Chapter 195: Deserted Island Survival 19

Moira Lynch went to great lengths to finally secure the Soul Resurrection Grass. She had planned to rinse the soil off it with water, which would protect the delicate rootlets, but then she reconsidered. Since she didn’t need to use it right now, it would be better to let it continue growing.

’I’ll pick a few leaves later and stuff them in the medical kit. Let’s see if it produces anything good.’

Just then, Black Wolf returned with a dead deer dangling from its jaws.

This deer was clearly different from the ones captured before. It was larger, its limbs were more slender, and even the antlers on its head were much more massive.

Black Wolf dropped the deer, and when it saw what Moira Lynch was holding, a flicker of delight flashed in its eyes.

"AWOO."

’You like this stuff too? I grew up eating this when I was a pup. It’s a bit nasty, and you can’t eat too much of it. It seems to be poisonous—eat too much and you can’t sleep at night, and you’ll get nosebleeds.’

Moira Lynch was speechless. ’That’s not poison, you just overdid it. Who in their right mind eats ginseng for dinner?’

"Since you grew up eating this, do you know where I can find more of this Soul Resurrection Grass?"

Based on Patience’s earlier description, this stuff must be extremely valuable, even across the galaxy.

"AWOO?"

’So it’s called Soul Resurrection Grass? Where to find it? It’s all over the island. It’s not like it’s anything precious.’

’If I hadn’t been so small and unable to find any other food when I was young, I never would have resorted to chewing on grass.’

Of course, Black Wolf didn’t choose the Soul Resurrection Grass from the start. It was only after comparing the taste of several different roots that it settled on this one.

It also discovered that after eating the root, it no longer felt hungry, and a pleasant warmth would spread through its body.

"It’s everywhere!"

Moira Lynch was stunned by what the Black Wolf said.

"Then take me there! Quick! The bigger, the better," Moira Lynch said, her excitement making her gesture wildly.

"AWOO."

’Fine. The bamboo forest is nearby anyway, so it’s on the way.’

Before they set off, Black Wolf took Moira Lynch to the place where it had slaughtered the deer herd.

It turned out it hadn’t just caught one deer—it had wiped out the entire herd.

"Isn’t this a little too ruthless?"

’Not a single one was spared.’

Black Wolf sat down before its masterpiece, a proud look on its face. "This herd was my livestock. I’m just collecting the fruits of my labor now."

It had cared for the herd from its original two or three members until now, all to secure a stable food source.

But recently, it discovered that the herd, under the leadership of the Deer King, was planning to escape its territory. How could it stand for that?

Rather than letting something else get them, it was better to turn them all into a personal stockpile.

Moira Lynch was utterly astounded by what Black Wolf said.

Once the shock wore off, she dutifully stored the carcasses on the ground in her space, just as it requested.

’It was a little cruel, but the Black Wolf had a point. Besides, wasting food is a disgrace.’

Once again seated on Black Wolf’s back, Moira Lynch gripped its fur tightly. She felt the wind roar past her ears as the surrounding scenery blurred and rushed backward.

Ten minutes later, she was brought to their destination.

There were indeed many stalks of Soul Resurrection Grass here, but it wasn’t quite "everywhere," as Black Wolf had claimed. A quick visual scan revealed about twenty stalks, all slightly larger than the one she had found earlier.

In addition to the Soul Resurrection Grass, the area was dotted with many holes that had been dug but not filled back in.

’The Black Wolf said it grew up eating Soul Resurrection Grass... Don’t tell me these holes are...’

She walked over to one of the pits to inspect it. Sure enough, the ground around it was covered with the severed rootlets of Soul Resurrection Grass.

In one pit, there was even a half-eaten stalk of Soul Resurrection Grass with clear teeth marks visible on it.

Moira Lynch collected the two dozen or so intact stalks of Soul Resurrection Grass into her space. She didn’t waste the severed rootlets or the half-eaten stalk, either.

She stuffed half of the Soul Resurrection Grass into her medical kit. The rootlets filled several baskets, which she temporarily placed in her space’s storage warehouse for emergencies.

"Alright, let’s go," Moira Lynch said to the Black Wolf, satisfied with her haul.

On the way to the bamboo forest, Moira Lynch’s curiosity got the better of her. "You mentioned before that you needed my help retrieving something. It’s been a while now. Can you tell me what it is?"

"AWOO."

’After you find the purple conch, crush it, and smear it around the bearskin, then I’ll tell you.’

Since the Black Wolf was unwilling to say more, Moira Lynch didn’t press the issue.

Upon arriving at the bamboo forest, Moira Lynch nodded in satisfaction at the sight of the thick, dark green stalks. She then conjured a heavy-duty cleaver and set to work on the bamboo.

The Black Wolf saw this and joined in to help. Compared to Moira Lynch, its efficiency was clearly on another level.

In the time it took Moira Lynch to cut one stalk, Black Wolf could cut five.

Seeing this, she decided to stop cutting and focused instead on processing the bamboo felled by the Black Wolf. She stripped the excess branches and leaves, while also keeping an eye out for bamboo shoots.

’Where there’s a bamboo forest, there are bound to be bamboo shoots.’

After a bit of searching, she found some—and not just a few, but a whole patch. They were much more tender than the bamboo stalks and far easier to gather.

In no time at all, Moira Lynch had gathered a large pile. The Black Wolf’s work was also proceeding smoothly.

When they had what seemed like a sufficient number of bamboo stalks, Moira Lynch called a halt.

’Now I just need to fasten all the bamboo together.’

That way, even if the volcano really erupted and she couldn’t stay on the island, she could survive at sea on a raft.

She checked the time and realized it was already afternoon. Having skipped lunch, her stomach was starting to protest.

Moira Lynch took out a piece of deer jerky to tide herself over, planning to eat a proper meal once she reached the coast.

’I wonder if I can do some beachcombing.’

She’d seen videos of other people beachcombing before. It looked like fun, and they always seemed to find heaps of seafood so easily.

Though, Moira Lynch suspected most of those videos were probably staged.

Thanks to the Black Wolf’s speed, she reached the coast before nightfall.

She sensed people on the beach before she even got close.

’Here, you could harvest all sorts of seafood, distill the seawater for fresh water, and there were relatively few dangers. It really was an excellent spot for survival.’

Seeing this, Moira Lynch recalled the Black Wolf to her space. Then, under the cover of Nightshade, she moved further away from the other people.

’When their strength is unknown, it’s best to keep a safe distance and avoid unnecessary trouble.’

Once she was certain she was completely out of their sight, she used her Universal Gloves to conjure a headlamp and waded into the water to search for the purple conch.

According to the Black Wolf’s description, this type of conch hid deep in the sand during the day, making it hard to find. It only came out to forage at night.

After searching hunched over for what felt like an eternity, she suddenly sensed a disturbance in the water nearby.

She immediately used her spiritual power to seize it and pull it from the water, only to find it was a light pink mantis shrimp.