Pokémon: Trainers Start as Bounty Hunters.

"hiss"

Both of them gasped, their faces turning red from the cold.

The temperature in the forest is now at least minus thirty degrees Celsius. Given such a large temperature difference, it's fortunate that both of them are in excellent physical condition; otherwise, they would have been sick for at least a few days.

However, Tetsuya was even more surprised than Morio.

The reason was that when the messenger bird used its ability, the champion strength displayed on Zero's panel instantly changed to three more glaring words—Level 3 God.

He never expected that before he could even witness just how strong a typical champion Pokémon really was, he would first witness just how ridiculously powerful a level 3 legendary Pokémon was.

Moreover, this Pokémon is a messenger bird that is not considered very powerful by most people.

No, Tetsuya subconsciously denied his own idea.

Liu Bo's Delibird can definitely be called a mini Articuno. In fact, apart from its rarity, most Articunos are probably not as strong as this Delibird.

Coincidentally, Delibird and Articuno are also the only two Pokémon with the Ice and Flying type combination.

"Boss, it's frozen...frozen."

Tetsuya and Morio also received reports from the security team members located in the command center through their earpieces.

His tone was also full of disbelief.

Normal people don't have the opportunity to witness the abilities of a level three divine spirit.

If he knew, he would definitely brag about it a lot.

What's most surprising is that even with such a large-scale use of super-powerful ice-type energy, Delibird ensured that not a single wild Pokémon was attacked by it.

In other words, it precisely controls the use of ice-based energy, focusing it on floods.

This level of control is unparalleled.

"It's almost resolved. You guys arrange the follow-up work, and I'll go investigate the cause of the anomaly."

Liu Bo turned around, said something to the two of them, and then withdrew the Snow King and left with the messenger bird.

His tone was unusually calm, as if he were performing a routine task like serving food or water.

"She really is... difficult to get along with."

As Sen Nan watched Liu Bo disappear, he whispered his innermost thoughts.

He certainly wouldn't dare say it to his face; he even felt that, given Uncle Liu's personality, he would turn him into an ice sculpture on the spot.

"By the way, won't all this ice turn into water after it melts?"

Tetsuya looked down at the ice below and asked a question that was quite thought-provoking.

The two immediately fell silent.

The flood problem has been solved, but it doesn't seem to be completely solved.

But it seems there's nothing they can do.

"Blazing Chicken, come out here for a second."

Tetsuya unleashed his trump card, a deluxe shot; he had a bold idea.

"Use Flamethrower on those rocks over there."

He pointed to a rock that had turned into an ice ball not far away and said this to Blaziken.

"Xia Mo"

Blaziken nodded very calmly.

A torrent of flames spewed from its mouth, scorching the frozen rocks.

A full half minute passed before the ice on the rocks showed any signs of melting.

"That's enough, stop now."

Tetsuya stopped the Blaziken's continuous attacks.

He felt he was shocked more times today than he had in the previous month.

The quality of this ice-type energy is simply too high.

It's important to know that fire energy has a restraining effect on ice energy.

Furthermore, Blaziken's flame intensity is much stronger than that of normal Pokémon of the same level.

In this situation, the ice layer actually took half a minute to melt.

Based on this situation, Tetsuya estimated that if there were normal sunlight exposure in this season, it would take at least a week for such a thick layer of ice to melt completely.

"If that's the case, judging from the surrounding terrain, a week could minimize the impact or even eliminate it."

Morio watched Tetsuya's experiment from the side and made a thoughtful judgment.

Although he didn't spend much time in the Forest of Hercules, he had learned relevant knowledge during his studies at the Forest Ranger School, and it wasn't difficult to draw a conclusion by analogy and applying the formula.

"But the elves might not be able to hold out for that long."

Tetsuya voiced the same concern that Morio had.

This is the Herathos Forest in the capital city, and none of the elves living here are particularly cold-resistant.

We can't turn this forest into something else just to solve the flood problem.

A week is enough time for the elves who originally lived here to migrate to other places, and the original ecological environment of the Heracross Forest will be completely destroyed.

"Let's wait for Senior Liu to return and ask him. He should be prepared for this."

Tetsuya hesitated for a moment, but ultimately gave up on thinking about it.

Perhaps when he has the strength to win a championship, he will be able to roughly figure out how to solve the problem. As it stands, his strength and insight are not enough to support him in solving this problem.

"Okay, I'll report to the League first, and then I'll contact the Nurse Joy family and Professor Elm to settle the rebellious Pokémon that the trainers who helped with the defense just caught."

Morio nodded in deep agreement and then began his work.

"How is it? Don't you feel there's a huge gap in strength? A little frustrated?"

With nothing else to do, Tetsuya started chatting with his Blaziken.

Since the experiment ended, he could sense that Blaziken's psychological fluctuations were changing unusually rapidly.

"Ah."

Blaziken responded to Tetsuya with a muffled "I can't breathe" using its Aura.

There's nothing to be discouraged about.

Tetsuya pulled it to sit on a thick tree branch.

He ignored the chilly sensation coming from under his buttocks.

He seemed to be talking to Blaziken, but it also seemed to be talking to his five other Pokémon who could see the outside world from inside their Poké Balls.

But I...

Blaziken's intense emotional fluctuations are clearly reflected in its waveguide.

“That’s normal.” Tetsuya’s tone unconsciously became a little more serious. “If a Pokémon with the same talent as you has worked harder than you for over thirty years, then it would be abnormal if it didn’t have the same strength, wouldn’t it?”

He didn't think his own spirit was any worse than Liu Bo's messenger bird.

His current six companions are all carefully selected and nurtured by him over a long period of time; otherwise, he wouldn't be the most outstanding one in his age group.

On the contrary, the messenger bird's power further boosted his inner confidence.

If Liu Bo and the messenger bird can do that, there's no reason why he and his companions can't, is there?

Blaziken did not reply.

"You lack the confidence to become just as strong as it?"

Tetsuya glanced at it.

This time, Blaziken has made a move.

For elves with pure hearts, provocation is a very effective method.

"Of course."

Blaziken is quite decisive.

"That should work, or do you not believe I can make you that strong?"

Tetsuya's lips curled into a half-smile.

This can be considered part of a trainer's job, since Pokémon, like humans, can have psychological issues.

That is to say, their psychological problems are not difficult to solve.

Players like Blaziken seem to have suddenly gotten stuck in a rut. Once they've talked things out, they'll find some time to beat a dozen or so noobs and things will get better.

"of course not."

Blaziken became even more determined.

From a young age, it has always believed in Tetsuya's abilities, and it still does to this day.

The reason Blaziken is frustrated is simply because it feels that all its efforts have been in vain.

This is purely because the messenger bird's strength far exceeds its own.

Moreover, as Tetsuya said, it is inherently unfair to compare a spirit that is less than a year old with a spirit that has lived for nearly thirty or forty years.

It would be one thing if the latter had only average talent and didn't work hard, but the key point is that the latter's talent is not much worse than the former's and he may be even more hardworking.

Elves don't have any concept of a golden period for improving their strength.

Except when they are old and nearing death, the strength of elves is generally on the rise, provided that they still have potential to be tapped.

Moreover, in the championship stage, since the strength of a player largely depends on how much natural energy their Pokémon can control through bondage, the advantage of time will be fully demonstrated.

Only a very small number of exceptionally talented trainers and Pokémon can break through this barrier.

For example, Lance, Steven, Michael, and Cynthia.

But how many people in the world are like these four?

Putting aside everything else, the fact that Mr. Aldak has held the championship title in the Unova region for the past two decades is the best proof of this.

It's because the four regions of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh often produce exceptional trainers; otherwise, people wouldn't have the misconception that younger trainers can surpass older trainers.

When all other aspects are roughly the same, the advantage that time brings is enormous.

This applies to both experience and bonds.

The human and the elf sat on the tree branch and started chatting.

Thanks to the heat from the Blaziken's body, Tetsuya didn't feel that cold in the surrounding environment.

"You're the kid Tamaki Tetsuya that Daiki mentioned, right?"

A cold statement suddenly came from behind Tetsuya.

Tetsuya and Blaziken instinctively assumed a defensive stance.

However, he quickly recognized whose voice it was, and immediately relaxed.

"Yes, Senior Liu Bo."

Tetsuya turned around and greeted him very respectfully.

Unbeknownst to anyone, it was Uncle Liu who appeared behind him.

It can only be said that, as expected of someone from the town of ninjas, Liu Bo's ability to conceal his presence is extremely impressive.

Distracted, Blaziken didn't even notice its opponent's figure.

Another humanoid spirit, Tetsuya thought with deep emotion.

He always felt that every powerful trainer was a humanoid Pokémon.

"The response is good."

Liu Bo glanced at Tetsuya and gave his indifferent evaluation.

It means that he had a good relationship with Professor Oak and Professor Yamanashi when he was young; otherwise, given his personality, he would never have done such a meaningless test.

"I've investigated the matter thoroughly. The reaction of the weaker Pokémon is probably related to it."