Infinity Edge, Giant Slayer, Bloodthirster!
As a seasoned player, Xia Chi thought of the recipes combining those three basic items with a B. F. Sword in just one second.
At first glance, the Infinity Edge seemed like the optimal choice.
That completed item would most likely increase the chance and damage of critical hits, delivering the most brutal damage output.
But did Sprigatito lack damage?
Yes, but not desperately.
Every Pokémon could use more damage. The more, the better.
But Xia Chi's plans for Sprigatito went beyond making her a brutal assassin who relied on a single burst.
With her [Protean] Ability, Sprigatito could easily switch types to take on defensive duties.
Not to mention her two trump cards, the Grass-type synergy and the Trinity Force, which provided considerable tankiness.
She was practically the perfect template for an all-round fighter!
That made the final missing piece of Sprigatito's puzzle obvious.
Sustain!
Having figured that out, Xia Chi said without hesitation, "I choose the Negatron Cloak to craft the Bloodthirster!"
[Negatron Cloak successfully forged!] [Bloodthirster successfully crafted: +10% Physical Attack, +10% Special Defense. Unique passive: physical moves restore HP equal to 20% of the damage dealt!]
Tsk, the numbers got nerfed, and the life shield effect is gone too. Did its visa get rejected?
After a little grumbling, Xia Chi equipped Sprigatito with the Bloodthirster.
As long as the lifesteal was there, everything else was secondary.
Once he finished with the equipment, Xia Chi mentally navigated the system to the [Pokémon] screen, where Sprigatito's chibi portrait sat all alone.
[Sprigatito] [Type: Grass] [Ability: Protean] [Gender: Female] [Level: 13] [Stats: HP 38 (+22), Physical Attack 24 (+18), Defense 20 (+12), Special Attack 22 (+13), Special Defense 20 (+15), Speed 28 (+17)] [Moves: Petal Blizzard, Bite, Shadow Claw, Magical Leaf, Hone Claws, Acrobatics, Protect, Trailblaze...] [Equipment: Trinity Force (+33% Physical Attack, Special Attack, Physical Defense, Special Defense, Speed, HP, move execution speed!)] [Equipment: Bloodthirster (+10% Physical Attack, +10% Special Defense. Physical moves restore HP equal to 20% of the damage dealt!)] [Synergy: Dark type (2). Defeating opponents grants Fear. Every 100 stacks of Fear grant 5% bonus damage and one Fear Chest. Open Fear Chests to receive rewards! (Fear Chests evolve as the stack count increases. Current Fear: 0. Bonus damage: 0)] [Synergy: Grass-type (inactive)] [Synergy: Speedy Attacker (inactive)] [Special: Chosen Pokémon (all stats +20%, Dark-type synergy +1, Exclusive Move Enhancement [awaiting activation])]
Oh, it even threw in an "Eye of Information," the must-have perk for protagonists in old-school Pokémon novels.
However, this feature seemed to be a stripped-down version. Not only could he view only his own Pokémon's information, but it also showed nothing beyond the six basic stats and moves.
Despite his grumbling, Xia Chi quite liked this feature.
Numbers certainly weren't everything, but they were still a clear indication of strength.
Moreover, these figures revealed something important: the stat bonuses from equipment and synergies seemed to use an even more outrageous, multiplicative formula-
The all-stat bonuses from the Trinity Force and Chosen Pokémon weren't simply 20% plus 33%. They were 120% multiplied by 133%, giving a multiplier of 1.6.
That meant any equipment or synergy bonuses he acquired later would multiply that existing 1.6 even further!
"As long as I stack enough synergies, I'll take down even Arceus!"
Xia Chi was about to make that bold declaration, but remembering that this entire world had been created by that mighty being, he swallowed the disrespectful words.
In any case, Sprigatito was already far stronger than other Pokémon of the same level.
At the very least, he now had some confidence about entering the relatively low-level Shanghai Pokémon Cup.
But that didn't mean Xia Chi could sit back and do nothing.
However powerful the system's equipment and synergies were, they were ultimately just icing on the cake.
Only when the Pokémon herself was strong enough could he make the most of his trusty system.
With Teacher Zhou's animated lecture playing in the background, Xia Chi found videos by Erika, Kanto's Grass-type Gym Leader, and began taking lessons online.
Since he had never previously considered becoming a proper Trainer, he knew very little about raising Sprigatito-or any other Pokémon, for that matter.
He had to admit that Miss Erika's general guide to raising Grass-type Pokémon was so fair-skinned-no, so good.
At least for Xia Chi, who had barely studied Pokémon care in any systematic way, it was like sunlight breaking through the clouds. Everything suddenly clicked.
He hid his phone inside his textbook and wore earphones, frantically taking notes as he watched.
He also had to pretend he was paying attention in class, occasionally looking up at Teacher Zhou on the podium and nodding as though something had dawned on him.
Teacher Zhou felt deeply gratified, thinking that this gifted but usually flighty student had finally turned over a new leaf.
After a whole morning of diligently taking online lessons, Xia Chi could hardly wait to visit the Silph Pokémon Mart and buy everything he had learned about when the bell rang.
Watching Xia Chi hurry toward him with such enthusiasm, Teacher Zhou felt secretly pleased and deliberately slowed down as he packed up his lecture notes.
He cleared his throat and said, "Xia Chi, about that Giratina you mentioned in class last time..."
Teacher Zhou had meant to say something along the lines of, "You've finally given up on those mythical Pokémon like Giratina that you talked about last time. I'm very glad. I hope you'll read fewer dubious accounts from now on."
But Xia Chi was in a hurry to go shopping at Silph. He glanced at Teacher Zhou and said, "Do you want to hear the legend of Giratina's banishment, sir? I'll tell you next time. I've got something to do right now!"
Then he skirted around old Zhou and headed straight out the door.
Teacher Zhou's half-raised hand froze in midair, and the corner of his rigid mouth twitched.
"..."
If I ever believe this guy can turn over a new leaf again, I'm a Growlithe!
With no classes that afternoon, Xia Chi shopped to his heart's content at the Silph Department Store.
Granted, it was a Team Rocket business, and every penny he spent today might end up funding Team Rocket's evil plans.
But that was beside the point. Silph's products were undeniably high-quality-and undeniably expensive.
Xia Chi poured almost everything he had earned from livestreaming over the past two months into his purchases, and it still wasn't quite enough.
With his current finances, if he wanted to buy everything on his list, he might have to resort to that move-
"Come on, give me your phone. I'll help you upgrade your cabin!"
Xia Chi wasn't that desperate. After buying a month's worth of supplies for raising Sprigatito, he headed back to his dorm.
"Sprigatito, don't you think this place is a little small?"
After putting everything away, Xia Chi looked around and spoke thoughtfully.
Now that he had caught his starter Pokémon, he began finding fault with the dorm he had been perfectly happy with just two days earlier.
"There isn't even anywhere for you to do your daily training."
Sprigatito simply shook her head sweetly. "Mew~"
During her time wandering the wilderness, she hadn't even had a fixed place to stay. Having somewhere to shelter from the wind and rain already made her perfectly happy.
Xia Chi believed that no matter how hard things got, children shouldn't suffer, and no matter how poor you were, education shouldn't be neglected.
But with money so tight, renting a place elsewhere wasn't an option.
He could only shelve the idea for now.
Before you continue