Chapter 373

Tapu Lele looked at her work with satisfaction, then moved closer to Qiao Ran. As the saying goes, "He who eats another's food is bound to him, he who takes another's gift is bound to him," and this time even Qiao Ran couldn't refuse her.

However, not being able to understand what the other person was saying wasn't a solution, so Qiao Ran had no choice but to call out the Rotom translator to help translate what Tapu Lele was saying.

"She said... umm, do I really have to translate Rotom?"

Rotom and Dianxi exchanged a glance, both Pokémon displaying visibly odd expressions.

The words spoken by this Tapu remained almost unchanged from the beginning, almost constantly repeating phrases like "I like it, I like it." Even if there were slight deviations in the middle, it was still roughly the same meaning.

Does this... really need to be translated?

Is... anything strange?

Qiao Ran was also confused by the two of them. Could it be that Tapu Lele was spouting honey, keeping saying things that couldn't be translated???

"It's not Rotom, it's just..."

Rotom ultimately fulfilled his duties properly.

"She was basically saying she was very grateful and liked Rotom very much."

Rotom didn't intend to reveal all the specifics; as long as the general meaning was correct, that was enough.

"She really likes Qiao Ran."

Cynthia and the others beside her smiled and nodded. They had been watching the whole time and had already figured it out.

This Tapu Lele is completely different from the previous Tapu Bulu. Tapu Bulu is obviously much more composed than Tapu Lele, and it doesn't do whatever it wants like Tapu Lele, nor does it express its feelings so directly.

Being liked by Pokémon, Qiao Ran naturally wouldn't let them down. However, after exchanging a few words, Qiao Ran still needed to ask them some questions.

As the Island deity, she certainly doesn't only have the function of burying her head in his arms and rubbing against him.

"Tapu Lele, do you know what happened to make you like this? How did you get to that world?"

"Tete..."

Upon hearing Qiao Ran's question, Tapu Lele answered without hesitation, babbling on and on.

"She said it was because something appeared around the Altar, which she found strange, and when she went to investigate, she was dragged into Rotom."

"She sensed then that something had changed in the world, causing Rotom's control over Alola to weaken."

"It weakened... which means that something went wrong in the Pokémon World back then, right?"

Cynthia couldn't help but chime in, "It was definitely the right decision to come here beforehand. We can certainly learn a lot from these Legendary Pokémon."

"Tete."

"... I don't know exactly what happened, but while I was in that strange space, I had a slight feeling that it... wanted to devour all of Alola. However, as the Deity of Alola, Tapu Lele will not let them succeed!"

That's it, Rotom.

Rotom translated as he listened to Tapu Lele's words.

"Devour..."

Listening to Tapu Lele's words, not only Cynthia and the others, but even Qiao Ran himself did not expect that he would hear many things from Tapu Lele that he had never heard from Tapu Bulu before.

Perhaps it's because Tapu Lele is powerful enough, or perhaps it's because of her Psychic type, but in any case, she does have significantly more information than Tapu Bulu from Ula'ula Island.

"So, it's also your doing that you were able to contain those strange substances in this Cave?"

Qiao Ran couldn't help but ask.

"Tete."

Tapu Lele puffed out her chest and nodded, showing absolutely no intention of being modest.

Seeing her expression, Qiao Ran almost didn't need to translate; he could roughly tell what she wanted to say.

"So... the reason we can control the area is because of the Tapu's presence...?"

Although Tapu Lele's reaction was obvious, Qiao Ran felt an immense amount of information in those few words.

If that's the case, then it means...

Based on previous reasoning, Qiao Ran might believe that the size of the fog in the Pokémon World is related to the strength of the Legendary Pokémon themselves. However, if Tapu Lele's explanation is true, this theory might be completely overturned.

"The fog covers a relatively small area because the Tapu did something to prevent these things from spreading further; the fog is more severe in some areas."

The place is very likely to be...

Qiao Ran frowned.

The fog is kept within a reasonable range only because of the "stopping" effect of Legendary Pokémon. However, without the restriction of these Legendary Pokémon, the fog would expand uncontrollably to the surrounding area.

"Indeed... very likely."

Cynthia, who was standing to the side, was the first to react, and she immediately understood what Qiao Ran wanted to say.

"If that's the case, we should actually go to places that are smaller in size."

"Those places are more likely to have Legendary Pokémon."

Qiao Ran nodded. Cynthia's thinking was exactly the same as his own; he had actually been thinking about the same issue.

However, thinking this way brings up a completely new problem.

--What happened to the Legendary Pokémon in those areas where problems arose and the spread of fog couldn't be contained?

Could it be that something even more unexpected has happened with those Pokémon?

"Tete."

Hearing Qiao Ran and Cynthia's conversation, Tapu Lele quickly spoke up as well.

"Did she say where you're going? Don't rush off, okay?"

Rotom faithfully performed the job of a translator, translating what Tapu Lele was saying.

Upon hearing Qiao Ran and Cynthia discussing their future plans, Tapu Lele, who had been quite calm, suddenly became anxious. She wanted to stay a little longer.

"We still have things to take care of. You're also the Island deity, right? Don't you also have your own things to do?"

Qiao Ran patted her head and pinched the part that looked like long pink hair. Sure enough, just as he had imagined, it felt a little soft.

"Tete..."

Upon hearing Qiao Ran's words, Tapu Lele sounded somewhat disappointed. However, just as Qiao Ran said, she also had her own matters to attend to. She had served as the Island deity for thousands of years, and she could not easily relinquish this responsibility.

Akala Island is currently under invasion by Ultra Beast and has been completely overrun. Even if she wanted to spend more time with Qiao Ran and the others, she probably wouldn't have much extra time.

She had no choice when she was trapped in that space before, but now that she's back in the Pokémon World, she certainly can't just stand by and watch Ultra Beast devour her island.

"By the way, Tapu Lele, can you restore the Z-Power on this island? If you can, the other Trainer on this island will definitely be able to use Z-Move."

"... Tapu Bulu did it before."

"...!"

Upon hearing Qiao Ran's words, Tapu Lele was immediately provoked.

--It wasn't because of what Qiao Ran said before, nor because there were any difficulties in restoring the Z-Power, but because Qiao Ran mentioned a name at the end.

"Tete! te!"

She said it was very simple and not difficult for her at all.

"Okay, okay, I know you're great."

Qiao Ran looked at Tapu Lele, who had her arms crossed, with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. She didn't know why, but her Rivalry had suddenly been stirred up.

It seems that the Island deity are not as united as he imagined.

To prove its abilities, Tapu Lele quickly flew into the air, folded its body, and performed a strange dance in the air.

Just as one must perform a dance before using Z-Move, it seems that every Tapu must also go through a similar process before unleashing the power of their land.

As the dance progressed, a pink aura gradually spread from beneath Tapu Lele, much like the Psychic Terrain Qiao Ran had seen in the Distortion World. However, this aura was quite different from the Psychic type Battle Court.

--This aura only lingered beneath Tapu Lele for a moment before quickly spreading outwards and seeping into the earth.

Qiao Ran took out the Grassium Z Stone that Tapu Bulu had given him. Sure enough, as Tapu Lele spread this power, the Grassium Z in his hand also emitted a faint glow. This was the sign that he could use Z-Power, and the "energy" in this land had been awakened again.

"Tete!"

After finishing all this, Tapu Lele quickly came to Qiao Ran, looking like she was showing off her accomplishment. However, when she saw the Grassium Z in Qiao Ran's hand, her face turned unhappy again.

Grassium Z, Tapu Bulu... This thing must be Tapu Bulu!

"... tete!"

Tapu Lele didn't hesitate at all. She teleported away from Qiao Ran's sight and disappeared in a Teleport. A moment later, she reappeared in the same spot. However, unlike before, when she reappeared, she was carrying a large pile of pink prismatic stones.

--Without a doubt, these are all Psychic Z.

Moreover, judging from the appearance, it seems that Tapu Lele herself, along with those given to Tapu Lele by the people who came to Ritual.

"You... no... I can't carry that much!"

It looked like it wanted to float in front of it, throwing a bunch of Psychium Z at it.

A bead of cold sweat rolled down Qiao Ran's face as he saw the Tapu Lele shoved into his hand. He couldn't possibly need so many!

Most importantly, this thing seems to only work in the Alola Region, and only on islands blessed by Tapu. It has no effect anywhere else.

"One is enough, just give me one. The rest can be given to the other residents of the island. If we could use Z-Move now, giving them these would definitely increase our combat strength significantly."

Qiao Ran quickly intervened to stop Tapu Lele's crazy behavior. Rather than letting him accept these things, it would be better to leave them for those who needed them more.

"Yes, yes, Tapu Lele, he doesn't need that much."

"Mmm."

Several onlookers quickly intervened, saying that no matter how powerful a Trainer was, they couldn't possibly have a handful of Z-Crystal and have their Pokémon unleash Z-Move continuously, could they?

Under the "persuasion" of Qiao Ran and his group, Tapu Lele finally accepted what Qiao Ran and the others said. Instead of throwing a bunch of Z-Crystal at Qiao Ran, she picked out the one that looked like her favorite and handed it to him.

"Tete."

"Thanks."

Qiao Ran accepted her Present. Unlike Grass-type, Qiao Ran had quite a few Psychic type Pokémon. If he continued to travel in the Alola Region, this Z-Crystal might play a significant role in the future.

After chatting with Tapu Lele for a while, it was almost time to return to Konikoni City. Although Tapu Lele's Shield Dust had helped alleviate Qiao Ran's fatigue somewhat, he wasn't the only one who needed rest.

"If that's about right, we should head back. Lana needs to rest too."

Although Lana's condition is not life-threatening, it's probably not good to keep leaving her to Rest on the ground, especially since she's still wearing that one-piece swimsuit and had just swum in the water; she certainly can't sleep comfortably.

The others nodded in agreement. After resolving the strange fog and Tapu Lele reappearing, there was no point in staying any longer. Therefore, Qiao Ran and the others decided to leave first and return to Konikoni City before making any further plans.

However, before Qiao Ran and the others could walk even a short distance, Tapu Lele caught up, seemingly intending to stay with them for the time being.

Are you planning to come along?

Qiao Ran was somewhat surprised. Tapu Bulu hadn't been very fond of being around humans before, and when it heard that Qiao Ran and the others planned to go to the Aether House, it didn't seem to have any intention of going along. But Tapu Lele, on the other hand, had no such concerns at all.

She's the kind of person who can go wherever she wants.

"Te."

Tapu Lele nodded decisively and followed right behind Qiao Ran, clinging to him persistently.

Although Qiao Ran was still a little confused about why the Island deity liked him so much, he never refused the other party's kindness.

However, Tapu Lele's overly enthusiastic behavior made Dianxi, who was standing nearby, feel somewhat uncomfortable.

The key point is that the other person's skin color and body shape are similar to hers. If it weren't for the first time meeting, she probably would have thought that the other person was deliberately trying to disgust her.

"Alright, let's all come together then. The others on the island should be happy too."

As the island's Deity, Tapu Lele's appearance in human settlements would be a huge boost to morale. Moreover, given Qiao Ran's current state, it's unlikely he'll leave the island anytime soon.

Just like Dianxi had told him in the Torn World, he might need to rest.

Upon arriving at the perimeter of the defense line in Konikoni City, Mallow, who was on guard duty, immediately spotted the returning group. Although she had already taken on guard duty the previous night, in order to provide immediate support should any unexpected events occur, she rested briefly before waiting on the route that Qiao Ran and the others were sure to take back, without any intention of sleeping in or resting any longer.

The world has become like this, and Mallow is even less willing to see anything happen to her friends.

However—when she saw the returning group, she was startled several times by the continuous "surprises".