New Skill

Han Lin followed the two ace soldiers to the shooting range. Looking at the massive range, as long and wide as an indoor stadium, he could not help clicking his tongue in amazement. He could feel Howard Stark's extravagance. He had built such a large training ground for just a few dozen subordinates, with unlimited ammunition supplies. Only a tycoon like Howard Stark could pull that off.

Looking at the weapons around him, Han Lin did not see any models he recognized from later generations. During World War II, the United States mainly used the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle, Thompson submachine gun, Colt M1911 semi-automatic pistol, and M1C sniper rifle.

Han Lin casually picked up a Colt M1911 semi-automatic pistol. Before crossing over, he had been an utterly law-abiding citizen of China, with zero knowledge of or contact with firearms. When he pointed the muzzle at himself, Barry immediately yanked his hand down. Han Lin had recently been familiarizing himself with his Danger Perception skill, so he generally kept his nerves taut to better integrate Danger Perception into his daily life.

When Barry reached out, Han Lin instinctively wanted to react and block him. However, Danger Perception did not warn him, so he suppressed the urge to resist and obediently let his hand be pulled down.

Stephen hurriedly explained, "Barry means no harm. He just thinks it's unsafe to point the muzzle at yourself."

Han Lin smiled and nodded. "It's my first time touching a gun. Introduce it to me. What should I do?"

Stephen took the Colt M1911 semi-automatic pistol from Han Lin. "The M1911 is currently the most commonly used pistol in the U.S. military. This is the semi-automatic version. It fires using the short-recoil operating principle, has a standard seven-round magazine, and is relatively heavy and bulky. Its recoil is considerable by design, which affects shooting accuracy. Of course, that amount of recoil probably won't affect you much.

"Most people fire with both hands on the gun, their feet staggered front and back, and aim at the silhouette target with the front sight."

As he spoke, Stephen handed the M1911 back to Han Lin, signaling that he could begin shooting practice. After telling Han Lin how to disengage the safety, he stepped back and stood nearby.

Han Lin aimed the sights at the head of the silhouette target thirty meters away. Bang... The smell of gunpowder spread through the air. Han Lin felt the pistol in his hand jump, and the bullet grazed past the target. With Han Lin's current physique, he could easily see any human-shaped object within two hundred meters.

Han Lin recalled his shooting posture, tightened his grip on the pistol, and began firing. Bang, bang... Gunshots rang out in quick succession. The head of the silhouette target thirty meters away was struck repeatedly and shattered into wood chips.

Han Lin ejected the empty magazine, picked up a loaded one from beside him, and began shooting at a silhouette target fifty meters away. The farther the distance, the more factors he had to consider. Though he aimed at the head, fifty meters was already the M1911's effective range, and two of the seven bullets missed.

Han Lin felt that his muscle memory allowed him to rapidly learn firearm-related knowledge. He turned to Stephen and Barry. "I need a lot of practice. Can you prepare more magazines for me?"

The two said nothing more and began loading ammunition into the empty magazines. Han Lin started his shooting training, and the relentless sounds of bang, bang, bang... filled the range.

Han Lin worked his way from the fifty-meter target to the eighty-meter target. Eighty meters was considered the M1911's limit. Once Han Lin had fully familiarized himself with the M1911, he switched to the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle, Thompson submachine gun, and M1C sniper rifle.

Han Lin spent three hours at the range. By the time he had familiarized himself with every firearm, gleaming brass casings were piled all around him. He had fired nearly a thousand rounds from the four weapons, and he felt as though the smell of gunpowder had permeated his nostrils and refused to fade.

Just as Han Lin was about to stop and rest for a while, the system's voice suddenly rang out.

Congratulations, Host. Skill unlocked: Firearms Level One. Magazine capacity +35%, damage +20%. This skill will function passively.

Weapon Storage activated. Host should collect and store more ammunition and firearms in the system. If there is no firearm in the system compatible with the ammunition, the magazine capacity passive will not activate.

Han Lin looked at the skill in pleasant surprise. That meant his M1911 would hold two more bullets than other people's, while its damage would increase by 20%. He wondered what the effect would be. Saying nothing, he picked up the 1911 he had just practiced with and fired a shot at the silhouette target thirty meters away.

Bang... The gunshot boomed. Since the head had already been destroyed, Han Lin did not shoot at it this time. Instead, he aimed at the chest. The bullet tore straight through it, blasting out splinters from the back. Han Lin quickly walked over and looked at the bowl-sized hole in the target's back, excitement written across his face.

"So from now on, my firearms can deal explosive damage. That's pretty powerful!" Han Lin muttered to himself, failing to notice the strange looks in the two ace soldiers' eyes. They were both elite military experts, one man worth ten, and knew the power of firearms better than anyone. A pistol should not have been capable of producing that effect, yet for some reason, this shot had.

Hearing Han Lin mutter, the two silently watched him, waiting for an explanation. Han Lin only wanted to verify his guess. If the power had increased, then the bullet velocity must have increased too. Would its range also be extended? Returning to the firing line, he raised his hand and fired six shots at the silhouette target eighty meters away. At the longer distance, the power was not as intense as it had been at thirty meters, but the eighty-meter target was still battered beyond recognition. After changing magazines, he fired seven shots at the one-hundred-meter target, all of them hitting. "As expected, the 20% power increase affects all three attributes. It isn't just bullet power—the effective range has increased too. Then the maximum range should increase as well."

Having confirmed his thoughts, Han Lin looked at his skill in delight. This was only Level One. By Level Two or Three, it might become even more powerful. The sudden skill made Han Lin somewhat excited. After all, this was World War II, and he would soon be heading to the battlefield, where he would undoubtedly face all kinds of danger. That was why Han Lin had continuously familiarized himself with firearms and ammunition, so he could adapt to the battlefield faster. Now, this skill gave him some confidence that he could survive there!

After stopping his practice, Han Lin felt that continuing to shoot at stationary targets would no longer bring any improvement, so he gave up on practicing further.

As for the Weapon Storage issue, he would have to wait until Howard Stark believed what he said. Looking at the Weapon Storage in his system, a huge five-by-five-by-five space, it seemed the system wanted him to carry an entire arsenal by himself. Filling it now would require quite a lot of supplies.

Han Lin had Stephen find someone to tell Steve Rogers that he had something to do and would meet him in a week, telling him not to worry. He also had them send Steve some money so he could live a little better recently. He said nothing else, because he knew that this world's will would not change because of a tiny ant like him. Steve Rogers was one of the embodiments of this world's will.

Walking out of the training room, Han Lin looked at the darkening sky outside the factory. People never noticed the passage of time when they were focused, and the moment he stepped outside, Han Lin realized that his body was gripped by an indescribable hunger...

Han Lin took Barry to the cafeteria. He did not stand on ceremony and lined up behind the workers for food: a bowl of mashed potatoes, some vegetables, and two slices of bread. After wolfing it down, Han Lin went back for another serving. When he stood before the Black lunch lady for the third time, she said, "Who are you? I haven't seen you before. Why can you eat so much?"

Barry finally seemed to catch on and stood up. "He's the boss's guest. Let him eat!"

The lunch lady gave Han Lin another double serving. Still not fully satisfied, Han Lin felt that what he needed to do before heading to the battlefield was fill half his storage with food, so he would not go hungry.

Han Lin headed toward Howard's laboratory. Through the glass, he saw Howard assembling a machine inside. When Howard saw Han Lin enter, he said, "Wait a moment. It'll be ready soon. I need to give you a complete test!"

As he spoke, Howard fastened the final few bolts, securing the entire machine to the ground. He turned on the power, and data appeared on the display. After beckoning Han Lin over, he said, "Punch the rubber pad, then kick it. After that, we still have speed and jumping tests."

After a round of testing, they obtained a set of astonishing data. "Punching force: 650 kilograms. Kicking force: 1,100 kilograms. One hundred meters in 7.3 seconds. Top speed: 19 meters per second. Jump height: 7 meters. Now I finally understand. You're a monster. Any random punch or kick from you could bring devastation to an enemy."

Han Lin shook his head speechlessly and rolled his eyes at Howard Stark.