Chapter 242: 239 Aircraft Carrier Is Not a Dream
The weather was clear, the sea surface sprinkled with sunlight, one man standing on a raft, gazing towards the endless waves.
A few long poles stood on the raft, laden with ropes and supporting a large sail; the sea breeze whistled, and with its urging, the sail provided tremendous power, propelling the raft steadily forward.
However, the very front pole was slightly different, with slices of fish hanging and swaying in the wind, resembling the cured meats on a balcony during the New Year, adorned with the joy of a bountiful harvest.
Today marked the eleventh day of drifting at sea and also the first day that Bi Fang officially left the island.
Two days earlier, after completing the raft, Bi Fang did not leave immediately. Instead, he lingered near the small island, fishing with a line, and expanded his food reserves to over five days before setting off.
With wood for support, he no longer needed to personally raise the sail; it functioned just propped up, saving him far more effort than before.
Besides, Bi Fang also used plastic bottles, branches, and some tent material to set up a simple distillation device. The main part was a tree bark container, shaped and fixed at the bottom with a piece of tent fabric tightly secured to prevent leaks, and similarly covered at the top with another layer of tent fabric. However, a stone was placed on top to create a funnel shape.
The container was filled with seawater. A plastic bottle stood in this sealed space; when the seawater vapor rose and condensed into droplets on the upper tent fabric, they would fall by gravity into the plastic bottle, providing a continuous supply of fresh water.
Although there was still more than half of the rainwater left from last time, Bi Fang always liked to prepare for a rainy day. Having come across an island, it was natural to equip himself with all sorts of tools; otherwise, once this chance was gone, there would be no other opportunity.
He looked up at the sea surface glistening like scattered gold.
Audiences often teased that Bi Fang was a ‘Daredevil King,’ but gazing at the vast ocean, how could he let his journey end on that tiny island?
“Time to eat,” he said.
Bi Fang diverted his gaze, feeling hungry. He casually took down a string of fish slices and came to sit cross-legged on the raft. In front of him was a tiny low table, very small, only as big as a stool, and without a tabletop. The uppermost part only supported two parallel branches with a large seashell in between.
He poured out two pieces of charcoal. Using the previous method, Bi Fang carefully ignited the fire and placed it under the seashell. Once it was heated, he took down the fish slices and placed them in the shell. As soon as the fish touched the hot seashell, a sizzling sound instantly filled the air, evoking thoughts of the rich oils contained within the flesh.
Once the fish turned a reddish gold and was cooked through, Bi Fang used chopsticks to pick up a piece and tasted it—it was scalding but satisfying.
The viewers’ mouths watered, cursing Bi Fang for making them jealous.
Is this really drifting at sea?
Even making a grill, aren’t you afraid of setting the raft on fire?
[Master Fang, be a human being, please. I haven’t had dinner yet, and I’m so hungry]
[That sizzling sound, I can’t take it anymore. I’m going to order delivery right away, barbeque for dinner tonight!]
[Starting with just a life raft, equipment all earned by crafting, this is truly outrageous!]
[What’s this?]
Drifting at sea.
This is sea drifting?
Nobody believes it, I don’t believe it.
This is sea drifting?
The day before yesterday, you were eating raw meat, yesterday you got distilled water, and today you’re having barbeque]
The online audience displayed their wit, playing with memes, as the scene before them was simply too shocking. This morning they discovered Bi Fang was tinkering with this small table; at the time, none of the viewers imagined Bi Fang was planning this!
He wanted to eat cooked food on a raft!
Cooked food!
What’s even more frightening is that by the looks of it, Master Fang has actually succeeded!
Is that reasonable? It’s highly unreasonable!
The audience certainly hasn’t forgotten what Old Fang said earlier about how difficult it was for Pan Lian, but looking at him now, you can’t tell there’s anything difficult about it at all. On the contrary, it looks like he’s on vacation, truly without a care for food or drink.
It’s outrageous!
Bi Fang faced the audience’s teasing with a chuckle. When he left the island, he nearly dug three feet into the ground, taking everything that seemed useful, including a large seashell. Then, while eating breakfast this morning, he suddenly had a brilliant idea; he felt he could make something similar to a stone grill.
Once the idea came to him, Bi Fang couldn’t contain himself, especially after having a cooked meal on the island, he became even more impatient and started building right away. Fortunately, he took plenty of wood, more than enough for burning.
As for worrying about setting the raft on fire, that wasn’t necessary. After all, soaked with seawater, it wasn’t easy to ignite, and Bi Fang had made preparations. He first laid a layer of wet leaves on the raft, followed by dry planks, and only then did he add the charcoal. Triple protection allowed him to enjoy a cooked meal successfully.
Delicious.
[After staying two days, he has a water purification device, various tools, and now a raft. Combined with the life raft, it’s almost like a boat. And now there’s even a barbecue grill. I seriously doubt that if Old Fang stays a bit longer, he might manage to launch an aircraft carrier from the island.]
[It’s hard not to agree.]
[Master Fang: It’s worth considering.]
[Fast forward to when Master Fang uses his Exploration Skill to discover iron ore and extract iron from the island.]
[Fast forward to Master Fang using the iron ore to make a steam engine.]
[Master Fang: Too slow, too slow. Skip to launching a spaceship and exploring the universe.]
The audience chuckled, but their admiration for Bi Fang was genuinely solid.
On a deserted island with only a few trees, Bi Fang managed to make a boat out of a raft after his arrival. Considering the size of the life raft itself, it was almost five meters long and two meters wide, comparable to a small boat. It was hard to imagine what he would do in a place with more resources. The audience wouldn’t be surprised if he truly started smelting iron.
Now, many “survival experts” similar to Master Fang have appeared online, but once compared to him, those who could still be watched are no longer watchable.
They fall short in looks and even more so in professional skills.
Strong, too strong.
After lunch, Bi Fang continued his grand fishing endeavor. Fishing could be said to be the main source of food after a sea disaster, and aside from this, there were no other good solutions.
But Bi Fang had lots of small fish to use as bait, greatly increasing the likelihood of catching fish. These two days, he had been well-fed and hydrated. The horsetail kelp from the beginning was already spared. If only he could encounter it again, it would balance the nutrition well.
He had already accumulated plenty of survival knowledge. If nothing unexpected happened, his situation would only get better, and there would be no need to worry about the future.
Looking up at the sky, Bi Fang squinted. The weather these past two days had been suspiciously good. The sunlight on the sea was very intense, causing a bit of soreness in his eyes.
“The sun is strong indeed. There’s one thing about sea survival I haven’t mentioned before—it’s somewhat similar to snow blindness. When encountering strong light at sea, to prevent eye injury, we can wear a mask.
If an ulcerated eye is caused by the strong light, we should take a piece of cloth, soak it in seawater, then tie it over the eyes to relax them, but it shouldn’t be done for too long to avoid skin ulcers.”
As he explained to the audience, a shadow swept across the sky, suddenly entering Bi Fang’s field of vision and quickly flying toward the raft.
What is that?
Bi Fang was momentarily stunned by the shadow, but his hand rapidly lifted, pulling the fishing hook back onto the raft.
The shadow grew nearer and, reaching just above the raft, it rapidly shrunk in size before immediately descending and growing larger again, falling toward the raft. Bi Fang instinctively ducked, and when the slight tremor reached him, he opened his eyes to look through.
It was, unbelievably, a seagull!