Chapter 179: Deserted Island Survival 3
Moira Lynch added another item to her collection list besides food: Black Fire Stones.
Compared to foraging for food, gathering Black Fire Stones was significantly easier.
The entire mountain was covered in them. The large ones were massive, while the small ones were only about the size of a fist.
Before nightfall, Moira Lynch finally reached the summit.
The other side of the summit was a cliff. Looking down, the first thing she saw was the pine forest she had passed through on her way up.
The pine forest covered an area of several hundred square meters.
Moira Lynch could clearly see a huge, black, bear-like creature wandering through the trees.
Gazing further into the distance, right at the edge of her vision, Moira Lynch finally saw a patch of blue.
Since this was a deserted island survival scenario, the meaning of that patch of blue was self-evident.
A cold wind blew past, and Moira Lynch caught a scent unique to autumn. It was hard to describe—somewhat like rotting leaves, but not quite.
She glanced at the sky. Her most important task now was to find a place to hide the RV for the night.
The deserted island was very dangerous at night. Many large predators chose to begin hunting after dark.
The darkness provided them with excellent cover, and it was also when other animals let their guard down the most.
She circled the summit, collecting a good number of Black Fire Stones. She also found a cave, but it was far too small. It was fine for her alone, but fitting the RV inside was pure fantasy.
Besides, after a closer look, Moira Lynch noticed what seemed to be traces of an animal living inside.
Judging by the cave’s size, the animal living inside wasn’t huge—at least not as big as the black, bear-like creature she’d seen from a distance—but it was definitely not small either.
And it was most likely a carnivore.
With no other choice, Moira Lynch had to abandon the cave and continue her search.
After searching for a long while, she still came up empty.
As the sky gradually darkened, Moira Lynch found a clean rock and sat down to rest.
Noticing the change in her vision, Moira Lynch realized that her beauty contact lenses and glasses had all been disabled.
They were now nothing more than ordinary accessories.
As the sky grew ever darker, Moira Lynch took out her flashlight. She had to find shelter quickly and get a fire started.
Animals instinctively fear fire, so a campfire would add another layer of security.
After walking for a while longer, Moira Lynch still hadn’t found a suitable shelter, but she did find a relatively flat clearing.
It was surrounded by dense woods. In the summer, this spot would have been perfectly concealed, but unfortunately, it wasn’t summer.
But that was fine. Moira Lynch had other methods.
She retrieved several huge Black Fire Stones from her storage space, arranged them in a circle, and then brought out the RV.
She opened the door and stepped into the RV. The food Moira Lynch had gathered on her journey was piled inside, making the already limited space feel even more cramped.
Left with no choice, Moira Lynch had to take the food outside to prepare it.
She plucked and bled the two pheasants and washed the mushrooms and plant stems.
Anything she couldn’t eat right away went into her storage space.
Moira Lynch took two chicken legs, each nearly the size of her thigh, and a large helping of mushrooms, and began to cook.
An hour later, a fragrant chicken and mushroom stew was ready.
As she ate, Moira Lynch started planning for the next day.
’The game time has been extended to thirty days. I didn’t expect that.’
’And now that I think about what the game system said, thirty days seems to be just the minimum to pass.’
’The person who lasts the longest will get a reward from the system.’
’I just wonder what that reward could be.’
The deserted island was indeed much livelier at night than during the day.
Throughout the night, Moira Lynch could hear the roars of wild beasts, and they sounded very close.
Moira Lynch tried to communicate with these beasts, but she was completely ignored.
The sounds didn’t fade until the first light of dawn.
After daybreak, Moira Lynch stepped out of the RV.
She first did a lap around her camp. As expected, she found several sets of huge footprints on the ground nearby. One of the Black Fire Stones was covered in messy scratch marks.
Moira Lynch had estimated the previous day that, given her appetite, the food she had collected was not nearly enough for three meals a day. She would have to hunt a large animal.
After stowing the RV and all the Black Fire Stones, Moira Lynch took out the roasted fish she had prepared the day before and began to eat. She ate piece after piece until the entire fish, which weighed over ten pounds, was gone. Only then did she stop, satisfied.
Although last night had been dangerous, Moira Lynch had also gathered quite a few clues.
For instance, she now understood why she had encountered so few living creatures on her trek the day before. It turned out they all stayed on another part of the island, only coming to this side to drink.
Recalling her earlier theory that the island was surrounded by the sea, Moira Lynch guessed that the river she’d found yesterday might be the only source of fresh water on the entire island.
With this in mind, Moira Lynch decided to go back.
She had used a lot of water cleaning her food yesterday, so she could take the opportunity to refill her tank and catch some more fish.
No sooner said than done.
The journey up had taken Moira Lynch several hours, but the return trip took less than half that time.
When she reached the riverbank, Moira Lynch could clearly see a thin layer of ice along the edges.
’It seems the temperature dropped again last night.’
As before, Moira Lynch filled the water tank, then began using her spiritual power to catch fish.
This time, Moira Lynch caught over thirty fish in one go. Each one weighed more than ten pounds, with the larger ones reaching over twenty. This would ensure she had fish to eat every day for the foreseeable future.
She then scaled, gutted, and cleaned them before putting them into her storage space.
By the time Moira Lynch had finished everything, it was already around three in the afternoon.
Recalling the direction the animals had taken when they left the previous night, Moira Lynch headed that way.
After about an hour of walking, Moira Lynch keenly sensed a change in her surroundings.
She also caught a faint, sweet scent... ’Wait, a sweet scent?’
Moira Lynch was instantly on alert.
However, her spiritual power detected no signs of life nearby. There was a creature wandering about a kilometer away, but it was heading in the opposite direction.
She sniffed the air again. The fragrance was very similar to the smell of resin.
Following the scent, she found its source: a huge deer with a magnificent golden coat came into view.
The deer was completely engrossed, licking something on a tree trunk.