Chapter 9: Psychological Shadow

In Thailand, it is legal to own guns, so there are quite a few shooting ranges, and the prices are not very expensive, but for ranges aimed at foreign tourists, the prices are indeed high.

This time wasn't for practicing shooting but for Gao Yi to familiarize himself with the use of firearms and the feeling of shooting, so it would suffice to shoot a variety of guns with about ten bullets each.

The staff brought out the guns, counted the bullets, and began to load them.

Three handguns: the Beretta 92FS, the Glock 17, and the M1911, which are almost always available at Thai shooting ranges.

Four long guns, also the most common types at the range, included an MP5 submachine gun, AR15 and AKM automatic rifles, and a double-barreled shotgun for firing buckshot.

Luca was naturally familiar with guns, and he said with composure, "The .22 bullets are meaningless. Mainly familiarize yourself with the shooting sensation and recoil of 9mm bullets. I have chosen the Beretta 92FS and the Glock 17 for you, the most common pistols. As for the 1911, just give it a try."

After the handgun bullets were loaded, the staff member installed the magazine into the 92FS and handed it over to Gao Yi with a serious warning, "Never point the muzzle at anyone at any time, and place the gun on the table after you're done. Understand?"

Because Gao Yi was obviously Chinese, the staff member, who was of Chinese descent and spoke Mandarin, explained the precautions for shooting earnestly. After placing the gun in Gao Yi's hand and showing him how to hold and aim the gun, he racked the slide, turned off the safety, and said in English, "You may fire now."

Firing the gun was too simple. Gao Yi held the gun with both hands, aimed at the handgun target ten meters away, concentrated, held his breath, and fired a shot after carefully aiming at the center of the target.

The recoil shook his hands, and the muzzle uncontrollably jumped upward before naturally pointing back at the target.

The electronic target's screen immediately displayed the score—seven rings.

Luca commented from the side, "Not bad."

Gao Yi's hands were steady and strong, but the recoil of the handgun couldn't be controlled by strength alone. Although the muzzle was generally aimed at the target, he needed to aim anew at the bullseye.

After careful aim, Gao Yi fired the second shot, and the target evaluator instantly provided the score—four rings.

The second shot wasn't as good as the first. Gao Yi concentrated and held his breath for the third shot—six rings.

"Try firing with one hand."

With Luca's prompt, Gao Yi felt it was worth a try and switched from gripping the gun with two hands to one, hitting an eight ring with his fourth shot.

Single-handed seemed more accurate than using both hands, but just as Gao Yi thought so, he missed the target completely with his fifth shot.

"Why did I miss the target? I clearly aimed properly. How did this happen?"

Gao Yi was baffled and then became angry. He had carefully aimed for over ten seconds only to miss the target, which was something he found unacceptable.

Luca was indifferent. "You took too long to aim. Try a rough aim next time. Honestly, handguns don't need to be that precise, really."

Gao Yi was dissatisfied and unconvinced, but after following Luca's advice and finishing the remaining five bullets, he had to face reality.

The reality was that Gao Yi wasn't a shooting prodigy, but he wasn't clueless either; he was just an ordinary person.

After ten shots, one missed the target, his best shot hitting nine rings and his worst four. In general, his performance was very much in line with a complete beginner's level.

After shooting with the highly accurate Beretta 92FS, Gao Yi switched to the Glock 17.

His first impression was that the Glock felt more comfortable to hold, lighter, and more natural when aiming at the target.

After firing ten bullets, Gao Yi realized the benefits of the Glock—it genuinely seemed much more beginner-friendly.

With the all-steel 92FS, he had achieved ten shots and nine hits for a total of 52 rings. With the Glock 17, he managed ten shots with ten hits, totaling 63 rings.

The lowest was five rings, and the highest was eight, but the Glock was indeed more stable in Gao Yi's hands.

The outcome disappointed Gao Yi, but Luca was quite satisfied.

"Not bad, good shooting,"

Gao Yi could only pin his hopes on the larger caliber M1911. The thinner grip of the 1911 felt more comfortable for him, and he thought that might improve his shooting performance.

The 1911 was also heavy, but to Gao Yi, the heavier feel was more comfortable. However, the result was the same—not terrible, but definitely not good either.

After firing seven rounds, Gao Yi placed the empty gun on the table, unable to suppress the look of disappointment on his face.

"Seven shots, 45 rings at ten meters—that's not bad for someone shooting for the first time. But why do you look so disheartened?"

Gao Yi shook his head. "I must shoot with precision. I should be a sniper; performing like this, I've let the Gao family down..."

Luca looked puzzled. "What? What are you talking about?"

Gao Yi shook his head again. "Everyone in my family shoots accurately. I should too. But perhaps I am more precise with long guns. Let's try with those!"

Sensing a newfound hope, Gao Yi suddenly thought that maybe if he wasn't accurate with handguns, he would be with long guns, possibly a natural-born sniper—a not so small possibility.

But the hope was quickly dashed because the results clearly showed that whether Gao Yi shot with handguns or long guns, he was just at the level of an ordinary person.

Neither great nor terrible, blending into the crowd—an average person like seven out of ten.

Not being a prodigy jarred Gao Yi, but Luca thought it was perfectly normal.

"Your level is that of a beginner. I don't know why you're discouraged. It's okay; you just need regular practice. The more you fire, the more precise you'll get."

Luca consoled Gao Yi with a few words, but he did not plan to start training him that day.

Gun skills aren't developed in a day or two and certainly not on Luca's dime.

Gao Yi wanted to shoot more, but Luca had had enough.

"Come on, let's go. Getting familiar with these guns today is enough. You know how to use them, which is sufficient. We have a lot more to do. It's time to leave."

Half-coaxing, half-persuading, Luca pulled a reluctant Gao Yi out of the shooting area. Breathing a sigh of relief, Luca said, "We have a lot to do, including getting you a passport. You won't even be able to fly without one. We need to depart tomorrow, so we have to take care of this today. Then I can book the tickets, and we won't need to drive to Chiang Rai Province…"

"A fake passport? We can buy one on the Dark Web, right?"

"A real passport, just not yours. Let's go; I've arranged to meet the seller. Just pick one that looks somewhat like you."

Gao Yi wasn't too concerned about the passport matter; he was still steeped in the disappointment of not being a shooting prodigy. As he got onto Luca's motorcycle, he couldn't help but ask, "Can a person really train to improve their shooting skills?"

"Of course."

"Like those assassins in movies—never missing, hit wherever they aim…"

"First off, assassins rarely use guns, and not all assassins are shooting geniuses, so most assassins' shooting levels are just average. Of course, some gunmen have skilled gunplay, but they are the minority and very rare. More importantly, we usually call these people 'gunmen,' not 'assassins.'"

Luca started the motorcycle but didn't rush off. He turned halfway around with patience and explained, "Using a gun is an assassin's last resort, a reluctant choice. If you want to be an assassin, you should consider how to approach your target more effectively, not just on improving gun skills."

"I still want to improve my gun skills."

"Then go to the United States. Find yourself a good gun, one that can improve your shooting skills, and get a professional shooting coach. Practice every day, practice well. After tens of thousands of rounds, you'll get there. But right now, you need to focus on completing your current mission. Got it?"

A good gun, a good coach.

Gao Yi nodded. "Understood, thank you."

Putting the bike into gear and twisting the throttle, Luca, still puzzled, asked, "Why are you so obsessed with shooting?"

After a moment of thought, Gao Yi replied with a sense of helplessness, "Because I've been shot. It takes many years to train in Kung Fu, but it can't block a bullet fired by just anyone with a flick of their finger. So guns are mightier than Kung Fu. Since guns are mightier than Kung Fu, of course, I must train with guns. That's why."