Chapter 1 - "Law of the Jungle (Time Travel)"

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City C is located by the sea. The autumn wind is blowing and the sun is scorching. Although it's just the beginning of autumn, the high temperature still envelops the entire city.

Jiang Yan squeezed out of the bustling Fengqing Street, slowly exhaling the stale air trapped in his chest. Tiny beads of sweat trickled from the hairline beneath his baseball cap.

He found a bench by the roadside in the square near the romantic street and sat down to rest. He took out a pack of tissues from his dark blue backpack and wiped the sweat off his cheeks and neck. Then he took out a bottle of purified water and drank.

The warm breeze caressed his face, but the sweat did not subside. The oppressive heat made his cheeks flush with a rosy hue.

Occasionally, passers-by would glance sideways, taking a few looks at the young man sitting alone on the bench and resting.

The young man under the brim of his cap had a pair of dark and clear eyes like a fawn's, his lips were rosy and moist, and his skin was very fair. He looked like a person with a good temper. Just a glance at him and he would smile, crinkling his eyes at the person, which made those who were peeping at him feel embarrassed.

After enjoying the breeze for a while, Jiang Yan pulled down the brim of his hat and was about to leave.

His pocket vibrated. Jiang Yan took out his old smart phone that he had been using for seven or eight years. It took quite a while to load WeChat when he opened it.

Chen Ye sent a series of voice messages: "The meeting is over. Is it fun in big cities?"

Scroll up the chat record, there are a few pictures of the clubhouse sent by Jiang Yan a few hours ago.

Jiang Yan's throat was slightly hoarse from the heat.

I strolled around the street with a lot of charm, but it was very crowded and hot.

It was already a bit chilly there when autumn just began. Before setting off for City C, Jiang Yan wore a blue sweatshirt and jeans. She didn't expect it to be so sunny in City C, where people were still dressed in summer clothes as they came and went.

Jiang Yan was born in a remote village on the southwestern frontier. The place was poor and had limited resources. Moreover, the local mindset was not very progressive. After completing junior high school at the local school, he stayed in the countryside to help with the farm work.

His parents passed away one after another a few years ago. Now he lives alone. Fortunately, he has a good relationship with his neighbors. Seeing that he lost both parents and has no relatives, they often help him. Chen Ye is a peer who has been his good friend since childhood.

This time, more than ten provinces and cities joined hands to hold the first agricultural fair. As a specially supported village, the villagers naturally received the invitation.

The small village is mostly left with middle-aged and elderly people who can't endure long-distance travel. Besides, there is a batch of homemade handicrafts that need to be packed and sent out within a week. Everyone is busy with their own affairs.

Chen Ye is physically strong and agile, so he has to stay in the village to lead others in their work. Among the younger generation, only Jiang Yan is available to come out, so the village sent him as a representative.

Chen Ye asked Jiang Yan about his thoughts on attending the meeting. Jiang Yan held his phone and thought seriously for a moment, then replied honestly, "I don't have any thoughts."

The young man on the other end of the phone laughed: "It's rare to go to a big city. Stay and have fun for a few more days."

Jiang Yan blinked her eyelashes and her gaze swept around the square. She responded, "Alright."

Chen Ye added, "You tend to get sunburned easily. If you go to the seaside, buy some sunscreen and apply it. Didn't I buy you two tubes before? Did you bring them?"

Jiang Yan: "I didn't bring it."

Chen Ye made a "tsk" sound and said, "From now on, always carry it with you. You're the face of our village, Ya'er. You can't let yourself down."

Although the village is remote and secluded, it is a land of great beauty and charm, and nothing that comes from here is bad.

Jiang Yan was the most good-looking in their area, handsome and lively. Even though he had been working with adults since childhood, he never got tanned.

Sometimes, after getting sunburned so badly that the skin peels off, the new skin on his face becomes so tender that even someone like Chen Ye, who rarely gets carried away, can't resist giving it a pinch or two.

Hearing this, Jiang Yan retorted, "It's not that exaggerated."

Chen Ye sighed, "Anyway, just listen to your big brother's advice. Don't ruin your face. Keep it nice for finding a wife in the future."

Jiang Yan made a "um" sound, thinking that the matter of finding a wife was still very far from him and he had never even imagined it.

The two were chatting idly back and forth on WeChat. Even though they were sitting in the shade, Jiang Yan gradually felt dizzy spells, like the early signs of heatstroke.

He leaned back in the chair with his eyes closed, and it wasn't until a few gentle breezes caressed his face that he gradually felt better.

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The latest voice message was left a few minutes ago. Chen Ye is still busy with work and said he would chat later.

Jiang Yan put away his mobile phone and was about to ask someone where the nearest shopping mall was.

He plans to stay one more night in City C. In the afternoon, he intends to go to the commercial center to buy some gifts to take back and give to his fellow villagers and friends.

******

After asking passers-by and following the directions on the road signs, Jiang Yan arrived at the pedestrian street.

Tall buildings lined the street. He looked around at the signs of the shops and was attracted to a men's clothing store. Just as he was about to go in, his attention was suddenly drawn by a string of hot air balloons rising up.

Some people screamed in alarm. The glass on several floors above shook, followed by countless screams.

Jiang Yan subconsciously moved away and lifted his leg to run to the other side.

With a "bang", Jiang Yan's whole body shook, and a sharp pain came from behind, as if something that had fallen had hit him.

Before his consciousness faded away, he tried to hold the mobile phone tightly, but his fingers became weaker and weaker.

******

When Jiang Yan opened his eyes again, he thought he was dead.

He lifted his dark eyelashes, and his eyes were met with a sea of green. His ears were still in a daze until the cackling of the birds gradually became clear.

As if the dream and reality were overlapping, Jiang Yan, whose consciousness was slowly returning, turned his eyes to look around.

If he remembered correctly, he should have encountered an explosion on the pedestrian street and then been knocked unconscious by something that fell from above.

Is this a dream?

He was dazed and confused, frowned slightly, closed his eyes again, and then opened them once more.

No change...

Jiang Yan stared blankly at the ceiling, licked his chapped and cracked lips, his body heavy and weak, even curling his fingers felt strenuous.

The tall buildings lining the streets are gone, replaced by a completely unfamiliar scene.

The huge tree canopy blocks out the sky and the sun. The light of the day filters through the branches in patches, interweaving in the forest like a dense web of light. When one squints, one can faintly make out the dust floating in the air.

The sudden squawk of a bird made Jiang Yan shudder. He bit his lips tightly, used his arms to push himself up and sat beside the rock, breathing heavily. While taking in his surroundings, he also struggled to pull the schoolbag hanging behind his shoulder to the front.

His mobile phone dropped after he lost consciousness. In his schoolbag, there was a set of change of clothes, as well as a wallet, keys, paper and a notebook, and that bottle of pure water that was not finished.

He unscrewed the cap and took a few sips of water, which temporarily relieved his discomfort a little.

As for the back, there is still a lingering pain that has not completely subsided.

Jiang Yan had no idea how he ended up in this seemingly desolate forest from the pedestrian street in City C. But now he had to find a way out, otherwise he might be attacked by wild beasts at any time.

The fallen leaves beneath my feet were piled up layer upon layer, and my nostrils were filled with the faintly musty smell of decaying grass, wood and soil.

Jiang Yan staggered to his feet, thought for a moment, bent his knees and waist, loosened the laces of one side of both shoes, and then twisted them off with force.

He was thin, with a small frame and slender wrists. He tied the cuffs of his sleeves tightly with shoelaces and pulled the hood of his sweatshirt over his head, trying his best to cover up and protect himself from the insects in the mountains.

This was also the experience he had gained when he and Chen Ye and a group of friends went climbing in the mountains. At that time, they were young and inexperienced, and they didn't cover themselves well enough, allowing many mountain leeches to burrow into their flesh and suck blood.

Jiang Yan looked around left and right, dragging his legs and walking towards the direction where the grass seemed less dense. The best plan was to get out of the jungle before sunset, and the worst outcome...

He shook his head and cast aside the pessimistic thoughts.

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I don't know how long he walked, Jiang Yan reached out his hand to support the tree trunk next to him, barely propping up his crumbling body.

Along the way, as the sun set in the west, the temperature became colder and colder than in the countryside.

Jiang Yan is hungry and thirsty, coupled with fear, the state of the whole person is not very good.

If you do not rely on psychological suggestions to maintain sanity, I am afraid you have collapsed at this time.

He took out the remaining half bottle of water and sipped a few times. Before he went out, the remaining water was life-saving water, and he did not dare to drink it easily.

And along the way, in front of me, except for the dense forest or the dense forest, I did not encounter any ranger rescue station or hunter's house, and I did not see the slightest trace of human habitation.

It drove him to despair.

The surrounding light is getting darker and darker, Jiang Yan is wrapped in a hoodie, and the uneasy mood is expanding. Although he does not want to believe it, he looks at the sky overhead through the tree canopy, and the anxiety gradually fills his heart.

In trance, the fingertips itch.

​

He held in his breath and swung with all his strength, his arms were almost broken, and the spider did not know where to fly.

Did not dare to stay, Jiangyan buried his head on the walk.

He had better find a place where he can take cover before the night falls completely.

The wind in the forest is getting colder and colder, Jiang Yan's hands and feet are cold, but the body wrapped in clothes is constantly oozing hot sweat, maybe it is the worm along the gap drill into the skin bite, several skin itchy and hot, pinch a bit of pain.

His legs and feet became heavier and heavier, and Jiang Yan seemed to hear the sound of water in a trance. He heard the sound of a quake, where there was water, there might be people living nearby.

With such thoughts, when Jiang Yan rushed to the side of a river bank, his last hope was shattered with the coming night.

The river was about an arm's wide, and the grass on both sides was higher than his knees.

Hunger and thirst prompted him to do something, Jiang Yan repeatedly licked his lower lip, lifted the stick in his hand, and slowly pressed the grass low, pressing out a small channel that could be walked into.

He stepped on the bank of the wet soil, saw the water was clear, and was trying to get some water to wash his face and sober up, but he saw several snakes swimming flexibly in the water, their direction was clearly aimed at him.

Jiang Yan stepped back with a pale face and ran away without looking back.

* * * * * *

The sky fell completely into darkness, and the vast jungle welcomed many wild animals, which howled and reveled in the bleak and cold night.

With difficulty, Jiang Yan hid in a shallow and narrow rock pit and stood motionless for a while, every inch of his skin hot and stinging, and the blood vessels covering the skin were beating violently.

Sweat seeps through pores, the wind blows, hot and sticky.

He breathlessly looked at the endless black, and saw two bright glimmers in the direction of the black cluster.

Something seems to be approaching.

With his whole heart in his throat and no room for thought, Jiang Yan broke out with unprecedented strength and quickly left the rock wall by instinct alone.

With his instinct for survival, he struggled to run into the dark jungle of the unknown.

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