Having finally reached the top, Song Shi'an looked into the distance, then pointed ahead and said to the camera, "There's a patch of trees over there whose canopies are shorter than the surrounding trees. There should be a water source underneath. Let's spend the night there, and tomorrow we can walk along the river and reach the shore faster."
The comments section followed the direction of his finger, but all they could see was green; they couldn't make out anything.
"What did he say? The tree canopy is shorter? To me it's all lush green."
"How did he figure that out? I can't even tell the difference between two trees."
"Let me give you some background: An'an is a top student from one of the best universities in China, so these things are no challenge for him."
"I see. I'll keep an eye on the mainland explorers; their performance so far is quite interesting."
Song Shi'an slid down the tree trunk, and after landing, he ran in the direction he had just chosen.
The rainforest was uneven, and he sometimes walked around fallen, rotting logs, and sometimes pushed aside ferns that were taller than him, without stopping for a moment.
After running for about an hour, we passed through the last thicket of bushes, and suddenly the view opened up before us. A river more than ten meters wide appeared in front of us, and the sunlight on the water was broken into golden patches.
The live chat exploded with comments.
"There really is a river! He just pointed randomly from the tree and he actually found it!"
"All I see is green. How did he figure that out? The difference is too big!"
The fans were incredibly excited and had already shared the live stream link in various groups.
More and more passersby clicked in, and even those who weren't initially interested in adventure were drawn in by the lively chat and couldn't leave once they were in.
"Huh? I came here to check the logistics, why haven't I left after clicking in for so long?"
"Bro, you reminded me, I still have a package to pick up, I'll come back later."
Song Shi'an found a spot on the riverbank with a fast-flowing current and washed the wounds on his hands from the bushes in the cool river water.
After walking for most of the day, he was so thirsty that his throat was parched. He squatted down by the river to observe the water quality. He could see small fish and freshwater shrimp swimming in the water, which meant that the water quality was not bad.
He opened his backpack and rummaged through it; he found a flint, a water bottle, and a dagger—all the basic survival tools he needed.
If he were really allowed to start a fire by hand, he might be dead by now.
The audience was waiting to see him drink water, but instead he pulled out a dagger and started digging a hole on the slope by the river.
The camera was focused on his hand as he dug the dagger into the soil, creating a shallow, round pit about thirty centimeters below the river's surface.
The audience was completely baffled.
"What are you doing? Aren't you thirsty? There's water in the river."
Song Shi'an continued working and offered a few words of explanation.
My throat was a little hoarse from not drinking water for half a day, and my voice was slightly hoarse. "I haven't had water for half a day. You must keep your water supply plentiful when you're in the wild, but river water has a lot of bacteria and parasites. Drinking it directly without filtering can easily cause diarrhea, and people with sensitive stomachs might not be able to get out of there."
"This pit is below the water level, so the river water will slowly seep in. The soil layer can filter out most of the silt and insect eggs, making the seeping water much clearer."
The style of the comments suddenly turned into classroom notes.
"Wow... I probably won't use it in this lifetime, but I just inexplicably took it to heart."
"Does Teacher Song offer classes? Could you also go over some past college entrance exam questions? I really need them."
"High school seniors should focus on doing practice problems! What are you doing watching live streams!"
"Isn't this just learning whatever I see? What if the geography exam on college entrance tests wilderness survival skills?"
Song Shi'an knew nothing about bullet comments. He dug a seepage pit and then found leaves, moss, and fine sand, layering them to make a simple filter.
After the water was filtered and poured into a kettle, a small fire was started by lighting dry leaves with a flint and steel, and the water was boiled. After working for most of the day, I finally got to drink my first sip of water today.
He leaned against the tree trunk with the water bottle in his hand, took two sips, and felt his whole body slowly unfold from a withered state.
After finishing his water, he glanced into the river. In the clear water, several freshwater shrimp were swimming leisurely among the rocks, each one plump and full of roe, completely unaware that they had been targeted.
Song Shi'an squatted by the river, staring at the shrimp for a long time. He then clasped his hands together and muttered, "I'm sorry, I still have several more days to endure. You'll have to make yourselves guests in my stomach."
The viewers in the live chat burst out laughing instantly.
Shrimp: Eat if you want, no need for all this polite talk about being a guest.
"You're such a vicious human being! Did I say I wanted to be a guest?!"
"Are all mainland Chinese people this funny? I want to learn Chinese."
"He told the snake, 'You can keep sleeping,' and the shrimp, 'Please come as guests.' This person has a very peculiar attitude towards the food chain."
Song Shi'an rolled up his trousers above his knees, took off his combat boots, and stepped barefoot into the cool river water.
He had no intention of catching them one by one; that would take forever.
He found a spot in the shallows with many crevices between the rocks, used his dagger to pry open a rock, and then quickly built a small dam upstream with mud and sand, while downstream he wove a simple trap net with branches and vines.
The water flow was cut off, and the water level dropped rapidly. The freshwater shrimp that had been hiding in the crevices of the rocks were exposed and rushed towards the trap net with the current.
Song Shi'an was quick-witted and agile, grabbing one from the left and one from the right, catching them one by one.
The viewers in the live chat were stunned.
"Is this person here for exploration or for aquaculture?"
While other livestreamers are enjoying sour fruit, this person is already preparing a seafood feast for themselves.
"I've memorized that dam interception method; I'll try it next time I go to the stream."
Soon, a large leaf was covered with lively freshwater shrimp.
Song Shi'an found a few flat stone slabs by the river, washed them clean, and built a simple stove.
First, place a few shrimp on a stone slab and heat it to extract shrimp oil. The orange-red shrimp oil sizzles and bubbles on the stone slab, and the aroma wafts far away on the river breeze.
He explored the nearby mangrove forest for a while, and when he returned, he was holding a few white olive leaves in his hand. He explained to the camera, "A layer of white salt crystals will precipitate on the surface of these leaves. After drying, they can be used as a substitute for salt. There's no shortage of seasonings in the rainforest; you just don't recognize them because they grow on trees."
The viewers in the live chat were completely convinced.
"Bai Lanli? How does he know everything?"
"I told you he was climbing the tree to survey the terrain; this guy has a living map in his head."
"Compared to the others who are so hungry they're eating live insects, this guy is living a really comfortable life."
The shrimp oil was ready, and the salt was also ready. Song Shi'an placed the remaining shrimp one by one on the stone slab. The shrimp shells quickly turned red and curled up under the high temperature. The shrimp oil and salt crystals melted together, and the sizzling sound mixed with the sound of the river. The scene was so relaxed that it didn't seem like an adventure.
He used a dagger to cut two thin branches, peeled off the bark to use as chopsticks, and picked up a grilled shrimp that was reddish-brown and oily.
I was trying to lose weight a while ago and watched mukbang videos every night. I even copied them by holding a shrimp up to the camera and waving it around, saying, "Fans, eat first."
The comments section was completely overwhelmed.
"How am I supposed to eat this?! Are you expecting me to bite into my phone through the screen?!"
"I can't even enjoy the food he eats when he's doing wilderness survival, even when I order takeout at home!!"