Starting as dockworkers, they swept through Chongqing.

Time slips away like sand through our fingers during the tedious and brutal training.

A month later.

Behind the manor, the mountains and rivers remain lush and green, and the air is so fresh it carries the crispness of the vegetation.

The rushing water roared as it plunged into the deep pool below, whipping up white steam that filled the air.

The air was dark, damp, and chilly.

It is located on the mountainside, at the bend where the water flow is most rapid.

The young man was wearing a thin, gray-white training uniform, which was now completely soaked in the river water, clinging tightly to his body and outlining his terrifyingly defined muscles, which resembled granite blocks.

His legs were deeply embedded in the mud and gravel of the riverbed, as the turbulent current, which reached above his calves and carried a tremendous force, surged past him.

The water slammed against his shinbone with a dull thud, but he remained motionless, like an ancient tree rooted in the earth.

It has been a month since the first practice session with a rifle.

For the past month, rain or shine, he has spent four hours every day practicing his basic shooting skills in the icy river, a practice that is almost self-torture.

This process of practicing shooting is also an excellent opportunity to hone the "Great Sea Whale Guiding Technique" under extreme pressure.

He kept trying to use his internal strength to control the heavy iron spear in his hand, resisting the impact of the water flow and the pulling of the iron ring on his wrist.

After exhausting all his strength, he used his nearly depleted and trembling body to frantically inhale and exhale the surrounding moisture and energy, completing one metamorphosis after another.

At this moment, his mind and spirit were completely free from external distractions, and were entirely immersed in the cold barrel of the gun.

The energy within his body was no longer as violent and chaotic as it had been a month ago. Instead, it transformed into a gentle stream, flowing softly and evenly into the gun barrel through his palm.

With his eyes closed, Xilun meticulously controlled every bit of force, relying on the memory of his muscles and the perception of his blood and qi.

Finally, he held the gun steadily with both hands. The force flowing into the gun formed an invisible film that perfectly neutralized the impact of the water flow, the wind, and the external force from his own muscle tremors.

The iron spear, which was originally heavy and difficult to wield, now seemed to be completely still, without even the slightest tremor. It was as calm as a perfect work of art, held steadily in his hand.

Xilun slowly opened his eyes, exhaled a long breath of stale air that had been suppressed in his chest for so long, and turned into a white mist that dissipated on the water's surface.

He silently thought to himself, "Finally..."

A hint of joy couldn't help but appear on that usually icy face.

After a month of arduous training, enduring countless muscle tears and dizziness from depleted blood and energy, I finally made a substantial breakthrough in my basic skills.

Lund, who was sitting upright on the rocks on the shore, finally opened his sharp eyes.

He looked at Xilun, who remained as steady as a mountain in the water, and nodded slightly. Seeing that the spear shaft was perfectly enveloped by his strength and completely under his control, his tone rarely carried a hint of admiration:

"It's earlier than I expected. Your resilience is truly rare."

Lund stood up, patted the moisture off his clothes, and said loudly:

"Since that's the case, let's see how well you've trained over the past month. Come out here!"

Upon hearing this, Xilun abruptly pulled his legs out of the muddy riverbed, creating a splash of murky water.

He carried his gun and strode onto the shore.

"Hold the gun with both hands!" Lund shouted, his voice filled with a chilling aura.

Xilun was taken aback, but without any hesitation, he immediately assumed the starting stance of the Natan Heavy Gun Technique, gripping the gun barrel tightly with both hands, his muscles instantly tensing.

Without another word, Lund casually picked up a wooden spear from the weapon rack.

His movements were as fast as lightning; he lightly flicked the tip of his spear at a fist-sized rock on the ground.

"Whoosh!"

The rock instantly shot through the air like a cannonball, whistling sharply as it hurtled towards Xilun's face.

Xilun's pupils widened suddenly as he felt the terrifying force attached to the stone.

He gripped the gun with both hands, suddenly exerted force from his waist, and instantly channeled his violent energy into the tip of the gun, thrusting it straight at the flying stone without any fancy moves.

"Bang!"

The spear tip struck the center of the stone with perfect accuracy. With a loud bang, the stone was instantly shattered by the violent force, and stone chips flew everywhere.

Xilun felt a jolt in his arms. In order to shatter the stone, he used almost all the strength he had accumulated in his body in this one shot.

He was just about to congratulate himself on his quick reflexes when, before he could even retract his spear—

"Whoosh!"

Another stone, flying from the side at an even faster speed and a more tricky angle than before.

It moved extremely fast, completely hitting the most awkward point where Xilun's old strength had been exhausted and new strength had not yet emerged.

There was no time to get back on defense, no time to block at all!

"Snapped!"

The stone slammed into Xilun's left ribs with a dull thud that made your teeth ache.

The immense impact caused Xilen to groan in pain, and her body involuntarily took half a step back.

Beneath the gray-white training uniform, a shocking blue bruise was immediately left on those steel-like muscles.

Lund put down the wooden gun, looked at him with a mocking gaze, and asked, "How does it feel?"

Xilun gasped, grimacing and rubbing his aching ribs, and said irritably:

"Teacher, why don't you come down and experience it for yourself? Otherwise, I feel it's really hard to describe the feeling of my bones about to break in words."

Lund was amused by his rare complaint. He chuckled, but quickly suppressed his smile, his expression returning to its cold and serious tone.

"Since your waist and leg stability are decent, your basic skills are up to par."

"So today, let's officially enter the second stage—strength training!"

Lund looked at Xiren and said in a deep voice:

"Practicing the usual moves one by one is fine, but that's too slow."

However, with only three months until the junior knight fighting tournament, we'll speed things up.

I want you to accumulate gun control experience under the most realistic combat pressure.

His expression was serious just now, and his tone carried a hint of bloodlust:

There's a saying that I think is very true: "Once a person has a way out, he will become a useless person."

Only in real combat, when your body truly feels pain and the threat of death, will you know to use your brain to summarize your experience and improve your power generation.

He gripped the wooden gun tightly again and said coldly, "One more time!"

"call out!"

Before he could finish speaking, another stone was sent flying, whistling through the air as it struck Xilun in the chest.

Xilun's eyes narrowed, and he instantly thrust his spear forward.

His accuracy has improved considerably after a month of gun-handling training.

This is the effect of cultivating Qi into the spear. Now, Xilun's Qi is flowing into the spear, almost becoming one with it. This makes him feel as if he is not holding a cold iron rod, but that his arms have been extended by half in the air.

It truly means exactly what it says: wielding a spear as easily as one's own arm.

"Bang!" The first stone was shattered with precision once again.

However, when the spear is thrust out with all its might, the force is instantly exhausted, and the muscles become briefly stiff.

Just as he was about to forcefully put away his gun and exert force again, another rock, like a ghost, seized the gap in his defense and slammed down hard, catching him off guard.

"Snapped!"

The stone slammed heavily into Xiren's right arm, and he hissed softly, his brow furrowing deeply.

He didn't retaliate immediately, but stood there thoughtfully, holding his gun.

Lund stopped attacking and looked at him, asking, "Have you thought of anything?"

Xiren pondered for a long time, the images of being hit twice replaying in his mind, and concluded:

"Teacher, the timing of your two stones was extremely tricky."

It was perfectly timed to exploit the gap in my strength after I raised and thrust my spear, during the period when my power was in a vacuum.

The spear itself is a long weapon characterized by wide, sweeping movements and relatively cumbersome techniques; the methods also reflect this, often leaving unavoidable gaps between thrusting and retracting the spear.

Lund sneered and said:

"Everyone knows that. Anyone who has watched a few days of marksmanship can say it."

But I'm going to seize your opportunity now. What are you going to do about it? Wait to die?

Xilun fell into thought again.

Suddenly, with a "whoosh," Lund picked up another rock and hurled it at him without warning.

Xilun instinctively thrust his gun forward, but at the moment of the thrust, a thought flashed through his mind and he suddenly began to think.

Unlike the previous two times, he did not unleash all his strength without reservation.

Instead, it involves precise control, allowing only the tip of the spear to pierce out slightly, with the power contained but not released.

"Ding!"

The tip of the gun touched the surface of the stone with extreme lightness, causing it to deviate from its trajectory.

At the moment of contact, Xilun immediately used the reaction force to pull his spear back, without using any force at all.

The next moment, Lund's second flying stone arrived as expected.

Xilun's eyes were cold. With a flick of his wrist, he thrust out another spear with extreme speed, which landed precisely on the second flying stone, knocking it down.

He repeated this process, not swinging the spear with all his might as he had at the beginning, but instead, depending on the speed and force of the flying stone, he tried to swing it only a short distance and use just the right amount of force.

After striking the target, immediately withdraw the weapon, keeping it ready to strike again at any time.

"Bang! Clang! Snap!"

The sounds of stones breaking and being knocked down echoed continuously along the riverbank.

Such a high-intensity, sustained defense is extremely demanding on nerve reflexes and muscle endurance.

When the fifty-fifth stone fell in an extremely strange arc, Xilun's strength finally began to wane. His wrist twitched, and the tip of his spear veered off course by half a point.

"Bang!"

The rock slammed into his thigh.

Xilun gritted his teeth and gasped, "Ouch...it still hurts."

He looked at Lund and said helplessly:

"Teacher, with these heavy iron rings hanging from my hands, I have to overcome tremendous inertia every time I swing the gun, which is very strenuous."

Even a slight deviation in force control will distort the movement.

Lund shook his head, showing no pity whatsoever:

"Don't make excuses. Continue breathing exercises to restore your strength."

Then, after applying ointment to his body and practicing, he continued practicing shooting after half an hour!

Without another word, Xilun immediately sat down cross-legged and began practicing breathing exercises.

Half an hour later, his strength was barely restored.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Then, a continuous stream of stones came crashing down.

Xiren raised his gun again to fight, but as he was hit more and more, his movements became more and more skillful.

His strength flowed more and more smoothly through the gun, and he seemed to have become a seasoned veteran who had been immersed in this art for many years, with each shot being precise and deadly.

This continued for dozens of times, and suddenly, a pale red data light flashed on Xilun's retina:

[Skill: Cold Weapon - Spear Mastery (Beginner)]

[Progress: 0/100]

【Features: Weapon handling and force control, combining airsoft and pistol functions; unpredictable and effortless to use!】

Xilun felt something was different inside his body.

The flying stones, though also hurtling towards him, now seemed to have clearer trajectories and slower speeds in his eyes.

The so-called gun training is not only about practicing techniques, but also about training strength.

How much effort to put in, how much energy to use, and how to control it freely.

Xilun seemed to have become more proficient with the gun.

After getting started, his understanding of the basics of spear fighting improved significantly.

He stared intently at the flying stones, then with a slight flick of his wrist, the tip of his spear pierced them like a viper's tongue, shattering them into fragments that scattered across the ground.

After an unknown amount of time, Lund finally stopped picking up stones.

He looked at the shattered stones scattered on the ground, his brow furrowing slightly, a hint of undisguised shock flashing in his eyes, and asked:

"Your gun control skills seem to have improved considerably in an instant?"

Xilun snapped out of his intense focus, sheathed his spear, and calmly replied:

"It's alright, it's just that after being beaten so many times, my body has instinctively found the knack for exerting force."

Lund looked at him thoughtfully. He had practiced swinging the gun 147 times, yet he could control the force so skillfully. This level of comprehension was almost something only a seasoned marksman with one or two years of experience could achieve. This kid's talent was simply terrifying.

Lund composed himself and said calmly, "Very good. Now that you've grasped the basics of force control, let's move directly to the next stage—training perception!"

Lund swept his toes sharply across a pile of rubble on the ground.

"Splash!"

Seventeen fist-sized stones instantly flew into the air.

The power of the third-order mutant within Lund erupted, transforming into invisible threads that tightly controlled the seventeen stones. They hovered around Lund's body, about five meters away, and slowly rose up, like seventeen cannonballs ready to be fired.

Lund looked at Xiren, who was surrounded in the center, and said in a deep voice:

"Remember your opponent in the Vanguard Cup final, that guy named Marshall?"

Xilun nodded slightly, his eyes narrowing slightly, and said, "I remember. What's wrong, teacher?"

Lund said, "The reason he is so difficult to deal with is because he has developed a talent called 'absolute vision,' which allows him to keenly perceive any move his opponent makes with his naked eyes."

At the same time, his physical resilience is comparable to that of a pig-like mutant, thus making him invincible within an arm's length of his peers.

After speaking, he looked intently at Xilun:

"And your hearing is terrifying. You told me that you can use that talent to perceive absolute movement within three meters of your body, even the contraction of muscles and the flow of blood."

At the same time, your arm span, plus the length of this 2.4-meter-long rifle, brings the total length to nearly three meters.

Lund's voice suddenly rose, filled with a frantic expectation:

"I want you to perfectly combine your auditory talent and marksmanship! To be able to control every movement within a three-meter radius of yourself!"

"Develop a death zone that ordinary people can't even get close to! I want you to earn the title of 'Invincible with One Shot' in this Saint Laurent City!"