Yu Hai was the only one who, as an unregistered outsider stranded on a Deserted Island, treated this hard-won friendly spirit as family and a companion, relying on this little tadpole for survival.
As the saying went, there were no useless spirits, only useless trainers.
He might not have been wealthy, but he had the Proficiency Panel. He would not let this low-Potential Poliwag become a forgettable supporting character and live an ordinary life.
Now that it had become his spirit, he would not allow Poliwag to remain mediocre. He would raise it into the protagonist.
The protagonist who would stand beside him on the winners' podium. He and the little tadpole would earn countless honors, carving out their glory with their Fists. This was his second promise to Poliwag.
Spirits were simple creatures with uncomplicated thoughts. They did not understand exploitation, but they knew very well who treated them kindly and who did not.
No matter who it was, the prerequisite for becoming a trainer was treating spirits sincerely.
Because aside from family, spirits were the only companions in this world who would open their hearts to a trainer.
Trainers who did not treat their spirits sincerely would sooner or later taste the bitter fruit they had planted.
Poliwag's simplicity and unwavering loyalty would likewise receive Yu Hai's sincere devotion in return.
This half of a grilled fish was all he had. He wanted this hardworking little tadpole to eat more. Otherwise, how would it grow up? How would it grow tall and strong?
If it did not grow up, how could they survive together on this perilous Deserted Island?
They could not even defeat the weakest Kingler on the beach. Stronger spirits could threaten them at any moment.
He had the Proficiency Panel, a starter spirit, and food. He did not believe he could not give it a shot. Even if he ultimately died on the road to the top, the journey would not have been in vain.
At least he had tried. He had no regrets.
"Poliwag, this is for you. I'm full," Yu Hai said, letting out a loud burp and patting his stomach to show that he had eaten enough.
"Yo-yo, yo-yo." Poliwag did not understand and pushed the grilled fish back toward Yu Hai.
Seeing that Poliwag did not understand, Yu Hai did not explain further. Perhaps it would understand once they became more familiar with each other.
Smiling, he reached out and stroked Poliwag's head. Poliwag did not resist; instead, it seemed to enjoy the touch and leaned against his leg.
Poliwag did not know why this human would not eat. Since the human would not eat it, neither would it.
"Poliwag, can you use Soothing Mist?" Yu Hai looked at Poliwag's blissful expression and noticed its scar-covered tail again.
"Yo-yo? Yo-yo?" Poliwag did not understand.
"Hm?" Yu Hai hummed softly and raised a hand to stroke his chin. Though he had formed a friendship with Poliwag, asking it to understand something more complicated was asking too much of the little tadpole.
To help Poliwag understand Soothing Mist, Yu Hai grabbed a handful of sand from the ground, likened it to seawater, sprinkled it over Poliwag's body, and then brushed it away.
"Do you understand, Poliwag? It means giving yourself a bath."
Yu Hai did not know whether Poliwag could understand, but this was already the simplest explanation he could give with both words and gestures.
If it still did not understand, there was nothing else he could do.
"Yo-yo." Poliwag copied Yu Hai's movements, using its tail to scoop up sand and toss it over itself. Then it shook off the fine grains and tilted its head at Yu Hai in confusion.
"Poliwag, you're not supposed to bathe yourself with sand. Use a move, like Chain Slap. Use Soothing Mist to wash yourself," Yu Hai explained again.
But Poliwag still tilted its head, unable to understand what Yu Hai was saying.
Yu Hai was speechless and helpless. This was really too hard.
In the end, with no other choice, he decided to demonstrate personally. He found a trace of fish blood on his hand from handling the Sharp-toothed Fish and showed it to Poliwag as he explained:
"Poliwag, watch carefully. This is Soothing Mist..."
In truth, he simply used his other hand to rub away the bloodstain on his arm. After his fingers brushed over it, his arm was clean. "See? This is Soothing Mist. I want you to use Soothing Mist to treat your tail."
As Yu Hai spoke, he pointed at Poliwag's scar-covered tail. There were still bloodstains on it, just like those that had been on his arm.
"Yo-yo, yo-yo." This time, Poliwag finally understood. Yu Hai wanted it to use a move to clean its body.
Poliwag then took a deep breath until its face turned red. Only then did a white glow appear over its body. The glow swiftly swept across Poliwag's body and tail, cleaning it considerably.
Seeing this, Yu Hai looked at Poliwag's Proficiency Panel and found that Soothing Mist's proficiency had risen from 0.1 to 0.2.
In other words, using a move could increase proficiency. He needed to let Poliwag use its moves more often.
But it needed to be done while full, or it would only have the opposite effect.
Like before, when it was exhausted and hungry, it was not suitable to use Soothing Mist. That would only leave it weaker.
Yu Hai withdrew his gaze from the Proficiency Panel and looked at Poliwag's tail again. He found that some of the shallower injuries had already scabbed over and healed, leaving only the larger wounds.
[Soothing Mist: Lets the body rest and heals poison, paralysis, burns, and other abnormal conditions.]
Judging from Soothing Mist's description, it removed abnormal conditions. If injuries also counted as an abnormal condition, then its usefulness to Poliwag could not be overstated.
Though it did not restore stamina, its ability to heal injuries and remove abnormal conditions was already impressive. It could be called a life-saving divine skill.
This little tadpole's Potential was not much to speak of, but all the moves it had mastered were quite practical. The more Yu Hai looked, the more satisfied he became.
However, after using Soothing Mist once and recovering from its injuries, Poliwag could barely stand. It looked sleepy and drowsy.
Seeing Poliwag like this, Yu Hai immediately reached out to catch it. He recalled the first half of Soothing Mist's description: let the body rest.
He supported Poliwag against his leg and gently stroked its round blue head, soothing it into a quiet sleep. There was no better rest than sleep.
"Yo-yo, yo-yo." Lying in Yu Hai's arms, Poliwag relaxed after seeing that Yu Hai had caught it. Its tiny pink mouth smacked twice, and it drifted off to sleep with a blissful expression.
The campfire warmed one man and one tadpole. Yu Hai gently stroked Poliwag as the two orphans stranded on a Deserted Island leaned against each other for warmth, spending their most peaceful night together.
This would be the beginning of a new story...
Let me explain something. The story mentioned that spirits were simple and did not have as many petty schemes as humans. That was also why a villain's spirits, even when they knew the villain was doing bad things, would not abandon them: because the villain treated them well, and the spirits knew it in their hearts.
You could insist that villains took advantage of a spirit's simplicity. But if they could treat their own spirits well for a lifetime, the spirits would be willing to follow them, even if their trainer was a villain, an evil person, or a Spirit Hunter.
Spirits would not care about so much.
Spirits would only feel that they had met the right trainer.
Spirits would not draw their sword the moment they came ashore and strike down the one they loved first...
Before you continue