Chapter 1: First Arrival

Afternoon.

In a deep, towering dense forest.

Soft sunlight filtered through layers of overlapping leaves, sometimes converging into golden beams, sometimes dissolving into dappled patches, gently falling upon the moss-covered soil.

It was truly a beautiful scene; if posted on any popular social media app, it would surely attract a flood of followers.

Unfortunately, the person who witnessed this sight felt only glare.

So tired, so thirsty, so hungry.

Xia Mingyu silently muttered to himself, staring at the endless sea of trees ahead with no path in sight, a flicker of despair rising in his heart.

“Damn it, where the hell is this place? Southeast Asia or the Amazon?”

Xia Mingyu slammed his fist hard against the tree beside him; the searing pain on his knuckles brought him slightly back to his senses.

He was just an ordinary college student from Blue Star, planning a Thailand trip with friends before the New Year holiday—only to be knocked unconscious right after landing, and wake up in this seemingly endless forest.

He had called for help, screamed aloud, but eventually realized no one would answer; better to stay silent and conserve his strength.

“Still no signal on my phone. Worse, the battery is about to die.”

Xia Mingyu pulled out his phone from his pocket, stared at the unconnected call and the blood-red battery warning, and let out a heavy sigh.

He glanced at the sky above, heavily obscured by the canopy; though slowly, he could still notice the sunlight weakening.

Though he had never studied wilderness survival, the few survival clips he’d watched on video apps had taught him one thing—the forest at night was at least ten times more dangerous than by day!

Especially in a forest with such perfect ecology, there could be no lack of carnivores.

“I’ll push forward a bit more. If I still can’t find a path, I’ll find a tree hollow or some other safe spot to survive the night.”

Xia Mingyu made his decision. He held his breath, pushed through the tangled undergrowth, and strained to listen to every sound around him.

He also marked his path with fallen branches and stones from the soil, to avoid losing his way.

About half an hour later, he stopped.

Rustle-rustle-rustle.

A sound reached his ears from afar.

Though faint, he recognized it—the sound of flowing water.

“Found it!”

After carefully listening to confirm the direction of the water, Xia Mingyu immediately quickened his pace and rushed toward it.

Soon after, as he pushed aside a thick thicket, the scene before him opened up.

Along a broad, grassy riverbank, a small stream about four to five meters wide wound through, its waters clear to the bottom, revealing the fine textures of sand and pebbles, and occasional silver-flecked fish gliding through.

Xia Mingyu slowly approached the riverbank, knelt down, and gently touched the slightly chilly water with his fingers; an indescribable joy spread from his fingertips through his entire body, his expression betraying his excitement.

Because he knew well—where there was water, there was life.

As long as he followed this stream, he would surely find signs of people and escape this forest.

Plop-plop.

Xia Mingyu cupped water from the stream and washed his face; the icy water sharpened his awareness.

Though slightly thirsty, he had no intention of drinking the water yet—despite its clarity, it still contained bacteria, fish eggs, and other impurities.

Unless his thirst became so severe it impaired his movement, he would not drink raw water.

“I’ll follow the stream a bit longer. If I still see no signs of people or an exit, I’ll find a way to make fire and solve the drinking water problem first.”

Xia Mingyu paused to think, then was about to rise—when he suddenly froze.

Floating above his reflection in the stream, a strange line of text hovered silently.

It was not any script he recognized, yet its consistent structure told Xia Mingyu it was indeed a form of writing.

At first he thought he was hallucinating, but after rubbing his eyes several times and seeing the text remain, he had no choice but to accept the reality.

“What does this text mean? And why is it above my head?”

Xia Mingyu tried moving his body, but the text in the reflection moved with him—meaning it was truly connected to him.

When he looked up, he saw no text above him—but in the reflection, it was clearly there.

Worse, when he focused his gaze on the text, another line, identical in form, appeared beneath it!

At this sight, a shiver of terror swept through his mind.

Though many on Blue Star dreamed of encountering the supernatural, when it actually happened to them, the overwhelming first reaction was panic.

“Calm down, calm down. Right now, the priority is still to follow the stream, find people, and make fire for drinking water.”

Xia Mingyu took several deep breaths, and his emotions gradually steadied.

It was a trick an upperclassman had taught him during a university speech contest—whenever emotions ran too high, simply repeat deep breaths, and control would return quickly.

After calming himself, just as Xia Mingyu was about to rise and continue forward, a strange feeling of being watched prickled at his back.

Knowing anything could happen in this primordial forest, he instantly stood and turned, fixing his gaze on the dense thicket behind him.

As if sensing it had been spotted, a faint rustling sound emerged—and a massive wild wolf slowly emerged from the bushes.

Hiss!

The sight made Xia Mingyu’s pupils contract.

He had seen wolves in zoos—but this one was far too large!

Its shoulder height exceeded half a meter; muscles subtly defined beneath its dark gray-brown fur, radiating the raw power of a predator.

The wolf fixed him with its emerald-green eyes, baring its full set of fangs, and advanced step by step, terrifying in its presence.

“This size—it’s almost as big as a North American wolf,” Xia Mingyu muttered, his lip twitching.

Though terrified inside, he did not run. Instead, he spread his arms wide and glared back with a fierce expression.

He’d watched a few episodes of animal documentaries—two legs couldn’t outrun four, and carnivores had an instinct to hunt creatures that turned their backs.

Conclusion: running meant certain death; standing firm and staring might offer a sliver of hope.

Indeed, at this display, the wolf halted, staring intently—as if weighing whether this prey was worth the risk of injury.

“Hunting me will cost you dearly. Get lost!” Xia Mingyu screamed silently in his mind—he had never been this tense.

Yet just as his eyes were about to dry from staring, the wolf suddenly let out a piercing howl!

Awooo—!

Xia Mingyu’s face paled—he knew instantly, this howl was not for intimidation, but to summon others!

As expected, within seconds, more rustling came from the bushes—and two more massive wolves emerged, equally large.

(End of Chapter)