King of the Wilderness

His fingers nimbly wove through countless lines, one knot after another swiftly taking shape in his hands.

This weaving method, although time-consuming, ensured that every intersecting point in the grid was firmly secured, preventing it from slipping and deforming during use.

As he skillfully worked, he explained, ”This grid must be strong enough to support my weight when stepped on, yet have enough gaps to let sifted snow fall through instead of piling up on the shoe surface, increasing weight.”

A dense grid slowly filled the entire framework of the snowshoes.

Once the grids of the two snowshoes were completed, only the final step remained: making the straps that would securely fasten feet to the snowshoes.

He used the rope again, cutting it to the right length, and employing the same wrapping and knotting techniques, he crafted an adjustable strap system at the center of the snowshoe grid.

By afternoon, when he tied the last knot, a pair of perfectly teardrop-shaped snowshoes lay quietly before him.

Eagerly, he put on the new shoes, stepped out of the shelter, and ventured into the soft, deep snow!

Where every step would previously sink his leg to the calf, the ground now seemed firm.

The enormous surface area of the snowshoes dispersed his weight evenly, allowing him to sink just a few centimeters and then float steadily on the snow surface.

He tried walking a few steps and then started to jog, feeling as though he had gained the ability to fly over the snow, moving with unprecedented ease and efficiency!

Standing in the center of the snowy landscape, he looked at the wide trail of footprints he left behind, a satisfied smile on his face.

He spoke to the camera, ”Transportation problem solved. Now, I can explore any corner of this forest.”

With these snowshoes, his survival radius expanded greatly.

After completing the snowshoe construction and successful testing, Lin Yu’an immediately set about addressing a more pressing, fundamental issue related to bodily functions.

He walked into the warm shelter and picked up a simple small salt box made from birch bark in the corner.

Opening it towards the camera, there was only a thin layer of gray-white salt crystals left, less than a pinch.

”My sea salt reserves are about to run out,” he said, his tone becoming extremely serious.

”With the bay freezing over, the method of obtaining small amounts of salt from kelp or mussel soup will become increasingly inefficient.”

”Salt is not just a seasoning; it’s the lubricant necessary for this precision machine that is our body to operate normally.”

”In the wilderness, especially coming into a physically demanding winter, salt deficiency is an insidious and more dangerous killer than hunger.”

”Without sodium ions, our bodies may experience muscle cramps, fatigue, dizziness, and even mental confusion.”

”Every sweat and every physical exertion consumes the precious salt within our bodies.”

”So, I must take advantage of the bay not being completely sealed off to make a batch of ’Platinum’ that can last a long time.”

He put on the brand new snowshoes, took the iron pot, and once again headed to the familiar beach.

With the aid of snowshoes, the snow he previously had to struggle through now felt like treading on flat ground.

Each step was light and quick, leaving only shallow marks on the snow surface.

The wind by the sea was significantly stronger than in the forest, lifting the snow on the ground and hitting his face like needles.

He arrived at a large tide pool he had scouted, surrounded by huge rocks, which formed when the tide receded.

As he expected, the surface of this relatively still pool had already formed a layer of opaque white sea ice several centimeters thick.

He tapped the hard ice surface with the back of his axe, making a muffled ”bang bang” sound.

”The bad news is the bay is freezing faster than I expected,” he said.

”But the good news is, because the water in this tide pool can’t fully exchange with the open sea, its salinity will be exceptionally high. Below the ice layer is the highest quality raw material for salt production.”

He immediately got to work, choosing a spot close to the center of the tide pool, gripping the axe with both hands, lifting it high, and then crashing it down!

”Bang!”

Ice chips flew, leaving only a shallow white mark on the hard ice surface.

”Sea ice is a critical physical principle. When seawater slowly freezes, the ice crystals formed are pure water, and the salt is expelled, remaining in the unfrozen brine.”

”Therefore, the sea ice layer itself is actually relatively non-salty freshwater ice.”

”And it’s the liquid underneath this ice, naturally concentrated, highly saline ’brine’, that we need.”

He no longer used brute force but carefully used the sharp blade of the axe to carve a square outline on the ice surface.

When he felt it was about right, he lifted the axe again and struck the center of the square with the back of the axe, hard!

”Crack—!”

This time, with a crisp and sharp sound, the entire square block of ice cracked along the ”pre-cut fissures” he had made!

Finally, he pried open and retrieved the cracked ice blocks piece by piece, revealing the icy, bone-chilling seawater beneath.

He immediately used the pot, scooping the high-salinity seawater one pot at a time from the ”water hole” he had painstakingly dug, carefully pouring it into a waterproof bag from his sleeping bag storage.