Watching Delibird leave with Otsuka.
Baimu found a place that was relatively cool to take a short break, waiting for the radar to cool down a bit, and then slowly moved in the direction of the two unfortunate fellows.
If you can save them, you have to try.
Although there's not much camaraderie, he currently has a total of twelve Pokémon from his companions in his hands.
If the Trainer is not dead, they can negotiate the price if he comes to reclaim them after it's over. If the Trainer is dead, the Quicksand Team will uniformly collect them for a fixed price of 100,000 each.
You can't refuse to sell them.
Naturally, Baimu wanted to earn a bit more. No one can afford to conflict with money, especially now when it's needed.
Halfway there.
"Beep."
Aerial Rotom flew down, "The team-up function has been unlocked with the required number of people."
That quick and another one's gone?
Baimu glanced at his wristband, with the radar countdown showing half a minute left, uncertain if the one gone was an ally or a foe.
Shortly.
He opened the radar and found out that indeed, it was one of his own that had gone down. Initially, there were six red dots, minus Jian, making it five. Now it still showed five, scattered like stars across the map.
It was said that the team-up function was unlocked, yet it doesn't mark teammates' locations—so stingy.
Fortunately, none of the enemies were within a thousand or eight hundred meters of him, and none were on the path he'd take to rescue people.
"Let's hope the teammates can pull their weight, ideally without fighting. What do you think?"
He turned to ask Lairon.
"Laiiron!"
Lairon, seeing Baimu's somewhat weary face, nodded.
To be honest, it kind of wanted to stretch its muscles in this new body. During the earlier moments of crisis, it had burst its little universe and didn't pay attention, but now it felt slightly uncomfortable.
Its mouth had become enormous, and what it used to eat grain by grain, it could now gulp down half a basin without much trouble.
Its toes had gone from one small one to three, making walking more stable, and even when standing on its hind legs, it didn't sway like before.
And though its body had gotten much heavier, its four legs were more powerful, with running speed not decreased but increased.
Summed up in three words—
Grown stronger!
This unprecedented experience made Lairon feel genuinely joyful, itching with excitement, eager to find a Pokémon to spar with right then.
It's a pity that sparring now would easily cost lives. After some thought, it decided to follow the Trainer's idea.
"Don't rush. I know you're very happy now, and so am I. But everything needs to be done gradually. Learn to stay calm..."
Baimu patted its head, which was hot due to the sun, "Besides, you still have to evolve."
Remembering Aggron only needed to be above level forty to evolve, with some effort, aiming to meet the level requirements before next month and then look for new opportunities.
Steady ones, no one can sustain constantly risking their life.
"Laaiiron!"
Lairon lifted its head, its voice as deep as rocks hitting the ground.
Though not as melodious as when it was an Aron, it was a sign of growth.
Evolution was certainly a cause for joy. It was just a pity that its once smooth, spherical head was now gone, turning not only coarse but also shovel-shaped after evolving.
It was truly regrettable.
——
In the next half hour.
Baimu successfully rescued another half-unconscious teammate, placing them in Delibird's pouch. Unfortunately, the last one he managed to find had long been dead.
Suspected of having ribs fractured and piercing internal organs, the chest area was entirely sunken in.
"...Rest in peace."
Baimu sighed, gently closing the man's eyes with his hand, "Remember to seek Jian for revenge when you reach the Spirit Realm."
In the animated world, ghosts truly exist, and there's also a realm for the dead—the Spirit Realm, created by some little genius scriptwriter during the broadcast of the fourth-generation animation.
Wild Dusknoir are often regarded as the gatekeepers of the Spirit Realm, preventing things inside from coming out and the living from going in.
It sounds quite creepy at first.
But truly, there's nothing to fear. Humans, even after death, hardly stand a chance against Pokémon. Overcoming the fear in one's heart, ghosts aren't that formidable.
He moved the body to a shaded area, as word had it that someone would come to collect it post-competition, though that's uncertain if true.
Now.
Just over an hour remains until the match ends.
Baimu ran back to where the fight had first occurred, checking on Jian's condition. Finding he was really dead, he was relieved, silently staying in place to rest.
The east seemed to have become a forbidden zone, while the red dots to the west hadn't intended to approach, preferring small area movements.
What puzzled him was that during the time spent rescuing people, another enemy red dot had disappeared.
Where are the teammates?
How many are left?
If both sides stayed even in numbers, continuing this way would likely lead to a draw.
He had taken down four by himself, plus the confiscated Pokémon and the rewards. Even if he lost, he wouldn't have too much to blame...
Such wishful thinking couldn't be indulged.
Baimu understood the high-ups weren't exactly reasonable. If they vented their anger at him, no matter how significant his contributions, he'd need a plan for heading west to collect the remaining few.
But when the radar cooled down once more.
He opened it to find only two red dots left, one of them solidifying, clearly entering a battle state.
A minute later.
The red dot disappeared.
Only one solitary red dot remained.
Which fellow suddenly showed squad leader-level combat strength?
Ah.
It could have been multiple members teaming up.
Baimu realized, staring intently at the final red dot, which seemed to sense something was wrong and was doing its best to flee. As soon as the radar's countdown ended, the red dot solidified too.
After half a minute.
Aerial Rotom descended, "The competition is over. Quicksand Team wins, please wait in place for the staff to arrive."
It's over?
We won.
The teammates unexpectedly held up well, which surprised Baimu. He thought they'd only drag him down, but they turned out quite formidable.
He returned Lairon to its Pokeball. Within minutes, a hovering truck with a large cargo box came driving in from afar, stopping in front of him.
The side door of the cargo box opened, revealing a few faces that first looked curious and then turned astonished.
"It's you!"
"Yes, it's me. There's still four left... Huh? Where's Yuan Du?"
Baimu stepped into the air-conditioned cargo box, feeling as if he came back to life, scanning around but not seeing Yuan Du, "Did he actually lose?"
The four people shook their heads with complicated expressions, indicating they didn't know. One couldn't help but ask:
"...Were all those people in the east taken care of by you?"
"Of course not, you think too highly of me. I am not that capable," Baimu waved his hand, seeing them sigh in relief, he continued, "It was just luck taking out four."
"Hiss!"
Several people gasped, further asking: "What about Jian? I saw him earlier! Didn't he go east too?"
"Lucky enough to put him in the ground. Enough about me, you all must've dealt with those five when the team-up began, right?" Baimu, not wanting to say more, immediately changed the subject.
The Quicksand Team Members exchanged glances, looking at him with a hint of wariness.
One said, "Pretty much..."
Under normal competition procedures, it usually ended in a crucial showdown after the late-stage team-up mode opened. Whichever team could gather more teammates first had a higher chance of winning.
Solo-handling was tough unless someone truly confident or extremely unlucky would engage in such head-on battles.
In the end.
Baimu single-handedly took down four! Among them was Jian!
This couldn't help but astonish them.