Chapter 78

Qing Wu rested in the Pokémon Center dormitory for a while before taking the Pokémon Incubator out of his backpack.

The Pokémon Egg stored in the Pokémon Incubator occasionally rocked, and faint sounds came from inside the shell.

Qing Wu skillfully removed the Pokémon Egg from the incubator, wiped away the Nutrient Solution clinging to it, poured the Nutrient Solution that had become as clear as water down the toilet drain, and reformulated the Nutrient Solution according to the attributes of each Pokémon.

When Qing Wu placed the Pokémon Egg back into the incubator, he seemed to hear it cheering joyfully.

Based on Qing Wu's experience as a Pokémon Breeding Master, this batch of Pokémon Eggs should hatch in about ten days to half a month.

The Pokémon Eggs of Mudkip and Torchic in particular had already developed self-awareness.

They simply had not hatched for various reasons, and soaking in the Nutrient Solution had accelerated their absorption of it.

If the other Pokémon Eggs needed their Nutrient Solution changed once every five days, Mudkip and Torchic needed theirs changed once every two days.

Qing Wu put the Pokémon Eggs he had finished tending back into his backpack. He inadvertently glanced at the Poffin arranged neatly inside.

"That's strange. Why does it feel like there are fewer Poffin again?" Qing Wu scratched his head and said suspiciously.

"These Pokémon Eggs clearly aren't eating that much." Qing Wu made a mental note and secretly recorded the current number of Poffin. When he checked again after some time, he would be able to find out exactly where the problem lay.

"Golbat, you'll have to endure it for the next few days and stay in your Poké Ball." Qing Wu spoke to the Poké Ball containing Golbat. The Poké Ball rocked slightly, as if responding to him.

"Let's go, Kecleon." For the next few days, Kecleon would be Qing Wu's personal bodyguard. Kecleon was Qing Wu's first Pokémon, but not many people knew of its existence.

Many Trial Participants knew that Qing Wu had an exceptionally powerful Rock Pokémon and guessed that it might be Geodude.

However, apart from Lei Ming and Cang, no one had seen Kecleon when Qing Wu was at the Trial Base.

Kecleon walked along with quick little steps. Although it was rather small now, it weighed � kg.

The ore Qing Wu had found on Trial Island was treated by Kecleon as a dessert after meals. After digesting and absorbing it, Kecleon transformed it into a silver-bright suit of armor.

The Pokémon Center was an important part of the League's organization. Almost every town, large or small, that was known to exist had a Pokémon Center.

The Pokémon Center had earned the League an extremely high reputation. The League had also stipulated that all Trainers registered with the League could stay at Pokémon Centers free of charge.

This regulation earned the respect of all ordinary Trainers.

Qing Wu had directly used his communicator to make an online appointment for Kecleon's color ultrasound scan and internal metal-content test. Thus, he did not have to wait long in the Pokémon Center's examination room before his turn came.

Qing Wu handed Kecleon, along with its Poké Ball, to the physician responsible for the examination.

Qing Wu then closed his eyes and sat in a chair at the Pokémon Center, waiting for the examination to finish.

"Hey, hey, did you see that? I've never seen the Pokémon that person had just now."

"Is it a newly discovered Pokémon? I want one so badly."

"That Pokémon is silver all over. It's super cute."

The many Trainers who had come to the Pokémon Center for examinations saw it and began whispering among themselves.

Before long, the rumor that a Trainer with a rare Pokémon had come to the Pokémon Center spread throughout the area.

Qing Wu had no idea that this would cause him quite a bit of trouble.

Qing Wu had made a mistake in his understanding. Kecleon was not considered particularly rare in the Hoenn Region.

However, in the Kanto Region, no one knew of Kecleon. Instead, Kecleon had become a tempting prize surrounded by a pack of wolves.

In a bar in Kusaba City, heavy-metal music was playing.

The entire bar was shrouded in smoke. Everyone there had flamboyant, spiky hair, and skull tattoos covered the backs of their hands. It was a gathering place for delinquent youths.

A burly, muscular young man sat in a corner of the bar. He was bare-chested, and tattooed across his back was an Arbok baring its enormous maw.

A bottle of whiskey and a slice of raw ham sat on his table. He took a small sip of whiskey, then a bite of raw ham, looking thoroughly content.

He was one of the small-time leaders among Kusaba City's gangsters, specializing in handling shady business for some of the city's rich heirs.

Suddenly, a young man with yellow spiky hair came hurrying over.

"B-Boss, I-I just heard that there's a Trainer at the Pokémon Center with a Pokémon no one has ever seen before." The young man with yellow spiky hair had run too fast and was panting so heavily that he could barely speak. He pulled a photograph from his clothing.

"A Pokémon no one has ever seen?" The young man with multicolored spiky hair lifted his head when he heard this and saw the photograph in his underling's hand, secretly taken by someone of Kecleon.

The photograph was somewhat blurry because of its low pixel count, but Kecleon's general appearance could still be made out.

"It really is a Pokémon I've never seen before. It should fetch a handsome price." After thinking for a while, the young man with multicolored spiky hair shifted his attention back to his whiskey.

Whether it was a rare Pokémon or not, he would finish this drink first.

Beep beep beep. Just then, the spiky-haired young man's communicator rang.

After looking at the number displayed on his communicator, the spiky-haired young man's expression became exceptionally respectful, even somewhat fawning. He gestured for everyone nearby to keep their voices down.

"Young Master Zhao?" The spiky-haired young man cleared his throat and spoke gently, pressing the communicator tightly against his face.

"Han Qiu, I heard that a Trainer has come to the Pokémon Center with an extremely rare Pokémon." A trace of excitement could be heard in Young Master Zhao's voice.

"Yes. I've seen a picture of the Pokémon. Its silver-bright shell can complement your noble status. It would make an excellent addition to your collection." Han Qiu snatched the photograph from his underling and described it to Young Master Zhao.

"Same as usual. Get that Pokémon for me. I'll transfer the payment directly into your private account." After hearing Han Qiu's description, Young Master Zhao's voice grew louder and more excited.

"Yes, I understand. I'll make sure this is handled perfectly." Han Qiu waited until the other party ended the call.

Then he said to the group of underlings gathered around him, "A big job has arrived. Everyone, assemble! Intercept the Trainer with the rare Pokémon at the entrance of the Pokémon Center!!!"

Han Qiu swaggered off with a group of underlings to cause trouble at the Pokémon Center!!!

Although Kusaba City had Officer Jenny's police station, Officer Jenny was extremely busy and had no time to deal with minor incidents involving forced buying and selling. Thus, Han Qiu was confident that he would not attract Officer Jenny's attention. Besides, Young Master Zhao's family held a certain position in Kusaba City.

Even if he was thrown in jail, Han Qiu was confident he could settle the matter.

Not long afterward, Qing Wu received the Pokémon Center's examination report. After he followed the Pokémon Center's official account, the results were sent directly to his communicator.

Qing Wu opened Kecleon's examination results and read them carefully.

First, Qing Wu examined the results of Kecleon's full-body scan. The Pokémon Center physician's diagnosis was that there were no abnormalities.

However, Qing Wu's sharp eyes noticed a trace of abnormality in Kecleon's color ultrasound image. The abnormality was so slight that even the Pokémon Center's physician had failed to notice it.

"It seems Tentacruel's injury still had a far-reaching effect on you." Qing Wu lowered his head and glanced at Kecleon nestled against his trouser leg before sighing.

"Fortunately, we discovered it early. If we had waited until after you evolved, it would have been too late." Qing Wu stroked Kecleon's smooth little head and continued reading its metal-detection analysis report.

Kecleon was a Steel-type and Rock-type Pokémon, much like Tyranitar.

Every so often, it would eat an entire mountain's worth of ore. Kecleon absorbed the rare metals within the ore, creating its hard metal armor.

After examining Kecleon's metal-detection analysis report, Qing Wu discovered that it was still lacking some important metal components.

These metal components could make Kecleon's metal armor even harder.

"I'll wait until we return to the Hoenn Region before buying a large amount of ore." After all, the Hoenn Region was Kecleon's home. Many valuable metals could only be found in the region's mines, and they were relatively cheap there as well.

After seeing the results, Qing Wu was about to step out of the Pokémon Center to purchase a batch of Pokémon Berries when he discovered that the entrance had been occupied by a group of spiky-haired punks riding motorcycles.

The Pokémon Center's security guards watched the group of spiky-haired punks nervously.

Their leader was a young man with multicolored spiky hair and an Arbok tattoo. He was also the leader of the local troublemakers.

"Boss, that's him." One of the spiky-haired gang members recognized Qing Wu and pointed at him.

The spiky-haired young man hurriedly grabbed the whiskey bottle and hurled it at Qing Wu.

Just as Qing Wu was about to turn around and leave, he heard something whistle through the air from behind and tilted his head aside.

The next moment, the glass doors of the Pokémon Center were smashed open by the whiskey bottle, and an arrogant voice shouted, "Stop!!!"