Stranded on a Deserted Island and Entangled by a Green Snake 2

002 Huff Huff

From the tree above, the giant python poked out its large head, its pale green pupils blinking.

Yu Chujin’s heart pounded in terror. When did this ugly snake follow me? Didn’t I shake it off?

Yu Chujin immediately backed away, raising the rock in her hand and feigning a throw.

The giant python’s mouth turned down in a pout, looking utterly aggrieved as it retracted its large head behind the tree.

This is insane. This is the second time I’ve seen an expression of grievance on this python’s face, and it even pouted before looking wronged…

The giant python hiding behind the tree was so massive that the coconut palm couldn’t conceal its body at all. While its head was hidden, its large tail was still exposed. The tail swept back and forth on the sand, like an anxious puppy’s.

Yu Chujin shook her head. What puppy? Puppies are adorable. How can this ugly snake compare to a puppy?

The giant python poked its head out again, tilting its ugly head to look at her.

“Stop trying to act cute, you’re hideous!” Yu Chujin threatened, raising the rock.

The instant she lifted the stone, the snake’s head shot back behind the tree, hiding once more. Of course, its “hiding” only involved concealing its head while its tail remained in plain view, giving off a rather… simple-minded impression of burying its head in the sand.

Yu Chujin glanced at the rock in her hand. It was only palm-sized; she had no idea how it could possibly intimidate this enormous snake. But regardless, for now, the rock’s deterrent effect seemed to be working.

Yu Chujin didn’t want to stay in the same place as the giant python. She tried to run away again, but after several attempts, not only was she utterly exhausted, but that damned ugly snake continued to loiter around her leisurely, like a lingering ghost.

Unable to drive it off and unable to escape, Yu Chujin had no choice but to accept the fact that she had to share the beach with the giant python.

In any case, the giant python didn’t seem to have any intention of attacking her, so she decided to ignore it. The most important thing now was to find a way to contact someone and get off this godforsaken island.

With no phone, she couldn’t communicate. How could she draw attention to this isolated island? Building a fire to create smoke might attract notice. But she had no fire-starting tools and no wilderness survival experience. Trying to make fire by drilling wood by hand… she could drill for a whole day and probably not even get a spark.

Do I even have a day left to live?

Yu Chujin glanced at the snake hiding behind the tree—no, it had climbed up the tree now. Its large, green tail was coiled around the trunk, and its big head rested on a branch, staring intently at the person below.

Yu Chujin tightened her grip on the rock and rubbed her arms, which were covered in goosebumps.

What an ugly, terrifying snake!

She tore her gaze away, not daring to look again.

Signaling for help with fire was unrealistic in the short term. She had to find another way. Her eyes fell on the soft sand. She stepped on it, leaving a clear footprint with a light press. An idea struck her.

She found a branch and began writing in the sand, making the letters as large as possible to increase the chances of being seen by any passing helicopter.

She wrote “SOS” on the beach.

Feeling the letters weren’t big enough or deep enough, she went over them again, making them larger and deeper. She ran from one spot to another with the branch, drawing a line here, a stroke there.

Just writing those three simple letters consumed what little energy she had left. When she was done, she rested her hands on her knees, panting heavily.

After a short rest, she looked up, intending to check if her “SOS” needed any more work, only to see a large green tail extending toward it.

Alarm bells went off in Yu Chujin’s head. Before she could even brandish her deterrent rock, the tail had already swept in a curve. It didn’t come near Yu Chujin; instead, it approached the “SOS” she had just written.

The large green tail swept back and forth leisurely. In a flash, the distress signal that Yu Chujin had worked so hard on was completely erased in two seconds.

Yu Chujin’s expression froze.

“What are you doing!” When she snapped back to reality, she was furious, completely forgetting her fear of the massive creature. “It took me forever to write that, and you wiped it out in two seconds! You did that on purpose, didn’t you, you ugly snake!!”

Her sudden shout startled the snake’s tail, which quickly retracted. The snake blinked, a look of innocent confusion in its green pupils.

Yu Chujin gritted her teeth, threatening it with the rock. “You just try sweeping it away again!”

The giant python coiled its tail up and hid its head behind the tree, pressing its forehead against the trunk as it peeked at the rock-wielding biped.

Yu Chujin suppressed her anger, picked up the branch, and started writing again. As she wrote, she would occasionally flash the rock to intimidate the ugly snake, lest it use its tail to erase her message again.

When she finally finished, she collapsed onto the ground, exhausted, and gasped for air.

“Huff, huff huff huff…”

In the distance, the large snake coiled in the tree opened its mouth and started huffing, too. She had no idea what it was huffing about.

What did it mean when a snake made a huffing sound?

Soon, she figured it out.

When Yu Chujin was panting heavily, the snake would huff. When Yu Chujin stopped, the snake would stop, too.

An unproven theory formed in her mind.

Yu Chujin seriously suspected that the snake found her panting amusing and was mimicking her.

To test her theory, Yu Chujin deliberately took loud, deep breaths, making a great deal of noise.

The next second, the large snake copied her, inhaling until its cheeks puffed out, then letting it out with a “huff huff huff.”

Great. I was right. It’s imitating my breathing.

She was speechless.

What kind of creature is this? Its personality is nothing like a snake’s. It seems clumsy and foolish.

Yu Chujin shook her head, deciding not to pay any more attention to the stupid snake. She looked up at the sky. The sun was blazing. She licked her dry, peeling lips.

So thirsty. I need water.

She swallowed, her throat feeling as dry as a desert. Her gaze fell on the distant ocean, and she sighed. Seawater was something you could look at, but not drink.

Her eyes swept to the coconut trees at the edge of the forest and lit up. She had almost forgotten about the coconuts. Coconut water was a natural source of hydration.

She scrambled up from the ground and jogged toward the coconut trees. Halfway there, she turned back to retrieve her rock, just in case the giant python attacked.

When she reached the trees, she looked up. Even the shortest one was a good ten meters tall. Climbing to pick them was practically impossible. But that wasn’t a big problem; there were plenty of fallen coconuts on the ground.

The ground was littered with coconuts that had fallen after ripening, but most of them were rotten and black. After a thorough search, she managed to find five that were still in good condition.

She gathered the good coconuts together.

Yu Chujin stroked her chin. A new problem arose: how to open them? Coconut shells were incredibly hard. Even with a knife, it took effort to hack one open, let alone now, when she had no knife.

Yu Chujin looked down at the only tool she had: the rock.

She sighed. Well, I have to try. There’s no other way. I’m too thirsty.

She found a shady spot under a tree, sat down cross-legged, and began to smash a coconut with the rock.

Thwack!

Thwack, thwack!

The sound of rock hitting coconut echoed continuously.

In the distance, the giant python coiled in its tree tilted its large head, watching her actions with curiosity.

Yu Chujin smashed the coconut with the rock for a while, until her hand was numb from the vibrations, but all she had managed to do was break the outer husk.

After a moment’s thought, she tried a different method. She found a sharp reef rock and started striking the coconut against it. Smashing the coconut against the rock was clearly more efficient and less strenuous than the other way around.

After a great deal of effort, she finally managed to create a small crack and began to pry it open with her hands.

She pried and pried, and pried and pried, and finally…

She was completely exhausted.

She collapsed onto the ground, closing her eyes and breathing heavily. The sand beneath her was scalding, and she felt like she was being cooked alive. She was thirsty, hot, and a little dizzy. She wondered if she was suffering from heatstroke.

The lush leaves overhead blocked the sun, creating a dappled pattern of light and shadow. But the person lying under the tree was listless, as if drained of all life.

Her throat felt like it was on fire. She desperately needed water. She had to open the coconut. She had to calm down, be patient, and then be even more patient.

She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself up, ready to continue her battle with the coconut.

Her gaze swept around. Where’s the coconut?

Yu Chujin was momentarily baffled. It had been right by her feet a moment ago. Had the coconut grown legs and run off?

Her confusion didn’t last long. She saw the giant python over there, kicking the coconut around like a shuttlecock.

Its tail would flick the coconut up, sending it into the air, then flick it up again. It was having a grand time.

All the coconuts Yu Chujin had placed beside her had been “stolen” by the giant python. They were now coiled in the middle of its tail, its new possessions.

Watching this, Yu Chujin was silent for a moment. A snake that can juggle a coconut with its tail… Did it train with a circus?

Of course, that wasn’t the point. The point was that one of those coconuts was the one she had already cracked open a fair bit. With just a little more effort, she would have gotten it open.

She really wanted to retrieve her coconut from under the snake’s tail. But the idea was clearly unrealistic. She couldn’t just go and snatch it. Yu Chujin was afraid that before she could get the coconut, she’d end up in the snake’s belly.

She sighed softly and decided to go back to the trees to find another one.

The giant python, busy playing with its coconut shuttlecock, seemed to sense something. Its large head turned, its eyes fixed on her.

A jolt went through Yu Chujin’s heart. She subtly averted her gaze, avoiding eye contact with the massive creature.

“Hiss…”

At the sound, goosebumps involuntarily rose on Yu Chujin’s arms. She tightened her grip on the rock in her hand; it gave her a sense of security.

However, this time, the giant python didn’t seem as afraid of the rock. It actually started coming closer.

Yu Chujin was on high alert. She immediately raised the rock. “Don’t come any closer! I’ll hit you if you take another step.”

The giant python stopped, but it didn’t retreat. Instead, its tail casually coiled around a coconut and brought it to its mouth.

With a loud crunch, it bit it open.

It bit the coconut open, set it down, and then smoothly slithered back to its hiding spot behind the tree.

Yu Chujin looked at the giant python hiding behind the tree, then at the coconut on the ground.

Did that ugly snake… just open the coconut for me?

She was surprised, incredulous, and found the situation a bit absurd.

She was too thirsty to overthink it. Yu Chujin jogged over, picked up the coconut, and, casting aside all thoughts of decorum, lifted it and began to gulp down the liquid.

The sweet, refreshing coconut water flowed down her throat, bringing her back to life.

Wild coconuts didn’t contain much water; it was gone in a few gulps.

Yu Chujin licked her lips, still wanting more. She looked at the four remaining unopened coconuts.

She picked one up and tentatively tossed it toward the giant python, hoping it might help her open another.

The giant python swiftly coiled its tail around the coconut. With another crisp crunch, it successfully bit it open.

The coconut was once again placed on the ground in front of Yu Chujin. Afterward, the snake very considerately retracted its tail.

Yu Chujin quickly picked up the coconut, tilted her head back, and finished the water in a few more gulps.

Just as she finished, the giant python opened another one.

It’s quite diligent.

After opening all five coconuts, the giant python seemed to have developed an addiction to it. When there were no more coconuts to open, it climbed a tree on its own, picked more, and continued its work.

Yu Chujin sat on the ground, holding a coconut, and watched as the giant python swiftly scaled the ten-meter-tall tree. She was lost in thought.

Do snakes have such high intelligence? It can pick coconuts and open them for people… It seems even smarter than my Da Huang.

Yu Chujin narrowed her eyes, observing the giant python carefully.

It was entirely green, with no markings, and about five meters long.

As she watched, Yu Chujin’s eyes suddenly widened, and she shot to her feet with a swoosh.

Yu Chujin rubbed her eyes in disbelief. My eyes must be playing tricks on me. What did I just see? I actually saw this snake…