Early the next morning, Steven brought his team to the area behind Granite Cave for training.
Skarmory's feathers had grown longer, and it was estimated they would return to their original condition in a few days.
With Aron's addition to the team, Steven planned to use Skarmory and Aron for his Gym challenge.
"Aron, your first training session is about to begin!"
"Aaaron!"
Aron had just finished breakfast and seemed full of energy!
Training would consume Aron's stamina, requiring food to replenish it.
"As long as you complete the training, I'll make sure you have plenty to eat!"
"Aaaron!"
Its motivation was practically overflowing!
Seeing Aron's eager appearance, Steven immediately formulated an initial training plan for it.
"First, the basics: use Tackle on these rocks to build your physical endurance."
Steven paused, then added, "You must stop when you reach your limit, understand?"
"Aaaron!"
Easy!
Aron immediately found a rock it favored and began its training.
"It's quite self-motivated..." Steven was pleased that it could find targets independently without him having to specify them.
Aron typically rammed rocks and then picked up the shattered pieces to eat.
It was simply that hungry—it would fill its stomach first before seeking out ore to consume. The energy contained in ore was far more abundant than ordinary rocks, and it tasted much better to Aron as well.
Aron shattered a small section of the rock and immediately picked up fragments from the ground to chew.
As long as I perform well enough, I can eat even better things!
Steven watched Aron strike the rock a few times before eating the pieces, giving a wry smile.
How could he not see the purpose behind Aron's actions?
"It seems I need to find an opportunity to acquire more quality ore to reward this little guy."
Steven's family wasn't short on money, and even less so on ore.
Even several gluttonous Tyranitar could be fed to satisfaction!
Aron's training had begun, and the Beldum only needed a word from Steven to return and continue refining their bodies.
Skarmory was temporarily unable to train and began meditating alongside Metang.
However, meditation wasn't simply about clearing one's mind.
Metang had to relive its past battles, then sense the flow of energy within its body, pushing it to break through its limitations.
Only then could its strength continuously increase.
The energy capacity within each Pokémon had a maximum value, which represented the highest level they could achieve in their lifetime.
However, this maximum wasn't locked to a single level. The potential of each Pokémon wasn't drastically different, which also provided a framework for Pokémon appraisal standards.
It wasn't based on body size, but on the proportion of energy within the Pokémon's body. Research showed that Pokémon of different sizes had similar energy proportions in their bodies, and their strength levels were comparable.
As for Champion-level Pokémon, theoretically every part of their body was covered by energy they could control. However, this theory hadn't been fully proven, and perhaps only Legendary Pokémon could achieve it—hence the title "Legendary."
Even Champion-level Pokémon hadn't yet reached complete energy saturation.
The energy contained in ore could be slowly absorbed by Pokémon, serving to gradually enhance their strength.
Steven's philosophy was that both the physical body and internal energy should improve together, so he always prioritized strengthening his Pokémon's physical capabilities first.
Simply having powerful energy attacks without durability—wouldn't that just make them fragile?
If battles only came down to whose move connected first, with everyone pursuing one-hit knockouts, wouldn't that disadvantage slower, larger Pokémon?
If they could withstand an opponent's attack and then counterattack, this would balance the win rates across various Pokémon types.
A Trainer who understood this principle would certainly not be weak.
For those who stubbornly pursued raw power alone, the strength hierarchy became very apparent.
Skarmory could now use the energy within the Steel Gem for meditation, slowly absorbing it.
Its previous physical training had established the foundation, and now it was gradually increasing its internal energy during rest periods.
While the Pokémon were all working to become stronger, Steven wasn't idle either.
Under normal circumstances, he would first exercise, then proceed with theoretical study.
Understanding each Pokémon's battle tendencies allowed for timely and accurate commands during battles.
However, Steven's back injury hadn't healed yet, making strenuous exercise inadvisable, so he could only begin with theoretical studies.
There were countless Pokémon species, and their battle strategies weren't limited to one approach, so this type of learning required considerable time.
Steven had been studying Pokémon knowledge since childhood and had been researching them ever since.
One year! He must become the Champion of the Hoenn region!
Not the Champion of the Ever Grande Conference, but the Champion of the Hoenn League!
This would be the way to prove the results of his year of dedicated effort!
After achieving his goal, Steven could freely explore various locations and search for ruins.
There might be extremely powerful Pokémon in those ruins, and strength was the primary requirement for entering them!
Steven couldn't even imagine how many treasures awaited him in those ruins.
What? What do you mean plundering things from ruins? These were clearly excavated by himself!
Aron's talent was indeed exceptional, and coupled with the incentive of food, its training enthusiasm was remarkably high.
In less than half an hour, Aron had already shattered three rocks several times larger than itself.
And its steel armor showed hardly any scratches.
This was likely a manifestation of the benefits from eating ore year-round.
Just as Aron shattered the fourth rock and was about to eat its "reward," Steven called out in time.
"Aron, wait a moment!"
"Aaaron?"
Aron turned around in confusion to look at Steven, only to see a high-quality Hard Rock flying toward its head.
"Aaaron!"
Aron's gaze was focused, and its short legs were full of power. It jumped on the spot, caught the Hard Rock mid-air with its mouth, and landed steadily.
"Aaaron!"
Aron's eyes sparkled—this was far tastier than the Hard Rocks it ate in the cave!
High-quality ore was often claimed by powerful Pokémon, and it could only occasionally eat some by chance, savoring the taste.
Steven said, "Now show me the moves you've mastered."
"Aaaron!"
Aron, with its motivation fully restored, immediately began demonstrating its moves on the fifth rock!
Moves should be attacks released by channeling one's internal energy... right?
"Tackle, Harden, Metal Claw, Iron Head..."
Almost all were close-range moves.
Moreover, the Metal Claw used by its short legs also had a rather comedic effect.
Even the attack range could barely exceed the reach of its head.
It didn't know any other attacks that involved projecting energy externally.
"Well, move training, just like Skarmory's, will be a long and challenging process!"