The jungle air was hot and humid, like a massive steamer.
The two of them advanced deeper into the forest one after another, stepping on the thick humus layer.
Yao Xue shook the green juice off her machete. Though her breathing remained somewhat labored, her eyes had grown much steadier.
Killing that spider seemed to have broken some kind of psychological barrier.
She began learning from Qin Yu's example, observing her surroundings instead of simply being afraid.
"Stop."
Qin Yu suddenly raised his hand.
Ahead, several clusters of bright red fruit hung from the bushes.
The skin was covered in fine scales resembling snakeskin, but when sunlight filtered through the leaves, they gleamed with an enticing luster.
"This is..."
Yao Xue leaned closer for a look, her throat moving unconsciously.
Thirst.
After drifting at sea for so long, even with fresh water available, the craving for fresh fruits and vegetables was etched into her genes.
"Snakeskin fruit."
Qin Yu reached out and picked one.
He weighed it in his hand.
It felt heavy and full of moisture.
"Can we eat it?"
Yao Xue hesitated.
In this mutated world, the more vibrant things often proved more poisonous.
"System, appraise."
Qin Yu silently commanded.
[Ding!]
[Item: Mutated Snakeskin Fruit (E-grade ingredient)]
[Description: Wild fruit grown by absorbing the island's spiritual energy. Rich in juice with a sweet and sour taste. Consuming can slightly restore stamina and relieve fatigue. Non-toxic.]
"Edible."
Qin Yu wasted no words.
He flipped his palm.
"Collect!"
Along the way.
This scene repeated several times.
[Ding! Obtained: Ironhide Coconut x5]
[Ding! Obtained: Wild Purple Yam x12]
[Ding! Obtained: Hemostatic Herb x20]
Anything the system identified as valuable, Qin Yu would sweep through like locusts, leaving nothing behind.
Watching Qin Yu's fluid movements, Yao Xue mentally noted the appearance of these plants.
She was smart.
She knew Qin Yu was stockpiling supplies.
As they walked.
The surrounding trees grew increasingly massive.
Even terrifyingly so.
Ancient trees so thick they required five or six people to embrace, their bark like black iron armor, incredibly hard.
Looking up, the crowns pierced the clouds, standing at least fifty or sixty meters tall.
"Good wood..."
Qin Yu reached out and touched the rough trunk.
His knuckles rapped against it, producing dull "thumping" sounds as if striking stone.
[Item: Iron Birch (D-grade material)]
[Description: Wood with hardness comparable to steel. Excellent material for reinforcing ship hulls and constructing defensive structures. Fireproof, rot-resistant, impact-resistant.]
Reading the system's description, Qin Yu's eyes practically gleamed with desire.
Iron Birch!
If they could bring this back and replace the entire foundation and walls of their raft...
The defensive capability would be such that not just sharks, but even the previous wild boar would give itself a concussion charging against it.
"Qin Yu?"
Seeing him stop and stare blankly at the large tree, Yao Xue couldn't help but ask.
"Are we going to cut down trees?"
She waved the machete in her hand.
"This knife is quite sharp, should be able to chop through."
"Chop?"
Qin Yu shook his head with a bitter smile.
He drew the dagger from his waist and slashed at the tree trunk with all his strength.
"Screech—"
Sparks flew.
It only left a shallow white mark on the black bark.
"This tree is harder than your bones."
Qin Yu sheathed the dagger.
"With just our two knives, it would take at least three days to cut down this one tree."
"And we'd still need to remove the branches, section it, and transport it back to the ship."
"More trouble than it's worth."
Even with physical abilities dozens of times greater than an ordinary person's, he felt deeply powerless facing this masterpiece of nature.
Tools.
They still lacked tools.
If only they had a chainsaw, or one of those industrial-grade logging robots.
"Let's go."
Qin Yu forcibly tore his gaze away from the giant tree.
"Bite off more than you can chew."
"Let's first look for things that are small in size but high in value."
"When we have equipment later, we can come back and level this entire island."
He was a decisive person.
Since they couldn't take it, there was no point wasting time on it.
Time was life.
The two bypassed the giant forest, and the terrain began to turn rugged.
The path underfoot changed from soft humus soil to a rocky road.
Jagged rocks lay everywhere, some as sharp as blades. If one fell carelessly, they would definitely be cut open.
"Be careful."
Qin Yu warned.
He sensed something was wrong.
It was too quiet around.
Back in the forest, they could still hear the cries of those strange birds—though piercing, it at least indicated living creatures.
But in this rocky area.
Even the wind seemed to have stilled.
Only the sound of their feet crunching on the gravel was amplified infinitely in this dead silent space.
"There's a cave over there."
Yao Xue suddenly pointed to the right front.
Between a pile of massive rock crevices, a dark entrance was faintly visible.
The entrance wasn't large, about two meters high, covered with dark green moss.
A chilly wind blew out from the cave.
Carrying a scent...
A fishy smell?
No.
Qin Yu wrinkled his nose.
The odor wasn't like the stench of rotting corpses, nor the musky smell of wild animals.
Instead, it carried a faint metallic scent, mixed with an indescribable cold sharpness.
"Shall we go in and check?"
Yao Xue gripped her knife tightly, both nervous and expectant.
In adventure stories like this, caves often meant treasure.
"Not so fast."
Qin Yu waved his hand.
He raised his S686 and slowly approached the cave entrance.
He didn't rush in.
Instead, he stood to the side first, picked up a stone, and threw it forcefully inside.
"Tap, tap, tap..."
The sound of the stone hitting the ground echoed in the cave, carrying far into the distance.
Indicating the cave was very deep.
After waiting over ten seconds.
There was no reaction.
No roars, no monsters charging out.
"Could it be an empty cave?"
Qin Yu narrowed his eyes.
If it was empty, it would make a perfect temporary shelter or a base for exploration.
Moreover, such rock caves often contained rare minerals.
Like saltpeter, or sulfur.
These were key materials for making gunpowder.
"Stay close to me."
"If anything unexpected happens, don't worry about me, find cover first."
Qin Yu instructed in a low voice.
He turned on the tactical flashlight under the gun barrel.
A beam of stark white light instantly pierced the darkness inside the cave.
The cave walls were very dry.
The rocks were a pale grayish-white.
Animal bones lay scattered on the ground, weathered and clearly dead for a long time.
The two cautiously advanced about fifty meters inward.
The cave began to widen.
It resembled a natural hall.
Just then.
Qin Yu suddenly halted.
Every hair on his body stood on end in an instant.
The sense of crisis, as if being targeted by an apex predator, felt like a bucket of ice water poured over his head.
"Get down!"
He roared abruptly.
There was no time to explain.
His body instinctively lunged to the left.
In the same moment he moved.
A silvery-white blur, like a bolt of lightning, shot out from the shadows at the top of the cave!
Fast!
Too fast!
So fast that even Qin Yu's enhanced dynamic vision could only capture a vague shadow.
"Swish!"
The shadow didn't target Qin Yu, who appeared more threatening.
Instead, it twisted unnaturally in mid-air.
Heading straight for Yao Xue!
This was the wisdom of a beast.
Kill the weak first!
"Ah—!"
Yao Xue only heard Qin Yu's shout and hadn't yet reacted when a foul, bloody wind rushed toward her face.
A pair of ice-blue eyes.
Cold.
Cruel.
Devoid of any emotion.
Instinctively, she swung the machete in her hand to block.
"Clang!"
A sharp ring.
The immense force directly knocked the machete from her grip.
Immediately after.
Three sharp claw marks instantly tore through her windbreaker.
"Thud!"
Blood splattered.
Yao Xue was sent flying backward by the tremendous impact, crashing heavily against the rock wall.
"Cough..."
She groaned in pain.
Clutching her left shoulder.
There, the thick windbreaker had been shredded, revealing the torn flesh beneath.
Deep enough to see bone!
"You're asking for death!"
Qin Yu, having just landed, saw this and his eyes instantly turned red with rage.
Fury.
That was his person!
In this post-apocalyptic world, touching his supplies or his people was crossing his bottom line.
He didn't even have time to aim.
Relying on the impression from that split second, he swung the S686 in his hand toward the silvery figure that had landed.
"Bang!"
The muzzle spat a dazzling tongue of flame.
The deafening roar of the shotgun was disastrous in the enclosed cave.
Countless pellets fanned out in a spread.
Striking the rock walls, sending up a cloud of stone dust.
"Awoo—"
A low, pained howl.
The silvery figure staggered.
But only staggered.
It was too agile.
The moment the gun fired, it had already begun evading.
Most of the pellets missed, only a few grazing its fur, drawing a spray of blood mist.
Now.
By the light of the tactical flashlight.
Qin Yu finally saw the true form of the attacker.
It was a wolf.
But not an ordinary wolf.
Its body wasn't large, even slimmer than a typical wild wolf.
But it was covered in a coat of silvery-white fur, gleaming with a metallic sheen under the flashlight.
Its limbs were long and powerful, claws like sharp boning knives.
Most terrifying were its eyes.
Pupils that seemed to burn with two eerie blue flames.
[Warning! Hostile creature encountered!]
[Creature Name: Moon Wolf (B-Class Elite Monster)]
[Characteristics: Extreme Speed, Bloodthirsty, Cunning. Its fur refracts light, its claws can slice through steel. It is the assassin of the night.]
[Weaknesses: Waist, Throat.]
"B-grade..."
Qin Yu's heart sank.
This was the highest-level monster he had encountered so far.
The previous wild boars and sharks were ungraded mutated Elite Monsters.
This wolf was far stronger than them.
Not in terms of raw power, but in its despair-inducing speed.
In the narrow cave, that speed was an unstoppable weapon.
"Grr—"
The Moon Wolf lowered its body.
A threatening growl rumbled in its throat.
It stared fixedly at the gun in Qin Yu's hand.
Clearly, the earlier shot had caused it pain and made it realize this human was not to be trifled with.
It began circling.
Its footsteps were so light they made no sound.
It was gathering strength before the hunt.
"Yao Xue! Don't move! Play dead!"
Qin Yu shouted without turning his head, his eyes locked on the Moon Wolf.
Yao Xue's face was pale, cold sweat trickling down her forehead.
Her wound burned with a fiery pain.
But she gritted her teeth, not making a sound.
She knew that even a single cry of pain now would distract Qin Yu.
Obediently, she curled up in the corner, pressing her right hand tightly against the wound to slow the bleeding as much as possible.
Qin Yu discarded the gun in his hand.
Yes.
He threw it aside.
The S686 was a good weapon, but at this range, against a monster of such speed—
If the first shot didn't hit a vital spot, the reloading interval would be enough for this beast to tear his throat out three times over.
Moreover, the shotgun's spread was too wide, risking accidental injury to Yao Xue in the corner.
"Shing!"
Qin Yu drew the Fine Iron Dagger from his waist.
Holding it in a reverse grip.
His gaze turned colder and fiercer than the wolf's.
As an athlete, his explosive strength had always been formidable.
Enhanced by the system, nourished by long-term consumption of S-Grade Purified Water, and fortified by various graded foods—
He was now a human-shaped beast.
Since the gun was ineffective.
Close combat it was!
"Come on!"
Qin Yu roared.
His aura erupted violently.
It was the killing intent accumulated from slaughtering countless beasts.
The Moon Wolf was enraged.
It felt provoked.
As the overlord of this territory, when had it ever been challenged by prey?
"Roar!"
A flash of silver.
It moved.
Fast as an afterimage.
Not a pounce, but a low sweep along the ground!
Its sharp claws aimed straight for the tendons of Qin Yu's calves.
Devious!
But this was exactly what Qin Yu wanted.
"I was afraid you wouldn't come!"
Qin Yu didn't dodge.
Instead of retreating, he advanced.
His left foot stamped down violently, cracking the hard rock floor.
Using the rebound, he launched himself into the air.
Dodging the lethal swipe.
Mid-air.
Qin Yu twisted his core, his body arching like a drawn bow.
The dagger in his hand whistled through the air as he stabbed down fiercely!
"Die!!!"
This strike.
Fast, precise, ruthless.
It anticipated the Moon Wolf's forward trajectory.
"Thud!"
The dagger plunged unimpeded into the wolf's lower back.
Its weakness!
As the saying goes: a wolf's head is bronze, its bones iron, but its waist is soft as tofu.
The waist is the most vulnerable part of such creatures.
"Screech!!!"
A piercing howl echoed through the cave.
The Moon Wolf thrashed wildly, trying to twist around and bite the human on its back.
But how could Qin Yu give it the chance?
His legs clamped down on the Moon Wolf's belly like iron pincers.
His left hand grabbed the fur at the back of its neck, forcing its head violently toward the ground.
His right hand drew a dagger.
And stabbed down again!
One strike!
Two strikes!
Blood gushed out, staining Qin Yu's hands and the silver fur beneath him crimson.
The Moon Wolf struggled more violently.
Its sharp hind claws scraped deep grooves into the ground.
They even sliced through Qin Yu's thighs.
But Qin Yu was like a killing god devoid of pain.
Not only did he not loosen his grip, he grew even more frenzied.
"You dare touch my people!"
"I'll skin you alive!"
"Thud!"
The final strike.
Qin Yu mustered all his strength.
The dagger plunged straight into the back of the Moon Wolf's neck, severing its spine.
The frantically struggling body instantly stiffened.
Then went limp and collapsed.
The eerie blue flames in its pupils gradually faded.
[Ding!]
[B-Level Creature Slain: Moon Wolf]
[Obtained: B-Level Moon Wolf Hide x1 (Intact)]
[Obtained: B-Level Moon Wolf Meat x50kg]
[Obtained: Moon Wolf Fangs x2 (Weapon Crafting Material)]
[Obtained: B-Level Agility Soul Orb x1 (Extremely Rare)]
As the system notification chimed,
Qin Yu finally let out a sigh of relief.
The bloodthirsty fervor gradually receded, replaced by heavy panting and aching muscles.
He kicked the dead wolf's corpse aside.
Not bothering to check the spoils.
Not even tending to the wounds on his legs.
He scrambled toward Yao Xue in the corner.
"Yao Xue!"
Qin Yu's voice trembled slightly.
He rushed over, dropped to his knees, and lifted the trembling woman.
The flashlight beam fell on her.
A horrifying sight.
Three claw marks on her left shoulder had torn the flesh open, blood soaking half her body.
If Yao Xue hadn't been desperately pressing on the wound, she would have gone into shock from the blood loss.
"I... I'm okay..."
Yao Xue's face was deathly pale.
Her lips quivered.
But seeing Qin Yu's frantic expression, she managed a strained smile uglier than crying.
"Not dead..."
"Won't die!"
Qin Yu roared, his eyes red.
He frantically dug out the Hemostatic Herb he had gathered earlier from his backpack.
Not caring about cleanliness.
He stuffed it into his mouth and chewed.
A bitter, pungent taste spread in his mouth.
"Endure it!"
He pressed the chewed herb paste directly onto Yao Xue's wound.
"Hisss—!!!"
Yao Xue shuddered from the pain.
Tears instantly streamed down.
The agony felt like someone had sprinkled salt on her wound.
She bit her lip hard, drawing blood.
Her nails dug deeply into Qin Yu's arm.
"Scream if it hurts!"
Qin Yu tore strips of cloth from his own clothes.
His movements were rough but avoided vital areas as he bandaged her wound layer by layer.
"No... I won't..."
Yao Xue leaned against Qin Yu's chest.
Cold sweat drenched her hair, sticking to her face.
She looked at this man—covered in blood, face fierce—who had fought so desperately to save her.
The defenses in her heart.
At this moment.
Completely crumbled.
That phrase, "You dare touch my people," she had heard clearly in her semi-conscious state.
So.
In his heart.
She wasn't just a tool.
"Done... it's done..."
Qin Yu tied the final knot.
Seeing the bleeding finally stop, he collapsed onto the ground like a limp rag.
Gasping for air in ragged breaths.
"Damn it."
"Scared the hell out of me."
He wiped the blood from his face.
Turning his head, he glared viciously at the dead wolf.
"We're having wolf meat tonight."
"To make up for your share too."
Yao Xue leaned weakly against the cave wall.
Watching Qin Yu.
A gentle curve formed at the corner of her lips.
"Okay."
"As long as it's made by you."
"Anything is fine."
Inside the cave.
The scent of blood permeated the air.
Yet in this cold cavern, their hearts drew closer than ever before.