The unknown fragrance of flowers, the freshness of the trees, and the fishy smell emitted by some decaying leaves all mingled together, forming the unique scent of the great forest.

Breathing in this scent, listening to the countless sounds of animals, in the midst of dying, William Carter actually experienced an unprecedented tranquility. This tranquility even surpassed the state he used to reach when meditating.

Life is so beautiful, yet I have to say goodbye to you, William Carter sighed softly.

Knowing that he didn’t have much time left, William Carter took one last look around. The ancient trees towered overhead. Not far away, there was a tree with a diameter of two or three meters—wait, were his eyes deceiving him? Was that an agarwood tree?

On the way here, let alone agarwood, even the price of top-quality trees that produce agarwood had been driven up to over ten thousand per gram—an agarwood tree?

If he could just drag a branch back, how much would that be worth!

William Carter was practically drooling.

But, what a pity!

With the last trace of attachment to life, William Carter closed his eyes, quietly awaiting death. But just as he closed his eyes, among the various sounds swirling around his ears, he seemed to hear a rather familiar one.

That was... the sound of someone walking?

In this desolate, uninhabited place, could someone really be passing by at this moment?

In an instant, wild joy surged in his heart. William Carter forcibly suppressed his excitement, struggled to focus his mind, and listened quietly. Yes, it really was the sound of footsteps! It seemed to be only forty or fifty meters away.

But, the footsteps seemed to be moving away?

"Help!" Gathering all the remaining strength in his body, using the language of the body’s original owner in his mind, William Carter screamed out the only and final three words with all his might.

Then, the endless pain surging from the wound in his chest caused him to completely lose consciousness.

"Captain, it seems like someone is calling for help in the distance?"

In the forest, among a team of about a dozen people, a man with short, spiky hair suddenly spoke.

"Arthur Carter, you must have heard wrong. How could anyone be calling for help here?" said another man dressed in full armor.

"Which direction?" The man at the front stopped in his tracks and turned around, and the whole team stopped with him.

"Over here." The one called Arthur Carter stretched out his left hand and pointed to his side.

"Everyone, let’s go take a look."

The team immediately changed direction.

In just a moment, the group had already arrived at the spot where William Carter was lying.

"Injured by an iron-winged bird, still breathing, but barely." One person in the team glanced at William Carter and spoke.

"Is there any hope of saving him?" the captain asked.

"Hard to say." The person shook his head.

"This little guy seems to be a magic apprentice." A guy as skinny as a bamboo pole said.

"Alright, let’s carry him back and see if he’s lucky enough to survive." The captain thought for a moment and made a decision.

Several people got to work, chopping branches and leaves. In just two or three minutes, a simple stretcher was ready. "Really gutsy for someone so small, daring to come this deep alone."

On the way back, one of them shook his head.

Chapter 2 The Food Here Is Terrible

When he regained consciousness again, William Carter felt endless joy in his heart.

Being able to wake up meant he had been saved!

The wound still throbbed with pain, but it had been bandaged, and his body seemed to have received some treatment. That feeling of weakness, as if he were about to die, was completely gone.

William Carter slowly looked around.

He was now lying on a wooden bed, the bedding on it so stiff it was almost unbearable. Not far from the head of the bed, on a small wooden table slightly taller than the bed, an oil lamp flickered with a tiny flame. William Carter, used to bright lights, was a bit unaccustomed to such dim lighting.

The bed was a very simple wooden one, poorly made.

The mattress on the bed was stuffed with who-knows-what—not cotton, for sure.

The fabric on the mattress was very rough, almost like the legendary burlap.

The oil lamp needed no further comment.

The house had earthen walls and a wooden plank roof.

Even more outrageous, this little house was so simple it didn’t even have a door.

"Could it be that I’ve traveled back to primitive society?" William Carter thought to himself.

Actually, it didn’t really matter where he had ended up. Someone who had died wouldn’t care too much—as long as he was alive, everything was fine. Of course, if he didn’t have to compete for food with things like tyrannosauruses, that would be even better!

No one had entered this room the whole time.

Under the dim oil lamp, William Carter lay quietly, spending his first night in this world. But he didn’t feel lonely—the consciousness of the body’s original owner made him feel that this world seemed fun, with lots of interesting things. Then, as drowsiness washed over him, he fell asleep again.

When William Carter woke up again and opened his eyes, he saw another pair of eyes.

These eyes were so close that William Carter was startled.

"Ha, this big brother is awake!" The little girl crouching by the bed, peering at William Carter, exclaimed joyfully, then turned and ran out.

A moment later, the same little girl ran back in, leading a few other children, followed by several adults.