Jiang Ye stared at the system notification.
Both her intuition and experience told her that capturing the ocean sunfish would not be so simple.
On Blue Star, the ocean sunfish was considered the large fish with the least ability to defend itself. The reason was simple: this species had a large, top-heavy head, making up about seventy percent of its body—a classic big-headed fish.
And yet, despite such a big head, its brain only weighed around 4 grams.
With such a tiny brain, the sunfish lacked danger awareness, reacted slowly, and even at its fastest, its swimming speed was barely as fast as a human walking on land.
Each second it managed only 0.4 to 0.7 meters.
So every time the ocean sunfish encountered a predator, all it could do was lie down and accept its fate, docilely letting itself get bitten, never knowing how to resist.
Because it was so easy to bully, even small fish would swarm around it, ganging up for a meal and picking off the parasites on its body.
Passing fish liked to take a random bite out of it just for fun. But since the sunfish's body was slimy, covered in fat, and had a thick horny layer, fish without strong jaws sometimes couldn’t get through to the flesh at all.
Ocean sunfish weren’t tasty or easy to eat, which actually saved them from many disasters.
Some people joked that the sunfish was just a "swimming head," a steamed fish head floating along the sea.
Only a big head, no real body, and even less of a mind.
So dumb, so slow, yet oddly adorable.
Thinking about it like that, Jiang Ye almost felt that taking down an ocean sunfish would not be difficult.
But then it hit her—
The system had given her this as the very first quest on a critical node.
Given the circumstance, how could it possibly be this simple?
Jiang Ye steadied her thoughts and, relying on her passive skill "Like a Fish in Water," swam deeper and farther into the sea.
Maybe it was because noon had not yet arrived and the sun wasn’t fierce enough, or because the intense, penetrating sunlight was absent—the sea now appeared a mottled deep blue.
Underwater, the shifting lights flickered before Jiang Ye’s eyes.
A transparent little jellyfish pulsed toward her, emitting a faint glow, moving rapidly as if in danger.
Jiang Ye looked past the jellyfish and saw a massive fish with a smooth, elliptical body. Its two eyes hung near its mouth, and that enormous body made the eyes look like tiny beans.
Its upper and lower fins formed neat triangles, set along its sides, and as it swam, the fins gently fanned, the water rippling around it almost imperceptibly.
It seemed as if the fish was swimming, and yet as if it was not.
Such an enormous head, moving at such a slow pace.
Jiang Ye immediately recognized it.
This was an ocean sunfish!
The creature was likely trying to hunt the jellyfish for food. Unfortunately, though the jellyfish was small, it was much more agile than the fish and quite clever as well.
Spotting Jiang Ye, the little jellyfish immediately darted behind her for cover, peeking out from behind her like a tiny umbrella, its tentacles flying like little tassels, just short of forming a middle finger to taunt the ocean sunfish.
Jiang Ye looked back helplessly at the jellyfish.
The smug jellyfish instantly froze, shrank back, and then suddenly launched itself in the opposite direction.
This human is way scarier than that dumb fish!
Once the jellyfish had fled, the ocean sunfish blinked at it, staring blankly at the retreating shape. Its big, flat body seemed to try to follow.
Jiang Ye didn’t doubt for a second: if fish could drool, then this ocean sunfish’s drool would already be filling the whole sea.
Seeing this, Jiang Ye felt as if she were looking at a burly, not-too-bright, food-obsessed big dummy.
She sighed inwardly, swam quickly in front of the ocean sunfish, and blocked its path.
The ocean sunfish looked at her curiously, its massive head tilting to one side.
Jiang Ye worried, watching it tilt farther, that if that head went just a bit more to the side, the fish would lose its balance, tip over, and do a somersault in the water.
Though her quest was to capture this fish, seeing it look so lacking in wits, Jiang Ye couldn’t help but feel a little pity.
How could a fish live such a miserable life in the sea?
From the manual, Jiang Ye produced the serrated mud crab she had caught earlier while coastcombing, held it in her hand, and offered it to the ocean sunfish.
Their eyes met—human and fish—while the silent seawater filled with a hint of tension.
Or not!
The word "hesitation" did not exist in the sunfish’s brain.
The moment it saw Jiang Ye offer the crab, its fish eyes sparkled. If only its tail were big enough, Jiang Ye wouldn’t have doubted that it’d be wagging up a storm from sheer enthusiasm.
Thanks to her passive skill, Jiang Ye could speak underwater smoothly, though she wasn’t sure if this dumb fish could understand her at all.
“Car-car, I’m giving you this crab. You can eat first. After you’re full, how about you come home with big sis?”
Her words were gentle and coaxing—Jiang Ye even felt a little embarrassed at how it sounded.
She really felt like a bad aunt coaxing a kid on the street!
The ocean sunfish couldn’t talk, so it blew two bubbles as a response.
Jiang Ye swam a bit closer.
Worried that the crab might swim away faster than the fish could grab it, she simply moved the food directly in front of the sunfish’s mouth.
“Ah—here comes the airplane!” Jiang Ye blurted without thinking.
The sunfish’s mouth could never quite close, always forming a little “o,” with its overbite making it look even more dazed.
With a gulp, it sucked in a mouthful of seawater along with the serrated mud crab.
Watching the ocean sunfish successfully eat the crab, Jiang Ye finally relaxed.
That wasn’t easy!
The sunfish, successfully fed, happily waved its fins. Its beady eyes focused on Jiang Ye, its whole body radiating anticipation.
Jiang Ye tentatively asked, “More? Still hungry?”
Even as she said the words, Jiang Ye felt it was pointless.
Had she not seen how this sunfish was nearly three meters long?
No way one little crab could fill up such a big guy.
Jiang Ye’s heart unexpectedly softened. “Alright, I’ll let you have a couple more bites, but after that big sis has to do her job and catch you.”
The sunfish drifted closer. Though Jiang Ye knew it was harmless and posed no threat, she instinctively felt a little on guard.
The sunfish slowly snuggled up beside her like a puppy.
There was a slimy, slippery feeling.
Jiang Ye couldn’t help herself—she reached out to touch the sunfish, then took out another crab and fed it to the fish’s mouth.
Watching its blissful eating, Jiang Ye couldn’t help but sigh at how truly dim it was.
She examined the fish’s whole structure, imagining where she’d use her Iron Head Technique in a moment.
But soon enough, an intruder shattered this harmonious scene.
First came a rush of turbulent waves.
Then the frantic scatter of plankton and small fish.
Next, as if someone had started up a speedboat underwater, a sound created by rapid movement—an unnatural sound—reached Jiang Ye’s ears.
It wasn’t so much a sound, as a warning sign of danger—a primal alarm.
It all happened in an instant.
Jiang Ye barely had time to react before, in the next second, she saw a fierce beast bite viciously into the upper half of the sunfish.
Blood spread through the sea, the water turning from blue to red. Sunlight faded. Everything was swallowed by darkness.
Jiang Ye watched helplessly as the ocean sunfish lost half its upper body; its flesh torn away, the ragged meat drifting in the water.
Despite the horror, the sunfish itself seemed oblivious. It stared at Jiang Ye with those beady eyes, happily blowing bubbles.
Jiang Ye couldn’t spare any more thought for the silly fish.
Her silver boning knife was already clenched tightly in her hand. Her gaze turned cold and sharp as she stared at the predator.
A monk seal.
In this moment, Jiang Ye finally understood the true challenge of this quest.
The hard part wasn’t tricking the dumb fish to go home, but fighting off the ocean predators that coveted it—facing off with the nearly extinct monk seal of Blue Star!