A Night of Desperation

Chapter 123: Imprint (1)

“Second Imprint!??”

Yu Hong was momentarily stunned.

His first imprint was the Luminous Stone Grass, a bound organism that had provided him with immeasurable aid. Without it, his front gate would have been eroded by Blood Tide Bugs daily, forcing him to waste significant Black Mark energy on constant repairs.

Even against larger Blood Tide Creatures like Elephant Bugs, the Luminous Stone Grass served as a crucial defense.

At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary plant with a simple function, but in this treacherous world, its role was immense.

And now, his Black Mark had unlocked a second imprint slot!?

After his initial shock, an overwhelming joy followed.

However, now was not the time for celebration. He refocused, eyes locked onto the shadowy figure outside his courtyard, attempting to step into the field of Luminous Stone Grass.

Yu Hong was certain—this was not just an Ghostly Shadow. There was a high probability that it was the true form of the Intermittent Man-The Behind Person.

Previously, it had avoided the negative radiation emitted by the Luminous Stone Grass. But now, for some unknown reason, it was actively attempting to enter the courtyard.

Ssssshh…

Yu Hong watched as, within a few meters of the figure, the Luminous Stone Grass rapidly blackened, crumbling into ash.

Yet, as he channeled more Inner Energy into his imprint, the surrounding soil sprouted new, stronger Luminous Stone Grass.

Step.

The figure took another step forward—then halted.

It seemed to be radiating an invisible force, directly clashing with the constantly regenerating Luminous Stone Grass.

Ten seconds.

Thirty seconds.

Fifty seconds.

Finally, the figure retreated, slowly stepping back beyond the courtyard wall.

It lifted its head, its blurred face carrying a smile, and met Yu Hong’s gaze. Then, without a sound, it turned and vanished into the thick fog.

At the same time, inside the courtyard, the once-blackened patches of land swiftly recovered, as fresh Luminous Stone Grass grew under the influence of Inner Energy.

Yu Hong let out a deep breath, sweat faintly visible on his forehead.

For a moment, he had feared that the courtyard would fail to hold against the Intermittent Man (The Behind Person). If that happened, he had no reliable means of resisting it.

If the courtyard was breached, his only sanctuary would be the Luminous Stone Chamber within the mountain cave.

“Even the courtyard is struggling to hold now… The Luminous Stone Grass alone won’t be enough to stop the Intermittent Man (The Behind Person) anymore.”

He withdrew his gaze and checked his own energy reserves. Only half of his Inner Energy remained. The situation had been dangerously close.

“The second imprint… What should I bind?”

Taking a deep breath, Yu Hong stood up and surveyed his cave.

The fireplace’s red embers glowed faintly, radiating warmth. A black-box communicator rested on the wooden table. A solar panel for power generation sat nearby.

His eyes carefully scanned everything.

“Imprints regenerate, restore, and grow stronger with Inner Energy. They are closely tied to my martial cultivation. I must bind something even more useful for survival than the Luminous Stone Grass.”

“Dead objects are out of the question. They lack self-recovery and are too inefficient.”

“Living things… I could choose another plant: wild grass, vines, shrubs… or even trees outside!”

Yu Hong stepped to the cave entrance, looking at the towering trees beyond.

Each tree was over ten meters tall, standing thick and sturdy.

“Trees are durable and hard to destroy, but they grow slowly and remain fixed in place. However, their radiation resistance would far surpass Luminous Stone Grass.”

But he hesitated. If he chose a tree, the binding process would take a long time.

“Besides, the Black Mark is still strengthening. I can’t bind a second imprint until the enhancement is complete. The first Luminous Stone Grass imprint was an accidental fusion during a strengthening process. Now that I have another slot, I’ll have to use a similar method.”

“That means I need to wait until the Black Mark enhancement is finished.”

His thoughts settled.

Everything now depended on the moment his Black Mark completed its enhancement.

“Two more days… Almost there.”

Taking a deep breath, he closed the wooden panel and returned to training.

The new Inner Energy had allowed him to physically touch the Intermittent Man (The Behind Person)—proof that his modified martial arts were working as intended.

His ultimate goal was always to develop a technique capable of directly countering Ghostly Shadows and Evil Shadows.

“Keep pushing forward!”

Muttering to himself, Yu Hong buried himself in rigorous training.

And in the back of his mind, he already had an idea of what his second imprint would be.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

Underground Basement of the Cave

Yu Hong sat cross-legged, his body trembling slightly.

He opened his eyes, his dirt-covered face breaking into a genuine smile.

“It’s done!!”

The second strand of Inner Energy was now silently circulating within his abdomen.

With this, he now had a total of two Inner Energy strands, marking the progress of his newly reconstructed martial technique.

Just like before, he would need to accumulate nine Inner Energy strands to advance to the next level of his Basic Survival Leg Technique, Second Layer.

This newly cultivated martial art had a total of six layers, and according to the manual, the higher the layer, the greater the amount of environmental Red Value Radiation required for cultivation.

This was precisely why the radiation levels inside the safehouse cave had become incredibly low—

Not only was the Luminous Stone Grass absorbing radiation, but the protective rune formations and Yu Hong’s own constant absorption also contributed to this effect.

“Today also marks the final day of my Black Mark enhancement!”

Yu Hong’s heart swelled with anticipation.

He stood up, stretched his limbs, and left the basement, heading toward the newly excavated third stone chamber—the main energy control room.

Inside, the nuclear generator and water supply system were installed.

In truth, Yu Hong had been checking on the nuclear generator every day in his eagerness to study it.

And through his inspections, he discovered an issue—

This nuclear generator was not a completed model.

At the bottom corner, small engravings marked it as:

“K238 Experimental Model.”

This made Yu Hong suspect that this generator was merely a prototype, incomplete and far less valuable than the fully functional models used in Hope City—which was why it had been abandoned.

It also confirmed Wei Hongye’s claims that micro-nuclear technology was still incomplete.

“So this was just bait Wei Hongye used to trade for favors…”

But none of that mattered.

“With the Black Mark, even an unfinished prototype can be fully restored!”

Yu Hong’s gaze locked onto the countdown timer on the wall.

One minute left.

The enhancement was about to be completed.

“From today onward… I won’t have to worry about energy for a long, long time.”

This exhilarating thought repeated in his mind, over and over.

Hummm!

Suddenly, Yu Hong’s entire body shuddered.

For a fleeting instant—less than 0.1 seconds—everything in his vision blurred.

It was as if something swept past his eyes, momentarily obscuring his sight.

And then—

Everything changed.

The rough, primitive underground basement was now completely transformed into a smooth-walled, thick, black rectangular chamber.

The nuclear generator was gone.

The water supply system was gone.

Instead, two integrated control panels had appeared, embedded into the walls.

Yu Hong walked over and opened the black panel on the left. A red skull icon was marked on it, with red text that read:

“Main Energy Control Box.”

Inside were switches and buttons, controlling the electricity for every underground room.

Closing the panel, Yu Hong then opened the white panel on the right.

On its surface, a large blue water droplet was painted.

Inside were switches controlling the water supply for each room.

Click.

He closed the panel, took a deep breath, and quickly ran upstairs.

First Floor of the Cave

The area near the main exit had also undergone a dramatic transformation.

The cave walls were now neatly structured, completely reinforced into a solid black surface, as if coated with a layer of hardened metal plating.

Everything else remained in place, except for one significant change—

To the right of the fireplace, the wall had been hollowed inward, revealing a rectangular washbasin.

The basin was entirely stone, smooth and polished, without any decorative patterns.

It had only three simple components:

A faucet.

A water basin.

A drainage pipe.

The entire washbasin was also coated in the same black material as the walls, seamlessly blending into the cave’s new structure.

Yu Hong took a deep breath and turned on the faucet.

Whoosh—

A clear, steady stream of water gushed out.

Flowing continuously.

Endlessly.

Staring at the crystal-clear water, Yu Hong pressed his lips together, his face trembling.

He couldn’t remember the last time he had seen something as simple as running tap water.

Only those who had lived as long as he had in such a terrifying and dangerous wilderness could truly understand—

How precious it was to have a stable water supply.

As he watched the water flow freely, an indescribable wave of emotion surged through him.

“From now on… I no longer have to search for water. No longer have to worry about bathing. No longer have to endure sleeping in these filthy, sweat-soaked clothes and blankets…”

His eyes grew misty.

Only he could understand the sheer misery of it—

The unbearable stench of sweat-drenched clothes and blankets…

The sticky, greasy feeling of never being able to wash properly…

The discomfort of trying to sleep in filth…

He had endured it for so long.

Now, finally—

He could be clean again.

Standing there, Yu Hong slowly turned off the faucet.

Taking deep, steady breaths, he forced himself to calm down before moving on to check the electrical systems.

Just as he had expected—

Every room was now equipped with light switches.

Light bulbs were naturally embedded into the ceilings and walls.

The wiring and switches were completely hidden, seamlessly integrated into the structure.

The entire safehouse cave now looked like a professionally designed three-bedroom apartment—with no trace of its original rough, hand-carved form.

Not only that—

Yu Hong found multiple power outlets embedded into the walls of each room.

Though the outlet covers were stone, rather than the familiar plastic materials, it was clear that a tremendous amount of time had been spent refining every detail of the enhancement.

Now, he finally understood—

Why this enhancement process had taken so long.

Much of the time had been spent perfecting the smallest details of the safehouse.

Yu Hong meticulously checked every single room—

Three underground chambers.

One main hall.

He examined every corner, carefully noting the changes.

And as he continued his inspections—

The overwhelming joy and comfort he felt gradually settled into a deep, unshakable sense of peace.

(End of Chapter)