Li Xiang smiled faintly. "It really is my first time."

’Of course, that was impossible.’

In his past life, he had been the commander of a "Sharp Knife" company, leading elite soldiers. What kind of firearm hadn’t he used? He had handled the ones they had here, and even ones they didn’t.

As an Extraordinary Being who had even awakened a Night Vision Skill, his eyesight was naturally superb. While he couldn’t use his Night Vision Superpower for shooting in broad daylight, the skill itself was a testament to his excellent vision.

Afterward, Li Xiang tried out several other firearms, hitting the bullseye with every single shot, even on slowly moving targets. He could do the same at even greater distances. The hundred-meter silhouette targets and slow-moving targets were the shooting range’s limitations, not his.

’I have to say, this range Xu Xuan opened is pretty impressive.’ Li Xiang thought Xu Xuan had been far too modest when he’d called it the only one of its kind in the province. ’This isn’t just the best in Sichuan Province; there’s probably nothing comparable in the entire country.’

Even some international shooting ranges probably didn’t have such a comprehensive collection of firearms.

Of course, the fees were also exorbitant, far beyond what an ordinary person could afford. He Zhixiang had quietly asked a staff member and learned that the membership cards were divided into three tiers: Moonlight, Sun, and Galaxy. The cheapest, the Moonlight card, cost 300,000 yuan a year, while the most expensive, the Galaxy Card, was 1.5 million yuan a year.

Each card came with different benefits and privileges, essentially serving as a status symbol.

Since Xu Xuan was treating them today, they could enjoy everything to their hearts’ content.

The key was, for a damn sports club like this, you couldn’t get a membership just by having money. It used an "invitation-only" system; only those who received an invitation could even apply.

In other words, everyone who came here was either rich or powerful.

He Zhixiang, being from out of province and having a relatively average family background and fortune, hadn’t been able to get his foot in the door before.

He’d tried to get a card this time, but the staff politely turned him down. So, he’d quietly grumbled about it to Li Xiang.

But unexpectedly, as they were leaving, Xu Xuan personally produced two envelopes and handed one to Li Xiang and the other to He Zhixiang.

Since Xu Xuan had to greet an important guest, he only walked them as far as the parking lot.

Xu Xuan had wanted them to stay and have fun for a few more days. Besides the sports club, Rongcheng had plenty of other fun places. But Li Xiang’s business was finished, and he had little interest in more sightseeing. ’What’s the fun in hanging out with two other guys, anyway?’

So, he said he was heading back. Xu Xuan didn’t press him to stay, just saying they should keep in touch. He mentioned his grandfather had been very busy lately and probably couldn’t find time to meet Li Xiang.

Li Xiang wasn’t in a hurry, though. ’My strength is still too low. Even if I did meet a big shot like that, there wouldn’t be much to discuss.’

After getting in the car, He Zhixiang opened his envelope. Seeing it was a Sun card, he couldn’t help but get excited. Although it wasn’t the highest-tier card, it was still excellent. A 600,000 yuan annual fee! It was like Xu Xuan had casually gifted him 600,000 yuan. You had to admire his generosity.

Of course, since he owned the place, giving out a membership card didn’t have a direct cost like that, but the value was undeniable.

"Brother Xiang, open yours and let’s see."

Li Xiang smiled and opened his. He Zhixiang’s face fell instantly. ’Damn, Young Master Xu is really playing favorites.’

Inside was a Galaxy Card. It was the highest-tier card, granting access to all the high-end services. You could practically move in and live here, as the Galaxy Card also served as an annual pass for the club’s hotel.

The club’s hotel was a five-star establishment with numerous luxury suites. Xu Xuan had originally intended to have them stay there, but since Li Xiang’s group had already checked into another hotel, he’d dropped the idea.

But He Zhixiang quickly adjusted his attitude. ’How can I compare myself to Li Xiang? They obviously value him more. I only got this card and managed to squeeze into Sichuan Province’s elite circles by riding his coattails.’

Li Xiang, however, had little interest in such luxuries. He’d rather be doing farm work back home. For him, farm work was a form of Cultivation. Wasn’t that a hundred times more satisfying than playing sports and shooting guns here?

Firearms were fine to play around with, but against truly powerful enemies, they were utterly useless.

He was, however, somewhat interested in hypersonic weapons—those capable of speeds over 5 Mach. One Mach is approximately 340 m/s, which can be understood simply as the speed of sound. The flight speed of most Ultramen is between 5 and 10 Mach. Of course, more powerful ones like Ultraman Taro, Ultraman Ace, and Ultraman Mebius Infinity could reach speeds of 20 Mach or higher.

As for the Dongfeng missile series, the fastest could reach 25 to 30 Mach. If an Extraordinary Being couldn’t even reach 10 Mach, their speed wasn’t worth mentioning. ’If you can’t even outpace an Ultraman, how are you supposed to save the Earth?’

He also wanted to see one of those large, land-based radar systems with a range of 8,000 kilometers. During the Apocalypse, satellites were destroyed, but these radar installations were still operational. It was said that within their effective range, they could clearly identify even minuscule objects, down to a single bird in flight.

In the Apocalypse, with satellites destroyed and powerful Demon Beasts roaming through space, launching new satellites would be extremely difficult. ’Perhaps,’ he mused, ’weapon development needs a paradigm shift. We can’t be too reliant on satellites.’

He Zhixiang’s driver took Li Xiang back to Li Family Village before they returned to Yunnan Province. It was a huge detour, but He Zhixiang was still thrilled, feeling the trip had been well worth it.

He felt that the luckiest thing to happen to him all year was meeting Li Xiang.

Some of the things Li Xiang bought in Rongcheng were packed in his suitcase and backpack. The rest, since it wouldn’t fit, went into his system’s inventory. ’Anyway, Grandma won’t inspect everything in detail. As long as there’s a bit of sleight of hand, it’ll be fine.’

He arrived home in the evening. After a night’s rest, around eight or nine the next morning, Li Xiang rode his three-wheeler to his maternal grandparents’ house. He brought the clothes, gloves, and shoes he’d bought for them, along with some snacks for his little cousin.

His grandfather was sitting by the door, basking in the sun and mending an erhu. His grandmother was hanging up the laundry she had just finished washing. When the old couple saw Li Xiang arriving from a distance, they were both delighted and stopped what they were doing to greet him.

"Grandpa, Grandma, how have you been keeping?"

"Good, very good," the old couple said, beaming from ear to ear.

However, when his grandmother saw Li Xiang hauling bag after bag from his vehicle, her smile vanished. She "scolded" him, "You silly boy, why did you buy so much again? You bring something every time you visit. You need to save your money. You’ll need it to get married and have children someday. There are so many expenses in life!"

His grandfather was displeased. "It’s the boy’s filial piety," he said gruffly. "The New Year is almost here, why are you putting on such a long face?"

His grandmother couldn’t help but wipe away a tear. "His parents passed away so early, I just..."

His grandfather, exasperated, helped wipe her tears. "Honestly, your eldest grandson comes to visit with gifts, and you start crying! What if you had a heartless one who didn’t visit for years, or came empty-handed? What would you do then?"

His grandmother broke into a smile through her tears. "I’m just worried about him spending money so recklessly! We’re just a couple of old folks doing farm work. When would we ever need to wear such nice clothes?"

Li Xiang just laughed. "I went to the provincial capital the day before yesterday, remember? I picked them out myself. They look nice, but they really didn’t cost much. Here, come try on this jacket. See if it fits."

He quickly took one out for his grandmother to try on.

His little cousin heard the commotion from inside the house and came out to join the fun. He clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Grandma, you look so beautiful in that! Like the elegant and noble Granny Jia from the Grand View Garden!"

Li Xiang raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You’re only in the fifth grade and you’re already reading *Dream of the Red Chamber*?" ’Back when I was in elementary school, I couldn’t get into books or shows like that at all. It just felt exhausting to watch.’

"My sister borrowed it from a classmate," the little cousin said. "She forgot to give it back."

Li Xiang’s cousin was a freshman in high school, so her studies weren’t too intense yet, leaving her time for some leisure reading. Once she became a sophomore, she’d probably have to start hitting the books hard.

Just then, a neighbor happened to pass by the door and came over to offer compliments. His grandmother, beaming with joy, said, "My grandson brought this back for me from the provincial capital."

The neighbor looked on with envy. "You can tell that’s a high-quality coat just by looking at it."

After all, you get what you pay for. The look and feel of expensive clothes are completely different from cheap ones.

His grandparents tried on one item after another and were very pleased with the clothes, shoes, and gloves. After chatting for a bit, his grandmother took off her new coat and went back to her chores.

His little cousin had been standing by the whole time. Li Xiang handed him the snacks, and the little guy’s face lit up. "Thanks, Cousin! Thanks, Cousin!" he said again and again.

Li Xiang explained apologetically, "I didn’t get you two any clothes this time because it’s hard to pick for kids, and I don’t know what you like. When your sister is on vacation, I’ll take you both shopping."

"Thanks, Cousin! Can I come over to your house to play in a few days?" his little cousin asked.

"Of course. You can even come today," Li Xiang said, pointing to his three-wheeler. "Just hop in the back and ride home with me."

The little cousin was clearly tempted, but after a moment’s thought, he shook his head very seriously. "I can’t. I still have a lot of homework to do. Besides, I want to wait for my sister!"

"Haha, then in a few days it is. You can bring your homework with you. I can help you with it." Li Xiang was quite confident he could handle elementary school assignments.

With that, the little cousin went to do his homework, and Li Xiang stayed behind to keep his grandfather company, helping him tinker with the old, damaged erhu. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

A short while later, his grandmother finished hanging the laundry, put on one of the new coats Li Xiang had bought her, and hurried off to visit her neighbors in the village.

His grandfather chuckled and whispered to Li Xiang, "Don’t mind your grandmother always nagging you about spending money. The moment you actually buy her something, she has to run off and show it to everyone. She won’t be back until it’s time to make lunch. She’ll be showing it off for days to come."

Li Xiang smiled. "As long as she’s happy."

In truth, his own grandmother was the same. She had held back yesterday because it was too late, but this morning, she had put on her new clothes and gone out visiting first thing.