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

Through a combination of coercion and seduction, over the course of more than half a month of experimentation, many Ditto have successfully conceived or caused Ultra Beasts to conceive.

Although the methods used might seem uncivilized to those Ultra Beasts, the progress of human civilization has never been entirely clean.

If that eerie black mist isn't hereditary, then it's foreseeable that Ultra Beasts might one day become just another ordinary member of the many Pokémon on Earth.

Also worth noting are the unknown factors that pose a significant threat to the world: whether Ultra Beasts will disrupt the current stable Pokémon ecosystem on Earth, and whether the mysterious Ultra Hole will suddenly open.

Humans currently have no better means to explore this.

The only thing worth looking forward to is Xia Chen, who entered the Ultimate World more than a month ago and has not returned yet.

…………

On March 2, 2026, in the Alliance calendar, it was a sunny and peaceful afternoon.

A strange spatial fluctuation suddenly appeared in the calm sky above Ohana City on Akala Island.

The Alliance branch in Ohana City immediately detected this anomaly through the Aether Foundation's spatial fluctuation monitoring device. Although its fluctuation rate was far less than that at the end of January, barely exceeding the threshold of 5%, it still aroused the Alliance's high vigilance.

After all, the fragile Alola region can no longer withstand the torment of Ultra Beasts, not to mention that legendary Pokémon like Rayquaza and Zapdos have long since returned to their respective homelands.

The only two champions remaining in Alola are Cynthia and Cattleya.

At the request of the League branch in Ohana City, most of Alola's top trainers quickly arrived at the scene and summoned their Pokémon to face the impending unknown situation.

When the spatial fluctuation rate in the monitoring instrument slowly increased to a peak of 9%, a narrow spatial rift about two meters high suddenly appeared under the azure sky.

It was none other than the Ultimate Cave!

The atmosphere instantly became tense, and even the two champion trainers at the front frowned, preparing for the possible arrival of an Ultra Beast.

Although according to the Aether Foundation, Ultra Holes with a spatial fluctuation rate of less than 10% can only produce Gym-level Ultra Beasts at most, what if...?

Soon, a figure whose appearance was obscured emerged from the deep, ultimate hole.

A tense sniper owl lost its composure and fired the Shadow Arrow that had been nocked on its energy bowstring long ago.

throat--

The next instant, the crisp sound of a sword slicing through an arrow came from the direction of the crack, like lighting the fuse of a powder keg. Many Pokémon waiting outside the Ultra Cave did not hesitate to unleash their long-prepared attacks.

A deep blue energy barrier lit up, and these attacks, whose energy intensity was at least at the Dojo level, were instantly swallowed up and submerged by the barrier.

A helpless voice followed.

"No, is this how you welcome me back?"

…………

Two hours later, in a meeting room of the Ethereum Foundation.

"...That concludes my observations and takeaways from the Ultimate World over the past month."

After Xia Chen finished speaking, he drank the water in the glass on the table in one gulp, and his throat, which had been dry from talking for so long, finally felt better.

Inside the meeting room, everyone was either a high-ranking member of the Alola League or a top trainer or researcher who had come to offer assistance.

Xia Chen saw many familiar faces: Cynthia, Gadriya, Daigo, Michael, Mashu... Most of the friends he had called over before entering the Ultimate Cave had not left, which warmed Xia Chen's heart.

They signaled to each other with their eyes that they should get together again after the meeting.

The ensuing meeting was very heated, as what Xia Chen had said was truly astonishing.

A vast, dark ultimate world; Ultra Beasts corrupted by spiritual pollution; a technologically advanced yet confined metropolis...

Each piece of information could be expanded upon to offer a wealth of discussion.

The meeting, which started at noon, showed no sign of stopping until evening, when the Alola League President, Hala, who was chairing the meeting, announced a suspension, finally bringing an end to the endless discussion.

After setting a time for the meeting the following day, everyone went their separate ways.

Even after the meeting ended, Xia Chen still couldn't relax. Many researchers kept bothering him with questions, and even though Xia Chen said that the journey had been too arduous, these researchers, who were almost obsessed, refused to give up.

In the end, it was only through Cattleya's indifferent use of her superpowers that Xia Chen was able to escape.

After sending a group message to his friends to arrange a dinner meeting in Hauerle City, he took advantage of the Guleton to sneak back to Melemele Island.

The fatigue from the journey was no excuse. Even with his strong mental strength, Xia Chen was inevitably a little sleepy after traversing the Ultimate Cave.

Cooking was out of the question, so he decided to have dinner at the restaurant owned by the Shui Lian family with Shirona and the others.

Because Deoxys, who has the ability to create clones, was sent there, Holome City, Alola's largest city, was the one that suffered the least damage.

After simple repairs, it has long since returned to normal operation, and the restaurant called [Hot Alola] is now open for business as usual.

Due to the Ultra Hole incident, the number of tourists in Alola, a popular tourist destination, has plummeted, and restaurants are doing very poor business, with less than 30% of their seats occupied.

This is good news for Xia Chen. In the past, when the place was so popular, even finding a place to eat would have been a problem.

With the restaurant quiet and Shui Lian, who was helping out there, having plenty of free time, she immediately spotted Xia Chen.

The little girl ran over excitedly to greet her former idol, now a national hero of Alola.

Xia Chen also wanted to know what had happened during the month he was gone, so the two started chatting.

Chapter 527 Shocking! The Sinnoh Unova Champion was actually subjected to PUA (Pick-Up Artist) tactics.

"So much has happened during this time... By the way, how is Rosamund?"

Inside the [Hot Aurora] private room, Xia Chen, having ordered his food, waited for Cynthia and the others to arrive while chatting with Shui Lian about what had happened in Alola during his trip to the Ultimate World.

Shui Lian's expression darkened, and she replied, "Aunt Lusamine...it's very bad. The result of the joint trial by the Ten Great Alliances is...a death sentence."

Lana and Lillie are good friends, so she naturally sympathizes with her friend's mother's terrible situation, even though Lusamine did do something unforgivable for the Alola region.

Xia Chen remained calm. He believed that mistakes should be acknowledged, and that there was no reason to sympathize with that stubborn and scheming woman.

If you sympathize with her, who will sympathize with the many people and spirits who lost their lives in this disaster?

In contrast, he was more worried about the innocent Lillie.

Xia Chen asked, "How is Lillie? Is she alright?"

Shui Lian's expression became even more dejected. If her feelings for Lusamine stemmed from her sympathy for Lusamine's role as a "friend's mother," then her feelings for Lillie were genuine heartache.

"The last time I saw Lillie was a week ago. Although she said she was okay, her eyes were so red from crying..."

Xia Chen was slightly taken aback; he could imagine how this kind and strong girl must have felt at that moment.

On one side are her closest relatives, and on the other is the greater good. It is already quite remarkable that an eighteen-year-old girl would not break down in such a situation, let alone someone like Lillie who can comfort and care for her best friend.

Shui Lian thought for a moment and then said, "Brother Gladgio seems to be calmer."

Xia Chen hesitated for a moment, "That child does need to calm down. I feel at ease knowing that Lillie is being looked after by him."

Shui Lian, who was feeling a bit down, was amused by Xia Chen and chuckled, saying, "Brother Xia Chen, Brother Gladgio, you seem to be three years older than me, right? And what were you saying about 'that child'..."

Xia Chen laughed awkwardly, "I guess I've gotten too caught up in the character of Lillie... Don't worry, I'll go see her in a couple of days."

As the two were chatting, the door to the private room creaked open, and the first person to arrive arrived.

To be precise, it was a Roserade that pushed open the door.

It retracted the rattan whip from the doorknob, bowed gracefully to Xia Chen and Shui Lian inside the room, and then gestured an invitation towards the outside.

Xia Chen smiled slightly and stood up to greet him.

"Long time no see, Roserade, and... Champion Cynthia."

He flashed a bright smile at the blonde beauty outside the door; the boy's warm, sunny smile clashed with the icy figure.

The tall, beautiful woman's eyes no longer held their former gentleness; they were now as cold as the wind sweeping across the top of Tianguan Mountain.

Xia Chen's smile remained unchanged. He had already suffered from such glares during the meeting just now, and although things hadn't gotten better, at least they hadn't cooled down any further.

As for the reason, he knew it perfectly well in his heart—

To venture into the Ultimate Hole alone without any preparation would be seen by outsiders as an act of utter irresponsibility towards one's own life.

This is what angered Cynthia.

Cynthia's cold attitude did not discourage Xia Chen in the slightest; on the contrary, it made him inexplicably happy.

It wasn't that he had awakened some strange or unusual attribute; rather, it was because he understood that the more someone cares about you, the more angry or even disappointed they will be about this kind of behavior.

If Cynthia treated him with her usual gentle attitude, Xia Chen would feel disappointed.

Although he felt a little excited inside, Xia Chen still had to explain properly to melt the ice in Cynthia's heart.

…………

"Sister Zhulan, please have a seat."

Xia Chen's slightly fawning expression gave Shui Lian, who was quietly watching the show, goosebumps.

Cynthia showed no intention of moving, but Xia Chen wanted to lead her in. Before they got close, Roseradore elegantly blocked their way with her vine whip.

Xia Chen's eyelids twitched. He knew that Xilona was really angry this time. Saying things like "I'm fine now" would probably have no effect and would only backfire.

He could only say sincerely, "Sister Zhulan, believe me, I dare to go because I have my own confidence."

Knowing Xia Chen's nature all too well, Shirona gave a cold smile, her elegant chin lifted slightly—an arrogant gesture she had never used towards Xia Chen before, yet its meaning was not difficult to understand.

Keep making things up, and try to make them sound nice.

Cynthia had long seen through Xia Chen. This scoundrel always had a strange confidence in some extremely risky behaviors, and afterwards he would find excuses to deceive her.

Xia Chen's expression grew even more sincere. "I'm telling you, before entering the Ultimate Void, I learned quite a bit about the Ultimate World through Volcarona. For example, the Ultimate Metropolis has space-time technology, and there's the existence of the Paper Sword that can cleave out the Ultimate Void. And you also know..."

He gave a slight, wry smile. "I have reasons why I have to do this."

First, he was sincere; then he played the victim. Xia Chen's operation was so smooth that even Cynthia, who had seen his tricks many times before, couldn't help but be moved.

Yes, put yourself in his shoes. After finally uncovering the truth about his parents' disappearance, what reason do outsiders have to criticize him so harshly?

The ice queen's expression softened, clearly showing signs of thawing.

Just as Xia Chen thought he had Cynthia under control and was about to breathe a sigh of relief, another mocking, cold voice came from behind him, "Lies."

Xia Chen didn't need to turn his head to know who the voice belonged to. Who else could be so mysterious as to suddenly appear in the room?

He turned to look at Cattleya, who was much shorter than him but exuded a unique kind of majesty, and said helplessly, "Teacher, when did you learn to detect lies? Besides, what I said wasn't a lie."

With her arms crossed over her barely noticeable chest, Gadrilia sneered disdainfully, "First of all, I don't know where you get the courage to question my abilities, which are as vast as the starry sky. Secondly, let alone a story that is nine parts true and one part false, even if it is just a truth that is misleading by concealing key information, it is still a lie to me."

Xia Chen knew he couldn't win against this super-powered queen, so he sighed and said frankly, "Okay, you win. Some information was indeed not obtained through Volcano, but I am confident enough to get to the Ultimate World."