Chapter Forty-Eight: Nezha Takes the Wheel!

Nezha gazed at the oddly shaped Lamborghini with undisguised fascination, clicking his tongue in admiration and itching to climb aboard. Unfortunately, they were still in the sky, and having lost his powers, he could no longer travel through the air at will. He rose to his feet atop the Purple Jade Kirin, preparing to leap onto the nearby Lamborghini.

But Jiang Yuan, face expressionless, pulled him back down. Did all brats have such little regard for their own lives?

Curious, Nezha looked at Jiang Yuan and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I’ll take you up,” Jiang Yuan replied, a touch exasperated.

“Oh,” Nezha said indifferently. As long as he could play, nothing else mattered.

Jiang Yuan picked Nezha up and flew to the Lamborghini, settling himself in the driver’s seat and placing Nezha in the passenger seat.

Zhang Kui, too, eyed the novel treasure the king had produced with great interest. Although he had no idea what it was, he could sense at once that this artifact was anything but ordinary.

To his mind, the Lamborghini resembled a compact war chariot—indestructible, certainly. Even if he tried to break through its defenses, it would be no small feat. Not to mention, the material: though it resembled bronze, it was clearly something far rarer and more difficult to forge. Its resilience and beauty far surpassed any bronze chariot.

“The king truly is a divine man,” Zhang Kui thought in awe.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Nezha looked to Jiang Yuan with barely contained excitement. “I’m ready! How do you play with this thing?”

“No, you’re not ready yet,” Jiang Yuan replied coolly.

“But I am ready,” Nezha insisted, puzzled.

Jiang Yuan ignored him for the moment, fastening his own seatbelt in silence. Then he turned to Nezha and said, “Buckle your seatbelt.”

“Why do I have to put on a seatbelt?”

“Just do it. That’s one of the rules for using this artifact,” Jiang Yuan replied offhandedly. There was no way he could start teaching a Shang dynasty schoolboy about traffic safety.

“Oh, wait a moment, I’ll do it now,” Nezha responded, immediately imitating Jiang Yuan’s movements to fasten his seatbelt as soon as he heard it was necessary.

“Is it okay now?” Nezha’s eyes sparkled with renewed anticipation.

“What’s the rush?” Jiang Yuan smiled at Zhang Kui. “General Zhang, make sure to keep up.”

At these words, Zhang Kui grew serious. It seemed that his One-horned Black-smoke Beast might not match the speed of this treasure.

Resolving himself, Zhang Kui dismounted, saying confidently to Jiang Yuan, “Your Majesty, drive as fast as you like. I should be able to keep up.”

Jiang Yuan knew then that Zhang Kui intended to use his Earthwalking Technique, which allowed him to traverse fifteen hundred miles in a day.

Compared to that, though, Jiang Yuan was eager to see what the Lamborghini could do.

He pressed his foot to the accelerator, and the Lamborghini roared to life, speeding off like a bolt of lightning, leaving a fleeting afterimage in the sky.

Zhang Kui watched the departing king, his spirits soaring. The more mysterious and unpredictable the king, the more he felt the great Shang dynasty was destined to flourish.

Without further hesitation, Zhang Kui dove underground, pursuing in the direction Jiang Yuan had gone.

The farther he chased, the greater his astonishment grew. The speed of the king’s treasure was truly unimaginable! Even with his Earthwalking Technique, covering fifteen hundred miles a day, he could barely keep pace.

Meanwhile, Nezha was in high spirits, the exhilaration of a new mount and the thrill of such speed making him forget all earlier grievances with Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan had the top down, and the wind howled past Nezha’s ears, scattering the two buns atop his head. Now only a mortal, Nezha could do little against the elements, but at this moment, he cared for nothing but the excitement.

“This thing is way faster than my Wind Fire Wheels!” Nezha shouted.

“Of course it is. Your Wind Fire Wheels are no match for my Lamborghini,” Jiang Yuan answered smugly. After all, this was the prize of the Dog System; not even a Wind Fire Wheel of the same level could compete.

“Why not give it to me?” Nezha seized the opportunity.

“What?”

“I said, give me this wonderful thing!”

“Give you what?”

“The thing we’re sitting in!”

“Sitting in what?”

“….”

Nezha gave up. Around Jiang Yuan, he always felt a jarring sense of frustration.

Staring at Jiang Yuan, who was focused on driving, Nezha’s enthusiasm returned. He leaned in hopefully. “Can I try playing with this treasure?”

This time, Jiang Yuan didn’t pretend not to hear. He hit the brakes and smiled at Nezha. “Go ahead.”

“Whoo-hoo!”

Nezha’s eyes shone with anticipation.

Jiang Yuan watched with interest. He knew that to win over a troublemaker like Nezha, mere intimidation would never suffice.

The most important thing was to make him dependent on you—and this was the perfect chance.

Jiang Yuan and Nezha swapped places. Nezha grabbed the steering wheel, and the seat automatically adjusted lower. The Lamborghini was remarkably accommodating; it even shrank a notch, making Jiang Yuan feel as if he were riding in a bumper car.

Nezha, now quite adept, fastened his seatbelt and asked, “Ready?”

Jiang Yuan smiled silently and, for the sake of example, buckled his seatbelt once more.

“I’ll teach you how to use this treasure. The thing you’re holding is the steering wheel, and under your foot is…”

Before Jiang Yuan could finish, Nezha, unable to wait, stomped on the accelerator—all caution abandoned. He floored it.

“No need to teach me, I figured it out just now,” Nezha said dismissively.

The sudden acceleration pressed Jiang Yuan back in his seat, and he regretted handing over the wheel. In his mortal body, Nezha could barely hold the steering wheel, and with the pedal to the floor, not only did the speed soar, but the car also veered wildly off course.

If before they left an afterimage, now only a blur remained.

Zhang Kui surfaced, exasperated. Just as he was about to catch up, why had their speed suddenly doubled?

Well, at least the king’s sense of direction seemed off. He should still be able to catch up. With that, Zhang Kui dived beneath the earth once more.

“Hit the brakes!” Jiang Yuan shouted.

“What?”

“Brake!”

“What’s a brake?”

“Step on the brakes!”

“Step on what car?”

“….”

This time, Jiang Yuan fell silent. Why did he feel as though he were calling out for Ma Dongmei?

Nezha was inwardly pleased—this was poetic justice! Just as Jiang Yuan had ignored him earlier.

Seeing Nezha’s expression, Jiang Yuan knew he’d been had. He spoke in a grave tone: “If you don’t stop, I’ll take back this treasure!”

No sooner had he finished speaking than his body lurched forward—Nezha had slammed on the brakes without warning.

At that moment, Zhang Kui finally caught up, panting hard. “Your Majesty, the speed of this treasure truly leaves me far behind. I’ve spent all my strength just to keep pace…”

He looked up, seeing Nezha at the wheel and the king, cold-faced, in the passenger seat.

Nezha waved at Zhang Kui, forcing a smile. “Hello, General Zhang.”

Zhang Kui’s eyes flashed with killing intent as he looked at Nezha. For a moment, he regretted ever promising Li Jing to look after this brat.