Zhang Shi built a fire, cut the two kinds of meat into large chunks, skewered them with plum branches, and slowly roasted them over the fire. The video call with Zhao Feng hadn't ended; Zhang Shi chatted intermittently, while Zhao Feng's attention was entirely focused on the roasting meat, occasionally reminding Zhang Shi to flip it over, afraid of burning it.
As the flames licked the plum tree branches, the aroma of meat gradually filled the air, mingling with the faint scent of fruit to create an indescribably enticing fragrance. Zhang Shi skillfully flipped the pieces of meat; the wild duck was plump, and golden fat dripped into the fire, sizzling and releasing an increasingly rich aroma that made Zhao Feng on the other side of the screen almost drool.
"Stone, your cooking is absolutely amazing! I can smell the aroma from here, and it's making my stomach rumble." Zhao Feng exaggeratedly rubbed his stomach, his face full of anticipation.
Zhang Shi smiled and shook his head, continuing his culinary endeavors, while also teasing, "Looks like you're really starving, you can even smell the aroma in the video. But speaking of which, plum wood with roasted meat does have a unique flavor."
As time went by, the meat gradually became crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with an enticing color. Zhang Shi finally nodded in satisfaction, took the roasted meat off the fire, cut it in two, and squeezed some plum juice over it.
"Eat it while it's hot."
Zhang Shi traded the extra luxury bed and a portion of barbecue for it.
Seeing this, Zhao Feng exaggeratedly made a gesture of opening his mouth to catch the meat, then received the supplies from the system, and eagerly took a big bite of meat, muttering as he chewed.
"Wow, your skills are amazing, Stone, you're my savior."
Zhang Shi smiled without saying a word, taking a bite of the roasted meat. The delicious flavor exploded in his mouth, bringing a satisfied expression to his face. As he savored the meat, he continued chatting with Zhao Feng, sharing their experiences exploring the wilderness that day. Upon learning that Zhang Shi had been bitten by a venomous snake, Zhao Feng's expression turned serious.
"Stone, haven't you noticed? The number of people in the regional chat channel has decreased again today, and by a lot."
Zhang Shi then noticed the number of people in the regional chat channel. His eyes narrowed; sure enough, the number of survivors still alive had dropped to 9553. In just one day, 400 people had logged off.
"The difficulty of this survival game has obviously increased significantly compared to yesterday. Today, many people in the chat channel have encountered attacks from wild animals. I'm worried that the situation will only get worse tomorrow..."
Despite their gloomy mood, the two still had good appetites and ate most of the barbecue. After reminding Zhao Feng to be careful, Zhang Shi hung up the video call. Frowning, he opened the regional chat channel. The chat channel was much more serious today; everyone was sharing experiences, and occasionally someone would post buying and selling information.
Cheng Xiaobai: Family, I got a piece of raw iron from a treasure chest today. There's a forest near my shelter, so I immediately made an Iron Axe (Blue) x1. I can collect more than 20 pieces of wood in an hour, which is much better than that broken stone axe I had before.
Zhu Dachang: I also got a high-level treasure chest today, but this time there was a giant raccoon that was as tall as my calf guarding it. It bared its teeth at me as soon as I got close.
Qian Duo: Holy crap, is it a lynx? Bro, you're too awesome! I'm waiting for the next episode.
Zhu Dachang: I got an iron spear before, and it didn't take much effort to scare it away. I also got pig iron from the treasure chest, but I haven't figured out how to use it yet.
Ge Dalong: It's probably a small feline like a serval. A lynx wouldn't be so easily scared away. @Zhu Dachang, safety is important. Be more careful next time and don't be so reckless.
Seeing this, Zhang Shi offered a reminder.
Zhang Shi (VIP): Everyone, I've noticed that many survivors have encountered wild beasts today. I suspect the difficulty of this wilderness world is gradually increasing. If you can, please get a weapon on hand, so you won't be caught off guard by wild beasts and have no way to protect yourself.
Sheng Mu: Hehe, who are you trying to scare? You didn't stockpile weapons in advance, hoping to make a fortune, did you?
Without pausing after sending the message, Zhang Shi switched back to the trading market.
"As more and more people upgrade their tools, basic resources will gradually become saturated. Their value will be greatly reduced, so we should take advantage of this opportunity to make a purchase now."
Zhang Shi's goals were food and water, two essential resources for survivors in the early stages of the wilderness world. He first purchased numerous barrel blueprints and crafted a batch of barrels. Then, he began buying large quantities of river water from Ge Dalong and Zhao Feng. Despite being close brothers, Zhao Feng initially refused, but Zhang Shi insisted. Fortunately, the price of river water had decreased again today; 1 liter of water could be exchanged for only 3 units of wood.
Zhang Shi wasn't surprised by this; he knew at least two people, Ge Dalong and Zhao Feng, who were selling water. The river water was virtually inexhaustible, making it extremely profitable, and a price reduction was inevitable.
After confirming that the backpack couldn't keep the food fresh, Zhang Shi put the remaining plums and snake meat on the market and also used a lot of resources to trade for some easily stored foods. Vacuum-packed foods such as bread, potato chips, and biscuits became his first choice.
By the early hours of the morning, Zhang Shi had used up almost all his resources, except for the materials he had reserved for upgrading the shelter, in exchange for a large amount of water and food. Unfortunately, the stone house blueprints were still nowhere to be found on the trading market. This was understandable; such important blueprints for upgrading shelters, even if someone obtained them, would likely keep them for their own use and wouldn't easily sell them.
Seeing that he didn't have any particularly urgent supplies, Zhang Shi bought a white-quality pillow design for the price of a blue-quality plum. These designs had extremely lenient material requirements, and Zhang Shi successfully made a pillow using the two rabbit skins and duck down he already had. Since he had the means, he absolutely couldn't let himself suffer.
As night fell, Zhang Shi gently blew out the flickering oil lamp, then carefully added a few pieces of firewood to the campfire, making the flames warmer and brighter. He slowly sank his head into the soft, cloud-like pillow, sliding into the warm and comfortable blankets, as if enveloped in a gentle embrace. His gaze inadvertently swept over the backpack full of resources beside him, and an indescribable sense of security and satisfaction welled up in his heart.
"Gala, gala."
Just as Zhang Shi was about to fall asleep, a piercing noise entered his ears, waking him up.
Zhang Shi sat up abruptly, lit the oil lamp, took out the old Duan, and moved closer to the source of the sound.
"Gala, gala."
The piercing sound continued, and Zhang Shi deduced that something outside was scratching at the wooden door. After a moment of internal struggle, Zhang Shi let out a furious roar.
"roll!"
The activity outside the door abruptly stopped, followed by the soft sound of footsteps crunching on the grass. Zhang Shi could tell that the thing had left. Just to be on the safe side, Zhang Shi waited ten minutes before cautiously opening a crack in the door to check.
The wooden door had several claw marks, but was not damaged, suggesting it was from a wild animal. Judging from its height, the animal wasn't very large, otherwise it wouldn't have been scared away by his shout.
Zhang Shi, still shaken, closed the wooden door and climbed back into bed. However, he couldn't sleep now; glancing at the time, it was almost midnight. Zhang Shi decided to kill time by opening a chat channel and waiting for tomorrow's check-in refresh.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com