The Top Fishing
Chapter 771 - 321: The Great Species War

Chapter 771: Chapter 321: The Great Species War

As Lin Yang reeled in, the fish struggled and sprinted repeatedly, but ultimately couldn’t escape its fate of being caught.

With only 10 minutes left in the competition, the fish was finally brought ashore.

On camera, everyone could also clearly see what kind of fish it was.

To everyone’s surprise, it was another new species!

The fish, seen to be much wider than the previous ones, had a high, arching back. Its scales were blueish-gray, and its belly faded into white. Its huge mouth looked like it could even swallow a human head, which was quite terrifying!

"What kind of fish is this? It looks a bit like a sea bass?"

"It does resemble a sea bass, but this one is so big. I’ve never heard of a sea bass that could grow this large."

"Even with sea bass, they aren’t that big, and if you look closely at its scales and patterns, they seem to be quite different from the usual sea bass we see."

"Somebody knowledgeable, please explain!"

This time, none of the anglers in the live stream could identify the fish.

At this point, it was Xia Xiaoxue who stepped forward. She had been almost entirely focused on Lin Yang’s fishing result, and seeing how he was respected by these professional anglers, she couldn’t help but envy him. She wished she could have such status in the fishing circle, but it was just a wish—becoming a top master like Lin Yang was extremely difficult.

Xia Xiaoxue was also extremely passionate about fishing, her dedication to it bordering on obsession, but regrettably, as a girl, she was naturally at a disadvantage in terms of physical strength.

Therefore, her level in fishing had hit a ceiling, making it difficult to improve further.

However, when it came to fishing knowledge, she considered herself second to none, and this especially applied to recognizing different fish species.

Seeing that everyone in the live stream was asking about the type of fish, Xia Xiaoxue began to explain with a smile.

"Dear viewers, let me clarify for you all. Some of the anglers were right, this is a sea bass. More specifically, it’s a Nile Perch!

However, it’s not a local species of sea bass but, like the African catfish and Crocodile Sparrowfish we saw earlier, it is also an introduced species. It comes from the Nile River, a Nile Perch, to be precise!

According to records, the size of a Nile Perch can grow up to over 200 kilograms, which is nearly 500 pounds, making it incredibly terrifying as smaller creatures can become its prey.

But in our native waters, unlike the previously mentioned Crocodile Sparrowfish and African catfish, the Nile Perch differs because it’s edible and tasty, so it’s not considered an invasive species here but rather an economic fish.

In the wild, it’s quite difficult to find Nile Perch that weigh over 20 pounds domestically because our local gourmets would surely do everything in their power to get them onto the dinner table ahead of time—they’re just that delicious. Compared to our local sea bass, the taste of the Nile Perch is second to none, being one of the tastiest fish species.

Especially as big as the one Master Lin caught, the flavor must be absolutely incredible. Master Lin is indeed fortunate!

I guess only in a premium waters like Qianxia Lake can you find such a large Nile Perch..."

After Xia Xiaoxue’s explanation, the audience had an epiphany.

"So it is, another introduced species. But since it’s delicious, I forgive it!"

"If we are to release fish, let’s release some tasty ones like this."

"I can’t believe I’m amused by the comment above. I’ve decided, I’ll have steamed sea bass for dinner tonight, and if possible, get a Nile Perch to taste!"

...

As Lin Yang landed the enormous Nile Perch, his performance in this competition was set in stone.

Two target pike, one more than 90 pounds and the other over 100 pounds, totaling more than 200 pounds, firmly secured the championship for the day!

While he only caught two, both were huge catches.

Moreover, his additional performance was the most dazzling of all, three large fish each over 100 pounds—a Crocodile Sparrowfish, an African catfish, and a Nile Perch—all of them introduced species!

This fact led countless people to lament the severity of alien species invasions in our country’s natural waters.

The large fish weighing nearly or over 200 pounds were all introduced species, particularly the African catfish and Crocodile Sparrowfish, which do no good to the natural waters and even seriously damage the ecological balance.

In a strict sense, the Nile Perch is also like the two aforementioned species in that it’s invasive and harmful to the ecological environment, with the only difference being that Nile Perch can be used for food and tastes good, thereby preventing its proliferation.

But regardless, such invasive species are harmful to our country’s natural waters.

After Lin Yang caught the last 100-pound fish, he looked somewhat sheepishly at the beautiful woman next to him.

"Ha ha, it’s just a coincidence. I didn’t even expect to catch this big fish with one cast, but luckily, it wasn’t a pike, so it doesn’t affect the competition score."

He felt somewhat embarrassed towards the beautiful woman, since after all, he had come to fish at her spot, and she had been very generous in allowing him to cast there.

Yet, with just one cast, he had caught a big fish, a stark contrast that was quite unflattering for the woman.

To all the viewers, it was his superior fishing skills that led to this outcome as compared to the beautiful woman.

In reality, however, while Lin Yang’s fishing skills were indeed much better than hers, they weren’t that vastly different. After all, this beautiful woman must be an expert in lure fishing to represent her club.