Chapter 9：The Corpse and the Encounter

After a moment of contemplation, Allen decided to call everyone together to explore.

Firstly, they were unfamiliar with the terrain, and a hollow banyan tree, in this world where mysticism existed, might harbor unknown dangers.

Secondly, exploring alone could attract undue attention and possibly incite division due to the enticement of riches, which would not bode well for the team's unity.

Therefore, after deliberation, Allen resolved to enlist his teammates to open up the tree cavity together to see what lay within.

"Hey, Pete! All of you, come here."

At Allen's shout, everyone immediately turned their attention to him, perched in the tree branches.

Pete wasted no time, grabbing his hunting knife and axe and turning to the three members eating their meal: "Let's go!"

Once the team members below and in the tree had gathered, Allen glanced at them and instructed several male members:

"Let's get to work, split the trunk open!"

Following Allen's command, everyone began to swing their axes, taking turns striking the marked area on the tree trunk.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

The sounds of axes colliding with the trunk filled the air as the chopped bark and wood chips flew in all directions.

As they quickened their chopping, the hollow sound from inside the trunk grew stronger.

Allen's greed intensified: "There must be something hidden here!"

He had seen among the flying wood chips certain decayed fabric-like materials.

Allen was certain these were not natural occurrences.

As the hollow sounds from the tree trunk grew emptier, Allen furrowed his brow and called a halt to the chopping.

He took Pete's axe and gently tapped on the scarred tree trunk.

"Thud, thud, thud."

It was confirmed they had reached the limit. Allen carefully observed and concluded that here was originally an open air vertical tree hole.

In time, as the tree grew, the opening became concealed under the slow squeeze of two enormous branches.

Wedged in this crevice was a brown woven item that had fused with the tree itself.

Judging by the material, it was unmistakably common hessian.

Allen instructed everyone to retreat to the branches while he himself took the axe and swung hard, slamming its back into the tree trunk.

Crack!

A crisp sound echoed as the axe sunk into the trunk.

It was hollow below!

Subsequently, Allen continued to cut around the hole, and a few minutes later, a round hollow appeared.

Standing up to stretch his limbs, Allen cast a brief glance at Pete.

Then, lighting a strip of cloth, he threw it into the dark tree hollow, and after a moment, having ruled out danger, he prepared to enter and explore.

In the time it took Allen to glance at Pete, Pete had already understood his intent.

Immediately, he called out: "Boss, it's pitch black down there. Don't go, let me take the lead!"

The wiry Pete volunteered himself, surprising his fellow fishermen.

It was indeed risky to enter an unknown dark hole in a rainforest teeming with poisonous insects.

Even though no venomous insects seemed to react to the light flaming inside.

Allen nodded in agreement, this was the opportunity Pete was prepared for.

To assert some authority as his real confidant, Pete needed to earn his merit.

With Allen's nod, Pete tied a rope around his waist and slowly crawled into the tree hole.

Bernice remained vigilant with her bow and arrow, already seeing through Allen's intentions but choosing not to voice them.

For her, once she had decided to follow Allen, her position was clear.

Firstly, she was a pretty woman with a delicate figure. Secondly, she was the second strongest fighter in the team after Allen.

Therein laid her irreplaceability.

As Pete entered the pitch-black hole, the tension among the crew rose.

Scratching sounds resounded before Pete's voice echoed from the hole below.

"Boss, there's a corpse down here!"

The torch immediately moved closer to the hole, where Pete easily raised the dried-up corpse.

With a hessian bag as protection, Allen slowly pulled the dried body up, followed by Pete crawling out.

The decomposing corpse was incomplete, but it was well-preserved thanks to the sealed hole.

The bones were unremarkable, indistinct.

"Boss, it's silver coins!" Pete exclaimed excitedly as they searched.

Luck favored them; three silver coins were found among the corpse's belonging.

Three silver coins, equating to three hundred copper coins, had taken Allen years to accumulate in the past.

It was unlikely to be all there was. Allen tied the rope around himself and personally entered the hole to search.

With the aid of a homemade fire-starter, Allen searched thoroughly.

Finally, a soft touch sent a jolt through his hand.

He extracted the object from the decaying detritus—a time-worn, moldy parchment revealed itself!

In an instant, Allen knew this was the greatest find of the trip!

Climbing out of the hole, Allen reported the discovery to his team.

Except for Bernice, the uninformed members did not see the value or profit in a parchment.

Allen shared the three silver coins found with the corpse among the team, while he kept the parchment.

Pete, for being the first to venture into the hole, received one coin, and the remaining two were shared among the other five members.

While Bernice was curious about what the parchment was, she could not read and thus felt limited.

But Allen reassured everyone that should the parchment yield any benefits, he would certainly not forget them.

That evening, Allen studied the parchment alone in the hut.

Having served as the head of the forest rangers and having studied some knowledge while recuperating, Allen could comprehend the content of the parchment.

The torches, made of animal fat and bark, emitted a foul odor. Under their light, Allen cleaned the parchment with excitement and anticipation.

The parchment comprised only twenty sheets, forty pages of content, which Allen scrutinized many times over.

The parchment filled with arcane writings presented no obstacles in comprehension for Allen.

It was a treasured book on the basics of mysticism, "Dark Rituals"!

Allen was more than ecstatic!

Nobles dominated this world, immune to any oppression, never shaking their rule because they monopolized mysticism!

They monopolize high-end combat power, the kind that is enough to change the course of battles!

Beast Tamer, Mage, Beast-Warrior, these three mysterious professions!

This is extraordinary power!

Obtain this power, enhance it step by step, and then become a god!

With this power, ordinary people will seem as weak as ants to you!

The parchment scroll "Dark Ritual" is the introductory book for the niche profession among mages—the Botanist Mage.

With it, Allen had stepped onto the threshold of mysticism and truly entered the core of the world!