Chapter 9: It Moved. It Moved

【Check-in task completed, received random reward, Photography skill +1】

【Photography Skill LV1: Light and shadow in hand, beauty never missed, eyes with measure, heart with light】

Immediately afterward, a flood of photography knowledge surfaced in his mind—manipulation of light and shadow, composition, all photographic knowledge assimilated instinctively within his mind.

In short, technique maxed out, aesthetic on point, everything is photographable, every shot turns out perfect.

Looking at the scenery beyond the wall, instincts for composition, atmosphere creation, and light arrangement instantly surfaced in his mind.

He pulled out his phone, aimed it outward, and captured the scene before him. Then he checked the photo in his album—though taken on a whim, it felt vastly superior to his usual shots; that depth of feeling was something he had never possessed before.

Wind swept clouds and mist past, mountains stretched endlessly before his eyes; Qin Yun's exhaustion, under the dual weight of skill and beauty, quietly diminished.

At this moment, only a few people remained at North Tower 12. After resting over half an hour, Qin Yun began walking back; when he reached North Tower 7, a voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Um… big brother…"

Qin Yun froze for a moment, then turned toward the voice. When he recognized who it was, his expression turned startled. What a coincidence—it was another girl with a tear mole, now sitting on the steps, drenched in sweat, her expression oddly strained.

"You're calling me?"

Qin Yun pointed at himself, puzzled—were strangers really this familiar now?

Xia Qingqing nodded: "Yeah, big brother, can you help me? I twisted my ankle, it's uncomfortable—could you carry my backpack?"

North Tower 7 was the cable car stop.

Qin Yun glanced at the foot she indicated—white shoes, green socks—nothing obvious.

But since she asked, he didn't refuse. He glanced at her backpack nearby, lifted it—his expression subtly changed—it was brutally heavy.

"No problem. Let's go. I'll carry your luggage to the cable car. Can you walk on your own? If not, I'll find staff to help."

"No need, I can walk—just can't carry the backpack anymore," Xia Qingqing declined, pushing herself up using the wall.

Qin Yun nodded, placed his own backpack in front, then slung hers onto his back—immediately, his already exhausted legs felt even heavier.

"Thank you, big brother. I'm Xia Qingqing. What's your name?"

"I'm Qin Yun."

As they walked, they exchanged introductions.

"Are you from around here, Brother Qin?"

"No. I went to university in Beijing and stayed to work here."

Xia Qingqing "oh"ed, smiling: "I thought you were local."

Qin Yun shook his head.

Xia Qingqing nodded, said no more. They queued, got tickets, entered the cable car together, and soon returned to the gate.

"Train at five?"

Qin Yun had planned to leave her backpack at the rest area, but remembering she'd come by train too, he added: "You're taking the train too?"

"Yeah, could you just take my backpack to the train station? I'll handle the rest myself."

Qin Yun nodded.

This time they didn't sit together—not even in the same carriage. After placing her backpack, Qin Yun left. After all, they were strangers—helping out was just kindness.

After getting off the train and returning to the hotel, it was already past seven in the evening.

The next day, he arrived early at Sanlitun's auto shop—Master Wang had already gathered most of the parts on his list!

The main damage to this Land Rover Defender was concentrated on the front; almost no damage existed behind the front section.

By noon, Shen Hu showed up.

"Good news, Lao Qin, great news! A friend of mine just had a car accident!"

Qin Yun's face darkened: "What the hell kind of good news is that?"

Shen Hu waved his hand: "Don't interrupt. My friend had an accident—his car's totaled. Coincidentally, it's the exact same model as yours! He's rich—he said just tow it away. I got it for 100,000!"

"Where's the car?"

"Sent someone to tow it—it'll arrive tomorrow! But when the hell did you learn this skill? You never showed it in college."

Qin Yun smiled: "I've got plenty of skills. College just didn't give me a chance to use them."

Shen Hu shook his head: "Aren't you working? Doesn't Song Ya mind?"

Qin Yun's hands paused. Then he said lightly: "I'm divorced."

Shen Hu fell silent, patted his shoulder: "Tonight I'll treat you to a foot massage—let the prettiest girl give you a rub."

It was someone else's private matter—he could only soothe Qin Yun's wounded heart with his technician's hands.

After a full day's work, Qin Yun returned exhausted to the hotel and collapsed into bed. He slept until late morning the next day, woken only by Shen Hu's call.

"Lao Qin, the car's here—come quick and check if any parts work! We don't know jack!"

"On my way!"

At the auto shop, Master Wang stared at the Land Rover and asked: "Boss, is Qin Zong really serious about this?"

This was an engine—not a tire swap. The number of engine parts was staggering; disassembly and reassembly was far beyond an ordinary person's ability. If the issue were only external, repair would be easier—but this Land Rover Defender's engine had seized due to mechanical overload, the bearings were ruined, and he wasn't even sure what else was damaged.

Just these two faults required removing the intake, cooling, lubrication, and wiring harnesses entirely. And this 5.0T engine had far higher assembly precision than others—any tiny error carried massive risk.

"How the hell should I know!"

Qin Yun arrived at the shop quickly—Shen Hu came out to meet him.

"You really think you can fix it?"

Qin Yun nodded: "Obviously. Why else would I need this engine?"

In China, vehicles are tightly regulated—engine numbers must match chassis numbers exactly. Replacing an engine requires official reporting and approval—you can't just use a counterfeit.

But if he only replaces internal parts, the engine's serial number remains unchanged—no inspection needed.

Shen Hu nodded, his gaze returning to Qin Yun as he began laying out tools, preparing to disassemble—suddenly, he grew curious.

Meanwhile, other mechanics at nearby workstations also gathered around, curious.

A car maintenance shop—what's a car maintenance shop? It's where you patch tires, do bodywork, clean air filters, change oil—most workers will never even touch an engine, the core internal component.

Even when the engine warning light comes on, people look for problems outside the engine, not inside it.

As Qin Yun began dismantling the Land Rover Defender's engine, the onlookers' expressions changed one by one. Qin Yun's movements were fluid—he effortlessly located every disassembly point, applied just the right amount of force, never needing a second push.

But Qin Yun himself felt a sliver of pressure; after all, his motor vehicle repair skill was only at LV1, and merely disassembling an engine—a core component—was beyond ordinary people.

Minutes passed, and the pile of parts on the ground grew larger. Qin Yun soon identified the engine's damage.

The mechanical supercharger seized, the bearings were damaged, the timing gear had skipped teeth, the tensioner had failed, and even the crankshaft bearings had melted. The connecting rods were bent and cracked.

Such extensive structural damage was more than Qin Yun had expected.

By this point, among the onlookers, only Master Wang could still understand what was happening—the rest were just watching for spectacle.

"Boss Qin, can you fix it?"

Qin Yun looked up at Master Wang, then shifted his gaze to the car Shen Hu had towed over: "As long as we can find compatible parts, we can fix it."

Without resting, he quickly dismantled the engine from that car as well. After opening the crate, he found his luck was good—the damaged parts on his vehicle could almost all be matched with intact ones from this engine. Only the crankshaft and connecting rods needed to be ordered online.

He asked Shen Hu to place the order, spending another 20,000, leaving his balance at 130,000! Fortunately, the transmission issue was minor and could be perfectly replaced.

For the next two weeks, Qin Yun rested almost nothing—every day, he arrived at Shen Hu's car maintenance shop at dawn and left only when night fell.

After two weeks, after repeatedly adjusting valve clearances, timing chain precision, and even manually calibrating the mechanical supercharger's pressure, the engine and transmission slowly reassembled. The workshop mechanics, including Master Wang, now looked at Qin Yun as if he were a god.

Even while he was busy with the engine and transmission, the mechanics took it upon themselves to handle all other repairs on the vehicle.

By the time he fully reassembled the engine and transmission, the entire car had been transformed—only the engine and transmission now needed to be installed.

Seeing the engine and transmission, which showed no visible flaws from the outside, everyone held their breath. Several mechanics joined forces to help Qin Yun install them.

They quickly secured the engine and transmission in place. As the final bolt was tightened, Qin Yun crawled out from under the car, slammed the hood shut, lowered the vehicle to the ground with the hydraulic lift, and slid straight into the driver's seat.

Through the windshield, every mechanic—including Shen Hu—fell silent, breathing softly, their eyes locked on Qin Yun in the driver's seat, hearts pounding.

"Master Wang, will it work?"

Master Wang nodded firmly: "It will. It absolutely will."

Inside the car, Qin Yun took a deep breath, pressed the brake, and pressed the start button with his right hand.

The next instant, the high-displacement turbocharged engine awoke like a slumbering beast—not a weak whine, but a powerful, thunderous vibration from all eight cylinders.

'Boom—!' It roared open, spewing low, heavy exhaust waves. The initial sound was fierce but not harsh, like a dormant giant opening its eyes and letting out a menacing growl, the resonance blending with the mechanical supercharger's distinctive intake hiss, echoing far away.

"Ah, it moved! It moved!"

Seeing this, everyone erupted in excited cheers.

"Make way, make way! Qin Yun, go drive a couple laps and test it!"

Shen Hu waved to clear a path for everyone.

Qin Yun was even more excited than they were—he was certain the car was flawless. He'd spent over 200,000 and gained a brand-new 1.3-million luxury off-roader. It was an unbelievable bargain.

But this bargain wasn't something anyone could snatch—he'd earned it solely through his motor vehicle repair skill.

First, instrument repair had earned him 200,000; now, motor vehicle repair had netted him a 5.0T V8 luxury off-roader. Damn, where's the logic in that?

Releasing the brake, the grass-green Land Rover Defender surged forward, moving slowly out of the shop.

Watching the rock-solid off-roader, everyone cheered again, feeling immense pride.

"Incredible! Totally incredible! Boss, your friend is a god of the industry."

Master Wang watched the car slowly roll from the intersection onto the road, murmuring to himself, filled with awe.

Qin Yun drove the Land Rover slowly out, the evening wind brushing his face, feeling the car's raw power—and he felt freedom waving at him.