Following Tang Yumò, Chuck traversed the muddy Swamp Wetland and was surprised to find a brand new jungle after the swamp.
The golden light filtering through the trees ahead and the faint sound of the ocean waves confirmed that there was also a beach here.
It seemed this was where Tang Yumò had washed ashore.
Based on the direction, this beach should also be located in the southern part of the deserted island, separated from Chuck's starting beach by a towering cliff.
As Chuck walked through the jungle, observing the surrounding vegetation, his expression grew increasingly perplexed.
Wild fruits and vegetables were everywhere among the jungle shrubs. Various fruit trees and coconut trees were quite densely distributed.
No way.
Is this even the same deserted island?
Tang Yumò, leading the way, did not notice the change in Chuck's expression.
Instead, her entire focus was on figuring out what attitude she should adopt toward this long-unseen acquaintance.
Should she still act as the teacher? But that might seem too pretentious.
Or should she be polite and treat him as an equal? But that seemed too overly familiar.
Suddenly, she remembered something more important and slightly turned her head to ask.
"Oh, right, Chuck. I think I saw you heading towards the Redwood Forest yesterday. Where have you been these past few days?"
Yesterday?
Chuck heard this and figured she must have seen him when he returned to skin the python yesterday.
He had been injured and moving slowly then, so he hadn't noticed her.
So, he answered truthfully: "In the eastern jungle and the beach."
Tang Yumò nodded knowingly.
"It seems you have an adventurous spirit, Chuck, but you must be careful. The swamp we just crossed seems to have pythons lurking. It would be very dangerous if you ran into one."
Hearing this strangely patronizing advice, Chuck just smiled and said nothing more.
Soon, the two traversed the jungle, which was unusually rich in resources, and arrived at a bright beach.
No.
It was more of a narrow cove than a beach.
Looking east, he could see the cliff that blocked the way to his southern beach, and beneath that cliff was probably his home base's stone slope platform.
Looking west, the narrow cove ended at a relatively high hillside, topped by a lush tropical dense forest.
Chuck was stunned.
The Tropical Dense Forest west of the Redwood Forest actually extended that far?
It seemed the area of that Tropical Dense Forest was far greater than he had imagined!
And an area this huge couldn't possibly be the territory of just one black bear…
Therefore, there must be other fierce beasts in that dense forest, and perhaps… even scarier than the black bear!
However, the shock this cove delivered to Chuck wasn't over.
When he saw the large schools of fish and shrimp swimming in the shallow sea, the large natural cave situated on high ground far from the sea, and even the freshwater stream that flowed from the volcano through the jungle…
An inexplicable surge of anger welled up in Chuck's heart.
He had struggled for so long, only managing to barely solve his food and water problems today, yet someone else starts here and doesn't have to worry about a thing?
Which dog-ass developer distributed these starting locations? Is this balanced?
However, when Chuck followed Tang Yumò into the cave where she was living, his dissatisfaction lessened somewhat.
Although her cave was filled with wild fruits, smoked fish, and containers holding freshwater, the simple grass bed and primitive fire pit showed that her life over the past few days hadn't been easy either.
At least it was incomparable to Chuck, who already had a house and a wooden bed.
"Sorry, circumstances are unusual. Come and sit here."
Tang Yumò gave an embarrassed smile, then moved a large stone next to the fire pit. She then sat on the grass mat opposite, crossing her pale legs. She twisted to retrieve some food and water from the corner of the cave and handed them to Chuck with a smile.
"Here, Chuck. You must be hungry, right? Don't be shy."
Faced with Tang Yumò's generosity, Chuck was initially stunned. Then, after some thought, he didn't refuse and took them with a slight smile and a nod.
"Thank you, Ms. Tang."
"You're welcome."
Hearing Chuck's thank you, Tang Yumò's smile became noticeably brighter, clearly pleased by his respect.
Chuck ate the wild fruits and smoked fish while quietly observing Tang Yumò's reaction. He noticed she didn't rush to speak but sat there smiling quietly, waiting for him to finish eating.
Likewise, as he observed Tang Yumò, she was also observing him.
Seeing Chuck's composed eating style and his confident, casual nods towards her, Tang Yumò's evaluation of him increased again.
It wasn't until Chuck had eaten and drunk, thanking her again, that Tang Yumò smiled and spoke.
"It's been a long time, hasn't it? How many years has it been?"
"Eight years."
Chuck answered concisely, but Tang Yumò gave a knowing smile.
"Is that so? You have a very good memory, Chuck."
"…"
Chuck's eye twitched twice.
I was seventeen the summer before high school, and I'm twenty-five now. Is that so hard to calculate?
The next period was mostly Tang Yumò asking and Chuck answering, interspersed with occasional pleasantries. Chuck gradually started to feel bored.
Yet, Tang Yumò's attitude somehow became increasingly enthusiastic.
Her gaze towards Chuck had, at some point, taken on a strange meaning.
Honestly, the changes in this student she once tutored were far too surprising.
Not only was his appearance good, his physique was excellent, he had healthy habits, a stable job, although he didn't own a house, he had a car, and his words and actions were well-mannered…
The more Tang Yumò talked, the more she felt Chuck matched her standards.
Aside from being a bit young, there was almost nothing to criticize.
Why didn't she contact him sooner?
She had heard that a man's "White Moonlight" was hard to forget, no matter what they experienced afterward.
So now… maybe he still has some feelings for her?
At this thought, Tang Yumò felt a little excited.
She never expected that her life's partner might be found on this godforsaken deserted island?
Tang Yumò picked up a coconut shell filled with water, taking a small sip to wet her throat and conceal her inner turmoil.
Her pale, crossed legs, however, began to nervously fidget.
But he's said so much. Why hasn't he steered the conversation in that direction yet?
Unfortunately, unlike the overthinking Tang Yumò, Chuck's mood was difficult to describe.
He followed her primarily to catch up, understand her situation on the deserted island, and see if he could gather any intelligence.
But why did this Ms. Tang start pumping him for personal information after only a couple of sentences?
Where did he go to college? What was his job now? Where did he live? How did he commute, blablabla…
Finally, he couldn't stand the relentless questioning and proactively opened up the line of questioning.
"Ms. Tang, have you encountered anyone else on the island? Do you have any companions?"
This was the information Chuck wanted most.
Having first met Julia on the beach, then the Gu mother and daughter on the eastern beach, and now reuniting with his former tutor on this southwestern cove.
There were likely more survivors on this island!
Frankly, sometimes humans were more dangerous animals than the fierce beasts that claimed territory on the island.
However, upon hearing Chuck's question, Tang Yumò simply shook her head calmly.
"I flew alone to Hawaii this time. You are the first person I've met on this island."
"I see…"
Chuck was about to nod when his body suddenly froze in place.
Wait a minute.
Flew where?
Chuck slowly raised his head, his eyes on Tang Yumò slightly trembling.
A chill instantly ran down his spine to his head, and his heart began to pound wildly.
Not from arousal, but from fear.
A guess that made his hair stand on end slowly formed in his mind.
"Ms. Tang, I have a question to ask…"
Chuck didn't even realize his voice was trembling as he spoke this time.
"Yes, ask away."
Tang Yumò vaguely sensed Chuck's sudden nervousness. A smile even played on her lips, thinking he was finally catching on.
But Chuck suddenly looked up at her with an incredibly serious expression and spoke slowly.
"Do you remember which airline and flight number the crashed plane was?"
Hearing this completely unexpected question, Tang Yumò was momentarily stunned. Then, a look of disappointment flashed across her face.
Why ask such a boring question at this point?
But seeing Chuck's earnest expression, Tang Yumò politely answered his question truthfully: "It was XX Airlines. If I remember the flight number correctly… it was ***"
As her voice trailed off, Chuck slowly lowered his head.
Sure enough, it wasn't the same flight.
It wasn't even the same airline!
And naturally, Canada and Hawaii weren't the same destination.
Cold sweat instantly dripped from his forehead, soaking Chuck's back.
What the fuck.
What kind of fucking place is this?!
"Chuck?"
Seeing Chuck's suddenly pale face and slightly trembling body, Tang Yumò was alarmed. Thinking he might be unwell, she leaned forward, a look of concern in her eyes.
"What's wrong, Chuck? Are you not feeling well?"
"I'm fine… Ms. Tang, I apologize."
Chuck looked up, forcing a smile. He waved his hand, pondered briefly, and then asked another question.
"Ms. Tang, let me ask one more thing. What was the date your plane took off?"
"Uh, August 13th?"
The worry in Tang Yumò's eyes intensified: "Chuck, don't you remember these things? Weren't we on the same flight?"
"…"
Not only did he not forget, but his memory was remarkably clear due to the mental enhancement of the Blue Elixir.
The date his flight took off was clearly July 8th.
He had only been on the deserted island for barely over half a month.
How could there be a difference of nearly forty days?!
Over the past few days, everything—the infinite phone battery, the clean beach completely free of human garbage, the mysterious Flower of the Other Shore, and the unusually ferocious beasts.
Chuck could attribute this series of anomalies to the special nature of this island, or perhaps some hidden supernatural secret.
But now—
The same deserted island contained survivors from two entirely different crashed flights.
Even the concept of time was mixed up.
Chuck sat on the rock, his hands clasped, knuckles white from the pressure. His legs trembled unconsciously. Under Tang Yumò's worried gaze, it took him a while to recover from the intense shock.
Although the whole truth was still shrouded in mist, Chuck was now at least 100% certain of one thing.
The place they were in was absolutely not some uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean.
At this thought, a wry smile appeared on Chuck's face.
Though all this terrified him, even if he had to spend the rest of his life on this island, he wouldn't necessarily find it painful. In fact, he somewhat wished for it.
Chuck's mind felt messy. He suddenly missed Julia.
He wanted to go back to her, talk to her about these things. Even without answers, it would make him feel better.
So, he let out a long breath, slowly stood up, and nodded to Tang Yumò.
"Ms. Tang, I have things to do, so I won't stay any longer today. I'll come back to visit later."
"Huh?"
Tang Yumò, who still hadn't figured out what was wrong with him, immediately froze.
"Things to do?"
"Yes."
Chuck's mind was too complicated to waste any more words with her, so he explained simply and clearly: "I have a shelter on the eastern side of the island, and I have some companions there. I mainly came out to gather supplies, so I need to go back quickly. I'll take my leave now."
With that, he nodded and walked straight out of the cave.
Without any hesitation.
"Hey, wait—"
Tang Yumò's expression became even more bewildered. She watched as Chuck left the cave, entered the jungle, and headed back the way he came without looking back.
Her hand, subconsciously extended, froze in mid-air, and she eventually withdrew it awkwardly.
She sat back down on the grass mat, feeling somewhat lost.
He just left like that?
She stared blankly at the figure gradually disappearing into the jungle, and a question slowly arose in her mind.
He's in such a hurry to get back. Could the companions he just mentioned…
Be women?
At this thought, a hint of disdain first appeared in Tang Yumò's eyes.
But soon, that disdain gradually turned into annoyance.
She frowned deeply, stood up, hesitated for a moment, and then suddenly started preparing to leave.
Then, she quickly left the cave and followed the direction Chuck had taken.
As she walked, she muttered under her breath.
"I'm going to see for myself…"