Chapter 19: Transfer to the Cooking Squad?

What a joke! If he couldn't win with over ten thousand jin of strength in his body, Qin Yuan might as well just find a block of tofu and smash his head against it!

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the system mission and winning the competition! A new slot has been unlocked!"

At the same time, the crisp chime of the system sounded right on cue. Watching a new slot unlock on the system interface, Qin Yuan couldn't help but beam. "Another slot in the bag!"

He pulled the handbrake. Gong Jian and Old Hei jumped out of the vehicle in a hurry, both still wearing expressions of pure shock. Even after a long moment, they stared at Qin Yuan as if they had seen a ghost.

Gong Jian was stunned, unable to wrap his head around it. "Qin Yuan... are you really a new recruit? Why is your physical fitness so terrifying?"

"Are you an alien? Your physical capabilities are just too monstrous!" Old Hei couldn't help but sigh, his eyes wide with utter disbelief.

They couldn't help it. Even though they had witnessed Qin Yuan’s terrifying performance with their own eyes, they still struggled to believe the reality before them.

Qin Yuan gave a wry smile. "Instructor Gong, Squad Leader Old Hei, I’m just a regular recruit. How could I possibly be related to aliens? My physical fitness is just a bit better than average; my stamina and endurance are naturally stronger than most people's."

Qin Yuan offered a casual explanation. After all, such a claim was still somewhat plausible. However, he decided that he would never expose the secret of his immense strength to outsiders unless absolutely necessary. After all, if people found out he possessed over ten thousand jin of force—enough to lift a car with one hand—such a terrifying, super-powered existence would surely be captured and sliced up for research.

"A regular recruit? Just a bit stronger?" Old Hei curled his lip upon hearing this. "Qin Yuan, do you honestly not know just how terrifying your physical stats really are?"

At this moment, Gong Jian smiled and said to Qin Yuan, "Qin Yuan, congratulations. You are now officially a member of the Sharp Shooter Fourth Company! We admit that we underestimated you before. We apologize for our foolishness."

Gong Jian smiled, offering his apology with great sincerity. Beside him, Old Hei also chuckled and quickly chimed in, "Sorry about that, Qin Yuan. We were in the wrong earlier. I hope you’re the bigger man and won’t take it to heart."

Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow. He thought to himself that these two old timers, Gong Jian and Old Hei, were actually quite reasonable. He never expected them to apologize of their own accord.

"Instructor, Squad Leader, you're being too kind! As superiors, it is only right to conduct assessments on new recruits," Qin Yuan smiled, not taking the previous events to heart at all. Of course, he knew that the 30-kilometer cross-country run Gong Jian had proposed was meant to make things difficult for him, but that was understandable. He wasn't going to hold a grudge. As the saying goes, there is no hatred between soldiers; in the future, they would all be brothers-in-arms living and dying together. Qin Yuan took these trivial matters very lightly.

"Haha, good!" Gong Jian laughed. "Old Hei, we should congratulate our Fourth Company on gaining another fierce warrior!" Turning to Qin Yuan, he continued, "By the way, Qin Yuan, with your terrifying physical stats, you should definitely join one of the top squads in our Fourth Company! But I can give you a choice now—which squad do you want to join?"

"Which squad? Isn't it just going to the squad Old Hei is in?" Qin Yuan asked, slightly puzzled.

Just then, a crisp chime from the system rang out!

"Ding! New system mission issued: Join the mess squad of the Sharp Shooter Fourth Company! Unlock a new slot!"

*Damn... the system wants me to join the mess squad? Has it lost its mind?* Faced with the temptation of a new slot, Qin Yuan couldn't help but complain internally.

*Well,* he thought, *complain all you want, but the mission remains.* Qin Yuan made his decision instantly. Hair can be messy and money can be lost, but a slot cannot be missed!

So, Qin Yuan smiled and looked at Gong Jian and Old Hei. "Instructor, Squad Leader, as the saying goes, the greatest recluses hide in the city. I came to the Iron Fist Regiment to familiarize myself with basic military knowledge. Regular training—including physical fitness, marksmanship, combat, and so on—is almost meaningless to me and would be a waste of time. Therefore, after careful consideration, I have decided to spend this month in the Fourth Company's mess squad."

"What? You want to go to the mess squad?"

Gong Jian and Old Hei were wide-eyed with shock! But as they recalled Qin Yuan's terrifying performance just moments ago, combined with his claim that physical, marksmanship, and combat training were meaningless to him... could it be that this kid already possessed the level of a super soldier king? Did he already have the strength to crush everything in his path?

Subconsciously, Gong Jian and Old Hei believed him. Gong Jian pondered for a moment, took a deep breath, and made his decision. "Qin Yuan, I will make an exception this time and grant your request! Since daily training is meaningless to you, the mess squad might be a completely new field. Perhaps it will be of special help to your future growth!"

"In that case, go ahead to the mess squad!"

"Great!" Qin Yuan nodded with a smile.

Fourth Company, mess squad!

*Screech!*

With a sharp stop, Gong Jian and Old Hei jumped out of the vehicle with smiles on their faces, Qin Yuan following closely behind with his pack. They didn't waste any time; they didn't even bother with He Chenguang and Wang Yanbing, heading straight to the mess hall to report.

"Squad Leader Li, come here quickly! We have great news today!" Gong Jian shouted from a distance.

As they spoke, the three entered the kitchen. It was still morning, and the squad leader was busy preparing lunch with the mess squad members. Seeing Gong Jian arrive, Squad Leader Li’s eyes lit up. He quickly wiped his flour-covered hands and approached. "Oh, Instructor? What wind blew a big shot like you into our humble kitchen? Everyone, stop what you're doing and come salute the instructor!" Li Han joked intentionally.

Shuai Hu, Old Ma, and the others all looked over.

"Enough, enough! Old Li, stop mocking me! Comrades, don't mind us, just go back to your work. Old Li, come out for a second; I've brought you a treasure!" Gong Jian said mysteriously.

"A treasure?" Old Li’s eyebrows arched, his interest piqued. Outside the kitchen, Old Li looked curious. "Instructor, what kind of treasure?"

"It's him," Gong Jian smiled, deliberately being cryptic. "Old Li, we've brought you a soldier! A good soldier! A soldier worthy of being called a king!"

"What? A soldier king? Instructor, why would you send a soldier king to me?" Old Li was confused. Soldier kings were treasures that every company fought over! Why send one to the mess squad? Wasn't that a waste of talent?