C3 Fishing

Liu Feng hit the books until 10:30 PM before finally turning in for the night. By 11 PM, he had taken charge of the land and promptly fell asleep.

Come 6 AM, the alarm clock jolted him awake.

Upon checking the system, he was pleased to find his Stamina fully restored!

As any diligent farmer would, Liu Feng headed out early to inspect his fields.

Reaching the field, he was greeted by the robust growth of his roses. Spying some weeds, he deftly wielded his hoe from his backpack, meticulously weeding each plot of land.

"Done!" Hands on hips, hoe in hand, Liu Feng's face beamed with satisfaction.

But as he stowed the hoe away, he noticed an issue.

[Hoe] Durability: 40/60.

[Watering Can] Durability: 45/60.

Other tools showed similar wear and tear.

Liu Feng felt a twinge of irritation: Wasn't the system supposed to be unbeatable? Why bother with such petty details?

Grumbling to himself, he pondered his next move.

"That's right, the system mentioned yesterday was perfect for fishing. Time to give it a shot!"

"Fish caught with the system's rod can restore its Stamina."

"And with Stamina, I can achieve so much more."

But before he could step off his land, the system pinged him with an extra alert.

[No fence surrounds the outer layer of the system land, allowing ordinary people access.]

The host can construct a fence to fully conceal the system land.

Pitfall!

Another expletive crossed Liu Feng's mind.

He could hide a vast hundred acres, yet this tiny patch of system land required a manual cover-up?

Resigned, he clicked for more details on fence construction.

[Logging] The system's logging site provided timber, which was then transported back and crafted into fences. These fences needed to be secured with iron wire, available for purchase at the system store or mined from the system's quarry.

"This is ridiculously hard!"

Liu Feng's resolve wavered; the system seemed more trouble than it was worth.

Remembering the system had an unbind button, he contemplated checking it out.

Though he was just speaking off the cuff for now, who knows, maybe one day he'd really want to cut ties!

[Unbind]

He clicked.

System Alert:

[Unable to Unbind]

Details: Host level too low to initiate unbinding. Forceful unbinding will result in a loss of twenty years of the host's real-life lifespan.

Life's too precious; better not to unbind after all!

Liu Feng hopped on his cherished scooter and zoomed off to the system's designated fishing spot.

The seaside was blissfully serene.

Even better, the beach was devoid of tourists.

"Time for some peaceful fishing!" Liu Feng declared, setting off with purpose.

"Hey, kid, what are you up to?"

Before Liu Feng could take another step, a burly man with a thick beard called out to him.

Liu Feng, still a student and quite the looker, felt a bit intimidated by the rugged stranger.

"I'm here to fish!" Liu Feng responded.

"Fishing? With what? You've got nothing on you," the big man probed.

Liu Feng froze. His fishing rod was still in the system backpack, and he hadn't taken it out.

And since only he could see the system backpack, he appeared empty-handed.

Faced with the man's stern look, Liu Feng scratched his head, searching for an explanation.

Then it hit him. "Oh, right, I was in such a rush I forgot my fishing rod. I'll head back and grab it now!"

But the big man just chuckled. "No need to bother, I'll lend you one."

Without waiting for Liu Feng's consent, the man went back into his house and returned with a fishing rod that looked pretty high-end.

Liu Feng was about to decline when the system suddenly lit up.

[Additional Mission Triggered]

[Senior's Gift]

Objective: Use the senior's advanced fishing rod to catch fifteen different types of sea fish within three days.

Completion Reward: Beginner's Fishing Technique Mastery.

An opportunity like this doesn't come by often; no point in turning it down.

"Thanks, Uncle," Liu Feng said with a grateful smile as he took the rod.

"Thanks for what? It's not like I'm lending it to you for nothing!" the uncle retorted.

Liu Feng was taken aback. Was he expecting payment?

"There's a good number of fish today, but I just can't be bothered to fish. If you catch any, just toss a few my way," he said nonchalantly before sauntering off.

Liu Feng smirked. The uncle was kind of endearing.

He picked out what he thought was the perfect fishing spot, well within the system-recommended area.

Pulling out his fishing rod from his backpack, Liu Feng knew that only fish caught with this system-provided rod could restore his system stamina. But when he saw the rod, he was baffled—it looked like nothing more than a child's toy! Barely a meter long with a short line, its only advantage was the bait that came with it.

"Whatever, I'll deal with the setback," Liu Feng muttered as he started to fish.

But as soon as he cast the line, he noticed something was off. This wasn't like any fishing he'd done before—it was all dictated by the system, which even provided helpful prompts on the display.

[Fishing Level: Beginner]

[Fishing Rod Condition: Normal]

[Fishing Float: Too Shallow]

A toy rod that's this smart?

With a slight grin, Liu Feng adjusted the float.

System notification:

[Fishing Float: Suitable]

After casting the system's rod, Liu Feng turned his attention to the advanced rod he had borrowed from a senior. But then the system chimed in:

[Host's Fishing Level Too Low: Cannot Use Advanced Fishing Rod]

"What? Are you trying to frustrate me to death?" Liu Feng was at a loss for words. The system task required him to catch fifteen fish with an advanced rod, and now it was utterly unusable!

How was he supposed to complete the task?

As Liu Feng was grumbling, the float dipped sharply.

System alert:

[Yellow Croaker: Hooked]

He swiftly lifted the rod, only to come up empty.

Another system prompt:

[Host's Technique Incorrect]

Fishing required technique?

He read the instructions carefully:

Match the fish's rhythm—sink, float, sink, then lift the rod.

Time for another go.

Cast the line.

System prompt: One fishing action completed, stamina -1.

Fishing even sapped his stamina. Liu Feng took a deep breath to steady himself and calm his mind.

The bobber twitched once more, and Liu Feng executed the technique as instructed by the system.

As expected, he had a bite.

A small yellow croaker, weighing just under two taels.

The system chimed in:

[Small Yellow Croaker: One fish, 95 grams, can restore 3 points of physical energy.]

Simultaneously, completing the fishing action once depleted 1 point of physical energy.

That meant after three casts, catching a fish meant breaking even.

He continued to fish, and on the second try, he was successful again.

Another Small Yellow Croaker, this one 180 grams, could restore 6 points of physical energy.

The replenishment of physical energy was indeed determined by the size of the fish—such a humanized feature.

Cast, reel in, cast, reel in.

Nearly two hours had passed, and Liu Feng remembered he still needed to water his plants. He packed up his fishing rod and headed home.

The catch was decent: ten Small Yellow Croakers, totaling about two pounds.

Of course, the weight of the fish wasn't the main concern; replenishing the system's physical energy was paramount.

Still, he felt obliged to share some with the uncle, even though he hadn't ended up using the borrowed rod.

"Uncle, I've got to head back for some errands. I caught ten Small Yellow Croakers today. I'll leave five for you!"

The uncle stepped out to inspect Liu Feng's catch.

With a hint of disdain, he said, "That's it? Never mind, keep them for yourself."

The Small Yellow Croakers were too commonplace for his liking.

Liu Feng didn't insist. These were the very fish designated by the system! It was best to keep them.

So, he handed the fishing rod back to the uncle. "Uncle, here's your rod back! By the way, what should I call you?"

"Hai Wei!"