The group still divided into three teams: Yao and Panda in one, Zhou Niannian and Dai Xiaomei in another, and Jiang Fan on his own.
The three teams set off separately to find a way out.
Jiang Fan's first action was to climb a large tree and survey the surroundings.
Curiously, every time Jiang Fan climbed a tree, he immediately found a taller one nearby.
He wasn't like Zhou Niannian; he immediately leaped onto the taller tree beside him.
After jumping across countless trees, Jiang Fan found himself at the highest point of the forest.
Looking down, he saw nothing but dense, lush trees.
A strange blue force field surrounded the forest's perimeter, making it impossible to see the outside.
Apart from that, there was only one path, which was densely packed with volcanoes spewing black smoke.
The blue force field didn't seem traversable, but Jiang Fan decided to try it.
He leaped rapidly from the trees and soon reached the blue force field.
The force field throbbed continuously, as if warning Jiang Fan that this place was extremely dangerous and he should turn back.
Jiang Fan took a deep breath and threw a stone at the blue force field.
With a sizzle, the stone turned to ashes upon contact, leaving no trace behind.
Jiang Fan's face changed drastically; he knew this was an insurmountable barrier.
The viewers in the live stream also exclaimed.
"My goodness, what is this strange thing?"
"If you told me this wasn't the territory of a higher civilization, I wouldn't believe you."
"What do we do now? It seems there's no way out."
"There is a way, only that path full of volcanoes..."
"This is like the fellowship from Lord of the Rings, are we heading into the volcanoes?"
"Let's hope they have the same luck as the fellowship; they all passed through without injury."
Jiang Fan sighed and retreated the way he came.
After returning to the camp and waiting for a while, the other two teams arrived.
Yao and Panda also reached the forest edge and encountered the same situation as Jiang Fan.
Panda's palm was slightly burned, clearly having touched the blue force field out of carelessness.
Zhou Niannian and Dai Xiaomei, not even reaching the forest edge, retreated fearing they would get lost.
"It seems we only have one path, and that is through the volcanic area."
Jiang Fan drew this conclusion.
Upon hearing Jiang Fan's words, everyone's mood became a little heavy.
They knew that the volcanic area was environmentally harsher than the path they had taken.
The scorching volcanoes made the ground as hot as a branding iron.
Even if one could tolerate the heat, it was impossible to stay near the volcanoes for long.
Because during eruptions, volcanoes spew large amounts of sulfur, forming acid rain.
These substances are poisonous and have severe effects on the human body.
In the neighboring country of Japan, hot spring enthusiasts search for wild hot springs in the wilderness every year, considering it a hobby.
However, they don't realize that many wild hot springs are located near volcanoes, releasing small amounts of hydrogen sulfide.
Prolonged exposure can lead to illness or death, which is the terror of volcanic regions.
"Let's get to work. We are now the Fellowship of the Ring. The Fellowship passed safely, and so will we."
Jiang Fan boosted everyone's morale.
Zhou Niannian smiled upon hearing this. The Fellowship of the Ring consisted of four hobbits, which was somewhat similar to their current situation.
"We four hobbits will definitely return alive!"
Zhou Niannian joked.
Hearing that there were only four hobbits, Panda became anxious and squealed, pointing at himself.
This meant he also belonged to the team and wanted to return alive.
Zhou Niannian thought for a moment and told Panda.
"Besides the four hobbits, the Fellowship also had a creature named Gollum, and that's you."
Panda's face lit up with joy, realizing he was the team's divine beast.
Jiang Fan glanced at Panda.
"That Gollum died later, falling into the volcano..."
Panda's expression instantly froze.
After teasing Panda, Jiang Fan stopped joking and instructed everyone to hurry and divide their tasks.
Zhou Niannian and Dai Xiaomei went to the water source Jiang Fan found to fill all the bamboo tubes.
Yao was responsible for hunting pigs and rabbits to prepare enough food.
Panda was tasked with chopping trees and grass, which would be useful later.
As for the honey in the bamboo tubes, they had to reluctantly store it here for now.
Panda, seeing the honey, cried out in craving and suggested they could take it.
Jiang Fan hit Panda on the forehead. "All containers must be filled with water now. Is medicine more important than your life?"
Jiang Fan himself went to collect fruits; only he had the ability to climb such tall trees.
Soon, everyone returned with their collected items.
"We will spend the night here. Crossing the volcanic area at night is too dangerous."
Jiang Fan said briefly, then asked everyone to build a bonfire and roast the captured pigs and rabbits.
The roasted pigs and rabbits this time were not for immediate consumption; they would all be made into jerky for future needs.
Jiang Fan generously gave the remaining bones to Panda, who was overjoyed.
After setting everything up, Jiang Fan told everyone to sleep.
Zhou Niannian was restless and couldn't sleep. Dai Xiaomei beside her snored loudly.
In the middle of the night, unable to sleep, Zhou Niannian went out for some air and suddenly found Jiang Fan busy outside the tent.
He had a lot of grass and chopped trees beside him.
"Why aren't you sleeping so late?"
Zhou Niannian asked Jiang Fan curiously.
Jiang Fan simply replied, "Mm."
"I asked, what exactly did you see when you were at the top of the tree?"
Zhou Niannian suddenly asked Jiang Fan.
Her intuition told her that Jiang Fan was hiding something.
"Didn't I tell you all? There was only one path around, and that path was full of terrifying volcanoes."
Jiang Fan said calmly while sharpening a wooden stick with his knife.
"No, you're definitely hiding something."
Zhou Niannian said calmly. For some reason, she could guess Jiang Fan's thoughts.
Jiang Fan sighed and looked at Zhou Niannian with a clear gaze.
"You really want to know."
Zhou Niannian puffed out her chest.
"Tell me! I can handle it."
"It was all volcanoes! Standing on the hundred-meter tree, as far as my eyes could see, there were only volcanoes. I couldn't see anything else."
Jiang Fan told Zhou Niannian everything he knew.
Zhou Niannian fell silent, calculating how long a path must be if it couldn't be seen from a hundred-meter-high tree.
Fortunately, she wasn't a scholar; if she had calculated it, she would have been even more despairing.
"Heaven always leaves a way out. We will definitely find a way out."
Jiang Fan's eyes were exceptionally firm, giving Zhou Niannian great confidence.
"I'm not afraid anyway, since you'll be accompanying me in death."
As soon as she said it, Zhou Niannian's face flushed crimson, and she fled back to the tent as if escaping.
Only Jiang Fan was left muttering to himself.
"This troublemaker, wanting to drag me down even in death."