Soul Beasts and Pokémon

"Martial souls, hidden weapons, gods, empires..."

"What a fantastical story."

Before the headmaster's desk, Dumbledore stroked his beard and sighed. Before this, he had never heard a story about such a world.

But the Tang Sect...

The pale blue eyes beneath Dumbledore's glasses flickered. He seemed to have heard that name somewhere before.

Where had it been?

Hmm... that ancient and mysterious East?

At that moment, someone else in the Chat Group had already expressed his shock.

[Samuel Oak: Hunting Soul Beasts, obtaining Spirit Rings, taking Spirit Bones!? Mr. Flender, your world is far crueler than I imagined.]

At Oak Research Lab, Professor Oak set down the research instrument in his hand. Looking away from the translucent panel before him, he could not help but sigh.

He had finished reading the story called Douluo Continent, and all he felt was sympathy for that world.

Humans and Soul Beasts could barely coexist. Every step forward was made atop the corpses of living beings.

Though he had witnessed plenty of darkness in this world during his youth, with the League's development and the rise of more and more farsighted people, the world had gradually become better and better.

His world had no Soul Beasts. Aside from humans, there were only marvelous creatures called Pokémon, and now humans and Pokémon could live together harmoniously.

"Samuel Oak... so he really is Professor Oak from the Pokémon world. I just wonder which Pokémon continuity he belongs to."

Seeing the revised name, Flender nodded. In the Pokémon movie Celebi: A Timeless Encounter, Professor Oak had once lost his real name, which was why Flender could recognize him.

[Flender: It can't be helped. This is the cold reality of the world, Mr. Samuel Oak.

If Soul Beasts do not want to starve to death, they must hunt other Soul Beasts. If they want to grow stronger quickly, they must devour other Soul Beasts. Then if Spirit Masters want to grow stronger, they must also hunt Soul Beasts. This is the natural law of the world.

Besides, Soul Beasts, like humans, are not one unified whole. They have friends, and they have enemies. If there are people who hunt Soul Beasts, then there are also people who befriend Soul Beasts.

As long as it is not wanton slaughter for amusement, then the strong preying on the weak is nature's rule.]

[Samuel Oak: I understand. It was merely a personal reflection. After all, I experienced some dark times myself in the past.]

Professor Oak sank into his memories. When he was young, society had been far from stable. Wild Battles—where Trainers and Pokémon fought together—were everywhere, and countless people had died because of them.

[Samuel Oak: By the way, Mr. Flender, do you also have stories about me there? Let me introduce myself. I am Samuel Oak. I used to be a Pokémon Trainer, and now I am a Pokémon Professor. Everyone also calls me Professor Oak.]

[Flender: Professor Oak, I have heard of your name, and I happen to know your story as well.]

[ Ding! The Pokémon series has been released. It matches member Samuel Oak's world setting. The Chat Group has automatically completed it and converted it into a true trajectory of fate. Only member Samuel Oak may view it.]

All the memories in Flender's mind related to Pokémon had been uploaded, covering every version he knew—anime, games, manga, and more...

The moment he saw that a story related to himself had been uploaded, Samuel Oak swiftly clicked into it. The scenery before his eyes immediately began to change.

"Can't catch it, can you?"

"Don't underestimate me!"

"All right, watch me this time!"

"Damn it! It got knocked away again!"

In Pallet Town, several children surrounded a purple, horned creature—Nidorino—and tried to catch it, but none of them succeeded.

Just as all the children sank into despair, a boy wearing his cap backward slowly approached, and the story began to unfold.

Professor Oak began studying everything around him. Familiar scenery entered his eyes, and he nodded. It seemed this story began in his hometown.

Whoosh...

The story progressed quickly, but Professor Oak's heart rose and fell as if he were riding a train.

"What? Four of the eight Gyms in the Kanto League are actually connected to Team Rocket!"

"Mewtwo... Mew's genes, power comparable to legends..."

"Agatha... you actually led so many outstanding juniors and tried to change the world?

But you lost to me before, and now you've lost to my grandson too. How remarkable..."

"Arlan, you still haven't given up? And you actually succeeded. Even if only briefly, that was... control over time and space!"

"Giovanni's child... Arlan, you actually kidnapped Team Rocket's future heir... and one of our Pallet Town children too!"

"The Sevii Islands, a virus Pokémon from outer space..."

"Rainbow Hero, Ash Ketchum. As expected, from the very first time I met you, I knew you were no ordinary person."

"..."

One vast story after another struck Professor Oak, nearly making him give up thinking. Yet in the end, relying on the constitution of a Super Palletian, he recovered and slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

"Although I already knew how vast this world was, I still have to marvel at the future. Year after year, legends emerged one after another."

Professor Oak patted his head. His tone was profound, but he immediately began considering what he should do.

Since he already knew tragedies would happen in the future, doing nothing would not be Samuel Oak's style. He had once been a Champion, too!

[Samuel Oak: @Flender, thank you, Mr. Flender. You have helped me out of several major predicaments.]

[Flender: No need for that, Professor Oak. It was only a small favor.]

Flender hurriedly cut him off. He did not want another situation like Dumbledore's, where someone sent him gifts.

Though Flender's greedy nature had never changed, he disdained relying on such behavior.

[Flender: If Professor Oak truly wishes to thank me, could you let me see what the stories in your world are actually like?

To be honest, I am rather curious.]

Flender truly was curious which version of Professor Oak this was.

[Dumbledore: Wasn't this the story you sent? You do not remember it yourself?]

[Flender: I only remember the general outline, Headmaster Dumbledore. You cannot expect me to possess an eidetic memory—being able to remember everything I have seen without any loss.

I only provided some material. The thing that truly turned it into a viewable story was this thing we are chatting through now.]

[Dumbledore: I see.]

[Member Samuel Oak has changed the Pokémon series story permissions. Everyone may now view it.]

[Samuel Oak: Of course. There is nothing shameful about it. Oh, by the way, there is a child in the story named Xiao Lu. She is my eldest granddaughter, a very outstanding child!]

Professor Oak proudly sent the message. Though both of his grandchildren seemed to have encountered setbacks, he was still proud of their future achievements.

Xiao Lu, eldest granddaughter? You have a younger granddaughter too? Flender caught the crucial details. With that question in mind, he opened the Pokémon story.