Chapter 119: Are They Truly Just Stone Pillars?

“Step! Step! Step!”

Circling around the unremarkable round stone pillar, Mo Fangyuan felt increasingly uneasy.

According to Zhang Lingyun’s account, she had arrived here through a cave entrance in the western region.

Mo Fangyuan knew all too well how far the western plains were from the Block Kingdom.

Traveling in a straight line without any obstacles would still require crossing tens of thousands of block units. How could she have walked here on foot, and then walked back on foot as well?

That’s over ten thousand blocks! Even with parkour skills, it wouldn’t be that fast!

“Zhang San transformed into Zhang Lingyun right here, and this place is some kind of marvel... there’s a high chance of encountering strange items or creatures…”

“The talking experience orb turned Zhang Lingyun into a magical girl…”

“Magical girl… combat… fire element… class upgrade system…”

Previously, Mo Fangyuan had only been surprised that Zhang San became a girl, focusing on the skeleton faction’s invasion of the western plains, paying little attention to the strange events she had encountered.

But now, thinking carefully, there were glaring inconsistencies.

This place was still so far from the surface. What kind of mighty man could have dug through nearly eighty layers by himself?

And yet, this skillful man ended up falling to his death after building blocks in midair? Even a fool wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake!

The Block World didn’t have any “460” latency!

What was even more absurd was that, according to Zhang Lingyun’s information, the one who died was a high-level fire-element magical girl.

Come on! Zhang Lingyun had gained the “Fire Step” skill after reaching level ten, allowing her to hover briefly in midair. How could a magical girl of such a high level have no survival skills?

Moreover, if she was a fire-element magical girl, why didn’t she use her innate fire immunity to simply swim across the lava lake?

“This isn’t just a logical error; it’s downright illogical!”

Having read four years’ worth of Chinese novels, Mo Fangyuan felt that even if they were ravaged by capital, Chinese novels still led the world by fifteen years. Just reading them alone had deeply ingrained a sense of logic in him.

“Knock! Knock! Knock!”

Gently tapping the long, slender round stone pillar before him, Mo Fangyuan’s doubts deepened.

“Gurgle! Gurgle! Gurgle!”

The lava bubbled and boiled, bubbles bursting continuously, releasing heat... this scene seemed eternally unchanged, yet also constantly shifting—only no one could see it.

“This place absolutely has problems!”

Mo Fangyuan stood firm in his conviction.

“Maybe this stone pillar looks fine on the surface or to the naked eye, but perhaps from another angle, its problems will be revealed.”

The towering stone pillar stood at the center of the lava lake, occupying the core and most conspicuous spot. To say there was nothing wrong with it—that was something Mo Fangyuan refused to believe.

“Give me a pickaxe.”

A full-durability iron pickaxe was handed to Mo Fangyuan by a Night Watchman.

No matter what demon or monster you are, I’ll dismantle you and study you carefully.

“Knock! Knock knock! Knock…”

No problem when left alone, but the moment he struck, Mo Fangyuan was stunned. The iron pickaxe hit the stone, and a tremendous force rebounded through the wooden handle, striking Mo Fangyuan’s body.

“See! There’s definitely something wrong! Something big!”

His hand trembled uncontrollably, and the pickaxe flew back from the impact, splashing into the lava and vanishing completely.

Rubbing his dazed head with his still trembling hand, Mo Fangyuan stepped back a few paces.

This thing was truly hard.

“Your Majesty is in danger!”

“Protect the King!”

Seeing this, several weary Night Watchmen immediately dropped their tasks, grabbed their iron swords, and charged over.

They looked ready to give their all, willing to die heroically for the King.

But the stone pillar still stood tall on the island in the middle of the lake, unchanged, as if mocking Mo Fangyuan’s hubris.

“…This stone pillar is really sinister…”

Without the buff from the Imperial Blade, Mo Fangyuan was still fundamentally a mortal flesh-and-blood man, vulnerable to all sorts of dangers.

“Using an iron pickaxe causes counterattacks... There are no harder or more advanced tools in the kingdom. So mining this path is out of the question.”

Surrounded by the others, Mo Fangyuan kept his distance from the eerie stone pillar.

“When we return, I must ask Zhang Lingyun carefully about the exact nature of this lava lake... especially that magical girl—there might be something wrong with her too!”

Mo Fangyuan nervously bit into a roasted potato, restoring his energy.

“Fellow countrymen, I am fine! Thank you all for your concern, now go back to work! Work is important!”

“Your Majesty, let us escort you back up!”

“Yes! Your safety is the most important thing!”

The Night Watchmen surrounded Mo Fangyuan unwilling to leave. They had truly been frightened moments ago. If anything had happened to His Majesty, what would they do? What would become of the Block Kingdom? What would the future hold?

Only with the King could they have a future, and so could their descendants.

“Fellow countrymen, I appreciate your kindness, but go back to work! I’m fine. Work is important!”

Mo Fangyuan thought to himself: As if anything’s more important than work.

“Your Majesty! Your safety is above all else!”

In the end, Mo Fangyuan was bewilderedly squeezed through a group of determined men who escorted him all the way back to the surface.

“Don’t I have any dignity? Am I the king, or are you?”

Mo Fangyuan realized he was too approachable, lacking majesty... though, perhaps that wasn’t such a bad thing after all.

“The snow is getting heavier and heavier. Looks like the next few days’ journey will be delayed.”

At a rest point somewhere in the east, Iron Nose and the immigrants sat around the magma blocks to keep warm.

Magma was perpetual, endlessly radiating heat—able to warm fires, cook food, and be carried easily. It was a perfect tool for disposing of bodies.

Clever Mo Fangyuan waved his hand, and all the field army soldiers were equipped with magma buckets.

This allowed magma to shine and work in more posts across the Block Kingdom.

“Our supplies are sufficient to bring these compatriots safely back to the Block Kingdom!”

“We have powerful and abundant weapons and equipment to protect our compatriots on the way back to the Block Kingdom!”

“We also have a home, and a firm faith! No difficulty can defeat us!”

A fully armored field army soldier, holding an iron sword and shield, spoke passionately: “In short, we have a strong logistics system!”

“Praise the Block Kingdom!”

“Praise the Block Kingdom!”

The two on duty couldn’t help but join in praise.

“Oh~ The great King of the Block People is a star in the sky, descendant of the sun! He is a symbol of wisdom, an embodiment of strength, leading the Block People toward prosperity and peace!”

“We will unite around the King, take the King’s goals as our own, the King’s ideals as our ideals! Only then can we achieve a happy life!”

Among the field army, many were fervent followers of Mo Fangyuan. Even outside the palace, they never ceased to proclaim his greatness to others.

Now that they had discovered a whole new continent, they took every opportunity to explain the King’s greatness to these new compatriots, seeking their attention and admiration to satisfy their vanity and sense of belonging.

“The great King is approachable, caring for us! Willing to work hard for us, and we will fight for the King!”

Faced with this, Iron Nose said nothing, sitting quietly aside, caressing the iron sword once wielded by his sister, his eyes flickering with an indistinct light and hue.

“Is the King really as good as Uncle said?”

A young girl with black hair and dark eyes tightly held her mother’s hand, speaking with innocent longing.

The field army man’s face grew fervent as he replied, “Ah, little girl, whether the great King is good or not isn’t the point. He is truly that kind of rare, that kind of…”

He went on, his expression revealing a passion not typical of his usual demeanor.

“His eyes are like the sun, guiding us forward; his nose like towering mountains, giving us strength and resilience…”