Lin Feng still wasn't sure if the tea truly had any connection to Aura, but he was about to find out.
Beside him, Combusken eagerly grabbed its cup. Without hesitation, it opened its beak wide and gulped the tea down in one go.
The result was immediate.
Halfway through the drink, its expression twisted into utter agony. The poor thing froze, eyes bulging, before its cheeks puffed up like it was about to spit the tea all over the floor.
"Oh no you don't!" Lin Feng reacted instantly. He reached out, pinched Combusken's beak shut, and tilted its head back, forcing it to swallow the bitter brew.
"I told you," he scolded with a grin, "if you're going to drink it, you finish it! This is valuable stuff no wasting!"
"Cha-cha… cha-cha…"
"Cha…" (So bitter!)
Combusken's face scrunched up like it had just eaten raw bitter melon. It looked at Lin Feng in disbelief, its eyes silently accusing him of betrayal.
Last time, the stir-fried bitter gourd hadn't even been half this bad.
"That's tea," Lin Feng said, still smiling. "I did warn you that you might not like it. But it's precious, so you can't waste a drop!"
As he explained, he continued pouring tea for the rest of the Pokémon. He had chugged a cup himself earlier, so he understood just how sharp that bitterness was but he also knew that after the bitterness came a lingering sweetness.
Unfortunately, Combusken's dramatic reaction had already made the others nervous. The plantation's Pokémon all stared at the tea suspiciously, as if Lin Feng were trying to trick them into drinking medicine.
Sighing, Lin Feng raised his hands in reassurance.
"Alright, alright, don't be scared! Combusken just drank it wrong. You're supposed to sip it slowly, not swallow it all at once like he did. And listen, this tea is really good for your growth so every one of you has to drink at least one sip. No excuses!"
He suddenly felt like a parent trying to coax a group of children into taking their medicine. Maybe teasing Combusken hadn't been the best idea after all.
The first to step forward was Gardevoir.
After watching Lin Feng practically force-feed Combusken, she knew something was up. That kind of reaction meant the tea was definitely special.
She took a cautious sip.
Instantly, her brow furrowed. The bitterness was intense enough to make even her serene expression twitch slightly. No wonder Combusken had complained.
But before she could set the cup down, something changed.
Her perception of the world sharpened. The sounds of the wind, the faint rustle of grass, even the distant hum of other Pokémon's movements everything became vividly clear.
This wasn't psychic awareness. Psychic senses could read the presence of life forms and emotions, but not the physical details of the world itself.
This was different.
It was as if another sense had awakened inside her a soft, glowing thread connecting her to the rhythm of the surroundings.
Gardevoir stared down at her own hand, feeling that subtle pulse of power, and momentarily forgot about the bitter taste that was now fading into a surprising sweetness.
"Garde?" she murmured, glancing up at Lin Feng.
He met her eyes, and she saw something rare there anticipation. The same kind of expression he'd worn back when he'd fed the Alcremie those special ingredients that awakened new skills in them.
So this tea… could it be something similar?
Gardevoir stayed still, quietly waiting for what came next.
Lin Feng, meanwhile, was trying to stay calm but couldn't hide his excitement.
He hadn't been able to gain the World Tree's blessing himself before, but maybe just maybe one of his Pokémon could.
He had nearly fifty Pokémon living in his plantation and training center now. Statistically, at least one or two of them should be able to resonate with the World Tree's Aura energy, right?
Under Lin Feng's watchful gaze, each Pokémon obediently took its turn.
Some hesitated at first, scrunching their faces when the bitterness hit, but after the sweet aftertaste followed, a few even went back for another sip.
Pokémon like Bounsweet, Milotic, Mewtwo, and the matcha-flavored Alcremie seemed to enjoy it surprisingly much.
Others, like Serperior, clearly did not. After one sip, the grass-type gave Lin Feng a look of deep betrayal and refused to drink more.
He didn't force it.
The tea's special properties seemed to work only on first contact anyway, so there was no reason to push them.
Once everyone had had their share, Lin Feng clapped his hands and looked around expectantly.
"So," he asked, "did anyone learn a new move?"
A chorus of confused responses followed.
"Cha-cha?"
"Frooom?"
"Milooo…"
"No…"
"Pidge?"
"Pidgeot~?"
One by one, every Pokémon shook their head.
Lin Feng's shoulders drooped. He scanned the crowd again, but no one seemed any different except maybe Bounsweet and Serperior, who looked mildly contemplative. But that was probably just a side effect for grass-types.
"So many of you," he muttered, staring down at the half-empty thermos, "and not one of you awakened Aura?"
His disappointment hung in the air like mist.
Just then, a soft sound came from the table behind him.
"Mew?"
Mew floated over from its spot, landing gracefully beside Gardevoir. Its big blue eyes blinked curiously as it stared at her, then tilted its head.
Lin Feng looked up. "What is it, Mew?"
Mew's tail swished lightly. It could feel something something faint but unmistakable.
From Gardevoir's body came a whisper of energy, similar to the one that flowed through the World Tree itself.
Gardevoir slowly raised her hand.
A small, pale-blue sphere shimmered above her palm, pulsing with delicate patterns of light. The tiny streaks swirling within it looked almost like threads of flowing water.
Lin Feng's eyes lit up.
"Yes! That's it! That's Aura!"
He rushed over, his heart pounding with excitement. Who would have guessed that Gardevoir, of all Pokémon, would be the one to succeed?
But when he got closer, he noticed something odd. The sphere was shrinking, its light dimming, until it looked barely stable.
Gardevoir frowned slightly and explained in her gentle voice,
"Garde… voir."
(This power is faint. It's difficult to gather and control, but it lets me sense the world around me with incredible clarity.)
Lin Feng nodded, awe and curiosity mixing in his expression.
"Can it be strengthened?" he asked eagerly.
"Voir…"
Gardevoir's gaze drifted toward the thermos in Lin Feng's hand. The message was clear: it could grow stronger but she would need more of that tea.
"I see…" Lin Feng murmured, piecing it together.
The description on the recipe had said that the stronger the brew, the higher the chance of receiving the World Tree's blessing and the deeper the connection to Aura energy.
It wasn't just about the first cup; it was about the concentration.
That meant as long as he had a steady supply of leaves from the World Tree, there was no limit to how many times he could attempt this. Eventually, someone maybe even he himself would truly master Aura.
Lin Feng's gaze slid toward the floating pink Pokémon beside him, who was happily nibbling on a fruit slice, completely unaware of the look he was getting.
A mischievous grin crept across his face.
"Hehe… hey, little Mew," he said in a teasing tone, "how about we make a deal?"
Mew blinked, suspicious. Its tiny tail twitched as if it already knew it was about to be bribed into something.
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