Hello Again, Uncle Sam

The Ashen Forest is an endless forest, somewhat like the Amazon rainforest of my past life, with abundant forestry resources and countless strange and wonderful plants and animals.

Here stand towering, broad-leaved giant trees with trunks reaching a thousand meters high, truly magnificent canopies reaching the sky.

Strangely, the leaves of those giant trees were not green, but rather a grayish hue. Looking out over the forest, it was as if it were covered with a layer of burnt wood ash, creating a stark contrast between a deathly stillness and a vibrant life.

The monster knights did not seem to come from the same tribe; after entering the forest, they dispersed and disappeared into the forest.

Rein and his companions were led deep into the forest by the barbarian Wudo, heading towards the "Temple Tribe" in the Kolman Tribe's central courtyard.

The Snow Mastiff galloped swiftly through the primeval forest.

These originally towering magical beast mounts, compared to the giant trees, looked as tiny as ants.

Rein was also amazed, calling this forest a true miracle of nature.

The plants and animals are getting bigger and bigger.

The forest was filled with countless plants I had never seen before, groves of glowing mushrooms the size of houses, various ferns several meters tall, enormous flowers of all colors, and strange fruit trees laden with heavy fruit.

The sounds of monkeys, birds, and insects flapping their wings

The sound of raindrops dripping from the top leaves, layer by layer.

Sunlight streamed down from the upper layers of the dense forest, casting streaks of silver light.

The deer grazed leisurely in the meadow, while the Blue-tailed Hawk perched on a tree trunk to welcome the returning barbarian knight.

The forest was peaceful.

Upon entering the forest, Rein discovered a very strange phenomenon.

He felt his pores open up involuntarily, like the comfort of suddenly entering a fresh, oxygen-rich environment after inhaling countless coal-fired fumes in a steel city.

And there's something even stranger!

Rein discovered that the deeper he went into the forest, the more efficient he felt in absorbing Gene Source Power using the "Breath of Lightning," and his battle aura increased by at least several times compared to the outside world.

There's something wrong with the air here!

Rein became increasingly certain of his previous guess: the thicker the fog, the higher the efficiency of Transcendent cultivation!

But correspondingly, the stronger the toxin.

It was so strong that even through the gas mask, Rein felt a slight burning sensation in the air he inhaled, which made him feel uncomfortable.

The mist here is deeper than in the Plague Marsh, and has turned from gray to black, vaguely resembling a thin black veil drifting through the forest.

Rein had already discovered this problem.

The Kolman Tribe a population base that was countless times smaller than that of the two great empires of Oma City, but their rate of top-tier experts was frighteningly high.

The six elders and the "Great Shaman" comprise at least seven legendary-level experts. Compared to their tribe's total population of several hundred thousand, this is a terrifying proportion.

Hundreds of thousands—that's less than the population of a medium-sized territory in the human world! And the two great empires have hundreds or even thousands of such large and medium-sized territories.

However, so many masters have indeed emerged from this place.

Moreover, the physical strength of the Kolman Tribe warriors is generally stronger than that of their human counterparts in the Mechanical City!

It's not just the Kolman Tribe; the flora and fauna of the Ashen Forest are enormous. From a biological science perspective, the high probability of top-tier experts Rein from among the barbarians might be related to their physical constitution.

But it's more likely due to "environmental factors"!

Now that Rein could feel the thick fog in the forest, he immediately confirmed his idea.

But he was also curious about what caused the fog in this "Ashen Forest" to be so much denser than that in the wasteland outside, and what the black pigment in that fog was.

As a prisoner, Rein had no right to choose anything.

But since Wudo said she would save his life, he had nothing to panic about.

Rein was only worried about old man Tuster. He was already very weak, and after being tied up and tossed around in Monster Mountain for several days, he was now in a very low spirit.

This trip was a major ordeal for the old man.

Over the past two days, Wudo has also untied Rein, no longer binding him like a caterpillar. However, as a prisoner, his hands and feet are still symbolically bound.

Before long, they arrived at the courtyard of the Kolman Tribe, known as the "Temple Tribe," deep within the forest.

This is a vast valley with sheer cliffs on both sides. A large waterfall with abundant water cascades down from the sky, creating a misty atmosphere and faintly revealing the colorful light of a rainbow.

With no towering trees to block the view, the vista opens up dramatically.

In view were countless houses of all sizes, built of yellow mud, thatch, and stone, and thousands upon thousands of dark-skinned barbarians coming and going.

This is a very prosperous and large tribe, as bustling as a small county town.

Like a peaceful and tranquil paradise, there were stonemasonry workers, rope weavers, hunters making jerky after a hunt, and elderly women mending animal hides.

This is no different from ordinary human groups.

The dark-skinned, tall, and thin barbarian children were practicing archery and hand-to-hand combat. When they saw Wudo and his large group returning, they all came forward with smiles.

Laughter and cheers soon erupted in the tribe.

"The three elders have returned!"

"The invaders must have been utterly defeated."

Wow, they brought so many spoils!

"."

Like a victorious army returning to the city, Wudo and his companions received a warm welcome, and soon all the barbarians could be seen gathering around them on the street.

They accepted the spoils carried by the monsters, and cheered and celebrated with the returning warriors.

On the other hand,

The four prisoners, including Rein, stood out conspicuously.

Here, everyone looked at the "invaders" as if they were dead. Even the savage children who had been laughing so brightly just moments before turned around and looked at them with eyes full of deep hatred, like venomous snakes crawling across their bodies, sending chills down their spines.

The elders were going to report to the "Great Shaman" to discuss matters.

Wudo couldn't possibly keep Rein by her side all the time.

As for the treatment of the "prisoners," Rein also saw a row of wooden cages next to a small hill in the tribe, where several disheveled humans were already locked up.

It seems that Rein and his group weren't the only four to enjoy this treatment.

The four men, including Rein, were imprisoned.

Wudo then summoned a naked child who looked to be only four or five years old, but was already 1.5 meters tall.

She pointed to Rein in the cage and said, "Hey! Baldy, please take good care of this prisoner for me. He's important. Don't let you and your friends hurt him."

The naked child. "Huh? Sister Wudo, is this invader going to be sacrificed to the gods? But he looks so weak, he might not even be able to beat me."

"."

Rein rolled his eyes, feeling looked down upon by a little kid.

Wudo: "No, this is the person the 'Priest' wants to see. You mustn't harm him."

The little brat said, "Oh, I understand. Don't worry, Sister Wudo, I'll keep an eye on him and won't let Abu and the others hurt him."

"."

Another person has been arrested?

Sam felt extremely weak.

Oh well, we're all doomed anyway, so what difference does it make who they arrest?

I just want to sleep, and I hope I'll never wake up again.

But those despicable barbarians certainly won't let me die; they need the flesh and blood of higher humans to sacrifice to their worshipped evil god.

In a daze, he suddenly heard voices.

What a comforting Common Tongue! It sounds so much better than that damned barbarian language.

What is he saying?

Forget it, we're all going to die anyway, so what we say doesn't matter. That guy who was captured a few days ago was also very talkative, and as a result, the barbarians stuffed a lump of monster dung into his mouth.

I'm about to die, I don't want to taste the stench of Warcraft dung.

Wait, that's not right.

It sounds like someone is calling my name.

Am I hallucinating?

Sam opened his eyes weakly, as if it had exhausted all his strength.

"Uncle Sam, is that you?"

Rein never expected to run into an acquaintance in this Barbarian Tribe!

Next to the wooden cage where he was imprisoned, he saw a burly man with a scruffy beard. But he recognized him at a glance, both in his attire and his face – it was Uncle Sam, the one who always wore a humble smile and always said he was "mediocre in martial arts"!

Sam thought he was seeing things because he was hungry. Only when his vision blurred and his eyes met did he realize that the person in the next cage looked somewhat familiar.

He found it hard to believe and tentatively called out, "Doctor Rein, is that you? You... how did you get arrested too?"

However, he suddenly seemed to realize something, and the light in his eyes dimmed instantly. He muttered to himself, "That's not right. These barbarians shouldn't leave any survivors. I must be hallucinating."

At this moment, Rein exclaimed in surprise, "Uncle Sam, is it really you? How did you get arrested?"

"Ah?"

This time, Sam no longer doubted that he had misheard.

He looked at Rein with great surprise and said, "You, Doctor Rein, have reached the fifth level?"

"."

Rein didn't know why Sam would ask such a strange question.

Then, Sam shook his head again, clearly finding it impossible, and muttered to himself, "Impossible. If you're not a fifth-tier cultivator, why would those barbarians leave you alive? How could you have been captured?"

Then, he saw Bazel, who was wearing the [Mana-Sealing Lock], not far away. "Huh, is that [White Wolf] Bazel?"

"."

Rein felt that Uncle Sam was in a very weak mental state and was speaking incoherently.

A moment later, Uncle Sam was indeed certain that the young doctor he once knew had also been arrested.

And Rein understood.

After Uncle Sam recovered from his injuries, he immediately followed the marks left by Lady Canossa and the others and came back. He then encountered High Priest in the forest and was captured because he was outnumbered.

He wasn't killed because his rank was high enough.

Rein also learned that those treated like this in wooden cages were at least fifth-tier Transcendent. These were beings left behind by the Kolman Tribe for blood sacrifice to their gods.

That's why Uncle Sam was so surprised that a low-level Transcendent like Rein would be captured and brought here alive.

"Were Mrs. Canossa and Aunt Susan also arrested?"

"When I arrived, Susan was still alive. But now, she has been killed by these barbarians and sacrificed to the gods. But Master, I heard from Susan that she wasn't captured by the barbarians. They were scattered during the battle."

Hearing that the lady was alright for the time being, Rein felt a sense of relief for some reason.

At least that lady treated me fairly well, and I certainly didn't want to hear the news of her murder.

At this time,

Bazel, more concerned about his impending fate, interjected, "What does that Sam kid mean by 'sacrificing'?"

In the eyes of this werewolf who had lived for over two hundred years, Sam was naturally a "kid".

Sam didn't care about the nickname; he was going to die sooner or later anyway. He explained, "See that sinkhole over there? Drain the blood, then throw it in."

As he spoke, he looked at Bazel and sighed slightly. "A 'legend' indeed, it's a pity he died here."

Upon hearing this, both Bazel and Rein looked down the small slope simultaneously.

At the edge of the field of vision, through the trees, I saw a huge pit that looked like a "black hole," so black that it seemed as if space itself had been punctured.

It is approximately several kilometers in diameter and its depth is unfathomable.

Upon closer inspection, it wasn't that the pit was black, but rather that a very dense black mist was continuously emanating from it.

"Huh? The black mist is actually coming from here!"

Moreover, although the fog obstructed his view, Rein immediately determined that the black fog in this forest was coming from the sinkhole!

This place seems to be the source of the black fog in the forest!

Thanks to 'Liandie Oh' for 1,500 coins, 'Meng Jin Hui Mu', 'Duzhou' and 'Jiandie 12354' for 500 coins

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