The Tadpole's Growth

The Metapod was quickly out of the pot, its shell cracked open by the intense heat, releasing a tempting aroma of cooked meat.

To avoid wasting the gooey protein liquid that flowed out, Yu Hai used the Stew Pot to hold the roasted Metapod.

Because the Metapod was changing its form, the proteins inside its body were broken down and then cooked before they could be reassembled, turning into a thick, paste-like food.

Looking at the paste-like food in the Stew Pot, it reminded Yu Hai of Indian curry.

No matter what ingredients fell into the hands of an Indian, they would turn into a paste-like food.

Actually, it wasn't the Indian's fault, because paste-like food is easy for the stomach to digest and absorb, so Indians would make all sorts of ingredients into this form.

Crack, crack--

The Metapod was completely cracked open, and all the paste-like food from inside the shell flowed out, filling the Stew Pot and even overflowing.

There was still some protein left in the shell that hadn't been poured out. Yu Hai lifted the Stew Pot with both hands and felt its weight.

It weighed about six or seven catties, and the Stew Pot was overflowing. He even used the Iron Cup and Frying Pan to hold the remaining paste.

Some useful daily necessities had already been moved to the temporary shelter. The Frying Pan was still Poliwag's food bowl, used to hold the paste-like food.

According to the official setting, a Metapod's weight is 9.9 kilograms, which he had felt when he lifted the Metapod earlier.

Excluding the shell, everything else was meat, and he hadn't expected there to be so much.

It seemed catching Metapods was much more worthwhile than Caterpies.

It was possible that after evolving, Caterpie released the accumulated evolutionary energy within its body, thus reaching a weight of ten kilograms.

"Forget it, I'll eat it first," Yu Hai said, directly filling Poliwag's Frying Pan to its limit, letting Poliwag eat its fill.

He knew Poliwag hadn't eaten enough at noon. For that two-catties Caterpie, Poliwag had gotten about a catty and a half, which was probably just enough to fill its stomach.

"Let's eat, Poliwag. Eat up so we can train. Don't worry about dinner, we still have a Caterpie..."

After filling Poliwag's Frying Pan, Yu Hai urged Poliwag to start eating. It was getting close to nightfall, and the sunset was already on the horizon. They didn't have much time for training; the sky would darken soon.

"Yo yo," Poliwag saw that there was still a lot of paste in the Stew Pot and didn't refuse any longer. It lowered its head and started eating with gusto.

This way of eating reminded Yu Hai of the little pigs at home. Take it literally, the way it ate was very much like a pig.

Since Poliwag didn't have arms, this was the only way it could eat.

Yu Hai suppressed a smile and picked up the Iron Cup, taking a bite himself. The protein was all paste, so he could just drink it.

However, after one sip, he didn't taste anything.

Then, he took a second sip. How to describe it?

It was a bit bitter, the taste was very faint, and there wasn't even any saltiness. He guessed it was because the Caterpie ate too many leaves, and the protein formed from its body had this taste.

The previous Caterpie had saltiness to mask the taste of the leaves, and combined with the grilling, he hadn't tasted the bitterness of the leaves.

This time, the Metapod was tightly enclosed, and no slightly salty water was added, so all the bitterness came through.

Since that was the case, he would pour in some slightly salty Lukewarm Water to dilute the protein paste and drink it like a light congee.

If only he could have some white sugar. When eating congee, he was a sweet person; he couldn't swallow savory ones at all.

Seeing that the paste in Poliwag's Frying Pan was almost gone, he refilled Poliwag's pot again. Poliwag was in its growing stage, and only by eating enough could it have the strength to train.

"Yo yo," Poliwag saw Yu Hai filling its pot again and was a little reluctant to eat.

It wasn't that it was full, but it was worried that if it ate too much, Yu Hai wouldn't have any left.

"There's still plenty here. This is six or seven catties of meat porridge. How could I possibly finish it all?" Yu Hai said with a helpless wry smile. He didn't have that strong a digestive capacity; he could eat at most one catty, and that was without dilution from the Lukewarm Water.

"Eat quickly. If you don't have the energy to train later, don't blame me for being harsh," Yu Hai said grumpily.

"Yo," Poliwag understood and began to bury its head in eating again.

As Poliwag continued to eat, Yu Hai slowly drank the meat porridge. He decided to call it "meat porridge" from now on; he felt awkward calling it "paste" all the time. While drinking the meat porridge, he opened Poliwag's proficiency panel.

[Poliwag]
[Type: Water]
[Gender: Male]
[Potential: 31%]
[Level: 7.97%]
[Abilities: Damp/0.53%][Hidden Ability: Swift Swim/1.53%]
[Known Moves: (Mind Reader/0.21%)(Ice Ball/0.31%)(Soothing Mist/0.51%)(Water Gun/1.31%)(Hypnosis/0.72%)(Chain Slap/3.14%)(Tackle/0.71%)(Water Gun/4.32%)]

Poliwag had consecutively defeated two Caterpies and one Metapod, along with two Caterpie meals. Its experience points had increased significantly, and it was close to breaking through to level eight.

Indeed, battles and eating were the fastest ways to gain experience points.

Next was Hypnosis; it hadn't increased much, as Hypnosis had only been used twice, increasing by 0.2.

However, Chain Slap had finally broken through 3%, which was cause for celebration.

And then there was Tackle, this little brother, which was directly carried along by Chain Slap, even though it increased very slowly.

Finally, there was Water Gun; it only increased by 0.2, which was better than nothing. From now on, it would probably just be a matter of steady effort.

To take moves to the next level, one must first increase their level. Only when the level can no longer be raised would he then research breaking through the limits of moves.

Moves are different from levels. What restricts levels is the Pokémon itself; this is an innate limit that is difficult to change and comes at a great cost.

What restricts move proficiency is laziness.

As long as one practices diligently, even the most ordinary Water Gun move can be used to achieve different effects.

For example, accuracy, power, and speed. If the density of Water Gun is high enough and the speed is faster, it can hit the bullseye every time.

One or two Water Guns might not show much, but if ten or twenty Water Guns can all hit the vital spot, no amount of Six Flavor Rehmannia Pills can fix that.

Of course, he doesn't need to do that for now; that's something to consider only after his level is capped.

Specializing in moves can somewhat compensate for regrets in potential.

"Poliwag, are you done eating? We're getting ready for special training by the sea." Yu Hai withdrew his gaze from Poliwag's proficiency panel and closed it.

He called for Poliwag to follow him. While the sun hadn't set yet, they could still enjoy the sunset and train a bit more.

"Yip, burp, yip," Poliwag licked the bottom of the pot with its little pink tongue, then swiped it around its lips, cleaning up any leftover food debris, and let out a big burp.

"I'm full, which is perfect for post-meal exercise. Let's continue practicing the accuracy of Water Gun. Follow me." Yu Hai covered the remaining meat porridge in the Stew Pot and then got up to head towards the sea.

Arriving at the seaside, Yu Hai saw that the shallow waters had receded due to low tide. They wouldn't be foraging tonight; they had plenty of food anyway.

After Poliwag entered the sea, Yu Hai sat on the shore, skipping stones and watching Poliwag intently stare at the stones, trying hard to hit them.

When he recovered, it would be time to train his body.

If he always had a sickly body, he could never become a Trainer. Trainers are a group of non-human beings.

Although he didn't want to admit it, this was the reality.

Every renowned Trainer possessed at least the physical fitness of a special forces soldier, the kind who could do a mid-air 90-degree somersault without getting airsick.

As for those who cheated... no need to mention them.

Thanks to Yi Zenme Liang Le for the 100 book coins, and everyone for your many monthly passes and recommendation tickets. Thank you x3.