When Aron got home, it said it was hungry, leaving Jiang Jing speechless. It had only exercised for a little while, yet it was hungry again already.
He had no choice but to prepare it another late-night snack. He was hungry too, so he got out his late-night snack companion—instant noodles.
"Ah, that's good!"
After half past ten, Jiang Jing lay in bed after taking a shower. He watched a few videos by Chen Feng, the Steel Gym Leader he followed on Douyin, then decided it was time to sleep. He absolutely would not tell anyone that afterward, he'd watched a few more videos of pretty girls before putting his phone down.
Aron was already asleep in its little bed.
Looking at Aron, he remembered the bead-shaped pattern on his chest.
So he closed his eyes and turned off the light. The room fell completely dark and silent.
Jiang Jing relaxed completely and calmed himself. After a while, his mind sank, and in a daze, his consciousness entered the void.
So it really was this place. Looking around, Jiang Jing saw only a huge Colorful Bead, with nothing around it but Gray Currents.
Compared to the last time he'd entered, the Gray Currents were the same. The only difference was that he could feel countless Gray Currents streaming into the Colorful Bead.
Curious, Jiang Jing moved closer and closer to the Colorful Bead. Soon, his palm touched its surface. Before he could even take a moment to feel it—
His body shuddered, and he vanished from where he stood, appearing in a new area.
It was a colorful space. There was nothing in it but streams of Colorful Currents that filled the entire place.
Looking around, he could only see a two-meter radius around himself. Everything beyond that was shrouded in Colorful Currents, making it impossible to see.
Jiang Jing tried to control the streams of Colorful Currents. He imagined his consciousness as a net, catching the currents and guiding them outward.
With a snap, his consciousness shuddered. He had failed. Jiang Jing tried again.
The second attempt failed.
The third attempt failed.
The fourth attempt failed too.
This time, Jiang Jing stopped trying and began to think about why he'd failed.
My consciousness is still too scattered. And I shouldn't be trying to catch these currents. I should guide them instead?
With that in mind, Jiang Jing tried again. He concentrated his consciousness at one end of a current, hooking onto it like a fishing hook, then began to move it outward.
Jiang Jing was delighted. It really worked.
He quickly calmed down and continued guiding the current out of the Colorful Bead and into the gray space, then further outward. Three seconds passed just like that.
The space shifted in an instant. A stream of Colorful Currents appeared inside Jiang Jing's body, and under these circumstances, he could feel his internal organs.
He had no idea where the Colorful Currents had come from. The moment they appeared, they were already in his chest.
He continued guiding the currents through his chest and out into the air. The pitch-black room seemed to brighten just a little.
Only Jiang Jing could see it: a colorful current drifting through the air.
What could this Colorful Current do?
So far, all the changes he'd undergone seemed to be connected to it.
First, he'd grown more handsome over the past three months, and he was still getting taller. His physical fitness had improved by who knew how many times.
During PE class, he was always the strongest one.
Next, Aron's talent had improved from two stars to three. He didn't know if it could keep improving.
Finally, the Data Eye had appeared, which was also thanks to the Colorful Currents.
So far, he knew of these three effects. Whether there were any others, and how to make use of the Colorful Currents, would take time to explore.
After playing with the Colorful Currents for a while, he guided them back into his body. He'd already decided to spend the summer vacation studying them properly.
Five days later, July 4.
At seven in the morning, Jiang Jing got up right on time. Jiang's Mother was still sleeping in, but he was already up and washing.
At seven twenty, Jiang Jing was ready. He took Aron and headed out for a run.
Ten days had passed since Aron hatched. After all the food and care it had received, it had gradually grown, and was now a size larger than when it had just hatched.
Pokémon: Aron Type: Steel, Rock Talent: ★★★ Level: LV7 Ability: Heavy Metal
After five days of feeding and moderate activity, Aron had successfully reached level 7. Starting today, it could begin training in earnest.
Although Aron had joined him for morning runs over the past few days, Jiang Jing hadn't let it run for long.
Today was different. Jiang Jing took out his phone and opened the running function in his fitness app.
"3"
"2"
"1"
"Let's go, Aron! Keep up with me. Today's goal is ten kilometers."
Aron planted its feet heavily on the ground, white currents Spitting Up from its nostrils. Then it burst forward and started running.
Jiang Jing was headed for the Battle Park. One lap along this road was five kilometers, so two laps made ten.
In the morning, the sun wasn't yet as scorching as it would be at noon, but countless workers had already started their daily grind.
Jiang Jing, meanwhile, jogged leisurely along the roadside. The air was always fresh in the morning.
Aron pounded along behind him. After running two kilometers, it was already starting to feel tired.
After three kilometers, Aron slowed down considerably. Jiang Jing noticed and reduced his pace too, keeping three meters ahead of it.
After four kilometers, Aron was moving as slowly as an old person out for a stroll. Every step was incredibly difficult, but it still hadn't given up.
They'd just finished one lap. Jiang Jing returned Aron to its Poké Ball and said, "All right, Aron. Take a break for now."
Then he picked up the pace and kept running. His morning run wasn't over yet.
Twenty minutes later, Jiang Jing returned, drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through.
While resting, Jiang Jing let Aron out. It had recovered a good amount of energy by then.
But it was hungry, and its stomach kept rumbling.
Jiang Jing said, "All right, let's head back for breakfast."
First, he bought two servings of buns, steamed buns, and soy milk from the well-established breakfast shop at the entrance to their complex.
Back home, he prepared Aron's breakfast. Unfortunately, Aron couldn't taste human food, so it couldn't enjoy the flavor.
It quickly finished its usual breakfast, but it still wasn't enough. Jiang Jing had to take out all the remaining food and ore.
Watching Aron quickly devour the rest of its Pokémon Food and the ore, Jiang Jing thought that it was eating quite a lot today.
Would Aron's appetite grow even bigger now that it was starting to train?
After returning home, Jiang Jing took a shower and went to the living room. By then, Jiang's Mother, Pikachu, and Jigglypuff had gotten up too, so they all ate breakfast together.
They turned on the TV while eating breakfast. The National Championship was still underway.
Even after all these days, the first round still wasn't finished. Plenty of people hadn't even competed yet.
Even while they watched the matches, Aron's training couldn't stop.
Thanks to reader Universe's Number One Incineroar for the 500 Qidian Coins tip.
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