Wandering America: My kill threshold is far ahead

Chapter 243 Girl, You Should Lose Weight

The other person stared at his retreating figure in disbelief, their eyes as clear as a college student's.

Dude, you've basically had no rest at all. Aren't you afraid of falling to your death while playing like this?

*Crack!* With the crisp sound of the ice axe striking the mountain, Majeke began his charge toward the summit.

He took a quick look and found that the road conditions going uphill were extremely complicated, with not only hard snow that had been repeatedly covered and compacted, but also naturally formed terrain that combined ice and rock.

This is not as simple as just climbing a slope; it requires climbers to set up temporary footholds within the movable area.

To put it simply, you have to plan your own route. Every time you move uphill, you must quickly and accurately assess where to step next and whether that place can bear the weight.

This is not only a test of physical strength, but also a challenge to the brain, and there is basically no room for error. Just one wrong judgment can lead to a fatal fall.

Extremely high physical exertion, complex technical difficulties, thin oxygen at high altitudes, and gradually eroding patience can further exacerbate psychological panic, leading to distorted technical movements and decision-making errors.

Ma Jieke's approach was simple: he didn't think about how high it was from the summit, nor was he driven by curiosity to look down; he simply immersed himself in the small world before him.

Those protruding or recessed icicles, rock jams, and crevices were deconstructed and sifted in his mind, magically connecting like the Big Dipper, slowly converging into a safe route.

Each step he took upwards required him to simultaneously engage his calves, thighs, and core muscles. This repetitive, high-intensity work devoured his energy like a black hole.

After an unknown amount of time, the original stamina bar finally reached the 20% threshold, thus triggering the [Working Saint Body].

The passive effect.

With a continuous, mysterious energy boost, the pain caused by lactic acid buildup is quickly reduced.

Just as Ma Jie was enjoying the pleasure of soaking in the spring with his remaining health, a cry of alarm suddenly came from above the ice wall.

He subconsciously looked up and saw a familiar figure sliding down the slope—it was Tonya, who was far ahead of him.

She frantically waved her ice axe in an attempt to save herself; if she could wed the ice axe into the mountainside, she could achieve emergency braking.

However, due to the hard terrain and instinctive panic, they failed to succeed after several attempts.

As those who frequently attempt suicide by jumping from buildings know, the speed at which an object falls is directly proportional to the distance it falls; if you don't succeed the first time, it's even less likely you'll succeed the next time.

If a fall into a protruding rock formation, or even if it hits an athlete below, no one can imagine how serious the consequences would be.

Oh well, whatever, I guess I'll just have to leave it to fate.

Just as Donya was falling into despair, her body suddenly sank, stopping her slide. At the same time, a sharp pain shot through her shoulder joint, almost dislocating it.

In her field of vision, a strong and powerful hand was gripping her right wrist tightly. Looking up, there was a handsome face gritting its teeth and exerting force; it was none other than Ma Jieke, who had struck back from behind.

She quickly composed herself and used her ice axe to hook into a crevice in the rock to relieve the pressure.

"Huff...huff..." After being successfully rescued, Donya, still shaken, gasped for breath.

Ma Jie shook his wrist and bluntly complained to her, "Girl, you should lose weight."

Donya ignored his chauvinistic remarks and forced a wry smile from her pale face, which was frozen red like two apples: "Thank you, Jack, you saved me again."

The last time was in the boxing ring. At that time, she felt that this man was very trustworthy. He was domineering but had a rare gentleness, which is why the two became friends.

"Stop talking nonsense. Can you hold on? If you can, follow me. If not, stay here and wait for rescue."

Ma Jieke had no time for arguing with her; he quickly returned to the game after saying that.

Watching his figure struggling to climb upwards, Donya, who was originally exhausted, was rekindled in her fighting spirit. She didn't want to back down in front of someone.

He initially thought he had rescued a burden, but it turned out this Russian girl was really something else. She was much faster than him at judging where to land, and the two of them developed a tacit understanding, increasing their efficiency.

Clang! As the ice axe pierced a steep ice wall, the view suddenly opened up, and head coach Rayman was standing in front of the signal flag not far away, waiting for the athletes to launch their final charge.

One expert has already completed the task and scored ten points, while the other three competitors are severely exhausted and are practically crawling on the ground to move forward.

"Quick, they're all done for, this is our chance!"

Ma Jieke's eyes lit up. He still had a little bit of energy left, so getting second place shouldn't be a problem.

She had only run a couple of steps when she heard a thud behind her. Donya had fallen to the ground in the snow, clutching her calves and looking extremely pained.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't take it anymore, I can't go on." She was at her last gasp: "Jack... Jack, don't worry about me, run, run..."

Despite his competitor being so close to the finish line, Majac instinctively turned back.

"What are you doing back here, you idiot? Hurry up and go, I just had a cramp."

Seeing him run back like an idiot, Donya was almost brought to tears. She had never seen such a stupid person. He was about to cross the finish line, so why did he do this?

"Straighten your legs and relax your body."

Ma Jie promptly corrected her mistake, explaining that the best way to deal with cramps is not to rub them, but to straighten the cramped leg. If you can just endure it for a few seconds, it will return to normal.

"You...you can leave me alone, okay? I don't have time for this, you idiot. Do you want me to yell at you? I'm not worth it."

Seeing that the second-place finisher had already crossed the finish line, Donya burst into tears, not for herself, but for Ma Jieke. She never expected that this big boy from China would be so loyal.

"OK, I'm all set, let's go!" With Ma Jieke's help, the previously contracted and hardened muscle tissue quickly relaxed.

The two ran towards the signal flag with all their might, and finally managed to touch it at the last moment.

"Third place, Ma Jieke, 8 points."

"Fourth place, Tonya, 7 points."

Fifth place, Pierre, 6 points.

When the assistant instructor announced the assessment results, the two lay down on the snow, looked at the mirror-like clear sky, and couldn't help but laugh.

"Thank you, sweetheart. Without you, I would probably be in an ambulance by now."

"Tell me, how do you want me to thank you by becoming your girlfriend?"

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, Donya stole a kiss on the cheek. That's how it is when you stay in America for a long time; even a quiet person can become unusually open.

"You call this thanking me?" Ma Jie rolled his eyes. "I saved you, and instead of repaying me, you want to possess me. Good heavens, women are terrifying."

"Get lost! Who wants to possess you!"

The two, seemingly oblivious to fatigue, started a snowball fight on the spot, leaving their head instructor, Lehman, utterly speechless.

The other contestants are already exhausted, and you two are still showing off your love here. Do you have unlimited stamina?

After two days of assessment, Ma Jieke is currently ranked first with a total score of 18 points.

However, this moment of glory did not last long. In the following days, several other survival abilities were tested.

In the fishing competition, Ma Jieke was outmatched by several experienced anglers due to his insufficient skill level, barely managing to get 3 points.

Minute.

The same applies to the trap-making assessment. Only a few common trap types were made, lacking innovation and refinement, and the final score was 4 points.

As a result, his ranking quickly dropped to fifth. Although he was still among the top, he was always in danger of being replaced.

It wasn't until the project of acquiring the fire seed that Ma Jieke regained some ground.

As per Lehman's requirements, contestants could not use any modern fire-starting tools and could only use the most primitive methods of fire-making. He would make a comprehensive judgment based on both difficulty and time.

The assessment began. Some people used stones to strike fire, focusing on generating electricity out of love. Others used their hands to rub together a drill and start a fire by friction, which required extremely high endurance in their hands.

Ma Jie initially wanted to use the bow drill method, which is recognized as the most successful primitive fire-making method. However, it required making a set of exquisite tools, including a drill rod, fire board, bowstring, and hand-held top plate. Just making the tools would take a lot of time, which seemed a bit of a waste.

Finally, he decided to use the fire-type method, which doesn't have a high usage rate.

The specific steps are as follows: Use a hardwood stick to quickly and forcefully "shape" back and forth in the groove of another softwood board. The resulting wood chips and frictional heat will accumulate and smoke, eventually forming a spark.

Ma Jie first took a suitable-sized and long wooden stick from the hard black oak tree, and then used a survival knife to cut off a piece of birch bark. The preparation work was then complete.

The following process is tedious, requiring you to maintain one position for a long time, which is a great test of physical strength and patience.

After struggling for almost two hours, thanks to Ma Jieke's strong perseverance, the sawdust was finally ignited.

He quickly added the accelerant and raised his hand to signal to the nearby assistant instructor.

The other competitors, seeing him light the fire, were incredibly anxious and could only speed up their hand movements, praying for a miracle.

Although others succeeded in starting a fire, Ma Jie was still ahead in terms of time. However, he was not the fastest. Some contestants obtained the fire in just 40 minutes, while others, although a step behind him, were slightly better in terms of difficulty because they used a more complicated bow and drill method to start the fire.

However, they still managed to get 8 points, successfully moving up two places in the rankings.

That evening, it began to snow in southern Alaska, covering the entire town.

I thought I could sleep in and relax the next day, but that old bastard Lehman really had a trick up his sleeve. He prepared a test paper in advance and conducted a diagnostic test indoors.

The test questions are all related to wilderness survival, such as how to purify water, simulate self-rescue when trapped in the desert, and which of the following mushrooms should not be eaten.

It's worth noting that Ma Jieke has suffered from "exam syndrome" since childhood; he gets sleepy whenever he sees exam papers and proctors.

Multiple choice questions are manageable; you can just blindly pick A, B, C, or D and guess a few right. But short answer questions are a nightmare, especially since it's in English. You know all the words, but when they're put together, it's like reading gibberish.

As expected, when the exam results were announced, he tied for first place in the class with the Inuit huntress Sila.

reciprocal.

Donya wasn't much better; it seems only academically challenged people who don't like studying can hang out together.

Out of consideration for the international friends, head instructor Lehman gave each person 2 points as encouragement.

As a result, Ma Jieke's ranking dropped two places, essentially remaining unchanged.

On the last day of the training camp selection, when everyone returned to the camp, Lehman announced the final test: build a temporary shelter within 12 hours.

Looking at the skill bar for "[Infrastructure Maniac MAX]", Ma Jieke was so moved he almost cried.

Logically, this should be the most important skill for wilderness survival, but Lehman did the opposite, scheduling it for the last day to thoroughly test everyone's patience.

In the wild, shelter is always the highest priority, followed by water, fire, and food.

After the whistle blew, Ma Jieke did not rush to work, but first observed the terrain to find the most advantageous location for building.

The area above the temporary shelter must be free of falling objects such as branches and rocks, and it should not be built in a windy location. It should also be far away from animal trails and dens, and drainage should be planned in advance to prevent rainwater from flowing back in.

While he was searching for an auspicious burial site, the other contestants began to display their unique talents.

Some people used waterproof tarpaulins and tree branches to build the simplest A-shaped shelters.

Some people dug snow pits in the ground and then built roofs over the pits to create trench-like shelters.

Some people have also used natural structures to design time-saving and labor-saving shelters under trees.

Twenty minutes later, MaJack arrived at a snow slope and began his mysterious operation.

While the other contestants were using axes and saws to cut down timber for building houses, he was carrying an entrenching tool and shoveling dirt.

In no time, he carved out a large hole in the snow slope; anyone who didn't know better would think he was digging for some treasure.

"What's wrong, buddy? You didn't do well on your exam, but you don't need to vent like this. Are you planning to dig a tunnel and escape back to China?"

He was working hard when a rough North American man carrying a heavy log walked past him, his words full of sarcasm.

Before this, his performance had been outstanding and he was respected by many contestants. However, due to failing the exam, his image collapsed all at once.

"Fuck you, Layton, get back to your work and stop getting in my way!"

Ma Jie gave him the middle finger in a friendly greeting, and the latter laughed twice before walking away.

After a week of getting to know each other, everyone has become quite familiar with each other, and no one takes a joke to heart.

This guy has been on TV before. Because of his immense strength and love for building mansions, he was nicknamed the Lumberjack.

However, each time he finished building his mansion, his survival journey came to an end. He would either go for a long time without finding food or be poisoned by drinking unclean water, just as the long-standing curse goes: "Build a good house, quit the game early."

After seeing off the lumberjack Layton, Majek continued his intensive work and quickly dug out a rough entrance to the passage on the snow slope.

Then, wielding an entrenching tool, he dug strangely to the side and upward, much like a tomb raider digging a hole.

To this day, no one knows what he really wants to do.