"This water is infinite to begin with. But according to the world's rules, it stops flowing after eight blocks. That doesn't happen when it falls from a higher place, though!"
Tony took a bite of the meat in his hand and explained it to the two of them.
"And then?" Fang Bie sat at the table listening. He already knew what Tony had just explained; that was simply how infinite water worked.
Tony casually pulled a block from his inventory. Instead of placing it on the ground, he gently set the floating block on the table.
"This block represents the cave we're staying in."
He took out the bucket of water from earlier and set it beside the block.
"And this is a bucket of water brought over from this world."
He slowly poured out some water, completely submerging the floating block.
"We're living in a cave. Apart from drinking water, there's no water source inside it. That means they wouldn't go out of their way to build a drainage system in the cave, because there's no need!"
Tony already felt like he was standing at a press conference, announcing his latest product to the world.
"If I had a bucket of water like this, and handled it right, I could pour it down from the top of the cave and find a suitable point in the constantly descending tunnel. Then I could flood the entire cave!"
At last, Tony revealed his ultimate goal. When he said it, the other two, who had been staring blankly, finally understood.
"You mean... use the properties of infinite water to flood the cave?" Fang Bie understood those properties better than either of them. He had done something like that in the game: one block of water could flood an entire snowy plain. He'd even set it up that way once, out of boredom.
And reality was different from the game. In this world, water would only stop flowing if it reached a completely flat surface eight blocks across.
But since so many places in this world were made of blocks, it was easy to achieve that.
In their real world, though, how could there possibly be a perfectly flat area?
Fang Bie could already picture the terrorists' horrified faces as the floodwater rushed toward them.
People said water was the source of life, but it was also one of the most terrifying disasters in the world!
"But... if you pour all that water into the cave, won't we be unable to breathe?" Yinsen thought further ahead than the other two, which was why he had spotted the flaw in the plan.
If they flooded the cave using infinite water, they would lose the space they needed to survive. Before the bandits drowned, they themselves would suffocate in the cave.
"I'm not quite sure about that. You can ask Fang; he should know the answer." Tony gave his signature shrug. "That's the problem I don't know how to solve. We don't have any underwater breathing equipment. I'm afraid we'll have to die right alongside them."
Fang Bie pointed at the door behind them. "I've got two more doors in the chest. You can try one and see for yourselves."
"Doors?" Tony and Yinsen exchanged a look. They had no idea what doors had to do with escaping a flood.
The three of them hurried through breakfast. Then Fang Bie led them to the little river at the foot of the mountain. He carried a door and jumped into the water without hesitation.
Each block in the Minecraft world was a meter long, wide, and tall. A river that looked only five or six blocks deep was actually five or six meters deep. Anyone who couldn't swim would drown in no time.
But Fang Bie and the two men had all swum before, so they weren't worried about dying before they'd even begun. When they saw Fang Bie jump in, they exchanged a glance and followed him.
After all, Fang Bie was their guide in this world. Neither of them wanted to spend the rest of their lives here. They wanted to go home.
Besides, Fang Bie was helping them prepare for their escape back in their world. If someone with no personal stake in it was this eager to help, they couldn't afford to slack off.
Only after they had both splashed into the water and dived to the riverbed did they understand where the boy had gotten his confidence.
This river was made entirely of infinite water. In theory, its supply could never run out, and even a big-bellied man couldn't drink it dry.
Yet Fang Bie stood unharmed in the river. The water seemed to meet some strange resistance and couldn't touch him.
Tony was the first to reach his side. He stepped into an air pocket that seemed to be made of pure air, one square meter across and two meters high.
Yinsen followed him. The three men crowded into the narrow, one-square-meter space, and their expressions turned awkward.
Fang Bie showed little reaction, as if trying hard to suppress his true feelings. He asked them, "Do you think this can protect you from the dangers of being underwater?"
He gently tapped the wooden door beside him. Only then did the two men realize that this simple wooden door was what had created the air pocket.
"What a marvelous world. A door can create air underwater. What's the principle behind it?" Tony's curiosity kicked in again, but the other two quickly stopped him.
"Tony, you can research it all you want once we get back. Right now, we need to figure out how to get home!" Yinsen hurried to hold him back.
Fang Bie had no intention of stopping them from leaving. He had actually figured it out a long time ago. Tony Stark was one of the most important parts of the Marvel Universe. His identity as Iron Man meant he couldn't stay in Fang Bie's world for long. He still had a story to drive forward in his own world.
But Fang Bie was willing to give them all the help they needed. He wanted that help to build a solid connection between them. Whether he needed to ask a favor in the future or wanted to visit their world, it would make things much easier.
His own world was full of secrets, and he was sure the others could see that too. Fang Bie held almost the only key to this world, so his importance was obvious.
After the two men put their heads together and discussed it for a while, they finally made up their minds and turned to him.
"We've decided, Fang. We'd like to borrow some things from you. If we make it out alive, we'll repay you generously. How does that sound?"
"Repay me? I thought we were already friends." Fang Bie seemed a little displeased.
"Hahaha!" Tony laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "That's exactly why I want to repay you properly!"
Before you continue