The roasted frigatebird meat smeared with honey and oyster sauce gave off a tantalizing aroma, though it was a bit hot to handle!
There were also some steaming sweet potatoes!
Lu Zhe gave a puff, then used a dinner knife to cut the thigh, breast, and carcass into five portions, placing them on broad leaves, keeping one portion for himself and dividing the rest among the four girls!
Ning Shu handed her notebook to Lu Zhe and said:
"Here, Jiang Yao gets Monday, I get Tuesday, Lin Qianqian gets Wednesday, Tang Xiaoguo gets Thursday, and Friday through Sunday we share equally!"
"Isn't today supposed to be your day? Why is it still you on Tuesday?"
"Today only counts as practice!"
Lu Zhe nodded: "Oh, so what's the scheduling based on?"
"Age order!"
"Oh??......"
Lu Zhe widened his eyes and gave a look of sudden realization!
All of a sudden, Ning Shu seemed to become aware of something.
Her expression changed: "You nasty Lu Zhe, what are you thinking about!"
As she spoke, she reached out to twist Lu Zhe, while Lu Zhe had a bewildered look: "Hey hey hey, what are you doing?"
"Hmph hmph, let's see if you dare drive recklessly again!"
Lu Zhe looked completely innocent: "When did I ever drive recklessly?!"
Ning Shu enunciated word for word: "I meant our ages!"
Lu Zhe blinked: "If not that, then what?"
"You..."
Ning Shu was so angry she was left speechless: "I'll say it again, girlfriends are allowed, but we can't go beyond holding hands!"
"Not even kissing?"
"Of course not!"
"Then what about last time at..."
Ning Shu glared fiercely!
Lu Zhe held back his laughter: "Okay okay, I won't say anything more, alright?"
The roasted frigatebird meat gave off an irresistible aroma.
Tang Xiaoguo deeply inhaled the scent, "It's hard to imagine that while stranded on a deserted island, we can still eat such fragrant seagull!"
"It's frigatebird!"
"Look look, the chicken legs are so plump!"
"I'll say it again, it's frigatebird!"
"How come its feet are red?"
"This is a red-footed frigatebird, a type of seabird found throughout the islands of the Pacific!"
Lin Qianqian thought for a moment: "I know that in the South China Sea, there is an even rarer blue-footed frigatebird which is a nationally protected second-class animal!"
Tang Xiaoguo said, "Whether it's protected or not, I don't care - it looks easy enough to catch. Hopefully that flight attendant didn't starve to death..."
Lu Zhe shook his head: "It only seems easy for you to catch because I was the one who caught this one. How about you try catching one yourself?"
...
As the companions chatted leisurely, they finished eating a whole frigatebird, five sweet potatoes, and still wanting more, ate some coconut meat for dessert!
Bellies full and thirsts quenched, the few lied down by the fire to rest for a bit!
Because they had taken apart half a raft for firewood, they had ample wood for the fire. Lu Zhe made four campfires to ward off the cold!
No one had the energy left to construct makeshift shelters, so for this night, the five of them just huddled closely together on the sandy grass and fell into deep sleep!
In the morning, sunlight filtered through the tree foliage and shone on Lu Zhe's face!
He stretched lazily, then sat up!
He glanced at his watch—6:30am.
Today was June 17th, the eighth day stranded on this deserted island!
Looking out to sea, waves pounded against the shore, leaving foamy bubbles in their trail!
The coastline in the distance stretched infinitely, but there was still no sight of any rescue team!
The girls had recovered decently overnight, though their arms and legs remained sore.
Ning Shu and Lin Qianqian had prepared breakfast!
Again it was roasted coconut meat and crab-seaweed soup.
The five ate simply to fill their stomachs.
Lu Zhe thought that they should consider exploring the island further—searching for sustainable sources of freshwater and also to continue looking for the missing flight attendant. So he asked if the girls were up for moving about:
"Yao Yao, how's your ankle?"
"Pretty much back to normal, no issue if I don't run or jump!"
Lu Zhe nodded: "Xiaoguo, what about you?"
"What about me?"
"Weren't you bitten by a snake before!"
Tang Xiaoguo swung her foot: "Recovered, super flexible!"
"What about you Class Leader Qianqian?"
"I'm always fine!"
"Me too!"
"Then it's settled we'll head out together!"
Jiang Yao happily bounced up to Lu Zhe, "Oh my sweetheart!"
"Hmm?"
"Don't forget, your scheduled girlfriend for today is me!"
Ning Shu interjected, "Hey now, Girlfriend Rule #3, no overly sappy pet names!"
Jiang Yao gave a foxy grin, "Got it Boss! Little Zhe Bro, what's the plan for today?"
Lu Zhe thought for a moment: "Let's explore eastward along the beach this time, both to search for the flight attendant as well as sustainable freshwater resources! We'll head out after breakfast!"
"Great!"
With a plan made, Lu Zhe packed all the supplies into his backpack. Then hacked open coconuts for the girls to work together funneling the juice into bottles he had carved—for easy transport.
Jiang Yao helped Lu Zhe tidy up their larger items. Seeing the campfires, she asked, "What should we do with the fires? Bring them along?"
Lu Zhe shook the emptied TT bottle that used to hold water: "This trip might take us quite far. Carrying fire would be too inconvenient. As long as there's sunlight and seawater, we can still start fires with the TT?"
Jiang Yao nodded: "If we weren't stranded on this deserted island, there's so much about this little thing I wouldn't know it could be used for!"
"Not my first time, eh?"
Lu Zhe explained, "Out in the wilderness, its uses go far beyond just this. It can also serve as a tourniquet, life jacket, water reservoir, cooler bag, animal trap, oxygen cylinder, it can even be made into a slingshot!"
Jiang Yao nodded: "Clearly I'm inexperienced! Looks like in the wild, its intended purpose is the least suitable one!"
"Yao Yao: does this count as reckless driving?"
Jiang Yao pursed her lips, "Of course that doesn't count! Can a girl even be accused of reckless driving?"
In less than half an hour, all preparations were complete. Lu Zhe shouldered his backpack, grabbed his newly-made fish spear, stone axe, put out the campfire, and set off southwest along the beach with the four girls!
As they walked, the group joked around while scavenging for supplies!
"It feels...like we're on a picnic!" said Jiang Yao, clutching Lu Zhe's hand as sea breeze whipped at their faces!
In that moment, she felt she held the entire world!
"Hey, I feel this is way more fun than a picnic, on picnics you can't pick up such interesting stuff!" said Tang Xiaoguo, who had found a toy water gun!
It was rather crude, but still squirted water when filled! The little girl was thrilled, immediately going biubiubiu with the water pistol!
Lin Qianqian picked up an intact glass jar, washed it clean, and happily put it in her bag, "I can pickle vegetables with this!"
"Scavenging can be quite fun sometimes! It's just back in the city, we'd be too embarrassed to do this... Oh look here, what's this!"
Jiang Yao spotted something black—a folded piece of cloth. Shaking it open, she discovered it was a pair of men's sport shorts!
Though somewhat worn, it had no damage!
Normally she would smell clothes like this and walk the other way. But now, she happily ran over, "Little Zhe, try this on!"
Lu Zhe gave a wry smile, "And try it on right this moment?"
"Good point!"
Jiang Yao nodded, "This has been soaking in seawater with some seaweed stuck on too, it's pretty gross. I'll rinse it for you later and hang it out to dry and beat out the salt before you wear it!"
"Sure!"
Jiang Yao neatly folded the shorts and bagged them in plastic!
Tang Xiaoguo sulked jealously as she grumbled, "Look at that, already prioritizing his needs!"
Ning Shu sighed, "I know, right?" Then steered the topic somewhere else:
"When we get back, I'll open a scrap collection point and you all come work for me. We'll reminisce on the tough times here while scavenging the streets every day!"
Tang Xiaoguo affirmed, "Boss, if you dare open shop, I dare show up for work!"
Jiang Yao gave a thumbs up: "Class leader collecting scraps after graduation, wow you're so talented!"
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
