Unbeknownst to him, Feng Ye had arrived at a chaotic area of reefs.
At first glance, I spotted a few small green dragon whiskers peeking out from the crevices of the rocks.
He swam over carefully, afraid of alerting them and getting away.
A net is useless here; you have to grab it with your bare hands.
These gaps are small, but as long as your hand is long enough, they are easy to grip.
Sure enough, Feng Ye caught five in a row, and none of them escaped.
Unfortunately, some of the crevices were too deep for his hands to reach, and without the right tools, he had no choice but to spare them.
After scanning the surroundings, they couldn't find the little green dragon again, but they did find a sea cucumber on a large rock.
He was overjoyed and quickly swam over, reaching out to grab it.
But then I suddenly noticed something strange about the rocks next to the sea cucumber. I was puzzled as to why the rocks would have thorns.
Upon closer inspection, Feng Ye was immediately startled: "Holy crap, a stonefish!"
He was so frightened that his face turned pale instantly, and he hurriedly withdrew his outstretched hand.
This isn't a rock at all; it's clearly a fish that's disguised perfectly!
Stonefish, also known as tigerfish, is scientifically called *Rhododendron rosaceum*. It is named for its thorns, which resemble those of a rose and are poisonous.
It is smooth and scaleless, with a crescent-shaped mouth, a grayish-stone back, and faint stone-like markings. Its body is thick and round with many tumor-like protrusions, resembling the skin of a toad.
Its body color varies greatly depending on the environment, allowing it to blend perfectly into the seabed. Like a chameleon, it uses camouflage to deceive its enemies and thus survive.
It is unremarkable in appearance, only about 30 centimeters long, and likes to hide on the seabed or under rocks, disguising itself as an inconspicuous stone.
However, it is the most poisonous fish in the world, and its "deadly sting" is described as inflicting the most painful sting on humans.
It does not attack its prey unless provoked, but if someone accidentally steps on it, it will immediately retaliate without hesitation, releasing a deadly venom.
Its 12 to 14 needle-like spines on its back can easily pierce through the sole of a shoe and into the foot, causing rapid poisoning and intense pain until death.
"Luckily I found out, otherwise..."
He secretly rejoiced, thankful that he had reacted quickly enough, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Thinking about the consequences of being stung by a stonefish, Feng Ye couldn't help but feel a chill.
It's hard to spot this fish when it's not swimming; its color is almost indistinguishable from the rocks, making it easy to overlook.
There are countless things in the sea, and you really can't just touch them randomly. Every seemingly ordinary creature may be hiding a deadly threat.
Unless it's someone you know and you're on guard, whether you can get back alive is a question.
Feng Ye didn't want the sea cucumber anymore and turned to leave.
He had no desire to experience the deadly poison of the stonefish.
Keeping a safe distance from the stonefish, Feng Ye swam with lingering fear, still secretly congratulating himself on his keen observation skills.
Although he had some reservations, it wasn't enough to make him give up so easily; he was just more cautious.
He ignored the jumbled rocks and continued his search...
I don't know how much time passed, until I was almost exhausted and the net bag hanging around my waist was almost full.
So he used his flippers to float up and slowly rose to the surface.
"Brother Ye, over here."
Although Ah-Can was reeling in the fish trap, his eyes kept glancing around at the sea. As soon as he saw Feng Ye surface, he waved to signal him.
Feng Ye swam over, untied the rope tied around his waist, handed it to A-Can, and then climbed onto the boat using both hands and feet.
Ah-chan pulled hard on the rope and hauled the net onto the boat.
When Ah-Can saw the net full of his catch, his eyes widened in disbelief.
The net bag mostly contained small lobsters and sea cucumbers, along with a small number of mud crabs, mantis shrimps, and swimming crabs...
It was a dazzling array of items.
As for the quantity, Feng Ye didn't bother to count or keep track of it, but he was sure it wouldn't be small, given that it was quite heavy.
Ah-Can was astonished when he saw the net full of his catch: "How much has it been in such a short time? There must be so much stuff down here!"
Feng Ye smiled and said, "If there are so many hidden reefs up here, how can there be few down here?"
"That's true." Ah-Can nodded, then said expectantly, "Now it's my turn to go diving, right?"
Ah-chan had been itching to go for a while, but unfortunately there was only one set of diving equipment, so they had to take turns going down.
Seeing Feng Ye's many achievements, he was even more eager to try it himself.
Feng Ye glanced at him and laughed, "What's the rush? Let me take off my gear first. By the way, how many traps have you collected?"
"Exactly twenty. Just as I was about to take the next group, I saw you surface," Ah-Can replied.
"Good, you didn't slack off."
Feng Ye nodded, expressing satisfaction with A-Can's speed.
He only stayed underwater for less than an hour, so pulling up twenty fish traps was considered quite fast.
After all, it takes quite a bit of time for just one person to both pull and sort the goods.
"The harvest wasn't great, much worse than yesterday."
"It's normal to have a smaller harvest after only one day in the sea."
As Feng Ye spoke, he had already taken off all his diving equipment, and then said, "Alright, now it's your turn."
"Okay!"
Ah-Can responded excitedly, then eagerly began putting on his diving gear.
"Ah Can, be careful! Pay special attention to the stonefish," Feng Ye reminded him.
"Huh? There are stonefish down there?"
"I just encountered one, and I almost got caught."
"I understand, I'll be careful."
Ah-Can nodded and kept it in mind.
Although stonefish are highly poisonous, they are not very scary, as long as you are careful.
He tied the net around his waist, grabbed the net, and jumped in without hesitation, plunging headfirst into the water and disappearing from sight.
Seeing Ah-Can's excited expression, Feng Ye couldn't help but smile.
That's just how young people are—energetic and driven.
Aren't I the same way?
I am always filled with curiosity and longing for the unknown world.
He didn't sit idle either. After resting for a while, he began sorting the harvest poured out of the net and then putting away the traps.
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