This car was manufactured in 1966, giving it a history of 37 years.
But with just a light press of the gas pedal, its 289-cubic-inch V8 engine—the same one as the championship-winning race car, fitted with an optional high-pressure fuel pump and a custom competition exhaust—would let out a beast-like roar.
Chen Yu could only describe it as pure enjoyment.
A little over half an hour later, Chen Yu arrived at the address from the text message.
To his surprise, it was a small airfield.
The security guard at the entrance must have received instructions in advance. Upon seeing the GT40, he waved it through immediately and helpfully pointed the way.
The destination was a hangar beside the runway.
He hadn’t driven far before his eyes were drawn to a propeller plane with a brown paint job.
Or more accurately, it was a fighter plane.
And it was the legendary P-51 Mustang.
The car screeched to a halt. As Chen Yu got out, he immediately heard someone shouting his name.
A man leaned out from the cockpit of the fighter plane, waving at Chen Yu.
Although Paul Allen loved basketball and frequently visited the Rose Garden Arena for games, he was extremely low-key in his personal life. Consequently, Chen Yu had never formally interacted with him; today was their first time meeting.
Chen Yu walked toward the fighter plane.
The media had reported on Paul Allen’s many interests. He liked basketball, toys, and planes, and had even established an aircraft museum.
"Chen, get in! Let’s go for a spin."
Paul Allen patted the fuselage.
"Paul, are you sure this thing can actually fly?"
The GT40 he’d been given was already old, and the fighter in front of him was likely an original.
Chen Yu could already see bullet holes on its fuselage.
’It might have even seen combat and shot down enemy aircraft!’
Paul Allen beckoned to someone in the distance.
A few engineers approached, and one of them handed Chen Yu a flight suit.
"Don’t worry. I employ dozens of aeronautical engineers who ensure my collection is kept in the exact same condition as when it left the factory, ready to fly at a moment’s notice. See this paint job? Even the paint is the same formula they used decades ago."
Paul Allen’s eyes lit up as he spoke about his hobby. He added with a hint of a challenge, "Chen, don’t you want to go up and experience it for yourself, just like our fathers’ generation did?"
Chen Yu was tempted.
"Alright."
Chen Yu quickly changed into the flight suit, buckled his helmet, and climbed into the cockpit.
Below, several aeronautical engineers stepped forward to perform a final inspection of the fighter plane.
Paul Allen turned and pointed to a backpack in a narrow space to Chen Yu’s right.
"That’s the parachute," Paul Allen explained. "This is a P-51C, originally from the United Kingdom. It has an impressive combat record of three enemy kills. After being decommissioned, it was converted into a two-seat trainer, and eventually, I acquired it."
"I tried to have it retrofitted with ejection seats, but the engineers could never get a perfect fit after numerous attempts. So, if an accident does happen, you need to put on the parachute immediately and climb out onto the wing."
He pointed to the wings on either side.
"You can’t just jump straight out, or you might hit the tail."
Chen Yu, who had been sitting in the cockpit excitedly examining the various instruments, was suddenly dumbfounded.
’Wait, an accident is a real possibility?’
"Paul, do you know how to fly? Or rather, have you flown *this* plane before?" Chen Yu asked urgently.
Paul Allen nodded. "Of course, I have a pilot’s license. I’ve even flown this particular plane twice. Don’t worry, it’ll be fine. It doesn’t fly that fast, and if worst comes to worst, we can always attempt an emergency landing."
’Huh? An emergency landing?’
Chen Yu was utterly stunned. He wanted to ask if it was too late to back out.
Seemingly noticing the panic in Chen Yu’s eyes, Paul Allen said, "Chen, life is very short. We can choose to live it out safely and steadily, or we can choose to rise to the challenge and be a little wild."
As he spoke, his eyes were gleaming with excitement.
Chen Yu was speechless.
’But you’re a multi-billionaire! Aren’t you afraid of dying?’
’No, wait. This guy has had cancer. He’s already had a run-in with the Grim Reaper.’
"So, shall we get going?"
Chen Yu took a deep breath, his resolve hardening.
’Might as well live a little.’
Paul Allen gave Chen Yu a thumbs-up, then quickly turned to begin the pre-flight checklist.
Chen Yu silently glanced at the parachute to his right.
’I hear these things don’t get any bad reviews.’
After the complex inspection, the propeller roared to life. The plane lined up with the runway. With an excited roar from Paul Allen, the aircraft started to move, accelerating steadily before finally leaping into the air and soaring into the clouds.
The ground fell away as the azure sky drew closer.
Even with the cockpit canopy closed, this old relic from World War II was still drafty, no matter how well-maintained it was.
During the rapid ascent, Chen Yu could even hear a strange, metallic scraping sound coming from somewhere.
’It feels like this thing could fall apart at any second.’
But this act of repeatedly tempting the Grim Reaper was genuinely exhilarating, making his brain buzz with an unprecedented excitement.
Fortunately, the plane stabilized once it reached a certain altitude.
Paul Allen clearly wasn’t trying to get them killed; he adjusted their course and settled into a steady flight.
Chen Yu wanted to ask where they were headed, but then he thought again. Getting on the plane was crazy enough, so he might as well see the madness through to the end. Who cared where they were going?
’A multi-billionaire wouldn’t deliberately try to murder me, right?’
’Then again...’
’What if he flies to the highest altitude, then suddenly asks if I’m willing to join the Pioneers, and if I say no, he just throws me out of the plane?’
Clearly, Chen Yu was overthinking things. Paul Allen simply turned his head, his gaze deep and inscrutable as he watched the vast earth pass by below.
This was the man who’d gotten a perfect score on his SATs, a bona fide genius.
Chen Yu’s own college entrance exam scores had been excellent, but he was still more than fifty points shy of a perfect score.
He seemed more relaxed than ever, almost as if... relieved?
Chen Yu’s heart skipped a beat. He subconsciously activated the Eye of All-Seeing and focused it on Paul Allen’s entire body.
If he recalled correctly, Paul Allen had been diagnosed with cancer 20 years ago.
It was Hodgkin’s lymphoma, he believed.
This type of cancer has a very high cure rate. Because it’s a lymphatic disease, chemotherapy drugs can easily reach the lesions, unlike with cancers in other tissues and organs.
As a billionaire, Paul Allen had obviously been easily cured of this cancer at the time.
Now, 20 years later, it shouldn’t have recurred, logically speaking.
After his recovery, Paul Allen would have undoubtedly paid close attention to his health and undergone regular check-ups.
But Paul Allen’s expression a moment ago had given Chen Yu a strange feeling.
Besides, cancer is almost impossible to completely eradicate.
Some cancer cells can hide after metastasizing, becoming undetectable by current medical equipment.
Others are more cunning, lying dormant and hidden, waiting for the right moment to reawaken and multiply.
Chen Yu’s gaze penetrated straight to Paul Allen’s diaphragm.
Early-stage Hodgkin’s lymphoma typically involves a single lymph node, usually located above the diaphragm. As it progresses, it can spread to both sides of the diaphragm and even into organ tissues.
Chen Yu couldn’t remember what stage Allen’s cancer had been, and the media would never have had access to his detailed medical records anyway.
But a quick scan revealed nothing abnormal.
Chen Yu kept zooming in, probing every inch of muscle and fascia, but still found nothing.
After a long moment, Chen Yu withdrew his gaze.
’Maybe I’m overthinking it. His deep gaze is probably just because he’s lost in the beautiful scenery.’
Chen Yu turned to look outside.
The plane weaved through the clouds, with the entire earth spread out below. It was a view so stunning you could never appreciate it without seeing it with your own eyes.
Paul Allen wasn’t very talkative. He exchanged a few words with Chen Yu along the way, but never brought up the matter of inviting him to be the team doctor for the Pioneers.
Over an hour later, Paul Allen began to descend for a landing.
Chen Yu looked down.
Below them was a vast, boundless expanse of earthen-yellow desert.
They must have been flying northwest, in the direction of Las Vegas.
Chen Yu immediately figured the desert below must be the Mojave Desert.
Wind began whistling into the cockpit again from some unknown crack, and Chen Yu silently tightened his grip on the parachute.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly. The plane touched down at an airfield in the middle of the desert.
The ground crew rushed over, guiding the plane to its parking spot.
Chen Yu breathed a silent sigh of relief and followed Paul Allen out of the cockpit.
"Paul, where are we?" Chen Yu asked.
Paul Allen led Chen Yu to an SUV and drove toward a massive hangar up ahead. "It’s a company I’ve invested in," he said. "I’ve got something else cool to show you."
’Another one of a billionaire’s big toys, probably.’
The hangar before them was astonishingly large. As a three-section, folding roller door slowly opened, an impossibly huge, twin-fuselage aircraft was revealed before Chen Yu.
It was painted completely white, with a wingspan that looked to be the length of a football field.
But Chen Yu couldn’t see any engines.
It was truly enormous. Standing before it, Chen Yu felt as tiny as an ant.
Paul Allen pointed excitedly at the aircraft. "Look! I call it the White Knight. This is the prototype, a glider. We just finished its gliding tests last month, and the results were very satisfying."
"In the future, we’ll keep improving it and fit it with six engines. That way, it can carry a spaceship to high altitude, and the ship can launch directly into space from there."
"Chen, when the time comes, would you like to join me and become the first space tourist?"
Chen Yu was almost too stunned to process what he was hearing.
’As if riding in your World War II plane wasn’t enough, now you want to take me to space?’
’What on earth are you after?’
Paul Allen seemed to guess what Chen Yu was thinking. He pointed at the White Knight and said, "Chen, in this life, you have to do the things you love, and be willing to pay any price for them."
"I’ve been sick before. After that, I decided not to get married or have children. I have no attachments. I love the things I do, and basketball... basketball is one of the things I love most."
He turned to look at Chen Yu, his expression completely serious. "And for a championship, I am willing to pay any price."
"So, Chen, come to the Pioneers. Whatever your demands, I’ll meet them. Because I believe that you can bring the Pioneers a championship!"

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