Culinary God in Wilderness

Chapter 289: Chapter 196: A Storm is Brewing

Having eaten his fill, Lin Chen checked on the fish bones.

After about ten minutes of roasting on both sides, the once-white bones had turned a faint golden yellow.

That was about right. This was the wild, after all, and conditions were limited. He planned to let them air-dry overnight and then sun them again in the morning.

He glanced at the time. It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet.

’It’s a little too early to sleep,’ he thought, ’but there’s nothing else to do.’

’I’m too wiped to do any more work, and too tired to walk another step.’

He glanced over at Erica, who was sitting beside him contentedly rubbing her full little belly. He had to admit, he was a little envious of her straightforwardness.

They had only known each other for a little over a day, yet she didn’t show any of the demureness often associated with women. Her every move was carefree and spontaneous.

But it was undeniable that this was a style unique to Western women—they were open and confident, not reserved and shy like many Asian women.

It actually made getting along easier. They could speak directly, without having to dance around and guess at each other’s meaning.

"Are you going to go catch fish?"

He figured the tide should be starting to go out. There might be some big fish in the Mangrove Forest that hadn’t retreated in time and were now trapped in the shallows.

"Yes! Just you wait! I’ll make sure you’re eating grilled fish tomorrow!"

The moment he brought it up, Erica shot up from the ground, a fiery determination blazing in her eyes.

She clenched her little fists, grabbing her combat knife with her left hand and picking up the wooden spear from the fish-roasting with her right. "This should still be usable. I’m borrowing it, ’kay~"

She had already figured out Lin Chen’s temperament. Without waiting for his answer, she slung the basket on her back and strode toward the Mangrove Forest.

Watching her retreating figure, Lin Chen nodded to himself.

’I only said to catch fish,’ he thought, ’I didn’t say where.’

Erica was familiar with the forests of America, which were mostly in colder regions. She herself had said she wasn’t very familiar with tropical forests, and had almost no experience with tropical coasts.

Yet after only two days by the sea, she could already distinguish the characteristics of the three terrains—the beach, the reefs, and the Mangrove Forest—and accurately judge where to go at different times to find resources. This wasn’t something an ordinary person could do.

’Well, while she’s out, I might as well get some sleep. It’ll save me the awkwardness later.’

He took an ember, sealed it in a bamboo tube for preservation, extinguished the rest of the fire, and ducked into the cave.

He even switched on his Hat Lamp, curious to see how much work she had managed to get done all afternoon.

A beam of light flared, illuminating the dark cave as if it were daytime.

Building on what he had already dug, Erica had widened the side by another half-meter and had also carved the ceiling into an upward-sloping arc.

Although she hadn’t dug much higher, he no longer had to worry about hitting his forehead when sitting up.

While it may not seem like much for a whole afternoon’s work, for a woman with comparatively less strength, it was a substantial and exhausting task.

The shelter was located on the side of a hill, dug straight into the mountainside.

Because of the slope’s angle, the deeper one dug, the denser and more compact the soil became, making excavation progressively harder.

On top of that, there were no proper tools to aid in the digging. It was difficult to exert force with a small piece of bamboo; forget her, even Lin Chen himself would have found it tough.

This was the main reason the cave’s expansion had been delayed again and again—he really didn’t want to face this thorny problem.

’An extra half-meter... that should be enough for two people to lie side-by-side. That’s more like it.’

He nodded, switched off the Hat Lamp, slid the wooden fence into place, and lay down comfortably.

If all went according to plan, tonight would be his last night sleeping in the cave.

The thought of leaving this cave, which he had dug with his own hands, filled him with a surprising hint of reluctance.

’What do I need to do tomorrow... Right. Cut bamboo to finish the remaining walls, install two water-collecting eaves and drainage pipes, and if there’s enough time, build a stove and chimney.’

’The bed isn’t urgent. A layer of branches, moss, and banana leaves on the ground will do for one night.’

As he mulled it over, exhaustion washed over him like a tidal wave.

His eyelids grew heavy, drooping uncontrollably.

Before long, the sound of steady breathing filled the cave.

「Meanwhile.」

Andre, who was foraging in the Mangrove Forest, scanned his surroundings cautiously with the Hat Lamp on his head.

The part of the Mangrove Forest near his shelter was the habitat of the American Crocodile, so he had deliberately taken a detour to enter the central area from the side.

Even so, he didn’t dare let his guard down. After all, there was no guarantee that an American Crocodile wasn’t also hunting in the water.

The American Crocodile is a typical nocturnal animal. They usually stay active on the banks but will occasionally slip into the water.

In the water, they are a far greater threat to humans than the Jaguar.

The latter rarely attacks humans unprovoked, but the former is different. Any creature that dares to enter their line of sight is at risk of a sudden assault.

An American Crocodile’s bite force can reach up to 1,700 kilograms. Combined with their signature move—the death roll—they can dismember their prey in an instant if they manage to bite down.

It was precisely their presence that made any nighttime activity in the Mangrove Forest an exercise in extreme caution.

As he walked, a dark shadow suddenly glided silently past him near the bottom, not far away.

If his light hadn’t happened to sweep over that area, he might not have noticed the shadow at all.