After overcoming numerous hardships, Wang Lun and Li Ling finally reached the mysterious island. Upon landing, they were awestruck by the boundless sea before them, but hunger quickly overwhelmed them, so they began searching the beach for something to eat. Fortunately, the beach was scattered with many colorful and uniquely shaped seashells, which became their initial source of food.
However, relying solely on seashells was clearly insufficient to sustain life in the long run, so they turned their attention to the tall, straight coconut trees on the island. After some effort, they successfully felled some coconut trees and tasted the sweet and refreshing coconut water. Thus, by collecting seashells and drinking coconut water, they tenaciously survived, day after day, unknowingly enduring for over ten days.
However, as time went by, the number of coconut trees on the island dwindled until even the last coconut tree was cut down, and the last coconut was drunk dry. At this point, they faced only one path—to venture into that wild forest filled with unknowns and dangers. The trees in this forest towered into the clouds, reaching over ten meters in height, their dense foliage intertwining to almost block out the sun, making the forest exceptionally dark and damp.
Despite the arduous journey ahead, Wang Lun and Li Ling did not give up. They trudged through the woods, stumbling and falling countless times. Just when they were beginning to despair, they suddenly heard the sound of flowing water. Following the sound, they found a crystal-clear water source. As if grasping at a lifeline, the two were overjoyed and immediately began swimming upstream.
As they walked, they came to a steep cliff. Looking up, the cliff face was as straight as if cut by a knife, inspiring awe. However, at the edge of the cliff, they were pleasantly surprised to find a hidden cave. This cave seemed to offer them temporary shelter, so the two of them walked towards it without hesitation.
As night fell, the temperature plummeted. Wang Lun and Li Ling huddled together, lighting a small campfire at the cave entrance. The flickering flames illuminated their tired yet resolute faces, offering a sliver of warmth. Using the faint light and their body heat, they struggled to withstand the extreme temperature difference of the night, hoping to safely pass through the long, cold darkness.
However, outside this seemingly peaceful cave, a group of uninvited guests quietly arrived. More precisely, someone had invaded their original home. And the protagonist among these uninvited guests was a massive wild boar! Its robust body was as large as a water buffalo, inspiring awe. Especially its two incredibly sharp tusks, like two gleaming daggers, exuded a chilling aura.
The wild boar trudged slowly to the cave entrance, its gaze instantly drawn to the fence blocking the entrance. A hint of confusion flickered in its eyes, as if it were bewildered by this sudden obstacle. But this confusion vanished as quickly as it appeared, replaced by boundless rage and frenzy. With a deafening roar, the boar charged straight at the flimsy fence like a runaway heavy truck.
How could a fence woven from shrubs withstand such a ferocious impact? With a sharp crack, the fence snapped, scattering into a pile of broken branches on the ground. This violent noise successfully roused Wang Lun and his companion from their slumber in the cave. While this gave them some time to react, facing such a massive and ferocious wild boar, even a seasoned veteran like Wang Lun or his companion would likely struggle to contend with it. Moreover, they were currently confined to the narrow cave, their movements restricted, with nowhere to escape.
Wang Lun and his companion scrambled to their feet in a panic, only to find themselves trapped inside the cave. The ferocious boar blocked the entrance, baring its fangs and claws, as if it would pounce and tear them to shreds at any moment. Escape was hopeless; their only chance of survival was to fight to the death. As for who would ultimately survive, it was all up to fate, a matter of luck.
Wang Lun gripped the incredibly sharp, gleaming longsword tightly, his arm trembling slightly; Li Ling held a shorter but equally sharp machete, her eyes resolute and determined. Not only that, but they also clutched a heavy iron pot tightly to their chests, as if it were their last line of defense. Thus, they prepared for a life-or-death battle with the wild boar.
Time ticked by, and ten minutes later, the once silent cave began to echo with the angry grunting of wild boars, a deafening and chilling sound. About half an hour later, the dust in the cave gradually settled. Looking closely, one could see horrifying bloodstains everywhere, but Wang Lun and Li Ling were nowhere to be found.
Looking at the wild boar again, its massive body had collapsed to the ground with a thud, only able to emit weak grunts. A closer look revealed the horrific state of its four hooves: two were completely broken, bones exposed and twisted in a contorted shape; the other two, while not broken, had suffered severe injuries, bleeding profusely and unable to support its body at all. Even more gruesome was the sight of several slashes to its head, the deepest and longest wound located near its eye, a long knife embedded directly inside, only the hilt protruding – a truly gruesome sight. Furthermore, its body was covered in numerous large and small, deep and shallow cuts, crisscrossing and tattering its once-thick and rough hide. However, aside from these obvious wounds, no other more serious injuries were visible.
Not far behind the large, tusked wild boar lying down, a long, winding trail could be clearly seen. Following this trail, its end pointed directly to the entrance of a cave at the foot of the mountain. Around the cave entrance was a fence woven from dense bushes.
Upon closer inspection, people are surprised to find numerous circular pits of varying sizes and regular shapes scattered across the ground. These pits appear quite ancient, and after some identification, they can be confirmed as tripping craters used in ancient warfare!
Furthermore, behind those tripping pits, there was a large pile of stones of various sizes. Judging from the scene, it's highly likely that someone planned to use these stones to build a sturdy stone wall. It's just unknown why this project was ultimately unsuccessful.
It must be said that Wang Lun and his team's idea was truly ingenious. First, they cleverly used the fence as the first line of defense. Under normal circumstances, if a wild animal wanted to force its way through the fence, it would need to possess extremely high running speed and tremendous impact force. However, for those weak wild animals that couldn't even break through the fence, there was nothing to fear. As long as everyone could hold their ground and hold out for a certain period of time, reinforcements would naturally arrive to help.
If a ferocious beast, powerful enough to break through the fence, were to appear, it would be met with hidden tripwires. These meticulously arranged tripwires were like deadly traps; once a beast fell into one, its hooves would be broken instantly, rendering it unable to move. At that moment, the once majestic beast would become nothing more than a meal for its prey.
Of course, to ensure absolute safety, Wang Lun and his team had prepared a final line of defense—an unfinished stone wall. With these three layers of robust defenses, their safety here should be assured.
However, fate always seems to enjoy playing tricks on people. Despite their meticulous planning and implementation of three countermeasures against danger, a terrible crisis quietly descended before they could all be completed. In the end, they had no choice but to end it all in a tragic and resolute way—mutual destruction!
The wild boar, unable to move, was trapped in the cave and unable to escape. Days passed, and its life gradually came to an end. Several days later, hunger and weakness mercilessly robbed it of its life, and it starved to death in the dark, damp cave.
Strangely enough, a dead wild boar like that should have quickly attracted the attention of other animals and become a target for their carcass. But for some reason, no other animals discovered the cave or the boar's carcass inside. Perhaps, as people say, this fenced wild boar was just incredibly lucky.
Days passed silently, and one day, a ragged and haggard man stumbled into the area and unexpectedly discovered the cave hidden deep in the forest. As he entered, a strong stench of decay assaulted his nostrils. Following the smell, he saw the highly decomposed carcass of a wild boar.
By this time, he was starving and extremely weak, lacking the strength to move the enormous wild boar out of the cave. Left with no other choice, he forced himself to endure the nausea and fear, remaining in the cave alongside the repulsive boar carcass.
As time went on, the man still couldn't find any food. With his chances of survival dwindling, he couldn't help but drool when he looked again at the rotting wild boar carcass. Despite his inner revulsion and disgust, a strong will to survive compelled him to consider how to use this only "food" to sustain his life.
So, in the days that followed, he continued to struggle. Finally, all the meat on the wild boar had disappeared, leaving only a bare skeleton. Fortunately, he found a dilapidated iron pot in a corner of the cave. As if grasping at a last straw, he eagerly used the broken pot to cook the wild boar bones.
However, this meager amount of food could not satisfy his needs for long. Before long, even the wild boar bones were gnawed clean, and there was not a single edible part left. Finally, after a long and agonizing struggle, the man collapsed in the cave and closed his eyes forever.
Time flies, and years pass swiftly. Despite the tragic story, the cave still stands silently, witnessing the changes of all things. And the broken pot that once held the hope of life still lies quietly in the corner, silently recounting that harrowing past…
This book is finished. I thought about it for a long time. I considered the possibility of them persevering to the end, and I also considered other endings. But in the end, I chose this ending. I'm sorry. (This apology is for the few or no readers, for myself, and for Wang Lun and Li Ling.)
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