He knows Pokémon better than me.

At the foot of Tianguan Mountain, in front of the ruins of Shenhe Temple.

It's rare to see Zoroark join the special training team today.

It was positioned beside a cliff, with its arms raised high and a large, dark purple ball of light appearing in its palms.

"Solo!!"

As the low shout slammed into the ground, the evil energy spread wildly, blasting a large crater in that spot.

Zoroark himself was also thrown over by the energy blast, and his chest ached.

"Forcibly mastering a move that isn't your own is indeed difficult."

Ash walked up behind it and couldn't help but sigh.

If Lucario were here, it could help make some Dark-type EXP Candies, which should help Zoroark get used to using Dark-type moves more effectively.

However, besides "eating", he has another trick up his sleeve.

"We're getting ready, Zoroark, let's give it our all!"

He pointed his finger at the Z-Bracelet, which was inlaid with a Dark-attribute Z-Crystal. As the surging energy flowed into Zoroark's body, the latter roared to the sky and raised his hands high.

A pitch-black sphere was thrown into the air, gradually expanding and growing larger, even drawing in soil, stones, and broken bricks from the ground with a powerful traction force.

Black holes devour everything and destroy everything!
Z-Moves are undoubtedly the simplest and most direct way for Pokémon to learn powerful moves.

Not to mention that Zoroark just swallowed a Mastery Seed. That should be of some use, right?
As the planet Earthshatter exploded with a deafening roar, Zoroark was enveloped in an evil, dark purple aura. He closed his eyes and held his breath, seemingly gaining a deeper understanding of the Dark Explosion.

"Not bad~"

Ash put his hands on his hips, nodded in satisfaction, and then looked at the busy Pokémon behind him.

Because Congee had recently been defeated by Mr. Yinren's Mega Flame Lion, he worked hard and trained more diligently than anyone else.

Holding the scallion spear, it dashes back and forth, trying to make its signature move, Meteor Assault, even more flawless.

"Gah~!!"

In the air, the Steelraven pressed down with its wings, sending out three steel feathers that embedded themselves into the ground.

Ash drew inspiration from Decidueye's Triple Shot, since Corviknight's sharp steel feathers would be even more powerful if they were shot out like arrows.

After a few simple attempts, it worked quite smoothly and could be used as a surprise move for Corviknight in the future!
"Bea! Bea!"

Baby Dragon was biting at Melmetta's thigh from the side, but it couldn't break through her defenses at all, which made it bite even harder.

"You guys keep practicing."

After giving a few words of advice, Xiao Zhi walked to the threshold in front of the temple ruins.

There are also broken sculptures on both sides. You can vaguely see that the one on the left is Palkia's lower leg and the one on the right is Dialga's forelimb. Only a very small part of the sculpture remains.

"Uh, Team Kongo and Team Pearl probably wouldn't accept that these two statues are their Sinnoh Grandmaster, right?"

Xiao Zhi chuckled dryly, wondering who had vandalized the temple and the two sculptures like this.

Wild Pokémon?

That shouldn't be the case. Even if it has no life force, it's still an ancient god statue, and it still exerts a lot of pressure on ordinary Pokémon.

Unable to reach a conclusion, he simply sat on the doorstep, untied the small bag beside him, which was filled with various colorful four-leaf clovers—

Minty personality!

Before leaving the village, he specifically asked Ya Bai to buy him a lot of Mint from Cai Hua.

People who wash greenery don't care about mint, so the price isn't high.

With Ya Bai acting as an intermediary, and a few Master Seeds, Xiao Zhi managed to exchange a dozen or so Nature Mint plants for Uncle Cai Hua.

Most of them are dark red and light blue—these are types that Ash carefully selected, and with Rotom's help, they are still easy to identify.

However, Caihua was still standing there with a puzzled look on her face. What was Xiaozhi's intention in picking through things like he was buying vegetables?

Although he knew how to grow variegated mint, he lacked expertise in identifying specific types and their effects.
The Xicui area is still in its very early stages.

It actually benefited Xiao Zhi!

The deep red one is Adamant Mint, which increases Attack and decreases Special Attack; the light blue one is Modest Mint, which increases Special Attack and decreases Attack. These are two of the most basic and universal types.

In modern times, it would cost ten times more than other types of mint!
At Caihua, all types are priced the same!

Of course, Xiao Zhi also picked out some miscellaneous mints so that they could be used more specifically.

"Pickup?"

Pikachu curiously came over, grabbed a sprig of Stubborn Mint, and was about to put it in its mouth.

"Wait a minute, Pikachu, you eat this one!"

Ash quickly recalled his Stubborn Mint. His Pikachu was a dual-wielder, using both Thunder and Volt attacks.
Although, recently it seems that physical attack moves are being used more often.

Without saying a word, Ash stuffed a very special light blue mint into Pikachu's mouth.

"Pikachu."

As Pikachu chewed, a refreshing sensation shot straight to the top of its head, causing it to involuntarily exhale through its nostrils.

Light yellow mint is serious mint; it won't increase the growth of any ability, but it also won't decrease the growth of an average individual.

As for Pikachu, it's better to be more balanced.

Although the prefix "Minty" doesn't necessarily represent the Pokémon's actual personality.
But if you put Mint into it, it might make Pikachu a little more serious and hardworking, right?

"Pickup?"

Pikachu scratched its head and tried waving its little arms and tail, but didn't notice anything unusual.

"Uh, Pikachu, your level is already so high, your abilities are already set, so it doesn't really matter whether you modify them or not. Go play over there and don't bother me."

Ash picked up Pikachu and placed it aside, then called over the other Pokémon.

"Tengcui Xiaojiang, Tongou Xiong, Xiong's apprentice, you three come here first!"

Ash waved his hand and, without saying a word, stuffed the Stubborn Mint directly into the mouth of the Bear.

This little guy, who focuses on brute force, can be easily countered by simply stacking physical attack stats.

"lucky?"

After swallowing the stubborn mint, Tong Ou Xiong sat on the ground in a daze for a few seconds, and then the muscles in his arms bulged up quite a bit, as if it had taken effect immediately.

However, it's a different story for Scorbunny and Kushner. Although both of these Pokémon focus on physical attack, they also value speed.

Ash placed the Adamantant and the refreshing green Mint in front of the two, letting them choose for themselves.

If you use Cheesy Mint, it can increase Speed ​​and decrease Special Attack, which is quite beneficial to both of you.

"Bear"

The bear apprentice lowered his head and pondered seriously. Its combo-style ultimate technique was indeed very suitable for the speed attribute.

But pure power is also quite good.
Just as he was hesitating, the young general Teng Cu beside him shook his head, not intending to eat a single one.

She even looked somewhat uncomfortable, as if she was thinking of some unpleasant memories.

It ate way too much of this stuff before! (End of Chapter)