This wasn’t right.

After such a massive accident, not a single rescue team had appeared in the vicinity — this was completely wrong!

Du Lai watched helplessly as the sun gradually descended toward the west, yet the sea remained devoid of any ship, and the sky held not a single plane. His heart, which had been calm, began to tighten again.

If it grew dark, being found by a rescue team would become even less likely!

Would he have to spend the night out in the wilderness?

Perhaps he should pin his hopes on there being indigenous inhabitants on this island.

But that possibility was slim.

Du Lai had spent six or seven years on cruise ships, traveling this route countless times — he knew every island along the way. Yet this island he was on now was clearly off the established route, and it was quite possibly an uninhabited island!

Du Lai’s heart burned with anxiety.

He couldn’t bear to imagine being stranded on a deserted island!

How could this happen?

Why weren’t the rescue teams here yet?

Du Lai felt like he was going mad. He forced himself to calm down, thought it through carefully, and arrived at two conclusions——

First: the rescue teams might not be appearing because no one knew about the accident at all!

Suppose the disaster struck suddenly and the entire ship sank to the bottom before a single survivor could send out a distress call to the outside world. Even if someone sensed something was wrong, without knowing the exact location of the accident they would have no way to accurately pinpoint a rescue area. And the young miss’s family — no matter how powerful — would have absolutely no way to find a ship in the vast ocean.

Second: rescue teams were underway, but they hadn’t found them yet because the waves had carried them beyond the rescue perimeter. Unless the rescue teams expanded their search area, they would be nearly impossible to locate.

The first conclusion was despairing; the second still held some hope.

The sky was gradually darkening, and the sea breeze was growing colder.

Du Lai felt he couldn’t just sit and wait for doom.

At the very least, he needed to find a sheltered spot before nightfall.

The moment he stood up, the young miss beside him immediately woke, asking groggily: “What is it? Did a plane come?”

Du Lai replied: “No — the sun is almost down, and the wind is picking up.”

The young miss asked again: “If it’s not a plane, why are you leaving? Don’t you dare go — you can’t leave me alone here.”

Du Lai’s heart was truly anxious.

He genuinely had no time to spare for her emotions.

But for the sake of the ten million, he still did his best to keep his tone gentle and patient:

“Young Miss, it’s almost dark. I’m going to look nearby for somewhere to shelter from the wind. Otherwise, sleeping in a place like this overnight, you’ll fall ill.”

Without water and food to begin with, falling ill on top of that would truly leave only death as an option.

The young miss furrowed her brow, looking thoroughly unwilling. After hesitating for a long time, she finally relented:

“Fine then — but you have to come back quickly! Don’t go too far! Or you know what will happen!”

Even in circumstances like these, she was still as domineering as ever.

Du Lai was utterly contemptuous of her in his heart.

What consequences could there be? Even if he killed her right now, no third person would ever know. And yet she still had the nerve to be high and mighty here — he didn’t know whether to call her foolish or simply too naive.

Du Lai’s outward manner remained respectful and deferential: “Of course, Young Miss. Please wait just a moment — I’ll be back very soon.”

With those words said, he turned and walked away.

He paid no further mind to the young miss behind him.

……

Du Lai walked a stretch along the shoreline.

The further he walked, the more his heart sank.

Such a terrifying tornado, such a massive accident — and yet the shore had washed up nothing but him and her. Not even a single fragment of wreckage.

Did this mean he was very far from where the actual accident occurred?

If that were truly the case, a rescue team might never find him in a lifetime.