“Huh, the crayfish have actually started to spawn?”
Shi Hao was naturally unaware of Fuxi's thoughts. At this moment, he was in the courtyard pond, planning to dig up some lotus roots for soup.
However, he unexpectedly discovered that some of the crayfish had many eggs attached to their abdomens.
Although the crayfish had been in the pond for many days, he didn't expect them to start reproducing in such a short time.
If all goes well, the number of crayfish in the pond should increase by dozens of times in just a few months.
“But I wonder if the more than twenty big carp raised in the pond will eat those fry. It seems I need to consider using a net to separate the carp.”
Shi Hao only had a few crayfish left in his hands, so he had to cherish every fry.
In fact, the dozens of pounds of crayfish left over from the meal with Cai Yun had been thrown into the nearby river called Weishui by Cai Yun. After all, the pond at home was too small to raise many.
Shi Hao originally thought that with the crayfish's breeding speed, they would soon become a nuisance, too many to eat.
But what puzzled Shi Hao was that after fishing for several days and changing fishing spots multiple times, he had only caught a few palm-sized fish, and he returned almost empty-handed. Not to mention fish, he hadn't seen a single crayfish he had released.
Moreover, he was very confident in the bait he had prepared. In the past, when fishing in the East Sea outside Chentang Pass, as long as he sprinkled a little bait, he could quickly attract a large school of fish. Now, there was basically no movement.
“Could it be that all the fish in the river have been eaten by some strange fish?”
It wasn't unusual for there to be strange fish in the river; many of them even claimed to be river gods after gaining intelligence.
After thinking for a moment, Shi Hao decided to investigate today.
He should have waited for his sister to return before going, as the protection of cultivators could ensure his safety. However, the two of them had been gone for many days, and there was still no news.
It was common for cultivators to enter seclusion for several years or even decades, and since there was nothing particularly important, he felt embarrassed to use the summoning incense to call them back.
If it really was a fish demon causing trouble, he could consider calling them back or asking Master Fuqin for help in dealing with the demon.
After coming down from the valley, looking at the Weihe River, which was over ten miles wide and had a swift current, Shi Hao prepared to find a few fishermen to ask about the situation.
The decrease in fish species would be sensed first by the fishermen who relied on fishing for their livelihood.
The wilderness was vast, and after walking several miles along the shore, Shi Hao finally saw a dozen households. As for fishermen, he didn't see a single one.
However, he did notice a ragged child at a relatively calm bend in the water, fishing with a simple fishing rod.
“How can you catch fish with such a rudimentary fishing tool?”
But to Shi Hao's surprise, after a while, the child actually hooked a fish.
With a strong pull, a fish weighing dozens of pounds was pulled up.
“Luck, it must be luck.”
Shi Hao never doubted his own skills; he only complained about his bad luck.
Next, the child caught one big fish after another, the largest weighing even thousands of pounds, leaving Shi Hao astounded!
How could this be? Why had he caught nothing for days, while this child managed to catch tens of thousands of pounds of fish in just a short time?
Could it be that all the fish in the surrounding kilometers of water had been caught by him, which was why he had been returning empty-handed?
Seemingly satisfied, the child tossed the fishing rod aside and began to gather firewood to start a fire, directly roasting several big fish he had just caught.
“Hey, little friend, can I bother you for a moment?”
Shi Hao, questioning his life choices, called out to him. The child turned around, looking puzzled in the direction of the voice, and Shi Hao got a good look at the child's appearance.
The child's long hair was unkempt, likely due to not being combed for a long time, resembling a bird's nest.
Hidden beneath the bangs were a pair of big, watery eyes, like two shining stars. Delicate features adorned the child's face, making her look very cute.
The tattered clothing couldn't hide her figure; her chest even slightly protruded in a half-moon shape. She was actually a girl of about ten years old!
“Here... here, have some to eat.”
The little girl mistakenly thought Shi Hao was hungry and wanted to ask her for food. So, she handed him a freshly roasted fish.
“Thank you.”
Facing her kindness, Shi Hao didn't refuse, even though it didn't look very appetizing.
After taking a few bites, Shi Hao found that, due to the lack of seasoning, the meat was dry and tasteless, making it a bit hard to swallow.
Meanwhile, the little girl across from him was eating with great relish.
“Let me help you roast.”
After saying that, Shi Hao took out several kinds of barbecue seasonings and helped her roast fish.
With the seasonings, the skin of the roasted fish turned golden brown, emitting an incredibly enticing aroma.
When Shi Hao signaled that it was ready to eat, she cheered and pounced on it, devouring it eagerly.
In less than a few minutes, the dozen or so fish Shi Hao had roasted were completely eaten by her, still looking at Shi Hao with a hint of longing.
Shi Hao could only continue roasting, and in the end, all the tens of thousands of pounds of fish she had just caught were consumed by her without a single waste.
It was hard to believe that such a slender body could hold so much food.
At first, Shi Hao thought she was a cultivator, able to pull up thousands of pounds of fish with ease. But now it seemed that with such a large appetite, how could she not be strong?
Because he helped her roast fish, Shi Hao gained her trust.
Through their casual chat, Shi Hao learned that her name was Wu Ling, and she couldn't remember how old she was, having lived alone since she was little.
Shi Hao even had reason to suspect that she had been abandoned by her parents because of her enormous appetite. Consuming thousands of pounds of food in a day was something ordinary people simply couldn't bear.
And now Shi Hao finally understood why she could catch so many fish. It turned out it wasn't that he lacked skill.
Shi Hao was quite speechless; no wonder he couldn't find any crayfish in the river, they had all been caught by Wu Ling.
Moreover, she actually used the meat of the crayfish as bait to catch fish.
The incredibly delicious crayfish attracted countless fish, which was why Wu Ling had been able to harvest so many fish every day.
“Shi Hao, it's very delicious, but the meat... there's not enough to eat, so it can be used for fishing,” Wu Ling said.
“They are crayfish, which I just released into the river not long ago. I thought they would quickly breed a large batch, but unfortunately, you caught them all. Well, it's not a big deal. Little sister Wu Ling, if you get hungry in the future, come to my house, and I'll cook for you,” Shi Hao pointed towards the direction of Huoyun Cave, three miles away.
“I... I remember, that's Shi Hao's home,” Wu Ling nodded seriously.