Chapter 11: Securing One Hundred and Thirty-Two Pounds of Large Catfish

Jiang Fan quickly reeled in the line, but this time the giant catfish’s strength was immense, once again dragging the spinning reel with a sharp, creaking sound.

Fearing the hook would come loose, he reluctantly loosened the line, allowing the giant catfish to rush toward the middle of the river, then swim downstream.

Jiang Fan ran in the direction the giant catfish was heading.

After more than half a minute of running, the giant catfish still showed no sign of stopping.

He immediately began to slowly reel in the line, yet the giant catfish continued its relentless pull, the spinning reel creaking loudly. Its strength was clearly much greater than when it had first struggled with Jiang Fan.

Perhaps this was the true power of a hundred-pound beast.

Sunshine always follows the storm; Jiang Fan knew that success was not far off.

Judging by the force it exerted while dragging, the fish would soon tire and give in.

But Jiang Fan worried that at the final moment, it might shake off the hook, rendering all his efforts for naught.

With this in mind, he eased the tension again, letting the giant catfish drag the line around wildly. As long as it didn’t sink and entangle the line around submerged rotten wood or stones, he would follow wherever it led.

“What’s going on? Is the giant catfish making one last desperate attempt?”

“Could it have been scared off by those fishermen earlier?”

“No idea, but this pull is definitely stronger than before.”

“This is it, I feel like the hook’s about to come loose!”

“We’ve been reeling it in so long, if it slips the hook now, it’ll be a real blow!”

“Slap!”

Amid the buzz of comments from the livestream viewers and the fishermen on site, the giant catfish suddenly slapped the water hard, then lay still as if dead.

It’s happening, it’s finally over—the giant catfish couldn’t hold out any longer.

Seizing the moment, Jiang Fan began to reel it in, dragging the giant catfish back toward the shore.

This time, the giant catfish no longer resisted, having resigned itself to fate.

Clearly, its fierce struggle moments ago was a final, desperate fight.

“Ha! Look at that, the beast is completely worn out!”

“What kind of stamina does that guy have? To tire out a hundred-pound giant like that—he’d be wasted not working at the White Horse Club!”

“I bet he could tire out a whole bull, pure strength of a god!”

“Wait, he’s handsome and has that kind of stamina? I’m interested!”

“Mmm! If he were my husband, just thinking about it makes me feel great!”

“Why isn’t he our university dorm supervisor? Then I could have a handsome guy checking my attendance every day!”

“…”

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“Why are there so many girls in the fishermen’s livestream?”

“Isn’t it because the guy reeling in the fish is handsome? I’ve been single for twenty years—I’m so jealous! Really jealous!”

“What’s wrong with girls? Can’t girls like fishing too?”

“Are you here for the fish? I’m too embarrassed to burst your bubble!”

---

Besides the livestream viewers, the fishermen on site cheered excitedly.

“It’s a success!”

“That giant must be out of strength now, right?”

“I told you that guy was great—he’s practically a master angler, terrifyingly good!”

Huang Mao and Ma Dongdong jumped up and down with excitement.

“Master, master, would you consider taking an apprentice?”

“Dad! I beg you, can I take a photo with this giant fish?”

Jiang Fan dragged the giant catfish to the shore about a meter away, then, with the help of several fishermen, hauled it fully onto land.

“Holy crap! Holy crap! Definitely over a hundred pounds! I’m uneducated, but ‘holy crap’ says it all!”

“First time I’ve ever seen such a huge catfish—absolutely breathtaking!”

“Gotta say, your stamina is incredible. I’ve been fishing for decades, and if I had to reel that in, I’d be dragged into the water in under half an hour.”

“Old man, stop bragging. You’re old, you wouldn’t last a minute!”

“Ahem, young man, please respect your elders.”

Amid the chorus of praise, the system chimed loudly.

【Ding! Ding! Ding! Congratulations, host, you have caught a 132-pound giant catfish. System cash reward triggered at 280x multiplier!】

【Wild giant catfish: 132 pounds, market price: 4 yuan per pound.】

【Ding! Congratulations, host has earned 132×4×280 = 147,840 yuan RMB!】

【Ding! Congratulations, host has gained 2,500 emotion points!】

Seeing the nearly 150,000 yuan earned and 2,500 emotion points gained, Jiang Fan wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled with relief.

His grueling battle with the giant catfish had lasted over an hour, and this sum was the equivalent of many people’s two-year income.

This was a windfall!

In the past, he wouldn’t have dared to dream of making 150,000 yuan in just over an hour.

---

By now, Jiang Fan had a rough understanding of the system’s advantages.

When catching big fish, the money and emotion points earned were far greater than usual.

For example, yesterday he used a pack of wild blue crucian carp bait for three or four hours and earned just over three thousand yuan and 225 emotion points.

But today, catching a single 132-pound giant brought him 150,000 yuan and 2,500 emotion points—far beyond yesterday’s haul.

At this rate, why bother fishing for small fry anymore? He’d go straight for the giants!

Catching a single hundred-pound beast was equivalent to a month’s income from small fish.

Of course, giant fish were rare and not encountered every day.

But thanks to the system’s bait, his chances of encountering giants were much higher than those of other fishermen.

Just look at Zhou Hong—yesterday he caught nothing, but today, using the bait Jiang Fan gave him, he landed a 35-pound bighead carp.

Then Jiang Fan’s own catches: twenty-some pounds, then 132 pounds…

All this proved that the system’s bait greatly increased the odds of encountering giants.

“That big catfish swallowed the fake bait whole—that’s why it took so long to get it off the hook.”

“The master’s skill is undeniable, but the luck is pretty impressive too.”

“Dad! I’ll buy that fish from you at four yuan per pound, wild big catfish from Yuanshan Town. Will you sell it?”

Jiang Fan waved his hand. “Not selling, not selling. I spent over an hour reeling it in the river; I haven’t even tried reeling it in on the street yet!”

“Ha, looks like another fisherman is going to have trouble finding his way home today!”

“Handsome guy! Handsome guy!”

At that moment, the streamer who had been broadcasting Jiang Fan’s battle with the giant catfish approached with a smile.

“Handsome guy, I’m Wu Xiao’er, a fishing influencer on Douyin. I wanted to ask if I can post clips of your fish fight online?”

To fishermen, catching a big fish was a cause for universal celebration. Jiang Fan didn’t mind at all.

“Sure, go ahead. But remember to make the fish look bigger, thanks.”

Fishermen’s thoughts were simple: while others might edit photos to look more handsome or beautiful, fishermen only cared about the size of the fish.

Wu Xiao’er laughed heartily. “Haha, I’ll make it look like a 300-pounder!”

Jiang Fan’s consent thrilled Wu Xiao’er.

Such a huge giant catfish, with nearly 20,000 viewers on the livestream, would definitely bring a wave of traffic on Douyin.

Besides that, many people on site also recorded videos and posted snippets on Douyin, Kuaishou, Bilibili, and other short video platforms.

What Jiang Fan didn’t know was that catching this 132-pound giant catfish made him something of a minor sensation on these short video platforms.