Qiao Ran felt that he should hurry and send Eve to her sister. He could protect the girl for a while, but not for the rest of her life. Besides, finding Eve's sister was one of the reasons he had come here in the first place. The person in that photograph was simply too unusual.
As for challenging Jinling Gym, Qiao Ran thought it would be better to deal with the matters at hand first. A Gym challenge allowed no distraction whatsoever. If Eve got taken away again in the middle of it, he would be in quite a bind.
"She should be at the company. I can show you the way... Do you have money for a taxi?"
"Of course I have money." Qiao Ran rolled his eyes.
"I'm a legitimate adventurer with Pokémon League subsidies, unlike someone who ran away from home. Besides, I won thirty thousand yuan in prize money before."
"Thirty thousand... That should've been mine."
Eve rolled her eyes as well. If Qiao Ran had not appeared, there was a good chance that she really would have won the championship. But if Qiao Ran had not come, none of what happened afterward would have happened either.
Comparing the two, Eve felt that perhaps the current situation was better after all.
They hailed a taxi by the roadside, and Qiao Ran headed to their destination with Eve and the two "little sisters."
However, when Qiao Ran entered the office building and arrived at the location Eve had pointed out, he froze at the company name on the door.
"Wind, Flowers, Snow, Moon... Ruins Investigation Company?"
A ruins investigation company... What even was that? And why was the name so strange?
"It's basically a company that excavates Pokémon ruins. Those ruins are usually pretty dangerous, so only investigators with both professional knowledge and sufficient strength can do the job."
"My sister leads those investigators in exploring things hidden inside the ruins. Generally speaking, companies like this cooperate with the League, so it wouldn't be wrong to think of it as a research institute."
Eve began explaining from the side. The admiration in her eyes made it clear that she truly respected her sister's profession.
"You wait at the entrance first. I'll go in and check... if my sister is here. The staff should still recognize me, since my sister has brought me to the company several times."
Eve planned to have Qiao Ran wait outside first. She still did not know how to explain the boy's identity to her sister, and it would be better to take such things slowly.
If my sister gets a bad first impression of him, that'll be troublesome.
"Fine. Be careful. If anything happens, call out loudly. I'll get there right away."
Qiao Ran reminded her, then obediently remained at the entrance. This was someone else's company, after all, so it was inconvenient for him to go in and disturb them. Waiting quietly was not a bad option.
Before long, Eve came out through the doors again. This time, however, she looked somewhat disappointed.
"Sorry... My sister and the others don't seem to be here."
"It looks like my sister found a nearby ruin and went there for an investigation. The ruin only appeared recently, so maybe they'll find something important."
"An investigation? Did that girl... the girl I asked you about before, go with them too?" Qiao Ran continued asking.
"Yeah, she went too. I heard she's already my sister's personal assistant, so there's no reason my sister wouldn't bring her."
Although Eve found it strange that Qiao Ran kept focusing on that girl, she still told him everything she knew.
"I see..."
After hearing Eve's explanation, Qiao Ran had no choice. Since they had already gone out on business, there was no better option than waiting obediently.
"Investigating ruins... excavating fossils... I wonder if they could restore an Aerodactyl from one." Qiao Ran muttered.
But when Eve heard him, she blinked in confusion.
"Aerodactyl...? What's that?"
"You don't know Aerodactyl? Then what about Kabutops or Omanyte?"
Qiao Ran blinked in confusion too. If they excavated fossils and investigated ruins, there was no way they had never encountered those Pokémon, right?
On second thought, Qiao Ran figured that perhaps this world used different names. So he described the appearances of those Pokémon to Eve instead. Yet even after hearing his descriptions, Eve was still utterly baffled.
"What are those? I've never heard of anything like that."
Eve took Qiao Ran's hand and led him through the company doors. Not far from the entrance hung several colorful photographs.
"Look, those are the restoration images of fossil Pokémon. Which one looks like what you described? They're completely different, okay? A flying pterosaur? There are obviously only flying mosquitoes."
Eve shot Qiao Ran an annoyed look, as if blaming him for joking around with her.
She was not a child anymore. How could she possibly be fooled by such lies?
Yet when Qiao Ran looked at the photographs on the wall, his eyes widened. Then, his whole body shuddered. A chill surged from his heart, and goosebumps spread from his arms across his body.
Looking at those crooked, bizarre fossil restoration images with their chaotic colors, Qiao Ran felt a shiver run down his spine.
A muscular mosquito... a glowing jellyfish... a dragon-shaped bee... a slender cockroach...
Those things... Those things were not fossil Pokémon at all...
Those things... were clearly the so-called Ultra Beasts!!!
Ultra Beasts.
Mysterious creatures that existed beyond the Pokémon world, coming from the so-called Ultra Space, or in other words, another world.
Like Pokémon, they could be contained within specially made Poké Balls. But unlike Pokémon, which could live harmoniously in nature, Ultra Beasts usually played the role of ecological destroyers.
Furthermore, compared to the Pokémon of the Pokémon world, they possessed tremendous power. Though they might be ordinary, commonplace individuals in Ultra Space, compared to normal Pokémon, they were terrifying beings.
The base stat totals of these Ultra Beasts generally reached around 540 to 570. Among ordinary Pokémon, only the very best could attain such numbers.
Their immense strength, combined with their destructive urge that prevented them from blending into the environment and even caused them to alter it, made them incredibly troublesome.
Take Guzzlord among the Ultra Beasts, for example. Its endless appetite could destroy any object it saw. There were even rumors that Guzzlord was Zygarde, the Z God, corrupted in another world. Its endless hunger was merely a way of fulfilling its duty as the god of ecological balance, digesting and recycling useless waste to restore the world's ecological equilibrium.
There were three pieces of evidence supporting that rumor.
First, Guzzlord and Zygarde had similar body colors. Not only that, their Shiny color schemes were also extremely alike, with most of their bodies being pure white.
Second, Guzzlord's head was very similar to Zygarde's.
Third, the parts extending from behind Zygarde were basically identical to Guzzlord's two claws, with barely any difference at all. Furthermore, both had eye-like structures on their chests.
Still, even with so much evidence, Qiao Ran remained skeptical. Until there was undeniable proof, these were no more than guesses.
After all, Zygarde was an incomparably powerful being. As the Legendary Pokémon that maintained ecological balance, her strength was beyond question. If even she could fall, what kind of force would that take?
Qiao Ran shook his head and refocused on what was in front of him.
"These fossils..."
Qiao Ran took a deep breath. Though there were still things he could not confirm, based on the fossils excavated in this world and the murals he had seen before, an absurd thought arose in his heart.
These ruins might not have come from the true Pokémon world at all.
Instead, they came from an alternate world opposite to the Pokémon world, an alternate world where Ultra Beasts existed and lived!
Why?
Why were these things here?
"Are there any real fossils here? I want to see the actual fossils."
Qiao Ran stared intensely at Eve. His thirst for knowledge had surged to an unprecedented height. He wanted to see Ultra Beast fossils and uncover the truth behind all this.
He thought that Mei's reason for joining this company might also be related to these things. The Pokémon world, the Ultra World... and even this world—all of them had long been connected.
"Um... If you want to see fossils now, there's nothing I can do. My sister doesn't let me look at her fossils either... But if you really want to see them, you can go to the museum. Scientists have recently been trying to revive these fossil creatures, though I have no idea how long it'll take before they get new results."
Eve could do nothing in response to Qiao Ran's sudden request. She was only the younger sister of a company leader, while fossils were company secrets. They could not just be taken out for anyone to see.
"Fine." Qiao Ran pursed his lips helplessly. But when he thought about how these people were actually trying to revive those fossils, he could not help wanting to criticize their reckless death wish.
The Pokémon world had gone to enormous lengths just to fight Ultra Beasts, yet these people were working hard to revive them. If that was not courting death, what was?
Qiao Ran felt that if he got the chance, he had to speak with Eve's sister. At the very least, he needed to explain the dangers involved.
Otherwise, if they really revived a Guzzlord and it began devouring the world, that would be a real disaster.
Since they had not found anyone at the company, both Eve's sister and Mei, whom Qiao Ran wanted to find, would not be back for some time. To avoid wasting time, Qiao Ran finally decided to head to the Gym first.
To prepare for the Gym battle, Qiao Ran even found an excuse to visit the Pokémon Center, pretending to leave the two "little sisters" there.
This was necessary preparation. If Eve saw the two beautiful girls suddenly turn into Pokémon, she would probably have nightmares.
"So, we're going to challenge the Gym first, right? I've never seen a Gym battle before. Are Gyms fun?"
Eve chattered nonstop at his side, making Qiao Ran's head buzz.
"Gym battles aren't fun. And don't run around, no matter what. If you get lost again, I won't be able to find you. This isn't the sea—if you go missing here, there's no fishing you back out."
Qiao Ran sternly warned Eve. It was not that he found her troublesome. It was simply the truth... Well, fine, she was indeed a little troublesome.
Qiao Ran felt as if he had brought along dead weight.
"It's fine. The Gym Leader here is actually my sister's friend. By the way, my sister and she were high school classmates... so I know her too. Once we get to the Gym, no one will dare cause trouble. Also, you probably don't have an appointment, right? How about I take you straight to see the Gym Leader?"
Eve spoke mysteriously. This girl's connections were surprisingly extensive.
"The Jinling Gym Leader is a very powerful Steel-type Trainer. If you want to win, you'll need to prepare some Pokémon with advantageous types. Steel is a very difficult type to deal with."
"Oh? A Steel-type?"
Qiao Ran raised an eyebrow. To be honest, Steel was absolutely one of the most terrifying types in the Pokémon world. Even the mighty Dragon-type had suddenly gained a whole bunch of pink demons that countered it, but Steel... Steel was born with ten resistances and one immunity. Compared to other types, Steel was practically heaven's favored child.
"Then do you know what her ace Pokémon is? If it's Steel-type..."
Qiao Ran could not help thinking of Yi Ruoyun's Skarmory. At over level fifty, it was undoubtedly one of the strongest Pokémon he had ever encountered.
"Her ace Pokémon is..."
Eve sank into her memories. When she had been very young, she had already witnessed that Pokémon's charm.
It was not beauty, nor was it prettiness. It was a kind of nobility and majesty that came from within.
"—Empoleon. But some people also like to call it the Steel Emperor Penguin!"
Jinling Gym was not built with the same ostentatious flair as Longjiang Gym.
On the contrary, it carried the heavy, imposing feeling of a steel fortress. Spectators could watch battles here as well, but it had not been built to the standards of a tourist attraction. Every Gym Leader had their own personality and choices, and different Gym Leaders had different management policies.
As for the League, it had no explicit profitability requirements for Gyms. After all, a Gym's foremost duty was to teach Trainers and help them improve their strength. As long as they could fulfill that duty, the League also supported social activities such as running tutoring classes or selling tickets.
Such activities beyond operating the Gyms could also stir public enthusiasm for Pokémon battles. As long as the Pokémon craze did not fade, the League could continue existing and constantly absorb fresh blood into its ranks.
"The second badge... My second badge, here I come!"
Standing at the Gym entrance, Qiao Ran excitedly patted his cheeks. At Longjiang Gym, he had not battled a Gym Trainer, but gotten entangled with the Gym Trainer's daughter instead. This time, however, his strength had improved dramatically. In a sense, he could already trade blows with Elite Trainers.
Still, facing Steel-types would indeed be troublesome for Qiao Ran. First, his highest-level Vulpix was doubly weak to Steel, while Dianxi, who could Mega Evolve, was four times weak to it. One hit could cause serious trouble.
Even though Dianxi's defense was terrifying, she still needed to avoid the enemy's edge when faced with a fourfold weakness.
"The most reliable one for this battle might only be Suicune... Altaria's level is still too low. She probably won't be able to last long if she takes the field."
As Qiao Ran considered his tactics for this battle, he walked toward the front desk. The receptionist smiled at him.
"Hello. Do you have an appointment?"
"An appointment..." Qiao Ran glanced at Eve behind him, signaling that it was her time to step in.
He had developed a habit of challenging Gyms without appointments. How wonderful would it be if he never had to make appointments or wait in line for Gym challenges in the future?
As long as the path of skipping appointments continued, his Gym challenges could continue as well.
And Eve did not disappoint Qiao Ran. Once she arrived at this Gym, she was as relaxed as if she had returned home.
"We have an appointment. Please contact the Gym Leader and tell her that 'Eve is here.'"
"Eve? All right, please wait a moment. We'll confirm the situation with the Gym Leader."
Although the receptionist did not understand what was so special about the name Eve, she dutifully picked up the phone.
"What? Yes, it's a young man and a young woman. All right... all right, understood. I'll have them wait here."
After the call ended, the receptionist looked back at Qiao Ran and Eve with a smile.
"I've contacted the Gym Leader. She said she'll be here shortly. Please wait for a moment."
"Okay."
Before you continue