Pokémon: I picked up a reborn Eevee at the start of the game

Xia Chen left Dragapult and Gardevoir, who had almost fully recovered, in the ward to keep Milotic company. With Nurse Joy and Cheesecake taking care of them, Xia Chen didn't need to worry too much.

He then went with Michael to meet his teacher, Adam, the former Gym Leader of the Glass Dojo, and have lunch together.

Behind the Glass Dojo is the ancestral home of Mikori, a people of the Glass Clan, a manor-style building full of the style of the Hoenn nobles in the medieval period.

The only residents are Adam and his disciple Michael, but the staff, cooks, and maids number nearly forty, making it a very old-money operation.

When Xia Chen met Ya, the latter was fighting Qianli on the battlefield.

The battle between King Thorn Dragon and King Swallow was fierce, and for a time the outcome was uncertain.

However, the two did not dwell on the final outcome. After seeing Xia Chen arrive, they recalled their respective Pokémon and handed them to the waiting medical team to take them for treatment.

The four sat down on the balcony next to the battlefield, enjoying the scenery, sipping tea, and chatting.

…………

"Haha, Mr. Xia Chen is truly a young man of great talent. After watching your match with Mikoli, Qianli and I were itching to have a little spar with each other. Sorry to keep you waiting."

Adam, dressed in a well-fitting light blue suit, greeted Xia Chen with a hearty laugh, then took a sip of tea. His demeanor was elegant yet not effeminate, befitting the charming playboy who was coveted by countless wealthy ladies and young ladies of Fengyuan.

Qianli, who had a buzz cut and a tough-guy vibe, said with some dissatisfaction, "If you're going to fight, you should finish it properly. What kind of nonsense is it to stop halfway through?"

It seems he was quite unhappy about the pause in the match just now.

Adam laughed and said, "We've fought so many times, one more time won't make a difference. Anyway, you're going to stay in Liuli City for a while longer, so let's fight again this afternoon."

Only after making a promise did Qianli agree to let Adam go.

After the two old buddies resolved their minor conflict, Xia Chen smiled and replied, "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Adam."

Adam said very politely, "I should be the one saying that. I've been holed up in Liuli City for the past two years, and I never expected to meet a young talent like you. It's all thanks to Mikoli for getting Liuli City nominated as the host city for the Grand Festival."

When asked to speak, Mikoli smiled and replied, "Teacher Adam and I are both key figures in the Grand Celebration competition. Since Xia Chen is here, and we invited Miss Ma Xiu over as well, it can be considered a small high-level meeting for the Grand Celebration."

Xia Chen naturally returned the compliment with polite pleasantries, but of the four, only Qianli remained silent and sullen.

As a staunch opponent of ostentatious competitions, he felt extremely uncomfortable barging into this party, like a serpent entering a mongoose's den.

Noticing his old friend's unusual mood, Adam smiled and patted him on the shoulder, comforting him, "Alright, stop looking so grumpy. I've even judged two of Ruby's matches. He's incredibly talented, both as a trainer and a coordinator. Besides, why do you think it's a waste to invest time and energy in Grand Contests? The coordination skills required for Grand Contests are also very beneficial to his trainer career."

Knowing his friend very well, Qianli glanced at Adam with a clear look in his eyes—"Keep fooling around!"

Adam was slightly taken aback, then glanced at Xia Chen with a half-closed look, as if he had found strong evidence.

"Look, isn't Xia Chen the best proof? As the champion of the first Grand Contest, does that affect his achievements in Pokémon battles?"

Qianli was taken aback and was about to retort when Adam said again, "Or is it that... you don't have that kind of confidence in your son Ruby?"

Qianli gave a wry smile. How could she possibly respond to that?

Does he admit that Ruby doesn't have Xia Chen's talent?

Although it was true, as a father, he was unwilling to belittle his son in that way.

However, not refuting it is tantamount to indirectly admitting Adam's argument that "participating in the Grand Contest is not a waste of time."

This move is a guaranteed kill with no counter.

…………

"Alright, there's a saying in Donghuang: 'Children and grandchildren have their own blessings.' Stop worrying about Ruby. Enjoy yourself in Glazed City for a while, then go back and focus on being a gym leader and preparing for the Elite Four battle. You have your own dreams too, don't you?"

At Adam's urging, Qianli nodded sullenly.

Although he is a stubborn person, stubbornness does not mean being unreasonable or unwilling to listen to advice.

Although Adam's words were somewhat sophistical, they made a lot of sense in some respects, and Adam's mood eased considerably at that moment.

But he was unwilling to be so easily manipulated by Adam, and couldn't help but retort, "That's right, it's a pity you won't be able to enjoy the blessings of your children and grandchildren."

The playboy, who remains unmarried to this day, has no children or grandchildren.

Qianli had hoped to turn the tables with these words, but Adam smiled mysteriously and said, "You know what? There's actually a second half to that statement."

Qianli had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but he couldn't help asking out of curiosity, "What's the second half of the sentence?"

Xia Chen, a native of Donghuang, reminded him: "Children and grandchildren have their own blessings; if I have no children and grandchildren, I will enjoy my blessings."

Adam laughed and patted his friend on the shoulder. "Sorry, I have an appointment with Miss Elsa this afternoon, so our match will have to wait until tomorrow... Well, that won't work either, I'm going to Lilycove City tomorrow to see a musical with Mrs. Fiona, so we'll have to reschedule for another time."

Qianli suffered a devastating defeat and became completely withdrawn.

After easing Qianli's worries, life mentor Adam began to work on Xia Chen's mental well-being.

"Young man, what about you? I see a lingering gloom in your heart. Is something troubling you?"

Xia Chen was startled. Did this person have mind-reading abilities? And were they that accurate?

But then he remembered that some old swindlers in his past life would use this kind of anchoring technique to strike up a conversation, starting with, "I've got a feeling you've been having some troubles lately, haven't you?"

That's so true. Is there anyone in this world who doesn't have worries?

However, Adam probably isn't that kind of person; he was probably just looking for a topic of conversation.

Xia Chen was still pondering when Mikoli answered for him.

"Xia Chen is worried about the spectacular battle performance at the grand opening ceremony of that grand celebration. He lacks confidence, but in my opinion, even if I bring out my main Pokémon, he will have a way to deal with it."

Xia Chen: "......"

There's no need for that. Fighting a single Gyarados almost wiped out Dragapult and Milotic. How can I possibly compete with such a spectacular 1v1 battle?

However, since Adam brought it up, Xia Chen decided to share some of his doubts with them first.

After all, although the three of them are only gym leaders, they are all genuinely Elite Four level fighters, and can be considered the top fighting force in the Hoenn region.

That way, if something uncontrollable happens, we'll be mentally prepared.

He organized his thoughts and said, "I do have a little doubt, probably about the recent weather. I suspect that the unusual weather in the Hoenn region recently might be... related to those two legendary ancient Pokémon."

…………

Upon hearing Xia Chen's words, the three of them reacted differently.

Qianli's expression leaned more towards shock at being almost completely unaware, while Adam and his apprentice Mikoli were simply surprised, as if they had some preconceived notions about what Xia Chen had said.

Mikoli asked seriously, "Have you found out some information?"

Xia Chen thought for a moment and shook his head, saying, "There is no concrete information or evidence, but based on what I have seen and heard in Hoenn and my experience with legendary Pokémon, I think it is quite possible."

Adam hesitated for a moment and said, "Explain in detail."

Ten minutes later.

"...That's about all the information I have."

Xia Chen told the three of most things except for Huoyan and Keystone, including his and Gu Leton's conjectures.

Mikuri said calmly, "If that's all, it certainly doesn't qualify as evidence, and it's even a bit far-fetched as conjecture. As a Citizen of the Glass, I'm willing to share your pessimistic view of this matter, but what about the Alliance..."

He gently shook his head, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Adam added, “The Meteor People’s millennium prophecy is coming to an end, and nobody there is taking it seriously, let alone this even more baseless conjecture. They can’t possibly go into martial law because of this, because the cost of such a thing is just too high.”

Xia Chen nodded with a wry smile.

He was well aware of such things. Once the alliance entered a state of martial law, people would panic, schools would close, businesses would shut down, factories would cease production, and the entire society would be paralyzed.

If a disaster really strikes, it'll be a false alarm... but who will take responsibility?

Even if Xia Chen were a hothead who patted his chest and guaranteed "I'll take responsibility," he would still be met with a retort: ​​"Can you really take that responsibility?"

Mikoli could roughly understand what Xia Chen was thinking, and comforted him, "If you're really worried, I'll take you to the Awakening Temple, which is guarded by our Glass People, this afternoon. Who knows, we might find some clues?"

Xia Chen said gratefully, "Thank you very much. As for this matter... I hope I'm just overthinking it."

The other three remained silent. Given the precedents in Carlos and Padia, they all had some doubts about whether the two great gods would awaken.

Perhaps because the topic was somewhat heavy, the group was not in high spirits until the housekeeper came to call them for dinner, at which point their mood returned to normal.

…………

As an old noble family in the Hoenn region, their banquets are naturally quite elaborate, with over twenty dishes in total, including appetizers, main courses, and desserts. Well... that's over twenty dishes for each person and Pokémon.

The main selling point is a refined yet not filling meal.

However, despite that, the overall taste of the dishes was quite good, and the fact that they were Hoenn delicacies that they had rarely eaten before added to the appeal, so Xia Chen and the Pokémon were quite satisfied.

In the afternoon, Adam and Senri continued their unfinished battle from the morning, while Mikoli, as promised, took Xia Chen to the Awakening Temple, which was not far from the Glass Dojo.

The morning drizzle had long since stopped, and the sky was a clear, bright blue after the rain—a color that Mikkelsen praised as elegant.

Xia Chen wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the sky here was a little low, and the clouds reflected in the volcanic lake in the center of the ancient city of Liuli seemed so close that they could almost be touched.

The beautiful scenery after the rain also attracted many tourists who were taking a walk to stop and take pictures by the lake, creating a peaceful and harmonious scene.

The ancient city of Liuli is not large. The Awakening Temple is located on the east side of the volcanic lake, facing the Liuli Dojo across the lake.

Despite being called a temple, it is essentially a cave. However, this cave may have been built with Groudon's help, as it is very well-organized and spacious inside, almost like a man-made palace, hence the name "temple".

Legend has it that this is the place where all Pokémon in the Hoenn region originate, and the place where they end is Mt. Sacred.

Of course, the source of this legend is unreliable, and similar legends exist in every region.

The Temple of Awakening is a place protected by the people of Lapis Lazuli for generations, and it is a place where tourists are prohibited from visiting.

In the past, a large number of Pokémon might have been needed to guard the entrance, but in modern times, things are not so rigid. Mikuri has set up a more modern and secure access control system at the entrance, and a few Pokémon take turns guarding it.

Ultimately, there's nothing of value to steal in the Temple of Awakening, so guarding it so closely is like throwing a seductive glance at a blind man.

As Mikuri passed through the access gate, Xia Chen entered the place where Groudon or Kyogre awakened in the game's storyline—

The reason for saying "or" is that the awakened mythical beast will change depending on the game version, and the other one will awaken in the underwater cave southeast of Liuli Island.

I don't know what the real world will be like.

After entering the Temple of Awakening, Xia Chen released Gu Le Dun.

He wondered if this fellow legendary Pokémon, whose name and color were similar to Groudon's, could offer any useful insights.

The two people and the dragon slowly walked into the cave, paying attention to the details inside.

…………

The cave was very dark, and only by relying on the fire energy actively released by Guleton could one see its internal structure.

Just inside the temple is a fairly spacious passageway, about four or five meters wide and high.