Let you make a game, what the hell is Pokemon?.

Chapter 229 Multiple Difficulty Options, Prerequisite Quests?
Liuli carefully maneuvered the burning insect and gently pulled the beautiful stone that emitted a warm glow to her face.

The moment the stone was in hand, a clear notification popped up:

[Unidentified item obtained: ???]

"Unidentified?" Liuli stared at the prompt, momentarily stunned.

"This game has an appraisal system? Like those games where you need to find an appraisal shop? You only know the result after the appraisal is done?"

She recalled her experience playing a certain game before: "When I played Dark Knight, I had to find a specific NPC to appraise some special stones to find out what they could be used for. I wonder who you have to appraise them in this game? Does the Jigglypuff Guild have a dedicated appraiser?" She shared her guess into the microphone, and the chat was flooded with speculations like, "[There are appraisal shops in the Pokémon world?]" "[Item shops?]" "[Could it be the guild leader?]"

"Never mind, I'll keep it for now and deal with it later." Liuli put the stone into her backpack—the icon representing the item bar on the screen lit up.

At this moment, Squirtle also walked over, its face still showing the excitement of victory, but it looked a little embarrassed when it looked at Ruri:

"Phew, that's done! Ruri, are you alright? That silk-spitting thing... uh... was just in time!"

He seemed to be trying hard to find something to praise Liuli, but the effect of the [Spit Silk] skill was really a bit...unpleasant.

"Ahem." Squirtle cleared his throat, changing the subject. "It's good that we got the stuff back! Mission accomplished! We need to return it to Caterpie quickly; it must be getting impatient!" He looked around at the cold, damp environment. "This cave is cold and damp; it's uncomfortable to stay in for too long. Let's head out!"

"Go straight out? Don't you need to go back the way you came?"

Liuli asked curiously.

Logically speaking, maze exploration games, especially grid-based ones, usually require players to walk back step by step or find the exit stairs.

"Of course not!" Squirtle puffed out his chest, beaming with pride.

"Although I'm not a member of the rescue team yet, I still have the basic rescue team equipment!" As he spoke, he reached out and felt around the edge of the tortoise shell on his back, pulling out two small white rope loops that looked like they were woven from some kind of tough grass.

The rope loop was also decorated with a few inconspicuous pebbles.

"Here, this is the [Escape Rope]!" Squirtle handed one to Ruri, keeping the other for itself. "It's a very convenient maze escape tool. Just use it deep inside the maze, and it will instantly teleport us back to a safe area near the entrance. It's an essential item that the guild issues to every member! I bought it from someone else at a high price!"

He slipped the small white rope loop onto one of his front paws: "Like this, put it on your paw or... uh, on your foot? Then just mentally say 'get off' or 'get out'! It's very convenient!"

Looking at the [Releasing Rope] item icon on the screen, Liuli felt like she had seen it somewhere before.

She immediately had the burning insect take the rope and chose to use it.

"Are you ready?" Squirtle asked.

"Mm!" Liuli nodded, controlling the burning insect.

"Alright! Three, two, one! Let go!" Squirtle shouted.

As soon as they finished speaking, the ropes in their hands simultaneously lit up with a soft white light!
The light quickly enveloped their bodies, and the surrounding cave scenery was instantly swallowed by the white light, as if space itself had distorted.

The screen flashed.

They were now basking in the sun again, back on the beach.

Sure enough, the green caterpillar was still anxiously waiting at the entrance of the hole, its body wriggling restlessly.

When the caterpillar saw them appear out of thin air on the beach, and especially when it saw the perfectly intact, glowing stone that Liuli handed it to it, its eyes lit up with countless little stars!

"Thank you so much! Really! Thank you so much!" Caterpie excitedly circled around them. "I knew you guys could do it! Squirtle, you must be an amazing rescuer!"

Squirtle was a little embarrassed by the praise, scratching his head and blushing slightly: "Ah, actually, it's mainly because..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ruri spoke up, pressing the interaction button and clearly answering for Squirtle through the microphone: "Yes! That's right, he is indeed a very capable rescuer!"

Upon hearing this, Caterpie's starry eyes instantly widened:
"I knew it!!! That's amazing!!!"

Squirtle froze completely after hearing Ruri's sudden answer.

The next second, his entire face turned bright red again, and steam began to rise from the top of his head.

He let out a short "Ah!" and then, with lightning speed, retracted his head, limbs, and tail into his blue tortoise shell.

Only a red turtle shell remained, trembling slightly in place—it looked so big you could fry an egg on it.

After a brief silence, the comments section erupted in uncontrollable laughter:
[Hahaha, they've shrunk back!]

[He immediately became withdrawn and speechless!]

[Squirtle: Who can withstand this?!]

[Sister Liuli is so shrewd! One sentence and she's completely crushed them!]

This turtle's shell is so red you could fry an egg in it!

Looking at the blue turtle shell curled up in the center of the screen, still trembling slightly, and then at the green caterpillar next to it with an expression of admiration, Liuli couldn't help but laugh out loud.

The NPCs in this game are really interesting.

She spoke into the microphone, her voice full of laughter: "Alright, alright, Squirtle, don't be shy. Shouldn't we... go check out that Jigglypuff Guild?"

After a long while, the shell was carefully opened a crack, and Squirtle's bright red face peeked out. It spoke softly:

"Yes! It's time to go! The Fat Koopa Guild is in the forest behind this beach!"

He seemed eager to escape the awkward situation and immediately turned to lead the way, saying, "Follow me!"

After bidding farewell to the profusely grateful Caterpie, Ruri controlled the Flamethrower and followed Squirtle along the edge of the beach into a vast forest.

Not far along, a huge, thick ancient tree came into view.

This ancient tree has been cleverly transformed into a treehouse, with layers of wooden platforms surrounding the trunk, a roof covered with thick moss and vines, and huge leaves that act as a natural canopy.

At the entrance to the treehouse hangs a striking wooden sign with a smiling chubby face and the words "Chubby Guild" written next to it.

Upon entering the guild, a cacophony of noise immediately ensued.

The hall was spacious and bright, with sunlight filtering through the leaves and casting dappled patterns on the ground.

Many different Pokémon are busy here: there's Machamp carrying a large package, Emolga flying around delivering documents, and Skitty diligently registering orders at the counter.

The walls were covered with various task notice boards, with colorful task slips posted on them, all seemingly representing all sorts of tasks.

Squirtle seemed familiar with the place, but also appeared more reserved. He pointed to a huge wooden counter in the center of the hall, his voice low.

"Liuli, the registration office is over there. We...we need to register there first before we can officially become a rescue team and take on missions."

"Actually, I've always wanted to be a member of the rescue team, but... I feel that my abilities are definitely not enough... so I've never dared to register here... nor have I looked for teammates."

Looking at Squirtle's tense and almost retracting-in-its-shell appearance, and recalling his god-like performance of taking on two opponents at once with a barrage of water gun shots in the cave, Liuli was completely stunned.

The contrast is just too outrageous!
This guy is obviously incredibly strong, so why does he become so timid when it comes to forming a rescue team?

The live chat exploded with comments.

【Seriously, bro? If you can't do it, then who can?】

[The Cave Warrior Instantly Turns into a Socially Awkward Newbie?] [Squirtle: Fighting is fine, but signing up is not.]

[This is hilarious! Does this turtle have no idea how powerful it is?]

[I get it, he's only shy in front of Liuli (doge)]

No, he's our next teammate, we need to find a way to encourage him.

Liuli spoke into the microphone with a hint of exasperation: "Hey, Squirtle! You just easily chased away two bad guys! And didn't you say your dream was to become a rescue team member? Show some confidence!"

Squirtle's face flushed again, but this time it didn't retract into its shell. Its eyes darted around, and it muttered softly, "But...but I feel like I'm not good enough. The seniors in the Jigglypuff Guild are all so amazing. I'm scared."

He lowered his head and scratched at the floor with his claws.

Looking at him, Liuli felt both annoyed and amused.

How can someone be both strong and cowardly?

No, to be precise, it's a turtle.

She manipulated the Firefly to gently touch the Squirtle with its antennae.

"Don't be afraid! Come on, your dream is right in front of you! Besides, aren't we partners? I'm here for you!"

Perhaps it was the word "partner" that gave Squirtle a bit of courage. He finally raised his head, took a deep breath, and as if he had made a huge decision: "Okay! We...we'll go register!"

The two arrived at the huge wooden counter.

Behind the counter, a very old-looking meerkat detective wearing round-framed glasses looked up, adjusted his glasses, and asked calmly, "Newcomer? Want to register for the rescue team?"

"Yes, yes!" Squirtle answered bravely, though his voice was still a little trembling.

Inspector Mongoose glanced at them, his gaze lingering on the Burning Bugs for a second longer, as if trying to identify this unusual species, before nodding.

"Understood. According to the rules, newly formed teams need to complete an initial mission to prove that you have the basic qualifications and abilities to become rescue team members. This is the guild's rule."

As it spoke, it turned around and tore off a gray, seemingly ordinary-looking task form from a gray notice board covered with various low-level tasks, and placed it on the counter.

[Received a one-star quest!]

[Mission Objective: Proceed to the outer area of ​​the one-star dungeon 'Silk Thread Forest', find and bring back a 'Silver Root Grass'.]

"Silverroot grass is characterized by its silvery roots and slender leaves, and it typically grows near damp tree roots. The mission location and sample image are on the back of the order form."

Inspector Meerkat spoke very quickly.

Just as Liuli accepted the gray request form, a clear selection box popped up in the center of the screen:
Please select your adventure difficulty:

[Nightmare (Unlocked: After completing Hard difficulty) - The choice of true challengers, every step could be a dead end! Choose carefully!!]

[Hard - Extremely difficult, resources are scarce, requires players to have extremely high strategic and operational abilities! Not recommended]

[Professional - Higher adventure difficulty, suitable for players already familiar with dungeon exploration and combat!]

[Normal - A fairly balanced difficulty level, suitable for most players to experience the story!]

[Casual - Relaxing and enjoyable adventure with significantly reduced combat pressure!]

[Experience - Designed specifically for experiencing the story and familiarizing yourself with the gameplay, with virtually no risk of failure!]

This time, there are so many different difficulty levels to choose from?
but
Looking at the difficulty level, Liuli didn't hesitate at all, and immediately moved the mouse pointer to "Professional"!
She recalled the easy battle in the beginner cave and Squirtle's fighting prowess.

The level of technical difficulty shouldn't be too high, right?

After all, it's not the highest grade.
Following her choice, the live chat immediately erupted in activity:
[Professional? ??? Are you serious, streamer?]

[I wouldn't even dare choose the "ordinary" option, let alone the "professional" one? The Emerald example serves as a cautionary tale, haha!]

I feel like even streamers couldn't play this on the professional difficulty level!

Why not just experience it? Isn't it better to enjoy the story?

[Love and Redemption is at it again! Classic stubbornness!]

[Waiting for the streamer to be tortured to tears!]

Liuli glanced at the comments and a confident smile appeared on her lips: "Hmph! You guys are really underestimating me! That cave was so easy! Squirtle was so fierce! This is obviously not a hardcore game, unlike Emerald."

"A mere professional skill is nothing! Watch the streamer handle it with ease!"

Without hesitation, she clicked on the "Professional" difficulty level.

A system notification popped up: [Difficulty locked: Professional].

Please note that once you select a difficulty level, you cannot change it!

"Alright! Destination: Silk Thread Forest! Let's go!"

Liuli is full of fighting spirit.

The next part of the story involves Inspector Mongoose handing them a simple map.

Then, led by Squirtle, they left the bustling guild hall and ventured deeper into the forest once more.

Soon, the screen went black, and a message popped up.

[Entered the maze]

【Silk Thread Forest.lv1】

【F1】

Weather: None

[Special Changes: None]

As the scene returned to normal, a forest appeared before Liuli's eyes. The surroundings were unusually quiet, with only the occasional chirping of insects and the rustling of leaves.

The ground was no longer a sandy beach or an ordinary forest path, but was covered with huge, intertwined tree roots and ubiquitous white threads that shimmered with a faint silver light.

These white threads are entangled on tree trunks, shrubs, and the ground, forming a net that makes the whole environment complex and carries a hint of subtle danger.

Clearly, this is the "Silk Thread Forest".

"Liuli, listen to me," Squirtle's voice was much lower, tinged with seriousness.

"We need to be careful from now on. For our rescue team, the most dangerous thing in these mazes is actually the Pokémon."

He glanced around warily, then spoke again:
"They're different from us. These guys can't communicate; they seem to have lost their own consciousness, only showing aggression..."

(End of this chapter)