Chapter 21: Stand Firm, Hold Steady, Aim the Muzzle—Keep the Barrel Still!

Steady your stance, hold it firm, aim the muzzle, and keep the barrel steady!

Shooting training room.

Neatly arranged gunpowder rifles sat on the wall-mounted racks, while wooden boxes filled with hollow projectiles were stacked on the tables nearby. Beside the ammunition boxes lay a pile of small, pristine white booklets titled "Basic Shooting Training Manual."

Listening to the sparse sounds of gunfire and inhaling the faint scent of gunpowder smoke, Cui Ze walked over and picked up a manual, reading it carefully from cover to cover to ensure he wouldn't miss a single step.

"Kid, first time here?"

A deep, heavy voice suddenly rang out.

Cui Ze shifted his gaze from the manual to the man who had spoken. The man sat behind a desk next to the gun rack. He appeared to be in his thirties, with an incredibly ordinary face, yet several scars across it added a touch of grim ferocity to his features. From the "Justice" coat draped over his shoulders, it was clear that this "Scarface" was, like Zephyr, an instructor at the training camp—specifically, the instructor in charge of firearms.

"Yes, Instructor," Cui Ze said, nodding slightly at him while clutching the manual. "I haven't had much exposure to firearms before, so I wanted to study the manual thoroughly before firing, just to avoid any unnecessary trouble."

The instructor gave him an approving look. "Most of the 'little monsters' in this training camp don't think much of firearms. It's rare to see a recruit as cautious as you. Go ahead and practice on your own. If you have any questions about shooting later, feel free to ask."

"Thank you, Instructor!"

Cui Ze gave a military salute, reviewed the manual one last time, then picked up a rifle and a box of bullets and headed toward the firing range.

To the naked eye, the rifle in Cui Ze's hand resembled a "flintlock" from his previous life. However, unlike a typical muzzle-loader, this weapon could be loaded with multiple rounds at once. From the perspective of flintlock mechanics, such a design was quite absurd, but the technology in the world of pirates was notoriously illogical. Cui Ze stopped dwelling on it after a brief moment of confusion; he hadn't transmigrated to become a scientist, after all.

Loading the rounds and gently stroking the metal barrel, Cui Ze felt the excitement of a young boy with a new toy. After fiddling with the barrel for a moment, he raised the rifle, aimed at the target, and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The muzzle spat out a thick cloud of smoke, and the round ball whistled across the range, striking the target in the blink of an eye.

"Six rings!" Cui Ze lowered the gun to check his first shot. "Not bad!"

He raised the rifle again and fired a rapid string of shots. Six rings! Six rings! Seven rings! Seven rings!

Cui Ze’s performance showed steady improvement. By the time he finished the first box, most of his shots were clustering in the eight and nine-ring zones, with a few even hitting the bullseye. He grabbed another box of bullets and continued his training with tireless enthusiasm.

After emptying the second box, a new notification suddenly popped up on the light screen:

[Through repeated practice, you have acquired the F-rank ability entry: "Short-Range Shooting"!]
[F-rank Entry: Short-Range Shooting]
[Entry Effect: When performing ranged attacks against targets within 10 meters, your accuracy is increased to a certain degree.]
[Entry Evaluation: Steady stance, hold it firm, aim the muzzle, and keep the barrel steady!]

"...I feel like there's something wrong with that evaluation."

Ignoring the strange comment, Cui Ze tested his new ability, grabbed another box of bullets, and resumed shooting.

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!

By the time the third box was empty, the effect of "Short-Range Shooting" had upgraded to "your accuracy is increased by a small margin." By lunch, through sheer volume of fire, he had improved the ability to:

[Entry Effect: When performing ranged attacks against targets within 10 meters, your attacks are exceptionally precise.]

At this point, out of ten shots, eight hit the ten-ring, and two hit the nine-ring. He was incredibly accurate. In high spirits, Cui Ze put the rifle away and left the training room.

The Scarface instructor watched the pile of empty shell casings on the floor, his mouth twitching. "This guy used up half a day's worth of ammo, which is more than most use in a week! Still... he's got talent."

After enjoying a massive lunch fit for fifty people, and under the admiring gazes of the other naval recruits, Cui Ze walked steadily out of the cafeteria and returned to the shooting range. This time, he switched from the 10-meter target to a 20-meter one. After consuming two more boxes of ammo, he gained a new F-rank ability: "Mid-Range Shooting."

[F-rank Entry: Mid-Range Shooting]
[Entry Effect: Similar to "Short-Range Shooting," but the effective distance is now described as "between 10 and 20 meters."]

Just as the instructor thought Cui Ze would continue his frantic training, the boy put his gun away and left. It was time for his afternoon fish-killing session.

...

In the back kitchen, the kitchen staff erupted when they saw Cui Ze arrive as he had for the past two days.

"Cui Ze, you're here!"
"You looked so cool defeating Smoker today!"
"When are you going to be the top dog in the training camp?"

Most of them had witnessed the fight, and those who hadn't had heard all about it, praising his performance endlessly. Cui Ze responded to everyone one by one, then walked to his usual spot and began chopping fish with robotic efficiency.

[You have killed a low-level sea beast with a comprehensive rating of F!]

In an instant, two sea beasts met their end at his hands. As the familiar stream of fishing information scrolled across the top right of his screen, a new notification appeared:

[Accumulated 50 kills of low-level sea beasts; you have acquired the F-rank information entry: "Small-Fry Slayer"!]
[F-rank Entry: Small-Fry Slayer]
[Entry Effect: 1. Familiarity with the habits and physical weaknesses of most common sea beasts; 2. Slightly increased damage dealt to ordinary sea beasts.]
[Entry Evaluation: No... don't misunderstand, I'm not targeting you. I'm saying that everyone here is a dead salted fish.]

Lost in his task, Cui Ze didn't notice the new entry notification, though he did feel his speed increase slightly. "Practice makes perfect, I suppose," he thought, the idea flickering through his mind before being dismissed.

It wasn't until he returned to his room that night that he realized he had gained a new entry. "No wonder I managed to take down 32 sea beasts today! It was the bonus effect!"

Cui Ze pulled up his screen. His previous fishing sessions had exhausted all his "Victory Bait." The 32 F-rank baits he had earned today were his entire savings, enough to fuse into two top-tier E-rank baits.

"Fuse the bait and keep fishing?" He hesitated for a moment, then decided to pause his fishing activities for now.

He already had quite a few abilities to manage: "Breath of the Beast: Total Concentration" needed practice, "Smoke Form" required further adaptation, and his newly acquired "Short-Range" and "Mid-Range Shooting" needed constant refinement. Not to mention the "Iron Body" and even "Armament Haki" he hoped to acquire later!

For now, he needed to consolidate his foundation and adapt to his growing strength, rather than constantly seeking uncertain new abilities.

With that clear, Cui Ze closed the screen, leaving the bait unfused. After washing up, he climbed into bed. "Formally joining the training camp tomorrow... Mid-range shooting training, Iron Body training, accumulating bait, the upcoming rematch with Smoker... A full and secure life—it really gives me peace of mind."