As far as Ye Qing knew, neither of Wang Yao's parents was an ordinary person. One was the director of the Alliance Public Security Bureau, and the other headed the Pokémon Center. Their family had connections everywhere and commanded considerable respect.
"Buddy, this is the Pokémon Egg you picked?"
Wang Yao studied the incubator in Ye Qing's arms as he asked.
Ye Qing grinned. "Yep, just picked it out."
"The color and pattern on this egg are hard to identify. It looks like a Fire-type Pokémon Egg, but it also looks like a Rock- or Ground-type one... huh? Why is there a crack here?" Wang Yao frowned slightly and pointed at one corner of the Pokémon Egg.
"A crack? Let me see."
Aunt Wang immediately perked up at that. Taking out a magnifying glass, she walked over to Ye Qing and examined it closely.
"Yes, Mom, hurry and check whether it's serious."
Wang Yao quickly stepped aside so his mother could get a good look.
"Yes, Xiao Shuang, please take a look."
Ye Qing's mother hastily chimed in. She had been worrying about this all along, and now they finally had someone to help.
"Blissey, help me take a look."
Aunt Wang gestured for her friend not to worry and opened the Poké Ball in her hand. A pink, round Pokémon materialized from the light.
Pokémon: Blissey (level 39) Potential: D- Status: Healthy Sex: Female Type: Normal Ability: Natural Cure Held item: None Egg moves: Heal Bell, Aromatherapy Basic moves: Defense Curl, Pound, Double Slap, Take Down, Heal Pulse Tutored moves: Water Pulse, Icy Wind TMs: Hidden Power, Ice Beam, Double Team, Rock Tomb, Echoed Voice Combination moves: Undeveloped Notes: Blissey's eggs possess miraculous properties. Not only can they heal Pokémon, but they are also said to be filled with happiness. Supposedly, a single bite can make even the most vicious Pokémon gentle.
Blissey's appearance immediately drew the attention of passersby on the street. Some even took out cameras to photograph her.
"Bliss~"
Blissey gave a soft cry and hurried over to the Pokémon Egg.
This Blissey was actually level 39. Ye Qing glanced awkwardly at Aunt Wang. In this world, a Pokédex could roughly gauge a Pokémon's strength, expressing it as a numerical value based on energy readings.
Ye Qing estimated that a master-class trainer's main battling Pokémon would have to be at least level 90. By that reckoning, Aunt Wang was at least a veteran-class trainer!
Still, that was only natural. The head of a Pokémon Center certainly counted among society's elite.
"Sorry for the trouble, Blissey."
Ye Qing bent down slightly and placed the incubator in Blissey's hands.
Blissey nodded. The crack on the egg pained her to see, and she gently stroked it, as though she could feel Chimchar's refusal to surrender to fate.
After a moment's thought, Blissey steeled herself and broke a piece off the egg in her belly pouch. Then, under everyone's astonished gazes, she placed it inside the incubator.
With another soft cry, Blissey closed her eyes. Light shone from her hands and enveloped the incubator as a fresh fragrance drifted through the air. A moment later, she opened her eyes and smiled at Ye Qing, shaking her head.
"I see. You can stop worrying now, Ye Qing," Aunt Wang assured him, stroking Blissey's head.
"Thank you, everyone."
Ye Qing gave Blissey and Uncle Wang's family a small bow, then happily took the incubator back from Blissey. He no longer knew how to thank them. He had never expected Blissey to use her own precious egg to heal Chimchar!
Aunt Wang smiled softly. "You're welcome. Blissey did this of her own free will. If she hadn't wanted to, forcing her wouldn't have helped. Besides, your mother and I are close friends. This little favor is nothing."
After Ye Qing's family thanked them repeatedly, Wang Yao's family invited them to share a meal another day and said goodbye.
Ye Mom sighed inwardly as she watched Wang Yao's family walk farther and farther away.
With Blissey's treatment complete, Ye Qing no longer needed to visit the Pokémon Center to check the Pokémon Egg's health. After all, an ordinary examination could hardly be as accurate as the assessment of a master healer like Blissey.
Once they got home, Ye Qing carried the incubator back to his room.
Seated at his desk, he could look up and see the night outside his window. Pidgey rested on the branches, while the elderly man next door called his Jumpluff home for dinner.
Ye Qing smiled and gently opened the incubator's instruction manual. Following the directions, he adjusted all its settings. The manual said that hatching a Pokémon first required soaking the egg in incubation fluid for a week. Once the fluid was drained, the Pokémon would hatch within one to three days.
After studying it for a while, Ye Qing turned on his computer and began looking up recommended foods and care methods for Chimchar.
Chimchar were mischievous, intensely curious, and prone to jealousy. If you had a girlfriend, you needed to be careful.
If your Chimchar disliked your girlfriend, it might pull all sorts of pranks to sabotage your relationship.
Most importantly, Chimchar disliked being alone. To build your bond, you should avoid leaving it alone inside its Poké Ball while it was young and keep it by your side as often as possible.
As for food, in addition to regular meals of Fire-type Pokémon Food and Pokéblocks, nuts and grains could be offered as snacks.
Ye Qing also learned that the levels at which Pokémon evolved and learned moves did not match the Pokédex entries or games from his previous life. Those depended entirely on their trainers' nurturing, their own aptitude, and their physical condition.
Pokémon heights also differed from the Pokédex entries. Ye Qing breathed a sigh of relief when he read that. It would have been terrible if they really matched the descriptions from his previous life. Could anyone imagine the world-destroying Underground Groudon standing only 3.5 meters tall?
Just as Ye Qing became engrossed in his reading, a knock suddenly sounded behind him.
"Son, are you asleep?"
Without turning around, Ye Qing replied, "Not yet. What is it, Mom?"
Ye Mom pushed the door open, sat beside Ye Qing, and set down a bank card. "There's thirty thousand yuan left in here," she said earnestly. "I'm giving it to you today. You'll be moving into the dorms for closed-campus schooling in half a month, won't you? If there's anything else your Pokémon needs later, just go ahead and buy it."
Looking at the bank card on his desk, Ye Qing nodded firmly. "Don't worry, Mom. I won't let you down."
"All right. Get to bed early."
Ye Mom ruffled Ye Qing's hair, then turned and left.
Time passed quickly, and a week went by in the blink of an eye. Apart from attending classes, Ye Qing spent every day holding the incubator and building his bond with Chimchar.
Some of his classmates had bought young Pokémon and were already teaching them to use moves.
Watching Wang Yao run past him with the Treecko his girlfriend had given him, Ye Qing could not help feeling impressed. He had gone through so much trouble just to snag a bargain Starter Pokémon, while someone else had willingly handed Wang Yao a Treecko without him even needing his parents' help.
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