“Smack!”
The peaceful tranquility of the early morning was shattered by a slap. Standing before Qin Tian, Ye Lin looked down at him with a fierce expression, grinding her teeth, “Why did you hit me last night?!”
After venting her negative emotions, Ye Lin’s mood shifted dramatically. Though she appeared angry, it couldn’t conceal the relief she felt inside.
“I…” Qin Tian opened his mouth to explain, but then thought better of it and shut it again.
With nowhere to complain, Qin Tian crouched to the side, wearing an expression as pitiful as could be.
Seeing Qin Tian like this was rare, and Ye Lin couldn’t help but find it amusing. She let out a soft chuckle and said, “Thank you.”
Hearing those words of thanks, Qin Tian was momentarily stunned before understanding something.
Suddenly standing up, Qin Tian glared coldly at Ye Lin, “Then what was that slap for?”
Unfazed, Ye Lin snorted lightly, “You hit me, so I hit you back. Fair and square.”
Though Qin Tian never said it outright, looking back, Ye Lin could understand how dangerous her condition was last night. She also knew that Qin Tian’s slap was purely to give her an outlet to vent.
As for why Ye Lin slapped back despite understanding his intention, it was her way of bidding farewell to the person she was yesterday.
Clearly dissatisfied with Ye Lin’s answer, Qin Tian clenched his palm into a fist. “What did you just say? I didn’t catch that.”
Startled, Ye Lin looked toward the sea and quickly changed the subject, “That’s strange. I remember at this time the tide should have receded already, but there’s no sign of it.”
***
Qin Tian wasn’t going to argue. He tapped Ye Lin’s forehead, “The tide changes based on a half-month cycle, and the time for high and low tides shifts daily. Usually, the tide the next day will be about 48 minutes later than the previous day.”
“Since the first day we arrived on this Deserted Island, six days have passed. That means we still have to wait another 4.8 hours before the tide recedes.”
“4.8 hours?!” Ye Lin rubbed her forehead. This delay was a bit too long. “So, do we head back to the Camp now, or starve here all morning?”
Without answering, Qin Tian took out a dagger and made a hole in a nearby old Coconut Palm, then began drinking from it, his meaning clear enough.
Five hours was not a short time. With nothing better to do, the two sat in the shade and talked.
Sipping coconut juice, Ye Lin said, “How long do you think the Search and Rescue Team will take to arrive?”
It was the same topic again, but when Ye Lin said this, her expression was calm and casual. To her, it didn’t matter when the Search and Rescue Team came — just that they would come. Until then, she would live well.
“Come to think of it, I think I read somewhere…” Before Qin Tian could answer, Ye Lin went on, “After a missing person is lost for two full years, the law can declare them dead.”
“Two years? You must be joking.” Qin Tian understood what Ye Lin meant and continued, “For the two of us, if the Search and Rescue Team can’t find us within a month, their efforts will lessen, and they might even stop searching altogether.”
Ye Lin shivered all over. “Say something luckier, please.”
Qin Tian rolled his eyes, not sure who had started the pessimism first.
“But if they don’t find us, they don’t find us,” Qin Tian said plainly but firmly. “At worst, we just take more time and go out ourselves.”
Hearing that, Ye Lin looked at Qin Tian in shock, then smiled and said nothing more.
***
Though Qin Tian and Ye Lin planned to wait until noon, as time dragged on, neither could sit still, feeling that just sitting was a waste of time.
After discussing, they made use of the materials around them—stripping bark to make hemp ropes and weaving two small nets to serve as bags before noon.
When the tide finally receded, they split up and caught many Stone Crabs and other shellfish, totaling about eight or nine jin. They ate until full.
Not satisfied yet, after eating, Qin Tian and Ye Lin went for another round and gathered seven or eight jin more seafood to bring back for dinner at the Camp.
As Qin Tian had said before, it was impossible to trap wild rabbits in a simple wooden cage. When they returned, the cage had already been gnawed almost to pieces.
One of the sticks, originally as thick as two fingers, was now barely one finger wide. If they had come back any later, the rabbits might have escaped.
***
It was around four in the afternoon, not yet evening. After a brief rest, Qin Tian made a new rabbit cage.
Worried about Ye Lin, Qin Tian hadn’t rested the entire previous day and had endured the sea breeze all night. Coupled with today’s labor, he was exhausted.
After an early dinner, before nightfall, Qin Tian fell asleep and didn’t even wake when it was time to switch shifts.
Ye Lin didn’t wake him. She understood his fatigue. So, when Qin Tian finally woke, it was already morning.
Remembering the watch duty, Qin Tian sat up and looked outside the wooden shelter to find Ye Lin half-asleep, nodding off intermittently.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” Qin Tian called to her.
Turning around, Ye Lin smiled weakly, “You’re awake?”
Qin Tian sighed and waved to her. Ye Lin understood and crawled back inside the wooden shelter, falling asleep again.
***
It had been a week on this Deserted Island, but food remained a pressing issue. Although Qin Tian had caught a litter of rabbits, that was only enough for two or three days. After that, they would need to find more food.
Overall, their food reserves were too low. If luck ran out or something unexpected happened and they failed to find food in time, Qin Tian and Ye Lin could face starvation at any moment.
Aware of this, after breakfast, Qin Tian said goodbye to Ye Lin and left the Camp, intending to find more food before their supplies ran out.
However, Qin Tian had already searched the area around the Camp without finding any food sources, so he had to venture further out.
Not knowing where resources might be, Qin Tian picked a random direction and set off straight ahead.
***
The forest was rich in resources, but finding something useful was no easy task. After a long walk, Qin Tian still hadn’t found anything worthwhile, let alone food.
Along the way, Qin Tian spotted several small animals, but they were fleeting glimpses with no chance to catch them.
By noon, the scorching sun beat down fiercely. Even in the shade of the forest, Qin Tian felt the heat.
Thirsty and parched, he found a shady spot and sat down, opening the water flask he carried to drink.
Though called a water flask, it was actually just a coconut filled with water, tied to a hemp rope and hung around his neck. Simple, but practical.
After quenching his thirst, Qin Tian felt much better.
He had spent the entire morning here, meaning the return trip would take about as long. Calculating this, he had less than two hours left to search.
Not wanting to return empty-handed, Qin Tian rested a few minutes before getting up to continue searching. Not far on, he spotted something and broke into a run.
Moments later, he stopped, panting heavily, in front of him stood a towering bamboo grove, stalks stretching straight into the clouds.
***
“I didn’t expect there to be such a large bamboo forest on this Deserted Island!” Qin Tian was thrilled.
In the wild, bamboo was incredibly valuable. Though not edible, its uses were countless. Seeing this grove, Qin Tian’s mind was already picturing bamboo chairs, fishing rods, and carrying baskets.
Moreover, such a vast bamboo grove surely had bamboo shoots, edible fungi, and other food sources. Though not meat, they could fill their stomachs.
Most importantly, with the rapid regeneration of bamboo shoots, there would be no worry about running out of food. From this moment on, Qin Tian and Ye Lin would no longer have to fear food shortages.
Excited, Qin Tian selected a bamboo stalk about the size of his fist and swung his Stone Axe.
Compared to wood, bamboo was much harder to cut. Every time Qin Tian struck, the bamboo would shake, absorbing nearly thirty percent of the axe’s force.
After nearly an hour of chopping until his hands tingled, Qin Tian finally brought the bamboo down.
But that wasn’t the end.
At least three or four years old, the fallen bamboo was over ten meters long. Carrying or dragging it back was impossible, so Qin Tian had to swing his axe again and cut a three-meter section.
By then, it was already afternoon. Qin Tian had spent more than two hours in the bamboo grove, so with his current pace, he wouldn’t make it back to the Camp before dark.
Helpless, Qin Tian hoisted the bamboo and ran back. This was why he only cut that small section.
It wasn’t that the bamboo was too heavy; in fact, it was light and easy to carry. But being so long, moving through the dense forest meant it would snag on shrubs and vines, slowing him down.
***
Time passed, and the forest grew dimmer.
At the Camp, Ye Lin paced back and forth, frequently glancing into the distance, worry etched all over her face.
Normally, Qin Tian would have returned by this time, but now there was no sign of him, which only deepened her concern.
“Could he have run into a wild animal?” Ye Lin couldn’t stop her worst fears. But the next moment, she shook her head, “No, no, no. He must have been delayed by something.”
“Why are you just standing there? Come help me out!”
As Ye Lin tried to reassure herself, a voice suddenly came from afar.
Ignoring any rational thought, hearing that voice, Ye Lin immediately turned and headed toward where Qin Tian should be.