Ash's Pokémon Travel Has Big Problems

I like lemons.

I'm really a little jealous.

"Hey! Ash!" Misty finally found her voice, her tone sharp with disbelief, "You...you cheated?! Did Ho-Oh bless you?!"

Ash was happily checking Pidgey and Pikachu's new stats when he heard this. He looked up, his face beaming with an adorable, almost irritatingly excited smile.

"Huh? Luck! It's all luck, Xia!"

"See, I told you fishing is all about the process!"

"When the process is complete, a good result will naturally follow!"

"This must be Lord Phoenix's reward for our perseverance!"

Ash carefully wiped the Poké Ball containing Magikarp, clipped it to the most convenient spot on his belt, and patted Pidgey's head on his shoulder: "Well done! Sky Eye, you're getting more and more competent!"

Finally, he crouched down, ruffled Pikachu's fluffy head, and ignored the tiny electric current crackling through his fingertips: "And you, partner! Quick Attack was so cool!"

Sky Eye and Partner are the nicknames Ash gave to his two Pokémon.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu rubbed against his hand, its face full of "basic skills" pride.

The little guy has become much more cheerful during his time with Ash.

Looking at this scene, and then at the listless goldfish in her bucket, Xiaoxia felt a surge of injustice mixed with the frustration of "why?" rushing to her head.

A golden Magikarp!

While there are many more precious elves than this, there are very few with even greater aesthetic value.

Her orange hair was practically standing on end in anger, like a cat with its fur standing on end.

……what?

Xiaoxia's hairstyle seems a bit odd to begin with?

That's fine.

"Enjoy the process? Reward?" Xiaoxia gritted her teeth, grabbing her fishing rod and bucket. "I don't believe you! You're definitely up to something!"

Xiaoxia felt that Xiaozhi was definitely lying to her!

She turned and stormed off, splashing water everywhere with her footsteps: "Hmph! I'm not playing with you anymore! Goodbye!"

"Hey? Misty? Wait for me!" Ash quickly called to Pikachu and Pidgey to follow, his smile still bright.

Don't laugh?

I just can't hold it in!

If circumstances allowed, he would be asking everyone he meets, "How did you know I caught the golden carp?"

"Didn't we say we'd travel together and become Pokémon Masters?"

"Don't leave me!"

Ash, carrying a bucket and a fishing rod, chased after Misty.

Golden morning light filtered through the trees, illuminating the boy's advancing figure and the orange-haired girl's furious back.

Xiao Zhi did indeed lie.

But catching the golden carp... he himself didn't understand how he did it.

It can only be described as luck.

Even Ho-Oh itself may not have the ability to change its luck.

You really can't blame him for this.

However, Xiaoxia's current mood is probably: she's worried about her brother suffering, but she's also worried about him driving a Land Rover.

It's not that I'm really angry, it's just that the difference is too great.

Uh... this kind of thing happens quite often among fishing enthusiasts.

Especially when veteran anglers see the newbie bonus period.

That expression... The fisherman, who had been bent over his whole life, finally broke.

Chapter 9 The strongest trainers in history! They are the champions!

The forest clearing was filled with the fresh scent of grass and trees.

Xiaoxia sat cross-legged on the half-dry moss, angrily applying medicine to the wounds of a goldfish.

Not far away, Ash's voice pierced through the crackling of Pikachu's electric shocks and the whooshing sound of Pidgey's wings flapping:

"A lightning-fast change of direction! Don't give that fiery sparrow a chance to create distance!"

"BoBo, the raging storm is obstructing its vision!"

"Magikarp, Splash! Aim at that puddle and hit it hard!"

In daily training, it is important to cultivate a rapport between the Pokémon and the trainer, forming habits that are mutually agreed upon.

Without this kind of daily training, it would be difficult to command in combat.

Pokémon may not understand their trainer's commands, but your opponent's trainer in a competitive match will definitely understand your commands.

In official matches, Pokémon battles are very fast.

High-level Pokémon can even move faster than the speed of sound.

Without sufficient understanding and coordination, it's impossible to give instructions verbally.

What's the point of talking if you can't keep up with how fast others move?

Even when Pokémon use their ultimate moves collide, the resulting air shockwaves can completely drown out your voice.

With a flash of golden light, Pikachu transformed into a blur and knocked away a Spearow, its four claws carving shallow furrows in the muddy ground as it landed.

The turbulent currents stirred up by the waves carried fallen leaves, blinding another fierce bird.

Meanwhile, the golden Magikarp that Xiaoxia had mentally complained about a hundred times was energetically bouncing around in the muddy pit, splashing muddy water all over the last Spearow, actually knocking it off balance.

Magikarp is making a great effort!

Magikarp used Splash, but nothing seemed to happen.

The mud only dampened the finless jay's feathers.

Xiaoxia's eyes twitched as she watched.

Besides being pretty, rare, and good-looking... and jumping high, what good is Magikarp?

Is it worth all this trouble?

Since Xiaoxia didn't know the specific conditions for Magikarp to evolve into Gyarados, she genuinely felt that Ash was messing with Magikarp.

After all, Water-type trainers usually just capture Gyarados directly.

Starting with a Magikarp is really too much of a gamble.

Magikarp can be found all over the world, but the probability of it evolving into Gyarados is more than one in ten thousand.

Why not just buy a lottery ticket instead of randomly catching a Magikarp and betting that it will evolve into Gyarados?

At least that's how it is from Xiaoxia's perspective.

She didn't know that Xiao Zhi had a system cheat, and Xiao Zhi wouldn't tell her about it.

"Hey!"

Xiaoxia finally couldn't hold back any longer and threw the empty medicine bottle aside.

"Ash! Are you ever going to stop? It's fine for Pikachu and Pidgey to train, but that Magikarp... do you expect it to knock out the Gym Leader with Splash?"

Magikarp weighs around 80 or 90 pounds... If it were to hit someone, it might actually kill them half to death.

"And... shouldn't training Pokémon involve teaching them powerful moves and building a bond with them?" Misty pointed at the golden figure still splashing around in the mud. "Magikarp can't learn anything."

Ash had just brought the exhausted Pikachu back and was drying its wet fur with a towel when he heard this and looked up.

Sunlight filtered through the trees and fell on his face, making his eyes shine with an astonishing brightness.

Xiao Zhi thought... since you've asked, I'll mercifully tell you.

I'm going to pull this stunt off!

“Cultivating feelings is certainly important, Xiaoxia.”

"But can emotions really allow your goldfish to withstand a champion's ace attack with a dragon star formation without falling over?"

This world is not a game.

Even with [protection], there is a damage limit.

Xiaoxia choked: "...Wh-what?"

“I said, open your eyes and see the world, Xiaoxia.” Xiaozhi stood up, casually draped a towel over his shoulder, and walked to the puddle.

He faced the sun, his back to Xiaoxia, and opened his arms.

At that moment, it felt as if he was embracing the whole world!

The golden carp seemed to sense his gaze and jumped even more vigorously, the water droplets refracting into tiny golden glints in the sunlight.

"I'm telling you, you don't understand, and that's that."

"Can one Magikarp be the same as another Magikarp?"

Ash suddenly turned around, his gaze sharply piercing Misty:

"You should know that individual Pokémon are different."

"For a novice trainer, that slight difference can determine whether your Thunderbolt hits the opponent first in a battle, or whether the opponent's Hyper Beam blasts you into dust first?"

"This is still at the level of an average trainer."

"Do you know how terrifying the power surge can be at the level of a top trainer?"

He spoke faster, each word like a small hammer striking Xiaoxia's intellectual barriers.

...The Cerulean Gym has declined.

These are things that are common knowledge at Oak's lab, but Misty doesn't know much about them.

Because it's the real world, not the game world, the Pokémon universe will naturally be filled in.

"The elite among the regional elites."

"On the road to victory after victory."

"Reach the pinnacle of trainer status."

"This is the champion."

"Cynthia, the champion of the Sinnoh region, is 26 years old. Her Garchomp and Dragon Dive can tear mountains apart!"

"The undefeated champion of Galar, Leon, 20 years old. His Charizard, Gigantamax Hellfire, can evaporate a lake!"

"Do you think people are strong just by shouting slogans, feeding them energy cubes, patting them on the head and saying 'Go for it'?"

Xiaoxia was stunned by his sudden aura, and even forgot to swing her orange ponytail: "Bamboo... Bamboo Orchid? I know."

"Galar? Leonti? Who...who is that?"

Uh... Cynthia is the Sinnoh regional champion.

She frequently appears as the champion and participates in events... She has been the champion for at least ten years.

Sinnoh isn't too far from Kanto, and Xiaoxia has heard of it, but she doesn't know the specifics.

Galar, on the other hand... that's a bit too far away.

I've heard of the region's name, but I've never heard of the champion's name.

Or rather, information about Dandi is easy to find online, but you won't have much access to it unless you actively look for it.

The Kanto Alliance does not promote the Galar Alliance; the alliances in each region are relatively independent.

When Dan was 10 years old, he won the championship in his first dojo challenge and has remained undefeated ever since.

That's pretty outrageous...

"Karuna, the champion of the Carlos League, is 20 years old and also a world-class film actress."