A Rival and a Commander

At the shooting range, students lined up in groups of ten before ten targets. This afternoon's drill was fixed-point shooting: thirty rounds per person, using the standard-issue FSE-1, with final rankings based on total scores.

Each shooter's rounds were tracked by the smart brain system, as were the targets. Earlier, during the first two rounds, a comedic mishap occurred when two adjacent shooters accidentally hit each other's targets, and the smart brain publicly shamed them on the big screen.

"Don't you dare claim to be my students when you leave," Instructor Chen said helplessly.

The two students nodded sheepishly. "We'll tell everyone we were trained by Instructor Kai Ang, don't worry, Instructor Chen."

The students around them struggled to suppress their laughter, silently begging their own lips not to twitch and their heartbeats to slow down—otherwise, when it was their turn to shoot, they'd be the ones going up to embarrass themselves.

A new group stepped up, and the crowd, which had been laughing and joking, fell into a serious silence.

Lanes four and five belonged to... Liu Zheng and Xu Lingqu!

A clash of titans—and they were placed side by side, a direct head-to-head confrontation!

Liu Zheng lowered her head to load her bullets, and in that gap, she glanced at Xu Lingqu on her right. Xu Lingqu's expression was calm, showing no sign of disturbance—no different from how she looked facing any other challenge or assessment.

Liu Zheng, meanwhile, could barely steady her racing heart; her hands even trembled slightly. She took a deep breath, and years of shooting competition experience helped her quickly find a way to compose herself.

She couldn't help but feel fired up—she'd been waiting for this showdown for a long time.

"I will defeat you in the event you're most confident and proud of."

Xu Lingqu's words echoed in Liu Zheng's mind, and that sensation—like flammable liquid running through her veins, spreading to her limbs—surged again.

Liu Zheng gripped the gun tightly. She would make Xu Lingqu see just how determined she was to win.

"This is insane."

After the first ten shots, the big screen showed Liu Zheng and Xu Lingqu tied. Both had an average of over 10.5 per shot, with Liu Zheng hitting the bullseye (10.9) three times and Xu Lingqu twice. Their total score now stood at 107.4, leaving everyone else in the group far behind.

This shooting range had become a battlefield of smoke and gunpowder belonging solely to the two of them.

Jin took a deep breath and looked at Shen Shouli. "You know Liu Zheng's record in fixed-point shooting? Her trophies could stack up to her height. So you understand how amazing Xu Lingqu is..."

She hadn't even received systematic training!

Shen Shouli stared unblinkingly at Xu Lingqu's figure on lane five. Her posture was straight as a bamboo, and her shooting stance clearly showed she'd never had formal instruction.

He said in a voice only Jin could hear, "Count yourself lucky that such a genius belongs to the Interstellar Empire."

Lin Xiao had been to an Imperial shooting competition before, though Liu Zheng wasn't there that time. The shooters fired one by one, chasing each other's scores, with the big screen updating in real time and holographic projections replaying each bullseye. She'd thought that was intense enough.

But now, here in this training ground, Liu Zheng and Xu Lingqu had everyone's hearts lodged in their throats. Lin Xiao felt she might hyperventilate from the tension.

All the students, including Instructor Chen, held their breath, waiting to see who would emerge victorious.

The spectators really were more nervous than the shooters themselves.

After the second round of ten shots, new scores were updated. This time, their performance was even more spectacular: Liu Zheng scored 107.6 in the second round, while Xu Lingqu trailed by 0.1 with 107.5.

With the cumulative totals, they were no longer tied—Liu Zheng now edged out Xu Lingqu by 0.1 points.

Xu Xiqin saw the updated numbers on the screen and immediately pressed her palms together, closed her eyes, and began muttering under her breath.

Jin found it amusing, but he didn't dare tease her as he usually would—if the two of them started messing around, it would surely affect Liu Zheng and Xu Lingqu, who were still shooting.

He whispered, "What are you doing?"

Xu Xiqin whispered back, "I'm praying. Doing some rituals."

"Careful with that stuff—if it's some cult, the cops might come knocking," Jin said, making a throat-slashing gesture.

"Cut it out. You're the cult member. And what would the cops have to do with it?" Xu Xiqin grumbled, but she didn't have time to argue—she went back to earnestly praying and performing rituals for her sister.

Liu Zheng, oh Liu Zheng, please do me a favor and miss just one shot! Just one!

Unfortunately, Xu Xiqin's prayers weren't very effective.

The third round's score updates came in.

Liu Zheng: 107.1

Xu Lingqu: 107

Xu Lingqu fell behind Liu Zheng by another 0.1 points.

Finally, the combined totals for all three rounds appeared on the big screen's leaderboard.

1. Liu Zheng: 322.1

2. Xu Lingqu: 321.9

In a duel between masters, a hair's breadth can mean the difference between victory and defeat.

This battle ended with Liu Zheng, the sharpshooter from Star System No. 4, defending her glorious shooting history.

Liu Zheng looked at the familiar name at the top of the leaderboard, and her perpetually cold face now broke into a full display of joy and excitement.

She had won. She had beaten Xu Lingqu and hadn't been defeated in her most confident event.

"Congratulations," Xu Lingqu said, lowering her gun. She'd had some expectation of this outcome. Her stance probably still wasn't standard enough, she had some bad shooting habits, her hands in this body weren't steady enough yet, and she needed more training... Many factors had contributed to the loss.

But she didn't voice any of that. A loss was a loss; making excuses would just be self-justification.

"You're strong. I'll challenge you again next time," Xu Lingqu said, turning away from the shooting position to make room for the next group.

Liu Zheng also lowered her gun and followed, catching Xu Lingqu's sleeve.

"What is it?" Xu Lingqu hesitated, but didn't pull her hand away.

"In the military academy league, I'll be the best gun in your hands, Commander." Liu Zheng had been mulling over these words for days. She had to admit—whether in the river raid or the underground labyrinth, Xu Lingqu was not only the rival she recognized, but also the commander she acknowledged in her heart.

She was never good with words, so she couldn't express her desire to fight alongside Xu Lingqu as directly as Lin Xiao or Xu Xiqin might.

But Xu Lingqu seemed to understand what Liu Zheng meant. She nodded and said, "Okay."

Neither of them—nor anyone present—could foresee that in the near future, Xu Lingqu and Liu Zheng would set a new record for the most individual kills in a single team match in the military academy league history.

Their names were about to flood the Sky Network forums. But that's a story for later.

The shooting training ended successfully. Instructor Chen, in high spirits after organizing the score sheets, returned to his office. The moment he opened the door, he saw Kai Ang lying half-dead on his sofa.

Instructor Chen: ...