Please pull the trigger for this world one more time.

"Hello, you must be Mo Zian, right?"

Two officers sat down opposite Mo Zian and said in a businesslike tone, "We have already approved your application for university."

You are a natural-born genius, and your academic performance is among the best. Your skills also impressed us during the small competitions we organized in the pre-training period.

All the major military academies in the empire are very keen on you. Some academies have even stated that if you apply, you will be exempt from the second round of testing.

The officer who spoke opened his briefcase and handed Mo Zian a document. "Take a look and see if there's anything you like."

"Yes, sir."

Mo Zian took the document, glanced at it, and looked up to ask, "Excuse me, sir, why isn't the Capital Military Academy listed here? I remember it was my first choice. Is it because my grades aren't up to par?"

"no."

Another officer answered Mo Zian's question. He first shook his head, then exchanged a glance with the person next to him and said, "Student Mo Zian, let me be frank, you may not be qualified to go to the capital's military academy."

"Please instruct me, sir, why am I not qualified?" Mo Zian asked calmly.

"Because your background isn't qualified."

The other party replied, "Or rather, your background is not reliable enough. The Capital Military Academy is a special unit, and it is also the best military academy in my Imperial Army. But I cannot tell you the specifics of how it is special."

You were born in Munan Town, with no parents, and strictly speaking, no traceable background. You are a talented person, but we cannot take the risk of allowing someone with such a blemished background to enter the capital's military academy. Please understand.

Mo Zian nodded upon hearing this and remained silent for a moment.

"Officers, may I ask you to look at something?" Mo Zian suddenly said.

The two officers exchanged a puzzled look: "Sure."

"Please wait a moment, officers."

Mo Zian returned to his room, and soon after, he had an old bayonet sheathed in his hand.

The two officers initially paid no attention, but when they saw the dragon-shaped wooden carving on the hilt of their swords, their expressions instantly froze. As Mo Zian approached, they unconsciously stood up slowly.

"Student Mo Zian, where...did you get this?" one of the officers asked, taking the bayonet with both hands.

"This belongs to my godfather," Mo Zian said.

"You... your godfather??"

"Yes, he's my godfather's."

Mo Zian nodded, his tone tinged with indescribable sadness. "His name was Jiang Xianzong, the 90,851st member of the royal family. When he sacrificed himself, I was by his side. I used his old [736] rifle, which I placed against the window frame, to kill four or five Japanese soldiers from Chenhuan in my burning house."

You can verify all of this with one person. I don't know where he holds a position now, but he was originally Colonel Chen Zhi, the garrison commander of Mu'nan Town in the Southwest Army Group.

Both officers' pupils dilated slightly upon hearing this, and one of them said in disbelief, "Student Mo Zi'an, you were only... back then."

"Yes, sir. I was eight years old that year. My uncle taught me how to use an ether gun."

Mo Zian's calm tone revealed a hint of determination: "Defending our country is a matter of gender and age. If the enemy comes and I have weapons, then I should fight and protect those who cannot fight."

Upon hearing Mo Zian's words, a different kind of light flashed in the eyes of the two officers, and they nodded slightly to each other.

Mo Zian continued, "I know that although the prince has ordered the threshold to be lowered, the background of us commoners may indeed not be as reliable as that of many traditional military families or descendants of generals."

But I feel that I am special, that I am qualified to try the Capital Military Academy, and that the Capital Military Academy would be the right place for me.

Of course, serving in the military is still serving in the military, whether it's at the city or abroad; it's all about protecting the country and fulfilling a mission. I believe that no matter what, the military academy in the capital will definitely give me an answer.

At this moment, the officer who had taken the bayonet leaned close to the other man's ear and whispered, "I've confirmed it; it's a carving of Phoebe zhennan wood. It can't be faked."

After listening, the man nodded slightly, returned the bayonet to Mo Zian, and said solemnly, "Student Mo Zian, we understand the situation you described. We will verify it as soon as possible and then give you a formal reply."

We still have a few people to notify, so we won't stay long.

"Thank you, officers. Goodbye."

The two officers saluted, then quickly left the Shuofeng Weapon Shop and silently got into their military vehicle.

"What should we do?" the driver suddenly asked.

"What do you mean, 'what to do'? Just do what needs to be done."

The other person glanced at the other, then looked at Shuofeng's storefront. "The nature of this matter has changed now, you know?"

……

Four days after the two officers left, Mo Zian received a letter sent by the military's special line. Inside the letter was an invitation to the second round of examinations at the capital's military academy.

Because he had decided to participate in the second round of the entrance exam for the capital's military academy, Mo Zian's daily life changed once again.

He still started practicing martial arts before dawn, but after that, Mo Zian no longer needed to watch the shop in the morning. Instead, he would choose an ether gun from the shop and go to the shooting range in the north of the city to practice shooting. This shooting range was set up by the Military Affairs Department and was one of only two legal shooting ranges in Guangwu City.

Alternatively, one could simply venture into the Mangshan Mountains northeast of Guangwu City to practice hunting—specifically targeting rabbits, birds, squirrels, and other small animals.

Time flew by, and it was late spring of the 842nd year of the Guangwu reign.

It had just rained that day.

In the woods.

The branches and leaves are lush, and the light is dim.

The moist air, carrying the unique scent of grass and trees, filled Mo Zian's nostrils, making the [Hunter's Old Single-Eyed Strike] in his hand damp.

A leaf, burdened by too much rain, finally gave way and threw its weight to the ground.

Rainwater fell on the black gun barrel, splashing up a small patch of tiny water droplets that scattered in all directions.

Just then, Mo Zian suddenly felt that time around him seemed to become viscous, like watching a movie in slow motion in his past life.

He could even see the entire process and details of the water droplets disintegrating and splashing.

Take a deep breath.

The finger that pulls the trigger slowly applies force.

boom!

The previously quiet and dormant [Old Single-Shot] gun vibrated slightly backward, stirring up the water that had accumulated at the junction of the magazine and the handguard.

A slightly off-key firing sound shattered the damp, tranquil air, startling the birds in the treetops and leaving behind a blood-stained gray sparrow with its eye pierced.

The gray bird plummeted from mid-air, its feathers scattered as it fell to the ground some distance away.

With his sense of time returning to normal, Mo Zian breathed a sigh of relief, stood up, and bent down to brush the weeds and dirt off his body.

He finally succeeded with his eyes.

Mo Zian was still savoring that strange, "bullet time"-like state when two figures stepped out from the side and picked up the stone sparrow—

They were people Mo Zian had gotten to know during hunting trips. He had also met one of them during pre-training. One was named Wei Qiao, whose family were tobacco merchants, and the other was named Luo Chong, who was the quintessential son of a military family.

Like Mo Zian, they were all students preparing for the second round of recruitment at the capital's military academy, and their purpose for hunting here was roughly the same as Mo Zian's.

Practice shooting.

"Wow, Brother Zian, you hit the eye right this time!" Wei Qiao, who had picked up the stone sparrow, was so surprised that he subconsciously spoke with his hometown accent.

Luo Chong, usually a man of few words, glanced at Shi Que, gave her a thumbs-up, and earnestly praised, "Excellent marksmanship!"

"You flatter me; there was an element of coincidence."

Mo Zian spoke modestly, but his face betrayed his pride. After accepting the stone sparrow, he glanced at his pocket watch and said, "Brothers, it's getting late. I should head back. See you at the capital's military academy for the retest. I hope we both pass!"

"Okay, see you on the retest!"

Goodbye, Brother Zi'an!

After that, Mo Zian stopped going hunting in the mountains and instead stayed home to manage the shop, taking the opportunity to adjust his physical condition.

Over the years, with age and diligent martial arts training, coupled with the nourishment of the [Creation Galaxy], he completely broke free from the [Etheric Shackles] that a normal innate enlightened being would have to remove at the age of eighteen, at the beginning of last year.

His strength level also surpassed the entry threshold of the [Martial Artist] in the Awakener system—the initial stage of Martial Apprentice—and directly reached the peak of the intermediate stage of Martial Apprentice.

The calendar pages were torn off one by one, and finally, on this day, the date on the calendar reached the 25th day of the Fire Month in the 842nd year of the Guangwu Calendar.

It's time for the retest at the capital's military academy.

Early that morning, Gui Haishuo drove the Ethercar, carrying Mo Zian, who was dressed in a crisp black military uniform, out of the north gate and arrived near a sentry post deep in Mangshan Mountain.

This is the meeting point for all the retest participants. Mo Zian arrived relatively early, so there weren't many people there yet.

Gui Haishuo straightened Mo Zian's already neat collar and patted his shoulder, which was now level with Mo Zian's.

"It's your time, young people, to make a name for yourselves."

"Master is joking."

Mo Zian smiled slightly, "When I asked you before, you said no. Now that you're asking me, I'll say the same thing: no."

I donned this military uniform not to make a name for myself, nor to gain promotion or wealth.

Just then, a military vehicle drove by, and the scarred officer sitting in the passenger seat seemed to have heard Mo Zian's words and glanced at him.

Unaware of what was happening, Mo Zian walked toward the guard post.

Looking at Gui Haishuo waving at him from behind in the distance, Mo Zian turned around and gave a proper and forceful military salute.

"I am coming."

Looking at the guard gate in front of him, Mo Zian thought to himself, "I'm back."