Chapter 55: Dazzling Displays of Skill

After the brief episode, the atmosphere in the basement returned to calm. The sly-faced girl Black Fox came back to the round table and continued preparing her equipment for the operation. Tiger was disassembling an MG4 light machine gun, conducting the final inspection and adjustments, while the others remained engrossed in their own weapons and gear.

No one paid any further attention to Xing Xiaolong; no one spoke or exchanged glances. The room was filled only with the clicks and clacks of loading ammunition, assembling parts, and checking firearms.

For Xing Xiaolong, it was the first time in his life to see so many weapons and gear from different countries up close. His heart itched with longing, his hands restless, wishing he could fire a few magazines from each gun.

For a gun enthusiast, the temptation was overwhelming.

Even more thrilling than a gorgeous woman without clothes!

Yet, Xing Xiaolong's attention soon shifted, drawn instead to the peculiar “little tricks” practiced by this group of international PMC operatives—former special forces soldiers gathered for the rescue mission.

The first oddity: All the scopes mounted on their guns had their front ends wrapped ahead of time in dark mesh cloth, or the original dust covers were replaced with ones featuring a peanut-sized hole in the center, sealing off the front of the sights.

“Sealing up the scopes—won’t that block the sight? Even if it’s to prevent glare, isn’t this overkill?” Xing Xiaolong couldn't make sense of this.

The second oddity: The grenades hanging from their tactical vests had their safety rings wrapped with two loops of black tape, hiding the pull rings designed for quick access beneath the tape, making them seem inconvenient to use.

They had deliberately made a design meant for ease of use more difficult.

What could this mean?

This was even stranger than covering the scopes. At least with the scopes, he could guess at the reason, though he doubted its effectiveness.

But this grenade trick—Xing Xiaolong was thoroughly baffled, unable to grasp the purpose at all.

Beyond these eccentricities, there were countless other odd preparations among the PMCs, all meticulous in their detail.

For example:

When loading magazines, some would insert a deep green tracer round after every two regular rounds.

Assault rifles like the M4A1 and HK416 were fitted with 14-inch barrels, with quick-release tactical packs containing spare 10-inch barrels.

Both assault and self-defense rifles were equipped with integrated rail bodies, mounting two or even three optical sights on the upper rail.

Night vision goggles and magnifiers linked together, red dot sights paired with two or three magnifiers, night vision combined with holographic red dots—various combinations.

At a glance, the guns bristled with optics.

All these odd practices, never witnessed or taught in the military, left Xing Xiaolong, a “veteran of five years,” utterly perplexed.

His mind was full of confusion and questions!

But even as he puzzled over these strange methods, Xing Xiaolong didn’t forget to keep his eyes wide open, determined to memorize every rare trick he saw.

Although he didn’t yet understand the purpose behind these seemingly irrational preparations, the fact that these professional special forces operatives went to such lengths assured him it wasn’t mere foolishness.

There must be reasons.

He resolved to remember everything, so that when he saw how they were used in action, he could learn new battlefield skills.

I may not understand, but I am eager to learn.

This was Xing Xiaolong’s mindset and his practice: to absorb as much battlefield knowledge as possible, to improve his survival odds in the coming fight.

He certainly didn’t want to rescue others only to lose himself in the process.

Watching the others prepare for half an hour, Xing Xiaolong’s hands grew increasingly restless. He considered that although he possessed gold and silver rings, apart from an AWM “Villain”—which fired one bullet per shot—his other weapons were all pistols.

A true “Prince of Handguns!”

When the rescue began, Xing Xiaolong knew he wouldn’t just be a spectator. His personality wouldn’t allow him to cower behind others like a coward—it would be a disgrace to his manhood.

Even if the PMCs would prefer him to stay in the back as an observer.

But Xing Xiaolong was, after all, a soldier!

Since he would be joining the fight, he needed a reliable fully automatic weapon. With so many guns laid out on the round table, it was only natural for Xing Xiaolong to assume there was one for him.

Coincidentally, there was still an HK433 fully modular tactical assault rifle left on the table.

With the PMCs nearly finished with their preparations, Xing Xiaolong had no reason to hesitate. He strode directly towards the left rear corner of the table where the HK433 lay.

But just as Xing Xiaolong reached it and was about to take the rifle, a hand suddenly gripped his wrist.

The hand belonged to a black man, his shaved head shining, standing around 1.75 meters tall. His black sweat-wicking T-shirt was stretched tight by explosive chest muscles, bulging like a woman’s 36D.

On the table before him, alongside a prepared backpack and various combat gear, sat a .50-caliber McMillan Tac-50 sniper rifle and a P90 self-defense submachine gun.

From this, it was clear that the polished, strong black man was the team’s sniper.

“You, Why!”

Xing Xiaolong didn’t immediately try to break free, but turned to look at the man, calmly uttering the only English phrase he could manage.

Though his words were composed, the emotion in Xing Xiaolong’s eyes was entirely different from before.

——

——

Thanks to “Xin Ying” for the generous reward of 1,000 coins—many thanks, big chest salute, mwah!

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To all the patrons, gentlemen, and ladies, Little Soldier sends his big chest muscles.

Chest salute!