The boat Lin Yang used during the competition was out at sea.
What Lin Yang didn’t know was that after catching the marlin on the third day of the competition, the captain had taken his beloved yacht to the repair shop immediately upon returning, for an overnight full-body checkup. The yacht’s odd behavior during the day had worried him.
However, the final inspection results showed that everything was normal with the boat, as if the daytime anomalies had been an illusion, which baffled the captain.
But since the inspectors assured him there was no problem, the captain had to regard the earlier anomalies as mere illusions.
The fishing boat set off, heading straight to the fishing spot they used during the competition.
This spot had yielded a world-record-breaking marlin, and its fame had spread, so by the time they arrived, several other fishing boats were already there fishing.
However, since it wasn’t during a competition period, having a few extra boats around wasn’t a problem, and it didn’t make much difference.
Once the captain had anchored, the people on board grabbed their fishing rods and began to fish.
At first, while they weren’t catching any fish, they chatted and enjoyed the sea breeze, which was quite pleasant.
Wanting to leave Li Xiaopeng and Yue’er an unforgettable sea fishing experience, Lin Yang discreetly activated a few buffs.
Although the effects of the buffs were directed at him, the people fishing nearby could also benefit significantly.
Originally, Lin Yang had wanted Yue’er to try drift fishing, which only required placing the bait fish in the sea to drift with the waves, attracting big fish to bite, without requiring much effort before getting a bite.
But upon hearing that she caught the big marlin using the Wave Crawler technique, she immediately insisted on using Wave Crawler as well.
After all, which angler wouldn’t want to catch a fish bigger than themselves?
Yue’er felt the same, the bigger, the better.
Seeing her determination, Lin Yang just let her do as she wished, set up a Wave Crawler rig, carefully explained the casting technique and bait control, and then let Yue’er take over.
Of course, Lin Yang didn’t go away, but instead stayed nearby to watch. Although Yue’er’s fishing skills weren’t particularly good, the probability of catching a big fish was still there; it was better to keep an eye on her.
"Whoosh!"
"Squeak squeak squeak..."
"Wow! I got a bite!"
Lin Yang was just daydreaming when Yue’er lifted her fishing rod, and her reel sounded the drag alarm, indicating she had a bite.
To be safe, he had previously loosened Yue’er’s reel drag, so when the reel squeaked, it didn’t necessarily mean the fish on the hook was very large.
He still needed to confirm.
"How is it? Is the fish big? Can you handle it?"
"It should be pretty big! Listen to that sound, wow, wow, wow—it sounds amazing! But the drag seems a bit loose, I’ll tighten it up a bit."
At this moment, Yue’er, holding the rod with both hands, excitedly stared at the fishing line extending from the pole, looking very relaxed.
Perhaps because the sound of the reel’s drag was too exciting, Yue’er tightened the drag knob after a while.
While keeping an eye on the speed of the line coming off the reel, she tightened the drag until the speed of the line finally slowed down to where the fish could pull the line off the reel when it exerted force, but not when it relaxed.
This was the ideal state for playing a fish, allowing for maximum depletion of the fish’s energy.
Of course, if an angler’s strength far exceeds that of the fish in the sea and they don’t want to play the fish, pulling it in directly would be more efficient!
However, they were here to enjoy fishing today, not producing or competing, and since they couldn’t take the fish they caught with them, they just did whatever made them happy.
As Yue’er increased the reel’s drag, the force transmitted through the fishing rod increased, and her hands began to falter.
When her hands could no longer hold the rod, there were generally two methods to handle this situation.
One was to stick the rod into the ground, and use the foot to brace against it, then holding the rod as a pivot point, using one’s own body weight to counteract the pulling force from the rod.
Another was to wedge the rod under one’s groin, also using the hand holding the rod as a pivot to resist the rod’s pull.
Since they were on a boat and using a cast rod, sticking it into the ground wasn’t an option for reeling in.
"...."
Seeing this, Yue’er wanted to slap her forehead; how had she forgotten to equip Yue’er with a belly belt?
Wedge the rod under the groin was a decent method, but... it was a bit indecent.
Especially when fishing in the sea, where the ferocious power far exceeded that of freshwater fish.
"Yue’er, take it easy, I’ll grab a belly belt for you!"
"It’s okay, I think I can still hold on."
Although Yue’er said she didn’t need it, how could Lin Yang take her word for it? Fishing was fun, but safety measures were still necessary.
He hurried to the cabin and brought back a belly belt.
"Shall I put the belt on for you?"
"No need, no need, I haven’t caught such a big fish in a long time, I want to fully experience this—wearing that thing would spoil the experience."
Yue’er declined his offer again, as wearing a belly belt while fishing felt like wearing "that thing" with "that thing."
Although she was a girl, Yue’er felt confident she could handle catching one or two big fish.