The rainy season brought new problems. The rock crevices on the sandy beach used to be ideal natural salt deposits, forming saturated brines that would precipitate edible sodium chloride crystals every so often.
But now, the brines in the rocky pits diluted by the rain had freshened back into ordinary seawater, or even fresher than ordinary seawater, unable to precipitate any salt crystals at all.
Lu Zhe tried looking around to see if there were any sheltered places with residual salt crystals left.
If it really came down to it, they'd have to boil seawater, but the purity and taste of the sodium chloride crystals extracted this way were far inferior to those produced naturally from brine.
He searched for hours but didn't find any.
July 16th, the 37th day stranded on the deserted island. Lu Zhe had Ning Shu and Tang Xiaoguo boil seawater while he himself went into the woods to look for food.
After all, the salt-boiling method Tang Xiaoguo had learned from somewhere could tide them over for a period of time.
They would have to wait for an opportunity to settle down and use vats to crystallize salt from brine.
Unexpectedly, Lu Zhe had originally gone into the woods to find food, but ended up finding "salt" there!
Saltwood!
Anacardiaceae, a deciduous tree!
The fruits inside the canopy bore white crystals. Lu Zhe tasted one, it was slightly sour with a prominent saltiness. This "salt" tasted much better than what they boiled out, though unfortunately it was a resin that couldn't provide sodium.
Still good though!
He could bring some back to season their food, and also soak it in water to make vinegar!
"Ding! Obtained medicinal item Maydis Fructus, +1 potential point!"
This thing was formidable, a famous traditional Chinese medicine, capable of stopping diarrhea, staunching bleeding, and reducing inflammation.
But it wasn't the fruit of the saltwood tree. Rather, it was a gall formed from aphid secretions on the saplings, easily reminding one of certain uncomfortable images from the Bug Valley of Yunnan.
He'd take it back for later use.
Returning to camp to try his luck by the seaside again, he found Ning Shu looking very pleased with herself. Turned out she had found a 20-plus kilogram sea turtle on the beach.
Lu Zhe looked at the sea turtle and nodded approvingly: "Not bad, we've got our protein for today."
"Lu Zhe, you're going to eat it?"
"What else?"
"Hey! Turtles are so docile and cute. When I flipped it over, it didn't resist at all, just like a human's best friend. How could you just say you're going to eat it like that?" Ning Shu said indignantly, then added lightly: "At least... give it a trial first!"
Lu Zhe almost spewed out a mouthful of blood.
"And you'd be totally fine with that?"
"Yup!"
"Well I can't think of any charges."
"Then... I know, my hand got cut when I picked it up!"
Lu Zhe nodded: "That's charge enough!"
Tang Xiaoguo had also finished boiling the salt. The white salt crystals looked no different from table salt.
He tasted some. Slightly bitter, still mixed with small amounts of magnesium chloride and potassium chloride. Couldn't eat too much of it, but occasionally supplementing their sodium intake with it shouldn't be an issue.
That night, they used the turtle shell as a pot placed over the campfire. Seasoned it with spicy salt, and enjoyed a delicious turtle feast.
On July 17th at noon, Lu Zhe brought the two girls back to the bear cave, finally reuniting with their companions.
Five days felt like a whole month. Meeting again inevitably aroused some emotional outbursts.
Once everyone had calmed down, Lu Zhe recounted what he saw and learned during the mountain ascent.
Shen Bing asked: "So you've decided to move?"
Lu Zhe nodded: "This move should be our last on Volcano Island. There's fresh water, mountain goats, and arable land there. It's also relatively close to the sea. I think it's the most ideal habitation site on this island."
Jiang Yao sighed: "We have gotten a little sick of it here. We should find a new place."
Lin Qianqian said: "When do we set off then?"
"We can start preparing today. Bring food and necessary tools, and we can head out tomorrow."
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
ial death, also known as "shè sǐ" in Chinese, generally refers to... well, never mind, it's not important. My name is Ye Cheng, and I'm about to experience social death firsthand. ... 【Host, your mission is to confess your love to the young lady of the Dongfang family, the current student council president, in a way that will be unforgettable for everyone at the freshman ceremony!】 【Host, assist the girl with a sprained ankle in front of you to reach the infirmary, and fulfill the wicked thoughts in your heart!】 【Host, act on your desires and punish the arrogant young lady before you mercilessly!】 【Host, follow your instincts—abandon shameful surrender, begging, or groveling, and ruthlessly criticize the domineering, ill-mannered young lady in front of you!】 【Host...】 Ye Cheng: "Here, here, you take this host role—I quit!" Wait, why is the girl with a sprained ankle the daughter of a mafia boss? And what kind of punishment method is this for the arrogant young lady? Also, who the heck said anything about wicked thoughts in my heart? Come out here, let’s settle this one-on-one!!! ... The haughty student council president, the scheming mafia princess, the fragile yandere young lady, the airheaded maid-in-waiting, the mixed-blood loli/...
villain is the number one simp for the book's leading female protagonist, Shen Wan'er. As expected, he later becomes a tool for the main character to show off and slap faces, ultimately meeting a tragic end with his family ruined and his life in shambles. Fortunately, he awakens the [Universal Pure Love System], which allows him to earn points by performing acts of pure love. To change his fate, Gu Yan makes a decisive choice to seek warmth and companionship with the book's biggest villain—Cold Qingqiu. ........... My name is Leng Qingqiu. To find the murderer who killed my parents years ago, I deliberately blinded myself so that everyone would lower their guard around me. Just as I was secretly accumulating power and capital according to my initial plan, a man walked into my world. "Lengleng, Qingqing, Qiuqiu, which nickname do you prefer?" I don't like any of them. You'd better leave quickly! "Why aren't you saying anything? How about I call you my baby wife?" Leng Qingqiu thinks to herself, this man is truly annoying! (Stubborn pure love warrior + single female lead + true pure love + 1v1)
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
