Train Survival: You're really trying to survive!

Chapter 8 Bird Hunting

"Birds? That means there's meat!"

Su Li stood up abruptly, without even putting on her shoes, and ran to the window to look at the direction from which the sound was coming.

He arrived at the perfect time and saw a large flock of birds, roughly estimated to be several dozen, that looked like red-crowned cranes, fly towards the left side of the train and then land.

Su Li looked in that direction, carefully recalling that location.

Because the wilderness was so vast, the distance visible to the naked eye was very far, so Zuli could see what was in that location.

"There's a small grove of trees there, at least 5 kilometers away from here. Is that where those birds are roosting?"

"I won't go tonight. I'm too tired, and it's getting dark. My only means of lighting is a torch, which is too conspicuous at night. I'm afraid of disturbing the birds and attracting some predators."

Wild animals won't attack unless provoked, but we don't really know what constitutes provocation. What if they're hunting and I hold up a torch to them, they might think I'm challenging them?

After much deliberation, Zurich chose the safer option.

"However, we can start preparing tonight."

To hunt birds, you need some ranged attack methods. Trying to run over and catch a bird with your bare hands? Su Li could only conclude that you're still half asleep.

"Given my current situation, how can I attack birds from a distance?"

Zurich thought of bows and arrows, javelins, and slings.

"Bows and arrows are out of the question; I have no idea how to make them. Javelin... throwing javelins requires skill, right? That could be an alternative. The best option, after all, is still the sling."

The sling, though seemingly simple, actually has an effective kill radius of up to 100 meters. Su Li remembers doing parabolic problems involving slings on her old physics exams.

Zurich's requirements weren't high; 20 meters would be fine.

I started doing it as soon as I thought of it. Taking advantage of the fact that it was late at night and I didn't dare to go out and wander around, I practiced throwing the sling.

Su Li recalled the example question on the physics exam, thought about how to proceed, and after figuring it out, took two weeds from the ground and then used the system to synthesize them into a rope.

After synthesizing it, Su Li took it out to examine the new resource.

It was a rope about the thickness of a thumb and a meter long. Su Li tugged on it; as expected of a system product, it was extremely sturdy.

Su Li also discovered that everything made using the system was of high quality.

Zuli used a stone axe to cut the rope in two, then tore a piece of cloth from her shirt. Suddenly, her shirt was a crop top.

Su Li folded the cloth, then tied the two ends with rope, and then made a loop at the end of one of the ropes.

On the ring-making end, put the ring on your middle finger, then pick up a small, round stone from the ground, wrap it in a piece of cloth, and then grasp the other end with your index finger and thumb.

Su Li looked at the target not far away, and taking advantage of the remaining light, aimed at the target 20 meters away and began to swing the sling. With a strain of his muscles, Su Li grimaced in pain.

As Su Li swung the sling forcefully, the speed of the sling increased. Su Li felt that the speed was about right, aimed at the target, and released the rope that was pinched between her index finger and thumb.

The stone was launched by the sling and, with a whoosh, hit a spot several meters away from the target.

"You loosened it a little too early, let's try again!"

Undeterred, Su Li picked up another smooth stone and began throwing stones.

Once, twice, 10 times, 20 times, Su Li practiced for a very long time until it was completely dark and she could see nothing at all, before she finally stopped.

After practicing for a while, Su Li has gotten the hang of it. Although she can't always hit the target, her shots are always within two meters.

"I'll get to this level in a short time. I'll try my luck tomorrow. My arms are too tired."

Su Li put away the sling, returned to the carriage, and closed the door. Feeling the temperature had dropped sharply and worried about catching a cold, Su Li put on her school uniform jacket and lay down to sleep.

When he was woken up by the alarm clock, it was already 5 a.m.

After drinking some strange-tasting water to replenish his fluids, Su Li, carrying a sling, three stone axes, two stone hammers, and the smooth stones he had chosen yesterday, headed towards the place where the flock of birds he had seen landed the day before.

The distance was about 5 kilometers, roughly as Su Li had estimated. This stretch of road was extremely difficult for Su Li; her legs ached, and her arms felt like they couldn't lift them. But for survival, Su Li gritted her teeth, stretching her shoulders as she continued on.

When they arrived at their destination, Su Li felt that she had warmed up enough. Although her arm muscles were still sore, she could move them.

Upon entering the grove, Su Li searched around for a while, but unfortunately, she wasn't lucky this time and didn't find the treasure chest.

Instead of finding the treasure chest, we saw the place where the birds were roosting.

To the east of the woods, there is a fairly large lake. The entire lake is yellowish-brown and looks very dirty. In the middle of the lake, there are many strange rocks, which look like a miniature mountain in a bonsai garden.

Yellowish smoke kept billowing out from the middle of the stone. It gave people a feeling of insecurity.

Zuli guessed that it might be a crater from a volcano, which would explain why there are so many toxic saline-alkali lands here. This is because volcanoes continuously release harmful substances, which combine with groundwater and erupt onto the surface, polluting the water system.

Su Li, with her sharp eyes, spotted a treasure chest gleaming with metallic light in the middle of the mountain.

"Even if we didn't catch any birds, it's still worth it," Su Li muttered to herself, then looked towards the shore.

Many plants resembling reeds grew along the shore, which Zurich temporarily called reeds.

Among the reeds, there were many red figures. They were birds, about 1 meter tall, with red bodies, and looked somewhat like cranes.

"So many bird nests, this place looks like their habitat. Tsk, what a bumper harvest. I wonder if there are any bird eggs." Su Li licked his lips. Even though he had only eaten it for a day, he was already tired of the extremely salty and sweet food.

Having spotted her target, Su Li then observed the surrounding area for any other animals. If she were to be surrounded by hyenas or other ravenous creatures while hunting birds, it would be a terrible loss.

Zuli carefully observed for a while to confirm that there were no other creatures around.

Then he suddenly remembered something: "I think I'm still in the newbie protection period, so I won't be attacked... Oh well, it's always good to be cautious."

He glanced at his watch; it was 5:30 in the morning. Many of the birds had already woken up, but some were still resting with their heads buried in their wings.

Zuli crept closer to the flock of birds. Perhaps these birds had never seen a human before; some of them, upon noticing Zuli, didn't fly away but instead tilted their heads to look at her.

Seeing this, Su Li decided not to hold back.

He approached to within about 15 meters and saw that the flock of birds was becoming restless. He then took out the roundest stone he had chosen, put it into the sling, and then swung the sling with all his might.

When the sling reached its maximum speed, Su Li aimed at the area with the most birds and forcefully threw the stone out.

"Quack quack!"

The resting birds were instantly startled, emitting calls that sounded like ducks, and a large flock of red birds took flight. Su Li ignored them, immediately loaded the stones, and swung them with all her might, smashing them in another direction.

But there were only two shots left. After those two shots, all the birds flew away.

However, two birds remained on the ground, unable to fly away. Su Li quickly ran over and grabbed the two struggling birds.

"Haha, not bad luck, I won two!" Su Li laughed excitedly.

There were about 200 birds in the flock, living very close together, so hitting two of them wasn't too surprising.

Both birds were hit in the abdomen. These birds are slow to take off, and after being hit, they lost their balance. However, if Zuli had been just a little slower, the two birds would have taken flight.

Zuli broke the necks of the two birds and then examined them.

Red-feathered Bird: A common bird in hot, saline-alkali lands, feeding on algae. It often inhabits toxic saline ponds, and due to the protection provided by the poisonous water, its flight ability has somewhat deteriorated.

"Feeds on algae?" Zu Li muttered to herself.

Su Li looked at the yellowish-brown lake water, which was different from the other lakes. There did seem to be something floating in the water. "Is there algae in this yellowish-brown lake water?"

It's worth a look, but let's raid the bird's nest first!