King of the Wilderness

He moved the second stone aside and found a few stone slices of suitable thickness from the wedge stone pile, placing them in the low spots, then put the main wall stone back on.

After repeated additions and adjustments, the top surfaces of the two main wall stones finally achieved a roughly level state.

This process required immense patience, as he continuously used large stones as the main structure, with smaller stones as supports, creating a level plane on the uneven ground.

He patiently worked on the construction of this first layer along the three sides of the pit.

Where it was low, he used larger stones or added several wedge stones; where it was high, he dug out some soil.

His sole goal was to have all the tops of the stones form a solid, stable, and roughly level ”U”-shaped ring once the first layer was completed.

When the most challenging and tedious first layer was finally completed, it was already past three in the afternoon.

The bottom of the pit was surrounded by a seemingly chaotic but extremely durable interlocking stone circle.

He did not rest and immediately began laying the second layer.

With the first layer serving as a relatively flat foundation, the subsequent work became much smoother.

He picked up a rectangular stone from the main wall stone pile, carefully examining each side, and mentally simulating its interlocking method with the top surface of the lower stone layer.

After finding the right position, he securely placed the stone, strictly adhering to the core principle of dry stone walling ”one stone presses two stones.”

The meaning of this law is that each stone on the upper layer must span and press the seam between two stones on the layer below.

This effectively distributes the pressure from above to both sides, locking countless individual stones into a uniformly stressed, structurally stable whole.

He kept changing the stones in his hand, sometimes placing them sideways, sometimes vertically, repeatedly testing them on the top surface of the lower stone layer.

He searched for the one spot that would provide the greatest contact area and optimal interlocking fit.

Although overall alignment was achieved, some stones still had slight movement.

He would immediately find a few stone slices of suitable thickness from the wedge stone pile, ”ding ding dang dang,” using a small stone as a hammer, forcefully knocking them into all visible gaps.

With the wedge stones inserted, previously shaky stones became firmly wedged and ceased to move even the slightest bit.

His actions became faster and more skilled through repetition, no longer requiring much thought and probing.

Relying solely on touch and long-cultivated spatial intuition, he could quickly find the most suitable position for each stone.

Lin Yu’an began synchronously constructing the double-layered wall, first stacking the inner and outer rows of main stones, then in the gap formed between them.

Using soil mixed with previously collected dry grass and gravel, he tightly filled in the gap.

This not only significantly increased the weight and stability of the wall, but the mixture of soil and dry grass also provided extra insulation.

Time slipped swiftly by amidst the monotonous yet powerful repetitive labor.

Aside from a few brief moments to drink water and consume mussel meat to replenish energy, Lin Yu’an did not pause for a single moment.

All his attention was focused on the stone wall that was inching up higher and higher.

While building the stone wall for the shelter, he halted the conventional wall stacking and began working on constructing the fireplace base.

He selected several granite stones with the highest fire resistance to serve as the foundation for the hearth and back wall.

He paid particular attention, planning to build the back wall of the fireplace into a slightly arched shape with a slight tilt.

This design could more effectively reflect heat into the shelter interior rather than letting it escape directly through the chimney.

Unconsciously, the sky had darkened, and it was already six o’clock in the evening.

The piercing sea wind began to grow stronger, and the temperature was rapidly dropping.

”Today’s work ends here.”

He said softly to the camera, his voice marked by evident exhaustion.

He set down his tools and tidied up the construction area, gathering scattered stones to the side.

Looking at the nascent stone wall and fireplace base, standing about forty centimeters high, he felt a surge of solid accomplishment.

Although there was still some distance to the waist-high goal, the most challenging first layer was complete, and the overall framework was beginning to take shape.

Before lighting a fire to cook, he decided to check on all the ”passive income systems” set up earlier.

First, he headed to the lake, where the three elastic automatic fishing rods he had high hopes for still stood taut after being set.

The bent birch rods were filled with power, yet the intricate ”4-shaped” trigger mechanisms remained untouched.

He examined each underwater bait and found they were still securely attached to the hooks, showing no signs of being nibbled by small fish.

”It seems the fish are not active today,” he calmly analyzed for the camera.

”The water temperature is too low, reducing the fish’s feeding desire, but it’s okay, this setup runs 24 hours, we have time to wait.”

He did not retrieve the equipment, simply checked the sensitivity of the mechanisms, and then turned towards the conifer forest.

In the darker forest light, he used his headlamp to check each of the four elastic lasso traps in turn.

The results were as expected, with all the lassos still quietly hanging over the ”rabbit highway,” showing no signs of being triggered.

Another day without capturing anything, Lin Yu’an felt no disappointment; in the wilderness, expecting immediate returns from every effort is unrealistic.

What he did was continually increase the probability of success and leave the rest to time and luck.

After checking all the traps, he returned to the temporary shelter, exhausted.

He skillfully lit the campfire and placed the mussels into the pot.

While waiting for the water to boil, he sat by the fire, doing nothing, just gazing quietly at the dancing flames, lost in thought.

A whole day of intense labor had nearly drained all his strength.

His body was in dire need of rest and recovery.

The water in the pot quickly boiled, and the mussels opened their black shells one by one, releasing a fresh ocean aroma.

Lin Yu’an didn’t eagerly gobble them up as usual. Instead, he let them cool slightly before unhurriedly picking out each plump piece of mussel meat, putting it into his mouth.

Dinner was simple, even somewhat monotonous, but for a body fatigued to the extreme, these high-protein foods were the most effective remedy.

After dinner, he was even too lazy to deal with the smoked rabbit skins.

He added enough firewood to the campfire to ensure it would burn until late at night, then crawled into the warm sleeping bag.

Almost the moment he closed his eyes, he fell into a deep sleep.

The time came to the ninth day.

When Lin Yu’an opened his eyes again, he checked the time on the camera, and the numbers on the screen shocked him—eight o’clock in the morning!

He had actually slept for nearly ten hours, which was unprecedented since entering the wilderness.

He could clearly feel the deep-seated soreness in his body had largely subsided, and his muscles were re-energized, a result of the deep sleep.

But he felt no joy. Instead, a strong sense of urgency surged within him.

He immediately scrambled out of the sleeping bag, not even bothering to tidy it, grabbed the gathering bag, and rushed towards the seaside, needing to complete the day’s routine gathering before the tide came back fully.

When he reached the shore, the scene before him made his heart sink once again.

On the sea, a large number of white objects of various sizes floated in view.

They collided with each other with the surging tide, making crisp ”crack, crack” sounds.

”It’s ice floes!”

”The situation is unfolding faster than expected.”

With furrowed brows, he spoke into the camera with an extremely grave tone: ”The fjord is starting to freeze, although now just some scattered ice. But this is undoubtedly a warning, a last ultimatum from nature.”

”It won’t be long before these ice floes grow larger and denser, even completely sealing off the entire fjord, stopping my foraging activities entirely. I must accelerate!”

He swiftly entered the intertidal zone; today’s gathering was more desperate than ever, frantically sweeping clusters of mussels and snails into his bag.

At this moment, there was no time to pick and choose carefully. He gathered all sizes, stuffing a full backpack, dumping it at the shore, then continued gathering.

He took the risk to gather an extra thirty minutes today, accumulating at least over 100 jins of mussels of various sizes.

He had to collect as many mussels as possible because the benefit from this gathering—this gifted window from nature—would be shut completely in no more than ten days!

The persistent low temperatures would freeze the top layer of the fjord or bay completely, forming a thick layer of sea ice.

Once the bay freezes, the impact of the tides will be greatly reduced, and low tide will no longer reveal large areas of tidal flats.

At that stage, all intertidal foraging activities will come to a complete halt, with mussel beds locked beneath dozens of centimeters, even a meter thick of sea ice, rendering them inaccessible!

Lin Yu’an transported all the mussels to the temporary shelter. The situation here was much better, with not as many ice floes; the temporary shelter was still safe.

He resolved breakfast quickly with a cold meal, then immediately rushed to the unfinished construction site.

In the pit, the two stone pillars stood like sentinels, alongside the fireplace base, quietly waiting for him.

Lin Yu’an put on gloves and without a moment’s hesitation, threw himself into work.

After yesterday’s fight, the framework of the foundation was in place, but it was still far from reaching the goal of all the masonry work.

His task today began from where the fireplace construction was interrupted yesterday, completing the remaining two rear stone walls and the construction of the fireplace. ℯ

The two rear stone walls, close to the natural rock wall, required complex leveling with the two front walls and the rock wall itself during their construction.

Next, he focused all his energy on the fireplace’s construction. This was not only a heating device but the heart of his future shelter.

He selected the largest, flattest, and most heat-resistant granitic stones as materials for the hearth and inner walls.

He meticulously constructed the internal structure of the firebox, building the back wall into a slight arc shape to ensure maximum heat reflection.

Above the firebox, he cleverly designed a platform structure called a ”smoke shelf,” a critical design to effectively prevent cold air influx and enhance combustion efficiency.

He was completely immersed, forgetting the passage of time, forgetting bodily fatigue.

In his world, all that remained was the perfect fit between stone and stone.

Lunch was still a few raw mussels, which he quickly used to replenish salts and energy, then immediately resumed work.

By dusk, as he placed the final stone comprising the fireplace’s main body, a robust and solidly built hearth with primitive beauty.

Had merged perfectly with the two eastern stone walls, and its height was flush with the top of the stone walls, together forming an integral foundation system.

He tested the performance of the fireplace, and it was quite satisfactory; the smoke did not scatter but ascended the chimney fluently.

——————

(This flame looks really beautiful, just as red as the votes~)