Chapter 503: Release

Leave the dock.

Even though it is night.

The boat piloted by Lao Fu Tou isn't slow.

This sea area is familiar, and the wind is calm, the waves smooth, the weather is excellent; along the way we encountered many fishing boats that were working.

On the sea surface.

Lights speckle.

In the sky.

The bright moon hangs high.

They say the fifteenth's moon is fullest on the sixteenth; this eighteenth‑nineteenth moon is no less generous.

Like a white jade plate.

Hanging in the sky, falling onto the sea.

Wu An idles, leaning against the side of the boat, watching the sky and the sea.

A Qing and Mei Wu are not idle; they are busy attaching bait to the Longline Fishing, and once they reach the target area they just toss it into the sea. This trip they didn't prepare an Adhesive Net.

Or rather, Wu An basically intends to abandon the Adhesive Net operation.

Why?

The Adhesive Net operation harms the catch too much; fish that hit the net don't die instantly but thrash violently. If they die it's fine, but the ones that survive suffer severe damage by the time they're hauled up.

Most of the catch hauled up from the Adhesive Net isn't of good quality.

Secondly.

Sorting them out is too troublesome.

An ordinary fisherman, with a thousand‑meter Adhesive Net, can get a few thousand yuan worth of catch, which is already good; his next net brings up catches worth tens of thousands.

Considering the difficulty of sorting them, it increases geometrically.

There are only a few people on their boat, truly they can't keep up.

One must admit.

The Adhesive Net harvest is decent, but the cost‑performance isn't high.

Therefore, after discussing with Lao Fu and the others, Wu An decides to focus on Longline Fishing and Crab Pot. Although Longline Fishing requires more effort to attach bait and raises bait cost, the fish hauled up have high survival rates and their quality is essentially undamaged.

A fish's death is lighter than a swan's feather.

But if they can be sold for a high price, it's not in vain for the fish's life.

Wu An does have some consideration for the fish.

If the fish knew, they'd probably thank Wu An and even bring along eight generations of ancestors.

A Qing shouts, "Brother, stop slacking off and help out."

Wu An let out an "eh," walks over to help attach bait, "I'm not slacking; I'm thinking."

A Qing asks, "Thinking about what?"

Wu An, embarrassed and angry, retorts, "It's none of your business!"

Mei Wu chuckles, "Thinking about how to slack off?"

Wu An: "Grass (a simple plant)."

Hang it then.

The three‑kilometer Longline Fishing, some have been hung.

……

Eleven o'clock at night.

The fishing boat arrives near Xuan Ya Dao.

Lao Fu Tou says, "No working fishing boats in sight."

"No buoys either."

"It looks like the Fan Clan father and son haven't come here to work."

Wu An gave a reply.

They quickly began the operation.

The Longline Fishing is cast into the sea; the three‑kilometer line, with extra hooks, barely consumes a hundred points of Luck Value, and another hundred‑plus points of Luck Value had nowhere to be used.

Deploying the Longline Fishing is simpler; Lao Fu Tou steers the boat, and A Qing and Mei Wu cooperate like an assembly line, smoothly lowering the line into the sea.

Wu An, idle as ever, finds the Fishing Rod that Lao Fu Tou left on the boat.

Lao Fu Tou, having money, besides buying ginseng and other pricey herbs for wine, only has fishing as a hobby; it's not just a hobby, it also brings extra income.

Wu An asks, "Lao Fu, I'm preparing to fish for a gathering of fish; which rod should I take?"

Lao Fu Tou points casually, "Use the Release Rod; just attach the bait."

Wu An's head spins.

He can't say he knows much about fishing gear; he's clueless. Previously, making money fishing was only possible by cheating with Luck Boost to trigger the Linked Rod's explosive protection.

Later, once he had a boat to go to sea, there was little chance to fish.

He fetched a set, asked Lao Fu Tou to equip it, but Lao Fu Tou refused, instead gave him a high‑power electric reel; after it was set up, Wu An took a look.

The gear in his hand can actually add 30 points of Luck Value, more than a thousand‑meter Longline Fishing can, and he worries that throwing it into the sea might result in the fish pulling him down rather than him pulling fish up.

Because the gear's description is simple and clear: it bites the bait without fail.

What does that mean?

Even a Killer Whale could be hooked, and the line won't snap, but… if the rod and line don't break, he still can't haul up a Killer Whale.

In the end, the only option is he throws the Fishing Rod away to save his life.

Wu An couldn't help asking, "Lao Fu, this set isn't cheap, is it? It must cost tens of thousands of yuan?"

Lao Fu Tou smiled and said, "Add a zero."

Wu An went numb.

Is this set worth a small car?

Lao Fu Tou said, "Before I couldn't bear to buy it, but now I have a few million; not spending this much on better gear would make me uneasy."

Wu An nodded, frankly speaking, he actually couldn't quite understand.

He guessed that Lao Fu Tou's gear would cost several tens of thousands of w.

Lao Fu Tou boasted, "A An, just cast boldly; this set can haul in a three- or four-hundred-jin tuna even if you meet one."

Wu An scratched his head, "Your gear can hold up, but I don't know if I can."

The stern is off-limits.

Wu An could only find a random spot, bait the hook, cast hard, and start free-flow fishing.

Normally.

Free-flow fishing is usually done at the stern, but since A Qing and Mei Wu are still working there, he has to settle for second best; anyway, it doesn't matter where.

In any case, it's just trolling.

It's the same wherever.

Lao Fu Tou watched, unable to resist reminding, "A An, fishing isn't done like that; you need to tug and make the bait move."

"That way it's easier to hook a fish."

Wu An casually said, "Too much trouble; I'll just fish like this."

"No problem."

"You'll hook a fish right away."

Although the fishing boat wasn't fast, with the current's help, the line quickly went out over a hundred meters.

Lao Fu Tou wanted to say it was impossible, but he held back; Wu An's luck at sea is beyond ordinary comparison.

The result.

Just as that thought crossed his mind, the next moment Wu An really hooked a fish.

The electric winch kicked in.

Soon the fish was pulled up.

It was a black bream.

It wasn't small.

Wu An grabbed the fishing line, held up the fish, and said, "Lao Fu, this one must weigh four or five jin."

The bait he'd hooked wasn't small; for this black bream to bite was no easy feat.

A Qing and Mei Wu were setting longlines; hearing Wu An's catch, they shouted inquiries, their hands also itching.

Lao Fu Tou laughed and shouted, "Nice! Keep it up—see if you can land a monster."

Hearing that, Wu An quickly found a bigger bait and hooked it.

We're all fishing now.

That definitely means the bigger the catch, the better.

Cast into the sea.

The line went out.

"Swish swish swish."

After letting out about two hundred meters, Wu An boredly yawned; suddenly the rod tip dipped and a force burst forth on the rod.

Wu An hurriedly steadied his stance.

"Holy shit!"

"What strong force!"

"Haha, hooked a big one."