Leveling Up By Surviving Alone - L.U.B.S.A Chapter 47
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– The Watcher is very pleased with your current appearance.
– They say they never dreamed they would witness such a scene in this terrifying rift.
“Right? I completely agree with you, brother!”
First, Ji Yeonwoo thought about food.
Magic bamboo shoots, dried fish made from thick, hearty fish, and nutrient-rich kelp came to mind.
‘So, which of these should I feed them?’
Thinking about it, there’s no need to overcomplicate things.
“Why not just feed them all of it?”
‘Of course, if I give them separately, they might become picky eaters.’
Ji Yeonwoo, who had always eaten whatever his father gave him without question, couldn’t bear to see his own children becoming picky.
So, there was only one answer.
In fact, he even remembered doing something similar in the past.
Ji Yeonwoo shared his thoughts with the Watcher.
—
– The Watcher praises it as a great idea.
– They are confident it will make an excellent nutritious snack.
“Hehehe! Right?”
Ji Yeonwoo immediately put his plan into action.
There was only about a day left.
Time was even more pressing.
But the Watcher stopped him.
—
– The Watcher says they can help with this part for the first time in a while.
“R-really? How?”
—
– Will you accept the Watcher’s memory (15 minutes and 12 seconds)?
Ji Yeonwoo simply nodded.
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*
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Peep. Peep peep.
Peep peep peep peep!!
The five peeping chicks circled around Ji Yeonwoo, who was sitting cross-legged on the beach.
Despite this, Ji Yeonwoo remained dazed with his eyes closed.
He was immersed in the Watcher’s memory.
Since their mother wasn’t responding, the chicks grew anxious.
To ease their anxiety, they turned to Kim Kkokko, who was nearby.
Peep…!
The giant creature who had been by their side when they were born.
To the chicks, Kim Kkokko was somehow a being they wanted to befriend and look up to.
What should I call it? Like an older brother in the neighborhood?
That must be it.
So, one of the chicks approached Kim Kkokko to ease their anxious hearts.
Peep…?
Let me try talking to her carefully.
Can I gather some courage?
Can I call you ‘brother’ from today…?
The other four chicks also scurried over, trying to rub against Kim Kkokko’s legs.
Kim Kkokko wasn’t one to just stand by and watch.
Peep? Peep?
…Kkokkooook!
Kim Kkokko let out a stern cry.
Flapping her wings, she used his large beak to tap the ground in front of the chicks, scaring them.
Peep peep peep!
Startled, the chicks ran to Ji Yeonwoo’s thighs and buried their heads.
They hid only their faces, leaving their bodies exposed.
Kim Kkokko was exasperated.
Good heavens! Is that what they call hiding?
Their lack of skill was so obvious that Kim Kkokko let out a deep sigh.
—
– The Watcher says the chicks are pitiful and asks if Kim Kkokko could be a little nicer to them. After all, didn’t Kim Kkokko give birth to them? They gently scold her.
– He gently persuades her, pointing out that even if they are destined to perish, it seems cruel for them to die so soon.
Kkok!
Kim Kkokko couldn’t understand the Watcher’s exact words, but he could sense the emotions behind them.
At the Watcher’s words, Kim Kkokko sharply turned his head.
But deep down, she thought the Watcher had a point.
Sure, they were destined to be culled, but if they died too quickly, it would be a bit of a shame. After all, they were her offspring, and this was a matter of pride.
Moreover, they were ultimately formed from her essence. The thought of predators swooping in to devour them made her stomach churn.
If there had to be a predator, Kim Kkokko secretly hoped it would be Ji Yeonwoo. That would be more beneficial for her.
So, she needed to teach these little ones the basics.
Letting out a deep sigh, Kim Kkokko stood up abruptly.
Kkok!
At Kim Kkokko’s call, the five chicks turned their heads sharply.
Kim Kkokko, as if telling them to watch closely, clung to a nearby rock and sat down.
Chik chik.
Chik chik chik.
The sound of her lower belly and wings vibrating. As the sound continued, Kim Kkokko’s body seemed to sink into the sand.
Once more than 50% of her body was buried in the ground, Kim Kkokko chirped again, as if to emphasize that this was the key point, and then buried her face in her puffed-up chest.
Poof!
Kim Kkokko’s head disappeared seamlessly.
Now, her round, white body was almost indistinguishable from the rock beside her.
The five pairs of eyes watching her sparkled brightly.
Peep peep peep!
Peep peep peep!
It was as if they were saying, “Wow! Wow!” “your are amazing!”
Immediately, the chicks rushed to Kim Kkokko and tried to imitate her.
They buried their small bodies in the ground, wriggled around, and finally forced their disproportionately large heads into their chests.
Kkok…!
It was utterly clumsy.
So, to show them how it’s done, Kim Kkokko got up again and moved her plump body with a thud. The chicks watched their neighborhood friend (…) and repeatedly exclaimed in admiration. Hearing their cries, Kim Kkokko, without realizing it, began to teach them even more earnestly and sincerely how to hide properly.
Kkok. Kkok kkok. Kkok……!
Just as she was passionately explaining,
“Huh? Kkokko, what are you doing? Were you playing with the chicks?”
Kkok…!
Kim Kkokko froze mid-sentence.
Then, she jumped back and let out a loud cry.
Peep peep!
Startled, the chicks buried themselves under Ji Yeonwoo’s thighs.
Even then, they clumsily tried to imitate what Kim Kkokko had just taught them.
“Oh, come on. Kkokko, can’t you be a little friendlier?”
Kkok!
Kim Kkokko sharply turned her head.
Ji Yeonwoo sighed but smiled faintly as he looked up at the sky.
“Brother, by the way, can we now share 15-minute memories?”
—
– The Watcher says it seems like the limit has increased from 10 to 15 minutes, and they’re happy about it.
– They ask if their memory was helpful.
“Of course. If we can make this work, it’ll be really convenient in the future, right?”
There was no time to waste.
Ji Yeonwoo immediately began to put the memory he had just read into action.
He went to visit a friend he had made a few weeks ago, someone who was always generous.
A generous chunk of basalt.
Long time no see. Can you spare a piece?
“I think I’ll need quite a bit this time.”
Since we’re making something, wouldn’t bigger be better?
Of course, for the massive basalt, it would only be a drop in the bucket.
True friends help each other in times of need.
Promising to help the basalt when it was in trouble, Ji Yeonwoo transformed his Jaws-based multi-tool knife into a saw.
Swish… swish!
In the past, when it was based on a hunting knife, the saw blade would wear out after just a few uses, requiring him to resummon it.
But now, it was completely different.
The jawbone of the bull shark, harder than steel, easily cut through the basalt as much as he needed.
It wasn’t as smooth as cutting through butter, but it was easier than cutting through a log.
Kooong…!
Without replacing the saw blade even once, Ji Yeonwoo successfully separated a circular piece of basalt, 1 meter in diameter and 0.5 meters in width, from the main body.
Now, all that was left was to move it to his beach.
How much would this weigh?
At least over 2 tons.
“Whew…!”
It had only been a little over a month since Ji Yeonwoo had arrived here.
He had been eating various things to increase his strength.
Even so, lifting this whole thing and carrying it away would be too much. It wasn’t efficient.
But standing it up and rolling it away was possible.
In that moment, the strength Ji Yeonwoo had built up until now shone.
Thud. Thud thud…!
Ji Yeonwoo’s sturdy body bulked up once more,
Tsuuuuut!
And the massive circular basalt chunk stood upright!
“Whew… It’s not a perfect circle, but it should roll.”
Roll roll.
Ji Yeonwoo rolled the circular basalt back to his beach.
Kim Kkokko and the chicks followed closely behind.
The Watcher watched with concern.
—
– They worry that he’s making too large of a millstone.
That’s right.
What Ji Yeonwoo was trying to make was a millstone.
If he had a blender, he wouldn’t need to do this, but how could he expect a blender in a place like this?
So, he had no choice but to go back to the Joseon Dynasty era, when there was no electricity, and make a millstone.
He would make a millstone, put the ingredients in it,
And make a super nutritious food for the chicks!
“Super nutritious food!”
—
– ……
The Watcher couldn’t bring themselves to tell the excited Ji Yeonwoo.
That many people had agreed to call that super food… “feed.”
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*
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The design of the millstone wasn’t as complicated as one might think.
A convex stone and a concave stone that perfectly fit together. A rotating axis that pierced through them. And a hole in the top rotating stone to put the food in. That’s all it took to complete a millstone.
Of course, the material couldn’t be smooth stone. If it were smooth, it would rotate well, but the food wouldn’t be ground properly.
That’s why rough basalt had been used to make millstones since ancient times.
And the basalt Ji Yeonwoo had brought was a massive chunk, 1 meter in diameter and 0.5 meters in width.
Of course, he didn’t plan to make the millstone as is.
He had brought a generous amount to make it easier to roll.
Ji Yeonwoo planned to split it in half to make a convex lower stone and a concave upper stone, then drill a hole through both to rotate them.
Using a saw to split it would be a waste of time.
Instead of the saw, Ji Yeonwoo lifted the Jawsbar high.