Chapter 98: Chapter 97: Professional Privilege

He slept soundly until the next morning.

The new shelter’s light-blocking, wind-proofing, and insulation were so outstanding that when he woke up, he didn’t even realize it was already light outside.

Leaving the warm sleeping bag, he headed straight for the base of yesterday’s life-saving tree.

After a night of flash-freezing, the bodies of the four Yukon Wolves were completely frozen solid.

Fortunately, a good amount of wolf blood had drained from their wounds. The soil beneath where each wolf lay was stained a dark brownish-black.

He hauled them all back to the shelter, and just like that, his work for the day was set.

Skinning, gutting, and butchering the wolf carcasses into sections for easy use later on.

While he was at it, he also needed to properly process the leftover mutton and bear meat.

It was only after he had finished portioning out all the meat and was lying down to rest that he remembered he seemed to have forgotten something.

He pulled up the panel for a look.

His Happiness Points, which had been at only 6, had somehow risen to 10.

’It must have been last night when I shot the wolves and returned to the shelter. Yes, that was it.’

He had successfully escaped from the jaws of more than ten giant wolves—a true brush with death in every sense. The moment he reached the shelter, that unparalleled feeling of relief and gratitude would have definitely converted into Happiness Points.

He was probably too tense at the time to notice the system notification that popped up.

’10 points... should I spend them or not?’

He stared at the few remaining cheapest knowledge options. Fish, not needed. Birds, didn’t seem necessary either. Minerals... he didn’t know what use they’d be.

He didn’t need to fire bricks or anything. The only food-related ones were things like lime and alum, but those required the corresponding ingredients first.

If he didn’t even have the ingredients, what was the use of a pile of useless rocks?

Insect knowledge was comparatively better, but Alaska’s climate was severe. It wasn’t like a tropical rainforest teeming with insects, so he didn’t have to worry about bites or anything. The cost-performance ratio was too low.

’Forget it. I’ll save up. I’ll wait until I have 15 points to redeem a Basic Skill Mastery.’

Whether it was trapping, fishing, or even axe skills, any of them would provide a decisive advantage for his future survival.

As his time in survival grew longer and he had tasted every available food source, acquiring Happiness Points would only become more and more difficult.

He had to save his resources for where they mattered most!

He rested inside the cabin for three full days.

「Day 28, Morning.」

The familiar sound of a helicopter engine woke him from a sweet dream.

’Is it morning again already?’

He rubbed his eyes, which still felt heavy, yawned, and forced his weary body out of the warm sleeping bag.

At times like this, the best way to jump-start his system was to open the cabin door.

He had barely pulled the wooden door open a crack when a frigid, knife-like wind rushed in, striking his face with a stinging pain, as if he’d been whipped with a rattan cane.

Almost instantly, his vision cleared. He shivered unexpectedly and hurriedly shut the door again.

"Hiss..."

’It’s way too cold. It’s only early November. Back in Toronto, it wouldn’t feel this cold until at least December.’

Just as he got the indoor fire going, a knock came from outside.

"Come in."

As usual, Ariana was the first to enter. Her large, sapphire-blue eyes scanned him up and down, observing his complexion and condition.

Then came the series of routine medical checks.

"Lin," Robert said, walking over to him. "We have an update on that matter you brought up last time."

"Sounds like good news?"

"Ha, nothing gets past you. You’re supposed to be a chef, so how is it you have a better grasp of the audience’s psychology than we professionals do?"

’Is it possible that what you call "professional" was abandoned by the trend a long time ago?’

Lin Chen pursed his lips, not bothering to roast this old fogey to his face. It was better to let him save some face.

After all, he was the show’s host, which basically made him his boss. Whether or not he got what he wanted still depended on keeping him happy.

"According to the poll results, nearly 83% of viewers voted in favor of giving special items to the professional contestants, 10% voted against it, and 7% didn’t care, as long as the show is entertaining."

"After gathering information and holding internal discussions, we’ve decided to activate this privilege starting on Day 30. Today is Day 28, so we will see you again on Day 31."

"Today, we’ll inform all the contestants of this news and collect the requests from the four professional contestants. We’ll bring the items with us at our next meeting."

He paused here, as if organizing his thoughts.

"Now, let me explain the specific details of this privilege."

"First, we will grant each professional contestant a weekly ’Item Right.’ The item is limited to their own profession, and the specifics will be adjusted based on the importance and function of the requested item."

"For example, a carpenter might need finished tools, like more precise cutting instruments. A doctor would certainly need various medicines, and a farmer would need relevant items like feed or tools to help with domestication."

"If it’s a consumable like medicine, we will provide it directly, but in limited quantities so as not to affect the show’s balance."

"If it’s a tool, there will be a time limit on its use, also for the sake of balance."

"It’s the same for you, Lin. You have the right to choose one item per week."

"Before you make your decision, I want you to understand that we will not provide you with high-fat ingredients like butter or cream, nor can we give you cooking oil for frying. Otherwise, with just one small barrel, you could cruise through the entire winter."

"Of course," Lin Chen nodded without hesitation. That was what he had been thinking anyway; he had never even considered asking for high-fat ingredients.

"I’ll most likely redeem it for seasonings or spices, or maybe ingredients that can’t be found locally. But I have a question: can you even get Great Xia seasonings in Alaska?"

"You don’t need to worry about that. That’s why we came to see you first. Three days is enough time for us to air-freight supplies from Vancouver."

"That’s true. By air, Vancouver isn’t far from here at all."

"Now that we’ve covered the ’privilege,’ let’s talk about the ’trade.’"

Robert explained with a smile in his announcer’s voice, "Just as you said last time, even though we’re the production team, we can’t just hunt indiscriminately. A relatively rare ingredient like Black Bear meat is something few people besides Professional Hunters ever get to taste."

"And even if they do, it’s usually prepared in the simplest ways, like roasting or stewing. As for how a Chinese-style chef like you would prepare it... well, it’s not just us; the audience is probably very curious too."

"What about wolf meat? Ever eaten it?"

"...No."

Robert turned his head to look at Daniel, who nodded silently. "I’ve had it. The meat is quite tough and has very little fat. Once it’s roasted, it’s almost impossible to chew. It’s better for boiling."