"Now it's up to Heyi's performance! Being placed in the same group as you, there's definitely no chance for Heyi and me to advance together!" Wang Chao said regretfully.

Indeed, Wang Chao wasn't wrong. In a double-elimination tournament, Zhao Heyi would definitely have to face off against Zhang Yang.

Even if Zhao Heyi beats Zhang Yang, it doesn't guarantee advancement. When he faces Wang Chao, one of them has to lose, which would knock the loser out with their second loss.

"Teacher Zhao is a master too. I've almost used up all my tricks. Facing him again would be like running naked!" Zhang Yang said modestly.

"Just give it your best. Win or lose, I've made a friend in you. Once the competition is over, let's find a chance to hang out!"

"No problem!"

...

After chatting a bit, Zhang Yang and Wang Chao exchanged farewells and returned to the backstage for a temporary rest.

Not sure how Meng Fan performed, I'll ask how he did when he gets back.

Returning to the rest area, Zhang Yang waited less than a minute before Meng Fan came back with a drooped gaze.

"Lost?" Seeing Meng Fan's expression, Zhang Yang had a bad feeling.

"Yeah, lost! The skills weren't up to par; I made operational mistakes in the competition and lost two fish off the hook. In the end, it was those two fish that cost me the match! Bro, making it into the semifinals seems unlikely!" Meng Fan replied, somewhat dejected.

"Haven't faced off against Huang Zheng yet?" Zhang Yang asked.

"Nope, against him, I don't see any chance!"

"Indeed, a bit below his level, but don't be discouraged. Huang and his slippers aren't invincible either!

Put in the determination to burn the boats. I'll tell you about my strategy in the match against Wang Chao, just follow these details! Just now, I..."

While comforting his brother, Zhang Yang thoroughly explained the details of baiting tactics to attract fish to Meng Fan, recounting almost the entire 15 minutes of the match from start to finish.

How to start the rod, how the fish situation might change after a few catches, what the float signal is like, what to pay attention to when taking the bait, and so on, Zhang Yang meticulously instructed all the details.

After listening to Zhang Yang's sharing, Meng Fan nodded heavily: "Alright, I've got it! I'll go into the next match with this mindset! I'm going to make an all-out effort against him!"

"Go for it!!"

After encouraging Meng Fan, there wasn't much left of the half-hour break, and the staff once again reminded the anglers to get on stage for pre-competition preparation. Zhang Yang and Meng Fan walked out of the rest room side by side, returning to the stage.

In the second round, Zhang Yang's opponent was Qian Xuewei.

Qian Xuewei, an angler, was one of the few free anglers among the top eight qualifiers.

He had the typical robust northern build, nearly 185 cm tall, looking like a black iron tower.

Zhang Yang didn't have much acquaintance with Qian Xuewei, and the latter wasn't as sociable as Wang Chao, so the two remained quite silent when they stepped on stage.

The fishing technique Zhang Yang spontaneously explored in the previous match was close to being the pinnacle of efficiency given the current conditions, so Zhang Yang didn't plan on making adjustments, only mixed the same recipe for pulling bait before quickly entering the competitive mode.

The next two matches were almost a rerun of the previous one for Zhang Yang.

In the first seven or eight casts, Zhang Yang used the tip selection strategy to quickly attract fish and gain an early lead. Once the fish bites stabilized, he continued to gather fish while opportunistically catching double tails, steadily controlling the match's rhythm.

Qian Xuewei had solid fundamentals but lacked match-day responsiveness compared to Wang Chao. After Zhang Yang led by a few fish, Qian couldn't keep up with Zhang Yang's pace.

Losing fish in the first half and the fish count difference widening in the second half, Qian Xuewei very frustratingly lost to Zhang Yang. Ultimately, with a score of 65 to 57, Zhang Yang won the round with an eight-fish lead.

With two consecutive wins, under the tournament rules, Zhang Yang had already secured a place in the semifinals. He happily went to the restroom with a cigarette in his mouth and, upon returning to the rest area, saw Meng Fan had already returned, rearranging his fishing gear with a drooping head.

Seeing his despondent look, Zhang Yang knew Meng Fan didn't defeat Huang Zheng after all.

"Lost?" Zhang Yang asked.

"Yeah! There's indeed a technical gap. Competing against Huang Zheng felt like you, Bro Yang, catching fish, a sense of powerlessness like punching cotton! It seemed like I performed well, but just missed by a little! Skills weren't enough, lost fair and square, I admit!" Meng Fan's tone was quite downcast, but he still managed his emotions relatively well.

"Lost by how many fish?" Zhang Yang continued.

"Four fish! The first half was evenly matched, but in the last five minutes of the second half, Huang Zheng consistently caught double tails, and I couldn't catch up!"

"Damn!!" Hearing this, Zhang Yang couldn't help but curse, feeling quite downcast himself.

This gradual tempo-changing competition approach, isn't it precisely the move Zhang Yang used against Xu Ting before? Unexpectedly, his own brother got cornered by Huang Zheng using the same tactic.

"Bro, Brother Fan also lost money to Huang Zheng! Five thousand!!" At this point, Liu Zi, who hadn't spoken, couldn't hold it in and blurted out to Zhang Yang.

"What happened? Did you place another bet with him?" Upon hearing this, Zhang Yang furrowed his brows, his gaze turning sharp.

"That bastard deliberately provoked me, saying our team was all weaklings. If he could deal with Captain Han, he could deal with me too. I couldn't stand it, so I took him up on it! Lost money but couldn't lose face!" Meng Fan stiffened his neck and explained.

"Damn his grandpa! That bastard played dirty!!" Zhang Yang cursed again, feeling quite irritated.

Zhang Yang was aware of Meng Fan's temper. If it didn't involve something or someone he cared about, Meng Fan usually had stable character. He knew Huang Zheng was deliberately provoking him, but there was no choice; losing face to him yet again gave Huang Zheng an advantage.

The team came with five people, and two ended up finished by the same tactic. Han Mocheng lost ten grand, and Meng Fan lost five; Huang Zheng played a deviously sinister game. Zhang Yang previously won ten cartons of Huazi from him, but now, looking back, it's a real loss."

"Damn, I'm going to keep practicing! I'll win that money back myself eventually!" Meng Fan grunted through clenched teeth, clearly emotionally stirred.

"Alright, I've got it!" Zhang Yang forcefully suppressed his temper, exhaling deeply.

"Chief, Fan's and my loss is trivial, it's the face of it that fell! Huang Zheng also made it to the semifinals, so it's all on you now!" Han Mocheng remarked with a cigarette in his mouth, his tone distant.

"Ten grand from you, five from Fan, fifteen in total. Damn, I'll make him pay back with interest!" Zhang Yang ground out his cigarette on his shoe sole, his mind racing.

Facing top-tier anglers, it's not just about fundamental skills anymore, it's about tactics and in-the-moment reactions.

There's this saying: the same trick doesn't win against others twice. Applying it to this situation seems quite fitting.

Zhang Yang's performance in the two rounds was under the watchful eyes of countless spectators, no doubt Huang Zheng would also analyze and review it thoroughly afterward.

If Zhang Yang plans to use the same tactics against Huang Zheng in the semifinals, winning is almost impossible.

What should be done? Is there a more powerful move? Zhang Yang pondered hard.

In the third match, Zhang Yang's opponent was Zhao Heyi. With a secured spot in the semifinals, the outcome of the third match was meaningless for Zhang Yang. If he had any good strategies, he could use this match as an opportunity to test them in advance.

While Zhang Yang understood this intuitively, after thinking for ages, he couldn't come up with a suitable move.

The fish condition in Pond No. 1 was relatively stable, with no shortage of fish, so there wouldn't be much variance in fishing tactics.

In competition, it's nothing more than fish gathering and fish catching, exerting effort in these two aspects. Most fish in Pond No. 1 tend to bite in the five to fifteen-centimeter range from the bottom.

His current competition strategy was quite comprehensive already.

A transparent strategy is hard to capitalize on, and without better tactical options, what should he do? Even Zhang Yang found himself in a dilemma.