Chapter Forty-Six: Racing for People (1)

“What happened to you? How did you end up like this? Isn’t it just a little blood?” Mo Fangyuan looked at Zhang Lingyun’s pale face, thoroughly speechless.

“Your Majesty, I don’t know what’s going on, either. I’ve been bleeding since yesterday morning, and it hurts even more than being hit by a monster...” Zhang Lingyun, seemingly dissatisfied with merely explaining, pointed with her slender finger below her waist, aggrieved.

Her expression seemed to say: If you don’t believe me, I’ll just lift it up and show you...

“Forget it, I’ll go by myself this time... Drink more hot water!” Mo Fangyuan felt oddly at peace about it—how could a grown man be so... cute?

But he was also acutely aware of how few capable people were available in the Block Kingdom. Those he deemed reliable were Old Fu, who managed internal affairs; Old Duan, the teacher; Captain Lowe Yari, the Night Watch leader. The rest were Lin Ye and Zhang Lingyun, but both had their own troubles recently and couldn’t work.

Oh, and there was Iron Nose, who had potential, but potential didn’t equate to real strength. Mo Fangyuan had assigned Iron Nose to Old Duan and Lin Ye for training, but that would still take considerable time.

“A golden stage, a thousand pieces of gold for a fine horse’s bones...”

“Our ancestors would stop at nothing for talent, but I don’t even have people to work with!”

In his previous life in Huaxia, at least there was a vast population base. But here, in the Block World...

In this world, one could say there was no lack of resources—only people.

“Hmph! Once those two recover, I’ll squeeze every bit of work out of them!”

“Well, the map already marks the villages, so going alone shouldn’t be too dangerous... right?”

“Really? Is that so?”

Since the mishap in the mines, Mo Fangyuan had become as cautious as possible, only taking risks when absolutely necessary.

As everyone knows, a 100% success rate is the danger line; 99% might as well be death.

Honestly, the Block Kingdom had developed into such prosperity, but this hadn’t helped Mo Fangyuan’s combat abilities much. His equipment, aside from swapping the bow for a crossbow, was still the old iron axe, diamond axe; his armor remained iron...

“Iron sword, iron axe, diamond axe, iron armor, iron chainmail, essence of the zombie giant...”

Having meticulously packed his belongings, Mo Fangyuan set out once more for the Western Plains.

There were still more than a dozen villages recorded there.

This time, he wasn’t just planning to bring back a group of workers; he also intended to round up some animals for breeding in the Block Kingdom.

The kingdom’s chicken and sheep farms were now operating smoothly, producing feathers, chicken meat, eggs, mutton, and wool.

“Soon, these products will circulate throughout the Block Kingdom, enhancing the people’s happiness and standard of living...”

At this thought, Mo Fangyuan realized it had been a long time since he’d eaten any meat...

“Fortunately, Block World isn’t governed by Darwin, or my body would have collapsed from lack of meat by now.”

Imagining the soon-to-be-tasted roasted lamb, crispy outside, tender inside, rich but not greasy, endlessly savory, Mo Fangyuan couldn’t help but salivate.

“The revolution is not yet complete, comrades must keep striving!”

He took a hearty bite out of a baked potato, pretending it was roasted lamb, and pressed on.

He had traveled the road west many times and knew it well. But this time, he decided not to take the usual path.

Because along the way, there was a flock of sheep.

Ever since he’d spotted a sheep with white eyes, his excellent cautious nature had returned in full force. Maybe those white eyes were just a hallucination, but better safe than sorry!

This time, his destination was the two westernmost villages at the map’s edge—the last two in that region.

Taking the detour made the journey longer; it took Mo Fangyuan about two days to reach them.

Fortunately, the two villages were close to one another, so he could recruit one, then immediately go to the other, gather both groups together, and take them back at once.

The terrain was still endless plains, and in the distance, thin wisps of smoke curled from village chimneys.

It was midday, just around lunchtime.

“All my efforts now are for future happiness—a life where I can eat meat every day!”

He gnawed another baked potato, still pretending it was a piece of roasted lamb.

Running consumed hunger much faster than any other activity. On a normal day, a baked potato would last until noon, but when constantly on the move, it barely sustained him for an hour or two.

This time, Mo Fangyuan had no intention of any elaborate tricks. After adjusting his gear, he went straight toward the small village.

It was obvious that for a village to survive this long, there must be warriors among them, and sure enough, it wasn’t long before a fighter noticed his approach.

Seeing the village’s warrior emerge, Mo Fangyuan guessed that he was likely the village’s guardian or chief.

“Well, this could be interesting,” Mo Fangyuan mused to himself.

The man who came to greet him was a middle-aged villager with a faint mustache and slightly yellowish skin. He wore leather armor and had a steady gaze, reminiscent of the uncle from “Léon: The Professional.” He was the only village chief Mo Fangyuan had encountered so far who wasn’t gray-haired.

“Though I don’t know where you come from, we welcome any friend of the Block People!” the middle-aged man said, glancing at Mo Fangyuan’s iron armor.

“So wearing iron armor outside really does draw attention,” Mo Fangyuan thought. He now understood how precious iron armor was in the eyes of these small villages.

Mining iron meant either digging one’s own shaft, which required immense time, manpower, and resources—beyond the means of most villages—or venturing into caves, which was extremely dangerous; one could easily get lost or killed by monsters and end up as nothing but an experience orb.

“Hello, I come from the Eastern Block Kingdom—a powerful, prosperous, beautiful, and happy place...”

With a pleasant smile, Mo Fangyuan rattled off a string of praises for his kingdom.

Yes, he had just told himself not to be flashy, but now here he was, laying it on thick.

“Chief, may I come in and have a seat?”

Maintaining a professional smile, Mo Fangyuan inquired again.

“Of course, brave one, please come in!” The middle-aged chief shook his head and gestured for Mo Fangyuan to enter.

Though clearly intrigued by Mo Fangyuan’s words, the chief remained rational and didn’t immediately ask him to take everyone to the mysterious Block Kingdom.

After all, no sensible person would decide the fate of a village based solely on the words of a stranger. If such a person existed, they certainly wouldn’t become chief.

Entering the village, Mo Fangyuan felt his plan was halfway to success.

Seeing the chief’s cautious demeanor, Mo Fangyuan decided to change tactics: first, persuade the more weak-willed villagers, then tackle the chief.

If he couldn’t win the chief over, he could always use “the will of the people” to push the middle-aged chief to go with him.

What? You say that’s devious and underhanded?

How could that be? I’m helping the Block People escape hardship; the means don’t matter as long as the end is good.

“Warrior, our village doesn’t have much food, so please make do.”

It was lunchtime, and the old chief, knowing what was expected, brought out two loaves of bread for Mo Fangyuan.

“Wow, real bread!” Mo Fangyuan thought to himself. He’d been surviving on roasted sweet potatoes for months, rarely tasting bread.

Most of the Block Kingdom’s fields had been switched to potatoes; only a small portion grew wheat, and that was just to feed the animals of the chicken and sheep farms.

His stomach was beginning to rebel.