HEIFEIGU -Chapter 45

The group entered the forest again, with Xie Jixing leading this time.

Because of the earlier snake encounter, he constantly tapped the surrounding grass and tree trunks with his perfect stick.

“Teacher Xie clearly has experience living in the wild,” Fei Zhehan caught up, walking beside him and unconsciously exuding a fatherly aura. “When I joined the crew, I went to the largest tropical rainforest in China, back then I…”

Fei Zhehan wasn’t bad, just a bit overbearing.

Xie Jixing secretly stored a Yin Energy Bean and flicked it into Fei Zhehan’s mouth.

“Your generation wouldn’t survive… hic.”

“I think our… hic.”

“Hic.”

Fei Zhehan quietly closed his mouth, focusing on hiccuping.

Meng Zezhou, hearing the constant hiccups, thought: where there’s airflow, don’t talk too much—see, hiccuping!

Fei Zhehan continued hiccuping all the way to the pool.

The island had two small lakes, which Xie Jixing called pools. One was near the forest edge, a brackish lake; the deeper one was freshwater.

Upon arrival, Luo Feiang first checked his hair by the water. Satisfied, he started whining: “Why doesn’t the crew’s supplies include a lure? If I could cast a few lines, I can’t even imagine how happy I’d be!”

Watching him pacing around the lake, the previously tense live comments finally lightened up.

【Feels like the group vibe is much better now!】

【Maybe they weren’t close before. After the accident, they finally broke the ice.】

【Can’t believe the top celebrity is a fishing nerd?!】

【Hahaha, Ang’ang has streamed a few times, all fishing. Seeing a large body of water and he can’t move.】

【Clumsy but playful, always an empty-handed disaster.】

【No wonder he didn’t want to let go of that stick—he treated it like a fishing rod.】

“Let’s collect drinking water from this freshwater lake first, then go to the small lake nearby,” Luo Feiang began giving professional advice. “These tiny freshwater lakes usually have crucian carp or tilapia. Wild tilapia taste… questionable. But brackish lakes have more species, so we can try our luck.”

No matter how many fish you catch, a fisherman always knows the theory.

The water collection was uneventful. Meng Zezhou removed the filter from the bottled water, placed it on the stainless steel water pot, filtering out large impurities and microorganisms. Let the water settle and boil it later—it would be safe to drink.

When they reached the brackish lake, Luo Feiang visibly perked up. “Hey, look over there! Isn’t that a fish?”

“Over there—look, isn’t that a whole batch of shrimp?”

“Too bad there’s no lure, otherwise I’d be coming back with a full haul today!” Luo Feiang lamented, practically itching with regret.

Xie Jixing removed the bamboo spear from Fei Zhehan’s shoulder. “Teacher Luo, it’s time for the test.”

“How about the two of us work together?”

“You go into the water to drive the fish; I’ll spear them from the shore. Let’s see if we can get ourselves a feast today.”

Although the pool was on the island, it was surrounded by trees, meaning sunlight barely reached it, and the water was quite cold. Standing in it to drive fish around was no easy task.

If it had been before, Luo Feiang definitely wouldn’t have agreed. But after what happened with Xuan Caiyan, he inexplicably trusted Xie Jixing and felt that his efforts wouldn’t go to waste.

“Alright.” He agreed in one breath, rolling his pant legs up to his knees and preparing to enter the water.

“Wait, jump in place first,” Xie Jixing instructed, rummaging through his backpack at the same time.

Top influencer: ?

“The… hic… water… is cold… warm up… hic… a bit first,” Teacher Fei stubbornly interjected—kids these days really lack common sense.

After loosening his arms and legs, Luo Feiang saw Xie Jixing hold a small bundle of white flowers out to him. “What’s this?”

Why the sudden flowers? It was awkward, and he scratched the back of his head.

“Crush them, rub them on your legs and feet—wild garlic. Keeps leeches away.”

“Oh.” Luo Feiang wrinkled his nose. “Smells awful!”

With the prep done, he grabbed his own stick, using it as a cane, and carefully stepped into the water.

The water wasn’t deep, reaching only his mid-thigh. As soon as he stepped in, he felt something cold brush against his calf. “There really are fish! Teacher Xie, quick!”

He followed Xie Jixing’s instructions precisely—how to stir the water, how to swipe with the stick—doing everything as told.

But it wasn’t really necessary; the fish were ultimately caught thanks to the “unlucky ghost.”

A thin stream of black energy was released, with a bit of Xie Jixing’s disguised yin flame attached. It glowed and gave off a scent that easily fooled the fish into thinking it was food. When they bit, they were entangled by the black energy and pulled to the shore.

Xie Jixing on shore acted fast and accurately. With the unlucky ghost’s assistance, the bamboo spear went in, and when lifted, the sharp tip pierced the fish’s gills entirely.

“I…” the top influencer hastily muttered something unbroadcastable. “We really caught it!”

“Teacher Xie, let me see! What kind of fish?”

Luo Feiang leaned in to observe, then applied his theoretical knowledge. “Freshwater grouper! This fish is really delicious!”

In the fishing community, it was at least a rare catch—far above the common crucian carp or carp.

Who would understand?!

As a fishing enthusiast with tons of expensive gear yet always coming back empty-handed, being able to catch a rare fish in such a primitive way—and actually play an indispensable role in it—was more satisfying than having over 30 million social media fans.

Luo Feiang stirred the water more enthusiastically, and the fish on the shore jumped higher, looking irresistibly appetizing.

The outdoor pot couldn’t hold so many fish, so Teacher Fei stayed onshore as backup. Meng Zezhou and Qian Shuyun went to gather large leaves, flexible vines, and grass ropes for easier transport.

Just as they returned dragging leaves, they saw Luo Feiang soaked in water.

He simply took off his top. “It’s wet anyway; might as well make a simple shrimp trap.”

He had been eyeing that batch of green shrimp for a long time.

It had to be said, as a top influencer, Luo Feiang’s physique management was truly impressive.

He had lean muscles, smooth but not exaggerated lines, and perfectly defined six-pack abs.

“Xiao Luo, your body is looking good! Hic!” Teacher Fei complimented from shore.

The audience in the livestream went wild.

【Can I even watch this on a survival show?!】

【I’m a respected SVIP—this is what I’m supposed to see!】

【My husband secretly trained before, didn’t expect he’d be waiting here (nosebleed)】

【Sister Muyu is sneaky—hope all male stars in entertainment follow this dedication】

Xie Jixing squinted at him for a moment. With this physique, it seemed attainable. He’d have to ask Luo Feiang for a training schedule back at camp.

Somewhere along the way, Yue Qinyao had perched on a tree branch, covering her eyes with black energy but leaving two small slits.

After almost 200 years dead, seeing this live still made her, as a ghost, feel awkward.

“Pretty impressive, just… not very smart.”

—Sister Yue’s appraisal.

Luo Feiang’s top was made of quick-dry material, suitable for making a simple shrimp trap.

Xie Jixing, seeing the fish on shore were enough, went to make the trap. He tied the neckline and sleeves with flexible bamboo strips and reinforced the other side with a bamboo hoop. Done.

He tried catching something with it, and there was actually a small shrimp inside.

“I’ll do it! I’ll do it!” Luo Feiang eagerly grabbed the trap, heading toward the water plants. Then he turned to Xie Jixing. “Teacher Xie, how old are you?”

“23.”

Why ask that?

Luo Feiang immediately laughed. “Then I’m two years older! You have to call me big brother, and I’ll call you Xingxing.”

Even a top influencer, if they were a fishing enthusiast, could become a good buddy by making a shrimp trap together!

Luo Feiang happily splashed in the pool with his top, scooping—nothing, scooping again—still nothing.

This time Xie Jixing didn’t intervene. He planned to give the half-dead, still-jumping fish a proper ending.

The wild fish in the pool weren’t big—mostly freshwater grouper and golden drum eels—certified delicious by the top influencer.

The less tasty tilapia escaped.

Finding the junction between the fish’s eye and head, he plunged the knife in. The previously jumping fish went completely still.

Xie Jixing then opened the gills, threaded a grass rope through, and finished one fish.

【So efficient, but watching it hurts my head!】

【Haha, ever since Xingxing left the pool side and Teacher Fei took over, all the top influencer catches have been weeds.】

【Xingxing has lost a fishing skill +100 buff.】

【Xingxing, look at your Luo brother—he’s about to break!】

Luo Feiang had no idea the shrimp weren’t being caught because the unlucky ghost was already on shore watching Xie Jixing handle the fish.

Working with Xie Jixing was fine; any failure must be Teacher Fei’s misdirection.

“Xingxing!” he stood up and called out. “Teacher Fei is useless, you take over!”

Fei Zhehan: Hic—you’re… hic… the useless one!

When he called ‘Xingxing,’ Qian Shuyun, who had been silently braiding grass ropes with his head down, stopped and looked toward the lake.

Xie Jixing returned to the poolside at Luo Feiang’s request. Luo Feiang even splashed water at Xie Jixing’s face.

That little red mole puffed up again. Sure enough, the next moment, Luo Feiang almost slipped on Xie Jixing’s bamboo spear.

He admitted his mistakes while catching shrimp under Xie Jixing’s guidance.

This time they caught them quickly. Luo Feiang held up the trap for Xie Jixing to see, laughter mingling with the rush of water.

It was completely different from the silence on their side.

Since starting to fish, Qian Shuyun had been unusually quiet, so quiet that Meng Zezhou felt a bit suffocated.

Seeing him staring at the pool, Meng Zezhou asked softly, “Brother, what’s wrong?”

Qian Shuyun closed his eyes, calming himself. He didn’t want to admit it, but couldn’t avoid it either.

Watching Luo Feiang swim freely, he felt an unfamiliar emotion arise.

He was jealous.