By now, their team of three had expanded to over a dozen people through careful recruitment. They had taken in players who possessed a decent amount of strength and survival skills, creating a formidable traveling group.
Behind them, various types of dinosaurs followed under the control of other players and moved in a grand procession that dominated the landscape. Boshita was currently stationed on the platform saddle built atop the giant rhino's back, and he held a spyglass while observing the surroundings for potential threats.
"Eh!"
He quickly discovered a figure riding a Pteranodon in the sky above them.
Obviously, Jose had also spotted the massive giant rhino from his vantage point, especially the platform on its back, which was far too conspicuous to miss from above. As they got closer to each other, recognition dawned on both of them simultaneously.
Who else could it be but an old acquaintance!
"It's you!"
Being face-to-face again, the air immediately crackled with tension. From the sky, Jose immediately began to taunt Boshita with obvious glee.
"So this is where you've been hiding, you coward!"
He looked at Boshita's team again and seemed surprised this guy had gathered so many helpers since their last encounter.
Boshita didn't waste words with him and simply grabbed his crossbow before aiming upward.
*Whoosh!*
However, Jose dodged it with a quick barrel roll that showed off his aerial skills.
*Whoosh!*
Another bolt flew upward, and it was dodged again with ease.
Jose immediately became cocky about his advantage in the air.
"Hahaha..."
"Hit me! Come on, hit me!"
"If you have the guts, come and hit me!"
"Ha, you missed again!"
Whoosh!
"Ah..."
The gloating Jose was struck right in the chest before he could finish his taunt. The bolt sank in deep, and blood began to spurt from the wound as his health bar dropped significantly.
Terrified by the sudden reversal, he quickly flew further away to a safer distance.
"Boshita, have the guts to come out and duel me one-on-one..."
"Then why don't you come down here!"
Unfortunately for Jose, the Lunaria Squad also had players responsible for scouting duties. Another player riding a Pteranodon was already rushing toward him from below with clear hostility.
Jose became alarmed as he realized the danger.
If the other side didn't have so many people backing them up, he would have jumped down to fight long ago without hesitation. But he clearly wasn't stupid enough to ignore basic common sense. Going down now would be like serving himself up on a silver plate.
Not daring to mess around anymore, he threw out one last provocation and prepared to retreat while he still could.
"Boshita, you just wait. The next time I see you I'll make you eat dirt"
Now that he had found a lead on his rival's location, Jose planned to take things slowly and methodically. He had already established a small group of his own, and it seemed the time had come to recruit more members for a proper assault.
On the back of the giant rhino, Boshita watched the direction Jose had fled while feeling a headache coming on from this persistent nuisance.
Rowan and Carter were curious about the obvious grudge between the two rivals.
However, Boshita only offered a simple explanation without going into the embarrassing details.
"Don't worry. When he comes back next time, the few of us will definitely take him down together!"
The group continued their migration across the landscape. Their goal was to reach the Red Ark in the West Zone, where resources should be more plentiful.
A week passed in the game world, and the current Peace Camp had begun to take proper shape as a settlement. The population had reached nearly three hundred people, making it one of the largest concentrations of players on the entire Island.
Buildings of various strange designs stood tall throughout the settlement, and it had become a true paradise for peaceful players who wanted to avoid constant combat. On the streets, players riding all sorts of dinosaurs moved back and forth constantly in their daily routines.
Some rode Parasaurs while others preferred Morellatops or Megaloceros, depending on their needs. However, most were herbivores chosen for their docile nature and safety. Only a small portion of players rode Dire Wolves, Dire Bears, Velociraptors, and other carnivores that required more skill to control.
The entire camp's area was already massive in scale. It had essentially become a small dinosaur city-state with its own economy and social structure.
But at this moment, Big Shrimp was experiencing a serious headache over the logistics.
Because as the population increased steadily, the resources on the outskirts were no longer sufficient to sustain everyone. Due to persistent food shortages, even the Dodo birds in the beach area had been hunted to extinction by desperate players looking for food.
This wasn't surprising since the spawn rates for the entire Island had been adjusted for the competition. Combined with the consumption of nearly three hundred people, the entire West Zone 2 jungle was now facing a serious resource crisis that threatened the camp's stability.
"What? Should we go explore the depths of the forest?"
"No way, no way. It's too dangerous out there. Why would we go in there!"
"Yeah, yeah! Aren't we doing just fine here? Besides, our camp has so many people now that no one dares to mess with us. Wouldn't it be better to just stay here peacefully for the hundred days?"
Watching the players' reluctant reactions, a flash of worry crossed Big Shrimp's face as he realized the problem.
It was clear that this group, gathered primarily from rookie players, was currently a disorganized mess without proper discipline. Even though his prestige was the highest among them, it was obvious that not everyone fully followed his commands when things got difficult.
It wasn't like they were at a job where orders were mandatory and where insubordination could get you fired.
Many people had only come here with the simple idea of banding together for safety, nothing more. Most people were deeply resistant to the idea of organizing into teams for exploration missions into dangerous territory.
After all, you only have one life in this competition. If you die, you lose your chance at the grand prize forever.
However, there were still a few dedicated players who supported him, which gave him some small comfort in this frustrating situation.
Based on his understanding of The Island's mechanics, the overall progress wasn't bad given the circumstances. It was just that many trivial administrative matters kept delaying his own personal development.
At this time, outside the camp entrance, Rowan and Boshita had arrived to investigate the famous settlement.
They didn't bring their main force along for this scouting trip. The two of them just rode Parasaurs and entered directly after answering a few routine questions from the guards stationed at the gate.
The current Peace Camp seemed to have spontaneously become a neutral safe zone among players across the entire server. Even players who weren't part of it would come here regularly to trade goods and gather information.
In a corner of the camp, a bustling trading area had been specifically designated by the management. A large number of players had set up makeshift stalls here to hawk their wares.
The sounds of shouting and aggressive peddling rose and fell constantly in a chaotic symphony.
"Selling a blue-quality hide armor! Only taking iron ingots, only iron ingots!"
"Selling a stack of Narcoberries, anyone interested?!"
"Selling iron ingots! Fresh iron ingots here!"
"Buying high-quality weapon blueprints, price negotiable!"
"Buying Narcotics, need a large quantity!"
"Selling a high-weight Megaloceros, anyone want it?!"
Currently, player levels were not yet high enough for endgame content, so most things for sale were common items that everyone could obtain. But occasionally good loot from air drops would appear and cause a bidding frenzy.
Boshita and Rowan looked around with genuine curiosity at the bustling marketplace. This was their first time visiting, and they had decided to finally come and take a look after hearing so much about it on the World Channel.
They found a stall that actually had some pearls displayed prominently on a cloth.
Pearls were a resource in high demand during the late game, and they only existed in large quantities in underwater locations that were difficult to access. The stall owner was a boy who didn't look very old, maybe sixteen or seventeen at most.
"How much are you selling these pearls for?"
Lake looked up at the two men wearing full chitin armor sets that gleamed impressively. The armor even had a faint blue glow of quality enhancement, marking them as powerful players at a glance.
"High-quality blueprints or equipment are both fine! I also have some black pearls here if you need them."
He spoke a bit shyly, then pulled out over a dozen black pearls from his inventory with careful movements.
Rowan's eyes lit up immediately with intense interest.
Black pearls were resources only used in the very late game for advanced crafting, and they were extremely rare even in normal circumstances. Lake had only managed to get these by sheer luck while hunting Trilobites in the shallow waters near the coast.
He had tamed an Ichthyosaurus specifically for underwater exploration and resource gathering. There were far too many people fighting over air drops on land, and it was easy for violent conflicts to arise over the valuable loot. So he had been wandering the shallow sea areas these past few days and gathering underwater resources safely away from the chaos.
"We'll take all of your pearls."
The two of them then took out some equipment and weapon blueprints they had obtained earlier, but didn't personally need from their backpacks. They sorted through the collection carefully while considering what would be a fair trade.
"A purple-quality sword plus a blue-quality crossbow blueprint. What do you think of that offer?"
Seeing that it was actually a purple-quality weapon being offered, Lake's eyes lit up instantly with shock.
"These are too valuable! Do you really want to trade them to me?"