging task for most. Even a second level Apertures Opening stage stellar practitioner wouldn't be able to handle so many intense mental tasks for a long time.

The young lady was a third level stellar practitioner, so she could handle the overload effects brought about by using direct transmission while raving through the core area. At the very least, she could withstand it for a few minutes, but what she only needed was thirty seconds.

Red Devil had also switched to direct transmission even though he received less hits. This was because compared to the young lady's racing shuttle, his wasn't as resilient.

Another thirty seconds went by and the two only took two hits each this time around. Even though it was the same number, it was clear that the young lady performed better having brought hers down from six.

'He's still hanging on?' The young lady cursed as she could perceive Red Devil by the side.

Her original plan was to drive at top speed for a minute within the core area, widening the gap between her and the others. However, Red Devil seemed to have the same idea and tagged along. If she were to slow down now, he would then take the lead. Being a professional driver, once Red Devil took the lead with a clear gap, it would be difficult to overtake him again.

Although winning first place in this race didn't imply that one would consistently do the same in the other races, the points were still valuable.

'Damn it.' The young lady decided to back on her decision and retain top speed for a while longer.

At this moment, the second group finally stepped into the core area of the Monotone Lake.