Chapter Thirteen: The Monster Siege

“Let go of that girl! Let me handle this!”
Well, that was just what Fang Yuan was thinking in his heart.
He wouldn’t dare shout it aloud in front of so many skeletons; anyone with half a brain would know that’s asking for death.
“What should I do?”
There must be a lot of people inside—this was a chance.
If successful, these people would belong to the Kingdom of Blocks, and its expansion would be just around the corner.
If he failed... well, it wouldn’t matter to Fang Yuan anymore.
“This is an opportunity not to be missed! There must be many people inside! Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many monsters! This is my chance!”
“Go big or go home!”
Ultimately, Fang Yuan couldn’t resist the temptation and decided to give it a try.
He had thought the props he’d prepared would be gathering dust, but now it seemed they might not be enough after all.
The skeletons surrounded the entrance to the valley, none of the monsters paying attention to what was happening behind them. Even those who noticed were dealt with by Fang Yuan using his fishing rod.
Destruction and placement had always been the reason for the enduring popularity of Minecraft, and the World of Blocks shared this power.
This time, Fang Yuan had brought half a stack of TNT—thirty-two blocks, the entirety of the Kingdom of Blocks’ stockpile.
Unlike TNT in the real world, its manufacture here was much simpler: all it took was a crafting table, a novice craftsman, some gunpowder, and sand.
Naturally, this meant the TNT’s destructive power couldn’t compare to the real world.
“Explosion is art!”
Standing atop a freshly built column of stone, Fang Yuan was like a wizard in his tower, brimming with intimidation.
He’d constructed the column after realizing most skeleton monsters were melee attackers, unable to reach him at heights above seven blocks, and even the ranged skeleton archers were similarly outmatched.
Moreover, being up high allowed him to throw TNT further, which was crucial.
“Prepare to be baptized by art!”
The skeletons still hadn’t noticed anything amiss behind them.
Flint and steel struck, TNT tossed.
“Boom!”
Where the TNT landed, monsters exploded like popcorn.
“Nice!”
Aside from satisfaction, Fang Yuan couldn’t find a better word to describe how he felt.
Another activated TNT landed amid the monsters.
“Boom!”
This time, the skeletons realized something was wrong and glanced behind them.
“Boom!”
Some unlucky skeletons, just coming to their senses, were sent skyward by Fang Yuan’s third TNT.
“Clack! Clack!”
Skeletons couldn’t utter sounds, so they expressed their anger by rattling their bones together.

“Hmph, impotent rage!”
Seeing this, Fang Yuan became even more reckless. In the blink of an eye, several TNTs exploded among the skeletons, blossoming like wildflowers.
Despite enduring the blasts, the skeletons charged straight for Fang Yuan, only to find a massive stone pillar blocking their way.
“Really! No sense of honor!”
Their flustered fumbling almost made Fang Yuan laugh.
“But I’m professionally trained—I won’t laugh!”
He pulled out more TNT and kept throwing.
“Boom! Boom! Boom…”
Within range, he held absolute power; with enough explosives, Fang Yuan was the ‘god’ of this place.
Half a stack of TNT was quickly reduced to just five blocks, leaving craters everywhere and countless skeleton casualties.
“Hurrah!”
With his catchphrase, Fang Yuan leapt from the pillar and charged at a lone skeleton knight.
These skeleton knights were a crucial force in the entire battle, and Fang Yuan had tried to target them with his TNT.
Yet few were killed or wounded by explosions.
This time, without a strength potion, Fang Yuan couldn’t kill a skeleton knight in one blow.
The knight tried to defend itself, but it was too late; when his axe failed, Fang Yuan immediately drew an iron sword from his inventory and struck.
Under a flurry of axe and sword attacks, the skeleton knight’s health bar was wiped out, and it collapsed.
The uncontrolled spider hesitated for a moment, and Fang Yuan seized the chance, swinging his axe and severing its head.
The whole process was seamless—a skeleton knight eliminated in just a few seconds.
At the mouth of the valley, the blonde girl with the quirky hair and those fighting beside her were stunned.
“Don’t just stand there—listen to my command! Shields to the front!”
Taking advantage of the skeletons’ confusion, Fang Yuan jumped to the cave entrance.
He’d read many novels and gleaned plenty of useful ‘knowledge’ from them.
Now, he wanted to use the power he’d displayed to win the respect and recognition of these people, and ultimately recruit them into the Kingdom of Blocks.
It seemed childish and laughable, but to someone with virtually no real-world experience like Fang Yuan, it was the perfect opportunity.
“Uh, alright…”
The dozen or so people standing at the valley entrance hadn’t recovered from Fang Yuan’s warrior-like performance, but instinctively followed his instructions.
For now, Fang Yuan had command of this defensive squad—though only temporarily.
The skeleton knights, dumbfounded from the explosions, soon recovered and charged straight at Fang Yuan.
He wasn’t flustered; with a flick, another TNT sent them reeling again.
Under the relentless barrage, the ground was pitted with craters, impeding some of the skeleton monsters.
While the knights were once again stunned, Fang Yuan used his fishing rod and axe in tandem to take down two more skeleton knights.
None of those present had ever seen the power of a fishing rod, and their eyes sparkled in amazement.
“I didn’t expect I’d have the air of a king!”

Seeing their expressions, the young Fang Yuan felt a surge of pride.
All those hours of honing his combat skills—what for, if not to better protect those he cared about, and to show off a little?
“Don’t worry, it’s just a few monst—”
“What do you take us for? Invisible?!”
The skeleton monsters seemed to sense Fang Yuan’s impending swagger and were instantly displeased.
Though Fang Yuan had slain many, the overall number of monsters remained high.
A horde of skeletons surged toward the valley entrance like a tidal wave.
In his previous life, Fang Yuan had watched a movie called ‘World War Z,’ where the zombies were so fierce they formed human pyramids to drag helicopters from the sky.
These skeletons weren’t as exaggerated as those zombies, but had a similar vibe.
Using the narrow entrance, which allowed only one or two people through at a time, Fang Yuan and the blonde, blue-eyed girl blocked the way, preventing the skeletons from breaking through.
She was the very girl who’d shouted about defending the entrance before.
After brief contact, Fang Yuan realized her combat skills were decent, so he had her assist him in holding off the monsters.
“If only I had a bucket of lava—the monsters wouldn’t stand a chance…”
As he daydreamed, Fang Yuan turned his attention to the blonde girl beside him.
With the entrance so tight, their bodies were pressed together, and he could faintly catch her scent.
Yes, the fragrance of a girl…
A sidelong glance revealed that she was quite something!
That figure, that face, that stamina…
“She’d be a superb laborer—if she joined the Kingdom of Blocks, she could easily replace two workers!”
“A real talent!”
So Fang Yuan thought.
Dawn gradually broke, forcing the monsters to retreat, leaving corpses strewn about.
The girl beside him was utterly exhausted, her face flushed, gasping for breath.
Compared to her, Fang Yuan was full of energy.
With his level bonus, he was naturally far superior to others, at least in physical strength.
Seeing the blonde girl nearly spent, Fang Yuan chose not to speak with her for the moment, turning away.
Under the sunlight, the monster corpses turned to ash, leaving only loot and experience points.
Fang Yuan’s level had been stuck at six for some time, and after accumulating experience over the past week, his experience bar was nearly full.
Last night, they’d slain many skeleton monsters; absorbing all the experience they dropped would guarantee a level-up.
This was also why Fang Yuan hadn’t entered the entrance to check inside.