Shennong Orchard

There was no getting around it. Without money, he really couldn't get anywhere.

Following the same steps as last time, Zhang Cheng opened his personal mission center and chose to browse the Bronze Rank missions again.

He still couldn't accept Silver Rank missions, so he would earn Pokémon Coins by doing some basic ones first.

After browsing the missions posted in the mission center, Zhang Cheng felt a little disappointed. Most of them involved maintaining public order.

Still, that made sense. He had already been lucky to find even one opportunity like the Pokémon Training Ground, where he could strengthen his Pokémon and earn money at the same time.

After looking through the options, Zhang Cheng chose a ten-day orchard guard mission.

The job involved guarding Shennong Orchard for ten days, with a reward of forty thousand Pokémon Coins.

After accepting the mission, Zhang Cheng took Poliwag home and packed some clothes and daily necessities.

Shennong Orchard was quite far from his home, making it inconvenient to return every day. Zhang Cheng planned to stay at the orchard for all ten days before coming back.

Once he had finished packing, Zhang Cheng told his mother about the mission he had accepted and explained that he would be away for ten days.

His mother didn't object when she heard this. She simply reminded him to stay safe while he was out on his own.

Zhang Cheng understood her concerns and assured her once again that he would be careful, telling her not to worry.

The night passed uneventfully.

Early the next morning, urged awake by his alarm, Zhang Cheng picked up his backpack of spare clothes, took Poliwag with him, and called a taxi to Shennong Orchard.

In this world filled with Pokémon, not many people actually used taxis.

Most high-level Trainers had a Pokémon they could ride.

At that thought, Zhang Cheng became even more eager to get a Pidgey. Once Pidgey evolved into Pidgeot, he wouldn't need taxis anymore, saving him plenty of time and money.

That wouldn't happen anytime soon, though. For now, he had no choice but to stick with taxis.

It was almost noon when Zhang Cheng arrived at Shennong Orchard.

Shennong Orchard was currently the largest orchard in Jiangcheng City, and most of its fruit trees were grown for Pokémon.

Zhang Cheng briefly explained his situation at the entrance registration desk. Once a staff member verified his identity, they led him into the orchard.

First, they took Zhang Cheng to the staff dormitory. After he put away his belongings, they issued him a work uniform.

The orchard assigned Zhang Cheng to guard a patch of Pecha Berry trees whose fruit was nearly ripe.

Pecha Berries were a relatively common and widely used type of Berry.

Pecha Berries could cure poisoning. Feeding one to a poisoned Pokémon could quickly remove the Poisoned status.

Whether in battle or on adventures in the wild, Pecha Berries were extremely important.

If a Pokémon was Poisoned in the wild and went untreated for too long, its life could be in danger. That made Antidotes and Pecha Berries essential supplies for outdoor adventures.

The League's official price for a ripe Pecha Berry was three hundred Pokémon Coins, putting it in the middle price range.

The Pecha Berry trees Zhang Cheng was now guarding would have ripe fruit in another ten days.

The main threats were Pidgey and Spearow coming in from outside the orchard, as they might sneak in to eat the Berries.

Zhang Cheng's job was to drive away any Pidgey and Spearow trying to steal the Berries. Those living near the orchard weren't particularly high-level.

There were also other guards nearby, so he could call for support if he ran into anything he couldn't handle.

After explaining the relevant precautions, the staff member left.

The days that followed settled into the same routine. Every day, Zhang Cheng guarded the orchard while putting Poliwag through basic training.

Since Pokémon frequently came to cause trouble, Poliwag couldn't do any intensive training.

Otherwise, it would be a real problem if a Spearow appeared when Poliwag was already exhausted.

Over the next few days, several Pidgey passed through and tried to steal Pecha Berries, but Poliwag drove them all away with Water Gun.

After discovering Pidgey in the area, Zhang Cheng began considering catching one. His original plan had been to head to Magnolia Forest to catch a Pidgey once Poliwag reached level ten.

But now that Pidgey appeared in the orchard from time to time, he could catch one ahead of schedule and start raising it sooner.

The best time to catch a Pokémon was during its Infant Stage. Pokémon that had lived in the wild for too long became difficult to tame.

Moreover, without medical supplies in the wild, injured Pokémon took a long time to recover. This also meant that high-level wild Pokémon generally didn't live very long.

They needed far more time to accumulate battle experience. There was a huge difference between how long a Trainer's Pokémon took to reach level thirty and how long a wild Pokémon needed.

The Pidgey currently appearing inside the orchard were all young ones that had only recently hatched, at around level three.

Their temperaments were relatively gentle, making them easier to catch and more worthwhile to raise.

It was a good plan, but Zhang Cheng hadn't been very lucky over the past two days. Most of the Pidgey he encountered had E-grade Potential, and even the best one only had D-grade Potential.

Of course, it wasn't entirely bad luck. Zhang Cheng's high standards also played a part. For an ordinary Trainer, a Pokémon with D-grade Potential was already pretty good.

But Zhang Cheng wouldn't settle for that. For a team to become truly strong, every Pokémon needed relatively high Potential.

One advantage Zhang Cheng had was that he could use his cheat ability to check these Pokémon's information. That meant he didn't have to catch them first and then take them to a Pokémon Center to have their Potential tested.

Pokédexes existed in this Pokémon world too, but they could only detect a Pokémon's level and provide a brief description. That was why Zhang Cheng had never used one.

After all, for someone with a cheat ability, a Pokédex was practically useless.

By the sixth day of guarding the orchard, Poliwag had reached level five after numerous battles against Pidgey and Spearow.

Through those battles, Poliwag had also become increasingly proficient with Bubble Beam. It could now replace Water Gun as its main means of attack.

Just as Zhang Cheng was celebrating Poliwag's level-up, a Pidgey suddenly arrived from outside the orchard.

That irritated him a little. Of all times, it had to come and cause trouble now. He would have to teach this Pidgey a proper lesson.

He would show it that picking a fight with the wrong person wouldn't end well.

Even as those thoughts crossed his mind, Zhang Cheng wasted no time giving orders. He immediately commanded Poliwag to fire Bubble Beam at the Pidgey that was about to steal a Pecha Berry.

At the same time, Zhang Cheng scanned Pidgey's information. Halfway through reading it, he froze. This Pidgey actually had B-grade Potential.

Oh man, now we're talking!

Sorry, I take back what I said. From now on, you're one of us.

Zhang Cheng was brimming with excitement. Today really was a double blessing: Poliwag had leveled up, and now he had found the high-Potential Pidgey he had wanted all along.