The vast desert remained cold at night. Only when the first ray of sunlight crossed the horizon and shone upon the land did the temperature gradually rise.
The night passed uneventfully, and a good sleep restored their depleted strength and spirits.
At Aron's cheerful cries, Yong opened his eyes to find four pairs of smiling eyes looking back at him.
"Good morning, everyone!"
He greeted them with a smile and slowly sat up as his companions answered him.
Feeling refreshed, Yong stretched for a moment, then opened his backpack and took out food for Steelix and the others. They had run out of the ore sent from home, so they would have to search underground for quality rocks themselves.
To get another shipment from home, he needed to leave the desert and reach the next town as soon as possible.
Fortunately, he still had plenty of Pokéblocks to replenish his companions' energy.
After grabbing a quick bite, Yong climbed out of the hole with Steelix's help. Outside, windblown sand pelted his body, but compared to what he had already been through, it hardly seemed worth worrying about.
Looking toward the rising sun, he roughly worked out his bearings and found north. He recalled Steelix and the others, secured his backpack, and continued his journey into the wind and sand.
As the temperature gradually climbed, he trudged alone through the desert, engulfed by loneliness.
Yet luck would not favor someone forever, nor would it abandon them for long.
After all the upheavals in the Mirage Tower, good fortune finally smiled on Yong.
More and more rocks jutted out of the ground, and a cliff face gradually appeared to his left. The wind and sand against his face grew gentler. Without him noticing, loose stones had begun to cover the ground beneath