r18novel Chapter 80 Strengthening Defense
Chapter 80 Strengthening Defense
Lu Chen glanced at his watch; the hands pointed to 8:50. He looked up, his gaze sweeping over the group of people on the rooftop who were organizing their equipment.
"Next, go back and put on your gear and familiarize yourselves with it. We'll depart promptly at 9:30. We'll head to the neighboring Cuizhu Garden residential area to conduct the rescue."
"Understood!" everyone immediately responded.
Actually, they felt they didn't need to wait that long; putting on the gear would only take ten minutes at most, so they could have set off earlier.
But since Lu Chen had given the order, naturally no one would object.
Ning Tieshan slung the tactical vest he had just received over his shoulder and headed towards the fire escape. The others followed suit, each carrying their carrying bags and protective gear back to their rooms.
Lu Chen also went downstairs and gave the elite zombie an order to carry the weapon box and follow behind the group.
The reason Lu Chen waited an extra half hour was simple: the meteorite imprint's energy was full, and he wanted to complete another enhancement before setting off.
Meanwhile, Gao Yuan, who remained on the rooftop, had already begun assigning tasks.
He distributed several walkie-talkies to his assistants, gave them a few brief instructions, and then the assistants went to different floors.
Soon, all 130 survivors were mobilized under Gao Yuan's command.
Some people went to the power distribution room to help the electricians install generators, some went to Buildings 2 and 4 to collect supplies, some took brooms and mops to clean the corridors, and some were assigned to the square to remove ornamental plants from the flower beds in preparation for planting vegetables later.
The entire Xiangyang residential community, like a machine that has just had new parts replaced, has begun to operate in an orderly manner.
However, amidst their busy work, some people turned on their radios, adjusted the volume to a moderate level, and waited to listen to today's news broadcast while they worked.
……
Lu Chen returned to 501 and had the elite zombie place the weapon crate in the corner. The crate contained nine automatic rifles. After confirming that the crate was locked, he had the elite zombie stand guard outside the door, and then he locked the door from the inside.
Just like before, he sat cross-legged in the center of the living room and used his mental power to activate the meteorite imprint.
A familiar white light flashed, and consciousness returned to that void. Before him stood a phantom identical to himself, its head and legs emitting a faint glow, indicating that it had already undergone two enhancements.
There are now only two areas that can be strengthened: strength and defense.
Lu Chen naturally had no reason to hesitate. He didn't need to personally wield a knife and fight zombies, so strength wasn't a necessity for him.
But defense is different; it can save your life. In a real battlefield environment, no one can guarantee that they will never be approached at close range. If a zombie manages to get behind you one day, defense is the last resort.
He reached out and pointed directly at the torso area, which represents defense.
The moment his fingertips touched him, a faint light shone from the phantom's torso. The next instant, he exited the special space, and his consciousness returned to his body.
The energy within the meteorite imprint transformed into a surging warm current, flowing out from the left wrist and rapidly spreading throughout the body.
The warm current first gathered in the torso, chest cavity, abdominal cavity, back, and waist, the entire core area felt as if it were being soaked in a vat of warm medicinal liquid.
Then, after circulating through the torso, this energy began to spread to the limbs and bones, seeping in little by little along the fascia between muscle fibers and along the periosteum on the surface of bones, as if reshaping his muscles, bones, and skin.
Especially his skin. Lu Chen could clearly see that the skin on his two arms was turning red and burning hot at a visible speed, as if it were being burned from the inside by flames.
The capillaries beneath his skin all dilated, and his entire arm turned as red as if it had just been scalded by boiling water. He grimaced in pain, his back teeth almost grinding to powder.
This torture lasted for more than 20 minutes before the burning sensation gradually subsided.
The redness on my skin began to subside, and the heat wave slowly turned into a gentle warmth, as if I had gone from being forged at high temperatures to being tempered at low temperatures.
The intensification process did not completely end until 30 minutes later.
The last warmth slowly dissipated in his chest, and Lu Chen exhaled a long breath, standing up from the ground. The back of his combat uniform was soaked with sweat, and his hair was wet and stuck to his forehead.
The moment the enhancement was completed, he pressed his skin with his hand.
The sensation from his fingertips startled him. His skin was incredibly resilient, especially when he deliberately tensed his muscles. The surface of his skin was stretched smooth and firm, and it felt like thick cowhide rather than skin.
Somewhat curiously, he picked up the fruit knife from the coffee table, rested his left arm on the table, gripped the knife in his right hand, and with a little force, made a cut on his arm.
It should be noted that after his superpowers achieved a breakthrough, his strength was not much weaker than that of the Iron Pillar level.
Although this cut wasn't made with full force, a normal person's arm would have been torn open and bleeding profusely after being slashed like that.
But only a faint red mark remained on his arm.
The blade pressed a white mark into the skin, which then quickly bounced back to its original shape without even breaking the skin.
Lu Chen's eyes widened slightly. He took a deep breath and this time he really started to exert force.
The blade finally sliced through the skin, and a drop of dark red blood seeped from the cut, but the blade was blocked by the automatically tightening muscles inside.
It's important to know that Lu Chen didn't hold back this time. A normal person would definitely have their flesh cut open and the bone of their arm exposed if cut like that.
But for Lu Chen, it was only the surface layer of skin that was cut open.
He removed the fruit knife and looked down at the shallow wound... The muscles near the wound were automatically squeezing to stop the bleeding, leaving only a thin line less than two millimeters deep.
He even vaguely sensed that the edges of the wound were showing signs of healing, which was definitely not the recovery efficiency of a normal person.
Lu Chen's pupils contracted slightly. He was familiar with this scene because the zombies were just like that.
Of course, his healing effect is definitely not as good as that of a zombie... A zombie can heal a deep, bone-revealing cut into a pale red scar in half an hour, but his recovery speed is not that fast.
But after staring at the wound and estimating, he figured it would heal completely in half an hour at most, without even leaving a scar.
"This defensive power is even more exaggerated than I imagined." Lu Chen put the fruit knife back on the coffee table, clenched his fist, and felt the firm and resilient tension under his skin.
This is only the first enhancement. If the second enhancement is completed, how exaggerated will the defense become?
And if he continues to improve, does that mean he might even be able to use his body to block bullets later on?
He stood up with some curiosity and stretched, twisting his waist, rotating his shoulders, and doing a few squats. Soon he made another discovery.
He suddenly started running forward, quickly stopping and turning in the living room... He was doing the same set of test movements as last night after his speed was improved.
But he immediately noticed that he was running faster than the night before. His knees were more stable when he stopped suddenly, and his ankles provided better support when turning.
"Indeed! The body is a whole." Lu Chen was pleasantly surprised; this was a completely unexpected delight.
The process of enhancing defense is not just about thickening the skin, but also about simultaneously strengthening the muscles, fascia, and ligaments throughout the body.
Muscles support bones, fascia connects muscles, and ligaments stabilize joints. While strengthening these deep tissues may not be as obvious as strengthening the skin, its effects are very real during high-speed running and sudden stops and turns.
The enhanced defense also boosted these basic attributes, which indirectly increased the speed as well.