Starting from Robinson Crusoe

After the Black-robed Man posed a serious threat to this group of challengers, giving him the thought "strike first," the subsequent groups actually provided many opportunities, but he didn’t initiate attacks.

This was partly because the risks didn’t match the rewards, and he and Paul had limited carrying capacity, making it impossible to take away everyone’s survival tools and clothes.

Additionally because his nature is not bloodthirsty, especially when it comes to killing without grievance or hatred.

Currently, survival tools are no longer lacking, the first batch of airdrop supplies has been obtained, coupled with a large stock of food, Chen Zhou is practically assured of victory.

Influenced by this, his intent to kill has weakened considerably.

As long as the other party shows no hostility, he generally won’t strike first——

Without airdrop supplies, relying on a warm and sturdy shelter and sufficient food to outlast opponents was the only winning strategy.

On this winning track now, he and Paul are already far ahead.

After all, this isn’t an island from a battle royale game or an abandoned city; there are no vehicles racing with passengers, nor are there temperature conditions where one won’t freeze during 24-hour outdoor activities.

Unless a challenger mixed in is a flying superhero, no one can win by killing all competitors. In the end, the one left standing will definitely be "the turtle," not the brave fighters.

At the beginning of the challenge, Chen Zhou realized this, so when building the shelter in the mountains, he started emulating how squirrels prepare to face a prolonged battle.

The difference was, initially, because he had no survival tools, and teamed with Paul, essentially they shared the survival tools of one person, making life very tight.

As the saying goes, adversity breeds cunning, while prosperity fosters kindness. Having nothing in hand means nothing can be done or bought, leaving snatching as the only option.

Now, with a few challengers’ lives on his hands, life has become somewhat affluent, and Chen Zhou has also become "gentler."

At present, although he desires the Great Horned Deer very much, since the Great Horned Deer doesn’t play a decisive role in the challenge outcome, his tactics will naturally be less violent.

Of course, whether the situation develops into a mutual exchange of benefits or a murderous treasure hunt isn’t something he can decide alone; it also depends on the Deer Raiser’s reaction.

If the other party refuses to relent, there’s nothing he can do but return to Mount Baihar with the salt alone.

It involves neither life nor death; for the sake of two deer, neither killing nor losing face to steal is something Chen Zhou is willing to do now.

With time spent stealing or looting deer, it would be more meaningful to find some hibernating beasts and acquire more fur and fresh meat——

After all, even with the deer, it requires effort to raise them, plus watch for the temperature trend in the future.

If temperatures drop rapidly, without a chance to move, the two Great Horned Deer can only be backup food, maybe even slaughtered early due to fear of losing weight from the cold.

...

After entering winter, because the days are short, the sun rises in the East and sets in the West exceptionally quickly.

It seems just a blink of an eye, and the shadow cast by the high mountains extends to the riverbank.

Under the rock wall, Chen Zhou had already collected the rock salt early, patiently waiting for the sky to darken further.

The salt rocks knocked down from the rock wall were put into his rattan basket.

These natural rock salts contain many impurities and, in terms of purity, are far inferior to seawater.

In ancient times, salt production often required purification with brine, dissolving rock salt in water, then adding lime, alkali, and other chemical reagents to precipitate the impurities.

More traditional methods would involve pouring impure saline solutions into salt flats or containers, utilizing sunlight and wind to evaporate the water and crystallize.

This purification method is identical to Chen Zhou’s salt-making process on the island; the produced salt is of very poor quality, easily clumped, has a heavy bitter taste, and is actually harmful to health, though relatively healthier than seawater.

However, these health and wellness concepts depend on the environment.

In the Prehistoric World, without those conditions, there is naturally no need to pursue highly pure salt; just having some salty taste to supplement salt intake is enough.

After bringing these salt rocks back to the shelter, Chen Zhou will at most crush them and forcefully boil them to dissolve with boiling water, then pour the saline into containers.

Once small salt grains crystallize along the edges inside the container, he would scrape them off to consume.

As for whether there are heavy metals or how many impurities are present therein, those are concerns for when the challenge is over and one becomes the ultimate winner. The dead have no right to worry about health.

...

Just past noon, as the sun showed a slight tendency to tilt westwards, the deer herd lingering around the mountain ridge turned direction, walked back to the opposite side of the mountain, and vanished.

Chen Zhou knew that the Deer Raiser should be herding the deer elsewhere, but he wasn’t particularly concerned——

Snow is a natural canvas; animals are scarce in the mountains, and the tracks left by the deer herd won’t be disrupted. As long as he arrives in time, he can trace the tracks to find the herd without worrying about losing them.

Patiently waiting for enough darkness, leaving the rattan basket with salt rocks at the foot of the mountain.

Chen Zhou soothed the Three-headed Saw-toothed Tiger, lest they start roughhousing while walking and alarm the herd, then led the small creatures around the side of the mountain, directly heading for the ridge.

Actually, climbing straight up the rock wall would be much faster than taking a detour; however, freehand rock climbing is something only Chen Zhou can accomplish.

Even the Snow Leopard and Clouded Leopard, known for their exceptional climbing abilities among cat species, faced with such nearly 90° perpendicular rock walls, are at a loss; only the agile, strong primates with gripping capability in their fingers can do it.

...

The Three-headed Saw-toothed Tiger, living and eating alongside humans from a young age, had long been able to understand the majority of vocabulary.

Moreover, because Chen Zhou occasionally taught Paul a few words of Chinese, the little ones had essentially undergone bilingual education, understanding bits of both Chinese and Russian.

Already sensing some tense atmosphere, the little creatures also entered hunting mode, remaining silent on the mountain road, even their steps considerably lighter.

Yet no matter how quietly they move, it’s futile——

Leading the way at the front, Chen Zhou is indeed heavyweight; no matter how he conceals his step sounds, deep footprints would still be left in the snow, after all, he can’t defy gravity.

From the slope heading toward the ridge, at the place where he saw the deer herd active during the daytime, Chen Zhou discovered a vast expanse of footprints made by Great Horned Deer.

In addition, he also located footprints left by humans collecting dung in the snow.

What surprised him, however, was the footprints seemed to belong to only one person, meaning the Deer Raisers weren’t a pair of challengers but rather a lone wolf.

But it’s possible for one person to tend the herd while another searches for food.

Chen Zhou, despite his confusion, didn’t stop, just continued forward.

Over the ridge, the scene on the other side was a first-time view.

The sunny slope was dense with grass, while the shady slope had abundant trees.

Not far from where the deer herd was active below the mountainside, a circle of rubble remains, with a pile of ember remnants being blown apart by the wind.

That was a bonfire left by the Deer Raiser.

Around the bonfire, the melted snow formed a circle, and then with the temperature decrease in the afternoon, the snow water froze into ice, appearing especially crystal-clear.

Downward about 100m from the bonfire was a vast, dense forest.

Due to insufficient sunlight exposure, most trees here grow slowly, extremely slender, seeming fragile against the wind.

Looking from a high vantage point, Chen Zhou noticed firelight flickering in the woods, but the Great Horned Deer herd wasn’t visible, guessing they had ventured into the woods, unseen.

Everything had gone as planned smoothly, Chen Zhou thought that this time he would likely acquire two Great Horned Deer, his mood instantly more elated, and his steps toward the mountainside hastened increasingly.

Around the bonfire, the snow had melted into a circle, and then with the temperature drop in the afternoon, the snow water froze into ice, appearing exceptionally crystal-clear.

Downward about 100m from the bonfire was a vast, dense forest.

Due to inadequate sunlight exposure, most trees here grow slowly, extremely slender, appearing fragile against the wind.

Looking from a distance, Chen Zhou saw firelight flickering in the woods, while the Great Horned Deer herd was nowhere visible, guessing they had ventured into the woods, unseen.