Desert Island Survival Arc (11)

Chapter 17: Desert Island Survival Arc (11)

Zhang Heng woke up to see Bear roasting the python that had nearly swallowed him the previous night.

"..."

"Zhang, you're awake. Just in time for breakfast," the explorer said, poking the campfire with a small branch to adjust the flames. He then pointed to the bloody mass beside them. "Snake skin. I just peeled it. After cleaning it, you can use it to make a waterskin or something. It's much more airtight than a wooden bucket. Or, you could make clothes with it; wearing it has a cooling effect, which is quite useful in hot weather."

"Thanks for last night," Zhang Heng said, sitting up from the ground. He still saw the red marks on his arm from where the snake had constricted him.

"Ah, you're welcome. You saved me at sea too. In the wilderness, we have to help each other to survive, don't we?" Bear handed Zhang Heng a piece of roasted python steak skewered on a wooden stick.

Zhang Heng initially wanted to refuse, but then he thought this might be his only chance in life to eat python without risking imprisonment. So, he took it.

He took a curious bite and found the taste surprisingly good. The gamey flavor wasn't strong; it was a bit like chicken, but chewier.

Remembering that this very creature had almost taken his life last night, Zhang Heng decisively decided to have two more pieces.

After breakfast, the two continued on their way.

Bear continued to act as a qualified guide, clearing the path ahead with his small knife while explaining the various creatures they encountered to Zhang Heng.

"The python we met last night isn't the only hunter in this forest. When pythons eat, they usually start swallowing their prey whole from the head. Their eyesight isn't good, and sometimes they encounter prey that's too large, which can cause their stomachs to burst. However, snakes have very strong digestive capabilities, often digesting flesh and bones completely. The animal skeletons we encountered earlier, some of which were relatively intact, don't look like they died by its hand."

Zhang Heng silently noted this trivia. Many things might seem useless at the time, but you never knew when they might come in handy.

For example, Ed and Shorts Kid hadn't taught him how to make salt from seawater, but he had managed to get relatively pure edible salt using heating and crystallization, along with repeated filtration, based on a short video he'd seen on a certain bullet comment website. This was what made their food palatable.

Speaking of which, when Zhang Heng was in elementary school, he had visited Xishuangbanna with his maternal grandfather. The forest park there had left a deep impression on him.

However, that place was artificially developed. For safety reasons, only a small portion was open to tourists. Zhang Heng had never seen such a completely natural tropical rainforest before. Moreover, according to Bear, the biodiversity here was extremely rich. This truly opened Zhang Heng's eyes.

For instance, he saw a small green frog by the roadside with semi-transparent abdominal skin. It was only 1-2 centimeters long, and from below, you could clearly see its heart, liver, and digestive tract. It was truly magical.

"Glass frog. They usually inhabit the tropical rainforests of Central and South America. There are currently 134 known species of glass frogs worldwide, sixty of which are endangered," the explorer said, carefully placing the small creature back onto a leaf.

"What about this one?" Zhang Heng pointed to a tumor-like protrusion on a banyan tree, which had even grown new branches.

"Oh, that's a Staghorn Fern. It's an epiphytic plant of the Staghorn Fern family. When young, it's tender green, turning light brown as it matures. They usually grow on the trunks or branches of other trees and are quite common in tropical rainforests."

Besides these, Zhang Heng also saw a Flying Lemur. It was neither a cat nor a monkey, with bat-like wings that enveloped its neck, limbs, and tail. When spread, they allowed it to glide through the air, looking quite playful. Then there was the Giblin Bahira Jumping Spider, the world's only herbivorous spider, which fed on leaf buds. The name was so awkward; Zhang Heng had to confirm it with Bear three times and still found it hard to believe. He also saw a Bird of Paradise, also called the Bird of Paradise. Its call sounded like a gunshot, which startled Zhang Heng when he first heard it. But its appearance was beautiful, especially its tail feathers with their color gradient...

Bear couldn't help but exclaim, "This place is a biological paradise! It's the first time I've seen so many tropical plants and animals from different regions gathered together. It's incredible. Biologists would fall in love with this land if they knew about it."

Just then, Zhang Heng seemed to step on something. He bent down and picked up an animal tooth, with a round hole at the base.

"This thing looks man-made. Natural holes are usually not this regular," Bear said after taking the tooth and examining it closely. "I know some indigenous people use the teeth of their prey as ornaments to show off their strength. The fiercer the prey, the more it proves their power, making it easier for them to choose a desired partner. I had a friend who went to hunt lions alone on the savanna to marry the most beautiful woman in their tribe, but he never returned."

"..."

There was a reason why fewer people lived abroad. Zhang Heng chose not to comment on the wisdom of such behavior. He was more concerned about another issue: "So, there are still indigenous people living on this island? They aren't cannibals, are they?"

Bear shook his head. "Unlikely. This island isn't that large. You said you've been living here for over a year. If there were other people on the island, you should have met them by now... Besides, this looks quite old."

"So, indigenous people did live here in the past?" Zhang Heng broke out in a cold sweat. If those natives were still alive, he and Ed might have been captured and cooked on their first day on the island.

"Well, let's walk down a bit further."

Bear's interest was piqued. As an explorer, lost civilizations held an irresistible allure for him. He had even forgotten that he was looking for a way to leave the island and return to civilization. The two continued to advance towards the center of the island.

They had already covered about half the distance. As they ventured deeper, they discovered more and more traces of human habitation.

Looking at the completely decayed huts and stone tools covered in moss, Bear was certain that a native tribe had lived here in the distant past.

What had happened to them? Why had they all disappeared by today? The explorer grew increasingly curious.