As dawn broke, I finally got a clear view of my surroundings.
After confirming I was in no immediate danger, I felt a sense of bewilderment.
I didn't know where I was supposed to go.
After a long hesitation, I suddenly remembered the half-section of the Tree of Life I had placed in my backpack.
I wondered what changes the Tree of Life would undergo in such a situation.
However, I couldn't afford to worry about it at this moment, and I frantically searched my bag.
But after searching for a long time, even taking out and examining several bottles, I couldn't find the half-section of the Tree of Life.
My heart sank.
That was a genuine treasure!
If it could be brought to a place like this, perhaps it would undergo some strange transformations.
But now, the item was gone.
I tried to recall carefully; I shouldn't have left it anywhere.
And I clearly remembered putting it back in my backpack. But at this moment, I didn't have much time to ponder these things.
After a brief assessment of the environment, I started walking into the distance.
I decided it would be best to return to the camp. I wasn't sure how long I had been gone, but someone would surely know.
Furthermore, staying in this place any longer was pointless.
There were no signs of other human activity around. If nothing unexpected happened, Vixi should not have appeared in this area.
Although I didn't know where that guy had gone, there was one thing I was certain of.
As soon as I encountered him again, I would not hesitate to kill him.
Thus, I fixed a direction and kept walking forward, hoping to find something familiar.
During my time on the island, I had learned a lot, including simple ways to determine my location.
But it was clear that this was an unfamiliar place.
I continued walking aimlessly. Since I was out in the open now, I was reluctant to keep drinking that pale green water.
Since there was the Tree of Life, I had personally named that pale green water "Water of Life." No one else knew its name anyway.
I pressed on for a day and a night, still without any success.
Along the way, I even casually dispatched several wild boars to supplement my food reserves.
While I didn't have ginger or garlic for seasoning, the taste was quite good.
Now, I was also very curious whether anything on the island had changed.
Another two days passed, and I found myself in a peculiar place.
I had never been here before. There were all sorts of strange and varied rocks. The surroundings were very flat, as if deliberately shaped by some tool.
Most importantly, the trees here were not dense, making the entire area look somewhat desolate.
As I was thinking, I suddenly heard a sound from a distance.
I quickly hid to the side. It was clearly not the sound of animals, but of humans.
I hid behind a rocky hill and, after confirming I hadn't been discovered, I climbed step by step to the top.
It was strange to say, but in these few days, I felt a significant change in my speed and strength.
I didn't know if it was because I drank that Water of Life or for some other reason.
My senses seemed to have been elevated to a new level.
Even from such a distance, I could hear those sounds.
I lay on top of the rocky hill, where the view was expansive.
Following the direction of the sound, I saw a group of natives gathered together, seemingly performing some strange ritual.
Their attire was very simple, made of some unknown animal hides to cover their essential parts.
Their bodies were tanned dark by the sun.
They held various crude weapons made of wood.
The tips were sharpened to a fine point with unknown tools.
And now, they were gathered around a bonfire, bowing and dancing.
Many of the natives were shouting, and I wasn't sure if they were performing some kind of mysterious ceremony.
But I didn't feel like provoking them right now. After a moment of hesitation, I decided to turn and leave.
Just then, I suddenly felt that something was wrong. It was hard to describe the feeling, as if a sense of crisis had suddenly arisen in my heart.
I had never experienced this feeling before, and its sudden appearance must mean something was amiss.
Without a word, I immediately began to climb down the rocky hill.
The instant I moved, a wooden arrow landed where I had just been lying.
Even though it was made of wood, this arrow had embedded itself deeply into the stone.
It was evident how terrifying the power of this shot was.
Furthermore, there seemed to be some black substance on it. If my guess was correct, it was some kind of poison.
Seeing this, I knew I had been discovered.
As expected, over a dozen natives were staring at me from the side, holding bows and arrows, their gazes menacing!