Universe Infinite Canteen

Principal Ma's diligent cultivation had not been in vain. Over the course of just over a month, he witnessed the rapid growth of Houde.

With the initiation of new research projects, the negative effects previously brought about by Weight Training and being surrounded had been neutralized.

The shackles on the students had been removed, and now they could fully showcase their abilities. Ma Lu also completely let go of his worries, confident that even in his absence, the school would continue to function normally.

Ma Lu then harvested the drift fruit that appeared in the catastrophe belt—the Peaceful Luo Han Fruit.

Luo Han Fruit? Really?

Ma Lu was familiar with the name, but this type of fruit was generally used as herbal medicine after being dried, seldom eaten fresh.

Behind the giant ax, under the gingko tree, appeared a green vine clinging to the trunk, laden with a cluster of round fruits.

Ma Lu poked at them, and the Luo Han Fruits clinked together, emitting a tinkling sound like wind chimes, inexplicably relaxing to listen to.

Ma Lu couldn't help but fiddle with them again until he felt the urge to retreat to a pastoral life. He then hastily dug them out with a Chef's Knife, stuffing them into his Collection Bag.

Hmm, this thing seems a bit interesting.

...

The day after returning to Earth, Ma Lu got up, drew back his curtains, and noticed the sunlight was lovely. After driving Old Wang to the Universe Infinite Cafeteria, he spontaneously decided to skip work for the day to unwind.

Since starting his restaurant, he felt his holidays had become fewer and farther between, primarily because his patrons were whimsical, wanting to dine on both workdays and holidays.

Moreover, since Ma Lu operated his business six days a week, he had already drawn some discontent from people who thought he was slacking.

But in reality, on his days off, Old Wang, He Xiaoqian, and the others could rest, while Ma Lu, as the boss, still had to busy himself collecting ingredients.

Ma Lu thought he was already quite diligent, perhaps even overly so, having to run the shop, guide Baldy and others in managing games, and recently, even teaching newcomers.

He could certainly be considered a model worker of the new era. He personally didn't mind, but he knew that continuing this way might further contribute to the unhealthy competitive desperation in the industry.

Thus, Boss Ma decided to set an example by giving himself two days off every week to properly rest.

Ma Lu initially planned to go home and play video games, but as he passed a fishing supply store, he changed his mind.

He decided to take advantage of the nice weather and go fish by the river, also to test out the newly repaired Sea King Stool.

He parked his car and made a passionate purchase at the fishing store before driving to the riverbank.

As a novice, Ma Lu didn't know how to choose a good fishing spot, so he just picked a place where many other fishermen were gathered.

After parking his car, he began unloading his newly bought equipment.

The other fishermen seemed to know each other, fishing and chatting at the same time, "Old Li, why didn't I see you yesterday?"

"Hey, don't get me started. I was halfway there when my wife called and said if I went fishing again, she'd divorce me. I hurried back home," the man called Old Li said.

"So why are you here again today? Aren't you worried your wife will make a fuss?"

"Not worried anymore. Last night, I went home and signed the divorce papers. Now I'm just waiting for the 30-day cooling-off period to end, and then I can fish every day."

"Awesome! Brother Li is mighty!" The others showed their envy.

One lamented, "You're really carefree. I can only fish for 20 minutes today. I've got to go to a parent-teacher conference at my kid's school soon. I'm just praying I don't go back empty-handed. At least let me catch one. Where's Xiao Zheng, how come I haven't seen him these past few days? Did he get a girlfriend?"

"No, he went to Tongming Lake to fish for black fish. Heard there are quite a few big catches there recently."

"Damn, I might go check it out tomorrow too. You coming, Brother Tie?"

"No, there are too many small fish over there. They always disturb the nesting spot." Brother Tie shook his head.

"We could go night fishing. There's less wheat at night, so it won't disturb the nesting spot. I plan to go tonight and fish overnight."

"We'll see. I already fished all night yesterday, need to catch up on some sleep today."

"Sleep? Come on, get up and have some fun."

While they were talking, someone noticed Ma Lu.

"Hey, that's a new face. Is he a newcomer?"

"Don't know, I'll go ask." A middle-aged man wearing a fisherman's hat, sunglasses, and waders, his skin tanned dark, walked towards Ma Lu.

"You here to fish too, buddy?"

Ma Lu nodded.

"First time in this area?" the middle-aged man continued.

Ma Lu nodded again.

"The fishing's not great today. I've been here for an hour and haven't had a single bite, otherwise I wouldn't be here chatting with them."

Ma Lu said, "It's okay, I'm just fishing casually."

As he spoke, he took a fishing rod out of his backpack. The middle-aged man's eyes lit up immediately, "Whoa, Black Crow, nice rod! But there are mostly grass carp and common carp here, it's better suited for Taiwan fishing."

"What do you mean, did the guy at the fishing store trick me? I asked him to find me a good rod."

"The Black Crow is indeed top-notch, but it's a lure rod. This area is better for Taiwan fishing."

That uncle, quite chatty and with fishing slow today, he was bored and noticed Ma Lu seemed a bit confused, so he patiently explained,

"Different rods are suited for different fishing methods. Lure rods use artificial baits to mimic small fish, so they're generally targeting aggressive carnivorous fish like snakehead, bass, or perch.

"Taiwan fishing uses real bait. You bait the area first then cast your rod. The target varies depending on the bait you use. Also, one is for walking around and the other is for sitting. You're a newbie, right?"

The uncle noticed that Ma Lu's equipment was very new and some still had the tags on.

"Well, not completely a newbie; I have fished a couple of times before."

"Lure fishing?"

"Based on what you explained before, it should be Taiwan fishing, but I didn't bait the area."

Ma Lu recalled his fishing experiences on Houde Mountain, just casually hooking some earthworms on his hook.

"Newbies might find lure fishing tricky," said the uncle, "you need to know how to cast, and understand the habits of different fish to catch them."

"It's fine. I'll just sit and fish for a while." Ma Lu took out his Sea King Stool and found a spot by the river to sit down.

He then turned his head to ensure there were no high-voltage power lines nearby that might cause an accident, then he set up his bait and cast his hook into the water.

The uncle didn't go far and watched nearby. It took less than 5 seconds before he saw Ma Lu's rod tip shake and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Ah, you've got a bite already. Quick, start reeling in!"