52: I wanted be a salted fish
Bai Yuhan: "Hmm?"
Song Yu paused, speaking softly, "I have an extra coat and a sleeping bag. If you need them, I can give them to you."
Bai Yuhan looked at Song Yu without speaking, his eyes reflecting an unreadable emotion.
Song Yu blinked, pulling out a black coat. The cold wind made her shrink her neck again as she asked, "Do you want it?"
After a moment of silence, Bai Yuhan finally said, "I... want it."
"Alright then, here you go..."
Jumping down from Qiuqiu, Song Yu quickly retrieved the remaining black coat from her backpack and handed it to Bai Yuhan.
Having spent years traveling the world for film shoots and liking to be prepared, Song Yu had packed not only plenty of food but also a lot of clothes for this trip.
Especially since she had researched the forums of various wilderness areas and knew that the temperature in the Qingshan Wilderness Area was lower than in the city.
And in the autumn and winter seasons, the temperature could drop significantly at night, and she needed to stay outside for extended periods.
So, unlike other students who preferred to carry various combat weapons, trap equipment, and food for their contracted beasts, Song Yu's backpack was mostly filled with living supplies and spare clothes.
She had brought several thick coats, including a down jacket for this trip.
Hmm?
Bai Yuhan looked down at the black coat handed to him by the girl. The collar was embroidered with delicate white flowers, indicating it was expensive. There was also a large pink and white sleeping bag. For a moment, he was slightly stunned.
He hadn't expected that after entering the wilderness area, this person would not only bring such an eye-catching pink and white sleeping bag but also so many spare clothes...
Bai Yuhan took the coat, his gaze moving from the girl's slightly reddened fingertips up to the three thick coats she was also wearing.
Hmm... so she had brought four thick coats.
No wonder her backpack was the largest and tallest among the crowd when they got off the bus, making her stand out.
Song Yu was nearly 1.7 meters tall, and since she usually bought winter coats a size larger to layer clothes underneath, this coat was two sizes bigger than her usual wear.
But even so, the black coat looked quite small on Bai Yuhan, who was 1.9 meters tall.
The sleeves were especially short, almost bursting at the seams, and it could only be worn as an inner layer.
Putting his combat uniform back on over it, and draping the sleeping bag with its warm, quilt-like interior over himself, Bai Yuhan transformed from a handsome, movie-poster-like battle-scarred beauty into...
An odd, slightly pitiful figure...
Even though he still had a stoic expression and stood tall like a pine tree, Song Yu noticed a hint of embarrassment in his eyes.
In that moment...
Song Yu realized that the protagonist Bai Yuhan wasn't as terrifying as she had imagined from the novel.
After all, he was only eighteen.
All the sudden events in the book were beyond Bai Yuhan's control.
Moreover, the new freshman secret realm that had appeared this time had nothing to do with Bai Yuhan.
*****
Although Bai Yuhan often trained and was physically strong, he couldn't withstand the extreme cold without proper protection in temperatures that could drop below minus ten or even minus twenty degrees.
Both Bai Yuhan and Song Yu wore all the clothes they had, wrapped themselves in the sleeping bag, and even dug out a single-person tent buried in the snow.
Even with the help of her contracted beasts, Qiuqiu and Little Black, Song Yu was exhausted from the continuous digging.
If it weren’t so cold, Song Yu would have preferred to lie down right there!
As night fell in the secret realm, the dangers increased compared to the daytime. Song Yu and Bai Yuhan rode on Qiuqiu, heading south in search of a place to spend the night.
Fortunately, they were lucky. Qiuqiu, relying on its strong sense of smell, avoided all dangers and eventually led them through snow-covered mountains and forests to a three-meter-high cave.
The cave was surrounded by snow-covered trees, its entrance mostly buried under thick snow and hidden behind a fallen tree. With the blizzard and low visibility, they would have missed it if not for Qiuqiu's keen sense of smell, night vision, and psychic abilities.
Song Yu and Bai Yuhan quickly tidied up the cave and made it their temporary base.
Normally, a cave this size wouldn't suit Qiuqiu.
But being a feline, Qiuqiu could squeeze into tight spaces, and cats often liked curling up in confined spaces.
So, two hours later...
The entrance of the cave was half-covered by snowballs and rocks.
A small campfire burned inside the cave, crackling and popping.
The armored dragon lizard lay next to the fire, flicking its tail uneasily.
The large Qiuqiu had squeezed itself into a curled-up position beside Song Yu.
A white steel pot boiled over the fire, releasing hot steam. Inside was the snow water Song Yu had collected earlier.
Song Yu pulled out some instant noodles from her backpack and placed them in the boiling water. Soon, the aroma filled the cave...
Holding a military shovel, Bai Yuhan piled up the snow at the cave entrance to prevent a collapse from the heavy snowfall at night.
As time passed, the pot of noodles steamed and released a delicious smell.
Despite having eaten many good things recently, Song Yu's eyes sparkled at the sight of instant noodles.
“Growl...”
Having hardly eaten all day, Bai Yuhan's stomach growled loudly.
Song Yu's ears twitched, and she pulled out a box of cookies from her backpack, waving it at Bai Yuhan: “Stop shoveling snow and come eat. You can have some cookies first to fill your stomach. The noodles will be ready soon.”
“No, you should save the cookies,” Bai Yuhan shook his head and refused firmly. “This freshman snowy secret realm is different from ordinary secret realms.”
“In normal secret realms, you can find plenty of food if you're bold. But in this snowy wilderness, especially with this blizzard, finding food is very difficult. We need to conserve our supplies.” Bai Yuhan’s expression was serious. “The entrance to the freshman secret realm is stable, but we might have to wait ten days to half a month... Even if the authorities send rescue teams, few will be able to enter.”
Bai Yuhan: “So, we need to ration our food.”
His eyes darkened as he placed the military shovel against the cave wall.
However, when he looked at the cookies and instant noodles Song Yu had taken out, his expression turned complex.
Just as Bai Yuhan had said, for ordinary beastmasters entering the wilderness or secret realms, unless the environment was extremely harsh, they usually relied on hunting and foraging to solve their food problems to reduce travel burdens and enhance combat mobility.
For instance, when he entered the Qingshan Wilderness Area this time, he only brought enough food for one day.
In contrast, Song Yu brought not only various convenient main courses but also a lot of snacks.
If only she had fallen into the snowfield secret realm alone, her food supply would last her a month if she rationed it daily.
Song Yu had no idea what Bai Yuhan was thinking.
Upon hearing that she and Bai Yuhan would need to stay in this snowfield secret realm for ten days to half a month, she felt incredibly grateful for bringing not only a lot of food and clothing from the city but also a batch of convenient foods before she left.
Compared to the other unlucky people who had accidentally fallen into the snowfield secret realm from the Qingshan Wilderness Area, she probably had the most food.
Bai Yuhan wasn't a talkative person. After he finished speaking, he took out a dagger and quickly carved out a pair of wooden chopsticks and a palm-sized wooden bowl.
His speed and skill left Song Yu dumbfounded.
Although the wooden bowl wasn't very delicate, it was more than enough to hold noodles.
Dividing the cooked noodles into two portions, Song Yu and Bai Yuhan had a simple dinner.
The cave once again fell into an eerie silence.
The atmosphere was stiflingly awkward, with an inexplicable tension.
After all, they had once been engaged and had a major falling out.
Now, after the engagement had been broken off, they were confined to the same small space, so the awkwardness was understandable.
However, some things needed to be resolved.
This was what Song Yu had wanted to say to Bai Yuhan since she had transmigrated into this world.
She cleared her throat, coughed twice, and looked at Bai Yuhan with a serious and solemn expression. “...Bai Yuhan, I’m sorry. Bringing Zhou Wenchang to break off the engagement and saying those harsh words was really wrong of me.”
Bai Yuhan was stunned for a moment. “...”
The girl's bright eyes looked at the boy, clear and clean. “Even though I know you didn't care about the engagement... I still want to sincerely apologize to you.”
Bai Yuhan looked up at Song Yu. “...”
“This time, we have to stay in the secret realm together for ten days to half a month, seeing each other every day. I don't want the broken engagement to affect our cooperation...”
Song Yu felt a bit embarrassed. She scratched her cheek and stole a glance at Bai Yuhan. Seeing that he didn't notice, she quickly withdrew her gaze. “But if you don’t want to cooperate with me to leave the secret realm... you can take half of the food in my backpack, as well as the clothes and sleeping bag, as my apology.”
Although it wasn't her who had gone to Bai Yuhan's house to break off the engagement, Song Yu still felt a little awkward.
In her previous life, even though she had been in the entertainment industry for many years, when she was a child star, her agent and parents handled everything.
As she grew older and became more famous, with more resources and influence, she rarely had to take the initiative to apologize to others.
So, sincerely apologizing to an eighteen-year-old boy was a first for her.
“...It's hard to find food in the snowfield secret realm. Are you really going to give me half?” Bai Yuhan's eyelashes fluttered as he paused for a moment before speaking. His voice was low and clear in the spacious cave.
“Mm, I don't eat much. If needed, you can take sixty percent.” Song Yu nodded immediately, without thinking. “I have a lot of high-calorie chocolates and candies. You can take half of those too.”
She had food and Qiuqiu, a third-tier contracted beast. She was much better off in the secret realm compared to Bai Yuhan, who carried a bad luck buff and had to fight tooth and nail.
Anyway, she didn't plan to search for various rare resources in the secret realm. She just needed to stay in one place and wait for rescue, ensuring her safety when the official rescue signal from the high-powered communication device came through.
“...”
Bai Yuhan's deep eyes lingered on the girl's slightly reddened earlobes and her clear, pure eyes before he slowly withdrew his gaze.
He spoke in a low, even tone, “You don't need to give me food. Let's cooperate. When the blizzard stops, I'll go out and check the situation.”
*****
“Beep beep beep! Beep beep beep!——!”
In Jianghuai City, alarms blared incessantly.
From the moment the freshman secret realm suddenly appeared, disaster warning monitoring instruments began flashing red lights!
Almost simultaneously, the top officials of Jianghuai City received related information from the automatic transmission of the devices!
The government, military, and Beastmaster Guild arrived at the monitoring room immediately to review the monitoring results and discuss response policies.
“Based on the energy fluctuations, the newly appeared secret realm in the Qingshan Wilderness Area is likely a 4-star secret realm!” said a researcher in a white coat, holding a detection report with a serious expression.
“According to the statistics, 687 high-powered communication wristbands have lost contact. This number continues to rise.”
A secretary in a suit and glasses reported quickly, holding a document: “Due to the lower level of the Qingshan Wilderness Area and the fact that it is the season for high school seniors to start their field practice courses, more than 60% of those missing are high school seniors from various schools in the city. Since the entrance to the freshman secret realm is very unstable, opening and closing intermittently, effective rescue from the city is currently impossible.”
“We can only use the high-powered communication wristbands to notify all Beastmaster teams and student groups in the Qingshan Wilderness Area to leave and return to the city center as soon as possible.”
“We have also issued withdrawal notices to the troops and Beastmasters stationed at the supply base near the Qingshan Wilderness Area.”
Since the entrance to the freshman secret realm was in the Qingshan Wilderness Area, the supply base near the area was also unsafe. Having everyone temporarily withdraw was the best option.
After saying this, the secretary pushed his glasses up and continued to report to the gathered officials: “Because this is a four-star secret realm, Jianghuai City does not have the capability for high-level exploration and rescue. Therefore, when the secret realm appeared, the mayor immediately called the provincial office in Jiangnan Province.”
“The provincial office just responded, stating that they have notified other nearby cities in Jiangnan Province and dispatched a large number of Beastmasters for rescue. They have also reported the appearance of the four-star secret realm to higher authorities.”
“According to the national response plan, powerful high-level Beastmasters from across the country will begin arriving within three hours to explore the secret realm.” The secretary's voice was steady, but the gathered officials all had furrowed brows, especially the president of the Beastmaster Guild and the mayor of Jianghuai City.
All secret realms on Blue Star were classified into six levels by humans.
From one-star to six-star, each level was categorized by the degree of danger and the richness of resources within the secret realm.
As a small third-tier city, Jianghuai City originally had only two-star secret realms surrounding it.
Now, suddenly jumping to a four-star secret realm, if Jianghuai City had the capability to enter a four-star secret realm, it would be an opportunity to gather all sorts of rare resources and become wealthy.
However, the problem was that the highest level Beastmaster in Jianghuai City was the president of the Beastmaster Guild...
The only five-star elite Beastmaster in Jianghuai City.
But in a four-star secret realm, four- and five-star beasts were standard, and many beasts had already surpassed six stars.
In the worst-case scenario, they might even encounter a seventh-tier beast in a four-star secret realm!
In such a situation, the president of the guild, who is only a fifth-tier elite Beastmaster, would just barely be able to protect himself if he ventured into this new secret realm.
Saving the six to seven hundred people who accidentally entered the new secret realm safely would be almost impossible!
There are no benefits, only trouble, and the lives of so many people are at stake. It's no wonder that everyone here looks so grim.
“Everyone, don’t be so worried. The fact that a four-star secret realm appeared near Jianghuai City is unexpected, but think about the resources in a four-star secret realm and the future development of our city... In less than five years, Jianghuai City could upgrade to a first-tier city. We might even be able to compete with the provincial capital.” Mayor Zhou Xinglong sighed, trying to encourage everyone. “So let’s not lose hope.”
“The most important thing right now is to wait for higher authorities to send help. But we also need to reassure all the citizens! Advise them not to venture near the new secret realm out of curiosity if they lack the strength.”
Zhou Xinglong looked around the room, seriously reminding everyone, “Also, we need to prepare all the necessary supplies for secret realm exploration and rescue, including vehicles... Once the personnel sent by higher authorities arrive, we must enter the secret realm immediately! And keep monitoring the situation and be ready for battle. If any powerful beasts escape from the secret realm, they must be eliminated immediately!”
“We absolutely cannot allow these wild beasts to approach the city!”
The appearance of a four-star secret realm is both an opportunity and a threat for Jianghuai City.
But right now, the most important task is to protect the city's residents and rescue the six to seven hundred people who accidentally fell into the secret realm!
...
The news of the new secret realm in the Qingshan Wilderness Area spread like wildfire.
Almost overnight, everyone in Jianghuai City, from elderly people to young children, knew about it.
The people of Jianghuai City had mixed reactions.
Some were excited, thinking that the appearance of a four-star secret realm would quickly boost property values and lead to large-scale development of schools and hospitals.
They were about to go from being residents of a third-tier city to residents of a first-tier city, with access to richer social resources. Their children would attend better schools, and their elderly would receive better care.
However, some people were deeply worried, with red eyes from crying.
These were the families who had just received government notifications about their missing relatives.
Zhou Fangmei clutched her phone, crying her heart out.
She never expected that after just going to work, she would come home to the news that her daughter was missing!
The Qingshan Wilderness Area was supposed to be the safest wilderness area near Jianghuai City. In the past, apart from a few unlucky individuals each year, almost no one ever had accidents there.
After all, before the Qingshan Wilderness Area merged with Blue Star, it was only a one-star secret realm.
In a one-star secret realm, most of the beasts were tier-0, tier-1, and tier-2, and the lowest level of contracted beasts available at the supply base was tier-2. So it was considered very safe for high school seniors.
“Old Song, how could this happen? A four-star secret realm! A four-star secret realm! How is Xiao Yu supposed to survive in there? Even a tier-4 or tier-5 beast would be too much for her to handle!” Zhou Fangmei sobbed, hitting her husband's arm repeatedly.
Song Wenhai sat on the sofa, smoking one cigarette after another, the room filled with smoke.
His face was grim, silent, just as worried about Song Yu's safety as his wife was.
He knew his daughter well.
She had always been strong-willed. Even after awakening her Beast Space and discovering it was a useless F-tier space, she refused to give up on becoming a Beastmaster.
Fortunately, fate was kind. The young Snow Spirit Cat, her initial beast, had evolved to tier-3 within three months, allowing her to get into any top Beastmaster university...
But their joy was short-lived. They never expected that their daughter would have an accident in the supposedly safest Qingshan Wilderness Area.
Song Wenhai's brow furrowed deeply. There was nothing he could do now that the incident had already happened.
Based on past experiences with secret realms, if his daughter couldn't be rescued soon, the odds of her survival after the secret realm entrance stabilized were slim.
But he would not give up on his daughter, no matter what.
He couldn't say this to his wife, so Song Wenhai took a deep drag on his cigarette and tried to comfort her, “I already called the old man. He said he would ask other family heads if they are willing to team up and enter the new secret realm...”
“If they agree, I'll go in with the old man.”
Song Wenhai patted his wife's shoulder, “I'm a third-tier Beastmaster. Even if I'm not strong enough for a four-star secret realm, teaming up with others, they won't refuse... If the old man can't persuade them, I'll join another team to enter the new secret realm.”
“I heard this new secret realm is likely an ice and snow world... So, don’t worry too much. Help me pack some food and clothes, including Xiao Yu's clothes. I'll take them with me into the secret realm.”
To distract his wife from her worries and to prevent her from being overwhelmed with grief, Song Wenhai tried to stay upbeat and asked her to help him pack.
When people are busy with tasks, it helps take their minds off their sorrow.
Song Qi sat in the living room, watching his worried father and tearful mother. His hands clenched into fists on his knees.
If only he were a high-level Beastmaster now, he could enter the new secret realm himself instead of having to wait anxiously at home like his parents.
...
The appearance of a four-star secret realm was a devastating blow for the third-tier city of Jianghuai.
But for those powerful Beastmasters who loved to explore secret realms, it was the biggest surprise!
Especially since these new secret realms had never been explored or exploited before, they were highly coveted.
Upon receiving the news, many Beastmasters hurried to Jianghuai City as quickly as possible!
Some used space-type or flying beasts to travel swiftly, while others took expensive private jets.
Suddenly, Jianghuai City, previously insignificant, became the center of national attention.
Any four-star secret realm's resources could supply a first-tier provincial capital! Over the past thousand years, there had only been around thirty four-star secret realms nationwide.
...
Song Yu and Bai Yuhan had no idea that the situation outside Jianghuai City had turned upside down.
But they could guess that the appearance of the new secret realm would cause a huge commotion.
Outside the cave, snow fell heavily all night.
Song Yu, exhausted and sleepy, still had to get up in the middle of the night to shovel snow with Bai Yuhan.
It wasn't that Qiuqiu and Xiao Hei didn't want to help, but Qiuqiu was too large to control its movements precisely.
If Qiuqiu swept away the snow with its paws, it would clear the entrance too thoroughly, exposing the cave to other beasts, making it unsuitable for hiding. Xiao Hei was injured, and since Bai Yuhan felt the new secret realm was particularly dangerous, he had planned with Song Yu to have the armored dragon lizard eat two dragon saliva grasses in advance.
Now, Xiao Hei was resting in Bai Yuhan's Beast Space, digesting the medicinal power, hoping to break through to tier-2.
Just like that...
Bai Yuhan and Song Yu stayed in the cave for three full days. When they were awake, they watched the snow, shoveled it, and collected various branches and firewood. When they were tired, they fell asleep immediately.
Apart from occasionally taking out her phone to play with the dodder vine, Song Yu even stopped her usual activity of letting the cat out for exercise, keeping it within her Beast Space instead.
Until one day, the weather outside the cave cleared up, and the heavy snow began to gradually stop.
Bai Yuhan opened his eyes and looked at Song Yu. “My contracted beast has just broken through to tier-2. I plan to go out and check the situation... Do you want to come with me?”
Although Song Yu had enough food in her backpack to last for a month, there were now two of them...
This made Bai Yuhan consider the coming days carefully.
If the outside Beastmaster teams couldn't rescue them within half a month, or if they were unlucky and couldn't find the stable entrance to the new secret realm within that time...
Once their food ran out, what would they do next?
To ensure their survival and avoid being in a desperate situation, he had to make various preparations in advance.
Additionally, the secret realm was both dangerous and full of opportunities.
Bai Yuhan also wanted to see if they could find any treasures in this new secret realm that could help Xiao Hei evolve.
Fighting other beasts to hone his skills and helping his initial contracted beast evolve were crucial. The rare resources in the new secret realm could also be helpful.
“You want to go out?” Song Yu was surprised.
“Yes, I want to find some food and check if there are other exits to the secret realm nearby,” Bai Yuhan replied seriously.
The entrance to a new secret realm would take about ten days to half a month to stabilize, but during this time, other exits might appear elsewhere.
If they found one, it would be good to leave through there.
Song Yu thought for a moment and nodded, “We've been in this cave for so long. It's indeed time to go out and take a look.”
Staying at home playing games, reading novels, drinking soda, and playing with the cat was enjoyable. But being cooped up in a dark cave without even a light, listening to the howling wind outside and shoveling snow at night, was frustrating.
Besides, in a disaster, waiting passively for rescue isn't wise.
Most importantly, staying in one place in an unfamiliar secret realm wasn't necessarily safe.
As the saying goes, relying on heaven and earth is not as good as relying on oneself. Song Yu wanted to go out and see the situation in the secret realm.
She rubbed her sore arms, which had become painful from shoveling snow over the past few days, and got up.
“Okay, I'll go out with you!”
“But...” Song Yu frowned, still hesitant, “This new secret realm seems quite high-level. What if we encounter powerful beasts?”
When they fell into the snowfield secret realm from the Qingshan Wilderness Area, it was during a blizzard with howling winds. In such conditions, visibility was extremely low, and most beasts wouldn't come out of their caves.
But now that the blizzard had stopped, it was easier for them to go out, but also easier for other beasts to come out to hunt.
Song Yu's expression drooped, worried that she might become a meal for some beast once they stepped outside.
Bai Yuhan stared at Song Yu for a while, making her feel a bit uneasy.
Finally, he spoke calmly, “Beasts tend to have territories. The most common high-level carnivorous beasts in a snowfield secret realm are wolves, bears, eagles, and some high-level carnivorous plants.”
“Unlike forest bears, the bears living in the snow prefer to hunt at night. These high-level snow bears don't hoard food; they eat it immediately, so they don't overhunt. If we encounter one, we just need to run faster than other animals.”
Bai Yuhan's voice was cold and calm. “Feline beasts run twice as fast as bears, so even if we encounter a tier-6 bear, as long as it's not a sneak attack, a tier-3 Snow Spirit Cat can outrun it.”
“Ah! I see!” Song Yu suddenly understood, nodding appreciatively.
Bai Yuhan glanced at Song Yu, puzzled, but said nothing more. He continued, “The same goes for wolf beasts. They prefer to hunt in packs at night and sleep during the day. So, encountering a wolf pack during the day is unlikely unless there's a special situation.”
Song Yu nodded, her eyes wide with admiration.
“High-level eagle beasts are too large, with wingspans of over ten meters, so they don't live near forests. They prefer hunting in open plains and live in caves on cliffs.”
“Only low-level eagle beasts, with smaller bodies and lower bloodlines, nest in forests. So, if we travel during the day and head towards the forest, we can avoid these three types of carnivorous beasts.”
Song Yu nodded as she listened, her eyes shining with admiration.
She couldn't help but marvel at how exceptional the male protagonist was. Even in an unknown secret realm, he could analyze the environment so thoroughly.
“So, as long as we're not unlucky enough to encounter high-level carnivorous plant beasts, our risk of danger is significantly reduced?” Song Yu mused, rubbing her chin.
“Hmm?”
However...
Song Yu's words made Bai Yuhan frown instinctively.
“Encountering high-level carnivorous plant beasts?”
Bai Yuhan's expression was serious as he looked at Song Yu like a stern school principal. “I remember you did well in school. How could you forget the knowledge from the Beast Encyclopedia?”
Song Yu: “...?”
Bai Yuhan stared at Song Yu for a full ten seconds, making the atmosphere in the cave tense.
Finally, he sighed and shook his head. “The Beast Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Page 236, clearly states that high-level plant beasts, except for those that live in swamps or dark places, can uproot themselves and move like animals.”
“But whether they can move or not, as plants, they prefer to root in the soil and enjoy sunlight, water, and nutrients. So, even high-level carnivorous plants don't need to eat daily. They mainly absorb nutrients from the soil...”
“Typically, high-level carnivorous plants hunt once a week or even once a month. As long as we avoid their territories, they won't actively attack us.”
“Like other high-level beasts, high-level plant beasts are territorial and competitive. In snowy regions, to get better sunlight and nutrients, they won't tolerate other high-level beasts or plants encroaching on their territory.”
“Since it's snowing heavily, we can't observe the soil conditions.”
“So, once we enter the forest, we just need to avoid areas with no trees, excellent visibility, and plenty of sunlight to stay away from high-level plant beasts.” Bai Yuhan's tone was cold, and his expression remained unchanged.
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