Grimer Gathering Place

Neither the customers nor the staff suspected Lu Li of stealing anything just because he had entered with a backpack.

In a large Shopping Mall like this, the head of security was usually an Experienced-level Trainer and would definitely have a Psychic-type Pokémon.

They could tell at a glance whether you had stolen anything, not to mention that the Shopping Mall's surveillance cameras were no joke.

Lu Li quickly lined up and paid for his purchases. As he paid, his heart ached fiercely once more.

The incubation equipment and incubation fluid alone cost over 6,000 League Credits—enough to cover Feebas's food for an entire week.

After leaving the Shopping Mall, Lu Li had just been about to head to his next destination when a young man with dyed white hair and makeup on his face stopped him.

The young man said confidently, "You're an orphan, right?"

Lu Li: "???"

Lu Li felt like the other guy was insulting him, but the expression on his face seemed rather polite.

With an old retort stuck in his throat, the corner of Lu Li's mouth twitched slightly before he said, "Is that supposed to be polite?"

Realizing what he had said, the young man smiled awkwardly and hurriedly waved his hands as he explained, "Don't misunderstand. I mean you no harm."

Lu Li nodded at that, then stared straight at the young man.

Lu Li was not afraid that this person had come looking for trouble. What a joke! Did he even understand how valuable it was for a Trainer's physical abilities to rival an Experienced-level Pokémon's?

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Eike, the leader of the Wildfire Gang." The young man introduced himself, with a hint of pride in his voice.

Lu Li: "..."

Wildfire Gang... Eike.

Hearing that familiar combination of names, Lu Li was stunned.

Was that you, Time Prodigy?

Arceus was that incredible? He had actually opened a Time-Space Tunnel between Valoran and the Pokémon world?

But Lu Li soon realized he had overthought it, because Eike had already started exposing himself.

"The reason I could guess you're an orphan is because of the backpack behind you." Eike pointed at Lu Li's backpack.

"Normally, if you had even one reliable adult at home, you would never bring a Pokémon Egg out with you. So there's only one answer: either you're an orphan, or the adults in your family aren't reliable." Eike confidently laid out his analysis.

Lu Li nodded repeatedly as he listened. The name Eike really did carry some massive karmic weight. Even some random person with that name had such wisdom... my ass!

Lu Li directly cut Eike off. "There's no need to go on about something anyone could guess. Just tell me what you want."

Eike was not angered by the interruption. Instead, he sincerely invited him, "Are you interested in joining the Wildfire Gang?"

Lu Li knew nothing about this so-called Wildfire Gang, since he was not a local of Qingyun City. Still, judging by Eike's outfit, the Wildfire Gang was probably just some childish little gang.

Who the hell still joined the underworld these days? Anyone with real ambition was working toward becoming an Evil Organization.

"Sorry, I'm not interested." Lu Li turned to leave after saying that.

Seeing Lu Li about to go, Eike hurriedly blocked his path again and said earnestly, "It's fine if you don't join. I have an incredible opportunity here. Do you want in?"

Having been stopped again, Lu Li was getting impatient.

"I already said I wasn't interest—"

Before Lu Li could finish, Eike interrupted him. "It's Grimer Pokémon Eggs. Our Wildfire Gang knows where there are Muk Pokémon Eggs."

Lu Li forcibly swallowed the rest of his words. He could not help it—being broke, he really was interested in Muk Pokémon Eggs.

In this world, the Pokémon best suited for commoners were not Bug-type Pokémon, but the Grimer Eike had mentioned.

Grimer had many flaws. For example, Grimer was basically a moving puddle of filthy garbage water. Even from far away, it gave off a nauseating stench.

Not only Trainers, but even sewage workers kept their distance from the thing. But Grimer's cost-effectiveness was simply too high.

As long as there was enough garbage, Muk could generally evolve into the Grimer stage, which was Elite-level. For ordinary people from poor families, Elite-level was already a life goal.

Most importantly, Grimer had the notoriously powerful Poison-type. It was only seriously countered by Ground-type and Psychic-type Pokémon. For those pursuing strength despite poor family circumstances, Grimer was absolutely a dream Pokémon.

However, Grimer's drawbacks were also enormous. Aside from working at garbage collection stations, Trainers who owned Grimer could barely find any other jobs. They would also lose their right to choose a future partner, and might even lose the right to catch Pokémon.

But Lu Li, who was already planning to farm and cultivate immortality, had no such concerns. Once he opened a Farm, raising a few Grimer there would be perfect for dealing with all kinds of garbage.

After thinking for a moment and figuring out the truth, Lu Li asked curiously, "Did your Wildfire Gang discover a Grimer gathering place in the city's Sewer?"

Eike stared at Lu Li in surprise. He had not expected Lu Li to immediately see through him.

Eike nodded with a bitter smile. "That's right. Our Wildfire Gang did discover a Grimer gathering place, and there are quite a few Muk Pokémon Eggs there too. I didn't expect you to figure it out so easily."

"Looks like I really found the right person!" Eike looked at Lu Li excitedly, as though proclaiming that his judgment was indeed exceptional.

With his guess confirmed, a sharp gleam flashed deep in Lu Li's eyes.

Eike, who had never received a proper education, might not know this, but Lu Li, a man who had spent his childhood buried in the Library, knew what a Grimer gathering place meant.

A Grimer gathering place had a chance of producing a Pokémon Secret Treasure. The Poison-type Pokémon Secret Treasure known as Black Sludge was one of the most common Poison-type Pokémon Secret Treasures.

Its effect was to increase the strength of Poison-type Pokémon. However, Black Sludge only worked on Poison-type Pokémon and was instead harmful to Pokémon of other types.

Eike clearly did not know that. He only had his sights set on Grimer's Pokémon Eggs. If this operation went well, wouldn't he have his Farm?

Thinking of that, Lu Li looked at Eike with complete sincerity and asked, "Why don't we talk about how to cooperate?"

After speaking, Lu Li looked around as if he had a guilty conscience. Only after confirming that their commotion had not drawn anyone else's attention did he remind Eike, "Let's talk over there."

Seeing that Lu Li had finally shown signs of relenting, Eike quickly nodded.

After the two entered a small alley, Lu Li directly asked, "Tell me about your discovery and how we're supposed to cooperate."

Eike said, "Our Wildfire Gang has two Rookie Trainers. At certain times, the Grimer gathering place only has a few Muk in the Growth stage left behind to guard it. That's the best time for us to steal the eggs."

Lu Li asked, "First, tell me what Pokémon your two Wildfire Gang Trainers have."

"A Poochyena and a Meowth." Eike cooperatively revealed his hand.

Lu Li's face instantly darkened upon hearing that.

The Grimer gathering place was definitely in the Sewer. Poochyena had an extremely keen sense of smell, so going into a place like that would be pure suffering. Forget about any fighting ability afterward.

Meowth was not much better. Though Meowth's sense of smell was not as sharp as Poochyena's, it was still far superior to a normal human's.

If those two Pokémon could even bring out half their strength in the Sewer, Lu Li would give the Wildfire Gang's Trainers a round of applause.