King of the Wilderness

He knew that this ”bomb cyclone” might be a pure disaster for other contestants, but for him, it was a huge opportunity to ”seek fortune amid danger.”

He began to think about how to handle these massive frozen fish.

But a more urgent thought quickly occupied his mind. Those equally important, and in some ways even more strategically valuable supplies, were still quietly lying a few kilometers away on the northern coastline.

Although he had secured those items, there was no telling if anything unexpected might happen tonight. If he couldn’t find those supplies tomorrow, he couldn’t imagine how frustrated he would be!

”I can’t wait!” he stood up, addressing the camera with a determined tone.

”There’s still a few hours of precious time before dark. I can’t accept any possible mishaps. I must retrieve them today.”

Without a moment of rest, he first carefully transported the massive mountaineering backpack, along with all the catch, to the snow in front of the shelter, dug a large snow pit, and buried it.

He didn’t process them one by one in the order he found them, but instead went straight to the largest item, which he planned to use as the main means of transport—a .

He arrived at the natural harbor, skillfully untied the cable securing the giant barrel, and then dragged it to a flat, open patch of snow.

”Alright, this is my truck for today.” He patted the giant barrel’s body.

He dragged the giant barrel to the center of the fishing net, then dragged over the broken but still intact , placing it beside the giant barrel.

Finally, he neatly coiled up the five-meter-long

he found earlier, and together with the

taken out from the giant barrel, placed them inside the large plastic barrel.

Now, all the large items found on the northern coastline were concentrated in the giant barrel on the fishing net!

”Go!”

He let out a low shout and began to exert his strength. The net bag filled with various supplies carved a wide and deep furrow in the snow, making a dull ”swish swish” sound as he dragged it step by step in the direction of the shelter.

When he finally returned to the shelter, dragging this colossal object, the sky was completely dark.

He piled up the huge net bag with the food he had brought back, making the entire shelter entrance look like a busy dock that had just finished unloading!

Standing in front of this hard-won pile of wealth, he felt immense satisfaction.

Now, the first thing he needed to do was to construct an absolutely safe ”cellar” for these precious foods.

He walked to a spot beside the shelter with the thickest snow and leeward, and began to dig down using the wooden board he had previously used as a digging shovel.

”I need a storage room that can completely isolate odors and use the natural low temperature of the snow for long-term preservation.”

While digging, he explained, ”The best option is to bury this 55-gallon giant barrel vertically in the snow, turning it into a natural snow-well refrigerator.”

”And this giant barrel is superbly sealed, capable of locking in all food odors, so there’s no more worry about non-hibernating bears.”

This project was significant. The snow he excavated was piled around the pit, forming a windbreak snow wall.

After more than half an hour, a pit over one and a half meters deep and just wide enough to accommodate the giant barrel appeared before him.

He carefully placed the 55-gallon giant barrel upright into the pit, then refilled the snow around it, leaving only the top lid level with the ground.

A perfect, secluded, beast-proof food storage cellar was completed.

He began to transfer today’s food harvest into this new ”granary” item by item.

Without any hesitation, he immediately made his choice for tonight’s menu.

”Alright, folks, it’s dinner time.” He said to the camera, pointing at the pile of sea urchins and scallops, as well as the large flatfish.

”These will be our feast for tonight. The other cod and redfish will be my long-term reserves, temporarily sealed.”

He set aside the large flatfish, a dozen sea urchins, and all the scallops, then forcefully tightened the giant barrel’s lid, finally covering it entirely with snow for disguise.

From now on, unless it was him, no animal could possibly discover this hidden food treasure trove.

He moved tonight’s ingredients to the shelter’s entrance and then walked out with the empty 5-gallon bucket, filling it completely with clean crushed ice before carrying it inside.

Placing the snow-filled bucket in a safe spot near the fireplace where it could receive radiant heat, the ice slowly melted into clean drinking water thanks to the fireplace’s warmth.

Everything was now in order, and he could finally sit down to reward his body for a hard day’s work.

Before cooking, he detailed to the camera why he made such a food processing priority.

”I know many people might wonder why, despite having so much premium fish, I prioritize processing these seemingly more cumbersome shellfish and sea urchins? There are two survival logic-based considerations behind this.”

”Fish, as long as they remain frozen, especially when they’re whole with skin and innards, spoil very slowly.”