Ash had never imagined that a tiny feather could possess such terrifying efficacy.
It could extend lifespan, help Pokémon break through talent limitations, assist Pokémon in recovering stamina during battle, enhance the power of two of a Pokémon's attribute moves, and also serve as the key to the Rainbow Hero's trial.
With all these effects combined, what was the difference between this and a cheat device?
[Mengxin Xiaozhi: This is just a feather, right? Can a feather have such a significant effect?]
[Champion Xiao Zhi: Yes, it can, because it is the feather of a Legendary Pokémon. People's pursuit of Legendary Pokémon is, on one hand, due to their rarity, and on the other hand, because of their power.]
[Champion Xiao Zhi: Legendary Pokémon possess immense power and extremely high potential from birth. Even without deliberate training, they can easily reach the Elite level, and the talent of Legendary Pokémon is generally A-grade or higher. Coupled with their racial abilities that surpass ordinary Pokémon, they are invincible in battles against opponents of the same level.]
[Champion Xiao Zhi: And Legendary Pokémon are treasures from head to toe. Their dropped items are rare enhancement tools for ordinary Pokémon, and even have powerful enhancement effects for themselves, especially Pokémon that reach the Divine Realm Grade, whose entire bodies undergo qualitative changes.]
[Mengxin Xiaozhi: Divine Realm Grade… What kind of level is that exactly? Is it much stronger than Champion?]
[Tactician Xiao Zhi: I can only say that Champion and Shen Yu are not on the same level at all. Against a Champion, my tactics can still have a great effect. Even if you give me six Elite-level Pokémon to fight six Champions, I would have a 30% chance of winning. But if you give me six Champion-level Pokémon to fight one Divine Realm Grade Pokémon, my chances of winning are less than 20%.]
Tactician Xiao Zhi's battle strategies were so impressive that even Champion Xiao Zhi admired them. He could even have a 30% chance of winning with six Elite against six Champions.
However, with six Champions against one Shen Yu, his chances of winning were less than 20%, which shows how exaggerated the gap between Champion and Shen Yu truly is.
[Champion Xiao Zhi: Generally, Divine Realm Grade Pokémon also have another name, which is… First-Class Gods! Pokémon that can reach the Divine Realm Grade are not necessarily First-Class Gods, but First-Class Gods can definitely reach the Divine Realm Grade. Ho-Oh is one of the best among First-Class Gods, which is why a single feather of Ho-Oh can have such a powerful effect.]
First-Class Gods… Ash silently committed this title to memory, then asked a few more questions about Ho-Oh in the group before exiting the chat.
Back in the real world, Ash first gave the Speed Upper Limit Boost to Pikachu. After the lottery draw, he had been too distracted by the Insight Eye, causing him to forget about the other reward.
It was only when someone in the group mentioned it that Ash suddenly remembered.
Speed Upper Limit, as the name suggests, can raise the upper limit of a Pokémon's speed ability talent. If Ash had drawn an S, Pikachu's speed talent would instantly reach S-grade.
Even if it was A-grade, Pikachu's upper limit could potentially increase by one level, but if it was only C-grade, then one could only say that there was an effect, but it was not obvious.
According to the estimates of the experts in the group, if a Pokémon's talent was A-grade, and it was fed a C-grade ability upper limit, it would probably take hundreds of them to complete the breakthrough from A-grade to S-grade.
However, Ash currently only had Pikachu as his Pokémon, so he gave it to him. Accumulating little by little, one day Pikachu's upper limit for all abilities would reach S-grade.
After feeding the Speed Upper Limit to Pikachu, Pikachu did not feel any change, but Ash saw that Pikachu's speed ability value changed from D—B+ to C—B+.
Ash had not expected that this item would also raise Pikachu's lower bound for ability fluctuations.
Just now in the group, Ash had asked about Pikachu's strange ability fluctuations, and the various experts in the group all stated that this was a normal phenomenon.
Up until the Champion level, Pikachu's ability values would constantly fluctuate. This seemed to be a special characteristic possessed by Pikachu in every world.
As for how to control the fluctuations of its abilities, it seemed to be related to Pikachu's mood, the battles it encountered, and the surrounding environment, making it a very difficult fluctuation to control.
The effect of this fluctuating ability was that Pikachu's upper and lower limits would fluctuate during battle, which was a great test for the Trainer's command and for Pikachu itself.
After all, which Pokémon could display combat power comparable to a Gym-level in one battle, only to suddenly plummet to Superior-level in the next?
This made calculations for damage, damage taken, and various aspects of battle extremely difficult, especially for Tactician Xiao Zhi, who was famous for his tactics in the group, and was initially tormented by Pikachu.
Sometimes Pikachu could be the winning ace, but other times he would be a complete letdown. Only after reaching the Champion level would his ability value fluctuations completely stabilize.
But now, the ability upper limit drawn from the chat group seemed to be able to help Pikachu stabilize his fluctuating ability values, which was an unexpected surprise.
"Click." The door opened, and Xiao Xia, wearing pajamas and wiping her hair, walked out and said casually, "I'm done washing. You go wash."
If others saw this scene, they might mistakenly think they were a married couple.
"Me? I don't need to wash, right? It's the same if I wash tomorrow~"
"No! You're filthy! Look at how much dust is on you, from fighting Spearow, the mud from the rainy day, and the dirt from leaning against the rock wall… Anyway, hurry up and take a bath!"
Ash rolled his eyes, somewhat helplessly saying, "Alright, alright, geez, just like my mom…"
"What did you say?!"
"N-Nothing, you heard wrong." Ash's voice trailed off as he and Pikachu darted into the bathroom, only to run out a few seconds later, dig out his change of clothes from his spatial backpack, and then dart back in.
This series of actions left Xiao Xia holding her breath for a long time, but she finally couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
"I feel like the upcoming journey will be quite interesting~" Xiao Xia murmured softly, then took out a hairdryer to blow her soft, flowing long hair.
…
After Ash finished showering, both of them immediately lay down and fell asleep. The experiences of this day for Ash were simply more exciting, thrilling, and exhausting than his previous fifteen years of life.
Even with his Super True Human physique, he couldn't help but feel a bit tired. Both of them slept very soundly through the night, waking up at dawn.
In the morning, after washing up, the two came to the front desk of the Elf Center, and Xiao Xia began to explain to Ash about the Kanto League's Pokémon Conference, which was the Indigo Plateau Conference.