He knows Pokémon better than me.

"So that's how it is. The energy source of these glowing mushrooms actually originates from Xerneas?"

Xiao Zhi stroked his chin and nodded repeatedly.

reasonable.

But soon he frowned in confusion; he seemed to have never heard of these things before.

Mary had done a lot of research on the town of Dance, but she couldn't find any information about Xerneas online.

"After all, Xerneas is not an Old God of Galar, and nothing about him has been recorded."

At this point, Popira suddenly poked the floor with her small parasol, quite angrily:
"Hmph, speaking of which, even our own mythology in the Galar region has been completely altered."

"What kind of hero with a sword and shield saved the world? He's just trying to make himself look good!"

Xiao Zhi, who was listening nearby, was stunned. Why did he suddenly get angry?
He had heard of the local mythology of Galar; the central figure was supposedly a human hero wielding a sword and shield. Similar giant hero statues could be seen in many large cities.

"Ahem. We've gone off on a tangent."

Popella coughed, regaining her composure, and continued:
"In short, that's why our Dance Town has become what it is today."

Glowing mushrooms are everywhere, some even taller than trees. This can't possibly have grown naturally.

The source is an ancient god with fairy attributes.

That's why Popola is so determined to find a fairy-type successor for the Dance Arena; it's the only way to do justice to Xerneas's gift of life.

Otherwise, he would have been like other gym leaders, with any attribute as long as the successor is strong enough to take over.

"Of course, there's no need to tell outsiders about this."

Popella gently patted the dead tree. The empty shell left behind by Xerneas was definitely a treasure. If it were transplanted and planted, the surrounding area would become full of life.

Its effect is far greater than that of Giant Grass.

It's inevitable that it will arouse the greed of outsiders, so it's better to just stand here quietly as a withered tree.

"really."

Ash nodded; he had even fantasized about transplanting it to his own castle.

However, if Xerneas's empty shell effect is already so strong, if his divine artifact were planted in the castle, there would probably be some incredible phenomena as well, right?

"Yes, that just so happens I'm going to the Carlos region later too."

Ash secretly made up his mind to visit Xerneas when he had the chance, and see if he could ask for one or two dead branches to bring back with him.

I'll also visit Diancie while I'm at it; I wonder how her cultivation is going?
"So this is ah."

Hidden behind a thick log not far away, Peter slowly peeked out, revealing a look of astonishment.

It seems I overheard some incredible secret by accident!
He originally intended to take the opportunity to run away, but if he blew up this dead tree before running away, he should be able to get a good revenge on this old woman, right?

As soon as the wicked thought crossed his mind, Peter shook his head, looking conflicted.
"Well, but she's been pretty nice to me these past few days."

Although it was quite tough on him, it was also a way to train himself and make him stronger.

From childhood to adulthood, besides President Rose, this is only the second person who has trusted me so much.

"Hmph, it's something from an ancient god from another region. There shouldn't be a wishing star inside it."

Peter snorted and abandoned his destructive thoughts.

After all, his purpose in causing destruction and blowing up ruins was to help Chairman Rose collect "Wishing Stars" related to Dynamax.

Although he always dealt with Chairman Loz's secretary and couldn't communicate with the chairman personally, it still felt a bit lacking.

"Fine, I'll just stay here for a few more days!"

Finally, Peter curled his lip. He'd make good use of the old woman's trust to become stronger. Then he'd ruthlessly reject her and swagger away!

Peter slowly turned around and walked towards the dance arena.
"Did you hear everything?"

On the other hand, Ash's Aura had already detected Peter spying on him from the side.

To his surprise, Popella was also glancing in that direction out of the corner of her eye, and then a satisfied smile appeared on her face.

"Was this said on purpose for him to hear?"

The two met eyes, and Popira realized that the boy in front of her also had similar sensory abilities to her.

That makes sense. After all, he's the one who subdued Magiana, so it wouldn't be surprising if he had superpowers.

She has already groomed Peter as her successor. Although the latter still has some resistance to the fairy attribute, others may find his eccentric and awkward personality very annoying.

Popella, on the contrary, loved it!
As the future Gym Leader, Xerneas will naturally reveal the secret of Deadwood.

"Hmph~ Looks like I've trained him quite successfully~"

Popella smiled smugly.

If she hadn't been there, Peter would have run away long ago.

It hasn't even been a month, and he's already willing to stay on his own initiative.

She was even confident that if she gave him another month, she could train Peter to be a tongue-out, calloused dog!

Xiao Zhi raised an eyebrow, sensing that the old witch in front of him was thinking something wicked.
"So, Ash, this is our little secret, don't tell anyone else, okay?"

Before leaving, Popira winked at Ash as a reminder.

Xiao Zhi immediately nodded in agreement.

After watching the eccentric fairy lord leave, he lingered in front of the huge dead tree for a while before finally deciding to leave.

"Pico~!"

Just then, a burst of cheerful laughter suddenly came from above.

Ash instinctively looked up at the top of the dead tree following the sound, only to see a pink Pokémon among the bare branches.

It looks about 8% like Pikachu, but the hair on its head forms a circle that resembles a painter's hat.

What's most special is the back of this "Pikachu," which has huge wings that look like butterflies or insects, gradually changing from red to yellow.

"Huh? Is this what Pikachu's wings look like?"

Ash raised an eyebrow. It was Clefairy in Galar form.
"Pico~"

This time, Picoxi had the ability to fly, and even landed lightly, circling around him without any sense of unfamiliarity.

"This Pikachu?"

Xiao Zhi frowned. This was probably the first time he had met him, but why did he have a strange feeling of familiarity?

"Pikachu?"

Even the Pikachu on his shoulder twitched its ears and then sniffed forward.

However, the Pico quickly flew back up to the top of the dead tree, scratching at the branches as if searching for something.

"Picoxi"

Finally, his ears drooped down, and he looked very disappointed.

The strange Picoshi flapped its wings and flew away into the distance, disappearing from sight. (End of Chapter)