专业炒股配资

After confirming his subsequent orders and arranging for delivery, Yu Hong stepped out of the stone house. It was already past four in the afternoon.

The sky was beginning to darken once again.

Frowning slightly, Yu Hong quickened his pace toward the cave.

A few minutes later, he entered his courtyard, immediately feeling reassured by the radiant energy field emitted by the Luminous Grass surrounding him.

Looking up at the sky, he chose not to enter the house this time but instead stood outside, observing the luminous stone grass in the yard.

‘If the luminous stone grass can recharge itself, can I use it to create a large rune array? That way, the Array could benefit from the grass’s regenerative abilities while also amplifying its radiation field.’

With this thought, Yu Hong quickly entered the cave and fetched a large piece of Luminous stone graphite. He began burying Luminous stone powder around the cave entrance.

Soon, a massive and intricate rune array was complete. The cost? Yu Hong had completely depleted his stockpile of Great luminous stones. In some places, where lines were incomplete, he even dismantled his old wooden rune boards and buried the luminous stone ink into the soil.

By the time everything dried completely, another half-hour had passed, and darkness was about to fully set in.

Wiping the sweat off his brow, Yu Hong stood in the center of the courtyard’s grand Rune Array, hands on his hips.

Then, he extended his hand and pressed it onto the core of the Array’s Runes.

‘Reinforce the large Rune Array. Focus on integrating the luminous stone grass’s self-recharging radiation properties.’

A black streak flashed across the back of his hand and flowed into the ground.

‘Reinforce the large Rune Array?’

The black mark’s inquiry echoed in his ears.

It worked!

Yu Hong’s eyes locked onto the massive countdown that appeared on the ground.

’19 days, 21 hours, and 30 minutes.’

‘Nineteen days—just as expected. But if the enhancement truly succeeds, the safe house’s resistance against Ghostly Shadow will reach another level!’

Every encounter with a Ghostly Shadow forced him to spend a significant amount of black mark time restoring the Rune Array, causing him endless trouble. ṝåＮộËs

If he could save time on this, he could allocate the black mark’s power elsewhere instead of being stuck in a constant cycle of Rune repairs.

‘Begin reinforcement.’

With firm resolve, Yu Hong responded to the black mark, feeling a sense of anticipation as he entered the cave to start a fire and prepare soup.

For the time being, he planned to keep a low profile—no reckless actions, no unnecessary risks. With no way to replenish silver Rune Arrays or Great luminous stones, he had to conserve his resources as much as possible.

Fortunately, the other luminous stone grass in the courtyard helped reduce the Rune Array’s luminous stone consumption, preventing the daily drain from the Ghostly Shadows.

Time passed as Yu Hong diligently practiced his heavy leg technique every day.

After condensing his eighth strand of internal energy, an attack from the Whisperers ignited a deep sense of crisis in him.

So, based on the nature of the heavy leg technique, he started adding weight to his body until he reached his limit. Once he adapted, he regularly sparred with Old Li.

In the blink of an eye, two weeks passed.

Outside the stone house of the postal station, in the courtyard…

Cold sunlight fell on the grass, casting the shadows of two figures facing each other.

The man on the left was tall and robust, clad in a full-body camouflage protective suit. He appeared agile, powerful, and well-proportioned.

The man on the right had a solid build but was far from as lean as the other. His protective suit was comically bulky—at least twice as thick as his opponent’s. His lower body, in particular, looked like tree stumps planted firmly in the ground, utterly immovable.

More striking than his attire, however, was the massive wooden shield he carried.

Over a meter tall and more than ten centimeters thick, the triangular shield was firmly planted in the ground with its pointed end. It looked incredibly stable.

The wood was a pale yellow and emitted a fresh, woody scent. Its edges were lined with splinters, and its rough, uneven surface suggested that its creator hadn’t even bothered to polish it—it was just chopped into shape and put to use.

“Xiao Yu… Did you make that shield yourself?” the man on the left asked, unable to hold back his curiosity.

“Yeah, I finished it a while ago but was getting used to it indoors. Now I’m bringing it out for sparring,” replied Yu Hong—the same man who had trained relentlessly for the past two weeks, his body now noticeably sturdier.

He had spent a long time pondering how to increase his load and improve the efficiency of his heavy leg technique. The final solution? Making weapons and shields.

The shield was done, but the weapon was still in the works, both crafted from an exceptionally heavy material—Ironwood.

Ironwood was a particularly dense tree species found in nearby forests. Its wood was pale yellow with straight, orderly grain and a camphor-like scent.

“How much does that shield weigh?” The man on the left, Li Runshan, was one of the only three nearby residents.

He wore a high-grade Wildcat combat suit and eyed the massive wooden shield, which covered most of Yu Hong’s body, with gritted teeth.

“I’m not sure, but it feels about the same as that white boulder outside your house,” Yu Hong answered honestly.

“…” Li Runshan’s teeth-gritting turned into a full-blown toothache. He knew exactly how much that white boulder weighed—about ninety pounds. If that wooden shield was just as heavy…

Did this guy’s strength increase way too fast?

“Aren’t you exhausted?” He wondered if they should call off the sparring session to prevent any accidents.

“Not really. I’m fine for a short time,” Yu Hong replied.

Currently, he was carrying a spiked club and a massive wooden shield. With his reinforced Polar Bear armor, his total load exceeded 160 pounds.

At this level, his stamina drained rapidly. Based on previous tests, every minute of combat at this weight cost him one strand of internal energy.

But it didn’t matter—this was for training.

Ever since increasing his load, Yu Hong found that condensing internal energy had become much faster than before.

Clearly, the heavy leg technique’s claim that “greater weight yields higher efficiency” wasn’t just for show.

“Alright, let’s go, Old Li !” Yu Hong was eager to test his shield in battle for the first time.

Originally, he had planned to ask Butcher Xu Fan for a sparring session when he came to pick up his Blue Whale armor. But Xu Fan, possibly affected by the Whisperer attack, still hadn’t come.

“Fine, but be careful…” Li Runshan, conscious of his image as a father, had to maintain his dignity.

He drew the short blade strapped to his thigh but, after a glance at the thick armor covering Yu Hong, silently sheathed it again…@@novelbin@@

“You carry so much weight that most people wouldn’t be able to do anything against you in a direct confrontation. But the price you pay is a significant drop in agility. So, defeating you is actually quite simple.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he shot forward like an arrow. With a push from his left leg, his body surged ahead, combining waist and leg strength to deliver a powerful side kick.

This kick concentrated his entire body’s force into a single point, using the momentum of his charge. The speed was astonishing as it smashed toward the upper half of Yu Hong’s shield.

Just as Li Runshan had said, Yu Hong’s heavy load greatly reduced his reaction speed. He barely had time to lift his spiked club before the shield took the direct impact.

Boom!!

A deep, muffled thud echoed as Yu Hong’s entire body trembled. Even with the shield’s massive 300-pound weight, he was nearly knocked off balance by the force of the kick.

His back leg tensed as he planted himself firmly, merely shaking in place before swinging his club toward the outer edge of the shield.

His speed was indeed slower, but what did it matter if the opponent was fast? Speed alone wasn’t enough to break through his defense.

Whoosh!

His attack missed.

The spiked club crashed into the ground, carving out a deep pit in the black mud.

Yu Hong’s vision blurred for a moment. Before he could recover, Li Runshan had already disappeared from sight. Then, from his right, he heard the faint sound of something slicing through the air.

Bang!

Yu Hong raised his shield, shifting it slightly to the right to fully cover himself.

A heavy whip kick slammed into the shield with full force.

Unfortunately, it was useless.

The 90-pound giant wooden shield, combined with Yu Hong’s thick armor, didn’t even take a scratch.

Yu Hong continued moving the massive shield, blocking attacks from various directions.

Standing motionless like a fortress, he let Li Runshan launch rapid strikes from every angle.

His heavily reinforced armor, deeply rooted stance, and absurdly thick giant wooden shield made him completely unshaken by Li Runshan’s relentless barrage.

Two minutes later…

Huff, huff, huff…!

Li Runshan stood with his hands on his knees, drenched in sweat, his face flushed red. He was too exhausted to speak and could only stare helplessly at Yu Hong.

What the hell kind of turtle shell is this?!

He had been circling Yu Hong, using his strongest leg techniques for a full two minutes.

And yet, this guy had merely wobbled a few times—no injuries, no movement, nothing.

“This won’t work.” After catching his breath, Li Runshan finally spoke. “Your defense is indeed strong—close-range fighters won’t be able to hurt you. But what about firearms? You can’t keep up with my speed, and if I throw a grenade at you, you wouldn’t even be able to dodge. You’d be dead for sure.”

“I think it’s fine. If it’s firearms, I can just use weapons to compensate. I’ll take down the enemy from a distance before they can do anything.” Yu Hong’s voice came muffled from within his thick helmet.

Right now, he was feeling better than ever. During the fight with Li Runshan, the ninth strand of internal energy in his abdomen had almost fully condensed—just a little more, and it would be complete.

“And what about heavy armor-piercing rounds? How do you dodge those? No matter how thick your armor is, it’s not as strong as a tank.” Li Runshan countered. “Your strategy turns you into a walking target. Sacrificing agility like this just isn’t worth it.”

“You have a point,Old Li, but even if I had high agility, wouldn’t I still be unable to dodge a high-speed armor-piercing round? No human can outrun a bullet.” Yu Hong replied indifferently. He wasn’t too concerned—his strategy was purely for the sake of training his heavy leg technique. The more weight he carried, the faster his progress. But he wasn’t about to explain that.

“If your leg technique is fully mastered, you won’t be faster than a bullet, but you might be faster than the person pulling the trigger.” Li Runshan grinned.

“It’s fine. I doubt I’d ever be targeted by an armor-piercing round anyway. I’m just a regular civilian—I don’t steal, I don’t rob, I have a clean record. Who would hate me enough to use something like that on me?” Yu Hong dismissed the concern.

To him, training like this gave him an immense sense of security.

“Alright, as long as you’re happy.” Li Runshan sighed. “But you need to change your weapons. The spiked club is useless against distant enemies. You need long-range attacks and a way to extend your attack range.”

“Any recommendations?” Yu Hong asked.

“I’d suggest a meteor hammer with a long chain. Also, mount some firearm launchers on your armor. Since your suit is thick enough, you have plenty of space for attachments. Adding a grenade launcher, poison gas sprayer, or other ranged weapons would make you much more versatile.” Li Runshan chuckled and immediately offered his valuable advice.

(End of Chapter)