Chapter 6: Indigenous Tribes

Evening fell, and the sky turned gloomy.

The jeep stalled before the dense forest. The two men stepped out and continued on foot, heading toward the eastern part of the island.

"There is a local indigenous tribe over there, and the program's guest group is also present. I need enough materials; I must use zombies to block the bullets so we can break through the company's interception line."

Dr. Ryan held the rifle he had taken from the bunker, scanning his surroundings vigilantly as he advanced with tactical movements. After a long time, his arms began to ache, but he clearly could not afford to dwell on that.

"The company is after you. If nothing goes wrong, the pursuing squad behind us will soon figure out our target. I suggest we take a detour then; at the very least, it will scatter half the forces on the interception line. I don’t think one or two hundred zombies can hold up against that heavy machine gun and crossfire."

Jiang He observed the surroundings, noting the many traces left by people—footprints, broken branches, trampled grass, and indentations. As long as one could deduce and reconstruct the scene, a hunter could piece together the general situation of the prey.

Hearing the suggestion, Dr. Ryan took out a map. The isolated island was quite large, theoretically providing them with room to maneuver.

By late night, the two had traveled over ten kilometers. Along the way, they encountered several corpses—all death row inmates from the prison.

Dr. Ryan marked a tree and turned back, saying, "We have no foundation of trust. Let’s find separate places to rest tonight and regroup before dawn tomorrow. To be honest, a temporary alliance isn't absolutely safe."

"Nothing in this world is absolute."

Jiang He retreated into the shadows.

They parted ways. He found a large tree by the river to rest, climbed up, and used a rope to tie a slipknot to secure himself. If he encountered danger, he could turn and escape by slipping into the water.

In the middle of the night, a howl echoed through the dense forest, sounding incredibly miserable. It was immediately followed by the sound of a magazine being emptied. As the gunfire and wailing ceased, the forest returned to silence.

Jiang He lifted an eyelid, then drifted back into a semi-conscious state. From the perspective of a hunter, putting oneself in danger to help a stranger for no reason would be a betrayal of one's own survival.

...

Before dawn.

A figure dropped from the tree trunk. Jiang He took out a cinnabar pellet and tossed it; it transformed into a cloud of red mist. The Cinnabar Mirror immediately displayed the corresponding scene. As the item description noted, this thing acted like a portable camera. Its uniqueness had diminished in the modern era, but the effect was still decent.

Half an hour later, the two parties reunited at the agreed location and continued toward the east.

At noon, they emerged from the forest. On the hillside ahead, stone and wooden buildings were clustered together, with several wisps of smoke rising into the sky. However, there was an open stretch of land between the forest and the hillside.

"If there is even one sniper around, you and I are almost certainly dead," Jiang He judged. Besides, the name "Heart-Eating Tribe" alone suggested they were not a benevolent organization.

Dr. Ryan adjusted his collar and spread his hands. "My friend, are you from a war-torn region? If we want relative safety, we have no choice but to wait until nightfall. By then, not only will the pursuers have caught up, but the company's reinforcements should also be landing on the island."

Jiang He narrowed his eyes. "You are the one the company is targeting. If there is a sniper, he will most likely kill me first to intimidate you. The risks we bear are not the same. Take before, for example—you wore Honi's uniform. From several hundred meters away, before the situation was clear, those employees focused all their firepower on the back of the vehicle. Remember, lightning never strikes twice."

Dr. Ryan muttered, "Snipers aren't salmon in a river."

"Don't forget, we rested for half the night yesterday."

Jiang He firmly opposed crossing directly. According to Honi’s call, company reinforcements would arrive by evening at the latest. It was currently noon; detouring around the open area in front would take at least two or three hours.

This way, even if they created enough zombies, they would be unable to turn back and charge the interception line, which would have significantly increased firepower. They could only rely on circling to disperse the company's personnel.

Unlike Dr. Ryan, he did not need a port to evacuate. Tomorrow morning, Old Dog would sail to the designated location to pick him up. As for the sniper, it was merely an excuse.

"Let’s take the detour. The pursuers have likely locked onto our true direction," Jiang He said. Since they had rested last night, the pursuers might have overtaken them. If they found no one ahead, it was highly probable they would change direction, though even if this method succeeded, it wouldn't delay them for long.

Dr. Ryan was forced to agree. When it came to life and death, unless he wanted to part ways right then and there, he felt he could not force the issue.

Two hours later, they arrived above the side of the village.

The indigenous people here were far from the image of wearing bark aprons; some wore ragged, modern-style clothing, though there were no electrical appliances in the village.

A burly native sitting at the door of a stone hut held a dark red "fruit," occasionally taking a bite with a satisfied expression. Beside him, a woman wearing a windbreaker lay in a pool of blood, a large, gaping hole in her left chest.

"The tribe here believes that eating hearts makes them stronger and more courageous. Their first choice is naturally tigers and bears, and their own kind is a secondary option. That group of program guests has probably been locked up... Oh, damn it, she’s a famous female singer! My son loves her!"

Dr. Ryan stopped to watch, his words filled with regret and pity. The Leviathan Company believed that player qualifications should be born from excellent individuals, so the guests all had some form of talent.

Jiang He remained silent. The concept of "you are what you eat" was widespread. In the humid climate of Anping Island, the things wealthy families soaked in wine were always strange.

The two quietly entered the indigenous village. Dr. Ryan took a grey-patterned porcelain bottle from his pouch, and a deep grey mist drifted out, enveloping the native. This rare-quality bottle was named "Corpse Kiss," the core item for his system and his method of creating zombies.

In a mere moment, the burly man's flesh withered, his eyes turned pale white, and his fingernails grew sharp. The entire man exuded a crazed, bloodthirsty aura. The burly zombie turned and rushed into the stone hut behind him; immediately after, screams rang out from within.

Other natives were alerted. They rushed over with wooden spears, surrounding the stone hut. Sensing the scent of blood and flesh, several zombies lunged out, charging into the crowd without fear of death. The scene descended into chaos.

Dr. Ryan took control of the situation.

Jiang He bypassed the crowd and headed toward the most conspicuous building.

Compared to the crude stone and wooden huts, the building at the center of the village resembled a temple. Four smooth stone pillars supported the facade, and the doors were carved with primitive patterns. As he passed the deep cellar on the perimeter of the stone temple, noisy arguments drifted out from within.

"...We have to find a way to run!"

"It's too high; even if we step on each other's shoulders, we can't get out."

"Is anyone there? I am an English Lord; I can give you money, lots of money!"

No one paid any attention to these guests. As the chaos intensified and most of the able-bodied men went to the village entrance, two groups of people emerged from the stone temple. In the second group, four natives held old-fashioned bolt-action rifles, led by an elder whose earlobes hung down to his shoulders.

Once they were gone, Jiang He slipped into the stone temple.

The two guards remaining behind the temple door heard a clatter and turned their heads. A blinding white light erupted. Jiang He had closed his eyes in advance and was the first to adapt. He raised his short crossbow, killed one guard with a bolt, and then threw a dagger, striking another native square in the chest. He quickly reloaded and fired another shot, aiming for the eye socket of the second guard.

Both guards fell to the ground.

Jiang He swiped two wooden spears and walked through the corridor to the center of the temple. On a stone platform about as high as a man, a large golden bowl looked dim from years of accumulated dust and grime. Floating quietly in the blood within the bowl was a heart. Beside it was a golden chicken with a beak like an eagle's; it was deep green in color, wore an angry expression, had blood-red wings, and was covered in tassels and jewelry.

[Name: Garuda's Egg]
[Category: Curio]
[Quality: Rare]
[Effect: Consuming it grants powerful digestive capabilities, allowing the user to eat a massive amount of food at once and store the energy in the heart to nourish the body when necessary. Drinking it soaked in fresh blood significantly reduces the effect.]
[Equipment Requirement: The user must possess a heart in the physiological sense.]
[Note: The faith of a tribe.]