Assault on the Woodland Mansion

With everything prepared, Chen Ming and his two companions charged directly into the Woodland Mansion. After a fierce struggle, several messages suddenly popped up in the chat box.

[Dong Qianqiu was defeated by a Vindicator (5,000 years)]

[Chen Ming was blown away by a Creeper (10,000 years)]

[Di Qiu'er was defeated by a Vindicator (30,000 years)]

The three of them sat dumbfounded at the entrance of the Woodland Mansion, looking at each other; it seemed they couldn't win.

"That Vindicator hits way too hard, right? One swing and two thousand of my health points were gone!"

Di Qiu'er sat on the stairs, feeling depressed. She hadn't expected the monster levels in the Woodland Mansion to be so high, especially that Vindicator—one axe swing and everyone was equal before death.

Chen Ming had tried to build a two-block-high pillar to cheese the Vindicator, only to be ambushed by a Creeper.

"So, what do we do now?"

Dong Qianqiu was also at a loss. That axe turned her into shark paste the moment it landed, though she was less afraid now that she knew death here wasn't permanent.

"Let me think... I've got it! We'll go get our big brother to help!"

Chen Ming crossed his arms and pondered for a moment. A flash of inspiration struck, and he pulled out a carved pumpkin and a pair of shears.

"Qianqiu, gather some snow later, then shovel it to make Snow Golems. Remember to use the shears to clip off the pumpkin heads for recycling once you're done."

"Eh? Okay, I'll give it a try."

Dong Qianqiu raised her hand, and snowflakes drifted onto the grass. Soon, a layer of snow covered the floor. Chen Ming dug it up to obtain several snowballs.

"By the way, does this snow taste good? I've never seen snow before."

Di Qiu'er had never been to the Far North, so this was her first time seeing snow. She thought it looked a bit like ice cream.

"Don't think about eating it! We'll trap the Snow Golem so it can farm snow for us infinitely, then we'll throw the Snow Golems into the Woodland Mansion."

Chen Ming explained his plan. Mostly, it was because he didn't have many pumpkins; he'd just picked them up along the way.

If he made Iron Golems, they couldn't be recycled. Soon, the first Snow Golem was created, and Chen Ming swiftly used his shears to clip off the pumpkin head.

Dong Qianqiu shoveled snow, and their efficiency increased exponentially. Before long, she tossed the snowballs to him.

Chen Ming caught them, crafted, built the Snow Golem, and clipped the pumpkin head in one fluid motion. It was a Snow Golem with a thousand-year cultivation level. Di Qiu'er immediately used a lead to tether it.

This lead had been dropped by a wandering trader earlier. That trader had felt an instant connection with Chen Ming and had forcefully shoved two leads into his hands, offering advice.

"The road home is dangerous. Take these two leads with you."

It came in handy now. After tying up the Snow Golem, Di Qiu'er spun around and flung it into the Woodland Mansion.

Chen Ming had already made two more Snow Golems—one with ten years of cultivation and one with a hundred—both of which Di Qiu'er tossed inside.

Immediately after, Dong Qianqiu tossed more snowballs to Chen Ming, and a new wave of Snow Golems descended.

Inside the Woodland Mansion, a great battle broke out between the Snow Golems and the Vindicators. Logically, Snow Golems shouldn't deal damage.

But don't forget, these were Snow Golems with cultivation. Once their cultivation levels rose, they naturally gained the ability to deal damage.

"The first line of defense is broken! We can go in now!"

Seeing the army of Snow Golems that had already invaded the Woodland Mansion, Di Qiu'er gave a prompt, and Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu quickly rushed inside.

"Three-Shovel Style!"

Chen Ming held a shovel in each hand and bit another one in his mouth. Dong Qianqiu also shoveled snow continuously, accompanying Chen Ming to keep producing the Snow Golem army.

Soon, they spawned a 100,000-year-level Snow Golem. It swept through everything, invincible. Before long, the group encountered an Evoker with a thousand years of cultivation, who was instantly blasted into a bloody mist by the 100,000-year Snow Golem's snowballs.

With the Totem of Undying successfully secured, Chen Ming and his team swept through the Woodland Mansion like a swarm of locusts, eventually looting five Totems of Undying.

It was truly a hearty and satisfying battle. It was all thanks to their "big brother" carrying them; the Snow Golems were the MVPs of this round! Chen Ming, Dong Qianqiu, and Di Qiu'er were just along for the ride.

"Time to split the Totems of Undying! Qianqiu, Qiu'er, you each take two. Once we leave My World, make sure to keep them on your person at all times, understand?"

Chen Ming handed two totems to each of them and gave his instructions. Dong Qianqiu nodded obediently, feeling incredibly grateful in her heart.

He hadn't even hesitated to give away such life-saving treasures. Plus, after spending so much time together, her feelings had grown, and she found herself becoming increasingly dependent on him.

Of course, their relationship hadn't reached the "next stage" of intimacy yet. If it did, given the physical enhancements of the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King, combined with the endless vitality provided by the Life Tree, Dong Qianqiu feared she wouldn't be able to handle it.

The adventure in the Woodland Mansion came to an end. Chen Ming and the others teleported home via the mini-map. After such an intense battle, everyone was feeling a bit exhausted.

Chen Ming leaned back on the bed to rest, while Di Qiu'er rested her head on his lap to sleep. Dong Qianqiu was busy fiddling with her phone.

"What are you doing, Qianqiu?"

Seeing Dong Qianqiu swiping left and right, Chen Ming asked curiously. She immediately moved over and showed him the contents of her phone.

"I'm looking at the scenery we captured along the way. Look, this is the view of the ocean, this is you catching fish, and this is you cooking for us."

"You look so domestic wearing that apron. And here are the Dark Forest, the giant mushrooms, the Spruce Forest, the Mountain, you teaching me how to walk on water, and you making delicious food—I've captured it all."

Dong Qianqiu displayed her photo album, which included a few solo shots of Chen Ming. When a photo of him sleeping appeared, Dong Qianqiu abruptly hit the power button, her face instantly flushing bright red.

"This... let me explain..."

Dong Qianqiu stammered, trying to justify it, but Chen Ming didn't mind; it was just a photo.

"It's fine, take whatever you want. As long as they aren't private photos, I don't really care."

Chen Ming spread his hands; he wasn't ugly, so there was nothing to be ashamed of. Dong Qianqiu gave an awkward laugh, as she had actually snapped the photo secretly while Chen Ming was taking a nap.

She just didn't know why she had wanted to take a picture of him and save it on her phone.

Fortunately, Chen Ming didn't mind, but having been caught red-handed while sneaking a photo, Dong Qianqiu was already so embarrassed that her little toes were curling into the bedsheets.

Soon, the vacation time passed. Dong Qianqiu had a great time; she could cultivate with Chen Ming, play around, open blind boxes, and eat delicious food, living a very comfortable life.

Dong Qianqiu was now leaving this place, feeling somewhat reluctant. Soon, as Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu stepped out of the Overworld, the next second...

"Ding ding ding ding!!!"

A massive amount of notifications erupted from both of their phones. Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu were both stunned, and as they looked at the 99+ messages and call notifications bombarding their screens, they were both dumbfounded.

Taking a closer look, they saw that every single message and call was from Lan Mengqin. The two exchanged a glance, immediately sensing that something terrible was about to happen.

PS: The third update for March 3rd, totaling 6,000 words.

PS: I'd like to mention here that because the Summoner book failed to get signed, I plan to rewrite it. Also, the author is returning to school, and I might not have the energy to update two books at the same time, which is why I've temporarily taken the Summoner book down.