It's a Dead Man.

"There's no other way!"

Lu Zhe looked at the human figure hidden in the tree above and said solemnly, "What if he has some very important supplies? Also, I won't be able to sleep well without figuring out what on earth is going on here!"

Tang Xiaoguo said timidly, "Just thinking about it makes my hair stand on end!"

"Some things are like this - when you don't know the cause and effect behind it, you'll feel tremendous fear. But when you get to the bottom of everything, you'll feel very assured instead." Lu Zhe continued, "Don't worry, I'll handle it!"

The girls looked at each other, feeling somewhat worried but also agreeing that Lu Zhe made sense.

Right, the less you know what something is, the easier it is to imagine something terrifying. Knowing what it is may make it less scary.

Jiang Yao worried, "It's so high up there! You're not going to climb it, are you?"

"I'm climbing it, don't worry, this tree is very sturdy!"

He pulled out a torch from the stack of firewood, estimating it would burn for three to five minutes.

He walked to the base of the tree and held it in his mouth.

To ensure safety, Lu Zhe added 15 potential points to Strength and 15 potential points to Stamina!

This significantly improved his strength, stamina and resilience.

Along with his already decent agility, he was confident he could conquer a tree!

When he reached the tree, he grabbed it forcefully. His tremendous strength allowed his fingertips to dig into the bark!

With another leap upwards, his moves were like a seasoned free solo climber, and he easily scaled the tree!

Shen Bing exclaimed in awe, "So awesome!"

Ning Shu asked, "Yao Yao, does he have this kind of skill?"

Jiang Yao shook her head, "I'm surprised too!"

Shen Bing suddenly thought of something, "Hey girls, let's spread out a hammock in case he falls we can catch him!"

"Good idea!"

"Gotta hold the hammock with your hands, don't pinch the mesh with your fingers!"

"Got it!"

Back to Lu Zhe, after climbing about 15 meters up, he finally saw the thing!

Despite bracing himself mentally, he still felt like throwing up!

This was a freaking dead body!

An actual, honest-to-goodness dead body!

The dark skin had become leathery, tightly wrapped around the bones. The white teeth were exposed, looking exceptionally sinister and terrifying in the flickering firelight!

What kind of person would end up in a place like this?

And how did he die?

He had to get to the bottom of this!

Lu Zhe took a deep breath to calm himself, then began to carefully observe!

Most of the flesh on the skeleton had dried up or been eaten away by bugs and birds, exposing large areas of white bone.

Next, Lu Zhe noticed a small hole on his forehead!

Gunshot wound?

That was likely the cause of death!

He wore tattered uniforms with a ratty backpack, the original color unrecognizable!

Many areas were encased in tree resin, preventing decay in those spots!

Impossible to identify the country, but as long as it wasn't a compatriot, he didn't care.

Looking closer, a rusted long gun was slung over his shoulder, and a rucksack on his back!

The bag was covered in sticky resin!

The resin may have helped preserve something inside!

But it was hard to examine up here, best to get it on the ground!

Lu Zhe yelled down, "Stay clear, I'm bringing it down!"

"Bringing what down?"

"It's a mummy!"

"What??"

"Lu Zhe, are you joking?"

"Stop blabbing and move away so I don't hit you!"

Shen Bing and the four girls quickly ran away!

Lu Zhe heaved the mummy down along with the backpack and a chunk of tree bark!

Screams erupted from below: "Ahhh it's a ghost!"

"No ghosts here, I'm coming down!"

Lu Zhe shimmied down the tree trunk.

"What is this thing??"

"I told you, it's a mummy!"

Another round of shrieks from the girls.

Shen Bing was braver, she shined the torch around, "It really is a dead body!"

She examined closely, "Can't tell which country from the outfit!"

Lu Zhe pointed to the small hole on its forehead, "This bullet hole means he was shot dead before he fell. His parachute got caught in the tree."

"Let's see what else he has."

Lu Zhe picked up the long gun.

The barrel was badly corroded with rust, the stock mostly rotted away leaving just half.

Ning Shu remarked, "Hey this looks a bit like the legendary Type 38?"

Shen Bing took the gun and tried the bolt, it didn't budge, completely seized by rust.

She said, "Should be from 70 years ago. Too bad it's too degraded to use, otherwise it would've been great for us!"

"Wow, your knowledge is so extensive!" Ning Shu said admiringly, then asked, "Anything else?"

Lu Zhe searched the body, finding a handgun and 20cm paratrooper knife on his waist!

Similarly, without proper maintenance, the handgun was badly corroded and unusable.

But the paratrooper knife was hugely valuable. The plastic handle was encased in resin but intact. The blade had a sheath, and only light rust - clearly made of superior steel, still extremely sharp even without sharpening!

Additionally, on his lower back was a Type 30 bayonet!

The Type 30 was very different from modern bayonets. Attached to a gun it was a bayonet, but seperated it was a good medium-sized knife.

It was about 50cm long total, with a 37cm blade and 12-13cm handle, plus a hand guard, locking ring and sheath.

Some rust but very serviceable after some sharpening.

Lu Zhe swung the knife, it felt great in his hand - for his current situation, simply premium survival gear!

He also had an ammo pouch, but bullets were spoiled by moisture.

Two grenades - likely duds now.

Lu Zhe placed them carefully aside to avoid accidental detonation.

Next, the backpack.

Paratroopers carried full marching kits, this was the key find!

First thing he saw was an M18 helmet hanging off the pack, very sturdy without ventilation holes for integrity.

Maybe due to climate, he only wore his cap when jumping, no helmet.

Now covered in resin, the helmet was unblemished - Lu Zhe was psyched, "Friends, we've struck gold!"