I became the King of Ryukyu

Uncle Straw Hat never expected that the entire estuary would be turned upside down by the frantically leveling-up White Dragon. The remaining fish and shrimp scattered and fled, leaving the entire body of water empty.

I waited expectantly for three whole hours, but the float on the sea surface didn't move at all, and there wasn't even a sound of small fish nibbling at the bait.

Staring at the calm water, the straw-hatted uncle repeatedly checked his hooks, bait, and fishing spot, but after a long time he still had no luck. Finally, he slumped down on the bank, looking puzzled and devastated, his face full of doubt about life and the fishing grounds.

He suddenly caught a glimpse of a figure under the mangroves out of the corner of his eye and recognized him immediately—it was the young man who jogged along the coastline every morning.

He immediately picked up his small stool and went over, his voice carrying a familiar warmth:

"Hey! Isn't this Brother Zheng Yi who goes for a morning run every day? What brings you to the river mouth to fish today? I thought you only had running as a hobby."

Zheng Yigang, enduring the nausea of ​​chewing raw fish, opened his eyes and saw the hundred million he had missed. He forced a smile and said, "Oh, not guarding the beach today? I had nothing to do, so I brought a fishing rod to kill some time."

"Hey, don't even mention it." The straw-hatted uncle plopped down, waving his hands with a frustrated expression. "The seaside connects to the Sky Army, and I figured the estuary would be teeming with fish, so I came here specifically to try my luck. But I've been sitting here for three hours, and the float's as still as if it were nailed to the water—not a single fish has even nibbled at the bait. How's it going for you? Any luck?"

Looking at the middle-aged man's face, Zheng Yi remembered the money he had missed out on and couldn't help but grit his teeth and say, "It's alright. Fishing is something anyone can do."

"Young man, you're really full of vigor!" The straw hat uncle laughed on the spot, thinking that Zheng Yi was just bragging.

He fishes every day and doesn't have this confidence, but this kid is talking big with a worn-out old rod with the paint chipped off.

He was about to make a joke, "Young man, don't be so arrogant," when he heard a splash and Zheng Yi's crooked old fishing rod suddenly bent into a full moon, the tip of the rod vibrating and buzzing.

"Wow, they came right away."

Zheng Yi casually picked up the fishing rod, and with a gentle flick of his wrist, a black sea bream weighing over two pounds was pulled out of the water, its silvery scales gleaming. Its plump body was splashing happily in the sunlight.

The smile on the straw hat uncle's face froze instantly.

Before he could even catch his breath, Zheng Yi picked up the fish and tossed it into the bucket at his feet, then casually cast the fishing hook into the water—the rod tip sank sharply almost the instant it hit the water.

Another one, a spotted bass weighing over a pound.

Throw it again, yellowfin seabream.

Throw it again, and you get a croaker almost as long as your arm.

A continuous line, a pure continuous line. Not only are there no duplicate species, but every single one is a plump, wild-caught fish, as if they're lining up to crash into the hook.

The straw-hatted uncle was so amused that he forgot to put down the bait box he was holding.

Little did he know that underwater, the little white dragon was swishing its tail as a dedicated "fish hooker," releasing a weak electric current from the tip of its tail to stun the passing fish, and then precisely placing the fish's mouth onto the hook, providing service as attentive as a self-service food machine.

It's exactly the same approach as those so-called fishing experts online.

"Wow...you've been hiding it well!" The middle-aged man took two steps forward, staring intently at the fishing line and hook, but couldn't detect a single trick. His imported equipment worth tens of thousands of dollars, his secret-recipe Antarctic krill bait—couldn't possibly be outmatched by an old bamboo pole that was practically covered in patina?

Zheng Yi pulled up another grouper the size of a palm, tossed it into the bucket with a "thud," and raised an eyebrow at him, saying, "See? I told you that hands would suffice."

Zheng Yi was still trying to show off when a game notification suddenly appeared in front of him:

[The Lament of the Weeping Fish: King Wei and his favorite minister, Lord Longyang, were fishing together in a boat. After catching more than a dozen fish, Lord Longyang suddenly cried, saying, "At first I was very happy to catch fish, but when I caught bigger ones, I wanted to throw away the smaller ones. Now that I, ugly as I am, have gained favor, if all the beauties in the world hear of this and come to me, Your Majesty will also abandon me like you abandoned the small fish." King Wei then issued an edict throughout the country forbidding the offering of beauties—the later phrase "Longyang's Favor" originates from this story, using fishing as a metaphor to express the unease of a favored minister.]

Seeing your handsome appearance, like a jade crown, and the way you fished alongside a middle-aged tycoon, and that you also caught more than ten fish, Lord Longyang thought you were one of him, both being kept in the cages of those in power. He couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy and thus bestowed upon you an item for self-defense.

You have obtained the skill book "Dragon Yang Fencing Technique"

【Longyang Swordsmanship: Although Lord Longyang was the male favorite of King Anxi of Wei, he was also one of the top swordsmen in Wei, possessing extremely high swordsmanship skills. Note: When used in female attire, it triggers a 100% critical hit rate.】

Zheng Yi was stunned.

He was truly stunned.

Whether praised by Cao Cao or despised by the perfect old dog, he had never experienced such a complete mental breakdown as he did today.

The wealthy man in the straw hat stood there, looking at Zheng Yi's overflowing fish basket, his face full of worry.

Both of them looked miserable and remained silent, truly resembling a pair of star-crossed lovers.

Holy crap!

Zheng Yi snapped out of his daze, quickly moved away with a look of disgust, and tossed the newly appeared "Longyang Fencing Technique" from his game inventory to the bottom to avoid accidentally learning it.

Regardless of whether Longyang Jun's fencing was legitimate, it is still a matter of debate.

Take this cross-dressing with full critical hits setting, whoever wants to learn that can learn it!

Zheng Yi made up his mind that he definitely wouldn't learn it.

After thinking for a moment, he opened the general panel and clicked on the chat box.

Is Master Bai Ling here?

[This old monk is catching bugs for the vegetable seedlings. What brings you here, my lord?]

[Vegetable seedlings?]

Yes, the land on this beautiful island is truly amazing. Seeds sown yesterday have already sprouted into seedlings this morning.

[That's quite amazing, but that's not important. I have something else to bestow upon you.]

[Thank you for your generous gift, my lord. But I wonder what it is? Perhaps it would be better to give it to my second senior brother, since he entered the sect before me, and he should receive the reward first.]

[Don't refuse, it has to be you. I have a martial arts manual here, which can only be learned by those with the right destiny. After you learn it, you don't need to call yourself Master Bai Ling anymore, you can just call yourself Master Bai Jie.]

Having said that, Zheng Yi didn't give Bai Jie any more chances to ask questions. He directly clicked to send the file and then closed the chat interface.

then.

Zheng Yi remained silent, only watching as fish were caught in the air.

The expression on the straw hat uncle's face went from shock to bewilderment, and slowly settled into deep self-doubt.

He looked down at his gleaming professional fishing box, then at the overflowing bucket of fish at Zheng Yi's feet, and then back at his still water. His fishing experience accumulated over a decade seemed to crumble at that moment.

He didn't say anything more, silently walked back to his fishing spot, and packed his things without uttering a word. Fishing rod, line, bait, tackle box, he stuffed them into his backpack one by one, his movements so slow it was as if he had lost his soul.

Before leaving, he couldn't help but look back one last time, just in time to see Zheng Yi raise his fishing rod again, the silvery fish drawing a beautiful arc. The young man sat in the shade of the tree, as if he were picking vegetables in his own backyard.

The man in the straw hat, carrying his equipment, walked back along the trail, looking utterly dejected.