IMMORTALITY STARTS WITH A GUN

Liu Xing jumped frantically from branch to branch. He had spent an entire day chasing the damned fox and was determined not to let it escape. Leaping like a ninja, he kept his eyes fixed on the orange fox. He had summoned his gun, but aiming while moving proved difficult. The fox bounced around like a rubber ball.

"Stop moving, you bastard!" Liu Xing pulled the trigger. His bullet flew straight, but the fox—either sensing the bullet or by coincidence—dove into a bush to its side.

"Damn it!" Liu Xing sped up his qi cycling and tried to move faster; he jumped so hard that the branch exploded beneath his feet. There! The damned fox moved smoothly around bushes, brambles, and roots, its feet barely touching the ground as if it's a dolphin swimming in the sea.

This fox was a spirit beast. It wasn't strong, only at the Lock Opening second stage. By all means, he could have reduced this creature to a bloody pool with a flick of his finger, but this damned fox was too fast and too cunning. His hatred for the fox had begun a night ago when it pissed on his face while he slept. The shame he felt when he realized what had happened, and the fox's mocking expression when it saw him awake, had ignited a fire in his heart.

He shot another bullet. The bullet flew straight, hitting the fox's back. For a moment, Liu Xing thought he had succeeded, but when the fox shimmered like an illusion dissolving, he realized he had been fooled again. He scanned his surroundings and saw the fox behind a tall, slim tree. The fox smiled and yapped like a prankster who had successfully thrown an egg at an innocent pedestrian. He aimed at the fox again, but before he could pull the trigger, the fox leaped as fast as lightning. He took a step to follow, but then realized his foot had touched something warm and sludgy. Looking down, he had stepped in fox shit, indicated by the annoying laughter echoing through the trees.

"Bastard!" Liu Xing shouted, his emotions flaring. But soon took a deep breath to calm himself. "Forget it. This fox is too fast. I can't catch it."

He had already wasted a full day chasing this fox. Sooner or later, he might catch it, but how many more hours would be wasted for so little gain? Liu Xing noticed the fox's laughter had stopped. No doubt it was already running away. His pride whispered to continue the chase, but he reined in his emotions and calmed down.

While he wanted to gut the fox, another reason for catching it was to finally kill another spirit beast. After killing the mantis, he had managed to kill a large sea star. He had to flip it over and shoot it in the mouth. But after that sea star, he had not found any other spirit beasts except for that damned fox.

"It's not surprising. This place isn't far from the sect. There are fewer spirit beasts here."

That was why he had chosen this place to experiment. He had wanted to find spirit beasts to test his gun but had not wanted to encounter an overwhelmingly strong one. The conditions were different now. He had finished his experiment and wanted to hunt, but this place lacked spirit beasts. He was sure he could find another spirit beast if he was patient and searched thoroughly, but how many days would it take?

"Should I go back to the sect and find a more suitable place?"

He paused for a moment, then nodded, deciding that leaving the forest was the right decision. He started walking, ignoring the soft texture on his right sole.

Damned fox!

***

Liu Xing walked along the forest path. The trees there were tall but narrow, like poles. Half a day had passed since he decided to return, and if his calculations were correct, he would reach the sect in two days at his current walking pace. He could have arrived today if he ran at full speed, but he decided to take his time for one last experiment that had suddenly popped into his mind.

Jumping over a fallen log, he summoned his gun in his left hand. He realized he didn't need to hold it with both hands. He wasn't an expert with guns, so he just copied what he had seen on TV, in films, and on the internet. He had assumed people held guns with both hands to handle the recoil, and since this gun had almost no recoil, there was no reason to use both hands. He ducked under a few branches and started cycling his qi in a specific pattern. After activating the Lightning Palm, his right palm should have been coated in electricity, but instead, a bullet inside the gun now felt like it was created from electricity. He aimed at a tree and shot it. When the bullet hit, electricity danced around the tree, but no hole was created.

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He dismissed the gun and cycled his qi again. Now, in his right hand, blue lightning encased his hand with a few strands of electricity dancing around it. He focused on a tree in front of him. Then, he ran as fast as he could and slammed his palm into the tree. Instantly, the tree shattered.

He resumed walking, thinking that while stunning bullets were useful, sometimes the original Lightning Palm Technique would be better.

"Problem is, I can't use this technique while holding the gun," he muttered. The technique was absorbed by the gun.

After getting the gun, he had decided to change his fighting style. Before, he had used the Lightning Palm Technique and its variations for close combat, but with this gun, he needed to become a ranged combatant. However, he still needed a close combat technique for safety. Some enemies could reach him before he could pull the trigger, but he couldn't use the Lightning Palm Technique while holding the gun.

"What do I do?" He regarded the black gun in his hand.

If he dismissed the gun, he could activate the technique, but it would be slow. Liu Xing thought it would be better if he could use the technique while holding the gun. He decided to fill the bullet with electricity again. He aimed at nothing, not intending to shoot.

He walked while thinking. He tested how fast he could summon and dismiss the gun, and while fast, it wasn't fast enough. He then tried to deceive the gun. He thought if holding the gun absorbed the technique, what if he threw it for a moment? He imagined throwing the gun into the air, attacking the enemy, and catching it again. It was a cool set of movements, and since he could dismiss and resummon the gun, he wouldn't lose it. But when he tried these sets of motions, even throwing the gun into the air, the technique was still absorbed by the gun.

"I thought it would work," he sighed.

He walked on. Above, the sun was high, making the air warm. When he saw a little river ahead, snaking like glittering blue serpents, he got an idea. Standing beside the river, He aimed the gun at the water. He cycled his qi and activated the Lightning Palm Technique. As usual, the gun absorbed his technique, creating a lightning bullet that could stun enemies.

Liu Xing closed his eyes and tried to sense the bullet's presence. In his mind, he felt the bullet glitter and crackle like lightning as he attempted to draw the energy back to himself. His idea was simple. If he could absorb qi from the gun, then perhaps he could reclaim his technique. At first, it felt impossible, but when he focused more intently, the electricity responded readily. The energy moved from the gun to his left hand and settled quickly in his right palm, where lightning crackled.

"I didn't think this would work."

Liu Xing tried to coat his hand in electricity. As soon as he thought of it, lightning encased his hand entirely, as if he were wearing a glove made from lightning. Seeing this, Liu Xing blinked several times. The true Lightning Palm Technique was to create focused electricity in the palm. This coating technique was a variation that usually required coaxing the lightning, adding more qi, and focusing his mind to achieve. But this electricity was so easy to control, it felt like it had a mind of its own.

"There's no way, right?"

Liu Xing's heart thumped. He thought he had unraveled all this gun's abilities, but it had another function!

Liu Xing added more qi. The technique greedily absorbed it, making his hand shine brighter with arcs of electricity. He then imagined a lightning blade forming in his hand. The reason he chose this technique was to emulate a certain dark-haired emo's technique, but unlike him, Liu Xing had only succeeded in coating his hand with electricity. He couldn't quite make a blade, but maybe now he could. After successfully imagining a blue lightning sword, a real blade sprung from his palm like a sprouting seed. Seeing this, his mind went blank for a moment before he giggled uncontrollably.

He added more qi, making the blade longer, then shorter. The lightning blade obeyed his commands like a servant obeyed his emperor.

"It's amazing!"

Dismissing the technique, he regarded his gun once again. It was powerful. He wondered how Nui had gotten it. Did he create it? Discover it? Whatever the truth, this gun was out of this world. He suspected it didn't work with qi but another form of energy converted from qi. When it was converted back, the result was pure, compatible qi that Liu Xing could meld easily.

Caressing his gun, he smiled softly. Even in another world, he owed his friend again. He would repay their help and kindness by becoming strong, becoming a legend, and doing something about the darkness in this world.