After the sun set, the darkness in the forest grew thicker, like layers of dark gauze hanging on the treetops.
The birds returning home gathered in flocks, like a mass of ink-colored clouds drifting across the sky.
The resplendent Milky Way had already appeared in this unpolluted world, with moonlight flooding like a tide, illuminating the campfire beside the big tree and the people guarding it.
...
Chen Zhou prepared enough firewood to burn through the entire night.
He also broke off many branches as thick as a forearm, tightly arranging them to lean against the fallen tree trunk, then layered them with crushed leaves, followed by a mix of pine needles and mud from the downstream of a meltwater stream, slathering it over the leaves.
A simple windproof shelter was thus completed, with the fallen tree acting as a natural barrier, so they could avoid the cold wind while resting at night and conserve energy.
