Chapter 34: Chapter 31: Taking Shape Su Lin remembered there was a large rock of unknown use on the rooftop, perfect for testing the new weapon. He made a dozen crossbow arrows, then headed to the roof with the freshly forged hand crossbow and Su Tongxi. The nearly hundred-square-meter rooftop platform was quite spacious, and the large rock resembling a fake hill lay against the wall by the stairs. The hand crossbow made by the construction platform was a small crossbow, smaller than a submachine gun, easily held with one hand, devoid of complex mechanical parts, primitive and pure, relying on manual stringing for loading. The crossbow arrows used were only two-thirds the length of regular arrows and had no fletching. Su Lin approached for a closer look at the rock, seeking out a corner with a thickness of about twenty to thirty centimeters, then backed up cautiously, carefully loading a crossbow arrow in the string groove, and held the hand crossbow steadily with both hands, aiming slightly downward at the corner of the rock. He wanted to see if the hand crossbow, enhanced tenfold, could pierce through this thickness of stone. "Bang——!" As the trigger was pulled, a deep and highly penetrating loud noise burst forth suddenly, shaking the air as if it trembled momentarily, while the corner of the stone on the opposite side instantly exploded with a puff of dust. Fortunately, Su Lin’s physique had improved; the immense recoil only slightly shook his arms, while the unsuspecting Su Tongxi was startled, instinctively covering her mouth in surprise: "Ah! The sound is so loud! A normal hand crossbow doesn’t make such noise?" Su Lin quickly stepped forward to inspect. Where he aimed, there appeared a small pit, the stone surface stripped away, revealing a very tiny hole hidden within. His gaze intensified, fingers probing the inner wall of the hole, discovering the touch to be immensely smooth, clearly showing the arrow’s piercing power was astonishing! Su Lin was invigorated, carefully inspecting around the rock. Indeed, at the corresponding location on the other side of the rock, he found another penetration hole! What astonished him even more was that following the straight line, the arrow was already half-embedded into the hard concrete floor ahead! The power of one arrow could penetrate through a twenty to thirty centimeters thick rock and still deeply embed into the concrete ground! This terrifying piercing power left Su Tongxi, who witnessed the whole process, with her mouth slightly agape, eyes full of shock, her voice carrying a slight tremor: "This... this power... even a lord level Mutant Beast might have a bloody hole pierced through it, right?!" "This is just penetrating damage; for a Lord, the arrow is too thin." Su Lin analyzed the shortcomings aloud, but he couldn’t help but smile in satisfaction. This power could be comparable to sniper rifles equipped with armor-piercing bullets, even some small-caliber sniper rifles might not possess such penetration force! However, the arrow shaft is too thin, overly focused on penetration, lacking the destructive power of bullets. Yet for human vital points, as long as it hits, even below First-Transformed Martial Artists may find it hard to survive! Of course, the drawbacks are also evident: Firstly, the arrows must be made by himself; without tenfold strengthened crossbow arrows they cannot withstand such immense kinetic energy, reducing the power drastically; Secondly, the commotion is undeniably huge. Nevertheless, Su Lin felt immensely satisfied. This means his destructive power is sufficient to threaten Martial Artists at Chang Sanheng’s level. He doesn’t quite believe that merely unlocking the skin, flesh, and tendon genetic locks could withstand sniper rifle-level attacks. His former father was also at that level, but the memories don’t seem that terrifying. However, to truly deal with such experts, the prerequisite is to shoot accurately. Otherwise, if an arrow misses, when the opponent gets close, his slow stringing flaw will become a fatal weakness. "It seems besides martial arts, I also need to regain my previous shooting sense." Su Lin planned secretly. The hand crossbow’s power was beyond imagination, and Su Lin suddenly had a new idea. With this weapon, hunting ordinary Tier Zero Mutant Beasts would be one shot per beast, and the cost would be much lower than bullets! He hadn’t forgotten the slaughter saber appearing at the Level 2 Construction Platform. If there’s indeed a ten percent chance to yield meat, though not Treasure Meat, it would still be quite valuable. Su Lin never forgot that merchant Liu Jun’s selling a messed-up braised meat for six or seven hundred copper coins. Other people have one percent probability to yield meat, the quantity could easily make several servings of braised meat, right? Why pick up trash then?! Direct hunting would boost efficiency! But Mutant Beasts all dwell in dangerous wilderness depths. The crossbow arrow can only fire once each time, requiring time to reload, facing a herd or nimble beasts, the risk is extremely high. "Then I’ll wait until I unlock the skin genetic lock, and practice my shooting, before going." Su Lin calmly weighed his options and made a decision. His thoughts spun quickly. In Su Tongxi’s eyes, he just stared at the hand crossbow, momentarily absent-minded. Su Lin turned around, looked at his fiancée, who stood obediently to the side, still amazed, and showed a characteristic smug smile, shaking the weapon in his hand as if presenting a trophy: "How about it? Humpty Dumpty. Is this ’rare’ hand crossbow I got at the cost of 13 silver coins worth it?" "13 coins!..." Thrifty and frugal Su Tongxi instinctively felt a twinge of heartache. But then she thought, 13 silver coins could roughly buy an ordinary handgun, and the power of this rare hand crossbow far surpasses a handgun. The cost of crossbow arrows is also much lower, and five can be made, instantly highlighting its cost-effectiveness. She immediately felt full of admiration for Su Lin’s insight and courage, cupping her hands in front of her chest, looking up with a small face, eyes sparkling with adoring little stars: "Brother Kirin is amazing!"