"We rowed for a long time through the fog and then came to this island. After landing, Anderson was filled with deep remorse. He was the first mate and should have been with Captain Church. He said he felt like a deserter. I know he wasn't. He was a brave man who only went on board the lifeboat to save me and Mrs. Larry, and only did so on Captain Church's orders."
Pardik was already injured, and this ordeal aggravated his condition. We found a sheltered spot on the island to wait for rescue, hoping that someone would come to our aid once the fog cleared. But we were also very worried because once the fog lifted, we would have nowhere to hide. Several times, I dreamt of being chased by helicopters while I was asleep.
Later, the fog cleared, and no helicopters came after us, but no one came to rescue us either. We waited on the island for three days, and the little food and water we had brought from the lifeboat quickly ran out. Anderson said we had to be prepared to survive on the island for a long time, like Tom Hanks in " Cast Away."
We made a last-ditch effort, setting fire to large piles of dry branches and burning them day and night, hoping the flames and black smoke would attract the attention of passing ships. But this was probably the most foolish thing we did, because we never imagined there would be savages on the island, and that the firelight would draw them there.
Anderson took two sailors into the island's jungle to find food and water, while Mrs. Larry and I stayed behind to take care of Pardik, who was unable to move easily.
Not long after Anderson and his men left, the savages arrived.
I was gathering dry branches in the nearby woods to keep the fire burning when I heard Mrs. Larry shout, "Alice, run! Hide! Don't come out!"
Her cries were so urgent, even a little hysterical, that I'd never heard before. She was a serious person, never one to smile or shout. Her cries terrified me. I didn't know what was happening, so I hurriedly dropped the branch I was holding and hid in a crevice behind a rock, peering down at where we were staying.
I saw Pardik being thrown beside a fire; his injuries were severe, and he must have been in excruciating pain. I could almost feel that agonizing agony, a feeling that tormented me greatly. But what happened next made me realize that hell truly exists.
Alice trembled as she spoke, her eyes filled with immense fear, as if she had seen a demon crawling out of hell.
Su Huilan put her arm around Alice's shoulder and comforted her, "Don't be afraid, Alice, everything will be alright, you have to be strong!"
Alice nodded vigorously:
"I know, I know, I must be strong, as strong as Mrs. Larry! She is the strongest woman in the world, my role model! If it weren't for her gaze, I don't think I would have survived. My Tushu and I would have been terrified to death by what I saw!"
Pardik lay on the ground groaning. Mrs. Larry was tied up, and I could see her perfectly from where I was. I think she saw me too. I could read her eyes; she was trying to comfort me, telling me not to panic and to live on.
Those savages, armed with spears and bows and arrows, were searching the forest. If I had gone just a few more steps, they would have found the crevice in the rock where I was hiding.
Mrs. Larry suddenly screamed, like a madwoman. The savages' attention was drawn to her, and the leader went back and slapped her twice. She stopped screaming, and they stopped looking for me.
A savage stabbed Pardik to death with a spear, right in his neck. I saw him open his mouth as if to say something, but only blood flowed out.
I was terrified and forgot to close my eyes. I stared at his body, as if I had lost my soul, watching it go from convulsing to finally becoming still.
They stripped Pardik of his clothes, tied him to a stick, and lit a fire. Good heavens! These savages were treating him like their prey!
They stripped Mrs. Larry naked again. I thought she would suffer the same fate as Pardik, but I was wrong. They raped her, taking turns to vent their lust on her like a pack of hyenas sharing an antelope.
This is hell! At that moment, I was absolutely certain!
My heart was filled with despair, and I didn't even have the courage to cry out to God. I forgot about running away; all I wanted was to gouge out my own eyes and then kill myself to avoid being violated by those beasts.
But I saw Mrs. Larry's eyes.
Even under those circumstances, there was not a trace of cowardice or sorrow in her eyes. What I saw in her eyes was not despair and fear, but strength!
I remember my wife saying that when we choose the path of archaeology and science, we choose truth. We will always pursue truth and experience reality, using our knowledge and actions to unearth the truth that has long been obscured by civilization, and to see the past and possible future of a real world. In the face of truth, all vanity, joy, sorrow, anger, fear and desire are fleeting. Only by overcoming these can we truly grasp our true selves and the universe.
She did it.
If it weren't for her encouraging look, I think I would have died then and there's no way I could have held on until Anderson and the others came back.
I looked into the woman's eyes, watched those beasts ravage her, and I didn't close my eyes. I knew this was reality—real hell!
When Anderson and his group returned, the savages were gone, and all that remained of Pardik was a pile of bones. Mrs. Larry had been taken back by the savages as spoils of war.
I was still behind the crevice in the rocks when Anderson found me. He was horrified because I was completely stiff, like a zombie. And because my eyes were wide open and I had shed too many tears, I had experienced temporary blindness.
Anderson thought I was dead. He said my eyes were full of blood and looked horrible. I told them what was truly terrifying was what my eyes had seen. I would rather be blind forever than see that happen again.
I told them everything I had seen, and the three men were shocked. Then, they had a heated argument. Anderson thought they should follow the savages' tracks to rescue Mrs. Larry, even though her chances of survival were slim. The other two sailors disagreed, believing that what they should do now was get out of this hellhole before the savages discovered their hidden lifeboat.
Anderson said we had weapons, but the sailors thought a few pistols wouldn't be enough to deal with so many savages, and we had no idea how big the island was, while these savages were clearly the natives.
Finally, they looked to me for help, but I was at a loss. It wasn't that I didn't want to save Mrs. Larry, nor was I afraid of death; I would rather trade my own life for hers. But then I seemed to see that terrifyingly calm look in her eyes again. I could read it; she definitely didn't want me to do something meaningless.
I said to them in an almost indifferent tone: Get on the boat, let's leave here.
Anderson looked at me in surprise, but he still agreed.
We quickly buried Pardik's remains, boarded the lifeboat, and left.
As I watched the coastline recede into the distance, I felt like a ghost hastily fleeing hell, rushing towards reincarnation in the human world. But another soul remained on the island, eternally tormented in a dark and hopeless hell.
Anderson exclaimed in surprise shortly after the boat had set off.
I turned my head and saw the hazy mountain shadows appearing on the sea ahead. The mountain shadows gradually became clearer, and I could see the lines of the undulating mountain ridges. They were not only opposite us, but in all directions.
The vast ocean we were on has turned into a large lake.