Surviving in the chaos of war begins in the wilderness.

Zhou Ye's first priority was finding money. However, everyone here was a poor bunch, and when they all gathered together, they only found a little over two taels of silver, a dozen or so large coins, and a little over 100 copper coins.

In the original owner's memories, silver here had considerable purchasing power. Ordinary people wouldn't actually spend more than a few taels of silver throughout the year.

One tael of silver could be exchanged for about 1000 copper coins. A large coin was equivalent to 10 copper coins, which was for convenient use in transactions. Roughly one copper coin was equivalent to one yuan in my previous life.

Although money is practically useless in the mountains and forests, these coins aren't heavy, so I might as well take them with me!

Additionally, they found something in the soldiers' cabin: a bottle of wound ointment and seven packets of typhoid medicine. Those soldiers were quite cautious; they had brought some common medicines with them when they went into the mountains.

But the most important thing is a large bag of animal repellent powder. Animal repellent powder also has a certain effect in repelling snakes and insects. Sprinkling it around the campsite in the wild can greatly increase safety.

Among a pile of clothes, Zhou Ye first picked out a pair of soldiers' leather boots and replaced his worn-out straw sandals.

From the two pieces of leather armor and one piece of chainmail he found, he chose the relatively better one and put it on, barely managing to add another layer of armor to his outfit. Finally, he put on an iron helmet.

Next comes the equipment.

A bow and a half-empty quiver of arrows. Zhou Ye counted them; only 21 arrows remained. A waist knife and a round shield. These were all standard military weapons. He also found a sharp dagger and tucked it into his right boot.

However, Zhou Ye was holding a woodcutter's knife. When walking in the mountains and forests, a woodcutter's knife can be used for chopping, hacking, hooking, and can also be used as a weapon for self-defense, so it is actually quite useful.

More importantly, he had been using this same wood-chopping knife all along, which led to his basic chopping skill being unavailable. Zhou Ye was worried that if he switched to a waist knife, he wouldn't gain experience points anymore. Wouldn't he be devastated?

Finally, all that's left is a carrying pole and a basket on your back.

The baskets were tools made by the other laborers in their spare time after they went into the mountains, using materials found in the forest. When transporting charcoal, Zhou Ye and the others needed to carry it on shoulder poles and in baskets to get it out of the mountains. There were at least 5 or 60 baskets and rattan baskets left in this camp.

Inside the basket was a dismantled tent, a bundle of thick and thin hemp rope, an axe, and a shovel.

In addition, there were the flatbreads. After wrapping them up, they were also placed in the basket. Other items included two pieces of salted meat, two flint and steel, and two water bladders filled with water…

……

After everything was prepared, Zhou Ye checked the camp one last time. He found that the remaining items had been deliberately arranged in a messy manner, so that without careful observation, it would be impossible to find any trace of someone's escape.

Once outside the camp, close the gate to prevent wild animals from entering and causing damage.

Feeling his weight, Zhou Ye realized it was affecting his agility by about -1. He couldn't help but chuckle bitterly. Such a small amount of weight, and it actually had an effect? ​​The original body was far too weak.

Fortunately, after eating and resting, his health points have recovered to 65, barely managing to get rid of his weakened state.

After observing the direction, Zhou Ye avoided the direction from which the wild boar herd had charged, and also avoided the direction from which he left the mountains or entered the deep mountains. Instead, he began to move laterally on the outskirts of the forest...

Half a day later, Zhou Ye had already crossed two mountains.

It was nearly dusk; summer nights always arrive late. Fortunately, the temperature was relatively high, so it wouldn't affect our camping trip.

Seeing that his health was down to only 35, Zhou Ye decided to stop traveling. He found an open space, cleared away the weeds, and set up several simple traps around the area. He didn't expect these traps to be particularly effective, but at least they could serve as an alarm. Finally, he sprinkled some animal repellent powder around the area.

In the surrounding woods, Zhou Ye gathered a pile of dry branches and leaves, struck a flint and steel, and quickly lit a campfire.

Fortunately, he has integrated the memories of his predecessor and can still skillfully use this very ancient fire striker.

By this time, it was already getting dark. Zhou Ye was roasting flatbread and salted meat over the campfire. There were still two flatbreads, but this time one of them was a black flatbread.

Listening to the sounds of the wind, the leaves, and the insects all around, enjoying the tranquility of the mountains and fields, Zhou Ye couldn't help but let his mind wander.

If I had known this would happen, I should have brought a pot. Even if an iron pot is too heavy, I should at least have brought a few earthenware bowls, right?

Thinking of this, Zhou Ye couldn't help but chuckle. He was still too greedy, wanting to bring more and more things; how could he possibly manage it all?

After a quick dinner, Zhou Ye slept fully clothed by the campfire. Perhaps due to exhaustion, he slept very soundly. When he woke up, it was already broad daylight; he had passed the night without incident.

To say that there were no surprises or dangers is not entirely accurate.

The mountain forests are teeming with insects and mosquitoes in the summer, and there are even more at night than during the day. As a result, Zhou Ye's head is covered in bites.

Don't be fooled by how much people yearn for the mountains and fields in their past lives; wilderness survival is actually quite tough. I really miss the equipment from my past life, whether it's mosquito nets or modern gear like insect repellent spray.

After wiping his face, Zhou Ye felt much more awake. He noticed that the campfire had long since gone out, leaving only some residual heat.

After relighting the campfire, Zhou Ye placed the iron helmet on it. He added some water, chopped some salted meat, and broke up some flatbread. He then found some wild vegetables nearby and threw them into the helmet as well.

This time, I have to thank the original owner's memories. In the past, wild vegetables were an important supplementary food in rural life, and the original owner knew quite a few of them.

After the salted meat and wild vegetable noodle soup was ready and cooled slightly, Zhou Ye devoured it all. After washing his iron helmet, he extinguished the campfire, put it back on, and set off again…

Perhaps he slept well last night, and his health points had recovered to the maximum of 80. However, recalling the events, Zhou Ye broke out in a cold sweat. He had slept so soundly; what if he had encountered a wild animal? He still needed to be more vigilant, after all, the forests of this other world were far more dangerous than the man-made forests of his previous life.

However, traveling during the day is relatively safe. After walking all morning, Zhou Ye crossed two more mountains. But as soon as he came down the mountain, he was taken aback by the sight before him. He saw a wide river blocking his way, its surging waters rushing into the distance.

Zhou Ye frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment, and finally decided to rest and have lunch there. He would decide on his next move after he had rested.

And so, about a mile from the river, Zhou Ye started a fire again and cooked. Perhaps because he had been hungry for so long, he surprisingly had a good appetite. He quickly devoured the two flatbreads with salted meat inside…