Chapter 8：The Towering Banyan

Due to the swift current, the fast-moving redwood was powerful and heavy, making interception difficult.

In a flash, as the redwood trunk streamed past in front of them, Allen swiftly threw a lasso.

With both arms, he pulled hard on the rope, fighting against the immense force.

His aim was good, and so was his luck, for he managed to lasso the piece of redwood.

However, the massive impact force still pulled the sheepskin raft they were on backward.

Despite all members exerting their strength, they could not stop the raft's backward motion.

In a split second, Bernice grabbed the end of the rope and tied it to the raft.

Then, she threw the other end of the rope to Pete.

Pete caught the rope and quickly tied it to the wood of the sheepskin raft.

"On three, pull... one, two, three, pull!"

Amid the continuous and uniform shouts, the two sheepskin rafts creaked as if they were about to split apart under the tremendous force.

Nevertheless, everyone managed to hold on.

After rowing desperately, they finally slowed the redwood down to a stop.

Allen's arms were so sore he could barely lift them.

But the reward was thrilling!

A piece of redwood, effortless obtained, was a significant income despite its quality.

Additionally, under Allen's vigorous efforts, although they drifted downstream, they managed to diagonally reach the opposite bank of the river.

Bernice was the first to jump onto the muddy bank, with Allen following closely behind.

The other members also jumped down one after another.

After a quick survey to ensure no dangers were present, everyone worked together to haul the redwood from the river onto the bank.

"Boss, we're going to be rich!"

Pete was excessively excited, thinking about the huge price of the blood-red-colored redwood, he couldn't contain his emotions.

The rest of the members, too fatigued to care, stared at the valuable piece of redwood.

Even Bernice's eyes sparkled.

Redwood is hard to grow, mostly because of its slow growth and the generally average color of most.

This piece of redwood, though not very thick but of a superior color, was indeed a windfall.

"Ha ha, this is just the beginning, don't let your guard down. Look over there,"

Following the direction Allen pointed, the surface of the water in the distance seemed to boil.

The splashing water mixed with blood, innards, and minced meat, roiling on the surface.

A group of crocodiles was dismembering the man shot dead by Bernice.

Allen looked sorrowfully at the poor fellow: "See? That's what happens to careless poachers."

Jolted back to the reality of seeing the man they had shot killed and being torn apart by crocodiles, a sense of fear crept into everyone.

The act of killing and being killed was not uncommon and not particularly frightening in itself.

However, the primal fear embedded in human genes of being devoured by wild animals was harder to overcome.

Fortunately, even the least capable among them had killed some animals before, including Lame together.

No one was struck by cowardice vomiting in fear and disgust.

After warning the group, Allen had Bernice and the others disassemble the sheepskin rafts and reorganize the supplies.

Meanwhile, Allen and Pete, carrying the over two meter long redwood, ventured deeper into the rainforest.

Such apparent concealment behavior was unquestionable.

The team had just been established, and Allen's word was law, unable to fully trust those not close to him.

However, Bernice had performed well and earned Allen's initial trust, allowing her to operate out of his sight.

Moreover, as the smuggling group's second fighting force, she also took on the responsibility of partially protecting the members.

When Allen and Pete returned, Bernice had already led the fisherman and the other three, ready to go.

...

The journey onward was mostly smooth.

Apart from the constant need to be on guard against the predators that could appear from thin air in the rainforest, the journey of several kilometers went without incident.

But by then, it was already getting dark.

After an entire day of river crossing and travel, they had only progressed by fourteen kilometers.

Allen was satisfied with this pace!

After all, it wasn't a smooth road here.

With dense vegetation, rampant wild beasts, and poisonous insects everywhere, advancing fourteen kilometers in a day through the complex terrain of the Baken rainforest was already an achievement.

At this rate, in about five days, they could almost cross the estuary rainforest under little O'Brien's control and enter the tribal area of the rainforest.

Allen had no intention of traversing the estuary forest area but aimed to enter the central region of the rainforest.

There, he had once marked an almost fully grown redwood.

If all went well, they would reach their destination before sunset tomorrow.

Tonight, they could only make do and spend the night in the rainforest.

Due to the hasty entry into the rainforest, the preparations were slightly lacking.

The three River Wolves were hastily dealt with by not involving Allen; Pete directly sold them in the black market.

Exchanging them for tools and supplies for this operation.

Therefore, no high-quality food was prepared.

The main food was bananas, which are ubiquitous in the rainforest and the primary food for the commoners and slaves of the Sequoia Kingdom.

Steamed, boiled, fried, or pan-fried, there were many ways to prepare them.

Allen had long accustomed himself to this affordable and nutritious food, whereas bread and eggs were staples for the nobility.

As for the side dish, only the hard bat meat jerky, as tough as a rock, was available.

A great workout for the jaw muscles.

The obese woman in the black market claimed it was fruit bat meat, but who knew if it was a rodent's corpse.

Allen suspected it was likely a common rat, given the similar taste.

After gulping down the meal, Allen had Pete bring the fisherman and carpenter to eat something.

"Hey, Pete, you foolish water monkey, that fat sow duped you; it's rat meat!"

As Allen spoke, he, along with Bernice who had finished eating, took turns with Pete and the others, climbing a huge banyan tree for patrol and guard duty.

This was the hiding spot Allen had chosen.

A massive banyan tree, over fifty years old.

Four men could barely embrace its thickness, and its height was immeasurable.

The tree's sprawling aerial roots, many of which had already dug into the soil, offered some safety in the predator and insect-ridden rainforest.

Living amidst the dense canopy at least provided refuge from the dangers on the ground.

Moreover, the vast canopy served as an excellent hiding spot.

Since it was only a temporary shelter, the accommodations were quite rudimentary.

Pete, along with the mason and blacksmith, had finished reinforcing the framework of a few shelters they had constructed.

...

Allen was a man of greed, lust, ruthlessness, but also of rationality and attentiveness.

Wherever he went, his eyes were open for anything beneficial.

Even the slightest discount on paper would not escape his notice.

While Bernice led the team in fortifying the shelter, Allen, alone, seemed to be searching for something unintentionally.

Before choosing this tree for their shelter, he had felt instinctively that there was something special about it.

Indeed, Allen's eyelid twitched, though his expression didn't change, his keen gaze caught something. It was a frayed piece of cloth, rotted to its core and overgrown with moss, deeply wedged between two gigantic tree forks. Had it not been for Allen's innate intuition, this object would have gone unnoticed.

Allen had immense trust in his intuition.

In his previous life, whether smuggling or arranging meetings in hotels, such intuition had an eighty percent success rate.

The moment he attempted to retrieve the frayed cloth, Allen was struck by a revelation!

He sharply surmised an astonishing fact!

The main trunk of the banyan tree beneath his feet might be hollow!

...