"Bang, bang, bang—!"

With the sound of gunfire echoing through the shooting range, the white clay targets fluttering in the air were successively pierced and fell to the ground one after another.

Lin Qing stopped walking, returned the empty-chambered black pistol to its holster, and removed his shooting glasses and earplugs, waiting for the shooting instructor to pick up all the targets.

"Lin Qing."

In a little while, a young woman with a high ponytail, wearing a jacket and a cropped tank top, hurried over with the targets in hand.

That seductive slim figure, especially the fair and slender legs beneath the shorts, drew frequent glances from the coaches and students in the nearby rest area.

One of the key reasons this shooting range was so popular was because of these attractive female instructors.

"Instructor An," Lin Qing handed over the pistol and his shooting gear, smiling, "That's it for today's training. I'm heading back."

"Lin Qing, you're too amazing."

Instructor An couldn't help but exclaim, "There are barely any at our range whose shooting skills can compare to yours, not even Detective Chu and your cousin, the Patrol Team Captain, are as good as you."

"After all, they're very capable in their own right and don't really need much practice with firearms," Lin Qing shrugged.

"But you don't need a gun either, do you?"

Instructor An said thoughtfully, "You really are a genius. So young, yet how can you shoot with such precision?"

Lin Qing smiled noncommittally, then added, "By the way, Instructor An, I'll come for one last practice tomorrow, and then I won't be coming back."

"Not coming back?"

Instructor An was slightly taken aback, a hint of disappointment in her eyes, but she managed a forced smile, "That's true, your shooting skills have already peaked a few days ago. Unless you improve your physical fitness and neural reaction speed, your shooting level won't progress any further. Continuing to train... would indeed be a waste of time."

"I'm not shooting for the training; it's just a hobby," Lin Qing said as he took off his shooting jacket with a warm voice, "I have a shift tonight, so I must go now."

"Okay, see you tomorrow."

Watching Lin Qing's figure disappear at the doorway, Instructor An turned to tidy Lin Qing's shooting gear.

"Mu Xi."

A tall, short-haired female instructor came over with a smile, "I just heard Lin Qing say he's coming for the last time tomorrow?"

Instructor An nodded with a touch of resignation.

"Then you're going to miss your chance?"

The short-haired instructor teased, "I see his shooting skills are already so strong, and he spends all his time here at the range, wasting so much ammunition; I thought this young guy was just trying to get close to you."

Instructor An fell silent for a moment, then shook her head, "His cousin is the Patrol Team Captain; he's using her shooting training quotas. He shoots his hundred bullets each day and leaves, never interacting with me personally."

"But don't you think there's something strange about him?"

The short-haired instructor said, "Isn't it only from the Order Level of the Patrol Department and above that one can carry a firearm? I heard he's a temporary Patrol Officer, who got in through the backdoor; he's not even an official patrol, and he's still in his senior year of high school. What's the use of practicing shooting?"

"It might be a hobby?" Instructor An ventured, "And maybe one day he'll become official. If he gets promoted to Patrol Department Level, won't he have to pass a firearms assessment?"

"Promoted to Patrol Department?"

The short-haired instructor laughed incredulously, "Wow, love really blinds you. I admit he's good with a gun, and perhaps he could pass the professional exam, but I've also trained a few from the Inspection Bureau at the Patrol Department Level, so I know a thing or two."

"Rumor has it, to get promoted to Patrol Department Level, the most important requirement is mastering the 'Sunrise Training Method.' Think about it, how many people actually manage that?"

She shook her head, "If he really had potential, his cousin wouldn't just let him hang around as a temporary Patrol Officer. Becoming official would be quite easy for him."

"Then it's just a hobby," Instructor An said with a light shake of her head.

"Look for another target," the short-haired instructor advised, "There aren't many handsome young men with strong shooting skills, but these days, being good with a gun isn't all that useful."

"...I always feel like he's a bit different from others."

Instructor An hesitated briefly before resigning herself, "Go ahead and laugh if you want, but I really have this feeling. He's only eighteen, but sometimes I feel he's more mature and composed than most."

"Oh?" The short-haired instructor pondered, then suggested, "So why don't you try again?"

...

Lin Qing stepped out of the shooting range's main door, to find nightfall had arrived, with dim street lights burning one by one along the road.

Not far from the main entrance was a grayscale driverless car parked; checking the license plate, he saw it was the one he had booked online. He quickly walked over, was recognized by facial and iris identification, and then got in the car.

"Passenger with tail number 1585 confirmed. Destination 'Iron Stone Street–Jun Garden–West Gate' set. Route planned. Departing now. Total distance 7.9 kilometers, estimated time of arrival in 3 minutes and 45 seconds. Please be seated and fasten your seatbelt."

As the driverless car accelerated onto the road, Lin Qing glanced at his phone and saw that he had just received a WeChat message from Instructor An.

[There's a shooting competition next month. Do you want to participate? I can help you register. I'll familiarize you with the competition rules in the meantime. Just treat me to a meal when you win a place (playful).]

Lin Qing thought for a moment and replied to her.

[No need, I'm busy recently. Thank you.]

Although he was only eighteen in this life, he had lived for more than twenty years in his past life; naturally, he could not fail to see that this female instructor had eyes for him.

After all, his looks were quite on point in this life, and he was exactly her type—young and a good marksman, so even without money, it didn't affect anything.

For the pretty female instructor with long legs, he was not without interest; he was just purely being cautious around her.

A woman couldn't affect the speed of his draw, but she could very well share heartfelt lessons with him about life,

Then chop him up and stew his flesh into soup.

— This conclusion had been drawn from the bloody lessons of his past life.

"Shoot another round tomorrow and I should be able to clear my debt to the 'Gun Master.'"

Lin Qing pondered for a moment and silently called out in his mind:

"Order."

The next moment, lines of light-formed text appeared before his eyes.

[All is drawn to chaos, only order is eternal]

[When you hold order in your hands, the future becomes clear, allowing cause to follow effect, as you grasp the fruits and draw from the future]

[The Entropy is initiating...]

In the next moment, a massive amount of information with indecipherable symbols and text washed over him like a waterfall.

It finally coalesced into a panel-like screen.

————

[Current Order Level: 0.3 Level]

[Project Advance Count: 0/1]

[Already Advanced Project: Gun Master (99.7% replenished)]

[Projects Available for Advance: Sunrise Training Method (Four-Six Edition), Military Combat Skill, Sketching, Calligraphy, Cooking Skill, Street Dance, Chamber...]

[Acquired Projects (Hidden)]

————

"99.7%, that's about right..."

Lin Qing muttered to himself.

This panel, called 'Entropy,' was something he had awakened in his past life; it might have been his own talent but was actually quite insignificant, a trifle at best.

It was mainly his own hard work that counted.

The method of use was also very simple.

— Anything that he could theoretically master in the future, he could immediately grasp and achieve his goal.

But the price was that after realizing the goal, he had to go back and complete the process required for its achievement.

In other words: get on the bus first, then pay the fare.

One word: advance against the future.

A way of life: spending on credit.

Others spend ten years behind the scenes for one minute in the spotlight.

But he could choose to spend that one minute in the spotlight first and then work for the next ten years behind the scenes.

The 'Gun Master' skill came in just this way.

In his past life, many years after the apocalypse exploded, while being chased by enemies, he stumbled upon a discarded police car where he found a handgun and a small pack of bullets. To retaliate against his foes, he had to use the Entropy to advance the 'Gun Master' skill.

With his past life shooting talent, according to the Entropy's deduction, it would take him at least four thousand seven hundred precise shots to achieve the level of Gun Master and shoot with divine skill.

So, after advancing the Gun Master with the Entropy, he still had to practice and accurately shoot four thousand seven hundred more times.

Although with the level of Gun Master, every shot could be precise, theoretically the bare minimum of four thousand seven hundred bullets would suffice.

But where could he find so many bullets to practice with after many years of apocalypse?

Skills like combat and fitness that don't rely much on external resources he could make up for later, but for shooting, he simply had no way to obtain the necessary bullets.

Even before his death in the apocalypse, he was unable to find that many bullets, falling short by nearly two thousand eight hundred.

The number of projects he could advance seemed to be related to the 'Order Level,' but since he couldn't raise the Order Level, up to now he could only advance one skill at a time, forever bound by Gun Master, preventing him from advancing in other projects.

Now that he had traveled to the future time, he naturally tried to replenish the Gun Master as soon as possible.

Fortunately, his cousin was the Patrol Team Captain; using her allocation, he could practice at the shooting range for free, and he had the right to use one hundred bullets for free every day.

Twenty-seven days later, the Gun Master was nearly replenished.

"It really is all thanks to my own hard work..."

Lin Qing began to look forward to it, "After I replenish the Gun Master tomorrow, I can master the 'Sunrise Training Method (Four-Six Edition)' in advance."

Since he would achieve it sooner or later, he was just enjoying the fruits earlier; how was it not the result of his own efforts?