What a pity.
Baimu made a wasted trip.
Even though he was mentally prepared, he still felt a little frustrated when he found out he was looking in the wrong place.
What to do now?
Does he really have to go to Carlos to ask Hoopa for help? At this stage, the plot of "Light Ring's Super Demon God" should not have started yet. He's been keeping an eye on the information online, and it's likely that even "Destruction Cocoon and Diancie" hasn't begun yet.
Without the plot starting, it's impossible to find Hoopa, as there's no trace of the Valley of Creation on the internet.
How does one find Hoopa in the Valley of Creation?
Baimu can only continue to watch online for news about Lugia, while embarking on another journey through the Hoenn Region.
Still, strictly speaking, this short trip wasn't completely fruitless—Little Silver, who is in its growth phase, lacked nothing else, and naturally shed plenty of feathers.
Seeing Baimu picking up its feathers, it seemed very happy and directly dove into the water curtain, fetching a bunch more.
Even Lugia the Great shook down a couple of feathers to give to him.
"There's no need for so many, there's no need for so many—Whoa! What is this!"
Baimu hurriedly stopped Little Silver from diving into the water curtain to get more feathers for him. As he reached for the pile, a crystal-clear water droplet-shaped gem fell to the ground.
"Mysterious Waterdrop?"
He looked at Little Silver, who curiously glanced at it twice, but withdrew its head indifferently once it realized it was a stone.
Lugia the Great clearly recognized its worth, but generously nudged Baimu's outstretched hand, indicating that this item was also a gift for him.
"Well, I'll take it then, thank you."
Baimu reached out and stroked Lugia the Great's neck, then Little Silver's as well.
In terms of texture, the former felt rougher when touched, while the latter was impossibly smooth, sliding all the way down as soon as he followed the feathers.
He bid farewell to the Lugia mother and child.
Baimu walked out of the cave, where Aquan and the other Ocean Team members had been waiting on the shore for quite some time, waving to him.
"Did you find the information you wanted?"
"No."
He shook his head.
"I see... I'm sorry we weren't able to help you much on this trip." Aquan apologized with a hint of regret.
After all, the main reason for coming down this time was to facilitate Baimu meeting with Lugia and asking them face-to-face why they were appearing in Hoenn, which was a secondary purpose.
Who would have thought they'd encounter a different Lugia?
"You've already helped me a lot, and if it's fate, we'll meet them eventually." Baimu smiled at Aquan.
What's done is done, and no matter how much he frets, that Lugia won't magically appear before him.
——
The journey to find Lugia is paused for now.
Returning to the research institute in Martial Arts Town.
Baimu asked Dr. Akihabara about whether Porygon II still had any evolutionary possibilities.
Upon hearing this, the doctor's expression became somewhat awkward.
"Well... there's a possibility... but there was actually a hiccup along the way."
"What do you mean?"
"It's hard to explain in one go. Anyway, Porygon II is already an excellent Pokémon! With it, you definitely won't lose to any trainer."
"I know that, but your ambiguity makes me anxious, Doctor."
"Oh dear!"
Dr. Akihabara frantically scratched his head, and just as Baimu thought he might have pushed too far and annoyed him, he whispered, "I'll tell you, but you absolutely can't tell anyone else!"
"Alright!" Baimu nodded.
After the doctor's explanation, he heard an astonishing story.
"The Zeroth Machine disappeared in network space, gone?!"
The Zeroth Machine and No.1 Machine were the Porygons the doctor originally developed, the same ones shown in the animated series.
"Yes."
Dr. Akihabara nodded incomprehensibly, "I tried sending No.1 Machine to find it, but ultimately failed. Plus, worried that No.1 Machine would disappear too, I put this matter aside for now."
In the world of animation, Porygon Z was born out of some coincidence. At the time, discussions about Other Dimensional Space were popular in academia, with many experts and scholars wanting to know if humans could explore other dimensions.
Dr. Akihabara, eager to tap into this trend, wrote a program enabling Porygon II to live in Other Dimensional Space, though he inexplicably found progress more advanced upon each return from rest.
Initially suspecting it was a prank by his assistant or a friend, he continued writing when he found no problems with the program, until one day, unable to resist, he secretly observed, discovering the real writer was Porygon II, the Zeroth Machine!
This discovery left Dr. Akihabara simultaneously shocked, excited, and slightly terrified. After all, "creation" is generally seen as a human prerogative, yet a Pokémon had begun creating its own evolution program.
How could he not be excited?
Coupled with Dr. Akihabara's inherent challenge spirit, he pretended to be unaware, allowing the Zeroth Machine to continue writing the program until the upgrade patch was completed.
Initially, it went smoothly, and Porygon II changed its form again. Dr. Akihabara named it Porygon Z.
Unexpectedly, after evolving into Porygon Z, the Zeroth Machine rebelled! It attacked Dr. Akihabara, destroyed the research institute, and escaped into network space, never to return.
To retrieve it, Dr. Akihabara first deployed No.1 Machine, still a Porygon II, but couldn't defeat the Zeroth Machine. After deliberating, he modified the Zeroth Machine's upgrade patch, allowing No.1 Machine to evolve into Porygon Z.
The two Porygon Z fought fiercely in network space, ultimately with the Zeroth Machine fleeing, and No.1 Machine's pursuit proving unsuccessful, becoming unstable and forced back by Dr. Akihabara.
Evidently, despite subsequent modifications, the upgrade patch created by the Zeroth Machine was flawed.
The doctor categorized it as a "Suspicious Patch" and stored it away, continually striving to stabilize the No.1 Machine.
Until now.
"The disappearing Zeroth Machine... another spine-chilling little story."
Baimu couldn't handle these scientists—when they go rogue, they truly go rogue, knowingly taking risks regardless of potential issues.
Yet lacking complete resolution afterward...
Fortunately.
This has nothing to do with him.
After bidding farewell to the Ocean Team and Dr. Akihabara, Baimu soon received the first batch of sponsorship money—five million.
According to Aquan, sponsorship fees are calculated quarterly, meaning money is given every three months.
For a duration of one year.
To Baimu, this seemed incredible; only one year—is there a lack of confidence in him or excessive support? Isn't it usual to start from three years?
Who knows.
Anyway, for him, it's delightful that the Pokémon have food money, no longer needing to worry about feeding Deino or even more Quasi-Gods.
The moment Deino evolves, Baimu plans to select the saved Species Value as the reward.
Yesterday, this little guy just learned Dragon Dive while leveling up to Level 40, only ten levels away from the in-game requirement.
This can be achieved in about a month with the simulator's assistance.
But logically, if another Quasi-God was chosen to come over, it might have undergone final evolution by now; it only shows that this Pokémon has the longest evolution cycle.
"You must accelerate your growth! My little dinosaur!"
He cupped the fur on Deino's neck, fluffing it up to its cheeks, as the latter responded vaguely.
"Mown-ow!"