To be honest, Clorinde was still reeling.
When Caesar fell into the Cinder Lake, she had been overwhelmed with grief...
And when Caesar somehow came back alive, she was deeply confused. The patterns on those rocks looked oddly familiar, but she couldn't remember where she'd seen them before...
When Caesar and Billy talked about Sam Li—saying he was the one who saved her—Clorinde felt even more uncertain...
It wasn't her first time meeting Sam Li.
More accurately, the last time she saw him, he went by the name Zhongli.
A guest consultant at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, a well-known idler on the streets of Liyue, a collector, an appraiser, a bird enthusiast...
According to the Traveler, Paimon, and others—
Zhongli was supposed to be just an ordinary person. There was no way he could've pulled off the kind of miracle that saved Caesar from the Cinder Lake.
Besides, Sam Li hadn't shown himself at all this entire time.
Clorinde didn't believe he could be faster than a motorcycle—fast enough to beat them to the lake and then back to the race's starting point before them.
Just as she was lost in thought, Caesar glanced at her.
"Clorinde, what are you thinking about?"
Clorinde shook her head. "It's nothing…"
Caesar grinned. "Then I'm speeding up. Try to keep up—we need to get to the race's starting point fast and see if Lucius and Mors have returned."
With that, Clorinde tightened her grip on the handlebars and twisted the throttle all the way.
Because the road they had used earlier was now blocked due to an explosion, Caesar had taken a different route—the one used by The Vanquishers.
Just like before, they sped forward at high speed.
As Caesar rode, she noticed that The Vanquishers' track was much smoother than the one they had taken earlier.
There were no roadblocks, no signs of Ethereals—nothing.
Clearly, Lucius had put a lot of effort into securing this race. Fortunately, Caesar had managed to foil their scheme.
If the biker gang and the Old Oil Field had been handed over to people like Lucius…
The entire Old Oil Field would've been doomed.
"Proxy, how far are we from the starting point?"
"Only twenty kilometers, Caesar. Just a bit more—hang in there."
"No problem, Proxy. My riding's rock solid. Clorinde, Billy, don't let up—keep pace!"
"Don't worry about me."
Clorinde stayed fully focused on riding. Compared to the start of the race, her skills had improved noticeably—she handled the bike with ease now.
...
Just then, Belle suddenly heard her brother Wise's voice in her ear.
"Belle, you haven't made it back yet?"
Belle blinked. "Almost there. Why, what happened?"
Wise sounded urgent. "Lucius and Mors have already returned. They're claiming they blew up the Ether crystal and won the race. The broadcast drones malfunctioned, and since they got back first, everyone's cheering for them like they're the victors... You need to hurry back!"
Hearing that, Belle's tone turned serious.
"Don't worry, Brother. We're almost at the starting point. We've got solid proof that Lucius and Mors betrayed us. Let them enjoy their moment—it won't last long. We'll deal with them when we get there."
After the call ended, Belle relayed the update to Caesar, Billy, and Clorinde.
Caesar's face darkened with fury. "Lucius and Mors… They're the ones who got Uncle Pompey killed. We can't let them get away with this."
Billy growled, "Let them die with Uncle Pompey."
Clorinde said calmly, "Count me in when it's time."
From what they already knew, Caesar had learned during the earlier battle that Lucius and Mors weren't ordinary people. A confrontation was inevitable.
...
Meanwhile—
At the starting point of the Tour de Inferno.
The crowd erupted with cheers.
Nearly every spectator was shouting the name of The Vanquishers, waving flags, chanting, and throwing praise their way:
"The Vanquishers! The Vanquishers! The Vanquishers—Champions! Champions! Champions—!"
"I knew they'd win! I bet everything I had on The Vanquishers before the race started—I'm rich now!"
"No surprise there. The Vanquishers have always had the edge—won the whole thing like it was nothing."
"Compared to The Vanquishers, the Sons of Calydon are still too green. Sure, they've got potential—but the winners this year are The Vanquishers."
"Before the race, those Calydon guys were all talk—look at them now. Anyone who didn't know better would've thought they were some elite team, but they went down without a fight. I thought this would be an epic showdown, but what a letdown..."
"This year's Tour de Inferno was a disaster. They promised full drone coverage, but every last one of those drones broke down! Not a single shot of the Cinder Lake explosion made it through. What a joke..."
...
Almost the entire audience had bought into the lie—that The Vanquishers were the rightful winners and the Sons of Calydon the losers.
Some even used the result to hurl insults at the Sons of Calydon.
But not everyone was convinced.
When the race began, all three Vanquishers had entered the Hollows together. So why did only two come back?
Could something have gone wrong in the Hollows? Did one of them die mid-race?
A few observant spectators realized the one who didn't return was none other than the leader of The Vanquishers. Whispers and speculation began to spread.
At that moment—
The other Vanquishers in the crowd rushed forward.
Like champions celebrating victory, they lifted Lucius and Mors high into the air, treating them like returning heroes.
A few loudmouths among them even yelled at Lucy and Piper, mocking the Sons of Calydon as pathetic losers.
Hearing those taunts, Lucy was furious.
"Damn it! Caesar said we won! And now Lucius and Mors are pretending to be the champions?!"
Piper sighed. "Let them jump around while they can. Caesar and the others are almost here."
As she spoke, Piper finally spotted three fast-approaching figures at the far end of the track.
It was Caesar and the others.