Fleeing for His Life

The courtyard was deathly silent, a stark contrast to the faint, heart-pounding roars of beasts and cries of insects drifting in from outside. Chen An sat with his back against the cold, rough stone wall for more than ten minutes before finally suppressing the trembling left by his narrow escape.

"Absolute Safe Zone..." he repeated in a low voice, as if trying to touch the true meaning behind those words. Reason told him this was beyond imagination, but the peace his body felt, along with the crystal-clear system information in his mind, confirmed that this was no hallucination.

He drew a deep breath. The dense spiritual energy within the courtyard flooded into his lungs, bringing a slight dizziness but also greatly invigorating his spirits. He had to take action. Sitting around would not keep him alive in this hellish place.

His first task was to determine exactly where the "absolute safety" boundary lay and just how "absolute" it truly was.

He stood up, dusted himself off, and cautiously walked toward the courtyard gate. The half-rotted wooden door was still ajar, and through the gap he could see the perilous mountain forests of the Primordial Wilderness outside. He reached out, hesitated for a moment, and gently touched the threshold.

It was cold to the touch—ordinary wood. He took a deep breath and slowly stepped across the threshold with one foot.

Just as the sole of his foot was about to touch the ground outside, an indescribable sense of danger suddenly surged through him! It was as though his animal instincts had sounded the most desperate alarm, with every cell in his body screaming, "Danger!" The air outside seemed to turn viscous and malicious, and that omnipresent primeval pressure once again bore down clearly upon his soul.

He jerked his foot back. His heart pounded wildly, and cold sweat instantly soaked his back. There was only a hair's breadth between the two sides, yet the feeling was like heaven and hell. He had no doubt that if he fully stepped out of the courtyard, he might be torn to shreds by a Demonic Beast emerging from who knew where the very next second.

"Looks like the boundary is definitely this courtyard wall." He muttered to himself, gaining the most direct understanding of the system's capabilities. It reassured him, but also filled him with a trace of despair. He had become a prisoner trapped inside a safe house, with his range of movement limited to this small courtyard spanning only a few dozen paces.

Next came testing its ability to "block all external attacks."

He surveyed the courtyard, his gaze settling on a decayed wooden beam half-buried in the earth and as thick as his arm. After some effort, he pulled it out. It was heavy in his hands. Gripping the beam with both hands, he walked to the gate and carefully extended one end outside.

Then he held his breath and waited.

At first, nothing unusual happened. But several minutes later, a flying insect the size of a fist came buzzing over, attracted by the beam as a "foreign object." It resembled a dragonfly, but had a hideous mouthpart that gleamed with a metallic sheen. It circled the beam twice, seemingly puzzled, then suddenly dove and viciously jabbed its sharp mouthpart into the wood!

With a dull thunk, a small splinter was knocked off the beam.

Chen An's hand jolted in fright, and he nearly dropped the beam. The insect seemed to lose interest in the wood and flew away.

Chen An hurriedly pulled the beam back into the courtyard and examined it carefully. Other than the shallow pit left by the bite, the beam itself was unharmed. Moreover, when the insect attacked just now, the hand gripping the beam had felt no impact or vibration whatsoever.

"The attack was cut off... Or perhaps when the part of the beam outside the courtyard was attacked, the force couldn't travel to the hand inside?" he mused. This discovery was extremely important. It meant that even if something attacked the courtyard wall or a tool he extended outside, he would remain safe as long as he stayed inside.

To verify this further, he summoned his courage, took the half bottle of mineral water from his backpack, unscrewed the cap, and poured a small amount onto the ground outside the gate.

The water quickly seeped into the soil, and nothing unusual happened.

But he didn't dare pour out any more. Who knew whether the water here might attract something terrifying? He capped the bottle again. This half bottle of water was a lifesaving resource.

The initial boundary and safety tests were complete. The results were satisfactory and completely extinguished any thought of leaving in the short term. Now, he needed to thoroughly explore this tiny refuge and see whether he could find anything useful.

He first walked toward the well in the corner of the courtyard. A heavy stone slab half-covered the opening, its surface covered in moss. He pushed the slab aside with force, and a cool, damp mist rushed into his face. The well was deep; when he peered down, it seemed dark and bottomless. Still, the walls were solidly built from stone blocks and looked reasonably sturdy.

He picked up a small stone and tossed it down. Several seconds passed before a clear splash echoed up from below.

"There's water!" Chen An's spirits lifted. Having water meant half of the greatest problem of survival was solved. He needed to make something to draw it up with. There was no immediate rush, so he committed this important resource point to memory.

Next was the main stone house. It was even more dilapidated inside than when he had hurriedly inspected it the first time. Several obvious holes gaped in the roof, through which sunlight cast beams that illuminated the dust drifting through the air. The floor was littered with the remains of completely rotten wooden furniture that crumbled at a touch. In a corner, he found a severely rusted woodcutter's knife and an equally rusty hoe. Their wooden handles had already rotted away.

"Better than nothing." Chen An was not disappointed; instead, he was somewhat pleasantly surprised. Having metal tools meant they might be repairable. He carefully carried the knife and hoe outside and set them down.

Then he checked the thatched shed. It was completely empty, containing only a thick layer of dust. It seemed the previous owner had taken nearly everything usable when leaving.

Finally, there was the overgrown garden. The soil looked fairly good, dark and rich, but after years of neglect, it had become covered in all sorts of hardy weeds. He used his foot to part the grass and carefully examined the earth.

"Loose soil. It seems pretty fertile..." As a science and engineering man who had once dreamed of retiring to a quiet life in the countryside, Chen An possessed some basic agricultural knowledge. If he could cultivate the land and plant the seeds he had brought, he would have a long-term source of food!

After finishing his exploration, Chen An had gained a basic understanding of the small courtyard: it was safe, had a water source, possessed land that could be cultivated, and contained old but repairable tools. The basic conditions for survival were miraculously all present.

His powerful will to survive drove him to act immediately. His top priorities were repairing the tools and obtaining drinking water.

He picked up the severely rusted woodcutter's knife and chopped several relatively solid pieces of wood from the rotten beam. Without sandpaper, he could only find a fairly flat, rough stone. Dipping it in well water, he began patiently grinding away the rust on the knife.

"Scrape... scrape..." The monotonous friction echoed through the silent courtyard. It was a dull and exhausting process, and sweat soon dampened his forehead. But he remained utterly focused, concentrating all his attention on the task in his hands. Strangely, this feeling of focusing on concrete labor eased the fear and confusion in his heart.

After nearly an hour, the thick rust on the knife's surface had finally been mostly removed, revealing the dull but still sharp blade beneath. He then found a wooden stick of suitable thickness, trimmed it slightly with the knife, and barely fashioned it into a handle, securing the knife head in place.

It was crude, but a usable knife had been born!

A sense of achievement welled up within him. Using the same method, he began grinding the hoe.

At the same time, he carried out a simple "test" of the well water. He tied the mineral water bottle to a rope, lowered it into the well, and brought up a small amount of water. First, he examined it carefully. The water was clear, colorless, and odorless. He did not dare drink it directly, but dripped a few drops onto his wrist. There was no stinging or discomfort. He then cautiously licked a tiny bit. A sweet, cool sensation touched the tip of his tongue, with no strange taste.

"It should... be fine, right?" After hesitating again and again, his intense thirst ultimately overcame his caution. He took a small sip of the well water. An indescribably pure, sweet coolness instantly soothed his parched throat, as if a faint warm current had spread through his limbs and bones, even easing some of his fatigue.

"This water... is amazing!" Chen An was overjoyed. The well water was sweeter than any mineral water or spring water he had ever tasted, and it seemed to contain some kind of peculiar energy as well. No longer hesitating, he drank his fill, then refilled his mineral water bottle with well water.

With the tools repaired and the water source confirmed safe, Chen An's confidence soared. Watching the sun gradually slant westward, he knew he had to obtain some food before nightfall and find a relatively safe place to spend the night.

The stone house had holes in its roof and was clearly not an ideal choice. His gaze fell on the thatched shed. It was crude, but at least it could shield him from the wind and rain... if it rained at night.

He decided to use the thatched shed as his temporary "home." First, he cut some soft thatch with the woodcutter's knife and spread it across the shed to make a simple "bed." Then, holding the knife, he turned his gaze toward the courtyard gate.

He needed food, and food was very likely outside the courtyard. His experience testing the wooden beam had left him deeply apprehensive, but hunger forced him to take the risk.

He walked to the gate again. This time, instead of extending an entire tool, he stretched the woodcutter's knife outside and carefully prodded the grass a short distance from the gate with its tip. He hoped to find some edible plants nearby, or... with a little luck, catch a small animal.

The grass was parted, revealing the soil beneath and several unfamiliar, short plants. He saw no familiar wild vegetables and no trace of small animals. Somewhat disappointed, he was about to pull back the knife when the corner of his eye caught what seemed to be movement beneath a bush not far away.

It was an animal shaped somewhat like a wild rabbit, but smaller, with grayish-brown fur. It was nibbling on some red berries and seemed not to have noticed the activity near the gate.

Chen An's heart leaped into his throat. An opportunity!

He held his breath and slowly extended the woodcutter's knife fully outside, pointing the tip toward the small beast. It was roughly three or four meters away, far beyond the length of his arm. There was no way he could chop it.

What should he do?

His mind raced. Charging outside would be suicide. The only way was to lure it over, or... create an opportunity.

He looked at the knife in his hand, then at the small stones on the ground. An adventurous plan took shape in his mind.

He gently withdrew the knife and picked up several stones of suitable size. Then he drew a deep breath and hurled one with all his strength toward the bushes beside the small beast!

"Smack!" The stone struck the bush with a sharp sound.

The small beast was startled and jerked its head up, looking around warily. But it did not flee immediately, seemingly deciding that the sound did not constitute a direct threat.

Chen An's heart stirred. There was hope! The animal was highly alert, but it did not seem to be filled with the same aggression as the Demonic Beasts he had seen earlier.

He threw another stone, this time landing it closer to the small beast.

The small beast jumped backward and let out a warning "squeak," but it still did not flee far, apparently reluctant to leave the berry bushes.

Chen An waited patiently, lying behind the crack in the gate like a statue. Time passed second by second. When the small beast saw that there was no further danger, its wariness gradually relaxed, and it lowered its head to resume eating the berries. Every so often, however, it would look up and glance toward the courtyard gate.

Now!

Chen An seized the moment and accurately threw the third stone into the open ground directly in front of the small beast. The stone bounced after hitting the ground and happened to roll near the threshold!

The sudden disturbance came from a closer, "fresher" direction, finally startling the small beast completely. In its panic, it instinctively fled away from the source of the stone—the direction of Chen An's throwing arm—but that also seemed to be the only "open" path available: toward the courtyard gate!

It became a gray blur and charged straight at the gate!

Chen An's heart nearly burst from his chest! He had been ready for this moment. Just as the small beast's forepaws were about to cross the threshold, he abruptly swung the back of the woodcutter's knife down with all his strength!

"Bang!"

A dull impact rang out, accompanied by the faint sound of cracking bones. The knife struck the small beast squarely in the neck. Before it could even cry out, it went limp on the threshold, half its body inside the courtyard and half outside.

Success!

Chen An had no time to celebrate before an enormous danger followed! The thick smell of blood had already begun spreading. Heaven knew what it might attract!

Without hesitation, he used all his strength to drag the small beast's corpse completely inside the courtyard. Then he slammed the old wooden door shut and wedged it firmly with a wooden stick he had prepared while grinding the tools earlier!

After doing all this, he leaned against the door, slid down to the ground, and panted heavily. His entire body was drenched in sweat. As he looked at the prey beneath his feet, still carrying a trace of warmth, fear, excitement, and a hint of discomfort at his own ruthlessness mingled in his heart.

But he knew that in the Primordial World, mercy was suicide. He had taken his first step toward surviving on this cruel land.

Night quietly descended. Outside the courtyard, all kinds of terrifying roars rose and fell, far denser and more horrifying than during the day. Inside, Chen An lit a small bonfire with rotten wood and thatch. The orange-red flames danced, driving away the darkness and cold while bringing a faint yet vital sense of warmth and safety.

He butchered the small beast, his gaze occasionally sweeping over the dancing flames toward the boundless darkness beyond the gate, his expression complicated.

This was only his second day surviving in the Primordial Wilderness. The road ahead would be long and arduous.

(End of Chapter 2)