Chapter 14: Survival is Hard
A faint, fishy stench rose from underfoot, the red soil appearing as if soaked in blood.
All vegetation growing in the red soil area was abnormally tall, with lush green grass and several large trees in the distance reaching dozens of meters high.
Bubu Wang walked slowly through the red soil area, having lost its previous uninhibited demeanor.
Su Xiao looked back with lingering fear toward the centipede hiding in the soil; it was too terrifying. If he hadn't sensed a strange crisis, he would have been swallowed alive.
No map, no bearings, food lost, fresh water enough for at most one day.
The food was lost during the parachute jump. Because Bubu Wang had to carry the parachute pack, it held the food in its mouth, and lost it during the 'negotiation' with the black hawk.
Gurgle.
Bubu Wang turned to look at Su Xiao, its gaze clearly saying: 'Master, I'm hungry.'
"Hang on. We just ate on the plane, that was only an hour ago. With the fat on your body, you can go two days without food."
Bubu Wang's layer of blubber could indeed sustain it for two days, but that required fresh water.
The fresh water was enough for Su Xiao and Bubu Wang to drink for one day. Bubu Wang could last two days, but Su Xiao could not.
It wasn't that he was pampered; he needed to fight, and fighting consumed a lot of energy.
Su Xiao had no high-calorie food. Those small, high-calorie foods were generally white quality and very rare.
Contractors who obtained such food kept it for emergencies; no one would sell it.
In the backpack behind Su Xiao was a large portion of roasted meat. This was food, but it was also a recovery item.
[Roasted Meat with Sauce]
Quality: Green
Type: Recovery Item
Effect: Recovers 80% health within half an hour of consumption, and heals minor injuries.
Rating: 21
Introduction: 1900 Paradise Coins.
...
Recovery items could also stave off hunger, but unless absolutely necessary, Su Xiao wouldn't eat this.
From this, one could see the importance of information. If he had known food was so precious, he would have bought a large quantity of recovery-type food.
No one would leak confidential intelligence like a survival trial; it was only shared within adventure groups.
What to do without food? Need to ask? Of course, go and take it.
It was foreseeable that in the following ten days, food and fresh water would become the main reason for battles between contractors.
The trial still had ten days. Without food, Su Xiao's combat effectiveness would last at most two days. After two days, he would grow weaker and weaker.
The grassland in the red soil area stretched endlessly. He didn't know how far he had walked when Su Xiao faintly heard the sound of water. Where there was water, there was food!
"Bubu, stop."
Su Xiao listened carefully to the direction of the water sound. After entering the red soil area, perception was no longer reliable. That giant centipede could mislead perception, so what was perceived wasn't necessarily real.
The water sound came from the left. Bubu Wang quickly ran to the left side.
Not far ahead, a small stream appeared.
This small stream flowed through the grassland, with half-meter-tall grass growing nearby.
Buzz.
A bee flew by. This bee was quite large, the size of a thumb.
This thing was edible. Su Xiao could be certain. He had seen this kind of bee on Earth, only much smaller.
The bee's flight speed was very fast. If his neural reflex speed wasn't sufficient, he definitely couldn't catch this 'little guy.'
Su Xiao's hand rested on the hilt of Dragon-Slaying Flash. A blade light flashed, and the bee's wings were severed.
Carefully pinching the falling bee, Su Xiao didn't want to try the 'little guy's' stinger. Getting stung would definitely be unpleasant.
Pinching off the bee's head and removing its internal organs, Su Xiao directly tossed the bee into his mouth. Bubu Wang beside him was dumbfounded.
Although this bee was raw, its taste was quite good, very chewy.
"You want some?"
Su Xiao looked at Bubu Wang. Bubu Wang quickly shook its head and even took two steps back.
Su Xiao inwardly lamented the waste of a delicacy. This kind of bee was a gourmet treat, almost extinct on Earth.
There were four of these bees in total. Su Xiao only caught two; the other two flew too fast.
Seizing every opportunity to replenish energy, Su Xiao consumed too much energy daily.
Parting the water plants, a swift small stream appeared.
The stream water was very clear, but Su Xiao wasn't deceived by this appearance. He took out a transparent empty water bottle and filled it with some river water.
Raising the bottle, the clear river water changed color under the sunlight, faintly showing a slight red.
Countless parasites were in the river water. If he drank a mouthful, it would be hard to avoid death. This river water was more terrifying than a deadly poison.
Clean fresh water was hopeless. If the water wasn't clean, the chance of finding food was also slim.
A dark shadow streaked through the water. Su Xiao suddenly lunged, stabbing his blade into the water.
Squeak.
A strange cry came. Su Xiao used Dragon-Slashing Flash to lift a strange fish from the water.
The strange fish was about half a meter long, with a large head and small body, its entire body 'carrying family and friends,' covered in many 'passengers.'
Even without Su Xiao's stab, this strange fish wouldn't have lived long. The creatures parasitizing it numbered at least dozens.
Flicking the large fish back into the water, Su Xiao wouldn't eat this even if he starved to death. That would be a faster death.
A serious problem emerged: the water in the red soil area was undrinkable, and the creatures killed were inedible.
Taking a compass from his backpack, this item cost Su Xiao 600 Paradise Coins. As the stall owner put it: 'This thing can point south even in outer space.'
Unfortunately, this white-quality compass, which could supposedly work even in outer space, had failed. It was now spinning like a fan.
Su Xiao looked at the sun in the sky. The sun was shining brightly; it was a good day.
Finding a wooden stick and sticking it into the ground, the sunlight cast a shadow from the stick. Su Xiao placed a small stone at the tip of the shadow.
Taking out a pocket watch, Su Xiao waited quietly for ten minutes. The stick's shadow moved slightly. Su Xiao placed another stone at the tip of the shadow.
Connecting the two stones on the ground, the direction was obtained.
"That side might be east-west..."
This was an Earth method for orientation. Su Xiao didn't know if it would work here, after all, he wasn't sure which side this broken planet's sun rose from.
Su Xiao confirmed the direction, then searched for stones and branches nearby, piling them together to form a landmark, ensuring he could travel in a straight line.
With direction and landmarks, Su Xiao mounted Bubu Wang to travel.
The top priority now was to leave the red soil area. This was completely a life-forbidden zone: suddenly appearing terrifying creatures, undrinkable river water, food scarcity.
Forget surviving ten days here; lasting two days would be extremely lucky.
After riding Bubu Wang for a distance, the landmark behind disappeared from sight. Su Xiao again identified the direction and set up a new landmark.
After setting up five times in a row, Su Xiao finally reached the end of the grassland. The endless green disappeared, and ahead appeared a stretch of winding mountainous terrain.
This mountainous area wasn't very steep, with a faint red tint showing through the rocks. It seemed he hadn't left the red soil area.
Not long after entering the mountainous area, Su Xiao made a discovery. He found a pile of charcoal ash.