143: Chapter 0143 Solving Difficult Problems

Li Size took the teacup, his fingertips touching the warm cup wall, and nodded:

"Thank you for your guidance, Director."

Sven tapped the marker for Gele City on the map, his eyes deep:

"Feiting has been very active on the border recently. After this map is sent out, they will most likely accelerate their offensive deployment..."

"You and Felina need to be prepared."

His tone was still gentle and refined, yet it made Li Size feel a heavy sense of responsibility.

This outwardly gentle man had already calculated every aspect of the situation.

Once all preparations for the Feiting Federation mission were complete, Felina, following Li Size's instructions, came alone to the remote "Dark Crow Tavern" in the southern part of Gele City.

The wooden door creaked open, and the air was filled with the sour smell of cheap malt liquor...

Rice sat deep in the shadows, his black cloak covering most of his face. On his ring finger, he wore a silver ring engraved with a serpentine pattern, rhythmically tapping the oak table.

"The mission was completed well."

His voice was low and hoarse, like sandpaper scraping across wood.

"Where is Li Size? I didn't expect him to be quite capable, helping you finish the mission so quickly. The Lurkers' evaluation of you is getting higher and higher."

Felina placed the mission report on the table, her fingertips tightening slightly:

"He is handling the finishing work for the sorcery machine tool."

Rice suddenly laughed, a hint of undetectable calculation in his laughter. He pulled out a scroll of runes from his cloak.

The pale blue 'Night Vision' rune emitted a cold light under the dim illumination, and the edges of the rune were engraved with fine anti-theft demonic markings.

"Take this."

He pushed the rune stone toward Felina, but his eyes were fixed tightly on her face.

"This rune was the reward you chose last time."

He paused deliberately, and the silver ring on his fingertip flashed a faint light.

"I really don't know why you chose such a useless rune?"

Felina took the rune scroll, feeling a slight chill in her palm...

When Li Size received the Alchemy Rune that Felina brought back and returned to the Laboratory, dusk had already spread across the window lattice, and the cold light of the rune lamp cast Li Size's shadow very long.

He placed the 'Night Vision' rune scroll flat in the center of the experimental table, his fingertips hovering above the pale blue patterns of the scroll. After taking a deep breath, he subtly moved his mind to trigger the Pay-to-Win Analysis.

[Consuming 600 Energy Points, triggering the Meditation Technique Great Gift Special Effect, actual consumption 480 Energy Points]

[Analyzing 'Night Vision' Alchemy Rune...]

In Li Size's mind, knowledge such as rune structure theory, energy node distribution, and circuit conduction principles flooded in like a tide, rapidly intertwining with the energy trajectories corresponding to the scroll's patterns.

The nodes activated in sequence, the circuits nested layer by layer, finally condensing into a rotating three-dimensional rune matrix model in his consciousness space.

Every node flickered with a pale blue light, clearly presenting the core operating logic of the Night Vision rune.

This was the 'Night Vision' Alchemy Rune, capable of granting the holder the ability to see in the dark through alchemical items.

The Entry-Level 'Night Vision' Alchemy Rune retained 70% of daytime visual capability.

This was what Rice considered 'useless stuff,' but it was one of the key puzzle pieces for his super long-range firearm research, allowing the super long-range firearm to operate in all weather conditions.

Reconnaissance drones equipped with this could also scout at night.

Felina brought over a cup of hot cocoa, her golden curly hair hanging over his shoulder, and whispered softly:

"Husband, you haven't had a good rest in three days."

Li Size shook his head, picking up an unfinished gun barrel component. The coldness of the metal transmitted through his fingertips:

"If these problems aren't solved, the super long-range firearm is just a pile of scrap metal."

He walked to the huge design blueprint and traced the annotation for 'Sorcery Gunpowder':

The area circled in red on the blueprint had been repeatedly modified, and beside it lay the books 'Demonic Energy Explosives' and 'Mineral Combustion Characteristics'.

Li Size picked up a small pinch of black sorcery gunpowder and rubbed it in his palm:

This was the highest purity sample he could find, but its burning speed was only two-thirds that of Blue Star special gunpowder, and its explosive power was far from enough to support a ten-kilometer range.

He closed his eyes, and the image of the battlefield on the Feiting border flashed through his mind:

If the gunpowder's power was insufficient, the projectile would lose kinetic energy beyond five kilometers, unable to even pierce the scale armor of a Zero-Tier Demonized Creature.

"I must find a more stable Demonic Energy carrier."

He muttered to himself, his fingertip sliding across the page, stopping at the entry for 'Blaze Sulfur'.

This mineral was only produced in the volcanic regions of the Stormhold Province, and Flora had just mentioned traces of melancholy fruit there a few days ago.

Blaze Sulfur was a dark purple crystalline Ore containing high concentrations of fire-attribute Demonic Energy.

Its surface was covered with golden demonic vein patterns. When rubbed, it emitted a pungent sulfur smell and scattered tiny sparks.

It had a significant effect on improving sorcery gunpowder:

First, its combustion efficiency was 30% higher than ordinary sulfur, producing greater thrust with the same dosage, allowing the projectile's muzzle velocity to break 2000 meters per second.

Second, the Demonic Energy conversion rate increased, reducing energy loss and improving ballistic stability by 25%.

Finally, the pale blue flame produced during combustion carried a 'Penetration' characteristic, which could weaken the target's shield.

These improvements perfectly matched the needs of a super long-range firearm, such as long-range ballistic stability and high energy output.

Suddenly, Li Size straightened up abruptly, mimicking the posture of holding a gun...

He rested his elbow on the experimental table, imagining a virtual, intense pain in his shoulder the moment the projectile was fired.

He frowned: An Intermediate Wizard Apprentice's physical strength made ordinary swords unable to harm him, but a firearm of such immense power, while gaining great power, also brought enormous recoil.

The massive recoil would shatter the scapula even of a physically strong Intermediate Wizard Apprentice.

He subconsciously touched his shoulder, where the bruise from the last test of the sorcery hand cannon still remained.

"Recoil buffer structure..."

His gaze swept over the spring components in the corner of the experimental table; these were used to make mechanical bird wings.

Their elasticity coefficient met the requirements, but they were too large to be embedded in the gun body.

He picked up a spring in his right hand and spun it, the rhythm growing faster and faster:

What if the reverse thrust of a 'Hurricane Rune' was used to counteract the recoil?

Li Size suddenly turned and walked to the experimental table, his fingertips flying across calculations on a draft paper:

The custom shoulder stock adopted a metal fiber composite material, built with a honeycomb buffer layer and a black demonic iron alloy force conduction rod, capable of dispersing recoil from the scapula to the clavicle and thoracic spine, reducing peak pressure by 60%.

The rear Hurricane Rune Array needed to be distributed in a three-dimensional vector, releasing reverse thrust three times within 0.2 seconds after the projectile left the barrel.

The first time, it would counteract vertical recoil with a 45-degree upward angle; the second time, it would output 70% of the horizontal thrust along the barrel axis in reverse; the third time, it would correct the residual torque at a 15-degree side angle. The total thrust could counteract 85% of the explosive counterforce.

He circled the key data in red ink:

"Recoil peak 12000 Newtons, stock disperses 30% to the torso, Hurricane Rune provides 9600 Newtons of reverse force, the remaining 1200 Newtons can be borne by muscle buffering. The pressure sensor embedded in the stock will synchronously trigger the Rune Array, with an error controlled within 0.01 seconds."

Having solved another difficult problem, Li Size walked to the window and pushed it open...

The night wind blew in, carrying the clamor of factories working overtime day and night in the distance. This scene made him feel like he had become a wicked capitalist...

He took out a chip made from the 'Visual Enhancement' rune that Felin had mailed, and stuck it onto his eyeglass lens.

Instantly, the treetops ten kilometers away became clearly visible.

But when he simulated aiming at a moving target, his brow furrowed again:

Gravity would cause the projectile to drop 30 centimeters per kilometer, and the wind force in the westerlies would cause the trajectory to deviate by more than 15 degrees.

He returned to the blueprint and used a ruler to measure the ballistic curve:

Moreover, the deviation caused by wind force would differ depending on the environment. How could he calculate it precisely?

How could he adjust the deviation caused by gravity and wind force in the trajectory?

He quickly walked to the draft paper, his pencil scratching out the formula for gravitational acceleration:

"g = 9.8 m/s², the flight time for a ten-kilometer range is about 3 seconds, resulting in a vertical deviation of up to 45 meters. This won't work!"

He frowned, tapping his fingertips on the desk:

A First Ring Anti-Gravity Rune would be the optimal solution, but he was merely an Apprentice, not even qualified for Entry-Level.