Chapter 9: Source of Fire
When Shu Jintian woke up, he discovered that he had returned to the snake cave. The big snake was curled up on the grass pile and was coiled up in a disk. And he was right in the centre of the snake disk, tightly surrounded. The snake’s head was leaning on his shoulder, his green eyes hazy, seeming to have fallen asleep.
Shu Jintian looked around and realised that the fruit tree atop the cliff yesterday had surprisingly been brought back by the big snake as well. There were several red, egg-sized fruits growing on top.
“Cough cough!”
Shu Jintian’s lungs were extremely painful, and he thought to himself that perhaps he had injured his internal organs yesterday.
He moved a little stiffly and Shu Hanyu immediately opened his transparent eyelids, coldly watching him.
“I got up to eat something; you don’t have a complaint against that, right?!”
When Shu Jintian opened his mouth, he felt his lungs ache faintly, which made it a little difficult for him to speak.
Shu Hanyu relaxed his vigilance against the female when he heard this and lazily loosened his body to release the female. Then he looked for a comfortable sleeping posture and tiredly dozed off.
Shu Jintian quickly crawled out of the snake circle and discreetly patted his body that had been encircled by the snake. He crouched by the fruit branch and smacked his lips. He hadn’t eaten anything for the past two days and his body was somewhat weak and strengthless.
He picked a thoroughly red fruit and had a big bite. The fruit had an ample amount of water content, but was more sour than sweet. It was possibly because it grew in a place abundant with water, and so the sweetness was diluted ba, Shu Jintian thought boredly.
Shu Hanyu lazily took a peek at the female. Seeing that the female was fine, he closed his eyes and rested. His dive yesterday had impacted and hurt his internal organs, and he had to take a good rest to recover.
Shu Jintian ate a few sour fruits and a surge of acid rose in his belly, causing him to become hungrier.
But in this damned place, he couldn’t even go out to look for food, so he couldn’t help but feel a little despondent
He recalled being born in a large, wealthy family. Though he had not received much fatherly love, he had been brought up in superior life conditions. When had he ever suffered hardship and humiliation?
In his mind, he silently recited: The person who the heavens bestow a great responsibility must first suffer bitter feelings, toil one’s muscle and bones, starve until one is skin and bones, suffer until one has nothing... There’s always a rainbow after the storm. En~ Hope he doesn’t directly catch a cold.
Shu Jintian leaned against the cavern wall. It was a little cold with his sleeveless shirt and so he picked up the comforter on the floor and wrapped it around him. He looked for a grass pile far away from the big snake and sat there.
The sunlight scattered from the cavern hole looked very warm and formed a distinct contrast against the gloomy and cold cavern. Shu Jintian was a little upset about his impetuous and rude behaviour from before. He failed his escape this time and caused the big snake to raise his guard against him, and it wouldn’t be that easy to lie to him next time.
When he woke up again, the sky had already turned dark and his stomach was growling constantly. He had been awoken from his hunger.
At some unknown point in time, his body had been coiled around by the snake. The bulky snake body heavily pressed against his abdomen, undulating with the rise and fall of his breathing.
Shu Hanyu’s snake head was pressed against the tip of his tail and he was unexpectedly still asleep.
“Hey, are you still alive? Cough cough!”
The moment Shu Jintian opened his mouth, his chest had a burst of stifled pain, and he had to be careful even when breathing. Shu Jintian pushed at the snake on his body and tried to shift to the side.
“Sss~” Shu Hanyu looked at the female through narrowed eyes in response to him.
“I’m hungry, so go out and find some food for me ba!”
That’s right ah! The female had not eaten for a long time and he should find some food for him. Shu Hanyu opened his mouth wide and yawned, revealing incisive fangs reflecting cold light in the dark.
Lazily moving his body, Shu Hanyu crawled out.
His snake body covered in scales rubbed against Shu Jintian’s body and let out susurrations. It made Shu Jintian’s scalp prickle.
Finally, when the big snake left the cavern, Shu Jintian let out a breath and rubbed the places the big snake touched in revulsion.
Shu Hanyu returned very soon, bringing back a large, strange, and unknown beast that looked about the size of a lion, with two tusks protruding upwards. It was obviously a carnivore.
Such a big beast, Shu Jintian didn’t know how the big snake caught it. His skill is great ah!
Shu Jintian was rather admiring towards Shu Hanyu. If it weren’t because Shu Hanyu forcefully imprisoned him, he could be a thick thigh to hug. After all, this was the forest and his single human strength was still too weak.
Shu Hanyu pushed the food to the female, indicating for him to eat.
Shu Jintian’s heart thumped and the memory of being forced to drink raw blood abruptly surfaced in his mind. He wouldn’t have to be forced to drink blood again, right?
Shu Jintian took a step back and cautiously looked at Shu Hanyu.
Shu Hanyu’s eyes narrowed. Still being difficult?
Shu Jintian was scared witless, and seeing the snake’s expression turn strange, he felt his scalp turn numb.
“Hey, big snake-xiong, it’s not that I don’t eat it, but I’m not used to eating raw meat ah. I’ll do it myself, no need to look at me like that.”
Shu Hanyu looked at the female’s attitude, and seeing that he wasn’t being difficult, no longer cared how the female wanted to eat it and found a comfortable place to curl up in, staring at the female.
Shu Jintian sighed a big breath of relief, his heart still pounding nonstop.
Walking up to the side of the beast, Shu Jintian evaluated it. There was still quite a lot of meat, and it’d probably be nice to roast it.
Shu Jintian rummaged through the jacket he threw to the floor and took out a lighter, his only source of fire at the present.
Shu Jintian didn’t smoke, and so naturally wouldn’t carry lighters with him. This was something he had stolen from a bandit when he had been kidnapped previously. After all, he had been kidnapped to the mountains, and it was a desolate area. Even if he succeeded in escaping the bandit’s lair, because he wasn’t familiar with the path and merely relied on his two legs, he would already be considered lucky if he was able to walk out in a few days.
During those few days, a source of fire and weapons were essential, so he thought up every possible way to get a dagger and a lighter.
Now, this lighter coincidentally solved his greatest survival issue.
“That, Hanyu, it’s fine if you lend me some of your rice straws ba!”
Since he still wanted to escape, Shu Jintian no longer went against Shu Hanyu all the time, and chose to cultivate feelings first.
Shu Hanyu saw the female pointing at a small pile of dried grass on the floor and swept his tail to push the pile of grass over to Shu Jintian.
“Thanks ah! That… could you get me up? Unless you aren’t afraid of being roasted into a mottled snake!”
Shu Jintian visualised himself having a moment of ‘carelessness’ and setting the snake cave aflame. Wouldn’t the big snake become trapped inside and roasted into a delicious roasted snake? Shu Jintian smiled evilly, looking at Shu Hanyu with malicious intent.
But the big snake would definitely pop out of the snake hole before the fire spreads ba! On the contrary, he couldn’t climb out and he would be the one roasted against the wall instead. ⊙﹏⊙b Sweat.
Shu Hanyu couldn’t quite understand the female’s words but seeing the female smile happily, he couldn’t help gliding to the female’s side and wrap his snake tail around him, and his upper body also rose to be on eye-level with the female.
Shu Jintian stiffened up and couldn’t help his instinct to struggle. When the snake tail abruptly tightened and he received the big snake’s cold gaze, he stopped struggling.
Shu Jintian pointed at the cave entrance and stared anxiously at the big snake as he said, “Can I? I just want to go out to roast something to eat, I won’t run.”
Shu Hanyu contemplated for a few seconds, then wrapped up the female and brought him out of the hole. Placing Shu Jintian on the ground properly, Shu Hanyu then used his snake tail to hang down the hole, wrap around the prey he had crushed to death, and bring it up.
Shu Jintian smiled at Shu Hanyu and picked up his dagger. He sized up the beast the big snake had brought back. In the end, he chose the belly that looked to have thick meat and strongly sliced into it, cutting off a large piece of meat. Shu Jintian weighed it and it was about one kilogram, which was probably enough for him to eat his fill.
“Okay, I only need this. You eat the rest ba!”
Shu Hanyu greedily extended his snake tongue to feel the pleasantly bloody smell in the air and swallowed his saliva, but still did not eat.
Shu Jintian didn’t care either, stumbling to the riverside to clean the meat. Then, he found a smooth stone and cut the meat into long strips fairly decently.
Shu Jintian liked to eat but had never personally made food. He felt that the kitchen had too much soot and wasn’t clean. Now, as he held a dagger and cut the meat, it felt just like playing with toys when he was young.
After cutting the meat, Shu Jintian created a stack of firewood at the side. In a primitive forest, there was no one to clear up rotten plants. After piling up a thick layer on the floor, it became very good fuel.
The fire was burning brightly, lighting up the dusky night scene, the starry and speckled fire embers floated up to the sky after hot air like fireflies. However, the beautiful flame only lasted for a while. After a few seconds, the flickering firelight would dissipate and be replaced by other ‘fireflies’.
It was the very first time Shu Jintian realised that fire was also such a beautiful thing, and his mood also improved. Softly humming his favourite pop song, he skewered the thick cutlet onto a stick and roasted it.
Though decayed wood was easy to burn, it produced a thick, billowing smoke. Shu Jintian was inexperienced and had not paid attention to these details, directly placing the meat on the wood to roast. It was only when he took a bite that his face distorted.