Desert Island Survival Arc (12)

Zhang Heng wasn't too surprised, mainly because he knew this was just a game, so theoretically, he wouldn't be too surprised even if he found Winnie the Pooh deep in the forest.

However, for now, Zhang Heng had to admit that everything around him was incredibly real. If it weren't for the extra 24 hours he had, which caused a major issue with his game time, he probably wouldn't have found any bugs.

Besides the houses and stone tools, the two also found a small lake nearby, about one hectare in size. Bear scooped up some water to taste and then said, "It's drinkable, a freshwater lake. No wonder they built their village near here."

Zhang Heng, however, was drawn to something half-submerged in the mud by the lake.

"This tribe... do they already possess the skill of smelting metal?"

Zhang Heng pulled the object out and found it to be a heavily rusted Iron Artifact. It seemed to have been attached to a piece of wood, but the wood had rotted beyond recognition. Zhang Heng studied it, but he couldn't figure out what it was used for.

Bear wasn't omniscient either; he also didn't know the purpose of the item. He analyzed, "Judging by the level of craftsmanship, they should still be in the Stone Age. So, this Iron Artifact likely doesn't belong to them."

It was getting late, and the two didn't press on. They simply found a spot nearby to start a fire and cook.

As the end of his journey drew nearer, Zhang Heng's mood became somewhat complex.

For over a year, the idea of going to the center of the island had been what motivated him to practice archery diligently and maintain his fitness. It had almost become an ingrained habit. But to say he truly cared about what was there, well, not really.

In that regard, Zhang Heng sometimes envied Ed, Bear, and the others. They could comfort themselves by thinking that perhaps a ship would dock tomorrow, or that something in the center of the island could help them go home. But as a player, Zhang Heng knew very well that if time didn't run out, he couldn't go anywhere.

Thinking that the mystery would be revealed tomorrow, he felt excitement and anticipation, after all, it was something he had been anticipating for a year. But more than anything, he felt a sense of bewilderment.

What would he live for after this was over?

Fortunately, four-fifths of the time had already passed. With the remaining hundred-plus days, even if he couldn't find a new goal, he could probably push through.

On the morning of the third day, Zhang Heng woke up very early. But when he opened his eyes, he found that Bear had woken up even earlier.

"Morning, Zhang," the explorer greeted him enthusiastically. "I just walked around the lake again. Guess what I found?"

"Uh... breakfast?"

"That's true, I did catch a catfish to change things up. But besides that, I found something else." Bear placed two small, rusty spheres into Zhang Heng's palm.

"What are these? Marbles?"

"These are bullets," Bear said.

"Solid bullets, how do they fire?" Zhang Heng blinked. He wasn't a weapons enthusiast, but he knew the basics. Modern weapons relied on the gunpowder inside the bullet to propel it, and without gunpowder, nothing could be fired.

"Remember what you found by the lake? I know what that is now." The explorer said excitedly, "A Flintlock Gun. These were widely used in Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. This type of weapon loaded gunpowder and bullets separately, ignited by a slow match... It was during the height of the black slave trade. The natives living here were likely attacked by slave traders and were all captured and sold to those farmers."

This deduction was reasonable and fit the situation they were seeing. Zhang Heng was about to accept this explanation. However, half a day later, when the two arrived at the center of the island and saw the building that resembled an altar, piled high with white bones, Zhang Heng asked the explorer beside him, "Were your European slave traders so brutal in the 15th and 16th centuries?"

"...This wasn't done by slave traders. That was a bloody and dark era. As far as I know, slave merchants did kill those who dared to resist when capturing black slaves, to deter others. Some would also kill those who were too old or too young to transport."

Bear walked to the altar and picked up a skull. "But... this doesn't seem like their style."

"If it wasn't the slave traders who killed the natives on the island, then who did? Could it have been themselves?" Zhang Heng's casual remark stunned both of them.

Upon closer inspection, the architectural style of this altar was very similar to the ruins they had encountered by the lake earlier.

"Okay, so the slave traders attacked the island, and these natives, seeing they couldn't win, ran to this altar and ended their own lives... That doesn't quite add up, does it?"

Bear walked to the center of the altar, among the pile of white bones. He squatted down and wiped the dust off a stone slab. "There's something else here. It's a totem, depicting a creature that is human from the waist up and a snake from the waist down. It seems to be the deity worshipped by those natives."

Zhang Heng was slightly disappointed. Although he didn't really care what was at the center of the island, he still felt dejected to find only native ruins that were of no use to him.

After all, this was something he had prepared for an entire year. The journey had been perilous, and he had almost been swallowed by a python. In the end, all he found were a pile of bones and an altar.

However, seeing that Bear seemed very interested in the pile of things, he didn't rush him.

The two had plenty of food and water. They had consumed less than half of what they brought, and Bear had hunted a lot of "wild game" along the way. Although most of it looked unappetizing, the taste was surprisingly good.

Zhang Heng was considering whether to just cross this forest to the other side of the island and then walk back to their lodging along the coastline.

But just then, a dark shadow suddenly darted out from behind the altar, lunging at the explorer above.

Zhang Heng was startled. This time, he didn't need Bear to explain; he recognized what it was.

—A Jaguar, the king of the rainforest. Its size and appearance were very similar to a tiger, with sharp teeth and claws. It could easily hunt caimans and was a large predator at the top of the food chain.

However, Bear's reaction was also swift. The explorer rolled on the spot, dodging the beast's thunderous attack, and then drew the small knife at his waist.

Zhang Heng quickly nocked an arrow to his bow, but then another Jaguar sprang out.

This time, Bear's expression changed as well.

No way?! Zhang Heng was shocked. According to the plan, the explorer's plot-related death was still four days away. If these Jaguars appeared so early, were they in the wrong script?

But there was no time for him to think further. Bear was in danger. No matter how skilled he was, he couldn't deal with two Jaguars alone. Zhang Heng drew his bow and aimed an arrow at the second Jaguar.

The latter agilely dodged with a leap. Zhang Heng wasn't surprised. They were about twenty-seven or twenty-eight meters apart. At this distance, his hit rate for shooting Mickey Mouse was only about fifty to sixty percent. The agility of a Jaguar was leagues beyond that of a Dodo Bird.