July 28th.
The first day after the completion of the cattle barn.
And the day after Pidgeotto had finished absorbing Moltres' Flame Feather.
Lin Feng couldn't help noticing that over the past few days, ever since that one influencer had apparently given him a bit of a shoutout, there'd been a slight increase in customers at his breeding center. Not only that, but the Pokémon these trainers brought along were also noticeably stronger on average.
Which, of course, meant the rewards Lin Feng earned from interacting with those Pokémon had grown considerably richer.
Every now and then, he'd receive rare berries as bonuses.
However, there was another piece of news that had somehow started circulating. And it was spreading at an astonishing speed.
"You're here at Wutong Forest to look for Gardevoir too?"
"Yeah, yeah! You are as well? What a coincidence, so am I!"
"In that case, we're rivals!"
"Damn it… let's settle this with a trainer battle! Whoever wins gets the right to capture Gardevoir!"
Such conversations were happening all the time outside the breeding center.
It felt as though someone was deliberately sowing these rumors, luring Pokémon trainers into the forest to hunt for Gardevoir.
Lin Feng fell into thought as he watched yet another middle-aged trainer rush into his shop to purchase Stamina Energy Cubes.
Wutong Forest had been fully explored ten years ago. According to the records from back then, the most common Pokémon found there were Beedrill and Fearow.
Especially in the central zone, where a vast field of flowers bloomed, Beedrill practically ruled the entire territory.
"These trainers showing up lately seem pretty formidable. Could the rumors… actually be true?"
Hearing the notification sounds ringing out from his system, Lin Feng felt a flicker of restlessness spark in his chest.
After all, this was a fully-evolved Psychic-type Pokémon they were talking about a Pokémon that was nearly impossible for anyone to resist. Gardevoir!
For him, it would only take a bit of careful training to turn one into a full-fledged employee cough Pokémon partner.
Of course, that was assuming Gardevoir actually wanted to bond with a Trainer.
If it longed for freedom, then there'd be nothing he could do.
Compared to capturing Pokémon through battle, Lin Feng much preferred to use his cooking and actions to "tempt" Pokémon into joining him.
Besides, he'd been in this world for quite a while now… and he'd still never gone out into the wilderness himself to capture a Pokémon.
"Let's do it!"
Lin Feng slapped his palm on the counter, decision made, and headed out to the plantation.
He looked up toward the pine tree where Pidgeotto perched. "Pidgeotto?"
Compared to a few days ago, Pidgeotto was brimming with confidence today, radiating a sharp glow all over its body. There even seemed to be faint embers glimmering in its plumage.
Looking closer, tiny flames indeed flickered among its feathers, giving its naturally orange-yellow plumage an even more majestic, fiery brilliance.
"Pidgeooo~"
Pidgeotto dove down in a graceful arc, trailing a ribbon of dazzling flames behind it as it affectionately nudged Lin Feng's head.
[Pokémon: Pidgeotto]
Gender: Male
Ability: Keen Eye
Potential: Red Tier
Individual Values: HP (24), Attack (28), Sp. Atk (27), Defense (17), Sp. Def (17), Speed (26)
Level Range: 24–27
Moves: Gust, Tackle, Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Air Slash, Steel Wing, Hurricane, Twister, Defog, Heat Wave
Friendship: 98 (Unconditional trust in you!)
Happiness: 75 (Grow strong and reclaim its territory!)
After absorbing Moltres' Flame Feather, Pidgeotto's body indeed carried a touch of fiery power, resembling Moltres even more. But in practice, it had only learned one new move Heat Wave.
However, its potential had undoubtedly risen quite a bit.
Since their destination was Wutong Forest, it made perfect sense to bring along Pidgeotto, who knew the area intimately.
So Lin Feng planned to take Pidgeotto and his Grass-type partner, Snivy along for this venture.
"I need you to come with me to Wutong Forest… your old territory. I'm hoping to find a certain Pokémon there."
"Pidgeoo? Pidgeoo!"
The moment it realized they were heading to its homeland, Pidgeotto perked up instantly, nodding fervently with bright eyes.
"Alright, then I'm afraid you'll have to go into your Poké Ball for a while."
Lin Feng pulled out Pidgeotto's Poké Ball and recalled him. Then he glanced over at the Milotic in the reservoir.
"Milotic, I might be heading into the forest for a bit. Would you like to go play in the river outside instead?"
Over the past few days, Lin Feng had discovered a problem: the reservoir was far too small. And he'd noticed that it sometimes made Milotic a little listless.
He was already thinking about expanding the irrigation channel in the future so Milotic could swim freely into the river whenever she wanted.
"Milo~?" (Take me with you?)
"Hmm… this trip probably won't involve much battling, so I'll leave you here this time. But if you'd like, you could hang out in the river instead."
"Milo…"
Milotic gave a small, somewhat disappointed sound, then dipped her head below the water, her eyes peeking out through the rippling surface as she stared steadily at Lin Feng.
It seemed she'd rather stay right here than go swimming outside.
Lin Feng didn't push it. He glanced toward the cattle barn, saw that the Miltank were happily munching away on Green Dumplings, and decided there wasn't much else to explain.
So he headed into his room.
Inside the room…
Snivy was supervising Alolan Vulpix, carefully instructing it on how to coat its little paws with Ice-type energy.
Lin Feng didn't have particularly high expectations for Alolan Vulpix.
If the little one liked battling, then great it could grow stronger that way. But if it preferred not to fight, that was fine too. As long as it grew up healthy and happy, he'd find a good time for it to evolve.
Or even leave it unevolved if that's what it wanted.
But!
There was one thing Alolan Vulpix absolutely had to learn: how to coat its paws in Ice-type energy.
Lin Feng was sick of watching it march into the plantation and end up with its pristine white fur all filthy and matted only to then traipse across the floors of the breeding house.
Especially since it sometimes jumped up onto his bed.
He really did not want to be mopping the floor every hour of the day!
"Ying-ying~?"
(/▽＼) "Ying-ying-ying~"
Down on the floor, Alolan Vulpix had been completely focused on trying to shed the ice layer from its paws. But the moment it saw Lin Feng enter, its eyes lit up with delight. It proudly showed off its progress. "Ying-ying!"
Look! I can shake the ice off my paws now!
"Good job. You're doing great."
Lin Feng praised it warmly and handed over an Energy Cube as a reward. The little Pokémon immediately grabbed it and started nibbling away in pure joy.
He didn't waste any more time. After coaxing Alolan Vulpix into its Poké Ball, he explained his plans to Snivy.
Only to have Snivy look up at him with an almost melancholy expression and ask softly:
"Teng-teng?" (So… you're planning to get another new Pokémon?)
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