novellhall Chapter 7 The Wail of the Wooden Stake
Chapter 7 The Wail of the Wooden Stake
"3 skill points!"
Lu Qingfeng's eyes lit up.
Adding yesterday's dungeon rewards and the 1 useless point left after leveling up.
He now has plenty of skill points, a full 4 points available!
Instead of immediately adding points, he focused his attention on the newly acquired items.
"Extract the [Training Wooden Dummy]".
With a thought, a heavy wooden mannequin appeared in the open space in the backyard.
It's not the metal frame type found in modern gyms, but more like the kind found in traditional martial arts schools.
The pile is thick and sturdy, with several movable arm and leg piles distributed on it.
The surface of the pile shows slight wear and signs of use, indicating that it is not brand new.
[Training Wooden Dummy (Green)]
Type: Training facility
Effects: 1. Focused Training: Improves focus when training with weapons or in combat in front of the wooden dummy, slightly speeding up the acquisition of proficiency in related skills (basic skills only).
2. Simulated feedback: When striking the wooden dummy, you can get force feedback that is closer to real combat, which helps to correct your posture and angle of force application.
3. Durability: 100/100 (can slowly self-repair)
Description: An old training post used by an unknown martial arts master, stained with sweat and perseverance. Though not a divine object, it is a good aid for building a solid foundation.
P.S.: At least it's better than gesturing at thin air. —A pragmatist on the internet
P.S.: Don't chop it up with an axe! It's just a stake! —From a grumpy repairman
"nice one!"
The wooden dummy's effects on focus training and simulated feedback are truly a godsend.
He immediately imagined that combining this stake with the practice of blocking and counter-attacking would definitely increase efficiency.
However, the practice can be done later.
The more important thing right now is to decide how to use those 4 skill points.
He turned his gaze back to the skill tree panel, and the options in the [Tyranny] branch unfolded clearly in his mind:
[Tyranny Lv3]: Strength increased by 30%, Strength checkpoint +1. (2 points)
[Shatter Lv1]: Armor Penetration +10%. (2 points)
【疯狂Lv1】：每一次攻击叠加1层【疯狂】，每层【疯狂】使伤害+5%，最多叠加3层。(2点)
However, the icon for "Intercept" is completely dark: "Prerequisites not met, cannot be upgraded."
"Brutal Lv3..."
Lu Qingfeng pondered. A direct increase of 30% in core strength attribute seemed tempting, but the improvement was not significant.
The armor-piercing effect of [Crush Lv1] is very useful, especially when facing enemies with high armor or defense, it can significantly increase the killing efficiency.
【Crazy Lv1】is more focused on sustained combat and burst damage.
If you can quickly stack up to 3 layers, it will give you an extra 15% damage bonus, which can be very effective against elite monsters or bosses.
"Strength is fundamental, but armor penetration and sustained damage amplification are also indispensable in combat..."
Lu Qingfeng weighed the pros and cons.
Yesterday's wild boars and today's goblins don't have high defense; [Chongyue]'s [Bengjin] is enough to break their armor.
But what about the future? The difficulty of dungeons will definitely increase, and encountering armored warriors or tough monsters will be almost inevitable.
Moreover, the stacking mechanism of [Madness] is quite compatible with his fighting style, allowing him to resolve battles more quickly and reduce his own risks.
【Crush Lv1】【Crazy Lv1】
Locking onto two options with your mind consumes 4 skill points.
"Skill [Crush Lv1] has been learned."
"Skill [Crazy Lv1] has been learned."
There wasn't the intense energy surge and physical transformation felt when leveling up [Tyranny] or a job rank.
Two relatively gentle forces merged into his fighting instincts.
Lu Qingfeng immediately felt as if he could concentrate his power into a single point, making it easier to tear through and penetrate obstacles.
Along with this came a touch of fanatical fighting spirit, subtly resonating with the primal wildness of [tyranny], yet more controllable and purposeful.
His gaze returned to the skill panel, where the newly generated power was still trembling slightly within Lu Qingfeng's body.
The penetrating power of "shattering" intertwines with the frenzied fighting spirit of "madness," like two undercurrents surging in the blood.
He took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and turned to the ancient wooden dummy in the backyard.
The stakes are solid and stable, and the wear marks on the arm and leg stakes seem to tell the story of countless days and nights soaked in sweat. This is the perfect tool for honing combat skills.
"Try the parry counterattack with the [Intercept] skill first."
The heavy sword [Chongyue] hummed in his hand, and with a slight thought, a bit of the secret technique's power was quietly consumed.
The [Intercept] skill is activated instantly.
The world suddenly slowed down.
He lowered his stance, mounted his horse, and held his heavy sword horizontally to precisely meet the arm that was slashing down from the wooden dummy.
"clang!"
A dull thud resounded.
The simulated feedback effect of the wooden dummy took effect, and a shock force close to that of actual combat was transmitted through the sword, causing Lu Qingfeng's forearm to go numb slightly.
The force was greatly weakened by the 35% damage reduction effect of [Intercept], leaving only a slight numbness.
Immediately afterwards, the instinct to retaliate was triggered.
Lu Qingfeng twisted his waist and hips, and the heavy sword spun around with the momentum, carrying the [Bang Force] effect that ignored armor, and smashed hard into the pillar!
"Bang!"
The wooden dummy trembled violently, leaving a shallow mark on its surface.
[Simulated Feedback] Accurately transmits the details of force application: the angle of force application is skewed, and the force is not fully applied.
Lu Qingfeng raised an eyebrow slightly:
"I see... In actual combat, this deviation could cause the counterattack to miss."
He adjusted his posture, reactivated the "Intercepting Stance," and repeatedly practiced the connection between blocking and counter-attacking.
With each impact, the wooden dummy provides real-time feedback:
Force distribution, center of gravity shift... these details are magnified infinitely with the help of focused training.
Half an hour later, Lu Qingfeng, still wanting more, was about to continue.
A warning popped up on the web interface:
[Training dummy durability: 10/100]
Continued use will cause irreversible damage.
Seeing the warning message that popped up, Lu Qingfeng reluctantly stopped what he was doing.
With the tip of Chongyue's sword planted firmly on the ground, he gently exhaled a breath carrying white mist.
I was so focused on the hammering of the [Intercepting Stance] technique that I didn't notice the passage of time or the "groaning" of the wooden dummy.
"Tsk, this durability drops way too fast."
"No, is it the result of the effects of [Breaking Force] and [Crushing]?"
He immediately realized what was happening.
The description of the [Collapse] effect on the panel is "Ignores 15% of the target's armor", while [Shatter Lv1] directly provides "Armor Penetration +10%".
When the two are combined, their destructive power far exceeds that of a normal attack.
Even this special wooden dummy, made of a special material and capable of self-repair, would probably find it difficult to withstand such a high frequency of "armor-piercing" attacks.
It is, after all, just a green-quality training tool, not a divine weapon.
"Looks like I'll have to be careful when using this thing to practice [Intercepting Stance] in the future, or... I'll have to find something more durable."
Lu Qingfeng shook his head helplessly.
There aren't that many superhuman creatures in the real world to use as targets, so the value of this wooden dummy is self-evident, and it needs to be used sparingly.
With a thought, he put the wooden dummy, whose durability was critically low, back into his backpack and let it slowly recover.