Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

"Xiaoxia, Xiaogang, are you really okay?" Lila's palms were sweating as she listened.

Suddenly, Xiao Gang became serious, and Xiao Xia spoke in a firm tone, both denying the existence of their families... Lila was completely confused about what was going on!

"Could they be possessed by an evil spirit?" Cai Dou suggested seriously. "I know a very capable kid who might be able to solve their problem."

"How could this be..." Ash stared blankly at his two companions, who also looked distressed, completely unprepared for this turn of events!

Ash knows, of course, the circumstances under which Brock won't evolve Onix, the circumstances under which Misty starts as a Gym Leader, and why they deny the existence of their families.

But... this is just too unbelievable!

A living, breathing person who's been traveling with me for so long, and their persona just changes like that?!

Or is this actually their original persona?

Ash struggled to organize the complex information in his mind: the two different alternate dimensions involved in this incident, the original trio from the original series, and this world that seemed different from the original series, as well as the extra people.

Gradually, he seemed to have found the answer.

But he still decided to test the waters.

He gave Xiao Lan a wink, and she immediately understood, then deliberately grinned mischievously and put her arm around Xiao Xia's neck.

"Hua Lan's sister, you haven't been possessed, have you?"

"You're the one who's been possessed!" Xiaoxia immediately retorted, bristling. "My mind is already a mess enough, can't you wish me well for once?!"

"Okay, the test is complete. Sisters are still sisters." Xiao Lan said with a grin. "You were just overwhelmed by a sudden thought, you didn't actually become a different person."

"You're the one who's out of your mind!" Xiaoxia bared her teeth in frustration.

There have been some changes, but she is still the same Xiaoxia.

Ash, on the other hand, also got the result after testing the waters.

"I think this is pretty good, Brock. This serious look really suits you." Ash nodded in satisfaction. "How about this: to further hone your rock-solid will, you'll never have to see those annoying older sisters again..."

"No, Ash!" Xiao Gang opened his eyes in alarm. "We're such good friends, you can't just play around and kill me!"

“Okay, that’s fine too~” Xiao Zhi said with a relieved smile.

Seeing this, Xiao Gang and Xiao Xia gradually breathed a sigh of relief.

But Xiaoxia still felt something was wrong: "Sigh, why is that?"

"It's probably an accident caused by a spacetime distortion, so don't worry about it too much," Ash reassured you. "No matter what new memories you have, you'll still be you, and we'll still be traveling partners... Nothing will change!"

This is naturally Xiaozhi's true thought, and this is all he can say to persuade him now.

He couldn't tell his friends that there was something wrong with the world they lived in.

When he met Xiao Lan and Nanami in his childhood, he knew that the world was not as simple as the original story.

Ash's performance just now also confirmed this... The original characters wouldn't know Blue, because there's no such person in the anime!

So, is it a mix of random elements crammed into an anime... or is it originally a complex world based on a game world?

Ash tends to think it's the latter, since the alpaca in the anime is kind, reasonable, and has a charming and submissive voice, unlike the awful one he encountered.

Perhaps it was due to the distortion of spacetime that their world's original timeline was revealed. In addition, the appearance of the original trio made Xiaogang and Xiaoxia realize the obvious differences.

This difference is exactly what they should have experienced as game characters!

Brock is a tough Rock-type Gym Leader who rarely smiles. His favorite Pokémon is Onix, not Steelix.

Xiaoxia is also a powerful Water-type Gym Leader, and should be very famous in Kanto, a figure that is difficult for ordinary trainers to rival.

But now it's completely pointless to dwell on who they are.

They are travel companions. For Ash, Brock is a good buddy, and Misty is his lover... As long as they are still themselves, their specific character settings are really not important.

The same goes for Ash himself. Does it matter whether he's wearing Red or Ash's clothes? It's all the same—it's time travel.

All he can do now is try to become stronger, and then stand in front of that being and ask... why did it make the world this way?

To manipulate the entire world and all its creatures at will... Is this the perfection it has been pursuing?

...

"Let's go, it's time to set off to collect badges." In any case, the journey must continue.

With his companion's inner conflict resolved, Ash is ready to continue his challenging journey.

"Let's part ways here. I need to go back to Asagi City first. You guys should be heading straight to Enoki City, right?" Ayaka then said goodbye.

She also needs to challenge the City Alliance, and time is running out, so splitting up is obviously faster.

"Then see you at Mt. Silver." Ash smiled and shook hands with Bea goodbye.

"Then let's have a good fight in the tournament!" The girl was full of fighting spirit as they were about to part ways.

"I am looking forward."

Rainbow Bean participated, and Silver had been collecting badges before...

This year's Silver Conference seems to be more interesting than the original story... no, it's more interesting than the one in another timeline.

Chapter 523 Snow Mountain, Encounter with Articulated Bird Again

After parting ways with Bea, Ash and his friends began their journey towards Ecruteak City.

However, while passing through the snow-capped mountain area, they happened to hear news about arthropods.

On the nearby snow-capped mountains, it is said that someone spotted an articulated bird!

"Articuno, could it be that one?" Little Blue suddenly became interested.

During the chaos in Kanto, the three primary colors fought alongside the three legendary birds, but they haven't seen each other since.

"Whether it is true or not, we have to take care of this kind of thing." Xiao Zhi thought for a moment and said, "After this news comes out, there will probably be a lot more climbers, and some people might get into danger. And if Articuno is really on the mountain, it will probably be very troublesome."

"Let's head up the mountain then. Perfect timing! I heard that the world's highest Pokémon Center is on Mount White Snow." Brock read the guidebook's description in a serious tone, but then his expression instantly changed to that of Uncle Brock.

"I heard that Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny live together at that Pokémon Center; that must be double the fun!"

"Sigh... Sometimes I think, the other side of Xiaogang is actually quite good too." Xiaoxia sighed, rubbing her forehead, and then gave Xiaogang's ear a hard tug...

"Ah! It hurts! It hurts!"

Xiao Gang's cheerful shouts immediately filled the air.

Having decided on their next destination, the group began their journey along the mountain path. Before long, they discovered a solitary little house on a snow-covered mountain.

"The world's tallest Pokémon Center, the last chance for Pokémon to recover." Brock read the sign at the entrance, his expression gradually losing control. "Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny, I'm here!"

"Oh, welcome! Are you also going up the mountain?" Just then, Officer Jenny, dressed in winter clothes, arrived at the door on a snowmobile.

After she came to a stop, she immediately recognized Xiaozhi and raised her hand in salute.

"Hello, Commander Xiaozhi. I didn't expect to meet you here."

"We came here to investigate after hearing about Articuno," Ash explained.

"You're here for Articuno too?" Officer Jenny was taken aback at first, but then looked troubled. "Sigh, this news is causing us a lot of trouble."

She sighed as she ushered Ash and the others into the Pokémon Center.

Ms. Joy, who works there, also came to greet them. She prepared hot tea for everyone, and Xiaozhi and the others learned the whole story from the nurse and the policewoman.

The existence of Articuno in the snowy mountains was originally just a legend. It is said that 1200 years ago, a traveler in distress was saved by Articuno, and Articuno was therefore regarded as the guardian of mountaineering travelers, and a statue was specially made for it.

The statue still stands, but Articuno has never been seen, and the legend has gradually lost its appeal.

Just recently, someone actually saw arthropods flying over the mountain peaks and hovering in mid-air near Snow Mountain, and even took clear photos!

“Since then, more people have come to climb mountains and explore, and our work has become more demanding.” Officer Jenny complained helplessly, “Now I have to go out on patrol at least four times a day, and I’m worried every moment that some unlucky guys might get into trouble. Even Growlithe has caught a cold from the cold.”

"Leave this to us," Ash decided to take on the task.

Not only should we prevent arthropods from being disturbed, but we should also deter those enthusiastic climbers to avoid too many unnecessary sacrifices.

So, after changing into winter clothes at the Pokémon Center, the group prepared to head towards the highest peak of Mount White.

During this time, Ash sent out Lucario to help him conduct a wide-area search using Aura, and they quickly located Articuno's position.

"It's right on the mountaintop, and it's the same one we've seen before. Anyway... let's get there first."

Ash was a little distracted just now, and the Pokémon Manager told him that a treasure had been detected at the mountaintop.

(That's a group of frozen stones, but it's very special; you'll have to see it for yourself to know the details.)

Ice Stone is actually a product of a specific environment. Before the appearance of Ice Stone in Generation 7, in order to evolve Eevee into Glaceon, you had to take it to a special location where Ice Stone exists.

The frozen stone was quite unique, which made Ash keep an eye on it.

"Let's all gather together, we'll teleport there."

Climbing a snow-capped mountain is not a good experience. In order to see his old friend as soon as possible, Ash decisively teleported to the top after confirming the other party's location.

At the very top of the snow-capped mountain, an Articuno was perched on a cluster of special ice crystals, flapping its wings. Each movement of its wings stirred up a fierce blizzard.

"Woo..." The beautiful giant bird muttered helplessly. It had only gone out for a stroll, but who knew it would be targeted and forced to keep creating blizzards to block the mountain road.

The snow's so heavy, hopefully no annoying guys will come by...

Hey Articuno, how are you doing?