288: Chapter 288 Making Fire by Drilling Wood

The cave wasn't large. It wasn't a natural cave but looked like it had been dug by hand in the past, yet it was more than enough to accommodate two people.

Chen Fan glanced at himself; there wasn't a single dry spot on his body.

Immediately after, he looked over at Su Mian and was instantly stunned.

He had been too busy taking shelter from the rain to notice earlier, but now he realized that the rain had completely soaked Su Mian as well. Her drenched clothes clung tightly to her body, outlining her already undeniable, stunning curves.

Chen Fan cleared his throat and averted his gaze. Now was not the time for this. Both of them were currently soaked to the skin, and the temperature was low; they would easily catch a cold if things continued like this.

His physically enhanced constitution from the System far surpassed that of an ordinary person. This bit of rain wouldn't cause him any harm, let alone make him sick.

But Su Mian was different. No matter how beautiful she was, she was still just an ordinary person.

If they didn't deal with it in time, she would most likely catch a cold and run a fever.

It would have been fine if they were in the city, as they could just go to the Hospital in time. But they were currently deep in the mountains,

and there was no telling when the rain would stop. If Su Mian developed a severe fever, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Therefore, the most important thing right now was to build a fire.

He scanned the inside of the cave and was pleasantly surprised to find some dry firewood in a corner. There was a decent amount of it, enough to keep them both warm.

He looked at Su Mian. "Sit here and rest for a bit. I'll find a way to start a fire."

Su Mian nodded. Ignoring the dirt all over the ground and her soaked body, she sat straight down.

As a gust of wind blew into the cave entrance, she couldn't help but shiver, wrapping her arms around her body.

Chen Fan took a look. She was already dressed lightly, and now that the temperature in the mountains had plummeted due to the torrential rain, she was already shivering from the cold. It seemed he had to start the fire as quickly as possible.

He immediately began gathering the dry firewood in the cave, piling the branches and dry grass scattered in the corners together.

There wasn't a lot of firewood, but it was enough. He arranged the woodpile, leaving gaps for ventilation.

Just as he was about to light it, he realized a problem—he didn't have a lighter.

He didn't usually smoke, so he never carried such a thing in his pockets.

Yet right now, a lighter was exactly what he needed most.

He tried to think of other things he could use to start a fire, and after much thought, his only option was the ancient method of drilling wood to make fire.

Although Chen Fan had never drilled wood for fire before, fortunately, he had watched similar tutorials.

In his previous life, when he had nothing to do, he loved scrolling through outdoor-related videos—outdoor construction, survival skills, horseshoe trimming, tool restoration, he watched all sorts of random things.

Thus, he indeed had an impression of the process of drilling wood for fire in his mind.

He began to recall the tutorials he had seen online in his past life. The steps weren't too complicated; the difficulty lay in the practical execution, but he had no other choice right now.

First, he needed a piece of dry wood as a base. It had to be flat, and then he would carve a small notch in it.

Next, he needed a long, thin stick of hardwood, sharpened with a knife to serve as a spindle, with a thickness just right to be held in his hand.

He also needed some dry grass or bark fibers as tinder to catch the sparks generated by drilling.

Chen Fan looked around the cave and found that there was no shortage of materials. He had dry wood and a hard stick, but the tip of the stick was blunt, not pointed.

He needed a tool to sharpen it.

He felt his pockets; they were completely empty, with no sharp objects of any kind.

He looked around the cave again, hoping to find a flat stone to grind it down, but after scanning the area, he couldn't find a suitable one.

He grew a bit anxious, and his gaze involuntarily shifted to Su Mian. Right next to her was her bag, a very small, delicate white bag.

Seeing this bag, Chen Fan suddenly thought: didn't girls often carry small tools like nail clippers in their bags? Although not as useful as a real knife, they should do in a pinch.

He looked at Su Mian. "Sister Su Mian, did you bring nail clippers?"

Su Mian shook her head. "No."

Chen Fan frowned.

With no lighter and no tools to sharpen the stick, was it really impossible to start a fire today?

He sat in place, silent for a moment, tracing the route they had just taken to escape in his mind once more.

Then he remembered something. When they were camping earlier, there was a fruit knife inside that bag of food.

Because the rain had come too suddenly and they had run too fast, that bag of things had been left behind by the stream.

The knife should still be there. If he could go back and get it, the problem would be solved.

He stood up, walked to the cave entrance, and glanced at the rain outside.

The rain was still heavy, showing no signs of stopping, but Chen Fan decided to go back anyway.

In this kind of weather, the dangers mainly came from the muddy paths and hypothermia caused by getting drenched. However, these had virtually no effect on Chen Fan; his System-enhanced physical constitution made him far more resilient than an ordinary person.

So, he decided to make a trip back.

He withdrew his gaze and turned to Su Mian. "Wait here. I'll be back in a bit."

"Where are you going?" Su Mian looked up at him, a trace of worry in her eyes.

"To the stream. Our bag is still there, and there's some food and a knife inside. I have to go get them."

Hearing this, Su Mian grew anxious. "Don't go, it's too dangerous."

Chen Fan gave her a reassuring look. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon." With that, before Su Mian could speak again, he climbed down from the cave entrance and headed back in the direction they had come, braving the heavy rain.

Watching Chen Fan's receding figure, the worry in Su Mian's eyes deepened. She unconsciously gripped her arms tighter, her fingertips turning slightly pale.

The rain beat against the rocks at the edge of the cave entrance, splashing tiny droplets of water. Her gaze pierced through the mist, staring intently in the direction where he had disappeared.

One minute passed, and Chen Fan did not return.

Five minutes passed, and Chen Fan did not return.

Ten minutes passed, and Chen Fan still had not returned.

Su Mian stared anxiously in the direction where he had vanished, her body leaning forward slightly as if she were ready to stand up at any moment.

She remembered that it had only taken about ten minutes for the two of them to get here earlier. Now that Chen Fan was alone without her as a burden, why hadn't he returned yet?

Another three minutes passed, and there was still no sign of Chen Fan.

Su Mian's vision began to blur, and tears slowly welled up in her eyes.

She bit her lip, trying to suppress the panic that was about to overflow, but tears still slid down her cheeks.

Just then, a figure carrying a bag appeared in Su Mian's line of sight, bending down to make his way through the bushes and walking toward the cave.

Su Mian instantly became excited, her eyes filled with a look of pleasant surprise.

The figure bent down to pass through the bushes, his movements somewhat rushed but his steps very steady. He quickly reached the bottom of the cave entrance and climbed up in just a few quick moves.