"Next, it's your turn." Qing Wu was an extremely cautious person, and Zubat was wild and difficult to tame.
Qing Wu wove the vines he had gathered into a net, then had Kecleon use Rock Tomb to seal the cave's exit.
This was to prevent Zubat from escaping if the taming failed.
This was a Pokémon with Green Quality. If it escaped into the wild, Qing Wu would never be able to find it again.
That would break Qing Wu's heart.
Qing Wu divided Bonfire into several piles. After adding dry branches, the bonfires burned even more fiercely.
Heat and light were Zubat's nemeses, things Zubat feared.
This was because Zubat was nocturnal, only beginning to move after the sun had set.
Its skin was so thin that sunlight would give it sunburn, so during the day it hid in the darkness of caves and forests to Rest.
When the weather turned cold, they huddled together for warmth.
"Right, I'm still missing something to block the sound." Qing Wu stuffed the fluffy leaves he had gathered into his ears, because Zubat could emit ultrasonic waves.
After being hit by Zubat's ultrasonic attack, humans would experience intense nausea and the urge to vomit.
In severe cases, it could even trigger cardiac arrest.
Once Qing Wu was fully prepared, he gripped the Poké Ball tightly and took a deep breath.
Qing Wu pressed the button at the center of the Poké Ball and threw it far away.
"Come out, Zubat." Qing Wu shouted, and in the next moment, a streak of white light burst out of the opened Poké Ball.
When the white light faded, a Zubat slightly larger than normal appeared in front of Qing Wu.
Its entire body was dark blue. A pair of bat wings wider than its body stretched from its back, while two sharp ears grew from its head.
Its inner ears and wing membranes were shades of purple. Four white teeth could be seen inside its wide-open mouth.
Zubat's eyes were tiny, so small they were almost invisible. However, eyes were practically optional for Zubat, because when flying at night, it used ultrasonic waves to detect its surroundings.
Two slender tails hung beneath Zubat, forming a V shape.
This Zubat had been confined in the Poké Ball for some time. Hunger had made it, already untamed, even more bloodthirsty.
Zubat opened its mouth and released a sharp sound wave.
The sound wave echoed through the cave. Even the swaying bonfires seemed disturbed by it, flickering even more violently.
Fortunately, Qing Wu had also stuffed plenty of leaves into Kecleon's ears, so the noise did not wake Kecleon.
Kecleon was instead the least nervous one in the cave. It lay on the ground, making three happy, hoarse sounds.
Hoarse, happy sleeping sounds. Making three hoarse sounds indicates excellent sleep quality.
Zubat, which had been hungry for several days, beat its wings and flew through the cave at an incredibly nimble speed. After all, caves were its natural habitat.
It was completely at home flying through such a cramped space.
A hint of a smile appeared at the corners of Zubat's mouth as it released sharp ultrasonic waves to interfere with Qing Wu's movements.
Through the ultrasonic waves, it detected that the cave entrance had been completely sealed. Having originally planned only to escape into the wild, it decided to drain this human completely and soothe its growling stomach.
But how could Qing Wu, who had prepared in advance, possibly let Zubat succeed?
Zubat suddenly discovered that the human in front of it had raised a burning torch.
Zubat nearly crashed into the torch. Angered, it flapped its wings rapidly, trying to extinguish it.
"You've lost your chance." Qing Wu reacted swiftly and threw the Vine Net he had just woven.
Zubat had no time to dodge. It was caught in the net and knocked to the ground.
Qing Wu hurriedly pinned down the net's four corners to prevent Zubat from escaping.
"Hiss, hiss, hiss..." A pained sound came from Zubat's mouth as it struggled desperately inside the net.
Qing Wu had tied the Vine Net with a slipknot, completely restraining Zubat.
"Zubat, submit to me. The moment I caught you, you became my prisoner." Qing Wu spoke calmly.
Qing Wu steadily moved the torch closer to Zubat, its heat and light constantly stimulating it.
Zubat had no intention of submitting to a human just like that. It was extremely unwilling.
If it had not been hungry for several days, how could Qing Wu have caught it so easily?
"I know you're very unwilling, but you can't even compare to my Kecleon."
Qing Wu pointed at Kecleon. Kecleon had stayed behind to cover him, only to be torn into several pieces by the enraged Champion-level Pokémon.
It was the kind of creature that feared neither being smashed to pieces nor burning itself to ashes for others.
As the torch drew closer and closer, Zubat grew more and more terrified, as if it were suffering grievous harm, and let out a miserable shriek.
Zubat struggled desperately, but the Vine Net only tightened further, so tightly that Zubat could barely breathe.
"Submit to me. I'll give you food, treat you with dignity and respect, and train you into a powerful Pokémon."
Qing Wu took out a Pitcher Plant filled with foul-smelling blood.
In Zubat's eyes, however, the blood smelled exceptionally sweet. It had not eaten for some time, and its little belly was terribly sunken.
Qing Wu had also added an Orange Fruit to the blood, making the flavor even more extraordinary.
Zubat secretly swallowed, unwilling to let the human see how badly it was drooling. It still had one last bit of stubbornness left.
"Oh no, I spilled it by accident." Qing Wu "accidentally" tipped the Pitcher Plant full of fresh blood onto the ground.
Zubat watched as the blood flowed in a thin stream before quickly sinking into the parched ground and vanishing.
Zubat wailed inwardly: No, please don't do this.
Just as Zubat's heart had turned to ash, Qing Wu pulled another identical Pitcher Plant from behind his back and said with a smile, "Are you going to submit or not?"
In the end, Zubat shamefully lowered its head and silently repeated to itself:
"I'm not submitting because of the food. I submit because your strength inspires awe in me. Yes, it must be that!!!"
After figuring things out, Zubat quickly began making pleading sounds. Qing Wu teased Zubat for a while.
Under Zubat's resentful gaze, he once again "accidentally" spilled the blood, making Zubat's body twitch painfully.
Only after Qing Wu repeatedly confirmed that Zubat had completely submitted did he untie the Vine Net.
Zubat eagerly tried to suck up the fresh blood spilled on the ground, but Qing Wu stopped it at once.
Qing Wu took out another Pitcher Plant and pierced its outer wall. A small stream of blood seeped out.
As expected, a father was still a father. Zubat was thoroughly convinced. Starved and lacking the strength to resist, it lunged at the Pitcher Plant.
Zubat sucked up the blood in a daze of bliss, completely captivated by the flavor.
After drinking its fill of blood, Zubat recovered some of its strength.
Qing Wu picked up the Poké Ball that had fallen to the ground, then completely released Zubat.
While Zubat was still stunned, Qing Wu threw the Poké Ball.
The Poké Ball struck Zubat once more and completely drew it inside. Zubat did not resist at all.
The red light on the Poké Ball went out, signifying that Zubat acknowledged Qing Wu's strength.
The Poké Ball opened again, and Zubat appeared in front of Qing Wu, beating its wings as it hovered on his shoulder.
After all that exertion, Zubat was indeed somewhat tired. Qing Wu stroked its little head.
"From now on, I'm your Trainer. Please take good care of me."
Zubat drooped its head and gave an arrogant squeak, expressing that it, too, looked forward to working together from now on.
Qing Wu looked at the bright moon hanging high in the sky, then lay down as well. Time to sleep. There's still plenty to do tomorrow.
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