Chapter 33: Monthly Assessment

For the next ten minutes, the greetings coming through the walkie-talkie showed no sign of stopping. It wasn't until Qi Tian took down the fastest-moving target with a single shot that the veteran finally ceased his colorful outbursts. With a trembling voice, he asked, "Old Xu, are you sure this soldier of yours... isn't some special forces operator reenlisting? Is he really a raw recruit who has never stepped foot in the military or touched a gun before?"

"Don't get too excited. You'll get used to it. This kid is not only a monster when it comes to marksmanship, but his other military skills are top-notch as well. Why don't you tell me how he performed first?"

Over the walkie-talkie, the veteran took a deep breath and reported Qi Tian's results on the 1,200-meter moving target: "The first six shots were all dead center. The final three drifted a bit, scoring a nine, an eight, and a six. But to be honest, hitting a six at that speed is marksmanship comparable to some seasoned special forces operators. And this is his first time shooting at a 1,200-meter moving target; if he were given a few more days of practice, I fear..."

The veteran left the sentence unfinished, but Xu Guoqing already understood.

"Phew... I knew it!"

Exhaling with a face full of joy, Xu Guoqing looked at Qi Tian with boundless fervor. He seemed to see a future star, a top-tier military king of the nation, rising right before his eyes. As for the orders from above regarding Qi Tian, they had long been cast to the back of his mind. As long as such an outstanding recruit had not broken the law before enlisting, Xu Guoqing couldn't care less about his past!

Qi Tian, meanwhile, had heard his own 1,200-meter long-range shooting results through the walkie-talkie. While excited, he couldn't help but marvel inwardly: "Although I didn't receive a direct marksmanship reward from the system, my marksmanship has soared thanks to multiple physical attribute enhancements and the sharp vision granted by my photographic memory. If I practice more in the future, with my rock-steady arms and terrifying eyesight, it won't be long before I can hit the bullseye of the fastest moving targets with precision!"

With this thought, Qi Tian lowered his head and glanced at the pitch-black treasure in his arms, liking it more the longer he looked. He stood up immediately and tentatively asked Xu Guoqing, who had yet to recover from his excitement, "Company Commander, can I serve as a sniper now?"

"Of course!"

Xu Guoqing nodded heavily and personally helped Qi Tian pack the high-precision sniper rifle back into its case. He then grabbed Qi Tian and left the range, heading straight for the regimental headquarters and the office of Regimental Commander Li Yunfei.

"The cost of training a sniper is extremely high, so you must sign an agreement with the Commander. You must guarantee that you will never do anything to betray your country, the military, or the people. Of course, once you sign this, all the resources of the Iron Fist Regiment will be tilted in your favor. At the same time, this high-precision sniper rifle will belong entirely to you; from now on, it will accompany you through training. But Qi Tian, you must always remember: your rifle is a sniper's life."

As they walked quickly, Xu Guoqing explained the various precautions of being a sniper. By the time he finished speaking, they had arrived at Li Yunfei’s office door. Qi Tian quickly stood at attention and saluted Xu Guoqing. "Yes! Please rest assured, Company Commander. I guarantee that I will use this high-precision rifle to better fulfill a soldier's mission. I will never do anything that violates military regulations or harms the interests of the country and the people!"

"Good lad, I believe you!" Xu Guoqing patted Qi Tian on the shoulder, then knocked on the door and led him into the office.

Li Yunfei had already received the report from the range. Upon seeing the two enter—especially noticing the black case Qi Tian was guarding tightly—he immediately understood Xu Guoqing's intent. "Old Xu, does Qi Tian really have the potential to be a sniper?"

"Commander, if Qi Tian doesn't have the potential to be a sniper, then there isn't another person in this world qualified to be one!" Xu Guoqing replied, sitting down opposite Li Yunfei with Qi Tian. He then reported Qi Tian's 1,200-meter long-range shooting performance.

When Xu Guoqing finished, even the well-traveled veteran commander Li Yunfei was stunned for a moment. It took a full half-minute for him to recover from his shock.

"Good, good, very good!" Li Yunfei repeated, then opened his drawer, took out the sniper training agreement he had prepared in advance, and handed it to Qi Tian. "Qi Tian, sign it. From this moment on, all the resources of the Iron Fist Regiment will be at your disposal. I can't guarantee much else, but I can ensure you receive at least thirty high-precision rounds every day for training. At the same time, your shooting training will take absolute priority over all other veterans. How about that?"

Qi Tian didn't hesitate, taking the document and placing it on the black case. After a quick scan, he signed his name at the bottom of the last page.

"Not going to read it more carefully? Aren't you afraid I'm setting a trap for you?"

"I'm not afraid. To be honest, Commander, I have already memorized this document in its entirety. Please rest assured, I will never commit any act that violates the sniper agreement."

As Qi Tian replied solemnly, he gripped the black case tightly. Seeing this, Li Yunfei laughed and nodded. "I've heard from Old Hei about your ability to memorize things at a glance. You memorized half of the regulations in one night; honestly, if this hadn't happened to you, I would never have believed it. Go now, train hard. From this moment on, this T5000 high-precision sniper rifle belongs to you until you leave the Iron Fist Regiment!"

"Thank you, Commander! Commander, may I ask you one question before I go?"

"You want to ask about why I had Old Xu deliberately target you?" Li Yunfei glanced at Qi Tian with a smile and waved his hand in refusal. "If you want to ask that, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. I can only tell you that it was orders from above, but as for who exactly, I must keep it confidential; I cannot disclose even a hint."

"Then I have no more questions. Goodbye, Commander."

Qi Tian came quickly and left just as fast. Seeing that Li Yunfei had no intention of answering his doubts, he took the sniper rifle and hurried out of the office with Xu Guoqing. He found a quiet spot to diligently study the origins, disassembly, and maintenance of the rifle.

Li Yunfei kept his promise. From the next day on, Qi Tian went to the logistics department every day to collect thirty rounds of high-precision ammunition for long-range live-fire training.

This continued for twenty-six days. By the evening of the ninth day, Qi Tian had led all the recruits to complete the memorization of the military regulations. For the remaining seventeen days, aside from shooting training, Qi Tian grew alongside the other recruits.

Every night, fifteen minutes before lights out, Qi Tian led everyone in learning various combat techniques and standard military calisthenics. This task, originally for the squad leaders, eventually fell to Qi Tian quite naturally. After all, everyone loved learning kung fu from him.

Gradually, the military proficiency of all the recruits reached an exceptionally high level. Under the leadership of their "New Recruit King," not a single soldier slacked off during daily training. Everyone gave two hundred percent effort, afraid of falling even half a step behind their peers. Their military spirit and resolve grew rapidly over that month.

They were no longer the green, ignorant recruits they had been. They had been carved into the image of what a soldier should be. To describe this transformation as "earth-shaking" would not be an exaggeration.

Until this day arrived, their somewhat monotonous and tedious training life finally came to an end. Because today was the day of their monthly recruit assessment—one month after enlistment!