Chapter 206: Building a Floating Platform (Let

The blue beacon block is made of leather, not inflatable, and has excellent toughness, sufficient to remain afloat on the water.

He sat down on it heavily, his feet still over twenty centimeters above the sea surface.

Qin Yun worked while speaking: "I'm simulating a castaway; besides that can of Red Bull I just mentioned, I have a survival knife, two Snickers bars, a watch, and a flashlight."

He checked the time: "It's currently 9:30 a. m. local time; half an hour has passed since the crash and my fall into the water."

Due to lack of support, Qin Yun's shelter is simple: he laid the umbrella fabric flat over the beacon block, cut one umbrella cord into four segments, and secured the fabric at four points on the beacon block.

Though it looks loose and saggy, a person can easily crawl inside; the sensation isn't comfortable, but it's better than being exposed to the sun.

"If I had four sturdy wooden sticks, it would be much more comfortable," Qin Yun said, crawling out and smiling. "Then the sun protection problem is solved, my body won't be soaked in seawater, and the risk of skin breakdown disappears."

He pulled the Red Bull from his waist pouch: "The Indian Ocean has many sunny days and few rainy ones in March; waiting for rain is clearly unreliable, so I must actively collect water using distillation, using this Red Bull bottle as a simple distillation device."

"Damn, how the hell do you make one with just this bottle?"

"Even a clever housewife can't cook without rice—Jin Ye, are you joking?"

"This environment is too harsh."

"666!"

Qin Yun looked at the drone and smiled: "It's actually simple. The core principle is just using seawater evaporation—water vapor turns into fresh water, then collected for drinking. There's plenty of seawater, and the main thing is the sun overhead. You'll see how I build it—it's not hard."

Saying this, he unscrewed the cap and drank every drop of Red Bull, satisfying his thirst momentarily but making his mouth even drier.

"I don't need this label, so I'll tear it off to ensure transparency. Then I'll use the tip of my knife to poke a ring of small holes here on the bottle's body—but not all the way through; just semi-permeable."

"Then I'll fill it halfway with seawater, leaving enough space for vapor to form. I'll invert the bottle and tilt it, mouth downward—this depression on the beacon block perfectly holds the angle. I'll place a small piece of umbrella fabric underneath so the lowest point of the neck becomes the condensation collection point."

Qin Yun shifted aside, angling the camera at the Red Bull bottle: "Under direct sunlight, the water inside will evaporate quickly. The vapor rises, hits the cool bottle wall, condenses into droplets, runs down the wall, and drips onto the umbrella fabric—then I can drink it."

Watching Qin Yun's actions, the livestream viewers could only frantically shout "666!"

"Damn, it looks simple, but you need basic physics knowledge first—so, viewers, did you learn it?"

"Hahaha, I learned it, but if I tried to do it myself, I'd probably mess it up."

"Qin Ye's survival skills are insane."

Then Qin Yun stepped back into the water and pulled out a Snickers bar to eat.

"Luckily, before I got stranded, I had two Snickers bars on me—I don't have to worry too much about hunger today. Now I just need to wait quietly, since distillation is slow; I'll probably collect no more than 300ml of drinking water per day, barely enough to meet my body's basic needs."

"Also, I must warn everyone: no matter how thirsty you are, never drink seawater. Many people know not to, but don't know why. Seawater's salt concentration is three times that of the human body; drinking it accelerates dehydration, leading to kidney failure and faster death."

Qin Yun gave this explanation, then suddenly saw a comment pop up in the chat: "Qin Ye, look behind you—something's swimming."

He turned his head, following the drone's lens, and saw a silver figure darting swiftly across the sea surface nearby.

"Don't panic," Qin Yun smiled. "It's a swordfish, also called a knifefish—a common fish in this region, non-aggressive, and its meat is edible."

Qin Yun ordered the drone upward, zooming in—sure enough, a fish over a meter long glided beneath the surface, its scales glittering in the sunlight. The fish was flat-bodied, with a large head and small tail.

"Swordfish are fast—among the ocean's top sprinters, capable of burst speeds up to 90 km/h. I can't possibly catch one unless it decides to swim straight into me."

Qin Yun's tone carried a hint of relief: "If swordfish appear, it means there are definitely other fish nearby—I won't starve."

Unconsciously, the sun had risen directly overhead; the temperature kept climbing, and sweat began forming on his forehead. One Snickers and one Red Bull had filled his stomach, but he had to plan for food tomorrow and the day after.

All morning, he had harvested freshwater from the umbrella fabric repeatedly; now, the seawater in the Red Bull bottle had just been replaced.

Sitting on the beacon block, he picked up two umbrella cords and a piece of umbrella fabric to make a simple fishing net: "No professional net? Use umbrella fabric and cords instead. The fabric is tough and won't tear easily—I'll cut it into small pieces, weave them into a simple net pouch with the cords, tie one cord to the pouch, and throw it into the sea to try catching plankton or small fish and shrimp."

His movements were skilled; in less than half an hour, a simple net pouch was done, its mesh size just right to trap thumb-sized fish.

"With swordfish present, I can roughly infer other fish species nearby—like mullet and sardines—all edible. I hope my luck holds out, so I can improve my dinner tonight."

Saying this, he dropped the net pouch into the sea, holding one end of the cord, waiting patiently.

"Fishing can't be rushed—you have to wait slowly, let the small fish swim into the pouch, then yank it up sharply. Move too fast, and you'll scare them away."

"Qin Ye, are you sure your net pouch will work?"

"Hope no shark shows up instead of sardines."

"Hahaha, good things don't work, bad things always do—it's foolproof with Qin Ye."

Seeing these comments, Qin Yun looked utterly speechless.

"Don't go too far—I'm already stranded, and now you're hoping I get attacked by a shark? Sure, sharks rarely attack humans, but better safe than sorry—wish me luck instead."

After about fifteen minutes, Qin Yun felt a slight tug on the cord—he brightened instantly, yanked hard, and pulled the net pouch up, revealing two finger-sized sardines and a dense mass of transparent plankton.

"Haha, not bad—though it won't even fill my teeth," Qin Yun smiled. "But these sardines, though small, have tender meat rich in protein and electrolytes. I've been in seawater for long, soaked and sunbathed—my electrolytes are already destabilizing, so replenishing them daily is essential."

He lifted the net pouch toward the camera, pointing at the plankton: "These plankton are edible too—taste isn't great, but they supply energy. Let's try some."

He placed the net pouch flat on the beacon block, removed the sardines and plankton, rinsed them with seawater, then used his survival knife to remove each fish's internal organs.

"Fish can be eaten raw, but you must remove the organs—they contain toxins. If you don't clean them thoroughly, you'll get diarrhea. Remember, we're at sea—if I get diarrhea, I'm basically doomed."

As he worked, he explained these principles.

"If you catch a fish at sea and aren't sure if it's safe, check its color—if it's brightly colored, spiny, or oddly shaped, don't eat it. Even if edible, it requires special preparation—like stonefish or pufferfish."

"But sardines like this—plain color, small size—are safe. Just remove the organs and gills, and you can eat them without worry."

Soon, he finished preparing the two sardines and placed them before the camera.

"If possible, cooked is better—raw fish may carry bacteria, and the taste isn't as good."

Saying this, he bit straight into one sardine, chewed twice expressionlessly, and said to the camera: "A bit fishy, but tolerable—if you ignore it, the flavor's actually not bad."

"But eating raw has its advantage—it preserves nutrients maximally."

Some livestream viewers found it disgusting, others didn't mind; some coastal viewers even thought it delicious.

"Qin Ye just needs some seasoning—if he had sauce, the flavor wouldn't be bad."

"Ugh, looks awful, but given Qin's situation, having food at all is great."

"Qin Ye 666, but these two sardines won't even whet your appetite—you need to catch bigger ones."

"When's the shark coming?"

After eating the two sardines, Qin Yun looked at the dense mass of plankton—mostly transparent algae and tiny insects, just too small.

He didn't eat any of it, then shook his net, letting the plankton fall back into the sea.

"I'm picky about food too."

Qin Yun said, then cast the net again—but the moment he threw it down, a tremendous force yanked the rope right off him.

"What the fuck!"

Qin Yun startled—he saw the net instantly sink into the water, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

"Damn, what the hell was that?"

"What did Qin run into?"

"I thought I saw a cluster of photos just now?"

"Could a shark have gotten close?"

Qin Yun shook his head, face grave, voice serious: "Not a shark—but the sudden force was too strong; I didn't even react before it slipped from my hands."

At that moment, a giant fish suddenly leapt from the distant sea surface, the net instantly flung off its body.

"Crack—!"

It plunged back into the water and vanished in an instant.

"Yellowfin tuna," Qin Yun said, face filled with regret. "It was a yellowfin tuna—body length nearly one point eight meters. If I'd caught it, I wouldn't have worried about food for days. What a shame."

Saying this, he dove into the water and swam swiftly toward the net. In just this short time, the net had drifted over fifty meters away—evidence of the tuna's incredible speed underwater.

Retrieving the net, Qin Yun exhaled in relief: "Not bad luck—without this net, I'd have to catch snacks by hand."

When busy, time passes quickly for a person.

Before he knew it, evening arrived.

As the sky darkened, visibility over the sea plummeted; the deep ocean at night carried a faint but overwhelming sense of dread—someone with weak nerves would barely endure such a place.

But Qin Yun felt nothing.

When the sun fully sank, he pulled out his flashlight—but with no place to hang it, it wasn't viewer-friendly for his livestream audience.

Qin Yun streamed until around seven-thirty in the evening, then ended the broadcast.

He checked today's earnings—the numbers stunned him. Domestic Douyin earnings reached one hundred twenty thousand, while the three foreign platforms totaled ninety thousand—dollars. In other words, total earnings for just one day reached over seven million, utterly outrageous.

"Fucking hell, I hit the jackpot, damn it!"

Swearing, Qin Yun marveled at the power of dollars—if he earned like this every day, nine days would total over seventy million. What the fuck, insane!

One livestream could match the annual profit of an ordinary listed company.

Is that a lot? Yes—but compared to top-tier livestream sellers in China, it's nothing. After all, he doesn't livestream every day; after one session, he might rest for ten or fifteen days.

So overall, his annual income certainly can't match those sales livestreamers.