"Small Fish Destroyer activated, 50 grams."
Looking at the fish in the bucket, Xiang Ye thought for a moment and activated the Small Fish Destroyer buff. Although catching whitebait and crucian carp over 50 grams wasn't difficult, it was almost impossible to catch wheat spikes, mosquitofish, and balu that weighed that much. At least in the wild river near his home, he had never seen those three species over 50 grams.
After turning on the Small Fish Destroyer and tossing earthworms into the water again, things became much quieter. For almost five minutes, there wasn't even a slight movement.
Xiang Ye wasn't anxious. He watched the float while playing with Shaoqing. After all, today he just needed to complete the task, so there wasn't much pressure.
About ten minutes later, the float finally moved—a gentle lift, then suddenly it was pulled down sharply. Xiang Ye raised his rod immediately.
With a slight tug, a yellow catfish was pulled out of the water, weighing about 50 to 60 grams.
Yellow catfish—known as "Gaya" in his hometown, scientifically called Pseudobagrus fulvidraco—is a fish found all over China. Because its meat is tender and almost boneless, it is beloved nationwide.
Xiang Ye knew this fish lived in the wild river, but it was actually very hard to catch. It tended to bite only during night fishing; daytime bites were rare.
His good buff probably helped.
"Sixth species!"
Carefully placing the yellow catfish into the bucket, Xiang Ye smiled and cast again. He was cautious because the fish's fin spines were venomous—getting pricked would be quite painful.
After the sixth fish, he waited again.
Another ten minutes passed. Just as Xiang Ye was about to lift the rod and recast, the float suddenly sank. Xiang Ye lifted the rod and knew immediately it was a common carp.
Sure enough, when he reeled it in, a common carp weighing around 350 to 400 grams appeared. For Xiang Ye's sturdy rod, such a small common carp could be pulled out easily.
Shaoqing, sitting on Xiang Ye's lap, stared wide-eyed at the carp. The little kitten's eyes almost sparkled—it seemed to think, "My dad's amazing! He caught such a big fish!"
If Xiang Ye had shown Shaoqing the big guys at YueJing Lake weighing dozens of Jin, the kitten would have been blown away.
"Seventh species!"
After adding the common carp to the bucket, Xiang Ye mumbled to himself and continued fishing.
This time he switched to float fishing because most bottom-dwelling fish had already been caught, except the notoriously hard-to-catch catfish. The other fish rarely stayed on the bottom anymore.
With his buff, Xiang Ye's fishing skill was pushed much higher than average, even if he wasn't naturally a pro.
Not long after switching to float fishing, the eighth species bit—Bian fish (also called bianhua in his hometown). It was common but usually preferred lakes over rivers, so catching it here was rare but possible.
Eighth species in the bucket, Xiang Ye exhaled deeply and kept waiting.
The ninth fish came quickly. After catching a few more crucian carp over 100 grams, the tenth fish finally bit—a ling fish.
Ling fish, called tulíng locally, was a very common edible fish.
However, Xiang Ye didn't catch this one on the rod; it was caught on the spear.
Like grass carp, ling fish only eat plants, so earthworms weren't very attractive bait for it. Grass carp are technically omnivores and eat insects when young, but adults rarely bite on worms.
Luckily, this ling fish swam near his hook and saw the float. Xiang Ye gently lifted the rod, and the roughly 150-gram fish landed in his bucket.
"One species left!"
Stretching, Xiang Ye checked the time, went back to his car to feed Shaoqing some milk, then returned to fish for the final species.
Unfortunately, luck seemed to run out.
No matter float fishing or bottom fishing, no new species appeared. Instead, crucian carp kept biting, including a big one over 150 grams that excited the elderly anglers nearby. They even cast harder than usual, hoping to match his catch.
But Xiang Ye wasn't satisfied—one species short was a problem.
He considered going to YueJing Lake to fish for something like a Topmouth Culter. Otherwise, he couldn't just stay stuck here.
Just then, his phone rang.
It was Ai Bai—the girl who had disappeared for several days.
"Hey, Xiang Ye, what are you up to?"
"Fishing, what about you?" Xiang Ye answered.
"I'm moving. Since you weren't home, I called. I took the last stuff, and my wife wants you to come to our new place for hotpot."
Hearing this, Ai Bai laughed. Hotpot after moving was a popular way among young people to celebrate a new home and wish prosperity.
Normally, Xiang Ye would go immediately.
But with one fish missing, he felt torn.
"Okay, I'll come tonight. I can't leave now," he said reluctantly.
"What's wrong? Too far? Or did you catch a big fish and are still competing?" Ai Bai asked, confused since she hadn't heard about a competition.
"No, I'm fishing by the river. I've caught nine species. I'm a little obsessive—I have to catch ten today." He couldn't say it was the system task, so he blamed his "obsessive-compulsive disorder."
"What fish have you caught so far?" Ai Bai was curious.
"Wheat spikes, whitebait, mosquitofish, crucian carp, common carp, balu, ling fish, yellow catfish, and bianhua. Just missing one."
"Damn, that's quite a catch... Listen to me, look for stones underwater and cast your bait near them on the bottom. Oh, and cut the worms into smaller pieces."
Following Ai Bai's advice, Xiang Ye cast again. Less than ten seconds later, the float sank.
He pulled up a black, armored fish.
"Scavenger...?"
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。