Farming Games are All About Grinding

On closer inspection, its tail is short and stubby, and its icon is slightly smaller than the Volcanic Squid's. It looks easy to reel in.

"The real name of this black fish seems to be 'Snakehead,' but judging by the Volcanic Blackfish's appearance, it doesn't seem related to the Snakehead at all." Han Qiwu muttered in confusion, steering the float closer as he geared up to take down this small critter.

We'll know what kind of fish it is after tasting it.

As long as it tastes good, calling it blackfish or even rainbowfish doesn't make a difference.

Once the float got closer, the Volcanic Blackfish appeared agitated, bolting straight toward the float's position before abruptly retreating in the opposite direction.

"Interesting," Han Qiwu chuckled. "It actually knows how to actively charge at the float in search of a way out."

Definitely smarter than the Volcanic Squid.

Let's keep going.

When the float approached the Volcanic Blackfish again, its movement suddenly shifted to mimic the leaping behavior of the Volcanic Heat-resistant Shrimp, darting around at lightning speed.

However, after a few seconds of this, it switched to yet another movement pattern.

"Is this supposed to be 'mysterious'? Are we sure it's not just 'maniacal'?" Han Qiwu muttered in exasperation while watching the Volcanic Blackfish flailing near the float. He cast a lightning spell at it.

That shut it up.

"Will eating this fish make me act like that too?" Han Qiwu wondered nervously while maneuvering the float to cover the Volcanic Blackfish's icon.

But suddenly, he realized something wasn't right.

Why was the progress bar decreasing instead of increasing?

How odd.

Hadn't he already positioned the float perfectly over the fish?

Seeing the Volcanic Blackfish about to make a run for it, Han Qiwu hastily used his Gold Anchor skill to shrink its icon size first.

Sure enough, once the Volcanic Blackfish's icon size was reduced, the progress bar returned to normal, steadily climbing.

Han Qiwu thought for a moment—the issue likely stemmed from the Volcanic Blackfish's disguise ability.

Wait a second.

Could it be disguising a part of its icon to match the color of the fishing game's interface?

That's why its icon appeared smaller than the Volcanic Squid's!

Figuring this out, Han Qiwu intentionally used the float to cover both above and below the Volcanic Blackfish's icon.

With a larger coverage area, the Volcanic Blackfish's little trick was exposed.

Just as he suspected, the Volcanic Blackfish had activated its disguise technique upon entering the game, camouflaging the rear half of its tail.

No wonder its tail looked so short and stubby.

Something was definitely fishy!

[Intimidation]!

Without hesitation, Han Qiwu activated his newly acquired skill, unleashing it on the Volcanic Blackfish.

Suddenly, a regal aura erupted within the game interface!

The energy surrounded the Volcanic Blackfish's icon, instantly nullifying its disguise ability.

With the disguise dropped, the Volcanic Blackfish's icon turned out to be noticeably longer than the Volcanic Squid's—almost as large as the Golden Chef Shark's icon. Its tail wasn't short and stubby at all; instead, it was slender and elongated, resembling an eel's tail.

"Little guy, playing mind games with me, huh?" Han Qiwu murmured in disbelief. If not for the Gold Anchor skill, even spotting the trick wouldn't have been enough to stop it from escaping in the short term.

Gold Anchor is amazing!

From the storage compartment, the Red Sun fish remarked, "Hmph, men."

The Bronze Blade dryly chimed in, "I've seen through it all."

The Training Rod added, "Hehehe!!!"

A few dozen seconds later, the Volcanic Blackfish finally gave in and was reeled up grudgingly.

When you encounter a candidate for the King of the Sea!

I, Lao Hei, surrender!

Han Qiwu took out the Volcanic Blackfish from the storage area for a closer look. In reality, it resembled an inflated eel, completely scaleless, about the same size as the Volcanic Squid, and its mouth was filled with sharp, tiny teeth.

[Volcanic Blackfish]

[Stamina +150]

[Health +70]

[Special Effect - Heat Absorption: The Volcanic Blackfish feeds on Volcanic Squid. Consuming it raises the maximum fire resistance cap by 15 points.]

[Note: A ferocious Volcanic Blackfish]

Heat absorption?

This special effect actually seems pretty intriguing.

In other words, eating a Volcanic Blackfish allows the fire resistance cap to increase from 5 points—obtainable by eating a Volcanic Squid—to 15 points if you consume three Volcanic Squids afterward.

Delightful!

Han Qiwu shook the rain off his raincoat, glanced at the overcast sky, and decided to fish for another hour before heading out for lunch.

Over the next hour, he caught a total of [Volcanic Heat-resistant Shrimp] ×11 and [Volcanic Squid] ×5.

Initially, he had planned to test whether the Volcanic Blackfish could be used as bait to attract higher-level Volcanic fish, but after multiple attempts, he wasn't able to catch another Volcanic Blackfish using the Volcanic Squids. He'd have to try again another time.

"Haven't visited Brother Jing in a while. Why not invite him for some grilled squid? Might as well see how this fish tastes. If it's good, I'll invite Mr. Tang for a meal next time," Han Qiwu thought as he pedaled his bike toward Fisherman's Haven.

As he approached, Han Qiwu saw Brother Jing working out.

Not wanting to interrupt, he waved his catch briefly at Brother Jing before heading into the kitchen to start prepping.

Squid is best eaten fresh. As soon as it leaves the seawater, it starts decaying rapidly. Some unscrupulous vendors load them with all sorts of chemicals to preserve them, making eating one squid feel like taking a whole round of meds!

Han Qiwu grabbed three Volcanic Squids and began scrubbing their tentacles and heads with coarse salt to remove the slightly fishy, slimy residue.

After five minutes of scrubbing, he rinsed the Volcanic Squids thoroughly and began slicing them. Squid needs to be uniformly cut for roasting; if the slices are too thick, they won't cook properly. Tentacles and meat require different cooking times and can't be skewered together.

Slice, slice, slice.

Fifteen minutes later, Han Qiwu had transformed the three Volcanic Squids into twenty-four squid skewers.

After finishing the squid, he started prepping the Volcanic Blackfish.

Like the squid, he planned to grill it too. He sliced it open, flattened it out, discarded the unusable parts, coated it in seasoning, and let it marinate for a while.

"Xiao Han, you went fishing today?" Tang Jing asked as he walked in. "Catch anything special?"

"Caught some squid, going to grill it up and have a taste," Han Qiwu replied with a grin as he donned gloves and pulled out eight bricks from the corner to construct a makeshift barbecue pit. He placed charcoal inside and lit it.

"Squid?" Tang Jing glanced over with curiosity and exclaimed, "You caught squid during the day? Impressive."

Han Qiwu waved his hand dismissively. "It's nothing special. Third-best in the ocean."

Tang Jing smacked Han Qiwu's hand without hesitation, "Don't be so modest. What's this 'third-best' nonsense? Have you been keeping up with your workouts? I don't want to see a skinny monkey standing next to Qingying."

"You're first, Mr. Tang is second, and I'm third," Han Qiwu effortlessly replied, flexing his arm at Tang Jing as he finished.

"I'm strong!"