The mechanical voice announcing the system's success was met with a flicker of excitement in Jiang Fan's eyes, initially masked by his usual calm.
As the system's voice faded, a torrent of salt-making methods flooded his mind. The information was vast and complex, encompassing techniques both with and without tools, simple and difficult. The sheer volume of knowledge left him momentarily overwhelmed, unable to process it all.
Noticing the shift in his expression, Zhou Niannian inquired, "Do you have any ideas?"
"Hmm... a few," Jiang Fan replied vaguely. The overwhelming flood of salt-making methods prevented him from delving deeper, so he opted for a concise answer. "However, we'll need to wait until tomorrow to find salt." The sky was already darkening, making it unsuitable for foraging. Furthermore, without sufficient salt, their bodies were not at peak condition, making any risky expeditions potentially problematic.
Zhou Niannian nodded. "Then let's get some good rest tonight."
After finishing the wild boar meat, she prepared a meal for the black panther and even provided some grass for the water deer. She rolled up some leftover thatch to feed the doe.
The black panther stretched languidly after its meal, its sleek body on full display. Jiang Fan, tempted by its appearance, reached out to pet it. Following the petting, came the usual teasing. The black panther bristled, but Jiang Fan seemed oblivious. After teasing it for a while, he finally said, "Alright, stop growling, I don't understand you anyway." With that, he left the panther thoroughly annoyed.
Zhou Niannian, who was feeding the doe, couldn't help but chuckle at the scene, her tension easing. While the black panther's presence deterred other animals, the panther itself was a significant threat. Beasts were still beasts, and even without aggressive intent, they could instill fear in the weaker beings. Zhou Niannian considered herself weak and was still unaccustomed to interacting with wild animals.
Lost in thought, she didn't notice the water deer munching away at the grass, its mouth about to reach her hand. A flick on her forehead snapped her out of her reverie. Rubbing her head, she glared indignantly at Jiang Fan. "Why did you hit me?"
"To snap you back to reality, so you don't get bitten," Jiang Fan replied with an innocent expression. He wouldn't admit that when she spaced out, she was as easily bullied as the stupid panther. It made his fingers itch. "Alright, get some rest early, conserve your energy, and let's find salt tomorrow."
"Got it, you nag! *Pfft*~" Zhou Niannian stood up, made a face at Jiang Fan, and turned to head back to the tent. Jiang Fan, who followed a moment later, narrowed his eyes as he watched the doe still contentedly eating grass. Whatever he was thinking, he stood outside for a while before returning to the tent.
Lin Yang, observing the now quiet campsite, broke out in a cold sweat. The sound of sharpening knives nearby filled his ears, and he desperately wanted to shout, "We're teammates, teammates! It's normal for relationships to improve after four days of survival, right? Don't overthink it, you sister-complex weirdo!" These thoughts roared in his mind, but he couldn't voice them. He was too scared.
"Ahem, Zhou Ye, I'm going to sleep. You, you be careful, okay? Don't watch the stream tonight, and don't do anything foolish," he said. "They still have 96 days left on the deserted island, they won't be back that soon." As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the glint in the other person's glasses, making him even more unsettling. Lin Yang wished he could slap himself for adding fuel to the fire. He opened his mouth to offer more words of comfort, but ultimately said nothing.
It was already ten o'clock at night. Most contestants were asleep, and the commentators were also signing off. They had even stayed an extra hour tonight, just in case Jiang Fan or any other contestant pulled a stunt in the evening. But as it turned out, their worries were unfounded. Lele yawned repeatedly as he bid farewell to the audience. The popularity of the live stream quickly dwindled, stabilizing between two to three million viewers. Many night owls had hoped to catch a live broadcast of the contestants' exploits, waiting for the kind of all-night activities they'd seen previously. But the reality was that staying up all night only worsened one's condition. Under normal circumstances, no one would pull an all-nighter. Jiang Fan was certainly no exception. He only stayed up late.
Back in the tent, he lay down on the thatch, continuously reviewing the salt-making methods the system had transferred to his brain. Despite being an explorer in his past life, Jiang Fan knew he lacked many things. Explorers always carried sufficient tools and ventured into more dangerous places. On this deserted island, the dangers were fewer, but resources were scarce. Salt, for instance. The system's appearance felt like it was filling in the gaps, not so much a cheat, but more of a tool for physical training and knowledge acquisition. When it came to actual execution, Jiang Fan still had to do the work himself. This was good; at least it wouldn't turn him into a useless person.
He had finished organizing all the salt-making methods in his mind. Both sea salt and lake salt were now viable options. However, one method particularly piqued his interest: the search for rock salt. Whether he could succeed depended on his and Zhou Niannian's combined luck.
As Jiang Fan pondered, the clock struck midnight. The system's voice sounded again.
[Viewer settlement for those watching for over one hour.]
[Settling...]
[Settlement complete. 10,439,732 viewers, exchanged for 10 Survival Points.]
"So many?" Jiang Fan, who had been expecting the system's settlement, was slightly surprised. Compared to the previous 5 million, today's 10 million was a significant leap. "I wonder what's happening in the outside world to cause such a drastic increase." He murmured to himself, but with all electronic devices confiscated, obtaining information about the outside world was nearly impossible. The thought flickered through his mind and was quickly dismissed. Since he planned to collect rock salt tomorrow, he would need increased luck and strength.
He glanced at his stats and, without hesitation, made his decision about allocating points.
[Wilderness Survival System]
Host: Jiang Fan
Constitution: 40 (Weak)
Strength: 85 (Immensely Strong)
Speed: 50 (Normal)
Luck: 75 (Blessed by Fortune)
Skills: None
Talents: [Humidity Detection], [Fire Starting Mastery], [Perfect Aim], [Herbalism Mastery], [Beast Intimidation], [Salt Making Mastery].
Survival Points: 0
[Shop Entrance] (Inactive)
Achievements Unlocked: [First Parachute Jump], [First Crafting], [First Fire Starting], [First Hunt], [First Camp Setup], [First Bow Making].
...
Five points in Luck and ten in Strength. This combination, though his Constitution remained weak, would compensate in other areas. Looking at his increasingly rich array of talents and achievements, and the blank skill list and inactive shop, Jiang Fan couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.
"I wonder when the shop will activate," he mused. "Whenever I need something, the system provides a reward. Is that the system's characteristic, or..." He noticed these recent occurrences and his eyes, in the darkness, held a deep, meaningful gaze. "There's still a lot to explore with this system..."