Following this, Wang Shu went with Chen He to visit the club Chen He belonged to.
Along the way, Chen He also introduced Wang Shu to the relevant information about the World Racing Competition.
Wang Shu learned that the current World Racing Competition was operated by an organization called the World Racing Foundation.
It had developed into a long-term event, with races held almost every month, resulting in monthly rankings.
Ultimately, based on the points from the monthly rankings, participants vied for qualification for the year-end Grand Finals.
Currently, there were hundreds of clubs registered in the competition, and tens of thousands of registered freelance drivers.
This time, Wang Shu had registered for the last monthly finals of the year.
As long as Wang Shu could secure a top-three position in this race, he would qualify for the Grand Finals.
"Actually, you don't need to put too much pressure on yourself this time. Many first-time participants in the World Series feel stressed, which can lead to poor performance in the preliminary rounds."
Seeing Wang Shu sitting silently in the passenger seat, Chen He offered words of comfort.
After all, for an amateur like Wang Shu, the pressure of participating in the World Series for the first time would be immense.
When he first arrived at the World Series venue, he couldn't even start his car.
"No, I was just thinking about how to spend the prize money."
Wang Shu replied with a smile at this moment.
"Alright, it seems I was overthinking it."
Hearing Wang Shu's answer, Chen He felt quite embarrassed.
He had initially thought Wang Shu was simply nervous and distracted by participating in the World Series for the first time.
He hadn't expected him to be thinking about how to spend the prize money.
"However, this is the World Series venue, unlike back home. Every driver here is a daredevil, so you need to be careful."
Chen He still kindly warned him, as accidents could happen at any time in the World Series, and every driver had signed a safety waiver.
If an accident occurred on the track, the organizing committee would not be responsible, and neither would anyone else.
Therefore, it could be said that skill and luck were equally essential in the World Series.
"If that's the case, wouldn't it be even more exhilarating?"
Wang Shu's eyes lit up as he said this.
This was because he no longer had to worry about his aggressive driving causing accidents for his opponents.
Since they signed these safety waivers for the competition here, he didn't have to hold back.
"Uh, since you're competing as an individual, you'll need to find your own hotel, and you'll have to find your own mechanics for your car's maintenance and repairs."
Chen He continued to advise Wang Shu.
Because Wang Shu was participating as an individual driver, he had to handle all the miscellaneous matters himself.
Of course, this was also a path that many novice drivers had to go through. Some drivers, before gaining fame, couldn't immediately sign with major clubs.
At this point, to prove their abilities, they would participate in competitions as individual drivers to showcase their skills.
However, in recent years, this situation had become increasingly rare. High-quality drivers were basically scouted and signed by many clubs in their early stages.
Those who slipped through the cracks were few and far between.
"Thank you for your help, brother. I'll treat you to a meal once I'm settled!"
Wang Shu then got out of the car at a hotel. Chen He had already helped him enough, and he didn't need to be thick-skinned and continue to impose on him.
"You're welcome. Just contact me if you need anything. While I might not be able to help with major issues, I can handle small matters."
Chen He said with a smile, looking at Wang Shu. He couldn't quite describe his feelings towards Wang Shu.
He always felt that this person was very difficult to fathom.
However, this was normal; not many drivers who came to the World Series were ordinary.
After Chen He left, Wang Shu took his luggage and checked into a small hotel.
It wasn't that he didn't want to stay in a five-star hotel, but he was simply short on cash.
However, although the hotel Wang Shu chose wasn't very large, it was clean and tidy.
It looked very comfortable, and the owner was a man with a large beard. However, perhaps because his beard was too dense, his head was quite bare.
Wang Shu couldn't help but feel that perhaps the owner had mistaken his beard for his hair and grown it in the wrong place.
Moreover, the bearded owner became very enthusiastic upon hearing that Wang Shu was a race car driver.
He personally showed Wang Shu to his room and kindly asked if he needed anything.
Later, Wang Shu learned from the bearded owner that many years ago, the owner had also been a young racing enthusiast.
At that time, he dreamed of winning the world championship and confessing his love to the girl he admired.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned, and he sustained a leg injury from a race.
Now, he still limped when he walked, let alone drive a race car.
Later, unable to face his hometown, the bearded owner used his savings to open a small inn here.
After hearing the bearded owner's story, Wang Shu couldn't help but sigh.
"Hey, Wang Shu, where's your car?"
After tidying up his room, Wang Shu went straight to the hotel lobby.
He was bored with nothing else to do, so he decided to chat with the bearded owner.
The bearded owner was also very interested in him, a Chinese national.
Furthermore, the bearded owner was also interested in Chinese culture and had even given himself a Chinese name, Yu Ganglong.
Therefore, as soon as he saw Wang Shu come downstairs, he enthusiastically greeted him.
"My car hasn't arrived yet. It should be here tomorrow!"
Wang Shu replied with a smile.
"It must be a cool car, then!"
The bearded man continued to ask.
"Yeah, I think so too!"
Wang Shu's lips curved into a smile as he replied.
After that, they chatted casually. The bearded man even said that if the hotel business didn't work out in the future, he would sell it and live in China.
It wasn't until late at night that Wang Shu received an email from the World Series organizing committee, asking him to participate in a lottery draw.
The monthly races were divided into several groups, each composed of drivers from clubs or individual racers.
For fairness, each participant needed to go to the organizing committee to draw lots.
Upon receiving the email, Wang Shu immediately took a taxi to the organizing committee to draw his lot.
Upon arriving at the organizing committee, Wang Shu directly found the draw area.
At that moment, the draw area was already crowded, with a long queue.
People of various ethnicities and speaking different languages mingled together.
Wang Shu even saw several Chinese faces among the participants.
When it was Wang Shu's turn to draw, he casually picked a slip of paper and saw that it indicated Group Four.
Then, the blonde foreign woman supervising the draw directly posted Wang Shu's name on the board for Group Four.
"Oh my god, he actually drew Group Four! That's the group of death!"
"Yeah, that's incredibly unlucky. Group Four is basically filled with experienced veteran professional racers who are exceptionally strong."
"This poor Chinese kid, it looks like he'll be lucky to get back alive."
At this moment, when many people in the hall saw Wang Shu's name posted in Group Four, they were all shocked.
This was because the participants in Group Four were basically ruthless individuals.
These individuals had been regulars on the World Series tracks for years. Although they hadn't managed to qualify for the Grand Finals, they dominated the monthly races.
They were essentially the gangsters of the monthly races. If ordinary drivers didn't pay protection fees, they would likely be pushed to desperate measures by these individuals.
After all, there was no law on the racetrack.
Even if they forced a driver off a cliff, no one would hold them accountable.
Therefore, most drivers, when grouped with them, would choose to pay for their safety.
Wang Shu vaguely overheard the discussions behind him. Although his foreign language skills were average, he could understand some words.
The gist was that his group was not to be trifled with, and he was in for bad luck.
Wang Shu, however, was unconcerned. He wouldn't claim to be the world's number one, but he was certainly among the top ten.
And this was just a small group stage; he had nothing to fear.
After drawing his lot, Wang Shu walked straight out of the main entrance.
"What's with this Chinese kid? Is he ignoring us?"
From a corner, the Devil Four, a group known for their infamy, were watching Wang Shu. The leader of the group spoke.
They, the Devil Four, were the terrifying track hunters whose names struck fear into those who heard them, the group in Group Four.
They had always lived by collecting protection fees.
But they hadn't expected to be ignored by a young Chinese upstart this time.
"Hmph! He's clearly an ignorant fellow. He'll regret it when the race begins!"
Another man beside him gritted his teeth and said.
Upon returning to the hotel, Wang Shu was cornered at the entrance by the bearded man.
"Which group are you in?"
The bearded man asked Wang Shu with curiosity.
"I think they're called the Devil Four. Do you know them?"
Wang Shu asked directly.
"What? You're with them? Did you pay the protection fee?"
When the bearded man heard that Wang Shu was grouped with the Devil Four, he was immediately startled.
He quickly asked Wang Shu if he had paid, as his leg injury was caused by the Devil Four, and he understood how terrifying those individuals were.
"Protection fee? Why would I need to pay protection fees?"
Wang Shu remained confused. He had just drawn a lot; why would he need to pay protection fees?
"Alas, Wang Shu, if you're like this, you'll be in great danger for tomorrow's race. Do you know how I injured this leg?"
At this moment, the bearded man said with a helpless expression.