After breakfast, Gong Qu headed to the Apple Plains, not far from home.
He quickly set up a simple workstation, and from the crafting table, a shovel popped out.
Gong Qu weighed it in his hand.
As usual, he couldn't feel the weight of what should've been a one-cubic-meter iron ingot. In his grip, it felt no heavier than a regular farming hoe.
Whether this was due to the incomplete physics of Minecraft or because he himself had been assimilated into Steve's superhuman physique, without a reference point, it was hard to say.
Back to the present.
In the Minecraft world, water was a miraculous thing.
All you needed to do was dig a 2×2 square and pour a bucket of water in two opposite corners, voilà, you had an infinite water source.
Players simply called it "infinite water."
"So that's how it works. Amazing."
Listening to Gong Qu's explanation, Keqing marveled at Minecraft's unique world mechanics.
The shovel worked efficiently.
In less than thirty minutes, Gong Qu had dug out a 9×9 pool, between one to two blocks deep.
Technically, a 2×2 square would've sufficed.
But come on, he was living in the real Minecraft world now. A measly little puddle would've felt far too stingy.
Besides, Minecraft water was generally clean. After a hard day's farming, soaking in a warm pool with Keqing didn't sound like a bad way to unwind.
Unfortunately, Gong Qu soon paid the price for his naïve idea.
"How many buckets is that now? Why isn't it full yet?"
He stared in confusion at the still-flowing water in the pool.
He'd made several trips already. A 9×9 pool should've been full by now.
Luckily, he had been clever enough to set up a 2×2 infinite water source nearby, otherwise, just carrying water back and forth from the river would've worn him out.
"Sigh... I did this to myself. Just keep going."
So Gong Qu obediently continued pouring in water.
It wasn't until dozens of buckets later that the surface finally leveled out, taking on the proper appearance of an infinite water pool.
"Games are games, and reality is reality. So far, this world is way more different from the game than I expected."
Gong Qu sighed, realizing he couldn't treat this world with the same mindset he used for the game. In the face of nature, respect was paramount.
He filled in the original 2×2 hole with dirt blocks, destroying the well-worn infinite source. Then, he filled his three iron buckets with water from the new pool. The land reclamation project had officially begun!
Farming is etched into the DNA of all people from the Divine Continent.
And in the Minecraft world, farming is the indispensable backbone of all adventuring endeavors.
In this world of blocks, planting crops was surprisingly simple.
Dig a single square of water, and it could irrigate an entire 9×9 area, satisfying the water needs of 80 blocks.
Sow the seeds and leave them alone, after a few days, they'd be fully grown and ready for harvest, allowing for another planting cycle.
No need for pest control, no need for fertilizer. It was pure, lazy-man agriculture.
"Now that I think about it, the Dragon's Adventure modpack had that Farmer's Delight mod."
Halfway through tilling, Gong Qu realized he had very few types of seeds. If he couldn't source a wider variety of fruits and vegetables for daily meals, relying solely on the general store would be unsustainable.
Especially since non-vanilla items were sold in stingy bundles of twelve. Total rip-off.
But after some thought, Gong Qu chose not to rashly load the entire modpack just for a bit of convenience.
It wasn't because he was hiding it on purpose.
Dragon's Adventure was a comprehensive modpack incorporating survival, exploration, farming, magic, you name it. Nearly 200 mods in total. It was the one he'd played the most in his past life.
And because he'd played it so much, he understood it too well, and that made him cautious.
Modpacks couldn't be loaded piece by piece. When you used one, it was like unzipping an archive, everything came out at once.
Once loaded, you'd be running a hundred-plus mods simultaneously. For this world, that kind of load would be catastrophic.
Who knew? A dragon's nest might suddenly spawn next to his woodland cottage. Or worse, a dungeon might appear right beneath his warehouse.
Who could say whether this mutated version of Minecraft could withstand a dragon's wrath?
The last thing he wanted was to die in a mysterious AOE blast with his newlywed wife.
"Better to play it safe for now. The general store's open, after all. Once I grind out two full diamond sets, then I'll consider facing those supernatural beings."
Shaking off those wandering thoughts, Gong Qu resumed swinging his iron hoe.
The results were promising.
In the final hour before noon, he managed to till three plots, each with 80 blocks, for a total of 240 planting spots.
By afternoon, the restless Keqing joined in to help.
Together, they cleared 17 more plots and weeded the surrounding area, planting every bit of wheat seed they found.
That night, beneath a full moon, Gong Qu and Keqing sat inside their temporary workstation, each holding a grilled fish for dinner.
"Finally done. Now we just wait for the harvest."
Gong Qu did some quick math.
They'd tilled 1,600 blocks in total. It sounded like a lot, but it only added up to less than three mu of land.
Given the difference between reality and the game, each block now produced one to three portions of wheat, each weighing about 500 grams.
Subtracting what he and Keqing needed for daily meals, they could sell about 200 portions per 100 blocks. That meant 3,200 portions per cycle, which translated to 2,500 World Coins.
Daily profit? 500 coins.
That sure beat fishing up nothing but trash and blowfish!
Day 8 in the Minecraft World
Completed: Phase One Farmland Development
Estimated Yield: 3,200 portions of wheat per cycle
Projected Income: 2,500 World Coins
World Coin Balance:
Keqing: 400 coins
Gong Qu: 650 coins
Next Objective: Expand Phase Two of the Underground Mines – Search and Mine for Diamonds
After a long day, neither Gong Qu nor Keqing had the energy to "explore the secrets of life."
At the desk, Gong Qu used paper and pen he'd bought from the general store to jot down today's progress and plans.
Behind him, Keqing rested her chin on his head and hugged him from behind.
"Worried about mining tomorrow?"
Gong Qu gently grasped the delicate hand curling around his neck, his brow relaxing slightly.
"Yeah. This world's huge, far more real than the game ever felt. Without a deep locator, mining for diamonds is gonna take a lot of time and a lot of luck."
"Maybe we should save up for a Vision. I can sense it, my abilities haven't been that restricted in this world. If you could awaken a Geo Vision, it would probably help a lot with mining and ore detection."
Living in a world with supernatural powers, Keqing naturally thought differently. Her mind turned to the Geo abilities of Teyvat's elemental users.
"Hm? I don't know how that would work, but it does sound kind of plausible."
"But according to the lore, people can't choose their Vision's element. Statistically, I've only got a 1-in-7 chance of getting Geo."
"Still better odds than trying to blindly find diamonds."
Gong Qu nodded and amended his notebook, postponing the mining expedition and adding a new short-term goal:
Expand farmland, accumulate funds, and acquire a Vision.