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

Chapter 234 First Contact, Ling Feng's Request?

In a villa on the outskirts of Cerulean City, Ling Feng had just stretched when he saw Gengar floating in the corner of the living room, gesturing with its chubby paws at a writing board floating in mid-air, muttering to itself, its expression as serious as if it were taking the college entrance exam.

This guy... he even learned how to use this thing?
"How's the work progressing?" Ling Feng walked over and asked, casually picking up an energy cube from the table and feeding it to the Magikarp in the fish tank next to him—this was a newly purchased aquascape, and he had also gone to the river to catch a Magikarp.

A Magikarp leaped joyfully out of the water, splashing a small spray.

Upon hearing this, Gengar immediately hid the digital tablet behind its back, a fawning smile instantly spreading across its face. It nodded vigorously, its large white teeth gleaming under the light.

He patted his chest, indicating that everything was going smoothly and that the task would be completed on time.

Ling Feng was quite satisfied.

Ever since I first recruited this guy to help with the game, he seems to have really gotten the hang of it. Although he always does it secretly, he completes the tasks assigned to him quite well and is becoming more and more like a qualified employee.

Unbeknownst to him, Gengar was inwardly pounding with anxiety, hoping that this guy wouldn't suddenly decide to take him on some strange adventure.

His last experience left him with a lasting trauma, so he'd rather stick to working on the data and figuring out how to use the board safely.

Well, safety first!

Just then, a faint blue flame silently slid across the ceiling and landed on the armrest of the sofa next to Ling Feng. The flame subsided, revealing the elegant shape of the crystal chandelier, the candlelight flickering slightly.

"Where have you run off to again? I've hardly seen you these past few days." Ling Feng glanced at him. This guy's whereabouts have been too elusive lately; he's only seen once a week.

The candlelight in the crystal chandelier flickered almost imperceptibly.

— Went out to play.

Ling Feng glanced at him but didn't delve into it, only offering a word of advice.

Play around, just don't scare other people or Pokémon.

The crystal chandelier and candlelight flickered slightly, but deep down I felt a little smug—I wasn't just going to play around.

He went deep into the mountains and forests to challenge those powerful wild Pokémon.

However, it's best not to tell Ling Feng about this kind of secret effort.

As for being scary?

Pshaw, I wouldn't stoop to scaring those weak Pokémon and humans.

Ling Feng walked to the desk and sat down. With a slight thought, he brought up the system panel that only he could see.

A pale blue screen unfolded before my eyes, clearly displaying various data about the Time Rescue Team after it went online.

At this very moment, the sales figures on the panel are steadily climbing.

Ling Feng looked at the figure of nearly 800,000 and felt quite satisfied.

The game has only been released for less than a day, and this speed has already far exceeded his initial expectations.

It seems that people in the Pokémon world are very receptive to this novel experience.

But when he saw another category of data, his brows furrowed slightly.

"The number of non-trainer players... is only a little over 50,000?"

This ratio is a bit too low.

With total sales approaching 800,000, non-Trainer players accounted for less than one-tenth of the total.

This is far from the "one million non-trainer players" required by his system mission. If this trend continues, even if the total sales reach ten million, the number of non-trainer players will only be barely five hundred thousand, which is still half of the target.

This result surprised Ling Feng a bit.

He had previously considered that non-trainer groups might have less contact with the game for various reasons, but he did not expect the gap to be so large.

He leaned back in his chair and thought about it carefully; it seemed to make some sense after all.

In this world where trainers are the mainstream and Pokémon battles and training are the core, most of those who do not choose to become trainers engage in basic jobs that support the operation of society.

Farm workers, laborers, waiters, transporters... their lives often revolve around making a living; their work is hard and their schedules are tight.

These forms of entertainment are probably luxuries for them.

Even if completing the game yields real-world rewards, or even items that boost a Pokémon's strength... these things are treasures to trainers, but for a non-trainer who doesn't have a Pokémon partner, or whose Pokémon partner is merely a work partner rather than a battle partner, the appeal is greatly diminished.

They might feel that even if they receive the reward, they won't have a chance to use it, or they simply can't compete with trainer players who have plenty of time and resources.

No wonder there are so few of these players.
So, how can we bring these people into the game?
Ling Feng fell into deep thought.

From this perspective, simply offering rewards seems to have limited effect.

So, do the rewards need to better meet their needs? Or do we need some more influential figures to lead this group?

Just as a few vague thoughts were passing through his mind, a tiny golden dot suddenly flashed in a very inconspicuous corner of the communication module on the system panel, accompanied by an extremely faint notification sound.

Ling Feng's gaze was instantly drawn to it.

[New message: Friend request from "Cynthia"]

Upon seeing the prompt, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

Ok?
They arrived at just the right time.

Sinnoh region, Mt. Coronet villa, Cynthia's study.

Cynthia felt her palms were slightly sweaty as she held the mouse.

She looked at the simple, even somewhat rudimentary, chat window on the screen. At the top of the window was only one word: "Wind," along with a gray avatar.

Several minutes had passed since the friend request was sent. To Cynthia, those minutes felt like an eternity.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, but her heart was still pounding uncontrollably.

Moonlight streamed through the window onto the floor, and the only sounds in the room were the low hum of the computer fan and her own slightly rapid breathing.

She couldn't help but recall a moment from the past when she accidentally saw the cover of that game, and thus entered Emerald, purely to obtain information about Rayquaza.

At the time, she thought the other party might just be an intelligence provider who possessed some ancient secrets or had special channels.

A person worth getting to know.

However, as the game progressed, rewards were distributed, the process of clearing the game unfolded, and the actual appearance of the detector that could locate Rayquaza... everything changed.

This is not something that so-called intelligence brokers could do.

The abilities displayed by the opponent, whether it was creating that almost realistic game world or directly materializing the items and rewards in the game into the real world, were completely beyond Cynthia's comprehension.

Such power is mysterious, strong, and unfathomable, so the other party's level has probably already surpassed the realm that I can reach.

Even for her, it was impossible not to be nervous in the face of such a being.

Just then, the status bar in the chat window suddenly changed.

[Developer: Wind has accepted your friend request.]

Cynthia's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively sat up straighter.

She stared at the blank input box, her fingers hovering over the keyboard. The Sinnoh Champion, who usually expressed her opinions without regard for others at League meetings and remained calm even against formidable opponents, now felt speechless. What should she say? Ask Rayquaza directly? Or express gratitude? Or… She hesitated for a good ten seconds before her fingertips finally touched the keyboard, typing out two of the most ordinary and safest words:

【Hello. 】

send.

She held her breath and waited. The other person seemed to be right in front of the screen; the reply came quickly.

[Wind: Hello, Sinnoh Champion, congratulations on becoming the first player to clear the game.]

Seeing her own name and championship title on the screen, Cynthia was not surprised that the other party knew her identity.

She composed herself and typed a reply:

[Strawberry Ice Cream: Thank you. Your game... is amazing.]

[Wind: May it bring you joy and reward.]

A brief silence followed. Cynthia knew the other person's time was precious, and she had to seize the opportunity. She carefully chose her words, finally asking one of the most pressing questions swirling in her mind:

[Strawberry Ice Cream: Excuse me... is everything in the game—the experiences, the legends, the Pokémon... all real?]

The question seemed to give the other party a moment to think. Only then did the reply slowly emerge:

[Wind: Yes and no. They do exist, in the river of time, at the other end of space, in the trajectory of another world. What you experience is a fragment of what that world once was, or might have been.]

This answer carries a sense of ambiguity, both affirming its authenticity and remaining unstated.

Cynthia felt her worldview being gently shaken once again.

She originally wanted to ask how the other party created such a game and how the rewards were distributed, but she deleted it as soon as she typed it out.

These questions are meaningless; the abilities the opponent has demonstrated have already explained everything. Asking about the underlying principles is like trying to make a Magikarp understand why Rayquaza can fly.
She decisively changed direction and asked another crucial question:
[Strawberry Ice Cream: Will the leaderboard rewards...increase in both quality and variety as more players complete the level?]

This issue relates to the path she can take to improve her strength, and it's something she's judged from the current situation.

[Wind: Yes. The more people clear the levels, the fiercer the competition on the leaderboard will be, and the richer the rewards will naturally be. This will continue indefinitely.]

Cynthia was certain.

That's good. The first-clear reward is only given once, but the path to continuous improvement has been opened up, and the rewards will only increase and become better.

Just as she was about to continue typing, another message popped up:

[Wind: You have one last question.]

One last question!
Cynthia paused, lost in thought.

Countless thoughts raced through her mind, but in the end, the ultimate goal that had permeated her entire trainer career, the belief that drove her to become stronger, overwhelmed everything.

She took a deep breath, as if using all her strength, and typed the name on the keyboard:
[Strawberry Ice Cream: Rayquaza. The detector I received as a game reward... the coordinates it located... does it really exist? Is it really there?]

send.

This time, the wait seemed exceptionally long. Cynthia's eyes were fixed on the screen, and she could almost hear her own breathing.

Finally, a reply appeared. It was just one simple word, yet it struck her like a thunderbolt:

[Wind: Yes.]

An indescribable emotion surged into Cynthia's heart.

it is true!
Rayquaza, the god of the skies, truly exists in that legendary forbidden area!
The detector is correct! And the guidance provided by the game is indeed accurate!

The long-awaited search has finally yielded an answer that is both incredibly clear and yet elusive.

At this moment, his next goal became incredibly clear—he needed power, absolute power enough to break through that forbidden zone of life!

Her eyes instantly sharpened, filled with an unprecedented determination.

Just as Cynthia's mind was completely occupied by Rayquaza and she was about to thank him and end the conversation, another message came from the other party:

[Wind: Well, after asking so many questions, now it's my turn to ask. Miss Cynthia, could you do me a favor?]

Cynthia was suddenly stunned.

help?

How could someone with such power, capable of changing the world and manifesting legends in games, need the help of a "mortal" champion like her?
This situation left her momentarily at a loss for how to react.

She subconsciously typed a question mark.

[Strawberry ice cream: ?]

[Wind: I need to promote the game to a wider audience beyond trainers. As the Sinnoh champion, you possess immense prestige and influence, making you an excellent candidate for promotion.]

Promoting the game? To non-trainers?

Cynthia looked at the words and was somewhat surprised by the specific requirements the other party had made.

This doesn't sound difficult; it could even be said to be something she could easily do within her job responsibilities.

But why do we have to do this?
Before she could think further, the other party sent her another message:

[Wind: In return, I can tell you more about Rayquaza.]

Cynthia's pupils suddenly contracted!

More information about Rayquaza! Even the key to getting close to it!

The significance of this reward is self-evident.

Almost without hesitation, Cynthia's fingers had already typed out a reply:

[Strawberry ice cream: I promise.]

a few days later.

After several days of silence, Cynthia's live stream suddenly lit up without warning.

Instantly, a tsunami of comments flooded the screen!

[Holy crap! He's alive! The streamer's come back from the dead!]

[Cynthia wins the championship!! The missing person has returned!]

【Ahhh, honey, you're finally back! I missed you so much!】

[Where has Sister Zhulan been training these past few days? I'd love to see her train against me via live stream!]

[Guys, look at the Emerald Rankings! The number one spot was taken by the streamer yesterday!!]

[Seriously?! The streamer has already quietly finished the game?! And it's only been out for a few days! That's incredible!]

[This is terrifying! Is this the strength of a champion? Is there a person growing on his liver?]

[How come the streamer is secretly playing games behind our backs? Let us all see!]

(End of this chapter)