The Fisherman Reaps the Reward

At this point, Qian Bing no longer cared about getting shocked. He chased after Pikachu's fleeting figure all the way, occasionally shouting, "Don't run!"

But why would Pikachu listen to him? The louder Qian Bing shouted, the faster it ran.

The grass rustled as Pikachu sprinted through it, and before long, the commotion vanished beyond the edge of his sight.

"Damn it! It got away."

Watching Pikachu disappear, Qian Bing was unwilling to give up. He continued running in the direction it had gone for quite some distance, only stopping, panting heavily, when his energy finally began to fail him.

My money! This time, I really took a huge loss!

His expression was utterly grim as he wailed inwardly. This pain was no different from being stabbed in the chest.

Pikachu was an extremely rare Pokemon in the Kanto Region, and coupled with its adorable appearance, it was one of the most sought-after Pokemon on the market.

Even an ordinary Pikachu could sell for around 500,000 to 800,000 Alliance Coins.

And a Pikachu like the one from earlier—King Grade quality, possessing two abilities, with a nature that boosted Special Attack—could easily sell for two to three million Alliance Coins.

"That Pikachu was even carrying an Electric Orb. It's Pikachu's exclusive item, and the Free Trade Center has a listed purchase price of two million Alliance Coins. If I went through the trouble of listing it myself, I could probably sell it for 2.5 to 3 million Alliance Coins!"

At that thought, Qian Bing's heart nearly broke, and his fists had already clenched tightly.

By that calculation, at least five million Alliance Coins had slipped away right before his eyes. He truly couldn't accept giving up just like that.

"Catching a Pikachu carrying one of those is worth dozens, even hundreds, of Adventure Missions. I should keep chasing. No matter the outcome, I have to give it my all so I won't regret it. Bulbasaur, let's keep going!"

With a knot of frustration in his chest, Qian Bing stopped overthinking it. He urged Bulbasaur on and broke into a long stride after Pikachu once more.

Fortunately, ever since his Spirit Awakening, he had deliberately strengthened his body through training. Though he was breathing loudly, his endurance was still decent.

After running for another ten-odd minutes, Qian Bing still found no trace of Pikachu, and the thought of giving up began to creep into his mind.

"Pidgeot!"

Just then, a Pidgeotto's cry came from the distant sky.

Qian Bing's face lit up. He vaguely understood that Pidgeotto was telling him it had found Pikachu's trail.

"Great!"

His exhaustion was instantly crushed beneath the hope rising in his heart. Who cared about being tired now? Qian Bing immediately picked up his pace and charged toward his "money."

The place where Pidgeotto had called out was roughly two kilometers away. Qian Bing's stamina had already hit rock bottom, but eight minutes later, he still reached his destination.

From afar, he spotted signs of Pokemon battling in the forest.

One side was continuously unleashing the Electric-type move Thunderbolt. It was clearly the Pikachu that had escaped earlier.

As for the other side, Qian Bing could hear the commotion but could not see anything, so he could not yet make an accurate judgment.

Having learned his lesson from scaring Pikachu away last time, Qian Bing was not reckless at all this time. He slowed his pace early on, doing his best to avoid brushing against nearby branches and making noise as he crept toward the edge of the battlefield.

As he approached the battle site, he quietly parted the branches and revealed a palm-sized gap, then leaned in to peer through it. The first thing he saw was a cloud of faintly silver-glimmering powder drifting toward him.

Qian Bing did not pay it much attention at first. He accidentally inhaled two breaths of it, and disaster struck.

He immediately felt dizzy and lightheaded, while an overwhelming drowsiness washed over him.

"Not good, it's Sleep Powder!"

Fortunately, Qian Bing reacted quickly. The moment he noticed something was wrong, he held his breath and retreated several steps.

He shook his head as hard as he could while fanning the air in front of him. Only after confirming that no more Sleep Powder was floating about did he step forward again and look through the gap in the branches.

The instant he looked, his pupils shrank. The battle over there was clearly intense.

"Wiiiii!"

Through the gaps in the leaves, Qian Bing saw a Pokemon hovering above the clearing. Its body was bluish-purple, and behind it grew a pair of enormous white wings marked with black veins and covered in dense, water-repelling scales.

Every time it fluttered its scales, it scattered powder into the air. Anyone who accidentally inhaled it would likely suffer from drowsiness and paralysis. It was undoubtedly the Butterfree Qian Bing had already expected.

At the same time, the Spirit Illustrated Handbook Spirit transmitted Butterfree's details into his mind.

Butterfree:

Butterfly Pokemon. The scale powder that repels water droplets protects its wings, allowing it to fly even in rainy weather.

Quality: Quasi-King Grade

Level: 31

Gender: ♀

Skills: Confusion, Poison Powder, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder, Supersonic, Whirlwind, Gust

Nature: Brave

Ability: Compound Eyes (Increases skill accuracy)

Held Item: Focus Band (If a Pokemon holding this item is at full HP and takes an attack that would reduce its HP to zero, it will retain 1 HP instead of entering a fainted state)

"This Butterfree..."

Qian Bing finished reading the information and froze, feeling as though he had nearly gone numb from all the joy today.

Was this what they called fortunes turning after hitting rock bottom?

This Butterfree was also a high-quality wild Pokemon, and it was carrying an item too...

Damn, what kind of heavenly hunting ground was Viridian Forest?

Qian Bing swiftly calculated Butterfree's value in his mind.

Although its price might be slightly lower than Pikachu's, and the Focus Band it carried was a common item, their combined value would definitely exceed 3 million Alliance Coins.

So how were Butterfree and Pikachu Pokemon? They were clearly two little mountains of gold! As Qian Bing looked at them, his eyes nearly turned into coin symbols.

This time, no matter what, he could not let them slip away before his eyes!

While Qian Bing hid beneath the shade of a tree, plotting something sinister, the battle between Pikachu and Butterfree grew increasingly fierce, nearly reaching a life-or-death turning point.

Pikachu was clearly still heavily affected by Butterfree's earlier Sleep Powder. Its eyes were bleary, its eyelids constantly drooping, and it swayed unsteadily with every step like a drunken old man, even walking in an S-shaped path.

Butterfree was not much better off. More than half of its left wing had been scorched black, and its vaguely humanoid little face looked grimy and haggard. It had clearly suffered significant injuries from Thunderbolt.

At this moment, Pikachu seemingly felt the drowsiness in its head growing ever stronger, almost enough to make it lose control completely. Unsteady on its feet, it could no longer use its nimble movements to flee as it had before.

Anxious, sparks of electricity burst from its cheeks. It was clearly gathering power, preparing to use one final Thunderbolt to decide the victor against Butterfree.

However, Butterfree seized the initiative before it could. It let out a "Wiiiii" cry, and one faint silver-white ring after another appeared out of thin air before it, shooting rapidly toward Pikachu. It was undoubtedly the beginner Psychic-type move, Confusion!

The rings formed by Confusion struck Pikachu first. Its body immediately began to tremble, its steps grew even weaker as it swayed from side to side, and it clutched its head with both hands, obvious pain appearing on its face.

"Pika, Pikachu!"

Yet this Pikachu was exceptionally tenacious. Enduring the effects of Confusion, it still fired a Thunderbolt back at Butterfree.

A golden bolt of lightning shot into the sky, one end connected to Pikachu and the other slamming into Butterfree, turning its entire body a brilliant golden color.

Confusion and Thunderbolt pushed their battle into its final, decisive moment.

Both Pokemon had reached the end of the road. Now it came down to who could hold on until the very end.