The midsummer sunlight, the golden beach, the surging waves.
If only the timing were right.
Just looking at these words, Chen Wen could imagine a beautiful scene.
But...
"Pfft!"
He spat out a mouthful of bitter salty seawater.
Chen Wen struggled to climb out of the water, using his remaining strength, stepping on the wet and soft gravel, heading towards the shore.
How did it suddenly come to this?
Looking at the undeveloped beach, Chen Wen felt a mix of feelings inside.
Things have to be said starting half an hour ago.
Chen Wen, who was working part-time as a ride-hailing driver, hit a red-light-running portal to another world while on the job.
At that time, everything went black before his eyes.
When he opened them again.
He had arrived in this world, a parallel world mostly the same as the previous one.
Coming back to life, most people might feel lucky.
But Chen Wen felt he might as well have stayed in the darkness.
Because in this world, he wouldn't live much longer either!
The original body was a crew member on an ocean-going fishing ship, going out to sea to fish with the ship.
But just at dawn, a layer of thin fog suddenly appeared around the fishing boat.
At first, no one paid attention to this thin fog.
Until the fog grew thicker, turning everything around it pure white.
Only then did everyone on the ship realize they had encountered sea fog!
A type of severe weather phenomenon known as the killer at sea.
No one on the ship had ever encountered such a situation, instantly they panicked and lost their minds.
Even the most experienced captain lost his judgment due to panic.
After a series of reckless maneuvers, the fishing boat unsurprisingly went off course and hit a reef.
Then came the flooding and sinking.
The original body struggled in the water, and after swallowing a few mouthfuls of water, finally managed to escape the wreck site.
In his panic, the original body swam along the ocean current.
Until he was exhausted...
When Chen Wen regained consciousness.
He had been pushed by the ocean currents near this island.
Upon arriving under a coconut tree.
Chen Wen took off his clothes, wrung out the moisture, and put them back on.
To tell the truth, Chen Wen felt like he had lost the ability to think.
His mind was in turmoil.
There was a reason for exhaustion, as well as the panic of being stranded on a deserted island, and moreover a despair about the future.
In this world, Chen Wen's origins were that of a typical male protagonist.
His parents died in an accident when he was in high school.
He dropped out of school at that time, and through a relative's introduction, was sent to work on a fishing boat.
Since then, he has been making a living at sea.
The good news is, the long life at sea has given him some ability and physical fitness for wilderness survival.
The bad news is, since his parents passed away, Chen Wen has disappeared from his relatives' sight.
No one ever thought of him, or contacted him.
Not to mention the other crew members have a very low chance of survival.
The reef collision happened at dawn.
Most of the crew who had worked all night had returned to their cabins to rest.
In such circumstances, it would be difficult for anyone to react in time.
That means, aside from the state conducting a rescue based on the list after the fishing boat was reported missing.
No one will remember him!
Thinking of this, Chen Wen under the coconut tree was in utter despair.
"For crying out loud! How can it be this cruel? In one day I got hit by a car, then a shipwreck, and now I'm stranded on an uninhabited island?!"
Looking at the blue sky, Chen Wen couldn't help but curse: "I'm not saying I'm a saint, but I've never done anything evil, right?!"
"Why can't I even die in peace?!"
Chen Wen's voice rolled out into the distance.
The only response was the sound of waves crashing onto the beach, and the sound of wind blowing through the leaves.
This feeling of impotency, like punching cotton, left Chen Wen demoralized.
After a while of silence, Chen Wen reached into his pocket.
Nothing at all.
The shorts, T-shirt, and underwear on him.
Were his only link to human society.
"It would've been better to die in the shipwreck outright!"
In despair, Chen Wen reached the brink of collapse.
The next second.
"Pa!"
A loud slap.
Chen Wen fiercely slapped himself, dragging himself out of the pit of despair.
"I can't think like this!"
"I got hit by a car and could be reincarnated, I survived the shipwreck, this means I have great fortune!"
"Even if I'm stranded on a deserted island, I will definitely find a way out! Survive!"
Chen Wen's eyes reflected a strong desire to survive.
He wanted to live!
At the very least, he couldn't die on such a remote deserted island!
Once again, he slapped himself to keep his head clear.
After calming himself down, Chen Wen started analyzing his current situation: "This is definitely not a certain death scenario! I still have one last chance because the country won't abandon me!"
"As is customary, fishing boats always maintain contact with the outside world daily. With a whole day of being out of touch, the outside world can surely determine that something has happened to the fishing boat!"
"Then, based on the last known location, the relevant departments will definitely discover where we encountered the maritime accident and dispatch search and rescue teams!"
"I'm not far from where the incident happened, and the current has been flowing this way, so perhaps I can find some things washed ashore!"
"As long as I can hold out for a few days, when the search and rescue team arrives, I'll create some smoke, and they will definitely notice me!"
After a brief analysis, Chen Wen forcibly accepted this conclusion.
He stood up and looked at the endless ocean.
Chen Wen took a deep breath.
Survive!
With a clear goal in mind, it was time to take action.
Years of experience at sea told Chen Wen that now was when he had the most energy.
As time passed, his body would continue to consume stored energy, and hunger would gradually set in.
At that time, his physical strength and willpower would weaken.
His physical strength and willpower would be far less than now.
He must seize the time!
Chen Wen thought as he quickly headed towards the beach.
He was going to try his luck by the sea to see if he could find any supplies washed ashore by the current.
...
Just as Chen Wen expected.
There were indeed some things washed ashore on the beach.
At this moment, the tide was slowly receding, and many items from human civilization abruptly appeared on the beach.
"Is this a piece of the ship's hull?"
Chen Wen lightly kicked the object in front of him, which was a palm-sized piece of tin.
After some processing, this thing might be used as a knife.
Picking up the tin piece, Chen Wen pondered the sharp edge.
Walking a few steps quickly, he discovered something else.
A backpack.
"This is Sun's backpack!"
Like Chen Wen, Sun had dropped out of school to make a living on the ship, and they shared a cabin.
When the accident happened, Sun was resting in the cabin, and their room was right in front of the reef.
He remained silent for a moment.
Chen Wen picked up the backpack.
Opening the backpack, the contents inside relaxed Chen Wen's expression considerably.
Inside were several packs of well-sealed compressed biscuits, three bottles of Pepsi, and two large packs of spicy chicken feet.
"Food and water, all of which Sun liked, but you always bring Pepsi, do you have something against Coke?"
Chen Wen tugged at the corner of his mouth, but he couldn't smile.
His eyes were filled with melancholy.
Compared to those brothers in the cabin, he was actually lucky.
At the very least, he could still breathe and experience joy and sorrow.
He shook his head gently, dismissing the thoughts from his mind.
Chen Wen continued searching through the compartments of the backpack.
In the side open compartment, he found something familiar.
"Isn't this the ornament I bought the last time we went back?"
Chen Wen picked up the item and placed it in his palm.
It was a crown made of oak, giving off an ancient feeling.
At that time, Chen Wen had taken a liking to this little thing, bargaining with the shop owner for a long time and eventually purchasing it for a hundred yuan.
This had caused Sun to mock him several times.
"This thing...isn't that useful, right?"
Chen Wen toyed with the crown, intending to put it back.
But just then, the oak crown suddenly broke apart and dispersed.
Yet, a peculiar thing suddenly appeared in Chen Wen's mind.
[The Druid's Inheritance has been activated]
[Recipient of the Inheritance: Chen Wen]
[Level: Uninitiated (Currently you have no understanding of a Druid)]
[Inheritance Points: 0 (Inheritance Points are earned after each Wilderness Cultivation session)]
[Current Function: Extract or Plunder]
[Extract or Plunder: Druids respect natural laws and, for natural creatures, can extract trait entries through taming or befriending, or plunder trait entries through hunting or eating]
[Note: Each time you extract or plunder, you choose one from three trait entries. Tame and extract will always have at least one positive trait; hunt and plunder will always have at least one negative trait]
[Activated Entries: None]
[Entry Library: None]
This is... a system?!
After reading online novels for over ten years, Chen Wen was all too familiar with what appeared in his mind!
After hitting the jackpot with hitting the reef, his bad luck finally ended!
Things were turning around for the better!