It really really comes down to luck..." Gu Qingqing said, adjusting her glasses as if reciting a memorized text. "Willow trees generally only grow in the temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere, less so in the frigid zones, and even less in the subtropical and tropical regions. We don't know if we're in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere right now, but judging from the vegetation in this forest, it seems to be in a subtropical or tropical region."
"Even if it's just a matter of luck, we have to try our best." Qin Ci, a doctor with a compassionate heart, treating patients was almost an instinct ingrained in his bones.
"Then let's continue dividing the work," Shao Ling said. "Dr. Qin, take Xiao Kaitian, Yang, and the girls back to the residential area first. Dr. Qin can check if there's any usable medical equipment in the clinic.
Girls, please help prepare some daily necessities and process the moss, vines, and bird eggs we just collected. Also, choose a house for us to hide in at night, clean it up a bit, and if possible, collect some dry firewood at the edge of the forest for starting a fire."
"The rest of us will stay in the forest to look for willow trees. We'll definitely be back before dark. If we don't make it back, you don't need to wait for us. Lock the doors and windows and protect yourselves."
Everyone agreed to this arrangement and immediately set off in different directions.
This time, those who stayed in the forest paid extra attention to the types of trees, discovering over a hundred species, both familiar and unfamiliar—a veritable treasure trove of natural resources.
While searching for willow trees, they also collected moss, vines, and other edible items. Ke Xun even dug up several nests of bird eggs before Zhu Haowen called them to stop.
"Don't forget, our most important task is to find clues related to the signature," Zhu Haowen said, his composure almost cold. "Although Xiao Kai's safety is also important, there's not much time left until nightfall. Who knows how many people will fall victim to this tonight, and we haven't even gotten a single lead yet."
Shao Ling, however, seemed preoccupied with the issue of clues. Seeing Zhu Haowen bring it up, he spoke up: "In the previous paintings, we never seemed to face any difficulties with food or water, especially in the last one. We didn't even encounter basic physiological needs like sleeping or using the restroom. But this painting seems different. It seems to place particular emphasis on bodily sensations, such as heat, thirst, hunger, and even pain. I suspect that might be the key to the challenge in this painting."
"Heat, thirst, hunger, illness... doesn't that sound a bit like wilderness survival?" Luo Yi said. "My buddies, who are rich, don't have to work, and are always bored, love to find some excitement to kill time. They formed a club specifically for wilderness survival. They often set a time for everyone to get together and travel all over the world, looking for those uninhabited wilderness areas, bringing some basic equipment, and sometimes staying there for a month or two. But I'm a coward, I don't dare go to places that are too dangerous, so they've taken me to a couple of relatively safe and easy places. The points Brother Shao just mentioned sound a lot like the challenges you often encounter in wilderness survival."
"So, does that mean this painting is testing our wilderness survival skills?" Wei Dong asked.
"That's not entirely unreasonable," Shao Ling said. "In this painting, we've lost all readily available resources. We have to obtain food, water, and medicine ourselves. It feels like we're trapped in a predicament, a primal one, requiring relatively primitive means to address our most basic needs."
"I think your line of thinking is off, Mr. Shao," Ke Xun interjected. "This so-called primal predicament we're facing might indeed be a clue, but I think it's only a secondary one. The important clues lie in the blood-soaked houses in the residential area and the cause of this bizarre event.
"What I find strange is that the unsolved clue of the blood-soaked houses in the residential area and our current primal predicament seem to have absolutely nothing in common. They're like two parallel lines, each going its own way, with no intersection, like two independent events.
"I think if we can find the intersection of these two clues, our puzzle-solving process can take a big step forward."
Ke Xun's words made everyone ponder, and they didn't stop working until they finally, very fortunately, discovered an old willow tree in a depression.
As Qin Ci requested, the group managed to gather a considerable amount of tree bark and willow leaves before quickly returning to the residential area.
Several girls had already cleared out the central hall of a house to use as temporary shelter.
Logically, these houses were mostly covered in those horrific and disgusting bloodstains, making it less desirable to stay indoors than outdoors. However, the outside temperature was extremely high, easily leading to heatstroke, and there were no tall plants to provide shade within the residential area. Furthermore, the edge of the forest was a potential hazard to poisonous insects and snakes. Therefore, they had chosen a relatively clean central hall.
The dust on the floor was wiped away, and the thickly dusty sofa covers were removed and replaced with relatively clean spare covers found in the cupboard. The coffee table was also wiped clean, and several bowls, wiped clean with the leaves of moist plants and filled with water squeezed from moss and vines, were placed there.
"We've all had some, you should have some too," Wu You said to Ke Xun and the others as they entered. "It's alright, just a little bit of a plant-like smell."
The group didn't stand on ceremony; after putting down their things, they each grabbed a bowl and gulped it down.
"Where are Brother Qin and Xiao Kai?" Ke Xun didn't see them in the main hall.
"They're in the living room next door," Wu You said. "Brother Qin was worried Xiao Kai might infect us, so he moved him there separately."
Ke Xun went over, pushed open the door to the living room, and looked inside. It had been cleaned, and in the dim light, he saw Xiao Kai lying on the sofa, seemingly asleep, breathing rapidly and heavily, looking very uncomfortable.
Qin Ci, wearing a mask, was sitting next to him, rummaging through a box full of medicine.
"How is he?" Ke Xun asked, only peeking his head into the room.
"This isn't good," Qin Ci's voice sounded heavy, muffled by his mask. "His temperature is very high. Luckily, I found some alcohol at the clinic, which we can use to lower his temperature. However, these medications are probably unusable. Although I can't see the production dates, judging from the condition of the packaging, they've likely expired."
The clinic was even more gruesome than the interiors of these residences. The walls, floors, and ceilings were covered in blood and strange, unsightly substances—it resembled a human slaughterhouse, reminding Ke Xun of a scene he'd witnessed in a nature documentary.
It was remarkable that Qin Ci had managed to find so many potentially useful items in such an environment—unfortunately, only the medical masks and alcohol seemed usable.
"Do you need my help?" Ke Xun asked.
Qin Ci said, "Help me wipe him down with alcohol."
Ke Xun paused, then said, "This job isn't suitable for me. I'll introduce you to a helper." He turned and called out to the person sitting in the corner of the hall, "Tian Yang, come here."
Qin Ci looked up at him, somewhat puzzled. "Is there a reason?"
"They're a couple, didn't you notice?" Ke Xun raised an eyebrow, his expression strange.
Qin Ci: "..." He really hadn't noticed. How did you figure it out? Does your group determine each other's sexual orientation just by smelling them?
As if seeing through Qin Ci's doubts, Ke Xun gave him a strange smile before leaving: "Because Tian Yang is my ex-boyfriend."
Qin Ci was stunned for a moment.
Ke Xun left the living room and saw Luo Jin coming out of the kitchen with a large pot. Wei Dong was breaking off some dry branches and throwing them into the pot, then Luo Jin took out a lighter and lit a fire.
After the fire was lit, a small pot was placed on top to boil the sap squeezed from the moss and vines, and then the willow leaves and bark they had found were cleaned and put into the pot to boil.
It was already past four o'clock in the afternoon, and there wasn't much time left before dark, but the clues they had collected about the painting were still pitifully few.
Everyone sat on the sofa and brainstormed.
"I still can't figure out how any of these things are related to the painting's title, 'Reboot,'" Wei Dong gestured with his hands, pointing to the house and everything outside the window. "Some houses have computers, but without electricity, there's nothing you can do."
"What about the computers?" Luo Jin didn't understand.
"Computers have a restart function," Wei Dong said. "Maybe restarting the computer will give us a clue."
"That's too simplistic," Ke Xun said. "According to you, we'd have to break our hands before pressing the restart button for it to work."
"Well, there's no other way. My mind is full of fragmented thoughts, things I don't even know if they count as clues. It feels like a jigsaw puzzle where I only have a few non-connected pieces, missing the pieces that connect them." Wei Dong shrugged.
"In this situation…" Gu Qingqing raised her hand. "Writing them down can help us organize and summarize our thoughts more clearly and systematically."
"That's right," Shao Ling nodded. "I think we should each write down the clues and thoughts we have, and then put them together. Sometimes independent thinking can lead to things that others haven't thought of. Write down anything that seems suspicious, no matter how ordinary or insignificant it may seem. Don't overlook any clues."
"Okay, does anyone have paper and pen?" Ke Xun asked.
Gu Qingqing raised her hand again, took out a notebook and several pens from her bag, and then tore pages from the notebook one by one, distributing them to everyone.
"I understand you bringing a notebook, but why do you carry so many pens?" Luo Cheng asked curiously.
"These pens are different colors," Gu Qingqing explained, "I bring them with me every time I go to the library to take notes, and I also have spares in case the ink runs out halfway through."
What a studious person... the group of underachievers thought with self-deprecation.