Searching for firewood wasn't exactly difficult just picking up dry branches and rotten planks from around the area.
Well, it wasn't hard for Lin Qianyi and Rena. For Su Mandong, though, it was a whole other story.
She had been wearing high heels before arriving here. Now, she had merely wrapped some cloth around her feet. It worked okay on the beach, but any movement inland became extremely difficult.
So after picking up two random planks, she just sat down and gave up.
It's not that she lacked a will to survive she probably believed that with today's technology, a passing satellite would soon locate them.
Even with inefficient response times, she figured they'd be rescued by a helicopter or boat in a day at most.
Realistically, Lin Qianyi would've thought the same, going by his prior knowledge.
But unfortunately, this situation was riddled with oddities.
According to the background info implanted in Lin Qianyi's mind by the "Lord God," the tech level of this world wasn't low. In a major nation like Xianghao, incidents involving sea travel were rare and if they occurred, they shouldn't be this catastrophic.
No warning, and suddenly their ship Breaking Wave was overturned by a typhoon with very few survivors. The facts just didn't add up.
It clearly wasn't just a natural disaster.
Combined with the Lord God's mission, rescue within a short period was nearly impossible.
Seeing Su Mandong give up, Lin Qianyi didn't bother persuading her. Rena was even less likely to. She looked over, hesitated as if to speak, then silently returned to collecting firewood.
Lin Qianyi quietly gathered wood and moved to a sheltered spot, out of their sight.
Then, he entered his farming space.
In the blank surroundings, a bright green Bone-Cleansing Herb seedling stood out.
It was only two inches tall.
This plant required extremely harsh conditions and had an exceptionally long growth cycle. In the Deep Space Federation, one plant could go for at least 500,000 credits.
But the seeds were cheap just 100 each.
That's how Lin Qianyi could afford one.
It had been growing for nearly seven months. Harvesting it now felt like a waste.
But with no food source yet, he had no choice he needed a stable supply of food quickly.
And the farming space was the key.
With a thought, the rusty sickle inside the space floated up.
> [Prompt: Do you want to harvest the current plant?]
"Yes."
The sickle swiftly cut down the Bone-Cleansing Herb.
> [Prompt: Acquired 1 Bone-Cleansing Herb Seedling.]
It appeared in his storage. Lin Qianyi focused on it, and a description surfaced:
> [Bone-Cleansing Herb Seedling (Normal)]: An immature herb with mild body-tempering effects. [Effect Boosted]
[Effect Boosted]: The herb's medicinal effect is doubled.
Lin Qianyi made a bitter face.
Good news: a positive trait came up.
Bad news: the plant wasn't mature. Even with double the potency, its effect would be only slightly better than low-grade herbs.
Harvest done, now it was time to plant.
In his 1-cubic-meter warehouse were all sorts of seeds he had collected fruits, trees, spices, staples all high-quality strains.
Thanks to the special nature of the farming space, even a twig could grow into a full plant.
His awareness swept through: bamboo, dates, tea fruit, chili, peach pits, avocados, corn, potatoes...
Then his attention landed on some soft, fibrous clumps in a corner fungal spores.
That's right fungi could also be grown in the farming space.
They sprout from the ground too, so it counts as farming, right?
His staple crop seeds were decent too, some maturing in a month but fungi grew faster.
Some mushrooms matured in just a few days and had high yields.
His first bucket of money after transmigrating? Earned from selling mushrooms.
All fungal strains were labeled. He quickly found the one he wanted:
> [Rockstone No. 3]
An edible mushroom cultivated in Taiyi Territory, it grew to full size in four days. The cap could reach 35 cm in diameter and weigh over 1 kg. It looked like a gray-white stone.
It wasn't even the biggest he had he had a species that could grow over 2 meters long and weigh 50 kg, but it took over three months, with most growth in the final month.
He took a spore ball, separated a few threads, and mentally confirmed the action:
> [Prompt: Use this seed for planting?]
"Yes."
The spores dropped into the soil.
In four days, he'd have 1 kg of mushrooms. With luck, a bonus trait might appear.
After planting, he returned the rest of the spores and exited the farming space.
Back in the real world, he resumed gathering food. On a nearby reef, he found some small shells and brought them to the beach.
He tried chatting with Rena, but she was introverted, physically and emotionally exhausted, and cautious due to the unfamiliar environment. All he got were a few weak, vague replies.
So he didn't push further just helped out more actively when she moved firewood.
Su Mandong, seeing this, smirked mockingly, thinking Lin Qianyi was being a typical simp.
She almost made a sarcastic comment, but held back. It wasn't right to criticize while doing nothing.
Though bitter and resentful from their ordeal, she still retained some rationality and didn't let her emotions fully take over.
By evening, He Yanghui and Zhou Yun returned.
They carried many plastic bottles filled with murky water and some green fruits.
"There are mangoes on the island. Not ripe, but they can provide some vitamins," said He Yanghui.
Su Mandong stepped forward to grab one, but stopped when Zhou Yun glanced at her.
He Yanghui pulled a dagger from his belt, carved a wooden stick, and started fire-making by friction.
Soon, smoke and flame appeared he was clearly experienced.
"Uncle He, you're amazing!"
Lin Qianyi immediately flattered him like a fanboy.
"We go through survival training every year," He Yanghui replied with a smile. "You never know when you'll be stuck in an extreme environment."
"Your company sure is forward-thinking," Lin Qianyi admired.
"Things like this have happened before just not recently," said He Yanghui. "Bring the firewood. We'll make a smoke signal, then move to a wind-shielded spot to build a shelter."
Everyone followed instructions. As smoke rose, morale improved.
Under his guidance, they lit another fire in a sheltered spot, laid down grass to form bedding not completely dry, but enough to reduce bug bites.
Nearby, the murky water was being filtered using a belt-mounted device He Yanghui had. Once sealed onto a bottle top, it produced cleaner water. After boiling, it was safe to drink.
"Uncle He, your belt's like Doraemon's pouch!" Lin Qianyi joked.
"Haha, not that magical," He Yanghui laughed. "This multifunction survival belt includes: a dagger, folding water filter, fishing line, hook, fire starter (though wet now), a small bottle of antibiotics, and the belt itself can double as a climbing rope."
"You bought this yourself?"
"Nope, company-issued. Actually, on the other side of the ship was a large escape raft with supplies for ten people to survive half a month."
Lin Qianyi's eyes lit up.
He Yanghui must be the key to this survival trial.
He had tools and knowledge sticking with him meant likely surviving the three months.
Soon, He Yanghui finished boiling water and had Lin Qianyi pour it into clean plastic bottles. Then he sliced some green mango into each bottle.
"Boiling the mango reduces sourness, makes it easier to eat," he explained. "Xiao Yi, distribute these to the others they're hot, so tell them to drink slowly."
Lin Qianyi's flattery paid off he was entrusted with food distribution.
It didn't mean real authority yet, but it did earn him goodwill from everyone.
"On it."
Using clothes as hand protection, he handed the makeshift cups to the tired group by the fire.
Rena thanked him softly. Su Mandong took it without comment. Zhou Yun nodded slightly in thanks.
Lin Qianyi then returned to He Yanghui's side, sipping his own cup slowly.
His portion had more mango, but it was extremely sour. Even so, he chewed and swallowed without complaint, understanding how precious food was.
The others also ate in silence despite their expressions.
He Yanghui didn't drink he was still working. With his dagger, he cut up a torn fishing net, tying it to a stick.
"Uncle He, what are you doing?"
"Making fishing rods. I'll place them by the shore tonight. Might catch something by morning."
Lin Qianyi nearly cried from gratitude.
You're too reliable, Uncle, with you around, I can finish my mission for sure!