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Chapter 142: The Super Marksman
Chapter 142: The Super Marksman
"Swordmaster Ling is too modest," Ji Xinghuo said calmly, without the arrogance of a victor. "I merely have better weapons."
As he spoke, the swordsmen turned their gazes towards Moyin.
In fact, some of them had been thinking along those lines.
Ji Xinghuo had intentionally displayed the power of Moyin but refrained from using his Xingjin during the fight. Firstly, he didn't want to expose too much of his capabilities, and secondly, he wanted to give Ling Yufei a way out. After all, they were colleagues at Lijian Bureau, and he still needed to learn intelligence and firearms knowledge from her. It wouldn't do to make their relationship too stiff.
As expected, Ling Yufei's expression eased a little, though she still looked somewhat dejected.
She had always believed that her strength was sufficient to enter the Celestial Ladder, but after a crushing defeat at the hands of the last-ranked member, her confidence was shaken.
A swordsman beside her asked, "Are all the foreigners on the Celestial Ladder so formidable?"
Many others shared a similar question.
If Ji Xinghuo, the last-ranked member, was already this powerful, it was hard to fathom the strength of the top 100. The Sword Captain, who had initially harbored ill intentions towards Yan Xiao, no longer felt the need to seek justice for him.
With Ji Xinghuo's abilities, he was more than qualified to be a member of the Red Cloud Swordsmen.
Of course, some also realized that Ji Xinghuo's true strength was far beyond that of the last-ranked member. The Celestial Ladder rankings did not fully reflect the capabilities of these foreigners.
Zhou Yishang understood this, but he didn't say it outright. Instead, he spoke, "Alright, that's enough for today. Resume your training."
"Yes!"
The swordsmen dispersed.
Zhou Yishang gave a slight nod to Ji Xinghuo before leaving with his group.
Ming Chongwu approached, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "You've improved so quickly! Watching your duel with Yufei made me eager to spar as well. How about we have a match?"
"I'm not interested," Ji Xinghuo replied instinctively, his eyes narrowing at Ming Chongwu's bald head. "I still have classes with Swordmaster Ling."
The Halo Warrior was a unique profession, and fighting one could be tricky.
Moreover, sparring with Ming Chongwu offered little benefit. Defeating Ling Yufei was enough to establish his prowess among the Lijian Bureau.
"You can't spend all your time in class, can you?" Ming Chongwu persisted, his enthusiasm typical of a battle maniac who relished the chance to test himself against a formidable opponent.
"We'll see about it later," Ji Xinghuo replied evasively.
Turning to Ling Yufei, he asked, "Swordmaster Ling, when shall we begin?"
"Just call me Yufei. Follow me," Ling Yufei said, still nursing a headache but able to converse normally. Seeing Ming Chongwu tagging along, she frowned and said irritably, "Why are you following us? Do you want another lesson in firearms?"
Ming Chongwu rubbed his head and laughed. "Well, I wouldn't mind."
There was a hint of lewdness in his smile.
"Scoundrel!" Ling Yufei cursed.
"How can you slander me like that?" Ming Chongwu protested. "Director Zhou instructed me to guide Xinghuo and bring him along on missions. While you teach Xinghuo, I can fill in any gaps in his training and practice my marksmanship at the same time."
Ling Yufei couldn't refuse, so she chose to ignore him.
Listening to their exchange, Ji Xinghuo guessed that there was some history between the two, but he had little interest in other people's gossip.
The three of them arrived at a shooting range within the base.
"Ming Chongwu can teach you about intelligence work," Ling Yufei said. "Today, we'll start with firearms training."
She pressed a button on the wall.
The metal wall slid open, revealing rack upon rack of weapons. The shelves were filled with an assortment of firearms—electromagnetic rifles, Gauss guns, laser guns, machine guns, shotguns, sniper rifles, and more. Various models and customized guns totaled over two hundred firearms, accompanied by an even larger number of accessories.
In addition to the guns, there were all sorts of explosives neatly arranged on the shelves, creating a dazzling display akin to an armory.
No, this was an armory!
Ji Xinghuo had never come into contact with real firearms before; he had only played shooting games. Thus, he could only recognize a few classic models.
"Feel free to browse or try your hand at shooting," Ling Yufei said.
"Alright," Ji Xinghuo replied.
His eyes immediately landed on an electromagnetic rifle on one of the racks—the Avenger-17. Its silver-black body reflected a metallic luster, and its long, rectangular barrel had two rails arranged vertically, resembling the design of gunpowder guns from two centuries ago. It was a very classic gun model.
As the first electromagnetic rifle to appear on Earth, born in 2045, its name signified vengeance against the Betelgeuse Tribe.
The Avenger's emergence signaled the complete phasing out of gunpowder firearms.
Over the following decades, the electromagnetic rifle underwent numerous improvements, ultimately culminating in the Avenger-17, a version renowned for its stability in performance and destructive power.
Based on the original design, hundreds of modified gun types were developed by various countries.
However, the Avenger-17 remained the most well-known model, with the highest production volume, appearing countless times in games, movies, and novels.
It was the prototype for almost all electromagnetic rifles.
Ji Xinghuo had used this gun in games before, but holding it in his hands now, he felt a significant difference from its virtual counterpart.
There was a fingerprint reader on the grip, which unlocked as soon as he held it.
A small screen on the stock facing him displayed various data, including the current power level, bullet type and quantity, and the degree of damage to the gun body, all at a glance.
Ji Xinghuo took his position at the shooting range, turned off the safety, and activated the single-point mode.
The soft report was not very loud, much quieter than early gunpowder guns, and the alloy target trembled slightly.
"Bullseye," said the shooting range's assistant system.
Ji Xinghuo carefully felt for the recoil of the Avenger-17; it felt great in his hands. The rifle was nearly a meter long and weighed about six kilograms, a weight that felt just right. The recoil was also very stable.
The electromagnetic rifle worked on the same principle as an electromagnetic railgun. It generated an immense electric current, and the two rails, together with the bullet, formed a current loop. The bullet was propelled forward by the Ampere force generated by the current, shooting it out of the barrel.
Each shot consumed a significant amount of electricity.
As a result, electromagnetic rifles required both a magazine and a battery.
"What powerful firepower!" exclaimed Ji Xinghuo as he examined the mark left on the alloy target. Despite his enhanced perception, he couldn't even capture the trajectory of the bullet.
The Avenger-17's bullets had an initial velocity of over 2,000 meters per second! If this shot had hit him, he would have surely been severely injured. If it had pierced his head or throat, Ji Xinghuo wasn't confident he could have survived.
He fired a few more shots in quick succession, all of which hit the bullseye.
The electromagnetic rifle's bullets were cylindrical arrows, about two centimeters long, with a mass of only twenty grams or so. Due to their small size, an electromagnetic rifle's magazine could hold 120 rounds, and in full-auto mode, it could maintain a rate of fire for 20 seconds.
Ji Xinghuo switched to full-auto mode and pulled the trigger.
The gun roared, and the current howled.
Rounds after round of full-metal jackets sped out, invisible to the naked eye, pounding the target a hundred meters away. Metal shards flew, and the entire shooting range trembled slightly.
Bang, bang, bang, bang...
Ji Xinghuo emptied the magazine in one go.
The electromagnetic rifle's battery had lost 15% of its charge, and the gun's rail was glowing red. He could even feel the heat through the grip.
A deep dent now marred the center of the hard alloy target.
Ling Yufei and Ming Chongwu were both stunned. Ji Xinghuo was obviously a newcomer to firearms, and his shooting stance was all wrong, deviating far from the standard. Yet, every single one of his shots hit the bullseye. He had fired an entire magazine of 120 rounds without a single miss.
A true marksman!
Ling Yufei shook her head, recalling Ji Xinghuo's archery skills in the Spirit Realm. She could understand his prowess with the rifle now.
Any qualified ranger had the potential to be a marksman.
And Ji Xinghuo was far more than just a qualified ranger.
"That felt great!"
Oblivious to their thoughts, Ji Xinghuo turned and smiled. "This thing is way better than a bow and arrow."
The learning curve for archery was just too steep. It took a long time to become proficient enough for actual combat. Whether it was range, accuracy, or power, the electromagnetic rifle blew the bow and arrow out of the water. If not for the fact that electronic devices were unusable in the Star Realm, no one would bother with such an archaic weapon.
The electromagnetic rifle's power was comparable to a one-star superpower bow.
However, the rifle's effective lethal range could reach up to a kilometer. All one needed to do was pull the trigger, and with minimal training, anyone could master it.
Most importantly, the electromagnetic rifle was cheap! A rifle cost just over 20,000 yuan, while the cheapest one-star superpower bow would set you back two to three million.
Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo felt that his Invisible Needle technique wasn't all that impressive.
Next, he tried his hand at other firearms.
The Gauss gun also utilized electric current to fire projectiles, but its principle was slightly different from the electromagnetic rifle. The Gauss gun's barrel was wrapped with layers of accelerating coil assemblies. When a strong current passed through these coils, it generated a magnetic force that propelled the bullet forward.
Neither firearm was superior; they simply represented two different design philosophies.
The laser gun, on the other hand, was an entirely different beast. It fired a beam of high-temperature laser, possessing incredible penetration power. Its most significant feature was the absence of recoil, making it the most accurate firearm. However, its range was shorter due to laser dispersion.
The most powerful of them all was the plasma gun.
It was a plasma weapon that fired a ball of superheated plasma, resulting in a massive blast radius. It could instantly destroy an armored tank.
Ji Xinghuo jumped in surprise when he pulled the trigger.
Even with his current defensive capabilities, he doubted he would survive a direct hit from a plasma gun. However, the plasma gun had its drawbacks: a slow rate of fire, short range, cumbersome size, and a tendency to malfunction.
Ji Xinghuo spent several hours testing out dozens of firearms.
With each new gun he tried, Ling Yufei provided a detailed explanation of its strengths, weaknesses, and unique characteristics, as well as their applicable scenarios, optimal usage, environmental considerations, maintenance, and repair. She even delved into the manufacturing company and development history of each firearm.
Ji Xinghuo listened attentively, secretly impressed by Ling Yufei's extensive knowledge of firearms.
Indeed, she was one of the top firearms masters in the Lijian Bureau!
Ming Chongwu also picked up various firearms and tried his hand at shooting, but compared to Ji Xinghuo's accuracy, he frequently missed the mark or completely missed the target.
Ji Xinghuo, on the other hand, always hit the bullseye, regardless of his familiarity with the weapon.
The lesson continued until noon.
As the lunch break approached, Ling Yufei said, "Red Cloud Swordsmen are issued firearm licenses, which allow them to carry a gun and ammunition. You can choose one to take with you, Xinghuo. I'll help you with the registration later."
Ji Xinghuo didn't hesitate for a moment. He pointed to a gun on the rack and said, "I'll take that one."
(End of Chapter)
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