Chapter 1: Nine Resurrection Pill

On the one hundred and ninety-ninth day of Lin Ran’s voyage, she finally saw an island.

She sailed her boat closer to the island and landed.

This was a desolate island with no vegetation, and there were no traces of life. In the distance, there was a mountain, not very tall and bare, and from afar, it looked hazy and gray.

She felt that this place was quite suitable as a graveyard.

Six months ago, Lin Ran was diagnosed with cancer. At that time, she was being heavily criticized on the internet, and her mood was particularly low. Originally just a third-rate entertainer, the company unceremoniously terminated her contract without hesitation. She had no education and couldn’t find another job. Fortunately, she had a habit of saving money and was always frugal. Over the years as an entertainer, she had earned over 5 million, and she had saved it all without spending.

If it weren’t for the cancer, this money would have been enough for Lin Ran to live comfortably for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, fate wasn’t so kind to her.

The doctor told her that she would have to undergo surgery, dialysis, and endure a lot of pain, and this would probably extend her life by two or three years. If she chose not to undergo these treatments and only controlled the condition with medication, she could live at most another six months.

She thought about it seriously for a long time and decided to give up treatment.

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To verify this, she circled the island and indeed found no signs of human presence.

Then she headed towards the mountain.

As she approached the mountain, the temperature began to rise. The higher she climbed, the hotter it became, and the air became thinner, making Lin Ran’s breathing difficult. She realized that this might be a volcano, and it seemed to be an active one that could erupt at any time.

But she was fearless now and continued to climb the mountain slowly.

In this way, she climbed the mountain step by step, and her strength was almost depleted. As someone already on the brink of death, her physical strength was much weaker than that of a normal person. After a long climb, she finally reached the summit.

Then she saw something that disappointed her: a black trash can placed at the mouth of the volcano.

This indicated that someone had been here before. She wasn’t the first person to reach this deserted island, instantly robbing her of a sense of accomplishment.

As she approached, she realized that this trash can, surprisingly, had no bottom. There were strange symbols drawn on the body of the can, covered in dust.

To hang an old, broken trash can at the mouth of an active volcano meant the person who did this likely had some serious illness. It was strange that the trash can hadn’t been washed away by the erupting lava.

Lin Ran, for reasons unknown even to herself, struggled to take down this broken trash can and took it with her.

The mountain was too hot, so she descended with the broken trash can before reaching the boat.

Before she reached the boat, a loud noise echoed behind her.

Turning around, she saw a stream of fire rushing out from the mountain’s mouth, like boiling water. Flames soared into the sky, turning the entire island red and casting a crimson hue over the world.

Fortunately, Lin Ran had already moved out of the range of the volcanic eruption and was not affected by the lava.

The volcanic eruption happened suddenly and ended just as abruptly. She only had time for a quick glance before the world returned to silence, with only the falling dust in the air.

Fortunately, the place where Lin Ran anchored her boat was downwind, so the volcanic ash did not reach her.

A sea breeze blew, bringing a hint of coolness and dispersing the sudden heat on the island.

Lin Ran gazed at the volcano for a long time before returning to the boat to rest and eat some dry rations. Exhausted, she lay down and fell asleep.

She didn’t know how long she had slept when she woke up feeling dizzy, accompanied by waves of nausea. Her nose was warm, as if some warm liquid were flowing.

She wiped her nose with a tissue and found that she was having a nosebleed again.

Six months had passed, and the fact that she hadn’t died was already a miracle for her.

She casually stuffed a piece of paper into her nostrils to stop the bleeding and absentmindedly glanced at the trash can she had picked up, suddenly noticing something unusual.

Was there something inside?

She lowered her head to look into the trash can and indeed saw a small bottle at the bottom.

It was a white porcelain bottle, quite ancient-looking, with a red cloth stuffed into the bottle’s mouth as a stopper.

This wasn’t hers.

When she brought back the trash can, she had clearly confirmed that it had no bottom. She only brought back the rim; there couldn’t be anything inside.

She picked up the trash can, but the bottle didn’t come up with it.

The trash can had no bottom, leaving the bottle on the ground.

On this deserted island with no plants or animals, it couldn’t have been accidentally dropped by a monkey. Even if it was washed ashore by the waves, it wouldn’t end up inside a bottomless trash can.

Moreover, the surroundings were dry, with no signs of waves having washed over.

This eerie feeling gave her goosebumps.

She reached out and picked up the bottle, examining the label closely.

The bottle was inscribed with five large characters: “Nine Resurrection Pill.”

She uncorked the bottle.

A strange fragrance emanated from the bottle, making her feel refreshed and invigorated. Even the blood flowing from her nose immediately stopped.

As she looked into the bottle, it seemed like there was nothing inside. She extended one hand, turned the bottle upside down, and tapped it on her palm a few times.

Some small black fragments poured out of the bottle, resembling damp soil. These fragments emitted a unique and pleasant fragrance. From their appearance, they looked like the broken halves of a pill.

She suddenly had a bizarre thought: Could it be that some deity took pity on her and bestowed medicine upon her?

But why only fragments? Wouldn’t it be better to give her a whole pill?

She chuckled, feeling somewhat absurd for entertaining such thoughts. How could she have such ridiculous ideas?

However, almost involuntarily, she stuck out her tongue and consumed the black fragments in her palm.

Even if it were poison, she had nothing to fear. After all, she was already near death.

The lingering fragrance in the bottle was still enticing. She took out some fresh water, poured it into the bottle, and drank it.

In no time, she began to feel something unusual happening to her body.

Her entire body felt warm, as if she had just consumed a large bowl of hot soup. Yet she had only drunk some cool water, which had been sitting in a bottle for quite some time.

Her mind became clearer, and her body felt much lighter than before. It was a sensation she fondly remembered, as if she had returned to her teenage years, full of vitality.

A sudden thought crossed her mind, and she jumped off the boat, running along the shore.

After running for about fifteen minutes, she only felt a bit tired and decided to stop.

But just the day before, she would get tired after walking a few steps. This wasn’t the physical condition of a terminally ill cancer patient waiting for death; it was the level of someone with vibrant health and vitality.

Could it be that this thing is truly the legendary Nine Resurrection Pill? The kind that can revive a corpse that has been dead for over a decade?

She never believed in myths, but the current situation left her without a reasonable explanation.

At least she hadn’t heard of any country developing such a miraculous medicine.

In the following days, she no longer experienced nosebleeds, her spirits improved, and even the dry rations started to taste good.

She hadn’t taken any cancer-fighting medications, and she didn’t feel any discomfort in her body.

It seemed like… she had truly recovered.

In other words, she didn’t have to die.

Lin Ran looked at her boat.

It was a second-hand sailing boat that cost her over 4 million. Including various other expenses, it totaled 5 million.

This was her entire fortune. Back then, feeling that she was on the brink of death, she spent money without any restraint.

Due to her neglect over the past six months, the boat was now almost at the point of being scrapped.

When she checked her account before sailing, there was only a three-digit balance left.

And now, if she couldn’t die, wouldn’t that mean she’d be alive but without money…

She gazed at the sky and chuckled self-mockingly.

She didn’t want to return to a world full of deceit and lies. If possible… living on this uninhabited island didn’t seem bad.

There were no wild beasts and no one to harm her. The only problem was food and fresh water.

Her boat was an old second-hand merchant ship, capable of carrying supplies for several dozen crew members for half a year. When she bought it, the original owner had filled it with supplies, including a surplus of materials for the desalination machine. These items weren’t expensive compared to the boat and were considered complimentary.

Lin Ran looked at the abundant supplies on the ship, silently contemplating for a long time.

Instead of immediately returning, she securely fastened the boat to prevent it from being washed away by the waves.

She took inventory of her supplies—various foods were plentiful, enough for several years. Most of these were compressed foods with a long shelf life, ranging from three to five years.

As there were no fresh vegetables, she prepared some vitamins to supplement the lack of nutrients. These medicines were also sufficient for several years, with a long shelf life.

Freshwater purification is also not a problem, and there’s more than enough energy.

She doesn’t plan to return home for the time being.

While it’s impossible to escape the real world forever, for now, it seems she can temporarily avoid it.

After living on the boat for about half a year, one day she woke up to find something new in the trash can she had picked up.