At this moment, they were less than three kilometers away from the camp.

The group arrived at a birch forest, which was a small hill.

Birch trees are deciduous trees that love sunlight, are cold and heat resistant, and are very adaptable to different soil types.

Ye Feng passed through this area when he first set off. The birch trees had straight branches and relatively soft and dense bark, making them an excellent material for arrow shafts.

At the same time, tree bark is also a raw material for making bowstrings.

Ancient bows and arrows were mostly made from this type of tree.

However, the forest contains far more than just birch trees. When Ye Feng arrived, he also discovered a wonderful plant.

A plant that would make any wilderness survivor so happy they'd take flight if they encountered it.

Upon arriving at a birch tree, Ye began to direct the group.

"Apart from Zhan Pengfei, the rest of you should collect arrow shaft materials. Remember, it's best to compare them with the original arrow shafts."

Recurve bows are fine, but compound bows have grooves. If the arrow gets stuck and you can't shoot, that would be a disaster.

Zhan Pengfei, come with me to the other side to collect some good stuff.

As a curious child, Zhan Pengfei immediately asked:

"What good stuff is it? Is it Chinese medicinal herbs?"

"It's much rarer than ordinary Chinese medicinal herbs; you'll see when you get there."

After saying that, Ye Feng began searching the surrounding trees on his own.

With his exceptional memory, he quickly located the road sign he had carved earlier.

So he led Zhan Pengfei and walked for nearly ten minutes until they arrived at a patch of vegetation.

There are many root plants here, and the area is covered in green leaves, making it difficult to distinguish the different types of plants.

However, Ye Feng immediately spotted what he wanted.

"Haha, found it!"

He used a stick to push aside the clump of grass, making a noise that startled some reptiles in the bushes.

Most insects are quite timid.

They rustled away, and the sound quickly faded away.

Zhan Pengfei followed closely behind, but before he could ask any questions, Ye Feng suddenly stopped.

He stood in front of two trees with a silly grin on his face. The trees weren't very big; they were only about the thickness of an adult's calf.

But the height is at least 8 meters or more.

Gazing at the dense clusters of white and red fruits hanging from the treetops, he was still muttering to himself…

"Hehe, good, good, the timing is perfect, absolutely perfect."

Zhan Pengfei took a closer look and realized that, despite being a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine, his skills were only rudimentary…

But the two trees in front of him were quite famous, and he recognized them in just a few seconds.

"Holy crap! Sumac!"

Sumac, a plant of the Anacardiaceae family —

Also known as sour barrel or salt bran tree, it grows to a height of 2-10 meters. Its twigs are brownish-brown, covered with rusty-colored soft hairs, and have small, round lenticels.

It is a famous Chinese medicinal herb with the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, dispersing blood stasis and stopping bleeding.

When used internally, it can also treat fever caused by colds, bronchitis, coughing up blood, diarrhea, dysentery, and hemorrhoid bleeding.

Its roots and leaves, when boiled in water, can be used externally for injuries from falls and blows, snake bites, lacquer poisoning, and other ailments.

With numerous benefits, whether used internally or externally, it can be considered a versatile and all-around champion among Chinese medicinal herbs.

"Wow! Brother Feng, this is really good stuff! Hehe..."

As a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine, Zhan Pengfei couldn't help but smile when he saw this medicinal herb.

He craned his neck, his eyes scanning the tree from top to bottom with an expression of great interest, and then burst into excited laughter.

"Haha, this is really great, no wonder it's from the Amazon. It's so different from the sumac in China."

Ye Feng gave him an approving look; Zhan Pengfei's traditional Chinese medicine skills were indeed quite impressive.

Ye Feng discovered this tree when he was passing by and suddenly needed to defecate.

At first he didn’t recognize him, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt he had seen him somewhere before.

After thinking for a long time, he remembered that this kind of tree was mentioned in the survival guide.

So he made many marks nearby, intending to retrieve them when he returned.

"Oh? Tell me, what's different?"

Zhan Pengfei, still craning his neck, explained as he touched the object:

"Brother Feng, you may not know this, but the sumac trees planted in China can only grow a little over 20 centimeters a year, and usually only grow to seven or eight meters at most."

But this tree must be at least 9 meters tall, and look at all the fruit growing on it…

Not only are they all plump and round, but there are also many of them.

The roots and bark of this tree are precious traditional Chinese medicines, and many ingredients in Western medicines are extracted from this tree.

"Brother Feng, we've struck gold! Once we get all this bark and roots out, we won't have to worry about any minor ailments or pains anymore!"

Ye Feng chuckled; Zhan Pengfei's words seemed to have missed the point.

"It seems you really only study traditional Chinese medicine and only focus on the medicinal effects of trees."

Little did they know, these weren't the things I valued most at all.

"Huh? Hiss..."

Zhan Pengfei scratched his head in confusion…

"Am I wrong? Or does this tree have some other purpose?"

"Hey, you're right."

Ye Feng looked at the fruits, each the size of a little fingernail, hanging on the treetop and couldn't help but lick his lips.

"The roots and leaves of the sumac tree have salt glands, which absorb salt from the soil through the roots."

Then the salt is secreted out and crystallizes on the bark and fruit surface.

This salt is formed from malic acid, and the secreted salt is of higher quality than refined table salt.

They bloom in August and September each year, and bear fruit around October. By November, the salt on their surface is basically fully formed.

I estimate that the salt in these two trees could produce at least one liter of plant salt.

"Oh~"

Zhan Pengfei suddenly realized that he had indeed felt some tiny white particles when he touched the tree bark.

"That explains it. I saw this fruit was clearly red in the book, so how did it turn white?"

"Hehe, Brother Feng, you're amazing! You know everything, you're practically an encyclopedia of survival!"

Ye Feng waved his hand, then took out two empty cans and a military shovel from his bag.

"The reason I asked you to come with me is because you're a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. So... you'll be responsible for digging up all the useful medicinal herbs, tree roots, and the like."

I'll go pick some fruit. We'll each take one tree. With this salt, we won't have to be so stingy with our money anymore.

You can eat as much as you want, you could even have a barbecue feast.

Upon hearing the word "barbecue," Zhan Pengfei, a foodie, instantly perked up and quickly took off his backpack.

"Okay, okay, I promise I'll complete the mission!"

After saying that, the two began their work.

They simply pulled out their knives and began chopping down the trees with a clang.

Because the sumac trees are not very large, the two trees fell down in less than two minutes.

Logically speaking, such a precious tree should not have its roots severed.

However, there are less than two months left, and if the tree wants to bear fruit again, it will have to wait until next year.

It would be easier to just cut it directly.