New Special Training

Uncle Shan was a straightforward man.

He wanted to begin guiding Fang Yuan and Eevee that very day.

"You don't have anything else to do, right?"

"No. I could even stay here," Fang Yuan said shamelessly.

"That won't do. Minors still need to be home before dark," Uncle Shan said.

After giving it some thought, he continued, "How about this? You and Eevee can look around for now. I'll let you know once I'm ready. It won't take long."

"No problem." Fang Yuan nodded.

With that, Uncle Shan left directly. It looked like he was going to prepare training equipment for Fang Yuan and Eevee.

As "honored guests" of the Star Glory Battle Club, Fang Yuan naturally did not want to sit around doing nothing, so he wandered about with Eevee.

"Eevee!"

After taking only a few steps, Eevee called out to Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan picked it off his shoulder in confusion and looked at it. "What is it?"

"Eevee..." Eevee stared intently at Fang Yuan.

Then, delighted, it pointed at the surrounding Battle Arenas.

"You still want to battle?" Fang Yuan asked.

"???" Eevee's smile gradually vanished, and it immediately began arguing its case.

After Eevee reminded him for quite a while, Fang Yuan finally understood. It was about what had happened during the battle with Liu Le earlier.

Liu Le had promised Snorlax a feast if it won, and Little Eevee said it wanted one too.

"So that's what this is about..." Fang Yuan said wearily. "Here, have this."

He took a pack of Orion Pies from his pocket, and Eevee happily accepted it at once.

Seeing Eevee's delighted expression, Fang Yuan felt a pang of guilt. The key was that Eevee was far too easy to fool.

He had not eaten enough breakfast, yet a bag of emergency snacks he had casually packed had been enough to fob Eevee off... Who said Pokémon were hard to raise?

With a solemn expression, Fang Yuan thought that money was a little tight lately. Once he had some, he would take Eevee out for a real feast. For now, snacks would have to do.

Sure enough, it did not take long. After only a short while, Uncle Shan returned.

He called over Fang Yuan and Eevee, who were still wandering around, and said they would first begin learning Bite.

"Uncle Shan, about how long will it take Eevee to learn Bite?"

"Eevee might master it within a month."

"..." Fang Yuan was speechless. There were only three weeks left until the Little Phoenix King Cup. Taking a month to learn Bite would not do.

"If Eevee takes it seriously, cutting that time in half isn't impossible."

"I can't say much else, but Eevee definitely won't slack off. Right, Eevee?" Fang Yuan said.

Eevee patted its chest, affirming Fang Yuan's words.

"Not bad..."

"First, let me explain."

"Learning Bite is divided into three stages. The First Stage is becoming familiar with Dark-type Energy, the Second Stage is accumulating Dark-type Energy, and the Third Stage is using Dark-type Energy," Uncle Shan said. "Mainly because Eevee hasn't encountered Dark-type moves before, making the process a bit more complicated. Otherwise, it could start learning directly from the Third Stage."

Familiarizing... accumulating... using...

While Fang Yuan and Eevee pondered those three words, Uncle Shan had already led them into a room.

This was also an independent Battle Arena. There was no flashy training equipment inside, which surprised Fang Yuan somewhat.

But when he followed Uncle Shan near a glass platform, his eyelid began twitching uncontrollably.

One... two... three... four... Four Poké Balls in total.

What was this for?

Under Fang Yuan and Eevee's stunned gazes, Uncle Shan threw out all four Poké Balls. The next moment, four large rat-like Pokémon appeared in the Battle Arena.

Raticate...

As Rattata's evolved form, Raticate was much larger than Rattata. Its rapidly growing front teeth could already bite through steel. There had once even been news of a Raticate colony chewing down a reinforced concrete building. Their strength could be said to far surpass that of Rattata.

"These four Raticate are Pokémon from the club. Not only can they use Bite, they can even use Crunch. Becoming familiar with Dark-type Energy means having Eevee battle and learn from these Raticate. Don't worry, they'll hold back, so you don't need to worry about Eevee being bitten to death."

Are you a demon? How could I not worry?!

Eevee looked at the four plump Raticate and their huge front teeth, then involuntarily swallowed. Th-this was the First Stage of learning Bite?!

"They'll prioritize attacking with Bite. What Eevee needs to do is experience the way Bite attacks after being hit during battle."

"Perhaps personally experiencing Bite would be a more appropriate way to put it."

"Next, after each day's battles, you can collect a Seven-Horn Berry from the club for Eevee to eat. Seven-Horn Berries are a subspecies cultivated from Spiny Horn Berries. Without the spiciness of Spiny Horn Berries, they contain Dark-type Energy that Pokémon can absorb more easily. If Eevee keeps eating them for some time, it should develop some sense for Dark-type Energy."

"The final stage can be said to be the hardest, or the easiest. It will depend on Eevee's aptitude then. Whether it can truly use Dark-type Energy and master Bite, no one can say for sure. All right... One final reminder: special training for Bite should not exceed an hour per day. Being too eager for results is detrimental to Eevee's development. And if Eevee is seriously injured, take it to the Pokémon Center immediately. Don't rely too much on Potions."

"Okay... I'll do that," Fang Yuan said.

"Then that's that." Uncle Shan smiled.

Uncle Shan told Fang Yuan only this much before introducing Fang Yuan and Eevee to the four Raticate.

From Eevee's perspective, it naturally did not want anything to do with these big rats, much less undergo that devilish special training. But thinking that this was all a necessary part of becoming stronger, Eevee gritted its teeth and endured it.

That day, under Uncle Shan's personal guidance, the four Raticate and Eevee began their initial special training.

These Raticate had clearly received professional training. Their basic qualities in every aspect surpassed Eevee's, and as sparring Pokémon for the Star Glory Battle Club, their foundation was certainly not something a Rookie Trainer's Pokémon could compare to.

Therefore, during its battles with the Raticate, Eevee felt extremely passive, as though it lacked the strength to resist.

What it had just done to Snorlax was now happening to it instead, only with their roles reversed.

However, Fang Yuan and Eevee also made an unexpected discovery during the battles: they could apparently use these battles to continue honing the Anticipation Ability.

Eevee was slower than the Raticate, and since they liked to gang up on it, Eevee had a very hard time dodging attacks and launching counterattacks. This situation was perfect for Eevee to use the Anticipation Ability, relying on it to contend with stronger opponents.

This was a rare opportunity. It would be even better if they could cover Eevee's eyes...