Era of Mist

Over a billion. Shi Tiexin had not only never seen that much wealth, he’d never even heard of it. If there were a billion Dragon Coins lying here, he’d have to be out of his mind to pour molten steel on them. But the problem was, this wasn’t a billion in cash; it was a billion in drugs. No matter how others saw this stuff, he refused to see it as money.

Then again, even if he did see it as money, so what?

‘Do I, Black Venerable, the king of the streets, look like I’m short on cash?’

‘What I’m short on are collector’s edition, top-quality homework and exercise books!’

Besides, he couldn’t take it back to the Main World Line anyway. No matter how much money it was, it was useless to him. As long as he had enough to get by in this world line, that was all that mattered. So, regardless of what anyone else thought, Shi Tiexin poured that ladle of molten steel without a shred of hesitation. He didn’t feel the slightest pang of regret; instead, he felt a thrill, the pleasure of doing whatever he wanted, acting on his every whim.

‘Fate Mission 3 is partially complete. Now *that* is a good investment with long-term returns.’

Afterwards, Shi Tiexin reminded Yu Yu to be careful. He didn’t elaborate, as it was all based on a vague personal feeling. However, Yu Yu seemed to grasp his meaning and said she would be cautious. If anything really happened, she would call the Black Venerable Lord.

Shi Tiexin readily agreed.

“When you have time, I’ll teach you how to play pool. Consider it my way of repaying you for letting me use the Black Venerable Lord’s name for protection!”

Yu Yu gave a radiant smile, then turned and left without a moment’s hesitation.

Watching Yu Yu leave, Shi Tiexin was no longer as tense as he had been yesterday. The recent sound of wind chimes, which had originated from his very soul, left him feeling utterly refreshed. It was a sense of comfort that came from deep within, scattering the gloom in his heart in an instant. The fragments flaking off from the solidified mass in his consciousness merged into his spiritual domain, making him feel stronger and calmer than before.

An idea began to form in his mind.

‘In the current situation, a two-pronged approach is needed to be fully prepared.’

He had to continue gathering information. Something Yu Yu had said offhandedly had given him a major insight. The fact that news about Ah D and Xiaowei had reached her in just one night meant that the information channels at the bottom were more efficient than he had imagined.

There’s no such thing as a truly airtight wall; every major event is preceded by small signs. Those at the top might not notice these signs, but the grunts scrambling to survive in the underworld are as sensitive as rats and cockroaches. Before an earthquake, these rats and cockroaches may just be panicking and scurrying about chaotically, but it’s still a sign that reflects the situation.

Shi Tiexin decided to take a grassroots approach and listen carefully to the voices from the ground level.

The other path was to strengthen himself.

‘No matter the circumstances, becoming stronger is the best way to handle any situation.’

‘I need to train my Hard Qi Technique and my marksmanship,’ Shi Tiexin mused. ‘Especially marksmanship. Right now, that’s the most important area to cultivate!’

That very afternoon, Shi Tiexin found a shooting range. In this day and age, all sorts of businesses had taken a hit to varying degrees, but for some reason, shooting ranges were doing better than ever. The range provided practice guns and ammunition, and if you had the right connections, you could even arrange private firearm sales.

Shi Tiexin found a private VIP booth and stood in the shooting lane, beginning to familiarize himself with the firearm. He took out the gun he had gotten from Death Fire. This was the first time he had seriously inspected a real firearm since acquiring Basic Marksmanship.

A progress bar quickly filled up.

[Basic Marksmanship loaded. Initiating shooting interface.]

[The shooting interface will automatically activate when using firearms. The richness and accuracy of the interface information are determined by your marksmanship cultivation progress. This interface can be manually closed.]

[Current Progress: Basic Marksmanship Level 1, Subpar]

[Note: Please use small, handheld firearms frequently to increase cultivation progress.]

It was expected, yet he still felt a flicker of joy. After the driving interface, his Vision System had now unlocked a new shooting interface. ‘The UI on this Vision System of mine might be garbage,’ he thought, ‘but its expandable functions are incredibly rich. It really is a great helper.’

Shi Tiexin activated the shooting interface—there were no assistive markers whatsoever.

Only when he looked at the gun in his hand did a description bar appear.

[USP Semi-Automatic Pistol]

He didn’t actually need the description bar; Shi Tiexin could recognize it as a USP himself. It was one of the common basic firearm models explained by the instructor in his dreams.

Shi Tiexin pulled back the slide, removed the magazine, and gave the weapon a thorough, all-around inspection before reassembling it. Only then did the information in the description bar become more detailed.

[.45 ACP, 5/12 rounds]

Shi Tiexin nodded, having expected as much. His Mind Art wasn’t magic; its usefulness was entirely dependent on the knowledge he himself had accumulated.

A person’s energy and mental stability have their limits. For example, an ordinary doctor diagnosing patients would eventually grow tired, lose focus, and make mistakes if they worked continuously. But with the Mind Art as a support, one could more fully utilize their knowledge. And as long as one’s mental energy wasn’t depleted, the accuracy of diagnosis and the speed of judgment were largely guaranteed.

The Mind Art could help you use your own skills faster and better, but it couldn’t magically instill knowledge you didn’t have.

At least, that’s how it seemed to be at the basic stage. He hadn’t encountered the higher stages, so he couldn’t say for sure.

Since his Basic Marksmanship was subpar, the shooting interface naturally wouldn’t display much.

‘But as long as I raise my cultivation progress, I’m sure more and more powerful functions will unlock.’

The only way to practice shooting was to feed the skill with bullets. There was no other way.

Shi Tiexin raised the pistol and aimed at the ten-meter target in front of him. He decided to follow a training plan of working from near to far. He had to at least get his accuracy down at close range before increasing the distance. Training this way would at least let him know the maximum range at which he could shoot accurately.

BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG! The crisp report of the USP echoed five times. Shi Tiexin observed the impact points on the target, then ejected the magazine and began to reload it. CLICK. CLACK. He pressed the rounds into the magazine one by one. There was an automatic loader available, but Shi Tiexin still chose to do it by hand.

Doing it himself allowed him to understand the firearm in his hands more quickly, similar to the concept of “Blade Zen.” While it wasn’t quite that mystical, it definitely gave him a better feel for the weapon.

Soon, all twelve rounds were loaded. Shi Tiexin reflected on his recent mistakes, corrected his form, then raised the muzzle and began shooting again.

BANG BANG BANG. BANG BANG BANG. He fired in three-shot groups, pausing briefly between each group to check the results before firing the next. It was supposed to be two-shot groups, but Shi Tiexin considered his skill level so poor that he added an extra round to increase his chances of success.

The twelve rounds were gone in the blink of an eye. He began reloading again, simultaneously reflecting on what he needed to improve.

Shi Tiexin liked to give his full concentration to everything he did, and practicing with a gun was no exception.

The learning curve for any skill is always steep at first before leveling off. Shi Tiexin already had a foundation in martial arts, a strong body, and steady hands, so his progress was rapid once he got started.

Around noon, the progress bar flashed and the text changed.

[Basic Marksmanship Level 1 cultivation progress has been raised to: Qualified]

The next moment, a circle appeared in his field of vision.