The Trial Participant's First Trial

There's one more update tonight, fresh flowers for an added chapter.

Three days later, the entire Trial Base was deserted, save for Coach Frostwolf and a few Team Rocket Grunts.

This Trial Base would become lively again when the next batch of Trial Participants arrived.

A black-haired youth with a messy, bird's nest of hair, still groggy, climbed out of bed. He yawned, washed up, and woke the Golbat hanging upside down on the wall, asleep.

Almost all the Trial Participants had already boarded Team Rocket's transport planes and returned to Team Rocket headquarters. There, they would be dispersed and assigned to various squads to carry out Team Rocket's missions.

Only Qing Wu, who had a mission from Leader Sakaki, waited another day at the Trial Base. After the supply ship for the Trial Base arrived, Qing Wu boarded it and headed to Kusaba City, the closest city in the Kanto Region to Trial Island.

Qing Wu exchanged the Sprites he didn't need into Team Rocket points. In total, he had nearly twenty thousand points. After all, a Yellow Quality Sharpedo and an Arbok that knew the Death Makeup Technique were quite valuable for research.

Kaminari and Ailian, having parted ways with Qing Wu, had already rushed to the headquarters of Team Rocket's Dark Department with Cang and Qiong that very evening.

Leader Sakaki had urgently assigned new missions, and Team Rocket had unilaterally announced Cang's death from poisoning, all to draw out the League's undercover agents within Team Rocket.

The League had made a big move, sweeping away Team Rocket's undercover agents. Sakaki, unwilling to be outdone, retaliated in kind.

Qing Wu carefully stored his belongings in his backpack. The backpack contained various precious resources Qing Wu had stored at the Team Rocket base, Pokémon Eggs currently hatching, valuable TMs, and Poffins that had already been made.

However, in a spot Qing Wu wasn't paying attention to, a white Sprite let out a cackling laugh, sticking out its red tongue and continuously stealing the Poffins Qing Wu had made, which emitted an alluring aroma.

It had stolen too much last time and was almost discovered by Qing Wu, so this Sprite came up with a new trick: eating only one Poffin a day. That way, Qing Wu wouldn't notice too many Poffins missing.

Moreover, Qing Wu occasionally made more Poffins. If it stole a little here and a little there, it would be even less likely to be discovered.

I'm such a clever little thing, a cackling laugh echoed from the Space Backpack. This Sprite had already considered the Space Backpack its home.

After Qing Wu finished packing, he opened the door and walked towards the pier on Trial Island.

A medium-sized yacht was already waiting at the pier.

A short, one-eyed captain wearing an eyepatch and captain's attire was smoking a pipe, waiting for Qing Wu. The wait had been a bit long, with smoke swirling around.

The supplies for the Team Rocket Trial Base that had been transported on the yacht had already been unloaded.

Beside the captain stood several Machoke, all wearing sailor uniforms, looking very formal.

"You're Lord Qing Wu, right? Excuse me, I need to see your Team Rocket Medal for confirmation before I can set sail," the one-eyed captain said, beckoning Qing Wu onto the ship after seeing him arrive. He scratched his head, asking Qing Wu to show his Team Rocket Medal.

Qing Wu handed the Team Rocket Medal with three stripes to the one-eyed captain.

After a series of operations, the one-eyed captain confirmed the Team Rocket Medal was genuine and bowed respectfully to Qing Wu.

"My apologies, Lord Qing Wu. Your identity has been officially verified. Please find a place to put your luggage; the ship will depart shortly." All Team Rocket members leaving Trial Island had to follow a strict procedure, so Qing Wu didn't make things too difficult for the captain.

Qing Wu followed the Golbat to the deck and stood there, hands resting on the railing.

Qing Wu listened to the thumping sound of the yacht starting up. The Team Rocket yacht was coated with a special scent that made Sharpedo flee far away when they smelled it.

Qing Wu looked at the clear, transparent blue sky and the pure white, snow-like clouds. The sea breeze brushed against his cheeks, and the calls of Pelipper and Wingull surrounded him, making him feel very comfortable.

The Golbat circled happily above the deck, surveying the sea.

"Golbat, don't go too far, or the Pelipper and Wingull will attack," Qing Wu cautioned the Golbat, which nodded.

After all, the Golbat had been chased by Pelipper and Wingull before, with a sky full of Water Gun attacks.

Even with the Tailwind status effect, it couldn't dodge such dense attacks.

Qing Wu watched as countless Sharpedo leaped out of the water on the vast, turbulent sea. These were the extremely bloodthirsty Sharpedo bred by Team Rocket.

If it weren't for the yacht's coating that repelled Sharpedo, and the very clear red "R" symbol on the yacht, these Sharpedo would have gladly torn the entire yacht apart and devoured it.

Qing Wu shifted his standing position, making himself more comfortable as he bathed in the ocean's atmosphere.

"Lord Qing Wu, if you're feeling bored, I have a Good Rod prepared here," the captain's voice came from the control room.

Qing Wu shook his head. Fishing in these waters meant a 100% chance of catching Sharpedo.

The ferocious Sharpedo had already driven away all the Sprites in the nearby waters.

The last time Qing Wu left an island, he had returned to Team Rocket headquarters on a Team Rocket transport plane.

The entire process was rushed, with constant urging, unlike the leisurely enjoyment of the sea journey now.

After spending some time on deck, Qing Wu found the sun high in the sky. The scorching sun combined with the hot and humid sea breeze quickly made Qing Wu sweat profusely.

After asking the captain, Qing Wu found a room to rest.

Qing Wu's current mission was to infiltrate the League in the Hoenn Region. As long as he reported useful information on time, that would suffice.

These matters were all recorded in Qing Wu's system, so he wasn't worried about providing incorrect intelligence.

Most of the items Qing Wu possessed did not have the Team Rocket logo. Only the Team Rocket Medal, the Dark Department medal, and the uniform bore the Team Rocket logo. The Communicator had been specially modified by Team Rocket, making it almost identical to those sold on the market.

... Seeking fresh flowers...

Only those familiar with the Communicator could discern the subtle differences.

Qing Wu woke up to find it was already night. The weather was beautiful, with a clear sky and sparse stars. A huge, bright moon was rising from the sea.

Countless sea Sprites broke through the water's surface, basking in the moonlight. Several Gyarados burst out of the water, roaring at the bright moon.

"Lord Qing Wu, isn't it beautiful?" the one-eyed captain emerged from the control room.

"I've already activated the autopilot," the one-eyed captain said, walking over to Qing Wu and leaning against the railing, gazing at the scenery outside.

"I used to be an elite member of Team Rocket. I lost an eye during a mission, and with age, my Pokémon breeding abilities aren't what they used to be. That's why Leader Sakaki assigned me this job," Captain One-Eye said nonchalantly, reminiscing about the past while puffing on a pipe.

Qing Wu observed Captain One-Eye by the moonlight. The captain wasn't tall but was muscular, with calloused hands and many Poké Balls hanging from his waist. He was currently lighting his pipe and gazing into the distance.

... . ...

This person was clearly a seasoned veteran of Team Rocket, a true warrior past his prime but still full of ambition.

"Within Team Rocket, there are many factions. Do more and speak less, and you'll make fewer mistakes," Captain One-Eye said slowly, exhaling rings of smoke. His eyes were hazy as he gazed at the moonlight, seemingly lost in thought.

Qing Wu said nothing, nor did he disturb Captain One-Eye, who was lost in his memories.

Qing Wu had already understood this principle. Silence fell between them, broken only by the sound of the waves.

"I'm old, truly old. Only when one is old does one reminisce about past glories," Captain One-Eye emerged from his memories and said this before disappearing back into the pilot's cabin under the cover of night.

"Ah, Lord Qing Wu, we'll reach the waters near Kusaba Port in half a day. As per Leader Sakaki's orders, I can only escort you to the vicinity of Kusaba Port. You'll have to make the rest of the journey to Kusaba Port yourself in a lifeboat," Captain One-Eye reminded him leisurely.

He couldn't let the League discover his connection to Team Rocket; that was a fundamental rule for undercover agents. Moreover, Qing Wu had no intention of using the identity card made by Team Rocket.

He already possessed the identity of a Hoenn Region resident, which was safely stored in his backpack.

Some might ask why Qing Wu didn't just return to the Hoenn Region and ignore Sakaki's orders. However, Qing Wu had absolutely not forgotten that his life was in Sakaki's hands.

After all, the micro bomb on the second vertebra of his neck had not yet been removed.

Sakaki could end Qing Wu's life at any moment with the micro bomb. Only Team Rocket's headquarters could remove this micro bomb. If he dared to seek removal at a League hospital, even a single wrong step would cause Qing Wu's head to be blown clean off.

However, Qing Wu would not simply wait for death. He was, after all, a Breeding Master in his past life. Qing Wu knew exactly how to remove the micro bomb, even having dealt with enhanced versions before.