God of Fishing Chapter 1: The Drowned Young Man
“Get it up! If we pull this in, we’re set for life!”
Han Fei’s voice strained against the howling wind as his boat tossed among the violent waves. He shouted with pure adrenaline.
“This could be it—the day we finally uncover the secrets of that map.”
Han Fei earned his living as a maritime treasure hunter. Seven years prior, he had stumbled upon an ancient treasure map while out fishing. The document had consumed his life, whispering of a monumental secret—perhaps a shipwreck from the medieval era—hidden at a specific coordinate. Claiming that bounty would mean never having to worry about coins ever again.
Peering over the edge, Han Fei watched the water. His vessel was swarmed by a literal sea of fish, including hundreds of circling sharks. Had they not been there, he would have dove into the depths himself.
Thump...
A sailor’s panicked cry suddenly rang out. “Boss, it’s bad! Something’s dragging us under! It’s still alive!”
“Alive? Don't be ridiculous!” Han Fei snapped back. “Nothing stays alive after being buried for centuries!”
Crack!
The boat’s keel snapped under an immense, invisible pressure, slamming Han Fei and his crew hard against the railings.
“Quick! Sever the line!” a sailor screamed.
With eyes turning bloodshot, Han Fei roared, “Get lost! Keep pulling! We’re dead men either way, and I’m not dying before I see that treasure!”
The sound of the breaking wood told Han Fei everything he needed to know: they were doomed. Driven to the brink of madness, his only remaining desire was to witness the prize.
“Damn you!” another crewman spat. “I signed up for gold, not a suicide mission!”
As the sudden catastrophe unfolded, the crew stood paralyzed by shock.
The ocean surface was a chaos of surging white water.
Han Fei ignored the danger, his gaze fixed solely on a dark shape lurking beneath the waves. What could it be?
A rounded object, several meters in length, broke the surface... It bore a striking resemblance to a bizarre calabash.
Having spent his life on the water, Han Fei knew the sea like his own home. He was certain it wasn't a real calabash; no fruit could survive submerged in salt water for centuries without rotting. He reasoned it was likely a wreck crafted in that peculiar shape.
Hum...
Another massive surge of force struck, capsizing the boat and sending Han Fei plunging into the freezing depths.
Then, the impossible happened.
A colossal pillar of water erupted toward the heavens, hoisting the boat high into the air.
Panic seized Han Fei as he was swept upward within the rising spout.
Beneath him, the most monstrous fish head he had ever seen emerged from the deep.
He could have sworn a creature of this scale didn't exist. Its head alone dwarfed their boat, making even the mightiest blue whale look like a minnow by comparison.
...
Through a haze of vertigo, Han Fei felt a force dragging him down into the dark water. Fear and a strange spark of excitement warred within him as he thought of the terrifying leviathan below.
As his consciousness began to fade, he spotted a crab—several meters wide—scuttling toward him.
Wait... isn't it supposed to be a fish? Why is there a crab? That was Han Fei’s final thought before the darkness took him.
...
“Pffft... Cough, cough!”
A voice drifted to him from a great distance. “Han Fei, wake up! Come on, brother, open your eyes!”
After heaving up a lungful of seawater, Han Fei finally drifted back to consciousness. His skull throbbed, assaulted by a flood of alien images and memories that weren't his own.
Opening his eyes, Han Fei stared at the sky and gasped.
A limitless ocean met the horizon under the glow of a blood-red sun that seemed to occupy half the sky. Wispy clouds hung low, resembling tangled strands of unbrushed hair.
Hiss...
“Where am I? What happened to the sky?”
Han Fei was shaken to his core. Between the leviathan from moments ago and this impossible sun, nothing felt real anymore.
But the surprises weren't over.
BAM!
Following a sharp explosion, a middle-aged man rose from the waves, standing atop a massive crab with a fishing pole gripped in his hand.
Han Fei watched in stunned silence. The man remained perfectly balanced on the floating crustacean. With a single stomp, the man sent ripples racing across the water, accompanied by a howling wind.
A fish suddenly breached the surface, propelled by the splashing water. It was two meters long, possessing wings for fins and a body encrusted with greenish stones.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The stones on the fish’s scales suddenly detached, flying toward the man like projectiles.
“Crab King’s Pincers!”
The man let out a roar, dropping into a low stance and throwing a punch. A ghostly shadow of a pincer manifested, shattering both the fishing pole and the incoming stones in an instant. The large fish was sliced clean in half, with one portion landing right in front of Han Fei.
Han Fei’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.
“Hmph...”
The middle-aged man snorted in disapproval. “To be dragged into the sea by a mere green turtle... You’re delusional if you think you’ll pass the trial with that pathetic display.”
A youth standing beside Han Fei spoke up quickly. “Master Wang Jie, it only happened because Han Fei’s arm was injured by a blade fish a few days ago...”
The man dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “Save your excuses. The fish of the sea don't care about your reasons. A level-two fisher is worthless here.”
It was only then that Han Fei realized he was on a peculiar vessel. Dozens of similar boats were scattered across the water, carrying many children dressed in odd attire.
Regardless of gender, the youths wore tight-fitting gear that looked like diving suits, though they lacked any oxygen equipment. Most of them were looking at him with clear contempt.
When Han Fei looked down at his own hands, his heart skipped a beat.
Wait... why are my hands so small?
Did I actually transmigrate?
“It’s okay, as long as you're alive,” the youth beside him said softly.
Before Han Fei could find his voice, the middle-aged man stepped onto an empty boat at the front of the group. He opened a ledger and addressed the fleet.
“Zhang Qing, level-four fisher. Catch: one low-quality yellow fish.”
“Lu Lingzhi, level-five fisher. Catch: one mid-quality green turtle.”
“Tang Ge, level-seven fisher. Catch: one high-quality tentacle lobster.”
The crowd erupted in shocked whispers at the final name.
“A tentacle lobster? Seriously? That’s the ‘lobster of death.’ It’s way more dangerous than a blade fish. How did he land it?”
Others spoke with heavy envy. “Tang Ge was only level six last month. He’s already level seven? That speed is insane.”
A girl nearby clutched her chest, swooning. “Wow! Tang Ge is amazing! He’s the true genius of our school. He’s definitely going to become a fishing master.”
As the chatter continued, Han Fei looked at the boy standing next to him—Tang Ge.
I really have transmigrated.
Inhaling deeply, Han Fei processed the flood of memories. Tang Ge was his best friend; Han Fei’s father had saved the boy eight years ago, and they had been inseparable ever since. Tragically, his father had disappeared into the unknown regions beyond the level-three fishery. Since that loss, Tang Ge had been his protector.
Han Fei took another breath. He had taken over the body of a supposed "loser" who had nearly drowned. Yet, this world held a strange appeal.
Just then, Wang Jie turned his gaze toward him. “Han Fei, level-two fisher. Result: nothing. Furthermore, he was the only student humiliated by a green turtle. He has failed this test. If he doesn't pass the Fishing Trial in one month, he’ll be expelled.”
“Hahaha!”
Laughter broke out among the students, many of whom mocked Han Fei openly.
One girl didn't hold back. “Han Fei, quit draining Tang Ge’s cultivation resources. You’re nothing but a burden to him.”
Tang Ge’s face flushed with anger, and he moved to defend his friend, but Han Fei caught his arm.
Having integrated his new memories, Han Fei wasn't about to keep lying there like a victim. This world was bizarre, but as a man who had faced down pirates and sharks in his past life, he felt no fear.
Han Fei gave a cold smirk. “Did I eat your fish? No? Then shut your mouth; it’s none of your business.”
The deck went silent instantly.
Tang Ge stared at him, stunned. Ever since his father vanished, Han Fei had been withdrawn and quiet, never speaking up, let alone biting back.
The girl turned red with rage, looking as if she wanted to hook Han Fei’s mouth right then and there.
It was then that Hu Kun spoke up with a sneer. “Enjoy your attitude while it lasts, Han Fei. A month from now, you won’t even be a low-level fisher. You won't even be worthy to look at us. What exactly do you have to be proud of?”