The same-sized ball of bait, just because it's kneaded into a different shape after being put on the hook, actually sinks at completely different speeds when it hits the water. No one at the venue had expected that.

Han Qiang and Wang Yan and the others have been grinding it out in pay ponds for so many years; whether it's Flying Copy or Flying Kicking, they're all very familiar with it, and they prided themselves on having enough understanding of Taiwanese-style pond fishing.

But in the face of Zhang Yang's live demonstration just now, they were completely exposed as clueless.

"Holy crap… what kind of principle is this?!"

"What the actual fuck!"

"This is…"

A bunch of people stared, dumbfounded, feeling like their brains couldn't quite process it. What they'd just seen had completely exceeded everyone's understanding.

Zhang Yang was very satisfied with their reactions. Pressing his lips together, he said, "This ten-odd centimeters of difference in travel distance, when reflected in time, is about less than one second. If you pair it with a bobber and tuning setup that fits the fish's condition, that gap will get even bigger!

Feels pretty magical, right? But the underlying logic is the simplest stuff! Just junior-high physics…

For objects of the same volume, the closer they are to a sphere, the smaller their surface area is, and correspondingly the smaller the drag, so the sinking speed will be faster, and it'll hit bottom in a shorter time.

Applied to bait shape, an oval-shaped bait reaches the spot faster than a long strip. Sometimes the fish condition is just that finicky—off by a tiny bit and the fish just won't connect. That's when the angler needs keen perception and flexible adjustment!

Fishing is a system project. Every little detail affects the final catch.

The stuff I've demoed for you all tonight only accounts for a very small fraction of all the factors. I'm not trying to hand you some secret move so you can get fat off one bite, I just want you to develop the right understanding.

Once your way of thinking shifts, once you understand the inner connections between all the conditions, once you truly figure it out and can flexibly apply the theory and integrate it, then your fishing will naturally get good."

Silence.

Dead silent.

In the whole room, aside from the sound of breathing, you could pretty much hear a pin drop.

When everyone followed Zhang Yang to Old Xu's big compound, they were all thinking the same thing: finally a chance to meet a fishing master offline and really learn a few moves.

Zhang Yang didn't let them down. He really did teach them a lot of stuff you can't learn outside, but those alone weren't enough to give everyone a big cognitive shock.

What really sublimated those subtle bits of knowledge were these last few summary lines from Zhang Yang.

Put it this way: set aside hard requirements like basic skills for now—if a still-unenlightened ordinary angler can truly grasp the mindset and concepts Zhang Yang is passing on, it's priceless, beyond measure.

"That was good! That was damn good, that was badass!!" Old Xu was the first to react, giving Zhang Yang a very solemn thumbs-up.

They say every trade has its master. Old Xu also fancied himself a smart guy, something of a standout in other industries, but now, he conceded—wholeheartedly. No wonder Zhang Yang is so good at fishing. Just in terms of understanding fishing, he's several levels above everyone else here.

"I learned something today!"

"No way, I gotta really digest this! Feels like if I can fully get it, my skill level will jump at least one tier!"

"First I'm gonna lock in the technique he taught. I'll practice kneading bait first!"

Some people were muttering to themselves, some just started doing it on the spot. The learning atmosphere was intense.

In the next two-plus hours, the vibe in the big living room stayed just as good. Zhang Yang kept chatting with everyone about lots of technical details in actual fishing. Time flew by, and before they knew it, it was getting dark.

When it was dinner time, Old Xu hadn't been bragging at all—he had the family chef lay out a big table of extremely high-standard dishes. Everyone drank baijiu, smoked Huazi, eating and drinking as they went, and their relationships warmed up quickly. By the time the banquet was drawing to a close, it was already past nine in the evening.

With tomorrow's full day of competition on his mind, once Zhang Yang felt the atmosphere had just about reached its peak, he was the first to stand up.

"Thanks to Big Brother Xu and all the brothers here for the warm hospitality. We've still got a match to fight tomorrow, and it's getting a bit late, so we'll head out first! Gotta go back and prep a bit, and tomorrow we'll try to bring back another championship!"

Seeing Zhang Yang stand up to leave, Old Xu waved his hand. "There are plenty of guest rooms at home; just stay here tonight. It's not often we brothers get to meet offline like this—we haven't talked nearly enough! Tomorrow morning I'll have someone drive you to Jinghai Garden. Don't worry, it won't delay you!"

On Zhang Yang's side, adding up the team members and assistants, there were close to ten people. Staying over like this was definitely something they couldn't do; no matter how warm Old Xu was, this line couldn't be crossed.

Zhang Yang shook his head. "We've got ladies with us, it's really inconvenient. Better not trouble you, Brother Xu. Next time, when you guys all come to my side in W City—I've got a reservoir base there—I'll host everyone then! It's getting late; all good things must come to an end. Let's set up another meetup next time!!"

With things said to that point, Old Xu couldn't keep pushing. Although this manor had plenty of rooms, it would still be hard to house twenty or thirty people. He could only nod. "Then we'll meet another day! Save my phone number and WeChat properly. If anything comes up, just call me anytime! On this acre and three quarters around my doorstep, nobody gets to mess with us!"

"You got it! Thank you, Brother Xu, and thanks to all the brothers for your strong support! Thank you, everyone!" Zhang Yang shook Old Xu's hand very solemnly, then led the whole team to their feet and headed toward the courtyard.