C99 Exploring the Jungle
C99 Exploring the Jungle
Although the sun had already risen quite high up in the sky at this time, the plants growing on the island made the forest appear quite dim from within.
The golden sunlight that penetrated through the dense foliage above and scattered on the ground seemed as if golden pillars of light were shining down from the heavens.
The huge bundles of vines intertwining with one another and winding back and forth between the trees appeared like huge net-shaped cages hanging down from the trees.
Furthermore, the trunks of the ancient banyan trees were covered with green lichen and moss, making the forest seem rather primitive.
All these factors made one feel as if they were walking through an ancient forest just like in the movie, "Journey to the Center of the Earth."
Leading the three beauties through the forest, Lin Fei kept stepping on the withered branches and leaves that had accumulated over the years. The damp air and smell of animal excrement that permeated into their nose caused their hearts to start beating rapidly.
Not long after entering the tropical rainforest, they already came across the rare sight of one tree growing out from another.
Along their journey through the forest, Lin Fei also came across some spilt-leaf philodendrons, palm trees, banyan trees, camphor trees, and so on.
In short, there were various kinds of strange plants that could only be seen in ancient books of the past.
But at this moment, they were not in the mood to appreciate the scenery in this tropical rainforest.
Because this was not only a paradise for plants, but also a paradise for animals. Not only were there all kinds of birds with bright feathers, there were also all kinds of poisonous insects and snakes lurking within.
Aside from them, there were also other dangerous and ferocious carnivores walking within.
They had to be extremely careful with every step they took in the forest.
Otherwise, they could very likely be bitten by some kind of poisonous insect or snake that camouflaged themselves amidst the shrubs and bushes. In that case, they would not even know how they died.
Fortunately, Lin Fei possessed the survival skills of Master Bei. He could judge all kinds of dangers in advance based on the environment and lead the group through this forest safely.
Throughout their exploration, the four of them walked in a line with Lin Fei leading them in front with an axe.
As the leader of the group, he kept hacking at the plants and vines that obstructed their path with his axe.
In his left hand was a slender wooden that he had especially chopped off with the axe before entering the forest to drive away all kinds of poisonous insects and snakes along the way.
Following close behind, Xi Mengwei carried the bundle of nylon rope on her back. If she ever got tired, she would hand it over to Lee Fei'er.
While Lee Fei'er walked in the third position, Liu Qing was carrying the AK-47 at the back of the group.
In their group, Lin Fei and Liu Qing were in charge of guarding the front and back while Xi Mengwei and Lee Fei'er were in charge of observing the situation on the two sides.
That away, they would been monitoring forest surrounding them on all four sides.
As they traveled through the dense forest for about half an hour, Lee Fei'er, who was walking in the third position, suddenly let out a scream.
"What's wrong?"
Lin Fei stopped in a hurry and looked back at Lee Fei'er anxiously.
"Lin Fei, there is a giant snake there."
Lee Fei'er could not stop shivering as she pointed to the left with a pale face.
As the person responsible for keeping watch on the left side of the group, she was naturally the first to discover the snake.
Looking over at the thick vine hanging down from the tree, everyone instantly noticed a giant green snake as thick as an adult's arm slithering around it.
Seeming to have been disturbed by Lee Fei'er's scream, the green snake suddenly stuck its head out from the vine as it flicked its tongue out, ready to attack at any time.
"What in the world!"
"There's actually such a big snake here!"
Looking at the abnormally large green snake that could make one's scalp go numb, Lin Fei could not help but exclaim in his mind.
Anyone would naturally be afraid of snakes, not to mention such a large snake only two to three meters away from them.
Seeing it slithering so close to them, the three women could not help but scatter in all directions.
Liu Qing's expression also changed drastically as she was prepared to shoot at it with the AK-47 in her hand.
She had always been a brave girl ever since she was a child. However, the one thing she was deathly afraid of were snakes.
Whenever her parents would bring her to the zoo during her childhood days, she would dare to look at any animals except for the snakes.
Even now, she had yet to overcome her fear of snakes. One could only imagine how she was feeling at that moment.
"Don't move!"
"It won't do anything if you don't move!"
Lin Fei shouted in a deep voice as he looked at the three women who were in a state of panic.
At that instant, he used the wooden stick in his left hand to send the green snake flying into the distance.
Frightened as it fell into a bush in the distance, the big green snake quickly slithered away.
"Everything's okay now!"
"The snake is gone!"
"Fei'er, remember not to scream next time, or else we might end up losing out lives."
"If we had come across a bear instead just now, you screaming would get us all killed."
"Throughout the rest of our journey, you must remember not to scream out loud no matter what kind of danger we encounter. Do you understand?"
After dealing with the big green snake, Lin Fei looked at Lee Fei'er and said with a serious expression.
"Yes!"
"I understand!"
Lee Fei'er nodded seriously, knowing that Lin Fei was not joking with her.
"Xiao Qing!"
"Were you going to shoot that snake just now?"
"You must remember that there are only 23 shots left in magazine of the gun. We must not waste any shots unnecessarily."
"We should only use those bullets at the most critical moments in our journey. No matter what, don't instinctively pull the trigger, alright?"
After scolding Lee Fei'er, Lin Fei said to Liu Qing in a serious tone.
"Yes, sir! I will remember that!"
Liu Qing most likely felt that she did not do her job very well. Nearly using the gun carelessly, she seemed to be blaming herself, judging by the tone of her response.
"Xiao Qing, you're more than outstanding enough, especially when your gender into account. You didn't pull the trigger carelessly just now, so you don't need to blame yourself at all. In fact, I was only giving you a reminder."
Noticing a hint of guilt in her voice, Lin Fei quickly consoled her.
"Understood, sir!"
"You can be rest assured, for I will perform my duty seriously!"
Liu Qing's eyes suddenly flashed with great determination as she gripped onto the rifle rightly and said in a firm tone.
Her actions had once again reassured Lin Fei that he could leave the back of the group to her.
In the dense jungle near the edge of the island, bushes and rattan plants grew abundantly. Since lichen and moss made the ground especially slippery, they had no move forward slowly with extreme caution.
As the day approached noon, they had already been walking through the dense forest for about three to four hours. At this time, they were only less than five miles away from the mountainside of the island.
Along the way, Lin Fei used the long wooden stick in his hand to push away many poisonous snakes and insects that were blocking their path.
All these factors were also the reason why they were advancing so slowly.
However, the grilled clams last night had fully nourished their bodies, allowing them to face such difficult trials.
Naturally, with the abundance of energy, they were able to travel through the dense forest for such a long time, albeit with great difficulty.
If they were to continue moving forward, they would definitely still be able to persist. However, Lin Fei did not want to exhaust too much of their energy.
Lin Fei had previously observed the terrain of the island from the pile of rubble. Although he could not see the entire slope, he reckoned that they had already walked half the distance according to his memory.
After walking the same distance, they would be able to reach the top of the gentle slope. The height of the slope was also around the same as that of the cliff that they spotted at the sea when they first arrived ashore.
At this time, they noticed a large limestone boulder that was a perfect location for resting before them. So, Lin Fei suggested, "Let's go there and rest for a while before continuing our journey."
On the limestone bouldering, Lin Fei took out the coconut that he carried with him and distributed it to everyone.
With that, everyone drank the sweet coconut juice that was divided amongst them.
After resting for about ten minutes, Lin Fei stood up and was just about to tell everyone to continue on their journey.
However, at that moment, a particular bird suddenly flew up from an unsually tall and luxuriant banyan tree on the left side of the huge limestone boulder.
Immediately after, a large flock of birds flew up from the luxuriant branches and leaves on the top of the banyan tree.
As the birds spread out their colorful wings, they kept circling in the sky. It seemed as if a vivid cloud had suddenly appeared in the sky.
"Oh my god!"
"Those are actually Macaws!"
"There are so many of them!"
Lin Fei could not help but sigh in awe.
"Wow, they're so beautiful!"
At this moment, the three beauties sitting on the limestone boulder looked up at the sky and said in unison.
Even though they had seen this species of bird in the zoo before, they had never seen so many of them at once before.
As they flew in groups in the sky, they seemed just like rainbows moving about.
"However, aren't Macaws usually found in the tropical rainforest of the Americas? Why are there so many of them here?"
At this moment, Lin Fei's mind was filled with suspicions.
Although this island was indeed a tropical one, they were still quite far away from the Americas.
However!
Just as Lin Fei began raising doubts, he suddenly noticed a huge black shadow in the middle of the tall banyan tree, causing his nerves to tense up subconsciously.