Starting With a Reef [Global Survival]

Bai Yuemian was startled and hurriedly shouted for Hei-zi to stop, telling it not to smash the rocks down so violently.
Yun Luohe had Yúntūn and Hei-zi work together: using spider silk to bind the stones, controlling the force of their drop, and weaving a dense silk net beneath to block the toxic sludge so it wouldn’t splash. Soon, a crooked, uneven stone path formed in the middle of the swamp.
Although the gaps between the stones were wide, at least they provided footholds.
Seeing this, Yúntūn leapt onto the stones, quickly spitting out silk to weave traction lines above, anchoring them to the trees on both sides of the swamp. That way, there was now a hanging rope above the ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) rocks for them to grab on to—an extra layer of safety.
Even if the stones gave out, they could still rely on the silk to save their lives.
Otherwise, walking above the toxic sludge would have been impossible with any peace of mind.
“That’s brilliant!” Yun Luohe couldn’t help but praise. “You two are amazing.”
Hei-zi puffed out its chest proudly, looking very smug.
For safety, both pets were temporarily placed back into their pet pouches.
Yun Luohe stepped onto the first stone. Gripping the silk above her head, she leaned forward slightly to keep balance, then leapt to the second stone, landing steady.
Bai Yuemian followed right behind.
When they reached the middle of the swamp, the sludge gurgled ominously. The stone beneath sank slightly, rotting leaves stirred, and the poison sludge surged upward, black fumes growing denser.
It seemed the stones too were being corroded by the sludge—only slower.
Their time was running out.
Yun Luohe immediately quickened her pace, leaping to the next stone.
“We need to hurry,” she said sharply.
The moment she spoke, the stone beneath her feet suddenly plunged. Yun Luohe’s face tightened, and she quickly urged Bai Yuemian to follow.
Bai Yuemian didn’t dare hesitate. She leapt, her heel just leaving the stone when, in the next instant, that slab sank entirely into the poison sludge, leaving only a black, bubbling hole.
Her face went pale, clutching the silk rope tight.
Yun Luohe held her breath as well. Outwardly she looked calm, but inside she wasn’t sure at all—her heart was hammering.
The opposite bank wasn’t far, only four stones away. But those last stones were already starting to give way.
Frowning, Yun Luohe immediately released Yúntūn, ordering it to spit more silk to reinforce the lines. From here on, they would have to crawl across the silk with hands and feet.
“No more walking. Onto the silk,” Yun Luohe said, and swung herself up first, hanging upside down from the web-line. She grasped the silk with both hands, hooked her legs over it, and began inching forward.
Bai Yuemian, though shocked, trusted Yun Luohe completely. Without hesitation, she copied her movements and climbed onto the silk as well.
Less than a minute later, every one of the giant stones had been corroded and dissolved into the sludge below.
Bai Yuemian’s heart dropped—she felt like she’d escaped death by a hair. If not for Yun Luohe’s decisive call, they’d have gone down with those stones.
But they weren’t safe yet. They had to keep crawling, and she wasn’t sure if she had the stamina left to endure it.
After only a short while, her hands and legs had already turned weak. She had never done such physically demanding movements before, and it was exhausting.
Yun Luohe glanced back at her. “You’re running out of strength, aren’t you?”
She sent her a food item—Pumpkin Carrot Stewed Venison.
It was a high-grade dish Yun Luohe had made long ago. Eating it restored +60 stamina and, more importantly, gave +10 Strength—perfect for Bai Yuemian, who was already near collapse.
She had Yúntūn deliver the food to Bai Yuemian. “Eat this. It’ll help. Just get through this stretch.”
With difficulty, Bai Yuemian freed one hand. She didn’t care about cleanliness now—she stuffed it into her mouth.
She ate in big bites. The flavor soothed her nerves slightly, though her body remained tense. As she finished, a wave of heat coursed down her throat into her limbs. Her aching arms immediately regained strength.
Gripping the silk tighter, she hooked her knees onto the line like Yun Luohe and crawled forward with both hands and feet.
The poison sludge below kept bubbling, black fumes rising along the silk. Where it touched, corrosive hissing sounded.
The strands trembled but held. Thanks to Yun Luohe having Yúntūn reinforce them earlier, they didn’t snap.
Seeing this steadied Bai Yuemian a little, even if she was still afraid.
They pressed on.
“Not good,” Yun Luohe suddenly said low.

“What is it?” Bai Yuemian asked.
“There’s something inside the sludge ahead.”
From a pile of rotting leaves protruded a pale-gray vine, bearing a string of purple-black berries.
Each berry looked overly ripe, as if about to burst. Thick black liquid oozed within, seeping into the poison sludge.
Better to avoid them—but it was already too late to change course.
Building another passage was impossible now, and Yúntūn couldn’t spit more silk on such short notice.
“Be careful,” Yun Luohe warned Bai Yuemian gravely.
Her instincts screamed those vines and berries were dangerous, maybe even more toxic than the sludge.
She sped up, crawling so fast the silk nearly sparked against her palms.
Then, the line ahead sagged.
It was the swamp’s edge trees—branches bent down under their weight, pulling the silk taut and askew.
“The branch is breaking!” Bai Yuemian cried.
Before they could react, there was a snap. The silk rope tilted sharply.
Both of them lost balance, about to plunge into the sludge. Yun Luohe instantly grabbed another rope, reached back, and caught Bai Yuemian. Yúntūn, acting in perfect sync, shot more silk to wrap them, just barely fixing them onto another strand.
At the same time, Yúntūn exhausted its remaining energy, binding Yun Luohe’s wrist with layers of silk and yanking back her leg that had nearly touched the sludge.
Bai Yuemian was terrified to the core, knees weak, too afraid to even look down.
Luckily, Yun Luohe hugged her tightly, pulling her close.
But a single rope wouldn’t hold long. They dangled in midair, swaying.
Below, the sludge steamed thicker, and the vines seemed to sense the commotion. Slowly, they stretched toward Yun Luohe.
The rope was about to snap. Gritting her teeth, Yun Luohe pulled out pet snacks and blood crystal fragments, feeding them to Yúntūn.
It devoured them, restoring energy at once—enough to spin more silk.
“Yúntūn, weave a web across the bank!” Yun Luohe ordered between breaths.
Yúntūn darted along the tilted line, eight legs flashing.
In under ten seconds, it spun a translucent giant web, anchoring it to the rocks on the opposite bank and tying it into the trees.
“When I throw you, let the momentum carry you into the web. Don’t look back, don’t resist,” Yun Luohe said firmly to Bai Yuemian.
Bai Yuemian nodded.
Just then, the vines stretched close, tendrils reaching for Yun Luohe’s legs.
She swung hard, dragging Bai Yuemian in a wide arc toward the web.
With all her strength, Bai Yuemian slammed into it, the sticky silk wrapping around her and cushioning the fall.
Meanwhile Yun Luohe pulled out the Thunder Vortex Trident, driving a lightning strike into the vine.
Blue arcs crackled down its length, the vine convulsing violently.
The berries burst, spraying black juice that hissed into smoke.
The vine recoiled, as if in fear, no longer daring to approach.
Face hard, Yun Luohe commanded Yúntūn to gather the remaining berries with silk.
Then she quickly scrambled along the line and escaped the swamp.
She barely set foot on solid ground before the rope snapped behind her. It dropped into the sludge, slowly corroding into black vapor.
The vines greedily absorbed the fumes, swelling monstrously.
It looked deeply unsettling.
Yun Luohe lifted the black berries Yúntūn had collected in its silk and examined them.
But just then, danger prickled her senses. A second later, a loud gua gua croak sounded from behind.
She spun around—and met a pair of scarlet eyes.
A giant toad the size of a calf stood there, its skin a revolting gray-green covered in bulging poison glands. Its maw gaped, tongue snapping out long and thin. Sticky saliva dripped onto the ground, instantly corroding pits.
This had to be a mutant swamp beast.
Yun Luohe hadn’t even recovered her stamina before another battle began.
The giant toad suddenly lunged, tongue whipping straight at them.
Yun Luohe retreated fast, slashing with her trident.
Bai Yuemian, not daring to rest further, instantly summoned Hei-zi to assist.
Yúntūn leapt to block, chelicerae aimed at the toad’s body, but its tongue met it head-on.
The tongue was incredibly tough and venomous, serving both offense and defense—a perfect weapon for the toad.
Yúntūn spat silk, but the tongue wrapped it up and jerked it back, trying to reel Yúntūn in.
Hei-zi spat a boulder at the toad, but it hardly made a dent, splashing green venom across its surface.
Yun Luohe cut the sticky silk with her trident, then shouted, “Attack its tongue and eyes—those are the weak points!”
Hei-zi obeyed, hurling rocks at the toad’s eyes.
The beast was forced to dodge, and enraged, it gaped wide. A fountain of dark-green venom spewed out, covering half the thicket.
But that gave Yun Luohe her chance.
She darted in, trident crackling, stabbing straight into its eye.
The toad shrieked, spraying venom wildly.
Then Yun Luohe saw its wide-open mouth and had an idea. “Hei-zi, can you throw stones into its mouth? Yúntūn, bind its tongue when you see the opening!”
Just as it was about to spew again, a boulder smashed inside its throat.
The toad froze, then gagged, trying to spit it out—but more boulders followed, one after another.
It croaked furiously, flailing its tongue to expel them—only to have Yúntūn’s silk wrap it tight.
“That’s it!” Yun Luohe drove her trident down, severing the tongue. As the beast howled in agony, she thrust into its throat, piercing straight through. The toad let out a piercing death-cry.
The kill left Yun Luohe completely spent. She collapsed onto the ground to rest.
Only 3 stamina points remained.
That was close.
But they were safe.
She took out food to replenish herself, and collected the loot from the slain beast.
[Green Poison King Toad Hide ×1, Dark Green Venom ×5, Dark Green Poison Gland Pouch ×1]
[Green Poison King Toad Hide: Can be used to craft advanced thorn armor. Has damage-reflecting properties.]
[Dark Green Venom: Extremely corrosive, can be used to make deadly potions. A small vial can dissolve ordinary creatures instantly.]
[Dark Green Poison Gland Pouch: Source of toxic fumes, can be refined into special fuel.]
Yun Luohe pocketed all of it, then examined the berries.
[Corrupt Poison Berries: Specialty of Thorn Swamp. When ripe, filled with black venomous liquid. Releases corrosive gas. Can be used to make poison gas or corrosive bombs.]
There weren’t many, but she decided to bring them back and hand them over to Si Qi for research, to see if they could be cultivated.
After a short rest, Yun Luohe and Bai Yuemian pressed on. They had reached the deeper parts of Strawberry Island.
Ahead lay a gloomy forest.
The sky was darkening.
“Night’s falling,” Bai Yuemian said. “Where are we going to camp?”
“Let’s see if there’s a flat spot ahead. We’re almost out of the woods,” Yun Luohe replied.
“I brought a tent—and a portable bathtub,” Bai Yuemian said.
A bathtub? Yun Luohe smiled. Bai Yuemian really had prepared thoroughly. Still, if it was safe, a bath would indeed feel great. Both of them were drenched in sweat and badly needed one.
Just as they were about to exit the forest, the sky went black in an instant. A dense fog rolled in, engulfing everything. Beyond three meters, nothing was visible.
Yun Luohe stopped immediately, pulling Bai Yuemian back. “Don’t move.”
She sensed no hostility, but this fog was far too strange.
As she hesitated, green lights began to flicker in the distance—like fireflies.
But there were far too many, countless points clustered together.
She stepped slowly toward the glow.
And there, looming ahead, was a colossal tree.