Chapter 17
: Believe in Pokémon, just like you believe in Miracle 1
"Yukichi~ Yukichi~"
Young Gilas patted his chest proudly. He was a genius, after all, and his teacher, Sandslash, had taught him very diligently. This was nothing to him!
Next, Young Gilas released two more rocks in the same way, eventually building a dangerous path made up of a dozen or so stone slabs on the cliff.
Xia Ming didn't hesitate either. He trusted his partner completely, lifted his foot, and stepped onto the stone slab that could only accommodate one person. After stomping twice, he turned around and said:
"Wait for me a moment, Young Gilas, I'll be right back."
After saying that, he quickly stepped onto the closely spaced stone slabs and walked towards the cave. In no time, he arrived at the cave.
It was a cave about the size of a bowl, dark inside with a fluorescent glow. Xia Ming reached in and soon grabbed a hard object. At the same time, the glow in the cave dissipated, leaving behind the remaining object that could not be grasped in one go.
"It's Adamantite! That's a top-grade delicacy for Rock Pokémon. No wonder Larvitar reacted so quickly."
Unfold the object in your hand and examine it. It is a pink stone with white spots, called Adamantite, a top-grade food that Rock and Grass-type Pokémon love to eat.
Unfortunately, humans cannot digest it, but judging from the Pokémon's records, the texture of this rock will automatically adapt to become a delicious treat that only appears in the dreams of every Rock and Grass-type Pokémon.
The market price once soared to 30,000 Alliance Coins for a single small piece!
After carefully putting away the snack he had prepared as a reward for Young Gilas, Xia Ming then took out the remaining items from the cave:
"Two fragments of evolution stones, not bad. The purity looks to be over 80%. They should fetch a good price."
A bunch of evolution stone fragments can be combined through a special process to create an evolution stone. At the same time, the evolution stone fragments themselves can be slowly absorbed by Pokémon with compatible types, making them a pretty good training tool.
After carefully storing all the valuable items, Xia Ming cautiously returned the way he came.
As he turned around, his eyes involuntarily glanced to the side, and in just one glance he saw the height of over a hundred feet. Luckily, he wasn't afraid of heights, otherwise his legs would probably have gone weak in an instant.
One step, two steps, Xia Ming retraced his steps, his movements steady, seemingly unharmed...
Rumble~ Rumble~
"What's going on!"
The sudden tremor made Xia Ming unsteady on his feet. Ignoring the pain in his fingers, he forcefully grabbed onto the rocks on the cliff beside him, desperately trying to keep himself from falling.
The sound traveled extremely far in the empty valley; almost immediately after the tremor ended, a shout from an unfamiliar trainer echoed from afar:
"Bulbasaur, keep using Vine Whip on Graveler to hold it back!"
Well, it seems that some unlucky guy didn't notice that he stepped on a rumblestone disguised as a rock, and the rumblestone's "heavy stomp" happened to affect Xia Ming, who was doing high-risk work here.
After the tremors gradually subsided, Xia Ming looked at the two remaining stone slabs on the road ahead and felt uneasy, especially since those two slabs were already teetering on the verge of collapse, and the rock sections that were embedded in the cliff were almost knocked off by the violent shaking.
This is bad!
That damn guy better not let me block him at the evacuation point, or I'll kick him out without leaving a single hair on his head!
"Yukichi Yukichi!"
Larvitar, who was as steadfast as a rock, felt no discomfort from the brief earthquake, but he also sensed the danger to his trainer, causing the entire Pokémon to panic.
However, he quickly calmed down; now he had to save his trainer!
"Yoji~"
Younggiras' right hand, near the cliff, glowed with an earthy yellow light, and dense rock-elemental energy gathered on it, while ground-elemental energy also coalesced around his feet.
"Young Yoshi!"
click -
Young Gilas took a big step to the edge of the stone steps, reached out and plunged his hand hard into the cliff, and with a burst of strength, he nailed his body to the spot like a nail.
"Younggilas... Alright, here I come!"
Seeing Young Gilas's outstretched left hand, Xia Ming jumped up and sprinted without hesitation.
Boom~
After crossing one layer of stone slabs, when Xia Ming's foot landed heavily on the last layer, the slab, as expected, collapsed under the weight.
Having lost his footing, Xia Ming's body suddenly began to fall, and it seemed he was about to plunge into the hundred-foot-high cliff along with the stone slab, ending this superdimensional mission. But then he used his other foot to propel himself forward a short distance at the last moment.
"Young Yoshi!"
It was this short distance that allowed Xia Ming to successfully grasp Young Gilas's little hand.
While struggling to close his eyes, Larvitar tried his best to pull his trainer up. Xia Ming also used one hand and both feet, finding a foothold and slowly climbing up with the help of Larvitar's pull.
First, he grabbed a rock on the slope with his other hand, then half of his body was pulled up, and finally he struggled to climb to the top of the slope, lying on the ground panting heavily, unwilling to move. His rapidly beating heart made it difficult for him to breathe.
"Whoosh—!"
His palms were cut by the steep rocks, and the wounds were covered with sand and gravel, but he survived and was eventually out of danger.
Young Gilas tiptoed to Xia Ming's side and sat down, placing his two small hands on his arms, lowering his head, and whimpering softly.
"Yukichi...Yukichi..."
"Alright, alright, it's not your fault. It's all the fault of that trainer who disturbed the Graveler!"
Xia Ming looked at Young Gilas, who was quietly apologizing to him, and smiled with relief. It wasn't his fault, nor was it his; it was just an unexpected accident.
"If you feel bad about it, go back and learn a lot from Sandslash. One day, when you evolve into the strongest and biggest Tyranitar, you can keep all dangers out of my way!"
"Yoji~"
Larvitar raised its little head, tears of fear and remorse still streaming from its eyes. It gazed at its trainer comforting it, and a seed of "the strongest" quietly sprouted in its heart:
"Young Yoshi!"
"Great, very energetic! Here, try the good stuff you've discovered."
Seeing the young Gilas regain his spirits, Xia Ming took out the hard mineral he had just acquired and handed it to the young Gilas without saying a word.
Taking the hard ore, despite its immense temptation, Young Gilas didn't immediately eat it. Instead, he broke it in half and handed the other half to Xia Ming in front of him.
"Yoji~"
share!
"Hahaha~ You rascal, my teeth can't handle this stuff. Alright, hurry up and eat, then we'll go down the mountain to level up."
Xia Ming was amused, but he couldn't eat the hard mineral; he couldn't even bite it open.