Seeing Bayleef look so pitiful, Ash's heart softened. Bayleef had always been extremely attached to him, wanting to follow him on every journey. It was famous for being ridiculously jealous. In his previous life, every time Ash switched travel partners, Bayleef would stay sad for a long time.
"Alright, alright, Bayleef, don't be upset," Ash quickly reached out and patted Bayleef's head, comforting it gently. "It's not that I don't like you. It's just that Hoenn's environment is kind of special, so I want to take Phanpy first and let it adapt. When I get the chance later, I'll definitely come back for you, okay?"
Bayleef looked at Ash as if it half understood. Its eyes were still red, and it was clearly reluctant, but it nodded anyway and rubbed its head against Ash's palm, accepting the explanation. Even so, it stayed pressed close to Ash, like it was afraid he might vanish if it blinked.
After soothing Bayleef, Ash turned to Professor Oak.
"Professor Oak, besides Phanpy, I want to bring an old friend with me to Hoenn too."
"Oh?" Professor Oak's eyes lit up with curiosity. "Who is it?"
Ash gave a mysterious smile instead of answering directly. "Could you use the transfer machine to bring it over for me?"
"Sure," Professor Oak nodded. Though he was curious, he didn't press further. He led Ash into the lab's Pokémon transfer room. In the center stood a massive transfer device, covered in complicated wiring and buttons. Professor Oak operated it smoothly and entered a string of commands.
Ash stood in front of the machine, eyes full of anticipation, and called out loud.
"Come out, Charizard!"
A blazing red light flashed. The air in the center of the device rippled, and a huge orange, dragon-like Pokémon slowly appeared. Sharp claws and fangs, wide powerful wings, and a small scar on its forehead.
Ash's ace.
Charizard.
The instant Charizard appeared, it let out a thunderous roar, packed with raw power and dominance. The pressure was so intense the air around them seemed to freeze. It beat its massive wings and hovered in midair, sweeping a sharp gaze around the room. When it spotted Ash, excitement flashed in its eyes. It flew over immediately, circling low in front of him while calling out again and again, sounding unusually affectionate.
Ash silently ordered, "System, check Charizard's info!"
Pokémon Name: Charizard
Type: Fire, Flying
Ability: Blaze (When current HP is at or below one third of max HP, Fire type move power is boosted.)
Strength Level: Pseudo Elite Four, Early Stage
Tera Type: Dragon
Moves Known: Flamethrower, Seismic Toss, Dragon Pulse, Overheat, Air Slash, Dragon Tail, Fire Spin, Steel Wing, Outrage…
Held Item: None
"No wonder it's Charizard!" Ash was ecstatic.
Pseudo Elite Four, Early Stage. That was already an extremely powerful level of strength. In Hoenn, a Pokémon at the Pseudo Elite Four tier was absolutely top-class battle power.
And Charizard's Tera Type was Dragon.
Dragon was often praised as one of the strongest types. Once Charizard Terastallized, its Dragon type moves would surge in power. On top of that, it already knew powerful Dragon moves like Dragon Pulse and Outrage. The potential was terrifying.
"Hey, Charizard! Long time no see. You got even stronger," Ash looked up at Charizard with a bright smile. In his previous life, he had always loved Charizard, its stubborn spirit and its overwhelming strength. Now that this powerful Charizard was his partner, pride filled his chest.
Charizard roared in reply and slowly descended. It gently rubbed its huge head against Ash's shoulder, full of closeness.
Perfect. With Charizard and Pikachu, plus Phanpy, this Hoenn trip was going to be a lot more secure.
Ash immediately opened the system shop and started exchanging items.
"System, exchange for a Light Ball, a Charcoal, a Tera Orb, a Z-Ring, a Normal Z-Crystal, and one TM for Sleep Talk, and one TM for Dragon Rush!"
A Light Ball could greatly boost Pikachu's Electric power, and Charcoal would strengthen Charizard's Fire moves. Both were highly practical held items. A Tera Orb and Z-Ring were essential for Terastallization and Z-Moves. The Normal Z-Crystal would let Pikachu use a Normal type Z-Move, 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, with overwhelming power. Sleep Talk would be taught to Snorlax so it could still attack while using Rest, greatly improving its battle capability. Dragon Rush was a powerful Dragon type move, perfect for Charizard.
Ding! Exchange successful.
Points spent: Light Ball 1,000 + Charcoal 1,000 + Tera Orb 5,000 + Z-Ring 5,000 + Normal Z-Crystal 5,000 + TM Sleep Talk 2,000 + TM Dragon Rush 2,000 = 21,000 points.
Remaining points: 48,000 - 21,000 = 27,000 points!
As the system notification sounded, the items appeared out of thin air in Ash's hands.
He handed the Light Ball to Pikachu first. Pikachu took it curiously, rubbed it with its cheek, then skillfully hung it around its neck.
Next, he gave the Charcoal to Charizard. Charizard took it with a claw, flicked it lightly, and it automatically settled around its neck as well.
"Pikachu, learn Tera Blast," Ash said. Tera Blast was the signature move used after Terastallization, powerful, and its type matched the user's Tera Type.
Pikachu nodded and closed its eyes. Ash passed it the Tera Orb. Pikachu gripped it, and a faint blue glow shimmered over its body. Not long after, it had mastered how to use Tera Blast.
Then Ash gave the Dragon Rush TM to Charizard. Charizard took it, pressed the button, and a red light sank into its body. A moment later, Charizard let out an excited roar. It had clearly learned Dragon Rush successfully.
Finally, Ash walked up to Snorlax and placed the Sleep Talk TM in front of it. Snorlax was sprawled on the ground, fast asleep. Sensing the TM's energy, it groggily opened its eyes, yawned, and pressed the button by instinct. Soon after, it shut its eyes again and went right back to sleep.
Ding! Snorlax successfully learned the move: Sleep Talk!
At the same time, Cyndaquil, who had been watching from the side, suddenly shone with a brilliant white light as its body began to change. It grew larger, its fur shifted from orange to a deeper red, and the flames along its back and around its cheeks burned stronger.
Quilava.
Ding! Cyndaquil successfully evolved into Quilava! Strength level increased to Elite Late!
"That's great! Quilava evolved!" Ash said happily. The newly evolved Quilava looked far more energetic. It hopped in front of Ash, chirping excitedly while the flames on its back burned brighter than before.
Professor Oak and Tracey watched as Ash calmly exchanged items and taught moves to his Pokémon, both of them visibly surprised. They could clearly feel that Ash seemed different today. Not only was he more steady, he also had a much clearer plan for training and raising his Pokémon, no longer rushing in headfirst like before.
"Ash really seems to have grown up," Professor Oak said with satisfaction, eyes full of praise. He had watched Ash grow from a clueless kid into a responsible Trainer, and the Ash in front of him now showed even more potential to become a Pokémon Master.
Tracey nodded too. "Yeah. Ash's gotten really impressive. Charizard and Pikachu both feel stronger. This time in Hoenn, you'll definitely get great results!"
Hearing their praise, Ash smiled awkwardly. "Thanks, Professor Oak. Thanks, Tracey. I'll work hard!"
The morning passed quickly. Ash's Pokémon all improved in different ways.
Pikachu held a Light Ball, learned Tera Blast, and stayed firmly at Gym Peak.
Charizard held Charcoal, learned Dragon Rush, and its Pseudo Elite Four, Early Stage strength became even more solid.
Snorlax learned Sleep Talk, greatly boosting its battle strength.
Quilava evolved, reaching Elite Late.
The rest didn't directly increase in strength, but after Ash soothed them and interacted with them, they were all in excellent condition.
After lunch, Ash didn't stay in the lab to train any longer. Instead, he left with Pikachu, Charizard, and Phanpy, heading toward Viridian Forest.
He had an important plan.
Before departing for Hoenn, he wanted to catch a few Pokémon with huge potential in Viridian Forest to strengthen his team.
Viridian Forest was the largest forest near Pallet Town. It was home to all kinds of Pokémon. Not only common Pokémon like Pidgey and Rattata, but also rarer ones like Bulbasaur and even a shiny Noctowl. There was even a chance of encountering a Legendary Pokémon.
In his previous life, Ash had caught Bulbasaur in Viridian Forest. Now, he was going to find even stronger partners here.
"Pikachu, Charizard, Phanpy, let's go! Viridian Forest, here we come!" Ash raised his arm high, eyes burning with fighting spirit.
Pikachu crouched on his shoulder, calling out excitedly.
Charizard beat its wings, hovering in the air with a powerful roar.
Phanpy followed behind Ash, stomping along with heavy steps, chirping cheerfully.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, scattering dappled light across the forest path. Ash led his Pokémon deeper into Viridian Forest, and a brand new adventure was about to begin…
To be continued…
(End of Chapter)
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