After agreeing on the price, everyone got together to talk about the strange and interesting things they had just seen.
"Wow, there are so many kinds of seafood here that I've never seen before, and I don't even know their names."
"Me too, and many fish look very similar, so it's easy to mistake one for the other if you're not careful."
"Did you see that? There's a stall with a super big ribbonfish, it's incredibly rare."
"I saw it too. It was a very long ribbonfish. It is said to be more than five meters long and weigh more than 140 kilograms."
"How can a ribbonfish be this big? Could it be some other fish that just looks like a ribbonfish?"
"Who knows, there might be ribbonfish that big in the ocean? Like the giant red snapper that Ye Ge and I caught, can you believe it without seeing it with your own eyes?"
"That's true, especially in the deep sea, where you can find all sorts of big fish."
"Such a big ribbonfish, we've struck gold! It should fetch a lot of money, right?"
"Hehe, when a fish gets big enough, even a cheap one will see its price skyrocket..."
Listening to their conversation, Feng Ye asked curiously, "What kind of ribbonfish is that big? Where is it?"
He didn't actually see the ribbonfish they were talking about.
As far as he knew, the largest ribbonfish was only a little over three meters long.
He had never heard of a ribbonfish that was more than five meters long.
However, it cannot be ruled out that there might actually be such a large cargo in the deep sea.
"Stall number 89 is over there; you can see it as soon as you get there. It's very eye-catching."
"Brother Ye, I'll take you there."
Ah-chan volunteered to lead the way.
The two wandered among the various stalls, their eyes frequently drawn to the fresh seafood, but their goal was clear: to head straight for stall number 89.
Before they even got close, Feng Ye could see the ribbonfish they were talking about from afar.
Although there were many people surrounding stall number 89, blocking most of his view, he still managed to see it through the gaps in the crowd.
Moreover, it does indeed look like a ribbonfish.
As he approached the stall, he heard the whispers of the people around him.
"Such a big ribbonfish, wow, that's a rare sight indeed!"
"I'll probably only see him once in my life, and it's almost certain I'll never see him again."
"Over five meters long and weighing over 100 kilograms, my goodness, how many years would it take for it to grow this big!"
Hearing the murmurs around him, Feng Ye squeezed into the crowd and finally got a close look at the legendary giant ribbonfish.
However, what he saw stunned him.
This is not a ribbonfish at all, but a royal ribbonfish.
Despite having "ribbonfish" in its name, it's only named that way because its body shape is similar to that of a ribbonfish.
But it really has nothing to do with ribbonfish.
Ribbonfish belong to the order Perciformes, while oarfish belong to the order Lumiformes, which are fundamentally different.
In fact, there are also differences in appearance.
The ribbonfish is silvery-white overall with tiny black spots, its dorsal and pectoral fins are light gray, and its tail is black.
The color of the oarfish is also quite similar, but what is obviously different is that its dorsal fin, which runs through the entire body of the fish, is red.
Moreover, living oarfish have wavy markings on their bodies, which fade quickly after they die.
Another difference is the head.
The head of the ribbonfish is long and narrow, and its teeth are flat and sharp.
The oarfish has a head shaped like a horse's head and no obvious teeth.
The messenger of the devil—the deep-sea oarfish
Oarfish has many other names:
It is called "paddlefish" because its long ventral fins are shaped like paddles;
It is said that it will be startled by an earthquake and swim to shallow water to take refuge, so its appearance is a sign that a major earthquake will occur, hence the name "earthquake fish".
There is also a saying that whenever oarfish appear, an earthquake or tsunami will soon follow.
Therefore, in most legends, the appearance of the oarfish is a harbinger of misfortune, hence the nickname "messenger of evil."
In addition, some people call it the Dragon King Fish, the Dragon Palace Messenger, and so on.
Actually, its real scientific name is *Oarfish leuciscus*.
"This isn't just any ribbonfish, it's a royal ribbonfish."
Finally, someone who knew its value recognized it.
"What? This is oarfish?" someone asked in surprise.
Everyone knows the name of the oarfish, especially its other names.
"That's right, this is oarfish. We don't have it here, but it's more common in Taiwan."
In fact, this fish is distributed in the East China Sea, the South China Sea, and the waters of Taiwan.
However, this fish is a deep-sea fish, which usually lives at depths of over 200 meters.
They are only occasionally found on beaches after a storm, or when injured or dead.
Therefore, very few people have ever caught or seen them.
However, they are often caught in Taiwan.
This has led to the misconception that this fish only exists in the waters off Taiwan.
"Holy crap, an earthquake fish! Is an earthquake about to happen?"
"It could also be a tsunami. God help us, please don't let it get too close to our county!"
"Boss, where did you catch him?"
"Yeah, hurry up and tell me, where did you catch it?"
The crowd erupted in discussion, with many people recalling the alternative name for the ribbonfish and their faces filled with unease.
Feng Ye was not worried about an earthquake or tsunami.
Although he knew that the earthquake fish did indeed live up to its name.
Because in his previous life he had seen a news report that after the Lianhua earthquake in Taiwan, local fishermen had caught two oarfish.
But there's no need to worry, as no oarfish has ever been found in the waters of their county or even city.
Even if this oarfish was found in the nearby waters, it could only have been startled and swam over from another area.
In other words, even if there were an earthquake or tsunami, it would be unlikely to affect them, or at least have a very small impact.
"I didn't catch it; I got it from a fisherman. He said he found it by chance on a beach on a deserted island and brought it back."
"How could it be a royal ribbonfish? I thought it was a large ribbonfish. I bought it at a high price, thinking of bringing it to the market to show everyone and hoping to sell it for a good price."
"It's over..."
The stall owner had a long face, full of regret.
Upon hearing this, Feng Ye felt a pang of sympathy for the stall owner.
Oarfish has poor flesh quality, is gelatinous, and is generally considered inedible, therefore it has no commercial value.
Of course, if you can fool someone who doesn't know its value, you can sell it for a good price based on its size.
However, despite his sympathy, he was unlikely to remind the stall owner.
This method is too underhanded; Feng Ye simply couldn't bring himself to do it.
Besides, it's normal to make and lose money in business.
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