Chapter 990 9: Abandoned Cabin

According to Chen Wen, Golden Eagle and Snowy Owl found a place for constructing a shelter with ease.

Golden Eagle flapped its wings, carefully surveying the ground.

In areas with fewer trees, it quickly identified suitable sites for shelter.

Golden Eagle called out to Snowy Owl: "Look over there, that large open area, doesn't it seem to meet the conditions Chen Wen mentioned?"

Upon hearing the commotion, Snowy Owl also looked in that direction.

Quickly, it nodded, saying: "Very similar, close to the lakeside, not surrounded by any big trees, seems spacious, but... look at the middle, is there a human-made structure?"

Upon hearing this, Golden Eagle turned to look in the indicated direction.

Soon, it saw clearly that near the center of this open space, there was a small wooden cabin.

The cabin wasn't very large and appeared somewhat run-down.

Golden Eagle and Snowy Owl landed near the cabin.

They circled the cabin a few times until Golden Eagle realized that it had been abandoned.

"There shouldn't be any other humans."

Golden Eagle said: "Look at the high parts of the house, the wood up there is decaying, there shouldn't be anyone inside."

Snowy Owl nodded, though its attention wasn't on the wood but on the surrounding environment.

It hopped and landed on a wooden stump.

Snowy Owl couldn't help but say: "These should be trees cut down by humans, right? Were there people here before chopping trees for a living? I remember Chen Wen mentioned before that there are people who specially chop trees to earn money. Could this place have been their domain?"

Golden Eagle shook its head: "You're talking about loggers, right? This place seems like the loggers' home, but it's been abandoned. We can't tell much here, why don't we go ask Chen Wen about the situation?"

The two birds agreed and swiftly left the cabin.

...

Meanwhile, with Chen Wen.

After Golden Eagle and Snowy Owl left, he, Hua Yun, and Adam began to gather firewood.

But during the process, Chen Wen made some discoveries.

As he gathered firewood, he noticed some signs around the tree roots, a hint of familiarity flickering in his eyes.

Chen Wen straightened up, couldn't help but say: "It seems like there are beetle infestations in these trees too! I've seen wood chips caused by beetle larvae gnawing on these tree roots, as well as fecal discharge holes on the trunks, and signs of bark disease."

Beetle larvae?

Hua Yun squinted as he walked over, saying: "That's high protein, how do you plan to get them?"

Adam also came over, saying: "Beetle larvae, that's rare food. I remember Fabre described them as wriggling intestines, which look pretty disgusting, but we should be able to stomach them, right?"

Chen Wen nodded.

He could definitely stomach them, having eaten beetle larvae during survival tasks at Great Slave Lake.

"You two continue to gather firewood, and keep an eye out for other insects, let's catch some."

Chen Wen said: "This month is the last active month for insects, if we can catch some, we can store them as high-protein food."

Everyone was a professional Survivor, eating insects didn't make Hua Yun and Adam uncomfortable.

After all, in terms of survival, there's quite a food shortage this time around.

So they couldn't afford to waste even a single piece of food.

Hua Yun and Adam started looking for other insects while Chen Wen took out a knife, knocking on the tree trunk, searching for cavities made by pine beetle larvae.

Soon, Chen Wen found one.

Using the knife, he pried the bark off and dug out the pine beetle larvae from the trunk.

White and tender, although not very big, Chen Wen could feel there were many nutrients in its body!

Roasted to a crisp, they're delightfully crunchy, with a chicken flavor; the protein content is several times higher than beef!

Chen Wen thought, placing the pine beetle larvae into his pocket.

Just as Chen Wen was about to look for other pine beetle larvae, Golden Eagle and Snowy Owl returned.

Upon seeing Chen Wen, they immediately shared what they had found earlier.

After hearing about the suspected loggers' cabin and the remnants of their work, Chen Wen's interest was piqued.

A thought transformed into reality right here!

Chen Wen said: "Let's go check it out. Golden Eagle, go find Eagle and bring those three over to join us."

Upon hearing this, Golden Eagle immediately left.

While Snowy Owl led Chen Wen toward the open area they had discovered.

...

About a dozen minutes later.

Chen Wen and company, following Snowy Owl, arrived at the open area they had found.

Upon reaching the site, Chen Wen's first thought was that the place was excellent!

It virtually perfectly aligned with his expectations!

"You all take a rest first. I'll go check the cabin."

Chen Wen said: "Wait till Fred arrives, then we can go in together."

For such cabins, it's best to have a local accompany you.

If there are people, communication among locals will be convenient; if none, the local can assess the situation and see if entering the cabin is feasible.

Overall, caution is never overdone.

With this mindset, Chen Wen went to the vicinity of the cabin.

He circled the cabin, and it seemed uninhabited, and neglected for a long time.

No trash around, not even footprint evidence.

Furthermore, the exterior walls of the cabin not only have moss climbing on them but also trailing plants of some kind.

It appears to be the type of place that's been abandoned.

Chen Wen leaned close to the window to peek inside; it's very dark, probably due to today's overcast weather. He looked for a while but couldn't discern anything useful.

Scratching his head, Chen Wen stepped back.

From his perspective, it seems to be a logger's abandoned cabin, and the surrounding stumps might be evidence of the logger's handiwork.

"Seen anything interesting?"

Hua Yun asked Chen Wen.

Chen Wen nodded: "Looks like the logger's abandoned cabin, empty inside. Once Fred arrives, let's go inside and take a look together."

Hua Yun thought for a moment, feeling Chen Wen's arrangement was quite appropriate.

If this location is somehow linked to the local's beliefs, bumping into something carelessly wouldn't be ideal.

The group waited for about five minutes.

Eagle and Golden Eagle brought over the remaining three people.

Seeing the situation here, the three placed the firewood they had down on the ground.

Roland said: "This... it looks like a place where loggers worked. What are your plans here?"

Gaston curiously approached the cabin, examining it closely.

He said: "Seems like it's been abandoned for quite a long time, are you thinking of renovating this cabin and constructing a shelter here?"

Chen Wen nodded: "Something like that, mainly wait for Fred to verify if this cabin is indeed the loggers' relic, if it's been abandoned. If so, we'll set up camp here."