Luo Mu remembered that after a Terastal Orb was used for Terastallization, all the Terastal Energy stored inside it would be depleted, preventing the Trainer from using Terastallization a second time.
There were two ways to replenish the Terastal Energy.
The first was to visit a Pokémon Center in one of the towns and use the Terastal Energy charging device, a piece of equipment invented by Dr. Jacq and Dr. Futaba.
However, because Terastal Orbs had not yet gone into full-scale production, Terastal Energy charging devices were only available in a few of the major cities in the Paldea region. Pingdie Town was not among them.
The second way was to search for the rare Terastal Crystals scattered across the vast lands of the Paldea region. When a Terastal Orb came into contact with a Terastal Crystal, its Terastal Energy would automatically be replenished.
This method was much more practical. Unfortunately, Luo Mu hadn't come across any Terastal Crystals near the farm, so he would have to wait a little longer before he could recharge.
Thinking of this, Luo Mu sighed. He could only give up on figuring out the Terastal types of his other Pokémon besides Swampert for now.
Luxray and Serperior were sure to have Tera Electric and Tera Grass, respectively. The only ones that remained a mystery were Ceruledge, Mimikyu, and Dragonite.
Pepper tugged on Luo Mu's sleeve and asked curiously, "So this is all we need to do to plant crops and harvest ingredients?"
Luo Mu pondered for a moment. "Well, generally speaking, as long as you clear the land, you can plant anything that doesn't require a particular season or soil conditions."
"I only have a limited understanding of this myself, and I haven't decided what to plant first."
Pepper looked speechless. Even though he was only ten years old, he could tell how unreliable Luo Mu was. He seemed to know absolutely nothing about the professional aspects of farming—he was practically an amateur.
"Luo Mu, you..."
Pepper struggled to find the words, but after a long pause, he still didn't know what to say.
Luo Mu grinned and gave Pepper two hearty pats on the shoulder, nearly making him stumble. Then he said mysteriously, "I know what you want to say. The truth is, I know perfectly well that I'm an amateur. So why don't we go ask a professional?"
Pepper rubbed his slightly sore shoulder and tilted his head.
Jones Farm was one of Pingdie Town's biggest suppliers of crops. The various crops grown there were distributed to people's tables around town and even transported to major cities in the Paldea region for sale.
With such a huge market, the farm was naturally one of Pingdie Town's biggest taxpayers, and its managers received preferential treatment in all sorts of ways.
Jones Farm was a little way to the west of the land Luo Mu had bought. It was also in the outskirts of Pingdie Town, bordering some wild land.
But whether it was its facilities or the expertise of its staff, it was far beyond what Luo Mu's own empty farm could hope to match.
At the guard booth outside the farm, it was just past noon. Through the glass, Luo Mu saw an old man lounging in a reclining chair, fast asleep.
Luo Mu glanced at the ordinary watch he'd bought for a few hundred yuan and confirmed that it was past two, the end of the lunch break. He gently tapped on the glass and said, "Sir, we're here to register as visitors."
The old man had a straw hat pulled over his face, apparently to shield himself from the afternoon sun. It wasn't until Luo Mu knocked three more times that he slowly woke up and peered blearily at his visitors.
A young man and a child. And a dog?
The strange group left the old man a little confused, but he still dutifully got to his feet, yawned, and took out the visitor log. "Name?"
Luo Mu smiled. "Luo Mu. I made an appointment to tour the farm earlier. Could you check?"
Hearing this, the old man lifted his head and gave Luo Mu a once-over. His wizened fingers kept flipping through the pages with a rustle. He put on his reading glasses and took a look, then laughed. "Well, would you look at that? You really did. You booked it for two this afternoon. Looks like this old man overslept."
"Sorry about that."
"No problem." Luo Mu shook his head to show that he wasn't bothered, then reminded him, "As we agreed earlier, could you please get someone to show us around?"
"No problem, no problem," the old man replied repeatedly, visibly relieved. He immediately picked up the landline to call someone inside. Then, just as he started dialing, his fingers froze. He glanced at Pepper and Master Dogue and asked hesitantly, "Who are they?"
Luo Mu glanced at Pepper and Master Dogue, then calmly explained, "A relative's child and Pokémon. They happened to ask me to take them somewhere. Would you mind making an exception?"
The old man hesitated, but in the end, he made the call.
Someone arrived soon after the call went through.
The newcomer was in his early twenties, with closely cropped hair and bright, alert eyes that gave him an oddly open and guileless air.
He seemed to have just come in from the fields. Fresh, damp soil clung to his trouser legs, and he had a large straw hat slung over his back. He looked a little like an older, enlarged version of the Bug Catcher boys Luo Mu had seen in games.
The young man broke into a wide smile. After taking over from the old man at the gate, he led Luo Mu and the others through the entrance to Jones Farm.
Jones Farm specialized in cultivation, producing all kinds of fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables. The farm wasn't very large, only about half the size of the land Luo Mu had bought.
But Luo Mu had divided his land into different areas, so the actual farming area was even smaller than Jones Farm.
As they walked, the young man gave a brief introduction. His name was Peter, and he was in charge of the fruit and vegetable side of Jones Farm. He took part in most of the farm's cultivation work—in other words, he was the professional.
Peter said that when the Jones couple heard a fellow farmer was coming to learn from them, they'd felt honored, but also a little regretful. They were negotiating a deal at the market in Ziqin Town and couldn't get back in time to welcome him.
In the end, the task had fallen to Peter.
"I heard from the bosses that someone recently bought that long-abandoned plot nearby. I didn't expect it to be you!" Peter said, his face full of gratitude as he clasped Luo Mu's hand. "The bosses had been eyeing that land for ages, debating whether to buy it. I guess you beat them to the punch, haha!"
Luo Mu felt a little awkward. He remembered the mayor mentioning that quite a few people besides him had been watching the land because of its price. He'd spent a year traveling and saved up quite a bit, so he'd simply bought it outright.
He hadn't realized the Jones couple were among those interested.
"First come, first served. Don't worry about it!" Peter tightened his grip on Luo Mu's hand a little and said frankly, "I should be thanking you, actually. It's a good thing you bought that land. Otherwise, my workload would've at least doubled!"
"So, ask me anything you want to know!"
Before you continue