Immortality begins in Goose City

Chapter 11 Mosin-Nagant and the Mauser C96

Over the next few days, Huang Shujian did not slack off in his cultivation, but the content became much richer.

Inside the training room, the sounds of fists striking flesh still echoed, as he and Zhao Long continued their daily sparring.

Under the pressure of real combat and with the support of his own talent and resources, his understanding and application of "Crushing Mountain Fist" improved at an astonishing speed.

However, he always remembered Wu Zhichong's words and the deadly attack at Yuchun Garden that night.

Therefore, besides practicing boxing, he devoted a considerable amount of time to the shooting range.

Three days later, in the afternoon.

The sunlight was a bit too bright at the shooting range in the backyard.

The wooden target in the distance cast a long shadow in the sunlight.

Huang Shujian stood ramrod straight, dressed in a sharp, dark blue outfit.

He held a well-maintained, gleaming Mosin-Nagant rifle steadily in his hand, the butt resting against his shoulder, his cheek pressed against the cold barrel.

The crosshair, the notch, and the bullseye in the distance—three points in a straight line.

"Bang!"

The gunshots rang out crisply, echoing across the empty firing range.

The wooden target in the distance trembled slightly, sending wood chips flying.

Pulling the bolt, ejecting the shell, loading the gun—the movements were all done in one smooth motion. Although not as fluid as those of a seasoned veteran, they were still clean and efficient.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Three more shots were fired in quick succession, and the pungent smell of gunpowder filled the air.

Xiuer, who was standing nearby, ran over to check and quickly returned to report: "Young Master, all four shots hit the target! Two were eight-ring shots, one was a nine-ring shot, and one was a ten-ring shot!"

Huang Shujian put down the still-hot rifle, gently blew away the faint wisps of smoke rising from the muzzle, and a look of satisfaction appeared on his face.

"While fist and knife skills are certainly formidable, these days, having a gun is definitely better."

He muttered to himself, recalling Wu Zhichong's introduction.

"Until you reach the Foundation Establishment stage, your flesh and blood body will ultimately be unable to withstand bullets."

"Only by condensing one's inner energy and cultivating one's inner strength can one truly regard firearms as nothing... Unfortunately, that is still too far away for me."

He put down the rifle and then pulled a heavy Mauser C96 pistol from the leather holster on his waist.

The gun was quite heavy and had a rugged design. Because the holster was a wooden box, it was also called the "box cannon." However, as the eldest son of the Huang family, Huang Shujian naturally replaced the wooden box with a leather holster.

He gripped the trigger with both hands, aimed slightly, and pulled it.

"Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap..."

The gunshot was sharper and more rapid than the rifle shot, firing all ten bullets in one go, making his wrist slightly numb.

Xiuer ran over to check again and reported, "Young Master, all ten shots hit the target, but... they were a bit scattered. The best one was a seven-ring."

Huang Shujian weighed the Mauser pistol in his hand and shook his head: "This thing is still too crudely made, and the barrel is too short."

"The farther the distance, the worse the accuracy becomes."

"However, it could be useful for close-range face-to-face attacks."

He put the pistol back in its holster and patted it.

The cool, metallic texture emanated through the clothes, bringing an unusual sense of security.

"From now on, I'll have to carry this thing with me at all times."

"Even if I encounter another assassination attempt like the one at Yuchun Garden, at least... I won't be a helpless lamb to the slaughter anymore."

……

In the afternoon, in the practice room.

Sweat trickled down his forehead, dripping onto the blue brick floor and spreading into a small dark patch.

"ha!"

Zhao Long exhaled and unleashed a swift and powerful punch straight at Huang Shujian's center.

This punch was powerful and heavy, and the angle was tricky.

However, Huang Shujian slightly shifted his body to the side, his left arm like a serpent, hooking and pulling along the inside of Zhao Long's fist, cleverly deflecting some of the force. At the same time, his right fist, like a venomous dragon emerging from its cave, shot out from an extremely awkward angle!

"Bang!"

A muffled thud.

Zhao Long staggered back two steps, clutching his lower right side, a look of disbelief on his face.

In the blink of an eye, Huang Shujian not only deflected his attack but also landed a solid punch on his ribs.

Although Huang Shujian had reduced most of his strength, the penetrating power and precise striking point of that instant caused half of Zhao Long's body to go numb.

This is not over yet.

Huang Shujian pressed his advantage relentlessly, his footwork swift as the wind, sticking to Zhao Long's retreating figure, unleashing a barrage of punches like a sudden storm!

In his haste, Zhao Long could only use his arms to protect his head and face, parrying repeatedly.

"Bang!"

With another muffled thud, Zhao Long was struck in the lower abdomen by a short, powerful punch, and he staggered back again, his breathing disordered.

Huang Shujian withdrew his fist at the right moment, took two steps back, and adjusted his somewhat rapid breathing.

There were also a few faint red marks on his face, left by Zhao Hu's counterattack.

Zhao Long clutched his stomach and ribs, taking several deep breaths before raising his head. His eyes were filled with shock and confusion as he looked at Huang Shujian.

"Young Master... how come your boxing technique suddenly..." He stammered, unable to finish his sentence.

Just a few days ago, the young master was being beaten down by him and could only barely defend himself.

How come you've improved so rapidly these past few days? Today, you not only parried with increasing ease, but you were even able to seize upon the most subtle flaws in his moves and launch such a sharp counterattack.

Huang Shujian wiped his sweat, walked to the small table and took a sip of tea: "The Mountain-Crushing Fist has been partially mastered."

Moreover, he didn't use any free attribute points; he achieved this level through his own cultivation.

"Xiao Cheng!" Zhao Long exclaimed in surprise, his eyes wide open.

"Young Master, you...you've only been practicing for a few days?"

He recalled how he had trained hard in the coldest and hottest winters, sweating profusely every day, enduring countless hardships, and it took him three whole years to master the "Crushing Mountain Fist"!

Even so, he was praised by Coach Wu for his resilience.

But what about the young master?

All told, I've only been learning this style of boxing for less than ten days!

No wonder... no wonder even a proud and arrogant former martial arts champion like Instructor Wu had such a strange expression when talking about the young master's progress in martial arts, and finally could only stammer out, "The young master is a martial arts prodigy."

Huang Shujian smiled at Zhao Long's shocked expression and offered no explanation.

Scholars are poor, warriors are rich; this has always been the case.

The top-grade medicinal herbs and tiger blood tonics that I consume daily are worth far more than a hundred gold pieces.

This was a level of resource accumulation that even a servant like Zhao Long could not imagine.

Moreover, he also possesses the [Pure Yang] talent.

This talent not only makes his blood and qi far more vigorous than that of martial artists of the same level, but also gives him a powerful and vigorous aura, making his martial arts cultivation twice as effective with half the effort.

Although he had only opened one aperture, his speed and reaction were not much inferior to Zhao Long, who had opened three apertures.

Its strength is even greater.

The disparity in resources and talent has combined to create this seemingly unbelievable speed of cultivation.

Zhao Long left, filled with shock and a sense of defeat.

The practice room returned to silence.

Huang Shujian meditated alone for a while, but his brows furrowed slightly.

The pressure from sparring with Zhao Long is decreasing.

Although Zhao Long had mastered the art of boxing, he was mindful of his status and ultimately dared not unleash his true killing move or display a desperate fighting spirit.

This kind of safe sparring has reached its limit in terms of improving practical experience.

He glanced at the panel in his mind again.

Free attribute points: 2

One point is needed to evolve into the "Tiger Subduing Absolute Blade Technique" (3 points required).

"You can't rely solely on the panel; personal cultivation is equally important."

"I need...more intense sparring!"