Chapter 13: Chapter 13: Building the First Stone Shelter

After a good night’s sleep, the energy from the rabbit meat and fish soup in his stomach made Lin Yu’an feel refreshed upon waking up in the morning.

Lin Yu’an faced the camera lens in front of his chest, flashing a vibrant smile: “Good morning, folks!”

“It’s the fourth day at Chilco Lake, and it’s a sunny day, perfect for some hard work! Today’s goal is—build the first wall of our new home!”

“Very lucky that I came across a large patch of Jerusalem artichokes at the start, and now that a small portion has matured, I’ve estimated there’s enough to last me for over ten days!”

“I need to take advantage of the still ample food supply to quickly complete the shelter!”

After washing up with some heated creek water, he reheated the bland rabbit soup, pairing it with a few wild Jerusalem artichokes he had previously collected and confirmed to be safe for consumption, as today’s breakfast. Though simple, it was energy-rich.

After breakfast, Lin Yu’an checked his gear again, especially the blade of his logging axe and multifunctional knife, ensuring they were sharp enough, then confidently headed to the permanent campsite.

Today’s work on the new campsite began with the most basic and physically demanding task of stone wall construction.

Standing on the sloped clearing he initially cleared, Lin Yu’an talked to the camera eloquently. At this moment, he didn’t look like a survivalist, but rather an experienced construction engineer explaining the building plan.

“When building a stone house, choosing the right stones is key.”

“We need stones that are not only the right size but, more importantly, the right shape. We should try to select those with one or more relatively flat surfaces.”

“This way, they’ll stack more stably, with smaller gaps. Later, we’ll need a mixture of soil and ashes of grass and wood as an adhesive and filler to seal the gaps, providing stability and wind resistance.”

Lin Yu’an began carefully searching for suitable stones along the slopes and by the creek near the campsite and quickly managed to pick out the right materials from a pile of rocks.

“Oh, these damn stones are really not light!”

Performing for the camera, he used all his strength to pry a stone from the dirt, then moved step by step to the edge of the campsite, though he would sneakily use his Spatial Golden Finger to save energy.

After accumulating some stones, Lin Yu’an began stacking the first stone wall. He had previously dedicated much effort to selecting the stones, so these materials were very suitable for stacking.

Each time he placed a stone, he would continuously fill the gaps between them with the special adhesive made from a mixture of soil and the ashes of grass and wood, ensuring maximum wall strength.

After hours of stacking, Lin Yu’an finally straightened up, pounded his somewhat sore lower back, and looked at the nascent stone wall in front of him with a proud smile on his face.

“Look at this! Though not perfect, this is our morning’s masterpiece! Really a sense of accomplishment!”

In the afternoon, Lin Yu’an didn’t continue walling. Such high-intensity labor cannot be rushed, so he decided to check the traps set up the day before and practice with his new American Hunting Bow.

Arriving at the trap area, he found one of the elastic lasso traps set yesterday had snared something again!

A gray forest pigeon, not big, but better than nothing. Another trap was destroyed by some animal, the lasso bitten off, the bait vanished.

Lin Yu’an frowned, analyzing to the camera: “It seems there are quite a few competitors here. This mark looks like the work of a weasel family animal.”

“It could also be a badger or marten; their teeth are extremely sharp, and ordinary fiber lassos can’t hold them. It looks like I’ll need to use wire lassos for trapping from now on.”

He secured the catch and then began carefully repairing and reinforcing the other traps, applying some new bait at key locations.

With the traps sorted, Lin Yu’an headed to a relatively open forest area by the creek, where he took out his meticulously wrapped American Hunting Bow and quiver from his back.

This bow was chosen based on his arm span and strength, a moderately weighted 50-pound American Hunting Bow, ensuring range and power without being overly burdensome, with standard hunting arrowheads for the arrows.

As he assembled the bow and arrows, he spoke to the camera: “Although its draw is not as effortless as a compound bow and requires more stability in posture and arm strength.”

“Its sole advantage is its adaptability to the wild, less prone to damage. If a compound bow breaks in the wild, it’s a disaster!”

He picked a dead tree about twenty meters away as a target, then slowly drew the bowstring.

“Wooom——” The bowstring emitted a low vibrating sound as it was fully drawn.

Lin Yu’an’s gaze instantly turned focused and sharp, maintaining a steady posture, aiming, and then… released!

“Whoosh——!”

The arrow left the string with a whistle through the air!

“Thud!”

A soft sound as the arrow thudded into the dead tree’s trunk, not hitting the bull’s-eye he had in mind but not too far off either.

“Not bad!”

Lin Yu’an exhaled, showing a slightly satisfied smile: “My hand still needs to adjust, but this bow is indeed a good buddy!”

After shooting several more arrows, he gradually found some feel, although the accuracy still needed improvement. With consistent practice, this hunting bow is sure to become a vital hunting tool in the wilderness.

He packed up the bows and arrows and spoke to the camera: “That’s all for today’s practice; hunting large prey requires more patience and preparation. I’m sure it won’t be long before we bag our first big game in this forest!”

As evening approached, a fine autumn rain began to fall, and the temperature dropped significantly.

Inside the temporary shelter, Lin Yu’an stoked the fire higher and then started preparing dinner.

Despite the limited amount of meat from the forest pigeon, after being marinated with his “secretly brought along” spices and slowly roasted on skewers, it offered a unique flavor.

Raindrops pattered on the tarpaulin roof, making a “pitter-patter” sound, while inside, the makeshift shelter remained dry.

Sitting by the fire, Lin Yu’an enjoyed his simple dinner while planning the construction progress of the permanent shelter for tomorrow on a self-made bark map, including the required wood and stone materials.

The rain intensified, rendering the night in the mountain forest exceptionally quiet save for the sound of rain and the crackle of burning wood.

This kind of weather was bound to impact his construction efforts, but it also provided more time for thinking and planning.

Warm firelight and the pattering rain accompanied him through another lonely night.

…

The continuous autumn rain finally stopped by morning.

However, the sky remained overcast, with heavy clouds hanging low and a damp chill in the air.

The ground around the temporary shelter was muddy, making a “squelch, squelch” sound underfoot, and walking became somewhat difficult.

Lin Yu’an crawled out of his sleeping bag, facing the somewhat fuzzy camera lens, still not completely dry from the moisture.

“Good morning, the rain has finally stopped, though today’s weather isn’t exactly friendly. But the good news is, our temporary shelter held its own, no leaks!”

He checked the fire, with the logs he added before bed still slowly burning, emitting a faint warmth. Carefully adding some dry tinder and kindling, the flames joyfully leapt up again.

The little forest pigeon caught was devoured by Lin Yu’an’s stomach last night, so breakfast was once again simple boiled Jerusalem artichokes.

As Lin Yu’an nibbled on Jerusalem artichokes, he outlined his plan to the camera: “This is the last of the Jerusalem artichokes. After finishing, I won’t be collecting any more for a while.”

“Because I’ve nearly harvested all the mature Jerusalem artichokes in the area, gathering over twenty pounds of mature ones.”

“Now, there are only smaller Jerusalem artichoke tubers left in that area, and it’ll be another twenty days or so before it’s the best time to collect them as our reserve food.”

“Today’s main tasks are three: first, continue our permanent shelter construction, aiming to stack the stone walls even higher.”

“Second, check my traps to see if the rainy weather has yielded any surprises.”

“Third, weather permitting, I’d like to continue improving my archery accuracy.”

After breakfast, he ventured into the rain-soaked forest.

Everything in the forest seemed to have been washed anew, filled with the refreshing scent of post-rain freshness.

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