Shipwreck

After dinner that evening, they sat together chatting when Xiaogang, Jack's monkey, suddenly jumped down from the roof, startling everyone. Gale had the biggest reaction and nearly jumped straight up on the spot. After that, no one was in the mood to chat anymore, and they all returned to their rooms to rest.

However, Jack did not immediately return to his cabin. He went into the wheelhouse and discussed some matters with Bill before going back to rest.

The next morning, a sound suddenly came from beneath the boat, and the vessel gave a slight jolt. Achuan, who was steering, suddenly found that the wheel would not turn. He hurriedly said to Bill beside him, "Bill, the boat's stuck!"

Bill tried it and found that it really was stuck. He cursed under his breath, then hurried down into the cabin, slapping several cabin doors as he went. "Everyone, get up!"

Evan had gotten up early and was sitting at the stern with Sam, teasing Xiaogang the monkey. Seeing Bill in such a panic, he asked, "Bill, what happened?"

Bill lifted a wooden panel, beneath which was the boat's engine. After checking it over, Bill said grimly, "The engine liner is broken!"

Sam, standing nearby, asked worriedly, "Will we be okay?"

"Bill, what happened?"

Jack and the others came out of the cabin and began asking questions. Bill only answered that they were in trouble before hurrying back to the wheelhouse.

Not knowing what had happened, Jack asked Evan, "Evan, what's going on?"

Evan shrugged. "Looks like there's a problem with the engine."

Hearing that, Jack's expression turned ugly. He said unhappily, "If there's a problem with the engine, why did Bill go to the wheelhouse instead of fixing it?"

Evan rolled his eyes helplessly. I'm not Bill. How would I know?

Sam comforted Jack. "Jack, panicking won't help. Bill is the captain. He'll naturally find a way to solve it."

That was indeed the case. No one present knew how to repair a boat, so they could only wait patiently for Bill to resolve the problem. After a while, Evan heard what sounded like a waterfall ahead. He quickly walked to the side of the boat and looked forward, only to see a great deal of mist floating above the river not far away.

"Damn it!" Evan cursed inwardly at the sight. The drifting mist was clearly spray thrown up by a waterfall. He hurried into the storage room, took the long gun case from his storage space, packed the seven double-barreled hunting rifles and some ammunition from the floor into it, then put it back into his storage space.

Just as Evan came out, Achuan came down from the wheelhouse as well and shouted at Jack and the others, "Everyone, hold on tight!"

At that point, Jack and the others had all clearly seen the waterfall ahead. Their faces turned deathly pale as they hurriedly found something to cling to. Evan tightly grabbed a rope as well, lest he be thrown out when the boat went over the waterfall.

Amid Sam and the others' screams, the boat plunged down the waterfall and hit the water with a splash. Unfortunately, the bottom of the boat slammed into a huge rock on the waterfall's cliff face. The cascading water struck the hull and overturned the entire boat. When everyone surfaced and swam over to it, they found a huge hole in the bottom, with river water constantly pouring into the boat through it.

Seeing this, Bill shouted, "The boat's sinking! Head for the shore!"

The group swam toward the shore. Just before reaching land, Evan took the long gun case out of his storage space. The moment it appeared in the river, it was soaked by the water.

After everyone got ashore and took stock, they found that only a few things had been brought up. Kerr said dejectedly, "Other than one satellite phone, all the equipment is ruined."

Gale wanted to call for help and wait for rescue, but Bill said it would take several days for rescuers to arrive. They had no food, only water, and even if the rescue team came, they would first have to get past that waterfall. Finally, Bill pointed at the map and explained, "I have a friend who operates a boat on the Toku River. I can contact him and have him wait for us at Danaga Rock. We can cross the jungle and reach Danaga Rock before nightfall."

Jack's eyes lit up. "We can take his boat and keep looking for the Blood Orchid!"

Bill nodded. "That's right. I'll take you to find the flowers!"

"Evan, what do you think?" Gale asked Evan.

Evan had his mind set on the Blood Orchid and naturally did not want to give up just like that. He kicked the bag at his feet and said, "I agree with Bill's plan. After all, I brought this up with me."

Bill opened the bag and found guns and ammunition inside. He said happily, "Great! With these, our safety is guaranteed."

Bill gave Jack and each of the others a double-barreled hunting rifle. When he saw the Remington M870 Shotgun at the bottom and reached for it, Evan handed him the last double-barreled hunting rifle instead and said with a smile, "Bill, I prepared that one for myself."

"Fine." Though he coveted the Remington shotgun, Bill still only took his double-barreled hunting rifle.

With guns in hand, Jack and the others felt more confident and agreed to Bill's plan. While Bill called his friend, Evan had everyone load their guns, lest it be too late to do so when danger struck.

After Bill contacted his friend, they set off. Bill gave his gun to Achuan and led the way at the front, using a machete to cut through the vines and branches blocking their path and carve out a route.

Since wild beasts in the primeval jungle liked to attack prey from behind, Evan took up the rear to protect Jack and the others.

Jack and the others had lived in the city all their lives. After walking through the jungle for only half an hour, they were already tired and breathlessly struggled to keep up with Bill and Achuan.

Ben, the doctor traveling with them, had fallen in love with his female assistant Sam at first sight. After helping Kerr carry a backpack, he passed Sam and said with a smile, "You only see what a real man is like in a crisis."

"Yes, I can see that." Sam answered while looking ahead at Bill's figure.

Ben naturally noticed the way Sam was looking at Bill and said stiffly, "Well... that doesn't count for anything!"

Ben walked to the front and took the machete from Bill, raising his eyebrows at Sam to imply that he could do it too. Watching this, Evan thought sympathetically, "Sigh! A simp who keeps simping will end up with nothing."

Suddenly, Evan felt a weight settle on his shoulder. Xiaogang, the white-throated monkey, had jumped down from a tree onto his shoulder and wrapped its arms around Evan's neck. Evan turned to look at the monkey, and the monkey stared back at him with wide eyes. Man and monkey simply gazed at each other. Seeing that Xiaogang had no intention of leaving, Evan guessed it did not want to walk anymore. He found it rather amusing and said, "You really are a lazy monkey!"

In the end, Evan did not drive the monkey away and continued onward with it.

After traveling for about three hours, a large river blocked their path. Bill went down first to test the depth and found that the water only reached their waists. They slowly waded across, while the monkey, which disliked touching the water, leaped onto a branch and crossed through the trees.

When they reached the middle of the river, Evan's danger sense suddenly reacted. The monkey in the trees also screamed a warning at them. Thinking the monkey was making a fuss again, Bill sternly said, "Hey, stop fooling around."

Animals were far more sensitive to danger than humans. Xiaogang's screams were warning them that danger was approaching. Although Evan did not understand what the monkey's cries meant, his danger sense had reacted, which meant something capable of threatening him was nearby. He immediately shouted, "Bill, get everyone across the river! There's danger in the water!"

"Evan, what is it?"

"What danger?"

Unlike Jack and the others, who asked curiously, Bill and Achuan saw Evan's serious expression and knew he was not joking. They immediately said to Jack and the others, "Stop asking questions! Get ashore, now!"