Chapter 239: Chapter 236 Raft Drifting Plan

The ocean was very calm, radiating a warm yellow sunlight that made the shores glisten.

Waves crashed ashore, leaving behind white foam.

Bi Fang’s palms were very slender. Although they were covered in thick calluses, they were clean and beautiful. Right now, these hands were holding a wooden stick, vigorously rubbing it against another piece of wood, sending a large quantity of wood shavings flying due to the friction.

This was the second fire-making method Bi Fang resorted to after the failure of Fire-Making by Wood-Drilling, called the Fire Plough. This was the simplest method, completely reliant on the user’s arm strength, involving a pointed stick being rubbed up and down in a groove on a wooden board.

At the bottom of the groove, very fine wood shavings would appear, accumulating more and more until, eventually, when the temperature reached a certain level, they would ignite.

Because of the continuous movement, a slight sweat formed on Bi Fang’s nose. He dared not wipe it away for fear that, with even the slightest distraction, the heat he had so painstakingly gathered would dissipate once more.

He had been rubbing for over ten minutes, his body heating up, even removing one of his coats.

There were too few plants to choose from on the island, without the proper softness or hardness for making fire. Most of the trees were too hard, not well-suited for this use, and Bi Fang could only opt for the best of the worst, selecting materials that were barely suitable.

At this moment, Bi Fang was in the center of the island, with his legs tightly gripping the wooden board to prevent it from swaying during the friction, lest the shavings in the groove scatter out, which would mean all his efforts had been in vain.

A few more minutes passed with the viewers on edge, yet Bi Fang remained calm, rubbing to a certain rhythm. The Fire Plough was admittedly a tough process, but its advantage lay in its steadiness. The secret not only involved the technique of friction but also included maintaining a good state of mind.

Having lived outdoors for most of the last half year, Bi Fang had long understood these truths.

Finally, the heat transmitted through the wooden board to the skin of Bi Fang’s legs, which invigorated his spirit and sped up the rhythm of rubbing, striking while the iron was hot.

Here it comes!

With the appearance of a faint white smoke, the viewers’ spirits lifted, almost wishing they could replace Bi Fang to blow on the smoke to make it rise sooner.

Watching the broadcaster make a fire was like watching a gamer get equipment. Although the process was repetitive, when the equipment finally dropped at that moment, the sense of satisfaction was immense!

With the presence of smoke, the rest was much simpler. The wood groove gradually turned black, and viewers could visibly see the finest wood fibers begin to redden and vanish; they were on the verge of success, as real flames were about to emerge.

First, the thinnest fibers vanished, followed by slightly thicker ones, and finally, large clumps of wood shavings began to glow red and scatter.

Success!

Seeing this, Bi Fang was no longer anxious. He quickly put down the wooden board and curved a piece of tree bark tanned into tinder into a nest shape on top of it. He then blew in large, slow breaths, allowing the air to make full contact with the embers.

The light smoke turned to moderate smoke, and the moderate smoke thickened, transitioning from white to yellow.

Sparks scattered, and a small flame emerged from the thick smoke, dancing enticingly, captivating all who watched.

“Finally found it!”

Bi Fang wiped the sweat from his face with his hand and flicked it away. After striving for more than half an hour, he finally produced a flame. It wasn’t easy.

[Fire Ploughing, get√]

[giaogiaogiao, there’s fire! It’s lit!]

[Spread the word, matchless in haste, a role model for our kind!]

[Isn’t it time for some charcoal-grilled seafood?]

[Charcoal-grilled seafood, I’m drooling. Suddenly hungry, what to do?]

Gazing at the gentle flames, Bi Fang’s sense of achievement skyrocketed—the fruit of half an hour’s labor.

“Ancient people used these primitive methods to make fire, relying on this skill for survival. When we learn this ancient skill, there’s a special feeling, especially when after a long effort, you finally succeed in igniting the first spark. Even after making fire countless times, you still experience a special sense of accomplishment,” he said.

[I’m heading to the mountain to make fire by wood-drilling now]

[Set the mountain on fire, and you’ll sit in jail until it wears out!]

[Then why can the host do it?]

“Don’t learn from me, I have forest industry permission, not everyone can be treated the same,” Bi Fang said with a chuckle, genuinely afraid that some silly netizens would copy him.

With the fire ready, the rest was easy, Bi Fang briefly processed the mackerel and skewered it on a stick before placing it over the fire to smoke and roast.

In wilderness survival, fat is king, and any high-fat food can win Bi Fang’s favor, with mackerel being among the best. Unlike sesame mackerel, the Atlantic mackerel is rich in fat: without needing extra oil, even simple grilling can make it glisten, especially in the winter when it accumulates fat, offering an incomparably succulent taste that shouldn’t be missed.

Watching the fish gradually change color and exude oil under the high heat, the fragrance eagerly rushed into his nostrils, and Bi Fang couldn’t help but swallow.

How does that saying go, grilling might not be healthy, but it sure is delicious!

Having feasted on raw food for several days, Bi Fang watched the mackerel skin turn crispy, and without waiting for it to cook through, he couldn’t resist tearing off a piece and hastily shoving it into his mouth.

The scorching heat along with the unique salty aroma left by the evaporated seawater exploded on Bi Fang’s taste buds like a culinary bomb!

“Ha!”

Bi Fang opened his mouth, white steam billowing out as he quickly chewed twice and eagerly swallowed, feeling the scalding heat slide down his throat.

“Delicious!”

[Mom, that looks so real, it feels like grilled saury!]

[I can even hear the crispness of the fish skin, just like a biscuit]

[Grilled fish skin, yyds!]

[Old Fang knows how to live]

Bi Fang laughed heartily, having tasted the delicious fish he couldn’t hold back anymore, and quickly ate up the rest of the fish skin. His energy had depleted greatly from last night till today, and he urgently needed to eat.

So, as soon as the surface was cooked, Bi Fang hurriedly consumed the flesh of the fish, even fashioning a pair of thin wooden sticks as chopsticks to enhance the satisfaction.

After a week of hard work, a meal of charcoal-grilled seafood was indeed something to celebrate.

By the time the fish was thoroughly cooked, nearly the whole fish had been devoured, and even the bones were not spared. Crisp from the grill, they were crunched up like crackers and gobbled down.

After consuming an entire big fish, he was barely full.

Energy replenished +10

Patting his belly, Bi Fang lay down on the shore to digest, with the warm sun shining on his slightly darkened face, making it look even more comfortable.

[Wandering Desert Island ×, vacation paradise √]

[Full belly, sipping drinks and bathing in the sun, oh how I envy this life]

[Midnight gas attack, utterly foul!]

[Um, midnight? Bro, where are you from? The time difference is so huge? It’s only the afternoon here]

[Hawaii]

[I’m throwing up a question mark with a backhand??]

[What the hell is Hawaii? Are you on vacation? Can you say that with a clear conscience?]

[Tears of Poverty Left Behind]

He lay on the shore for a while, enjoying the sun and the sand, listening to the cascading sounds of the tide, comfortably stretched out, but he hadn’t forgotten his mission: to survive twenty-one days on the island. Lying down wouldn’t win him survival.

The island was too small, offering nothing but plant life, unable to provide sustenance. One of the two big fish was eaten, the hairfin anchovy could not be consumed, as it needed to be kept for bait. This meant that Bi Fang’s food reserves were down to just one squid and one fish, which once again made him feel uneasy.

No food in hand, makes the heart fret.

Thinking of this, Bi Fang sat up in alarm, scratched his head, and continued to wander around the island. Scavenging on the beach is very important, sometimes you can find many unexpected things.

And as an adventurer with aspirations, he could not stay on a small island forever.

If it were a large island, Bi Fang would have stayed, living out the remaining days, but it was doubtful whether this island even measured up to two hundred square meters. Bi Fang could at most consider this place a temporary base, his real desire was to find a continent, that would be truly “Riding the Wind and Waves.”

The evaluation of the mission would undoubtedly be higher, which was certain.

With his previous experiences, Bi Fang had a clear understanding of the System’s intent: it wanted him to take initiative. If he scraped by on every mission, that was undoubtedly problematic, severely affecting the speed of his growth. He was, after all, a man who aspired to climb Mount Everest!

And in order to prepare for the coming days, Bi Fang needed to make complete use of everything available on the island, the first step was definitely to free up the squid container.

Although the head of the squid could hold ink, it was not a long-term solution and easily scattered. Bi Fang needed a plastic bottle, and places like islands were very likely to accumulate marine trash.

Especially plastic, which could last for decades or even a century. Many people in his previous life watched Bear Grylls and Grandpa De videos and often assumed that the plastic they picked up was placed there on purpose, but it wasn’t.

Plastic waste was already everywhere in the ocean.

Bi Fang shook his head slightly and, after a thorough search of the entire island with his thoughts preoccupied, he indeed found two plastic bottles, the common soda bottles. Out of caution, he still washed them in the sea and filled them with the ink only after they were thoroughly cleaned.

The remaining ink still clinging to the head of the squid was mixed with some sea water and poured in as well.

Edible squid +1

With a slight increase in his food reserves, Bi Fang felt a bit more comforted, but more important tasks lay ahead. He had to build a raft!

Build a raft?

The audience was startled by this idea.

[Why build a raft? Is Old Fang going to continue drifting?]

“Exactly,” Bi Fang nodded. “I hope to find a real continent, not just linger in desperation on this tiny island with less space than a villa’s footprint.”

[Not surprised at all, I’m used to it by now. Even now, if Old Fang tells me he’s going to wrestle with a whale, I’d think, is that all?]

[I’m familiar with the routine now, haha.]

[Charge, motherfucker!]

[Giaogiaogiao, Master Fang is the bomb!]

“Life rafts are really too unstable. Even a tiny hole can lead to the threat of sinking, and I definitely don’t feel safe,” said Bi Fang, pointing to the life raft not far away. Many viewers nodded in agreement; indeed, forget about sharks—if even a slightly larger fish bit into it, it could deflate the life raft and completely ruin everything, leaving no chance of recovery.

But a raft was different. A well-constructed raft could effectively float on the sea surface, and even if it encountered a slightly larger shark, it wouldn’t matter. In reality, unlike in the movies, Great White Sharks as depicted don’t exist. Most of the time, they bite once to taste and leave if it’s not to their liking. The life raft’s fear was precisely that one bite.

“Building a sea raft depends on the materials you have on hand, the conditions of the waters where you’ll be drifting, and how long you plan to be adrift.

There is no fixed rule to follow here. With common sense, good tying skills, and some things that can create buoyancy, you can build a decent raft.”

“For this, we need to collect a sufficient number of logs or bamboo, roughly equal in length, and lay them out on the ground in the shape of the raft we want to build.

At both ends of each log or bamboo, about 1 meter apart, carve a notch. Stack them on top of each other so that they exert ‘pressure’ on each other.

If you’re using bamboo, you can drill a hole to replace the notch. Thread the bamboo through these holes, which will ensure they are more tightly bound together.”

Bi Fang squatted on the ground and began picking up stones. The island’s resources were limited to these twenty-three big trees, but he didn’t need that many. The trees were tall, and the trunk of each could be chopped into four or five sections. He figured he’d have plenty of wood to spare with the thinner branches as well, and about five trees would suffice.

If he were to chop down all of them, there would be no certainty that trees would grow on this island again. Without the big trees sheltering them, the saplings would struggle to thrive, but five wouldn’t have an impact.

Although it wouldn’t have an impact, Bi Fang still silently apologized in his heart for the offense. For the grand plan of drifting away, he could only resort to cutting down trees.

[How to chop down a tree, with a stone axe?]

[This stone doesn’t seem as good as flint, it’s just the ordinary kind]

“It’s pretty ordinary, but it’s enough. Besides, I’m not planning on making a stone axe.”

Bi Fang tossed the stone he was holding. Stone axes were unreliable and hard to sharpen. Given the thickness of the trees, they were likely to break upon striking. But an axe that wasn’t sharp was no use, so he planned to use a chisel to chop down the trees.

All that was needed was a stone chisel and a stone hammer. Both were easy to craft. Tree bark was rich in fiber and could be twisted into a rope, tying a rock to one end of a tree stick would make a stone hammer.

“However, to make it sturdy, we need to process it a little more. First, we need to split one end of the stick, then wedge the stone inside. When tied up, it will be more secure.”

Bi Fang stood the tree stick upright, aligning a sharp stone with one end, then knocked the stone against the tail end of the chisel. The stick cracked as he struck it; Bi Fang pried open the crack, wedged the stone inside, then tightly bound it with rope, creating a quality stone hammer.

Swinging it a couple of times, Bi Fang nodded in satisfaction, finding it comfortable to handle.

[Seeing Old Fang with a weapon in hand puts my mind at ease]

[Top-tier lumberjack has logged in]

[Charge, charge, charge!]

With tools in hand, the great task of felling trees had begun. Bi Fang now marked a line at the base of a tree, then ground out a slot to secure the chisel. Standing up, he tapped it to position it, then raised the stone hammer and forcefully smashed it down onto the tail of the chisel!

The originally unstable chisel instantly burrowed about a centimeter into the interior of the tree, becoming exceptionally secure.

It seemed effective.

Bi Fang nodded, his swings with the stone hammer grew more vigorous, whistling through the air with every blow. Once the chisel had sunk halfway in, he grabbed it and wiggled it from side to side to pull it out.

“When using this method to chop a tree, remember not to drive the chisel in more than half, or you’ll have trouble pulling it out. About half is enough, then we switch to the other side and keep repeating the process a few times. The tree can then be chopped down.”

Bi Fang angled the stick slightly, inserted it into the crack, and continued to swing the hammer as before. Soon, the base of the tree was riddled with splits, and the whole tree began to wobble. With a kick, it broke off and crashed down.

The sound of the wooden stem snapping echoed, and the tall tree slowly fell to the ground, causing the whole island to tremble.

As the spectators gazed at the fallen tree beneath their feet, they couldn’t help but marvel. Was the efficiency really this high?

Bi Fang wiped the sweat from his forehead and headed towards the second tree.

Throughout the afternoon, the audience watched as Bi Fang chopped down trees, each one causing the entire island to shudder.

After felling four trees, Bi Fang paused. He decided to start making something to see if four trees would be enough. Afterwards, he followed the same method to break down the trees into logs, each about two meters long.

This process continued into the evening, and only then did Bi Fang officially obtain a pile of logs. With the prep work finished, the most important part was next.

He was going to build a raft!