Chapter 38: The Frail Gray Cat!

The crisp prompt of the system echoed!

Three options appeared right before Qin Yuan's eyes!

"1. Obtain world-class sniper rifle skills!"
"2. Obtain world-class sniper rifle manufacturing technology!"
"3. Obtain world-class sniper rifle design blueprints!"

"Damn! Are every single one of the system's choices this hardcore?"

Looking at the three options, Qin Yuan's eyes flashed with a brilliant light of excitement!

"Sniper rifles currently on the market each have their own pros and cons."
"If I can design a sniper rifle with flawless performance, wouldn't that instantly allow our country to produce even more top-tier snipers?"

Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow, a brilliant smile spreading across his face!

There was no helping it! Qin Yuan wanted all three options offered by the system!

Just like the design and manufacturing of jeeps, pistols, and assault rifles before, the design and manufacturing of sniper rifles had now appeared before him!

"It's just a pity that I am not an arms tycoon right now! Otherwise, I would definitely want to get my hands on all of these system-produced designs!"

Qin Yuan let out a long sigh, then quickly made his choice!

"I choose 1!!"

The entire purpose of recycling sniper rifles was precisely to acquire the absolute top-tier sniping capability!

"Ding dong~ Congratulations to the host for a successful choice! You have obtained world-class sniper rifle proficiency!"
"World-class sniper rifle skill: grants the host the ability to execute a flawless kill within standard effective range!"

The crisp system notification rang out!

In an instant, an abundance of exquisite techniques for operating a sniper rifle flooded Qin Yuan's mind!

A myriad of top-tier skills and methods related to sniper rifle operation surged into his consciousness.

Within a split second, Qin Yuan thoroughly mastered and integrated all of these skills! Every single movement felt as though it had been practiced tens of thousands of times, reaching a realm where further refinement was practically impossible!

"Is this the level of a world-top sniper?"

Qin Yuan carefully savored the sniper skills now etched in his mind, unable to hold back a sigh of awe.

So this was what it took to be a top-tier sniper! It required mastering such a vast expanse of knowledge.

No wonder the sniper position was considered the most crucial element in any special operations team. Because a single top-tier sniper could practically alter the course of an entire battle!

Take Qin Yuan himself at this very moment, for instance: just give him a vantage point and a sniper rifle, and taking down the enemy's commander-in-chief would be as easy as reaching into his pocket—effortless!

That was the terrifying power of a top-tier sniper!

With a single thought, he retrieved the sniper rifle from the system grid.

Glancing at it, he noted that only five slots remained now.

Qin Yuan was immensely satisfied with the world-class sniper skills he had just acquired!

This time...

The commander of the Blue Force was as good as dead!

Qin Yuan possessed absolute confidence in eliminating him!

"Now, why don't I go ahead and improve my hand-to-hand combat strength?"

Qin Yuan smiled, feeling his entire body relax into a state of indescribable ease and comfort!

"However, how should I go about improving my close-combat skills?"

Qin Yuan began to ponder.

Looking across the globe, when it came to the nation with the most formidable martial arts, none could rival China!

China's traditional martial arts—known as *guoshu*—embodied the essence of five thousand years of martial heritage!

*Guoshu*, national arts! What were national arts?
They were martial arts designed purely to kill, not to perform! Born exclusively for slaughter!

"It seems that if I want to elevate my combat skills, I need to find some books on martial arts."

Qin Yuan smiled. To be honest, he didn't even strictly need *guoshu* right now; his formidable physical fitness and terrifying card-throwing proficiency alone were already enough for him to handle most crises.

In his hands, ordinary playing cards possessed far more lethality than a handgun!

"Meow~"

Suddenly, a feeble cat's meow echoed beside his ear!

Qin Yuan gave a start. "A kitten?"

With a mental command, Qin Yuan activated his thermal imaging ability, combining it with his heightened hearing. In a fraction of a second, he locked onto the source of the sound!

Turning around, Qin Yuan indeed spotted a scrawny, dust-grey cat.

"Holy crap... Is this really supposed to be a chubby, fluffy, adorable British Shorthair? This... this is clearly nothing more than a skeleton wrapped in skin!"

Looking at the grey cat before him, Qin Yuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and felt a twinge of unbearable pity.

There was no helping it! Although the breed of the grey cat could still be vaguely discerned, it was far too skinny!

Not only was its body emaciated beyond recognition, but even its cry was exceptionally weak.

"Little kitty, what happened to you? Even a stray cat shouldn't have it this rough, should it?"

Qin Yuan offered a calm smile and walked toward the frail grey cat.

To his utter surprise, the little grey cat didn't run away. Instead, it stayed put, looking at Qin Yuan with very innocent eyes and letting out low meows.

"Little grey cat, are you too starved to move? You don't even dodge when you see a stranger?"

Qin Yuan smiled helplessly.

He had never seen such a pathetic stray cat before! Perhaps it was because they shared a resonance, having both previously been at the bottom of the ladder, that Qin Yuan held a deep fondness for the stray before him.

Reaching out his hand, he found that the little grey cat truly didn't evade. It extended its tongue and gently licked Qin Yuan's fingertips, letting out soft, plaintive *meows*.

The kitten's weak cries and helpless gaze were enough to melt anyone's heart.

Qin Yuan reached down, lifted the grey cat into the back seat of the vehicle, and then retrieved instant noodles, ham sausages, and other convenience foods that Li Erniu had confiscated from his backpack. Tearing open the packaging, he handed the food to the kitten.

"Meow-woo~ Meow-woo~"

The little grey cat's eyes instantly lit up as it began to devour the food with enthusiastic whimpers.

In the blink of an eye, a thick ham sausage had been completely devoured by the cat!

The little grey cat immediately moved on to a second one!

Seeing this, Qin Yuan chuckled softly. "Don't rush! No one is going to take it from you! These are all yours!"

Instant noodles and ham sausages used to be Qin Yuan's absolute favorites as well. Watching the cat eat with such relish, Qin Yuan couldn't resist opening a pack of instant noodles himself, crunching away on them cheerfully!

"That's right! Recycling Red Bull can yield world-class nutrient solution!"

"Since this kitten's body is so frail, why not give it some nutrient solution to boost its physical condition?"

Perhaps because the kitten was simply too endearing, Qin Yuan genuinely wanted to give it a helping hand!

After all, for a majestic British Shorthair to be reduced to such a miserable state—Qin Yuan felt it was a complete injustice to the breed!

"Ding dong~ A system task is now available: help the British Shorthair heal its leg injury and unlock a new inventory slot!"

Suddenly, the crisp system notification sounded!

Qin Yuan jolted upright in surprise!

"Help the British Shorthair heal its leg injury? What's going on? This poor little cat is injured?"

Startled for a moment, Qin Yuan immediately began a thorough inspection!

Sure enough, he discovered that the kitten's front left leg appeared to be broken!

Because it had been curled up on the ground earlier, Qin Yuan hadn't noticed it at first. But now, under careful observation, he finally spotted the injury!

Its front left leg was fractured!

No wonder it was so painfully thin! It was just a kitten to begin with, lacking any competitive edge for survival, and now with a broken leg into the bargain—there was no way it could have put on any weight!

"Since that's the case, I'll help fix you up!"

Qin Yuan smiled. "However, to treat your injuries, we'll have to wait until this military exercise is over!"

With a single thought, Qin Yuan scooped up the injured grey cat and stored it safely into an empty slot within his system space inventory.

Carrying the little grey cat around inside a tactical backpack was simply not feasible. Storing it inside the system inventory, by contrast, was entirely safe!

"Ding dong~ Please make your selection!"

The crisp system prompt rang out once more.