Although Liu Zhenhan was known for his strength on the battlefield, his current weakness compared to that of a newborn baby left him with no room to be fussy.
After scouring the beach three times, he noticed plenty of rocks, but unfortunately, Liu Zhenhan could hardly lift any up. After a long search, he finally found a fist-sized rock which he could lift, albeit with some effort.
He flowered the rock on the skeleton, repeatedly hitting it until he was out of energy. Finally, he snapped off a rib that looked like a long spear. Due to exerting too much force, he fell forward into the skeleton. His bare belly was scratched open by the broken bones. Taken aback, Liu Zhenhan summoned a burst of strength from an unknown source, managing to crawl out of the skeleton.
He lay on the beach for a while to catch his breath and then staggered to his feet. Looking at the wound under his belly button, he gasped and sat down again on the beach. He checked the wound carefully, thankfully, the bleeding wasn't severe.
Looking up, he noticed a few strands of sparse, curly black hair hanging from the broken part of the skeleton. Liu Zhenhan, who was not generally superstitious, couldn't help but praise the heavens.
His circumstances were still rather dire. The wound on his nose made him dizzy. Compared to the dehydration he was experiencing, the injury seemed trivial. Liu Zhenhan felt parched. He licked his lips and realized they were cracked, and smoke seemed to billow from his throat.
Picking up the Bone Spear, Liu Zhenhan abandoned the idea of sharpening its edge with the rock. Although the rib had a curvature similar to an eastern sword, he acknowledged his lack of energy to refine it further. For the time being, he decided to use the Bone Spear as a crutch and slowly made his way uphill. On the beach, the tide started to rise. The seawater that had just submerged his ankles had already reached his calves. Liu Zhenhan considered himself lucky that he didn't drown when he first found himself in this crazy place.
The slope was covered with thistles and red willows all tangled together. The island was big with a few hilly mounds. There were coconut and palm trees amongst the low red willow trees. Although the landscape was desolate, Liu Zhenhan managed to reach the nearest coconut tree. He browsed around for some rocks, trying to knock down a coconut, but the rocks proved too weak. Few landed on his head, almost knocking him out.
"Damn it! Am I still Liu Zhenhan, the notorious 'Human Grenade Launcher' from the battlefield?" Liu Zhenhan cursed, rubbing his sore shoulder and head. Gazed up at the taunting coconuts. His thirst grew stronger.
Was he going to just sit here and watch the coconuts hanging in the tree? Was it just for display? The frustrated Liu Zhenhan had an idea.
He found a vine in the bushes and cautiously removed his sock from his nose. Liu Zhenhan's unusually delicate treatment made him seem like a groom.
Taking off the sock was painful as it had stuck to the dried blood. Thankfully, the bleeding had stopped. Liu Zhenhan gently touched his nose, noticing it had swollen almost tenfold.
"I ruined my face." Liu Zhenhan fought back tears. He threaded the blood-stained sock through the vine, gathering both ends to create a pouch into which he placed the collected rocks. He started swinging the Sling in the air. It was challenging at first, but it got easier once he got into the rhythm.
"Whoosh" The stone was shot out with Liu Zhenhan's dream, hit the high coconut with a "click", and then landed with a "plop". It bounced twice and finally stopped.
"Thank heavens!" Liu Zhenhan exclaimed. He reminisced about the strict training regiment under Elder Geng and how it helped him control his sling so accurately despite being weakened.
The coconuts tasted good. Although a lot of savory juice was lost when striking them with a rock, Liu Zhenhan felt satisfied.
People can be hard to satisfy or easily pleased, Liu Zhenhan thought. Under such circumstances, if anyone were to offer him a coconut, he'd be eternally grateful.
The coconut meat tasted sweet, much like water chestnut. Liu Zhenhan found himself envying those with gaps in their teeth. If he had a big set of uneven teeth, getting the coconut meat out would have been a breeze.
After devouring two coconuts down to the skin, Liu Zhenhan felt a surge of energy. He grabbed the Sling, shot down the remaining coconuts from the tree, and strung them together with the vine.