Substitute Alpha Gets Confessed to by Her Ex’s Aunt on a Survival Variety Show – Chapter 114
by Little PandaEarthquake Warning
On a stretch of open grassland far from the river, Liu Yinxi watched her surroundings with alert eyes.
They had discovered this relatively open area a few days ago while tracking prey. Liu Yinxi had made a mental note of it then, earmarking it as a safe haven in the event of a natural disaster. Whenever she established a shelter or a campsite, she always ensured there was a nearby refuge and mapped out an escape route in advance.
Nan Huaixu bent over, resting her hands on her knees to catch her breath. “What on earth is going on?”
Liu Yinxi’s expression was grave.
Recalling what Liu Yinxi had said earlier, Nan Huaixu’s face paled. “Elephants can hear infrasound… Then—”
Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep!!!
The bracelets on both their wrists suddenly erupted with sharp, piercing alarms. The screens flashed a vivid red, displaying a disaster warning and a countdown.
—Jinzhou Island Emergency Department Earthquake Warning:
At 5:19:26 AM on June 14, a magnitude 4.7 earthquake occurred in the sea west of Migna, with a focal depth of 32 kilometers.
Following last week’s heavy rainfall, water levels have risen across multiple regions. Mountain residents should remain alert to secondary disasters such as flooding, landslides, and mudslides.
Below is a guide for emergency shelter in the wild. Please first evacuate to an open area far from bodies of water and hillsides.
[Attachment: Shelter Guide]—(Click to read)
—85 seconds until the first seismic wave arrives!
…84 seconds!
…83 seconds!
…
Nan Huaixu’s heart hammered against her ribs as she stared at the ticking red numbers. The warning gave them only 85 seconds—less than two minutes. Most of the contestants had camped near water sources, and open spaces in the rainforest were scarce. With only 85 seconds, how could anyone find a suitable place to take refuge in time?
Fortunately, Liu Yinxi had reacted quickly. She had steered them clear of the elephant herd, anticipated the disaster based on the animals’ erratic behavior, and led her to safety well ahead of time.
This was the first time Nan Huaixu had ever experienced an earthquake. Her only impressions of such natural disasters came from news broadcasts and disaster films. Out here in the raw wilderness, she felt a profound surge of terror and helplessness.
Liu Yinxi gently stroked Nan Huaixu’s back, her voice low and soothing. “Don’t be afraid. The epicenter is out at sea. I checked the coordinates; it’s quite far from our competition area, so the destructive force won’t be too severe. What we need to watch out for are secondary hazards like flash floods and landslides. This open ground is very safe. Let’s wait out the earthquake here and see how things look afterward.”
Nan Huaixu looked at her helplessly, her body leaning toward the warmth of the other woman’s palm. “Are you sure we’ll be alright?”
Liu Yinxi reassured her, “Yes. I’m with you. I swear on my life that I’ll keep you safe. And if you don’t believe me, our escape direction was the same as the elephant herd’s. Elephants can hear seismic waves and migrate to safety—you should at least believe them, right?”
Nan Huaixu’s eyes reflected only Liu Yinxi’s face. The sheer determination and calm in the Alpha’s gaze instantly quieted the rising panic in her heart.
Nan Huaixu nodded, reaching out to grasp Liu Yinxi’s hand.
—10 seconds until the first seismic wave arrives!
9
8
…
Her hand was very cold, but Liu Yinxi’s hand was warm.
Just as her fingertips brushed that warm palm, their bracelets issued a shrill alarm. The ground beneath their feet began to shudder. Nan Huaixu felt a sudden wave of dizziness, and her ears rang.
Liu Yinxi squeezed Nan Huaixu’s hand and pulled her close, gently resting her other hand on the crown of her head. “Don’t be afraid. It’s fine. It’ll pass in a moment.”
Nan Huaixu nodded and leaned into Liu Yinxi’s embrace, her right hand clasped in the Alpha’s, while her left arm wrapped tightly around her waist.
The frequency of seismic waves could affect internal organs, causing physical discomfort. Liu Yinxi murmured softly to Nan Huaixu, “If your ears are ringing, try swallowing a few times. Massaging the base of your ears gently should help.”
“Mm.”
The second wave of seismic vibrations arrived shortly after. Liu Yinxi shielded Nan Huaixu against her chest, covering her ears.
A few minutes later, everything returned to normal, and the discomfort Nan Huaixu felt gradually faded.
Just as Liu Yinxi had said, since the epicenter was far from the competition area, there was no other damage besides the slight shaking of the ground and the minor physical discomfort caused by the seismic waves.
Liu Yinxi released her hands from Nan Huaixu’s ears. “Are you feeling any better?”
Nan Huaixu looked up, the fear in her eyes entirely gone. “It wasn’t as terrifying as I imagined.”
“When you aren’t at the epicenter and your surroundings are secure, it’s much less frightening. See? I didn’t lie to you.”
“I see.”
Nan Huaixu smiled, pressing her cheek back against Liu Yinxi’s chest. “But I’m still a little scared, and my head is spinning. Can I just stay like this for a bit longer to recover?”
Liu Yinxi gently patted her back. “Okay. Let’s stay here for a while and see if the bracelets receive any updates.”
Listening to the rhythmic beat of the Alpha’s heart, Nan Huaixu asked, “There’ll probably be aftershocks, right? Should we camp out here for the next few days?”
“Let’s stay here first. Safety comes first.”
“Alright.”
Seeing that Nan Huaixu was resting against her, Liu Yinxi stood still and waited for her to recover.
Ten minutes later, a notification arrived on their bracelets, confirming that all contestants were safe.
There had been minor rockslides along the middle reaches of the Toa River. Contestants were advised to avoid areas dense with waterways for the time being and to camp in flat, open spaces.
The earthquake had caused minimal impact on the competition zone, and the contest would proceed as scheduled.
【Minimal impact? Yunshao’s newly built shelter collapsed again! And they call that a minimal impact.】
【… (baffled)】
【Ah, well, maybe her shelter wasn’t secured properly in the first place?】
【The earthquake didn’t shake much on the livestream. It shouldn’t be enough to collapse her shelter, right? (laugh-cry)】
【Earthquake: I’m not taking the blame for this.】
【Huang-jie is incredible. She ran so fast even with Yuyu on her back!】
【Yuyu is the real legend. How could she sleep so soundly even with all that bouncing on Huang-jie’s back?】
【What did Yu Yan do last night to end up this exhausted?】
【Is their shelter okay?】
【Nope! Huang-jie’s shelter is all tied up with vine ropes, so it’s extremely sturdy.】
【In that case, Xixi is the unluckiest of them all (sigh)】
【As long as everyone is safe.】
【All in all, they were lucky. Even though the earthquake didn’t cause severe damage, escaping the elephant herd and evading the tremors in time was still the right move.】
【Why was there an earthquake anyway?】
【We should count ourselves lucky there wasn’t a volcanic eruption.】
【What? There are volcanoes here?】
【Yes, Jinzhou Island has a massive dormant volcano. Many surrounding archipelagos have volcanoes, and some small volcanoes even erupted just last year.】
【Oh my goodness, that’s terrifying!】
【Jinzhou Island is part of the volcanic island arc formed by the subduction of the Indian Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate, so it has volcanoes, and earthquakes are very frequent. This was explained in the pre-competition briefing.】
【Spill it—are you an alternate account for one of the production team’s planners? Show yourself so we can beat you up!】
【The contestants are all safe and physically unharmed, but they were frightened out of their wits. That’s emotional damage!】
【Is the production team really not going to send any consolatory supplies? So stingy (disdain)】
【But they did! Didn’t they send over a shelter guide? (doge face)】
【This guide is truly a “guide.”】
【Manman is moving again? Moving back and forth constantly… when will this ever end? (chin in hand)】
【Moving is indeed a hassle, but safety is far more important. It’s only for a couple of days. Once the aftershocks settle and they find a new shelter, things will stabilize.】
【Mm-hmm! Let’s look forward. Go, Manman! Go, Xixi!】
【How long has it been already? Nan Huaixu is still hiding in Liu Yinxi’s arms (sweat)】
【Feeling scared is understandable, but she should still mind her public image. An omega ought to maintain proper distance from an alpha.】
【What’s wrong with a little hug? Are they eating your rice or something?】
【Our Manman just wants to hug Xixi! So what? So what? So what? Stay mad!】
【Wishing Xixi and Manman safety and peace! Shower us Huai-Liu fans with more sweet moments! ^o^】
It was just past eight in the morning.
Liu Yinxi set up camp on the spot.
This stretch of land was relatively clear, perhaps cleared in the past by forest rangers or local tribes for some reason. A few low shrubs dotted the clearing, with the dense forest starting only beyond its perimeter.
For now, the sunlight was still mild. Once the sun rose higher, however, the open grassland would become very hot.
Liu Yinxi walked through the bushes and chose a flat, shaded spot at the edge of the forest to build a shelter. She pulled out her treasure map to check their position; they were roughly northeast of Toa Waterfall. If they continued further east, they would get closer and closer to the headwaters of the Toa River, Jiganbu Lake.
Even though this was only a temporary campsite for emergency refuge, Liu Yinxi did not dare to be careless, especially with the memory of the torrential rain collapsing their previous shelter fresh in her mind. She built the shelter to be very sturdy. She tightly bound the joints of every wooden beam with vine ropes and secured the leafy roof with wooden pegs.
While this wide, flat clearing made it easy to evade the dangers of the earthquake, its distance from water sources and the cave where they stored their resources introduced significant inconvenience to their daily routine.
Liu Yinxi sighed. Life was what mattered most.
Moreover, this location offered Nan Huaixu peace of mind. As for the supplies, she would just have to make a few extra trips herself.
As long as Nan Huaixu could eat and sleep well, that was enough.
They spent most of the day gathering materials and building the shelter, leaving them with no time to return to the waterfall campsite to move the rest of their belongings. Fortunately, before they fled from the elephant herd, Liu Yinxi had packed the majority of their supplies into her backpack and the small airdrop box. Their clothes, food, and water bottles were all with them.
The setting sun resembled molten gold1, and a flock of birds flew across the sky, settling into the endless rainforest.
Nan Huaixu constructed a simple, fuel-efficient star campfire that concentrated heat. This style of campfire produced very little smoke, ensuring it would not trigger her rhinitis.
Liu Yinxi returned from fetching water by the river, carrying a fish cage in her hand.
Nan Huaixu was surprised. “You went to the spot where we set the fish cage? You walked that far?”
Liu Yinxi sat down opposite her, opening the fish cage and shaking it to tip out several small fish and river shrimp. “I checked the map. The river where we placed the cage lies right between our waterfall campsite and this clearing. Actually, the distance from here to the river bend is about the same as from the campsite.”
Nan Huaixu breathed a small sigh of relief. “That’s indeed good news.”
Liu Yinxi nodded, using her knife to clean the fish and shrimp. Since they were far from the water source now, they couldn’t wash their hands at will and had to conserve water. Therefore, she didn’t make fish soup and decided to roast them instead.
Once the sunlight faded entirely, the sky was swiftly claimed by a brilliant moon and a canopy of stars.
Nan Huaixu gazed up at the sky, eating her roasted fish while watching the stars. “Watching the stars here is so breathtaking!”
Liu Yinxi cleaned their mess tin to boil water, keeping her head lowered as she poured water in. “Yes, it’s more open here, so the view is better.”
“Liu Yinxi, it’s not the view.”
“Is that so?”
“The stars are different tonight.”
“Different?”
“Liu Yinxi, look. What is that?”
Liu Yinxi looked up. In the far-off night sky, near the horizon where the land met the ocean, a soft, hazy blue-white glow spread out. It mirrored the starlight and moonlight high above, dreamlike and ethereal.
The blue glow and starlight bathed Liu Yinxi’s face.
Feeling a slight weight on her arm, she lowered her gaze. Nan Huaixu quietly slipped her arm through hers.
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