On the deck of the command ship, two naval officers with the rank of rear admiral on their shoulders were having a conversation.
"What else can we look at? The South China Sea Fleet has already come out, let's keep searching..."
The man referred to as Lao Xie was the highest-ranking officer in the delegation and the deputy commander of the East China Sea Fleet, one of the three major fleets. Standing next to him was Shen Hua, the deputy political commissar.
Shen Hua glanced at Commander Xie and said, "It's been more than twenty hours since the plane crashed. Besides, there was a storm in this area yesterday. I estimate that the missing people are probably already dead. Why waste resources and manpower on this..."
Political Commissar Shen was somewhat dismissive of this mission. As the fleet's chief steward, he knew all too well the staggering amount of supplies the fleet consumed during a day at sea.
Now, in order to search for people on a plane crash, not only has their mission been temporarily terminated, but the South China Sea Fleet, which is closest to the Indian Ocean, has also been dispatched. You should know that it is a national strategic force.
However, since the order was issued directly by the Central Military Commission, it had to be carried out even if it was not understood. Political Commissar Shen could only grumble to his old partner.
"Old Shen, don't talk nonsense. Remember the orders from above: find the person alive or dead. Expand the search area by another 30 nautical miles..."
Commander Xie interrupted the political commissar. He had received the order directly from Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Ouyang. Moreover, in the past ten hours, the deputy chief had made seven or eight phone calls, and his tone had become increasingly harsh.
After reviewing yesterday's weather report and inquiring with several other survivors, Commander Xie was not very optimistic about the chances of Zhuang Rui surviving.
Having spent half his life at sea, the general was no stranger to storms. Not to mention people entering them, even these ironclad warships could be capsized by storms.
"But……"
"No need to say anything more, issue the order to expand the search area by thirty nautical miles..."
Commander Xie waved to the guards standing in the distance and gave them a new order.
One nautical mile is nearly 2 kilometers. Expanding the search area to 30 nautical miles, which is almost 60 kilometers, exceeds the range of yesterday's storm. If they still can't find it, then Commander Xie will be out of options.
Zhuang Rui felt like a rag doll being mercilessly torn apart by the sea. The crashing waves almost made him faint. If he hadn't seen how close the shore was, he probably wouldn't have been able to hold on.
With only twenty meters or so left, Zhuang Rui couldn't reach the shore no matter what he did. The gravitational pull of the tidal current was too strong. At this moment, Zhuang Rui was like a blade of grass, with no ability to resist it.
"Ah!" Zhuang Rui felt increasingly uneasy. He sensed that the tide was about to recede completely, and if he couldn't get back to land soon, he would likely be sucked into the depths of the Indian Ocean.
Raising his head above the sea and letting out a roar, Zhuang Rui poured all his spiritual energy into his body. The surge of spiritual energy instantly made him full of energy, and he plunged into the seawater.
The seawater here is only three or four meters deep. After Zhuang Rui dived to the bottom, he stuck his hands firmly into the mud on the seabed and struggled to climb to the shore.
Undersea currents crashed against Zhuang Rui's body. Due to the buoyancy of the seawater and his life jacket, Zhuang Rui's entire body floated up. If he hadn't just grabbed a small rock, Zhuang Rui would have been sucked into the deep sea by now.
A minute passed, and Zhuang Rui's hands gripped the rock tightly.
Two minutes passed, and a feeling of stuffiness came over him, but Zhuang Rui could still hold on.
Three minutes passed, and Zhuang Rui slowly exhaled the air from his chest.
Five minutes passed, and Zhuang Rui's face turned somewhat bluish-purple, but he felt that the suction from the seawater seemed to have lessened.
Eight minutes passed. Zhuang Rui's brain was extremely oxygen-deprived, his face was contorted with bulging veins, and his whole body felt like it was about to explode. In order to hold on a little longer, Zhuang Rui buried half of his head in the sand on the seabed.
Twelve minutes passed, and Zhuang Rui, unable to bear the mouthful of sea sand any longer, suddenly kicked off the seabed with both feet, propelling his entire body upwards.
"Cough...cough cough...spit, spit..."
As soon as he surfaced, Zhuang Rui hurriedly opened his mouth wide to breathe, but he almost inhaled the sand in his mouth. He coughed and his face turned red. At this time, he did not realize that even his feet had left the water.
"Huh? What happened? When did I become able to jump this high?"
Zhuang Rui remembered that when he was diving, he was still three or four meters above the surface, but now, Zhuang Rui felt as if he had jumped into the air, and the buoyancy and pressure of the seawater disappeared in an instant.
Looking down, Zhuang Rui saw that he was completely exposed to the air.
It wasn't until Zhuang Rui fell from the sky onto the sea surface that he realized the water, which was originally three or four meters deep, was now only just above his calves.
"Damn it, I almost suffocated in that deep water just now?"
After a moment of stunned silence, Zhuang Rui realized that he could have breathed air if he had just raised his head, but instead, he had buried his head in the sand like an ostrich, almost killing himself.
"I...I'm such an idiot..."
Zhuang Rui slapped himself; he simply couldn't forget the fact that he had almost suffocated just now.
However, Zhuang Rui was unaware that he was just over a minute away from breaking the Guinness World Record for the longest time holding his breath underwater, set by Canadian Robert Foster in 1959.
It must be said that human potential is limitless. At Zhuang Rui's normal level, he would be lucky to last five minutes.
"I'm on shore? What happened?"
After he finished getting angry at himself, Zhuang Rui realized the problem. However, for a moment, Zhuang Rui did not expect that this was a normal phenomenon after the tide receded. Of course, this was all caused by the lack of oxygen in his brain.
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to jump up and celebrate his narrow escape from death, his expression suddenly changed drastically, because he heard a very strange sound coming from behind him.
Zhuang Rui looked back and saw a wave, seven or eight meters high, about ten meters away from him, like a monster opening its mouth to devour him.
"Oh my god!"
Zhuang Rui no longer cared about celebrating; his legs seemed to have springs attached to them as he jumped up and ran desperately towards the shore.
However, Zhuang Rui had clearly not been trained in sprinting in the sea. Just as he had run about ten meters, a huge wave behind him slammed into his body and sent him flying. It was like the giant hand of a giant, easily throwing Zhuang Rui's body more than ten meters away.
The giant wave slowly receded back into the sea, while the surface of the sea not far away was still churning, seemingly brewing the next wave.
Dizzy and disoriented, Zhuang Rui stood up, his vision blurred. If he hadn't fallen onto the beach, it would have killed him. Instinctively, Zhuang Rui felt that this place was not safe either, and his whole body swayed as he walked towards the other side of the sea.
With a "bang," Zhuang Rui finally couldn't hold on any longer when they reached a place full of rocks. He fell heavily to the ground, his forehead scraping against a rock as he hit the ground, and blood immediately gushed out.
However, Zhuang Rui could no longer feel the pain at this point.
After nearly twenty hours of battling the sea, the mental strain of escaping death and the exhaustion from completely draining his physical and spiritual energy, Zhuang Rui could no longer hold on and drifted off to sleep.
That night, Zhuang Rui had many dreams. He dreamed of his mother mending his clothes when he was a child, of the stunning beauty of Qin Xuanbing when they first met, and of the two robbers and the bullets that shot at him while he was working at the pawnshop. "Ah!" Zhuang Rui seemed to feel the pain. He cried out in pain and opened his eyes, only to find that a large crab had just released its pincers from his fingers and was sneakily burrowing into the rocks on his right hand.
"I'm alive?"
The dream seemed to take Zhuang Rui through a cycle of reincarnation. When he opened his eyes, he realized he was still alive. The pain in his fingers made him acutely aware of this. "Ahhhhh, I'm alive!" Zhuang Rui jumped up. He didn't care why it was already bright outside, nor did he care about the pain of his bare feet on the rocks. All Zhuang Rui wanted to do was vent. The reason was simple: it was good to be alive. He ran aimlessly across the beach, letting out meaningless roars. His body contorted into all sorts of bizarre poses. If someone were to film this, it would look like a piece of modern art.
Only when his voice was hoarse and he could no longer speak did Zhuang Rui lie heavily on the beach, looking at the blue sky and white clouds, and his mood gradually calmed down.
"I think I got ashore around dusk, didn't I?"
Zhuang Rui still felt a pang of fear when he recalled his experience before he lost consciousness.
Zhuang Rui looked up at his highly waterproof watch and realized that he had slept for sixteen or seventeen hours, and it was already noon the next day.
"thirsty……"
After regaining consciousness from his abnormal state, Zhuang Rui suddenly felt unbearably hungry and thirsty. He quickly took off his life jacket and began to take stock of his remaining belongings.
Zhuang Rui was a little disappointed with the result. Apart from Peng Fei's knife, there were only three compressed biscuits left, and the two loaves of bread that he had been reluctant to eat had been soaked in seawater and turned into a paste because the packaging bag was torn.
In other words, if there is nothing to eat on the island, Zhuang Rui will have to rely on these three compressed biscuits while waiting for rescuers to arrive.
"Having survived such a calamity, I'm sure to be blessed with good fortune. I haven't even seen my son or daughter yet..."
Zhuang Rui comforted himself, then tore open a bag of compressed biscuits, chewed them slowly, and swallowed them with great difficulty. Not having any water was Zhuang Rui's biggest problem.
Zhuang Rui stood up and began to examine the island, recalling seeing coconut trees yesterday. He didn't know if it was a deserted island or had already been developed, but judging from the desolate surroundings, the former seemed more likely.
"Huh? It's fresh water." Zhuang Rui suddenly noticed a puddle of clear water in a hollow of a rock next to him. He quickly ran over, dipped his finger in it, and put a drop in his mouth.
Instantly, Zhuang Rui burst into tears; the most important crisis for his survival had been resolved.
Chapter 826 Survival on a Deserted Island (1)
Zhuang Rui took off his life jacket, lay face down on the reef, pressed his face against the hollow of the reef, moistened his cracked lips, and then carefully took a sip.
In Zhuang Rui's mind, this saliva was no less than fine wine and dew. After holding the water in his mouth for a while, Zhuang Rui reluctantly swallowed it.
He didn't know if it was rainwater or dew, but after taking a sip of water, Zhuang Rui's restlessness subsided considerably, and he regained some strength.
Although he was still incredibly thirsty, Zhuang Rui forced himself not to drink more. The story of those four bottles of mineral water taught him that he needed to think long-term; momentary pleasure could lead to lifelong suffering.
If Zhuang Rui hadn't finished several bottles of mineral water early yesterday, he wouldn't have had to try the taste of seawater.
Where did the blood come from?
Zhuang Rui wanted to comb his hair with his hands, but ended up with his hands covered in scabs. He quickly looked at his reflection in the puddle of water and discovered a wound on his forehead. It was just a minor cut and had already started to scab over.
Zhuang Rui tried to mobilize his spiritual energy, and to his delight, the spiritual energy that had been completely depleted last night was now much more abundant. Although he couldn't do it as usual, it was enough for him to cleanse his body.
After healing his wounds with spiritual energy and circulating it throughout his body, Zhuang Rui immediately felt refreshed and all his fatigue gone. Of course, his stomach was still growling loudly, since spiritual energy couldn't be eaten.
Gritting his teeth, Zhuang Rui made a tough decision and pulled out another compressed biscuit from his life jacket.
These biscuits aren't the kind sold in supermarkets; they're issued to the military. Although each one is only the size of a business card, it expands after being eaten and is enough for a person's daily needs.
Tearing open the packaging, Zhuang Rui ate a third of the compressed biscuit with the little water he had, finally relieving his hungry stomach. He carefully put away the remaining piece and a half of the biscuit.
Zhuang Rui secretly decided that he should not use compressed biscuits again until he was completely desperate. He had to keep some supplies for himself.
"What kind of place is this?"
After relieving himself of his hunger, Zhuang Rui began to look around at his surroundings. To his surprise, the scenery here was exceptionally beautiful.
Not far away, the sea is dotted with rugged rocks, strange stones, and unusual reefs.
The beach, covered with fine white sand, stretches for over a thousand meters. The azure sea crashes against the sand, creating wisps of white mist. This beautiful scenery surpasses even the beaches of Hainan Island that Zhuang Rui had visited before.
The island ahead was covered in lush greenery with a pleasant climate, and a towering mountain stood there. Standing by the sea, Zhuang Rui could only see the mountain peak shrouded in a light mist.
Based on the plants on the island, Zhuang Ruineng could tell that it should be a volcanic island, formed by the accumulation of underwater volcanic ejecta millions of years ago. After its formation, it underwent a long period of weathering and erosion, and the rocks on the island were completely broken and gradually turned into soil, which is why so many plants could grow on the island.
Moreover, Zhuang Rui believed that there might be animals, even wild beasts, in these towering mountains and forests.
Seeing this scene, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but feel a little strange. Logically speaking, such an island should have great value for tourism development, but he didn't know why no one came to develop it. Looking around, there was no sign of human habitation; it should be a deserted island.
Although 94 percent of the world's islands remain undeveloped, it is somewhat unreasonable that such a beautiful island, comparable to tourist hotspots like the Maldives, is left undeveloped.
Such a deserted island, if it were to invest heavily and build a floating helipad, would definitely attract tourists from all over the world.
Furthermore, this mysterious island shrouded in mist can be developed into an adventure attraction, and coupled with blockbuster movies like "Cast Away," it will surely attract a large number of tourists.
The idea was good, but Zhuang Rui, who had seen American blockbusters such as Jurassic Park and King Kong, was a little uneasy. What if that storm really blew him into Jurassic Park?
Thinking of this, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but shudder. Was he just escaping one danger only to fall into another? Although Zhuang Rui was usually quite thick-skinned, he was starting to feel the strain.
"Damn it, I can't be a Good Samaritan next time..."
Zhuang Rui was now feeling a bit regretful. Why did he have to be so presumptuous? If only he had had that satellite phone, he wouldn't be so helpless now.
Although he wanted to explore the island, Zhuang Rui hesitated to move forward due to his fear of the unknown, and stared at the island for a long time without daring to go any further.
On such an island, there is almost a 100% chance of encountering animals. Zhuang Rui is not afraid of cats and dogs, but if there are lions, wolves, tigers, or leopards, then Zhuang Rui going into the mountains would be nothing more than delivering himself to the enemy.