Battle Was for the Viridian Force

The eyes of the four all turned to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei immediately felt immense pressure. He had originally wanted to put on an act, but now he gave up on that idea and said, "You know Wu Hongzhen's Persian had the Pickup Ability back when it was still a Meowth, right?"

All four shook their heads.

Guan Yu said, "When I first met Wu Hongzhen, he was already raising a Persian. It must have been raised by his family. Otherwise, how could it have evolved so quickly?"

Liu Bei said mysteriously, "You only guessed half of it right."

Shu Tong seemed thoughtful. "Could it be because of the Pickup Ability? As far as I know, Pokémon with the Pickup Ability are highly sensitive to energy fluctuations, allowing them to accurately locate resources, Berries, and other items brought out from Mystery Realms."

Liu Bei said, "No wonder you're the boss recognized by rich guy Qian. Your professional knowledge really is solid. Wu Hongzhen's Meowth, like rich guy Qian's Makuhita, was obtained from the National Research Institute with points. Not only did it have the powerful inherited move Last Resort, its Pickup Ability was also exceptionally outstanding and helped Wu Hongzhen find quite a few treasures."

Guan Yu sighed. "No wonder that Persian is so strong. It came from the National Research Institute too. My Scyther has high Base Stats, but its talent and aptitude are nowhere near those of Pokémon bred by the National Research Institute."

"Could Meowth's evolution also have something to do with the Pickup Ability?" Shu Tong asked. He had no energy to concern himself with the National Research Institute yet; it was simply too far removed from his current status.

Liu Bei nodded firmly. "Exactly. Who knows what kind of insane luck it had, but it actually picked up a Top-Grade Cat's Eye Ruby. With the tremendous energy inside that ruby, Meowth was able to evolve early into Persian. Even more incredible, they say this Persian is still highly sensitive to energy fluctuations and can occasionally find some pretty good treasures."

"Doesn't that mean it has the ability to keep picking up treasures forever?" Zhang Fei asked.

"In theory, yes," Liu Bei said.

"Rich guy Qian, how confident are you that you can beat that Persian?" Zhang Fei asked teasingly.

"Just wait until my Makuhita evolves into Hariyama. I'll slap it to death." Qian Kaile spoke the most cowardly words with the fiercest expression.

"You don't need to worry about Wu Hongzhen," Shu Tong said. "Leave him to me. This is a grudge between him and me."

Liu, Guan, and Zhang exchanged looks. They wanted to say something, but did not know how to put it.

Qian Kaile said, "Among the five of us, Boss, you're the only one who might be able to defeat Wu Hongzhen. The four of us can more than handle teaching his little lackeys a lesson."

Liu Bei asked skeptically, "Is Shu Tong really that strong?"

Qian Kaile said bluntly, "Do you think I'd willingly call just anyone Boss?"

"Then here's to everything going smoothly." Zhang Fei raised a glass of beer.

Shu Tong smiled. "I don't drink, but I'll find someone who can drink with you."

Weedle appeared before the four of them.

"Come on, drink."

"Brother Weedle, what a drinker."

"Chii..."

"Amazing, amazing, Brother Weedle. We'll be counting on you to deal with Persian tomorrow. Come on, bottoms up."

Shu Tong felt that something about this scene was off. He still had something important to ask, and they might all be drunk before long.

"Rich guy Qian, I need to ask you about something," Shu Tong said.

"Go ahead, Boss. If you need anything, just say the word."

Shu Tong felt awkward. Qian Kaile might really have drunk too much.

"You've been training at the club all this time. Do you know anyone there who trains with a Muk?" Shu Tong asked.

Qian Kaile patted his chest. "Of course I do. Isn't it that poker-faced bastard Zhu Zhixiang? He acts like the whole world owes him money. If his dad weren't the director of the Wastewater Treatment Plant, I'd have dealt with him long ago."

"Zhu Zhixiang? Why haven't I seen him these past few days?" Shu Tong asked thoughtfully.

"He attends high school in Jinling. He must have gone there for the end-of-month assessment. He even took Lou Kuang, a Level-One Professional Trainer from the club, with him," Qian Kaile said.

"He has that much pull?" Shu Tong asked in surprise.

"Can't be helped. The Wastewater Treatment Plant is under the Trainers Association, and his dad is a student of Dr. Li, the director of the Environmental Protection Bureau. People give him face wherever he goes," Qian Kaile explained.

Shu Tong nodded and ate by himself.

The doubts in his heart grew heavier. The Wastewater Treatment Plant was full of Grimer and Muk, and Zhu Zhixiang's Pokémon was also Grimer. Could there be some connection between them?

He could only wait until Zhu Zhixiang returned from Jinling.

Those people drank until dawn, and Shu Tong had to call cars to send each of them home.

Weedle, on the other hand, became even more energetic.

After getting home, Shu Tong said to Weedle, "Get ready to make a name for yourself tomorrow. Rest early tonight. The Viridian Force is already prepared for you."

"Chii... chii."

Living was for battle, and battle was for the Viridian Force.

Hearing Weedle's reply, Shu Tong smiled in satisfaction.

The next day, Shu Tong went back to school as usual.

Just as he arrived at the entrance, Wu Hongzhen appeared before him with several people and blocked his way.

"Shu Tong, you're really full of yourself," Wu Hongzhen said acidly.

"Move," Shu Tong said coldly, staring straight ahead.

Wu Hongzhen chuckled. "It's not me who wants to stop you. The homeroom teacher wants to talk to you, and he asked me to bring you over. Let's go."

Shu Tong ignored him and headed toward the homeroom teacher's office himself.

Wu Hongzhen snorted. "Good luck."

Why was the homeroom teacher looking for me at a time like this? I don't seem to have left a good impression on him. Did Wu Hongzhen badmouth me in front of him? He really was capable of something that underhanded.

Shu Tong pondered as he walked.

When he reached the homeroom teacher's office, Shu Tong politely knocked on the door.

Homeroom teacher Sun Youzhong looked up, revealing his bloated face. A pair of large glasses hung from his red nose.

He was a Level-One Professional Trainer, yet he had somehow become this greasy.

No wonder they said that once Professional Trainers found stable jobs, their strength would no longer improve.

Although he had clearly seen Shu Tong, the homeroom teacher lowered his head again.

Shu Tong turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" Sun Youzhong immediately stood up when he saw Shu Tong leaving.

"Back to the classroom. Wu Hongzhen said you wanted to see me, so I came to take a look. It seems he must have lied to me," Shu Tong said.

The key was that the homeroom teacher could not find a single flaw in his words.

"I was working just now. Couldn't you wait a moment?" the homeroom teacher said sternly.

"It'll be class time in a moment," Shu Tong said.

"You don't need to go. The first end-of-month assessment was originally supposed to be a math test, but your math teacher was unwell and couldn't prepare the exam paper. So when I get there later, we'll conduct a battle assessment directly," the homeroom teacher said.

"Oh..." Shu Tong nodded, feeling that this scene was strangely familiar.

Still, looking at the homeroom teacher before him, Shu Tong felt that trouble was coming.

The homeroom teacher had been holding in a bellyful of words, only for Shu Tong to completely disrupt his rhythm.

Thanks to Mu You 001 for the tip.