: Understanding the Ancient Dragonite

The sun completely sank below the horizon.

The last sliver of orange-red on the horizon was swallowed by the deep blue, and the starlight began to shine sparsely.

Jiang Chuan led Xiaoxia and Huazi towards the lighthouse.

It looks close, but it's a nightmare to walk there.

"Why...why aren't we here yet...?"

Xia, panting, wiped the fine sweat from her forehead.

She felt like her feet, which were wearing sandals, were no longer her own.

Hanako didn't speak, but her breathing was rapid, and her gentle face showed signs of fatigue.

Jiang Chuan, who had the best physical strength, didn't feel anything.

Seeing how exhausted the two ladies were, I couldn't help but think that this lighthouse was built in a truly "well-chosen location".

"Looking at the mountain makes one run until the horse dies."

That's absolutely true.

By the time the three of them finally reached the foot of the lighthouse, it was already completely dark.

Only the rotating beam of light at the top of the lighthouse swept regularly across the night sky and the dark sea.

The lighthouse is constructed entirely of white stone, with a thick base that tapers towards the top.

The door is made of heavy metal, and there is a red button next to it that looks like a doorbell.

However, what attracted Xia and Huazi's attention the most was the pattern carved on the door.

"Huh? What are these...?"

Xiaoxia moved closer and looked carefully in the light shining through the lighthouse window.

The door is decorated with reliefs of many Pokémon.

But she didn't know the vast majority of them.

Some resemble the silhouette of a huge bird with sharp horns.

Some resemble coiled, serpentine creatures with multiple pairs of wings.

Others are simply indescribable, twisted shapes, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

"Are these... Pokémon too?" Hanako asked, her gentle voice tinged with curiosity. "I've never seen them before, and they're not listed in the Pokédex either?"

Jiang Chuan glanced at the reliefs and explained:

"Some of them are Pokémon that have survived from the ancient times. They are extremely rare and have only been found in a few ruins."

"There are also some... that are legendary, and whether they even ever actually existed is a subject of debate in academia."

"You can't see it normally."

"Ancient times...legend..." Xiaoxia murmured repeatedly, her eyes shining.

As a self-proclaimed expert on Water-type Pokémon, she also became interested in this ancient knowledge.

After all, legend has it that the ancient Earth was entirely water.

Jiang Chuan reached out and pressed the red button.

Ding dong.

The crisp sound of the doorbell rang out clearly in the quiet night.

However, before they could even explain their purpose...

"Great! Someone's coming!"

A young man's excited voice suddenly came through the communicator inside the door, speaking very quickly:

"Come in! The door's unlocked! Come in and help me! Quick!"

As soon as he finished speaking, with a "click," the heavy metal door automatically opened a crack inward.

The three looked at each other in bewilderment.

Help?

Should we help him?

What happened inside this lighthouse?

Jiang Chuan was the first to push open the door and enter.

Although Xiaoxia and Huazi were a little nervous, they followed closely behind him.

The interior of the lighthouse is more spacious than it appears from the outside.

The first floor is a circular hall filled with various sophisticated instruments and equipment, with screens flashing complex data and waveforms.

The walls are adorned with huge photographs of fossils, yellowed rubbings of ancient books, and hand-drawn, wildly stylized speculative drawings.

But at this moment, what attracted the three of them most was not these research materials.

Instead, in the center of the hall, there was the one frantically waving two "scythes"—the Scythe Helmet!

"what!"

Xiaoxia gasped in fright and instinctively grabbed Jiang Chuan's arm.

Hanako covered her mouth, her gentle eyes filled with panic.

That was a real, living scythe helmet!

Its carapace gleamed with a cold, hard brown sheen, its head was covered in hard armor, and most terrifying of all were the pair of huge, gleaming, scythe-like claws at the ends of its arms.

At this moment, the pair of scythes were swinging wildly in the air, making a "whooshing" sound as they cut through the wind, looking extremely aggressive.

"The door! The Pokémon on the door!" Xiaoxia's voice trembled. "It really is there! And it's alive!"

"The people inside just cried for help..." Hanako's face was pale, her voice trembling, "No...no, they couldn't have been killed by that Pokémon..."

She dared not continue.

Jiang Chuan frowned slightly.

He stared at the "scythe helmet," a strange glint in his eyes.

Then, to the horror of the two ladies, he walked straight toward the dangerous "ancient killing weapon"!

"Jiang Chuan! Don't go over there!" Xiaoxia shouted anxiously.

"It's dangerous!" Hanako tried to pull him back.

Jiang Chuan waved his hand.

"fine."

He walked up to the "Sickle Helmet" that was still wildly swinging its scythe, ignoring the sharp blade that was almost slicing his nose, and reached out to feel the back of the "Sickle Helmet".

Then there was a "rip" sound.

He found the hidden zipper and pulled it down hard!

The back of the "scythe helmet"... has a crack.

A young man wearing a white coat, with messy hair and thick glasses, emerged from the "sickle helmet" covered in sweat and with a flushed face.

"We're...we're saved!"

He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

"This damn lab suit! The zipper's jammed! And I designed it to be so realistic, my arm joints are so restricted, I can't even reach my back!"

"I almost suffocated in there!"

Xiaoxia and Huazi were dumbfounded.

So... that terrifying scythe helmet we saw earlier was actually a person in disguise?

Or is it the lighthouse owner himself?

Jiang Chuan wasn't surprised at all. He bent down and reached out to help the disheveled researcher up.

"You're Professor Bill, right? Professor Oak mentioned you to me, saying you've made significant contributions to the research on ancient Pokémon and Dynamax."

Upon hearing the words "Professor Oak," Masahiro immediately became incredibly excited, jumping up and grabbing Jiang Chuan's hand.

"You know Professor Oak? Who are you?"

"Jiang Chuan. He is currently traveling with the goal of reaching the Indigo League. He is under the care of Professor Oak and received his starter Pokémon from him," Jiang Chuan explained briefly.

"Jiang Chuan... Ah!!" Zheng Hui was even more excited.

He warmly grasped Jiang Chuan's hand and shook it up and down.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Zhenghui, and as you can see, I'm a somewhat... uh, unpretentious researcher."

He then looked at Xiaoxia and Huazi, and said apologetically:

"Did I scare the two ladies just now? I'm so sorry! This Kabuto Eco-Simulation Suit is my latest creation. I wanted to experience the body structure and movement of ancient Pokémon, but... something went wrong."

Xiaoxia finally breathed a sigh of relief, patted her chest, and couldn't help but complain:

"It was more than just a minor accident...we thought you'd been defeated by a Pokémon."

Hanako also resumed her gentle smile and shook her head slightly to indicate that it was alright.

Zheng Hui scratched his head awkwardly and quickly changed the subject.

"It's so late, are you just passing through and looking for a place to stay? No problem! There's a room available upstairs!"

He warmly led the three of them up the spiral staircase.

The second floor of the lighthouse is the living area. Although it is piled with books and documents, there are a few guest rooms that are relatively tidy.

Zheng Hui arranged rooms for Jiang Chuan and the other two.

"The conditions are basic, please bear with me!" Zheng Hui said somewhat embarrassedly. "Besides observation, I usually spend most of my time in the first-floor laboratory or on the coast outside. This place... well, I don't have much time to take care of it."

"That's already very good, thank you, Mr. Masahiro," Hanako said politely.

Xiaoxia nodded. She was content with taking a hot bath and getting a good night's sleep.

After settling them in, Zheng Hui couldn't wait to head down to the laboratory.

"You guys rest first! I still have some data to record..."

"Wait a minute," Jiang Chuan called out to him.

"I'm very interested in that ancient Pokémon you're researching. If it's convenient, could I also learn about it? Perhaps it could be of some help."

Zheng Hui paused, then suddenly turned around, his face bursting with an astonishing light.

He stayed at the lighthouse for quite a long time, and apart from communicating with a few colleagues, he was almost completely isolated from the world.

Meeting a trainer who not only knows Professor Oak but is also interested in his research is like finding an oasis in the desert.

"Of course it's convenient! So convenient!" He rushed back, practically dragging Jiang Chuan downstairs. "Come on, come on! I was just worried about having no one to discuss this with!"

…………

First floor laboratory.

The lights were adjusted to a soft brightness suitable for observation.

Zheng Hui pulled up several blurry but huge outline photos and projected them onto the main screen.

It was a colossal shadow comparable to a mountain, moving through the coastal mist. Only part of its torso and thick limbs could be seen, carrying an indescribable sense of antiquity and heaviness.

"That's it!" Zheng Hui pointed at the screen, his voice excited. "I started detecting its energy fluctuations and sporadic images three months ago. It seems to be periodically wandering along this coastline."

Jiang Chuan looked at the familiar outline and felt certain.

The ancient Pokémon – Giant Dragonite.

"I consulted a large number of ancient documents and local legends," Zheng Hui said rapidly, with the fervor of a researcher, "combining its energy spectrum, behavior patterns, and... the frequency of the sounds it emits."

He tapped a few keys on the keyboard, and a noise-reduced and amplified audio file played.

It was a deep, slow hum, as if coming from the depths of the earth's crust.

It didn't sound like a threat or a roar.

On the contrary... it exudes a deep sense of loneliness and searching that seems to have lasted for millions of years.

"It's looking for companions," Jiang Chuan suddenly said.

Zheng Hui was taken aback, then suddenly looked at Jiang Chuan: "You think so too?"

"Hmm. There was no aggression in its voice, only confusion and longing. Such a creature of this size and antiquity is probably extremely rare, perhaps... it is the last one." Jiang Chuan analyzed calmly.

"That's right! It matches my analysis!" Zheng Hui nodded vigorously, as if he had found a kindred spirit. "It was so lonely. The core of my paper was to elucidate the social remnants and emotional patterns of this ancient giant life form... but I lacked more direct evidence!"

He suddenly became frustrated again and scratched his messy hair.

"Sigh! I missed out on the last online auction that supposedly captured photos of Ho-Oh's rainbow shadow, missing a golden opportunity to supplement my data. I absolutely can't miss this ancient behemoth! Otherwise, I don't know how many more years it will take before I have enough data to publish my thesis."

Jiang Chuan and Zheng Hui talked for a long time.

From the possible ecology of ancient Pokémon to several hypotheses about the gigantification phenomenon, and then to Bill's prediction based on the fluctuations—that the giant Dragonite is very likely to pass by this coast again tomorrow evening!

"Tomorrow..." Jiang Chuan tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his eyes deep.

He quickly calculated in his mind.

Fighting against an entity of this size is pointless using conventional methods.

But its goal is clear—to find companions and alleviate loneliness.

Therefore, the focus of the strategy should not be "defeating" but rather "communication" and "resonance".

We need to make a good plan.

This is not a battle for subjugation or victory.

This is a rare opportunity to engage in dialogue with life from time immemorial.

.....................

Meanwhile, the guest rooms on the second floor.

The atmosphere was completely different from the heated discussion in the laboratory on the first floor.

Xiaoxia took a hot shower, washing away her fatigue and dust. Wearing only a thin, cute nightgown with goldfish prints, she lay on the soft bed.

There's no time to think when you're on the go.

Now that I'm quiet and alone, those thoughts that I deliberately suppressed during the day are bubbling up again.

Especially... that bet with Jiang Chuan.

And then there's the bet, where I blurted out in a moment of impulsiveness, "Do whatever you want."

"Waaah..."

Xiaoxia buried her burning face in the pillow, her slender legs kicking unconsciously in the air.

A bet is a bet...

But what exactly is the relationship between myself and Jiang Chuan?

Travel companions?

Adventure partners?

still is……

She thought of the occasional glances Jiang Chuan would cast at her, his mischievous smile when he teased her, and his back as he always stood in front of her when danger struck.

My heart started racing uncontrollably.

Should we... just make it simple?

Should we confirm the relationship directly?

When this bold idea popped into her head, Xiaoxia was startled, and her ears turned bright red instantly.

But there was also a vague sense of anticipation and restless excitement.

But... how can I confirm it?

Should we just go and ask, "Jiang Chuan, should we do...?"

"Ahhh! This is so embarrassing! There's no way I can't say it!"

Xiaoxia rolled around on the bed, hugging her pillow, her pajamas rolled up, revealing a section of her fair and supple waist.

She rolled to the edge of the bed, her gaze inadvertently falling on her open suitcase.

Inside, neatly folded, were a few changes of clothes and the "underwear box" she had specially prepared.

The box contained items that weren't the cute, girly styles she usually wore.

All of these were "arranged" by the cherry blossom ladies before this trip...

Sexy lace.

Semi-transparent tulle.

Strap design.

There were even a few that barely covered anything and were purely for erotic purposes...

Now think about it...

What if... what if things really develop to that point with Jiang Chuan...

He saw me wearing these...

Or even worse, be killed by his own hands...

"Ouch!"

Xiaoxia suddenly covered her face with the pillow, feeling all the blood rush to her head, and her toes curled up shyly.

Just imagining that scene made her feel weak all over, and she even felt a strange throbbing in a certain part of her body.

To die To die!

Xia, what are you thinking about?

Shameless!

but……

Jiang Chuan is so amazing...

She has a great figure...

There... too...

Stop! Don't think about it anymore!

She tossed and turned in bed like a pancake, her mind in turmoil.

On one side is reserve and shyness, and on the other is a kind of ignited, bold desire.

Just then.

A soft knock sounded on the door.

Xiaoxia froze, and like a startled deer, she sat up abruptly in bed, hurriedly tidying her disheveled pajamas and hair.

Who?