Capturing the Treasure Fish, Comprehension Panel!

"Three years, three whole years, I've finally caught you!"

Liu Chu's eyes erupted with excitement as he stared fixedly at the crimson carp in his hands.

The carp was the color of red jade, its scales smooth and its markings intricate. On its head, just above its eyes, grew a small red jade horn, making it look truly extraordinary.

This was a treasure fish!

It was worth twenty or thirty taels of silver!

If a fisherman in Heilu Bay caught one, it would be no different from winning the lottery; they would instantly gain over a dozen taels of silver, enough to feed a family of three or four for several years.

As for why it wasn't twenty or thirty taels, that was naturally because half the silver had to be offered to the Dragon King.

"Should I use it to pay for an apprenticeship at a martial arts school, or sacrifice it directly to increase my comprehension..."

Feeling the treasure fish struggling violently, Liu Chu's arm muscles twitched. He hurriedly placed the fish into his creel and began to ponder.

He subconsciously opened his attribute panel:

Host: Liu Chu

Age: 17

Comprehension Multiplier: 0x (Can sacrifice: one treasure fish / ten taels of silver, one year of lifespan)

Yes, Liu Chu was a transmigrator.

He had been in this world for three full years.

Three years ago, he transmigrated into a body of the same name. The original Liu Chu had died from a cold contracted after long periods of soaking in the river to catch fish.

He also had a simple-minded, honest father who only knew how to fish. In order to save up a dowry for Liu Chu to marry and start a family, he eventually worked himself to death, passing away one year after Liu Chu arrived.

Since then, Liu Chu had been alone and helpless, a lowly fisherman in this strange world.

Fortunately, because he carried an attribute panel with him over these past three years, he remained full of hope for the future and was not broken by the freezing river water.

After three years of bitter struggle, he had been saving silver to prepare for martial arts training while simultaneously searching for traces of treasure fish in Heilu Bay.

"In three years, I've saved six taels of silver, but I'm still quite far from the twenty-tael enrollment fee..."

Liu Chu looked conflicted.

If he sacrificed this treasure fish to the system, his comprehension would double instantly. Even if he didn't become a martial arts genius, he should have no trouble becoming a ranked martial artist.

But if he did that, he would only have six taels of silver left, which wasn't nearly enough to pay for an apprenticeship.

"Do I really have to keep saving for another three or five years..."

Liu Chu carried his creel and looked at the endless flowing water of Heilu Bay, his eyes flickering.

The river bay had a gentle current, yet hidden waves lurked beneath the surface. Small islands floated in the bay in a disorderly fashion, covered in dense clusters of black reeds that looked like rolling, dark banners.

Heilu Bay had nurtured countless fishermen, but it had also buried just as many.

If he stayed in Heilu Bay for another three or five years, Liu Chu wasn't confident he could withstand the invasion of the cold and dampness; he might well become one of the many fishermen buried in the bay.

"Forget it, I'll take the treasure fish to the martial arts school first. Perhaps I am a buried martial arts genius, and I can break through to the ranks without increasing my comprehension!"

"If I truly can't break through, at worst, I'll sacrifice ten taels of silver and a year of my lifespan to boost my comprehension!"

"As the old saying goes, if you lose your lifespan, there's always the next life, but if you lose your money... then it's really gone!"

Liu Chu's eyes turned firm, and he quickly made his decision.

The sacrificial scale didn't require only the treasure fish; there was a second option: [one year of lifespan, ten taels of silver].

"But I'm still four taels short. I'll have to ask A Qi; he should have four taels..."

Liu Chu opened a hidden compartment beneath his creel, placed the treasure fish inside, and then dumped the rest of the day's catch on top of it.

This way, there was no sign of the treasure fish in the creel.

This was a specially made creel he had prepared long ago to prevent the Golden Fish Gang from forcibly taking half of his treasure fish to offer to that so-called Dragon King.

"Bullshit Dragon King. How could a mere shallow bay like Heilu Bay possibly contain a Dragon King..."

They called it offering to the Dragon King, but in reality, it was just a pretext to extort wealth.

Not only was Liu Chu aware of this, but every fisherman knew it in their hearts, yet because the Golden Fish Gang was powerful, no one dared to resist.

Liu Chu naturally wouldn't hand over a treasure fish he had caught so easily.

Thus, he had prepared this hidden compartment creel early on, just for this day.

Carrying the creel and rowing his sampan, he soon reached the shore.

The banks of Heilu Bay had long been set up with checkpoints by the Golden Fish Gang. All catches had to be inspected by their men, and half would be taken away.

"How come you're so early today, A Chu? Did you catch something good?"

After Liu Chu stepped ashore, a man from the Golden Fish Gang walked toward him, glancing at his creel with a smile.

"Sigh, what could I possibly catch? The harvest was poor today, and fish prices have dropped, so I figured I might as well rest early. I'll work harder tomorrow when the waves pick up and prices go back up..."

Liu Chu said with a smile, appearing perfectly at ease while dealing with the Golden Fish Gang.

"That's true, fishing is still a matter of relying on the heavens for a living."

The member of the Golden Fish Gang agreed with a nod, subconsciously reaching out to take the fish basket.

"A Qi!"

Liu Chu suddenly shouted, his gaze fixed on Han Qi, who was walking toward him from a distance.

"Brother Qi is here too?"

The Golden Fish Gang member turned his head to look and saw a sturdy youth carrying a black saber hurrying over, so he quickly greeted him.

"Ah Sheng, I'm going to have a chat with A Chu, you go ahead and get back to work."

Han Qi said to the Golden Fish Gang man without a smile.

"Alright, then I'll leave it to Brother Qi to count A Chu's catch."

Ah Sheng didn't suspect anything and turned toward another fisherman, but his attitude toward the other fishermen changed significantly; his tone was rough and lacked the courtesy he had shown Liu Chu.

All of this was because of Han Qi!

"A Qi, go ahead and check it!"

Liu Chu smiled and handed over the fish basket, his demeanor relaxed.

Han Qi reached out to take the basket, looked at the harvest inside, and weighed it in his hand. A flash of sharp light crossed his eyes, but it vanished in the blink of an eye.

He returned the basket to Liu Chu and whispered, "Good lad, you actually succeeded!?"

Liu Chu nodded.

Han Qi, like him, came from a background of fishermen; one only needed to lift and weigh the basket to know that the weight was off, so it couldn't be hidden.

However, his relationship with Han Qi was rock solid.

Not only did he not need to hide it, but he even had to rely on Han Qi to help him conceal it from the eyes and ears of the Golden Fish Gang.

A surge of joy welled up in Han Qi's heart, and he was genuinely happy for his good brother as he led Liu Chu to the fish stall ahead.

As per usual, he casually tossed a few small, low-value fish into the stall.

The manager of the fish stall was lying on a grandmaster chair, and seeing that it was Han Qi weighing the fish, he kept his eyes narrowed and didn't bother to get up and handle it himself.

Han Qi held a high position in the Golden Fish Gang; he had once studied martial arts at a martial arts school in the inner city and was later scouted by a hall master of the Golden Fish Gang.

After finishing the catch, Han Qi waved his hand at Liu Chu and said, "Alright, go to the inner city to sell your fish. Remember to come back early; it's been a while since the two of us had a drink together."

"Alright, when I get back, we'll definitely have a good drink!"

Liu Chu carried the fish basket with a beaming smile, walked through the checkpoint with a light step, and headed toward the inner city.

Han Qi was his good brother; the two had grown up together, and their relationship was rock solid.

Later, Han Qi's luck exploded, and he accidentally caught a treasure fish, which allowed him to scrape together enough for the tuition fees for the martial arts school, so he resolutely joined the school to learn martial arts.

It was just a pity that he ultimately failed to break through the barrier.

However, this still made him quite capable among ordinary people, and he was scouted by a hall master of the Golden Fish Gang and taken under his wing.

Liu Chu's ability to catch this treasure fish also owed a debt to Han Qi.

The stretch of water where he caught the treasure fish was the same spot where Han Qi had caught his, a location Han Qi had told him about in private.

Generally speaking, waters where a treasure fish had appeared before had a slightly higher probability of producing another one.

For the past three years, he had often gone to that area to fish, and fortunately, his luck was good, finally allowing him to catch a treasure fish.

Now, he could finally be like Han Qi, enter the inner city, and offer the treasure fish to the martial arts school to learn martial arts.