Ten minutes later, Luo Zheng had no adverse reactions, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. As long as they had fresh water, they could survive a few more days, which was enough ti to wait for rescue. Luo Zheng carefully assessed his condition and, finding nothing amiss, asked Ghost Hand to organize the group to dig deeper. With many people and little water, there simply wasn't enough to go around.
Watching everyone work with renewed vigor, Luo Zheng relaxed and walked over to the beach, where he saw Lan Xue organizing a fishing effort. The thod was rudintary, with long sticks poised on the rocks, ready to spear any fish that ca close. Unfortunately, there weren't many fish near the rocks, and without the necessary skills, they caught nothing. But Luo Zheng didn't ask them to stop. In desperate situations, people needed hope to hold on to.
Luo Zheng found Lan Xue, and the two silently moved away from the others. Luo Zheng spoke in a low voice, "Now that we have water, and the distress signal has been sent, we're off to a decent start. Next, we need to solve the food issue. This way of fishing won't work. With hundreds of people and as many mouths to feed, it's going to be difficult."
"I had Brother Mountain Eagle scout the mountaintop just now to see if he could find anything. He should be back by now." Lan Xue didn't directly address Luo Zheng's concerns but instead spoke softly, her gaze shifting towards the mountain ridge. Seeing Mountain Eagle hurrying towards them, she gave Luo Zheng a look and they both went to et him.
"Captain, I've checked the mountain. Aside from forests, there is nothing—not even bird droppings. No signs of any wildlife," Mountain Eagle reported in a hushed tone, his face as grim as iron, his determined eyes tinged with worry.
Upon hearing this news, Lan Xue and Luo Zheng exchanged glances, lost in thought. After a while, Luo Zheng spoke softly, "Without food, we'll all last at most three days. After that, a lot of people will start dropping. We must find a solution to the food problem."
"Do you have any plans?" Lan Xue asked in a quiet voice.
"Not at the mont. I'll go check the mountain myself," replied Luo Zheng softly.
Lan Xue didn't know why Luo Zheng wanted to go up the mountain, but she didn't stop him. Instead, she glanced at Mountain Eagle, who nodded in understanding. Lan Xue softly instructed, "Go ahead, and be careful. Snow Leopard will also go. I'm more at ease with the three of you together. Don't forget, there are two assassins among the crowd."
"Assassins?" Luo Zheng's eyes hardened as he pondered, then after a mont said, "An assassin only has one chance to strike before they reveal themselves. Once exposed, there's no escape on this island. I believe the assassin won't act rashly without certainty. But you also need to be careful. Although the assassins are here for , there's no guarantee they won't turn on you." Saying this, Luo Zheng looked seriously at Lan Xue.
"Understood. Don't worry," Lan Xue said confidently.
Luo Zheng, Mountain Eagle, and Snow Leopard headed toward the ridgeline. Having already traversed the route once, Mountain Eagle led the way. Along the path were weeds, low bushes, and exposed rocks that looked incredibly hard. Halfway up the mountain grew so small trees, none taller than two ters, and beneath them, there was Vine, which appeared fragile yet tenacious, carpeting the ground well.
The group continued upward to the mountain's summit, where there were even fewer trees and an open view. The area was overgrown with weeds, showing no signs of animal activity, no bird calls—almost as if it were enveloped in deathly silence. If not for the rustling of leaves in the sea breeze, one might think they had entered a silent, motionless world.
"Hiss?" Luo Zheng's expression beca grave. In such a place with no sign of any creatures, how would everyone survive? It seed that their only food was the fish in the sea, but sea fish were not easy to catch. Thinking of this, Luo Zheng glanced towards the mountainside, and in the corner of his eye, he suddenly saw a dense growth of vines sprawling across the ground, as thick as pencils and looking very tough. A light bulb went off in his head, and his eyes lit up with an idea.
Mountain Eagle and Snow Leopard, familiar with Luo Zheng's way of thinking, realized he had devised a plan and they too breathed a sigh of relief. They were about to ask when Luo Zheng spoke up first, "The vines below are not bad, we can make use of them. Let's weave a large net, tie it to the lifeboat, and tow it out to sea. At night, torches can attract fish since they like light, and they'll co to us on their own. Then, when we pull the net up, we won't have to worry too much about food."
"Great idea," both of them said, delighted.
"I'll go call the others," Snow Leopard said joyfully, and hurried away.
Luo Zheng and Mountain Eagle went to the mountainside. After inspecting the vines, which were very flexible and could be made into a net, Luo Zheng was overjoyed. As long as they didn't catch fish weighing dozens of pounds, which could break the net, everything would be fine. He pulled down a few vines and said, "Brother Mountain Eagle, indeed there's always a way out. With food, we can hold on for three days for sure, which is enough ti for a rescue team to arrive."
"With water, food, and fire, survival isn't a big issue. It's just that those with fever are a bit of trouble. If they are not treated within three days, I'm afraid they might be in mortal danger," Mountain Eagle replied helplessly.
Lacking proper dicine, Luo Zheng had no solution. His tiger-like eyes stern, he looked around but didn't find any usable herbs, so he had no choice but to give up. At this ti, Snow Leopard ca with a large group of people. Luo Zheng explained the situation and asked everyone to choose the larger vines, trying not to break them, the longer the better.
No one was foolish; they imdiately understood upon hearing the instructions, and the thought of having food ignited everyone's motivation. Soon, they had collected a large pile. Luo Zheng asked a few people to help, carrying the vines to an open space by the sea, laying them on the ground, and starting to weave them. After others had learned for a while, they weren't very adept, so Luo Zheng suggested that the won help, and it turned out they did a better job than the n, so he had the n continue to collect firewood and vines.
No one knew how long they would be on this island. If they didn't have enough firewood, it would be a problem at night. Cooking also required fire, so they needed to store more. Seeing a glimr of hope for life, everyone, regardless of their past status, set it aside. For survival and for their lives, they all cooperated with one heart and one mind.
Ti slowly passed. There was no breakfast, and no lunch either. Everyone was quite hungry, but there was nothing they could do about it. Fortunately, the fishing net was gradually taking shape, and seeing hope, all worked until nightfall when they finally finished the net. Luo Zheng found so logs, picked out four good boats, and put the finished nets and spare torches on them.
Once everything was prepared, Luo Zheng urged everyone to stay calm. He chose about a dozen bodyguards to help, called over Lan Xue and the others, and with the torches and everyone's hope, they set off to sea in the lifeboats.
The bright moon hung in the sky, reflecting on the sea, as a gentle breeze blew sending ripples across the water, creating a beautiful scene. However, for those fighting to survive, all this natural beauty was irrelevant. Nothing was more tangible than a bowl of rice. They all eagerly watched the sea, torches in hand, with eyes full of longing.
"Stop the boat, cast the net!" Luo Zheng suddenly said, looking around.
User Comments
0 comments from readers