Initial Entry into the Abandoned Mystery Realm (Please Keep Reading)

He rested for the entire afternoon.

Under his father's lead, Shu Tong went to the station to take over the shift.

Shu Tong had often come here when he was little, so he still knew a few people. He entered the station without any trouble.

The Abandoned Mystery Realm was the core of the Wastewater Treatment Plant.

After Shu's father briefly handed over duties with the daytime shift's squad leader, he went off on his inspection rounds. More than two hours later, most of the station staff had gotten off work, leaving only a few people on duty.

Shu Tong waited in the office the whole time, browsing training plans for Weedle published by major websites, experts, and authorities. Time passed quickly enough.

"We can go now." Shu's father knocked on the office door.

Shu Tong immediately stood up.

There were a few staff members along the way, but his father had clearly already informed them. They merely smiled and nodded at Shu Tong.

After changing into a full protective suit, gas mask, and other equipment in the locker room, Shu's father led Shu Tong toward the Mystery Realm.

He turned the Key Stone, and a spatial rift suddenly opened in a spot that had originally looked no different from the surrounding space.

The moment the rift opened, waves of poisonous gas billowed out. Luckily, there were devices here to process the toxic gas as well, or it would have polluted the air.

Shu's father led Shu Tong into the Mystery Realm.

"So this is a Mystery Realm? It feels more like an independent dimensional space. I'd never seen one before, and seeing it today was truly breathtaking." Shu Tong could not help sighing.

After entering the Mystery Realm, Shu Tong felt nauseated and sick. Purple Poison Mist filled his vision. Ahead lay a vast lake whose water was so purple it had turned nearly black. There were hundreds of Grimer and Muk in the water.

Shu Tong hurried forward to check the Pokémon Scripts of those Grimer and Muk.

Without exception,

every one of them died because the Mystery Realm would collapse in half a month.

Shu's father had no idea what Shu Tong was looking at, but he did not dare leave his side for even a moment. The Grimer in this wastewater did not know Shu Tong, and an accident was the last thing this old father could bear.

Shu's father had his own Grimer follow closely behind him as well.

Shu Tong continued walking through the Mystery Realm. After walking for a while, he discovered a small black mountain.

"Dad, isn't that Black Sludge? Why is it piled up here?" Shu Tong asked.

"That's what remains from the corpses of dead Grimer and Muk. It's still somewhat different from the Poison-type resource called Black Sludge that you mentioned,

but to supplement the Grimer's nutrition, the station chief regularly throws some Poison-type resources into the lake. That's why these Grimer and Muk are quite good at absorbing toxins,

and after they die, what they leave behind are crystallizations of Poison-type energy. The quality may not match Black Sludge, but it's still pretty good," Shu's father explained.

"They even throw Poison-type resources into the lake? Isn't that too extravagant?" Shu Tong asked in surprise.

Could the Poison-type resources Zhu Zhixiang had bought at the department store that morning have been meant for this Mystery Realm?

Shu's father said, "How should I put it? Maybe Grimer and Muk need those Poison-type resources to maintain their work efficiency."

Although Shu Tong still could not understand it, the wastewater sent into this Mystery Realm was already toxic enough. Throwing more poison into it would only increase the burden on the Grimer and Muk, wouldn't it?

But his voice carried little weight, so he could only make guesses.

"Then why not deal with all this Black Sludge? Even if it were sold, plenty of people would want it," Shu Tong continued.

"That's not something I get to decide. I heard Dr. Li doesn't allow it to be taken out, in order to prevent secondary pollution outside the Mystery Realm. What you're seeing is just the tip of the iceberg. Compared to the many Abandoned Mystery Realms across the country, ours may be small in scale, but it is definitely among the oldest. The bottom of this lake is full of Black Sludge," Shu's father said.

This left Shu Tong puzzled. When the Mystery Realm collapsed, where would all these toxic substances go? And after these hundreds of Grimer and Muk died, would they all turn into Black Sludge?

Would they vanish into another dimension, or erupt into this world?

He now had a basic understanding of this Abandoned Mystery Realm, but he knew nothing at all about the collapse that would happen in half a month.

After wandering around for a few more rounds, he truly found nothing else.

Only then did Shu Tong leave the Mystery Realm with his father.

After coming out, they underwent disinfection three times. No wonder he had felt nauseous and dry-heaved.

Shu Tong spent the night sprawled out in his father's office. By morning, when work officially began, Shu's father was preparing to switch shifts.

"Old Shu, don't leave yet. Chief Zhu came with his son. He said they're replenishing the Grimer and Muk's nutrition again, and everyone squad leader rank and above is to gather in the lobby," said the daytime shift's squad leader.

"Alright, I'll head over first."

With that, Shu's father headed for the lobby, and Shu Tong followed close behind. He simply wanted to see whether there would be more Pokémon Scripts for him to check.

More than ten people gathered in the lobby, while Shu Tong only watched from a distance outside the door.

"Why didn't they release any Pokémon?" Shu Tong sighed to himself.

After Chief Zhu finished speaking, he had his son, Zhu Zhixiang, take out several Poison-type resources and hand them over to these capable subordinates to carry out the task.

As he walked outside, Chief Zhu spotted Shu Tong standing there.

"Hello, Chief Zhu." Since they had already run into each other, Shu Tong could not avoid him and took the initiative to greet him.

Chief Zhu had always presented himself as approachable and down-to-earth. He immediately asked, "You are? Why do you look so familiar?"

At that moment, Shu's father hurried over and said, "Chief, this is my son. He used to come here all the time when he was little and caused you quite a bit of trouble."

Chief Zhu suddenly understood. "The boy's grown so much. I remember he's the same age as Zhixiang, right? They used to play together often when they were little, didn't they? Zhixiang, this is your childhood friend."

Zhu Zhixiang glanced at Shu Tong and said, "Sorry, I don't really remember."

"Ah, this kid's probably under too much pressure from the college entrance exams. All that special training must have made him stupid." Chief Zhu hurriedly tried to smooth things over.

Shu's father echoed, "Kids these days are all under a lot of pressure. They're busy with their studies. It's normal, perfectly normal."

A round of polite pleasantries brought this awkward meeting to an end.

Shu Tong did not really care. It was natural for someone with broader horizons to look down on him. It was also natural for someone stronger not to think much of him. Society was simply like that.

Rather than complain about others, he might as well work hard to improve himself.

On the way back, Shu's father kept comforting him, and Shu Tong did his best to reassure him in return.

As part of a single-parent family, with the elderly above and children below, how could the cold looks and grievances his father had endured compare to this little slight of his?

"Dad," Shu Tong suddenly called out.

"Hm? What is it?" Shu's father turned to look at his son.

"Uh, nothing. I just wanted to ask what you wanted to eat for lunch," Shu Tong said.

"Come on, Dad will treat you to something good."