pdf-ebookys Chapter 491 Fishing and Unexpected Visitors
Chapter 491 Fishing and Unexpected Visitors
Chapter 491 Fishing and Unexpected Visitors
Seven days later.
A coral reef near Fish Bay.
"Gurgle..."
A sharp, high-pitched cry echoed in the sky, and a short-tailed albatross with pure white feathers and a larger body than its peers could be vaguely seen circling high in the air.
Xia Nan found a good place.
Located above a coral reef, close to the coast, it is a remarkably flat reef that has been riddled with holes by countless years of erosion and scouring by the waves.
The location of this reef is just right. It's not too close, avoiding those annoying wrasses that are only the length of a hand but keep attacking the bait, and it's not too far, so you won't be dragged into the water along with the hook by tentacles that suddenly emerge from the abyss.
By making perfect use of the rich ecosystem of coral reefs, the chances of catching the best, most outstanding, and most rewarding big fish are greatly increased.
His keen senses even allowed him to perceive the alluring shadows moving about in the coral reef below, through the seawater.
My heart couldn't help but flutter, and I even felt a long-lost sense of tension.
"Stay calm, you need to stay calm when fishing..."
Xia Nan thought to himself.
Today, his goal for himself is to catch a big fish that is at least one meter long.
Compared to the abundant fish resources in the coral reef, he had lowered his expectations as much as possible, hoping that if he was lucky today, he might get some pleasant surprises.
With plenty of time to spare, he wasn't in a hurry to cast his line, but instead sat on the rocks to prepare.
Frankly speaking, given the current number of sea fish in the coral reef where Xia Nan is located, there is no need to do anything like baiting.
However, he is always meticulous and rigorous, and since he rarely has the opportunity to come to such a place, he has naturally made full preparations and hopes to make the most of the rich ecology here.
Xia Nan reached under the armor and groped between the inner lining for a couple of moments, and then, with a soft metallic scraping sound, he pulled the [White Pot] pocket watch from his pocket.
Compared to when I first obtained this storage item in Twin Valleys a dozen days ago, the pocket watch is no longer in its bare and independent state. Instead, it now has a platinum watch chain with the same color as it, which securely fastens it to the lining under the armor.
This is the little trinket that Xia Nan commissioned the shop owner of [Pearl Spinning] to make a few days ago.
The use of the pocket watch required him to press a button, which meant that Xia Nande would often take it out of his pocket, greatly increasing the probability of losing the item.
If you simply keep it in your pouch like a healing potion, it might fall out during a fierce battle against a worthy opponent.
To be honest, Xia Nan felt uneasy if he didn't keep such a precious storage item close to his body, just like the [Coin of Destiny] before.
Therefore, the first thing he did upon returning to Barracuda Bay was to have Seliana customize a watch chain for him with the "White Pot".
This perfectionist, with his outstanding aesthetic sense and extremely high level of technical skill, after referencing the design of the "White Pot" pocket watch, also created a platinum watch chain that was perfectly in line with Xia Nan's requirements, without being out of place.
It looked as if it were an integral part of the pocket watch, and its length was just right, making it perfect for taking out and storing, which made Xia Nan very satisfied.
"Click".
A crisp, mechanical sound rings out at your fingertips.
The hands of the clock are spinning rapidly.
About three seconds later, with a momentary distortion of the surrounding space, a long stone spear was already in Xia Nan's hand.
The [Tidal Lure Rod] that he had already sold to Ellison was borrowed by Xia Nan from the other party.
At the same time, in order to trigger the equipment's special effect, he also brought along the "spotted whale" that the other party had specially fished up in the open sea, which was now swimming weakly in the glass fish tank at his feet.
Speaking of which, Xia Nan has never actually used the [Tidal Surge Lure Rod] equipment, despite having it for so long, due to its demanding trigger conditions.
Now is the time to test the power of this "fishing" artifact.
……
effect:
When a stone spear is inserted vertically into calm seawater, it will release an infrasonic vibration that attracts all small plankton within a mile radius, with the effect lasting for 6 hours.
Triggering conditions:
Using the tip of a spear, stab a live, healthy whale at a rate of 60 times per minute for 10 minutes without interruption.
……
Following the instructions on the equipment attribute panel, Xia Nan held the stone spear in one hand and, in a regular and extremely light manner, used the spear tip to stab the spotted whale in the water tank.
He had an exceptional ability to control his own strength, ensuring that each drop of the spear tip wouldn't injure the small whale, which was only the length of an arm, yet also wouldn't be too weak and deviate from the concept of "stabbing." It looked as if he was giving the whale a massage, making the spotted whale in the tank sway its tail comfortably a few times.
Ten minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
hum-
Xia Nan suddenly felt the air around him become more humid, and the cold stone spear he was holding began to vibrate slightly.
Knowing that it had worked, he carried the stone spear to the edge of the reef and slowly inserted it into the sea at a vertical angle.
let go.
"Splash!"
Centered on the [Tidal Lure Pole] that was gradually sinking into the water, the originally calm sea surface suddenly became turbulent, and the azure seawater reflecting the sky gradually became murky in the waves.
Just like the aroma wafting from the kitchen at mealtime, you can see schools of fish in the nearby coral reefs being attracted by plankton gathering in the seawater, converging towards the reef where Xia Nan is standing.
Plankton attracts small fish, and small fish attract large fish.
Within minutes, Xia Nan spotted several rather conspicuous, enormous silhouettes beneath the water's surface.
"Now!"
The baiting effect of the [Tide Lure Rod] was better than expected. Not a second was wasted. He held his expensive [Albatross III Fishing Rod - 1015] tightly with both hands, and the hook disappeared into the undulating waves.
In theory, fishing is a very simple thing based on probability.
Xia Nan had done everything he could, from skill and equipment to environment, and the big fish he had imagined arrived as expected.
They arrived very quickly!
Even before the fishing hook had been in the water for long, the buoy on the distant sea surface suddenly disappeared.
"Crench!"
The fishing line was taut, the fishing rod bent almost to the point of breaking, emitting a mournful cry of unbearable strain.
Faced with the unexpected arrival of the "large cargo", Xia Nan demonstrated textbook-level skills at this moment.
Carefully feeling the force coming from his palm, he engaged in a struggle with the big fish that had taken the bait. When the fish struggled, he would loosen his grip slightly to exhaust it; when the fish got tired, he would quickly reel in the line.
Ten feet, twenty feet, thirty feet...
Xia Nan could even see the silhouette of the large fish beneath the surface of the sea.
But just when he thought he was about to succeed, the big fish underwater launched a final counterattack.
"Splash!" The powerful fish tail slammed into the water, the force of which even created a wave on the surface of the sea.
The water splashed and the rising dark shadow suddenly rushed diagonally downwards.
Following the fishing techniques he had learned over the past few days, even when success was imminent, Xia Nan remained very patient as the fish struggled in its final moments, letting it drift downstream.
Because he knew that this would be the last chance for the big fish to fight back. In the next round, the fish would be completely powerless to resist, marking a significant turning point in his fishing career.
But unexpectedly, whether by chance or because this giant fish living in a magical world had developed a certain level of intelligence, the direction it chose to struggle this time was directly below the reef where Xia Nan was standing.
There, the incredibly hard, dark reefs have long been worn smooth by the surging waves over countless years, becoming as sharp as blades.
The fishing line, taut under the force of the large fish, barely scraped against the sharp reefs.
"Squeak."
The fishing rod, bent at an exaggerated angle, snapped upwards in an instant, and the powerful reaction force transmitted from his hand made Xia Nan take two steps back.
The fishing rod, having recovered from its bent state, drooped naturally due to the vibration, and the broken fishing line fell underneath.
Xia Nan stared at the fishing rod in his hand, his gaze frozen for two seconds.
No one knows what he is thinking at this moment.
His facial expression remained unchanged.
But the next second, he gently placed the fishing rod on the ground.
Take one step forward, two steps forward...
"Pfft!"
Water splashed.
The fully armed figure disappeared from the shore.
Instead, there were faint, suppressed wolf howls emanating from beneath the water's surface and fleeting, dark figures.
……
Pure white feathers drifted down from the sky.
Accompanied by the high-frequency hum of magical energy, the short-tailed albatross slowly descended from the sky, its entire body enveloped in radiant light as it transformed and contracted, the timing perfectly controlled.
As the woman's leather boots touched the ground, the last feather on the wingtip scattered with the shards of light, transforming into slender fingers.
Due to inertia, Hein couldn't help but take two more steps forward after landing before she regained her balance.
His gaze fell upon Xia Nan, soaking wet, and the giant grouper in front of him, lying motionless as if struck by a heavy blow—a fish larger than an average human. He casually remarked:
"Looks like you had a good day?"
"It's alright." Xia Nan said without changing his expression, his eyelids slightly lowered. "This coral reef of yours is indeed quite nice, a good place for fishing."
"Hehe." Hearing his praise, Hein couldn't help but smile, clearly pleased with the other's recognition. "That's good."
As a druid of the Coral Society, she doesn't mind hunting within her protected area, as long as it's not excessive fishing or overfishing.
Furthermore, if fishermen in the vicinity encounter difficulties in their lives, she is happy to help them with the resources within her protected area.
What she is concerned with is the balance of the entire ecosystem.
Suddenly, as if she had thought of something, her gaze moved upwards and landed on Xia Nan.
As a proper spellcaster with a professional level and an experienced adventurer, how could she not notice the excellence and uniqueness of the other party's brand-new armor?
The layers of bone and steel that conform to the body's curves are definitely not something that ordinary craftsmen could create, and the faintly turbulent magical particles in the air further indicate that this is an enchanted piece of equipment.
For some reason, when Hein saw the armor, she had a strange feeling, as if she were seeing the terrifying shark beast that had almost wiped out her Blade of Vengeance team in Twin Valleys.
Especially when she saw seawater trickling down Xia Nan's arm muscles and onto his dark, sharkskin-like bodysuit.
His lips involuntarily twitched twice, as if he wanted to ask something.
However, due to the taboo surrounding personal information among adventurers, he ultimately refrained from speaking up.
Noticing the druid's gaze not far from him, Xia Nan shifted his look from the grouper, looked up at the druid, and asked with a puzzled expression:
"What's wrong? Is there something strange?"
“No…” Hein shook her head and changed the subject, “I’ve heard from others about a unique way of cooking this kind of fish.”
"Put it on the stove and heat it with steam. They say that this will preserve the freshness of the fish to the greatest extent. Do you want to try it?"
Steam heating?
Xia Nan, who possessed memories of her past life, seemed to have thought of something, and her expression suddenly became somewhat strange.
Speaking of which, grouper does seem to taste better when steamed, and I never thought that people in this world would discover this as well.
He nodded and replied:
“Sure, I’ll take it back to Suyu Bay and have the cook at the Three-Legged Seal restaurant try making it.”
"Remember to invite Lorraine and Sasha to come and try this fish that I caught."
Unaware of Xia Nan's carefully chosen words, Hai Yin smiled and was about to say something when she suddenly paused, turning to look at the other side of the coast.
This coral reef is an area of responsibility that she, as a druid, is required to protect. Over the years, it has developed an invisible connection with her, so even though Xia Nan has a stronger perception attribute, her reaction is still a step slower than the other party's.
Only after Hein turned around did she look in the direction the other person was looking.
What came into view were several fishing boats of moderate size.
The standard design is common and not uncommon in Suyu Bay.
But standing on the deck at this moment were not the weathered fishermen with dark skin from years of exposure to the scorching sun, but a large group of young people with fierce faces and a carefree attitude.
Most importantly, they were throwing their fishing nets into the sea.
The sturdy ropes are tightly interwoven, yet the mesh is so small that you can't even insert a finger.
Hain doesn't mind normal fishing activities, even if they occur in the coral reef area she protects.
However, if the other party is using a dense trawl net that catches even the fish fry, then as a druid, she really needs to have a word with them.
In a flash of magical light, it transformed once again into a short-tailed albatross.
It flapped its wings and flew quickly toward the fishing boat.
Xia Nan, standing on the shore, certainly couldn't just stand by and watch.
Even disregarding his status as teammates with Hein, the fact that Hein was willing to take him fishing at this coral reef was enough for Xia Nan to lend a hand when Hein encountered trouble.
Moreover, his exceptional eyesight allowed him to spot a familiar, carefree figure on the deck of the fishing boat.
(End of this chapter)