Luring a Green Rank Killer

Before long, Gastly darted out in unusual excitement, Ghost-type energy surging wildly all over its body.

Not wanting to disturb Sato as he fiddled with the nameplates, Gastly hurried over to Golbat and the others, giving them all a second "finishing blow."

"Jiejie!"

Ghost-type Pokemon were terrifying because they could indeed devour souls to grow rapidly, though the Negative Effect was also severe.

Just like now, Gastly's eyes glowed blood-red, the energy within its body fluctuating violently. Even the way it looked at Sato and Zorua was no longer very friendly.

"Come here!"

"Jie..." Hearing Sato's command, Gastly struggled and hesitated for a moment before obediently floating over.

Waiting for it was that slender little hand that nevertheless filled it with fear.

"Jiejie!"

Dark Power swiftly surged into Gastly's body, directly wiping out the unstable energy and stray thoughts produced by absorbing souls.

Although Gastly did not absorb that energy, the cleansing of Dark Power still left it in unbearable pain.

A moment later, Sato released Gastly and continued working on the red nameplate. He needed to use it to send out a distress signal and lure the Green Rank Killer over, but he could not summon everyone else as well. The wording was crucial.

After fleeing Sato's "demonic grasp" in terror, Gastly cautiously sensed the changes in its body. Before long, it excitedly circled around Sato again.

Gastly was delighted to discover that after absorbing four souls, its strength had indeed increased by a large amount. Moreover, after being cleansed by Sato's Dark Power, all the side effects had disappeared.

"You can continue increasing your strength this way in the future, but after it ends, you'll have to come to me for a round of this." Sato lifted his right hand and spoke calmly to Gastly.

"Jie?"

Gastly shuddered all over, once again recalling the terror of that "demonic grasp." It could not help falling into conflict. A ghost's life was hard—why couldn't it just become stronger happily?

If Fairy-type was the attribute closest to the essence of life, then Dark-type best represented the true meaning of destruction. After sending the edited distress signal, Sato used Dark Power to swiftly erase the surrounding Battle Traces, including the corpses.

Once the Red Card Killer's nameplate had completely vanished under the effect of Dark Power, Sato slung the other man's higher-grade Spatial Backpack over his back and quickly ran toward the depths of the forest.

At a place resembling a forest entrance, an Open Space had been temporarily cleared, with numerous army-green tents standing in neat rows.

Inside a slightly larger tent at the center, twenty Blue Rank Killers and forty Green Rank Killers sat in a circle. Sitting in the middle was a gaunt middle-aged man in black, with a Silver Nameplate hanging conspicuously from his waist.

"Buzz, buzz~"

The nameplate vibrated, sounding especially abrupt in the silent environment. A Green Rank Killer picked up his nameplate somewhat nervously and checked its contents.

"Something happened?"

The killer wearing the Silver Nameplate asked calmly. A slight glance from him made the Green Rank Killer even more nervous.

"A... a small matter. A few Normal Advanced Pokemon appeared on the outskirts, and a newcomer was killed in a surprise attack. The Red Card Killer responsible for him is requesting aid."

"Which Branch are you from?"

"Cerulean Branch, codename HL." The Blue Rank Leader stood up, shielding his subordinate behind him as he answered neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"So it's you. Send someone to deal with it quickly." The Silver Rank Killer Waved His Hand. He seemed to know them, so he let the matter pass without making things difficult for them.

"Thank You, team leader. I'll go right away!" The Green Rank Killer immediately responded, gratefully nodding at the Blue Rank Killer in front of him before quickly leaving the tent and entering the forest.

"Gastly, Hypnosis!"

"Jiejie!"

Gastly's level had increased by a large amount earlier, and it had made considerable progress in every aspect. Its use of Hypnosis had become increasingly effortless.

After using Hypnosis to knock out the few Oddish and Gloom blocking the way, Sato checked the time displayed on the nameplate. He instructed Gastly to hide itself again, then led Zorua slightly off course and continued deeper in.

Half an Hour later, the Green Rank Killer arrived at the area riding a massive Pidgeot and found the information Sato had deliberately left behind on a lone tree.

"Damn it, damn them all!" The Green Rank Killer was extremely enraged. The Cerulean Branch had been the first to run into trouble in the entire trial. He would gain nothing from this mission now, and the key was that he still had to clean up after that Red Card Killer he knew.

"Dream~"

A Misdreavus suddenly appeared in the air. Its light voice seemed to be comforting its trainer. Then, as if sensing something, it quickly floated over to an inconspicuous patch of weeds.

"Residual traces of Shadow Ball. Does he have a Pokemon that can use this move?"

"Misdreavus~"

Misdreavus carefreely circled the Green Rank Killer. It did not know what its trainer was asking anyway.

"Something is fishy here." The Green Rank Killer's gaze darkened. He picked up his nameplate, intending to report the situation, but seemed to have some misgivings. After hesitating for a while, he put the nameplate away.

"Pretending to be mysterious!" After confirming the direction, the Green Rank Killer mounted Pidgeot and quickly followed after him.

Along the way, Sato saw many traces of movement left by newcomers, as well as a small number of activity traces left by more advanced people.

That was because the camouflage methods everyone learned in the beginning were limited to only the simplest few, and the lowest-ranked Red Card Killers could not be particularly skilled either.

To Sato, who was proficient in scouting and camouflage, these traces were extremely obvious—practically guiding lights showing him the way.

From a bird's-eye view, one could see that Sato subtly adjusted his direction several times Along the Way, cleverly avoiding everyone. At their closest, two people were less than ten meters apart, yet none of them noticed Sato.

"We're almost there. Zorua, Gastly, eat this and Have A Good Rest."

All Along the Way, Sato had used Dark Power to stimulate his body from time to time, keeping himself active at all times and maintaining his speed.

After confirming that he was about to reach his destination, Sato instead stopped to adjust his condition. He also fed the Two Pokemon high-energy compressed Pokemon food.

Sato silently chewed on a compressed biscuit as well, carefully watching his surroundings. The Dark Power within him circulated frantically, easing the soreness in his limbs. After all, this body was only ten years old.

After leaving behind another information marker that only Red Card Killers could learn to make, Sato led the Well Rested Two Pokemon and flashed into an underground hole tightly concealed by bushes.

"Gastly, scout ahead!"

"Jiejie~"

There was not the slightest bit of light inside the hole. Such an environment instead allowed Gastly to display its strength to the fullest. Zorua was likewise good at moving at night, so it was not greatly affected.

Sato put on the advanced Night Vision Goggles he had exchanged for 20 points. Green-tinted vision Came Into View, but Sato felt no discomfort at all as he quickly entered the hole as though Revisiting the Old Place.

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