Waveguide lives within me!
These words held a special, unresolved place in so many Pokémon fans' hearts.
Without hesitation, he bought the Aura Power and used it on himself.
In an instant, his perception of the world around him sharpened dramatically.
The dancing wind, the flickering flame at Charmeleon's fingertip, the Caterpie crawling through the grass…
the tiny expression hidden under Ralts's hair…
Why is she still blushing?!
Every movement slowed down,
almost as if time had frozen.
Even ignoring the bond with his Pokémon,
this ability alone let him read the battlefield far more clearly in battle.
It was an incredible power.
Aura!
It let him predict the movements of the opponent's Pokémon before they even moved,
letting him react instantly.
The entire abandoned building seemed to fall silent.
If he wanted, Lin Yu felt he could even gather this energy outside his body
and attack.
But after trying, he realized his Aura was still far too weak.
Right now, he couldn't form Aura Sphere like in the anime and launch attacks.
"Ral~"
Ralts's usually clear voice sounded even softer and cuter.
It sounded wonderful!
Still…
Lin Yu thought he might need to give Ralts a little lesson about species boundaries.
He then turned to Charmeleon.
With Aura Power,
he believed their bond would reach a whole new level.
September 30th.
Another week passed.
Most of this week's entries were useless white ones, so Lin Yu broke them down for coins.
Only one blue entry, Child of Water, was kept.
[Blue Entry (Child of Water) — Breathe underwater and gain high affinity with Water-type Pokémon!]
Great entry.
In the future, he could move freely even in the ocean!
Lin Yu already imagined riding Lugia, the Ocean God, deep beneath the waves.
But in this world, information about many Legendary Pokémon was still unknown.
So where Lugia was hiding in the sea remained a mystery.
Two weeks later, the hype from the high school tournament slowly died down.
That day,
the coach gathered all school team members to discuss the upcoming Secret Realm expedition.
"Qing Fei is absent today. Since everyone else is here, I'll make this brief:
our school performed extremely well in this year's tournament.
Other schools only let their top 8 go on this expedition…
but our school's top 16 all get to go."
Once everyone was settled,
Luo Xing got straight to the point.
"Top 16… that means we have five spots!"
Xue Nai was pleasantly surprised.
Five spots.
Think about it — Third High only sent six contestants total.
Besides Lin Yu, Xue Nai, and Qing Fei, everyone else had made it.
Only the Poochyena Trainer looked miserable.
He'd been so close to top 16.
What bad luck!
Luo Xing comforted him, saying he'd definitely get a chance in his third year.
"Th–thank you, senior…"
The speaker was the Bulbasaur Trainer, Cha Wanwan.
A quiet, shy, adorable girl.
From what Lin Yu knew, her family was poor,
so she desperately needed money to raise her Pokémon.
Everyone knew the extra spots were only possible
because Lin Yu had won the championship.
Lin Yu gave her a gentle smile, letting her know it was nothing.
"Alright. We leave for the Secret Realm tomorrow.
Let me go over what you need to prepare:
sleeping bags, flashlights…"
All the essential outdoor survival gear.
Finally, his expression turned serious.
"I'm going with you this time.
I've heard this Secret Realm is a forest surrounding a lake.
You may only search for treasures and catch Pokémon in the outer forest.
Do NOT go near the lake.
There are Elite-tier and even Gym-tier Gyarados there!
If you're in danger, fire the signal flare immediately.
My Pidgeot will reach you within three minutes!"
Everyone tensed up and nodded in unison.
Gyarados were vicious, dangerous Pokémon!
After a few more warnings, he dismissed them.
Lin Yu really did need to go prepare properly.
After all, it was a newly discovered Secret Realm!
He was incredibly excited.
This would be his first real expedition.
With his newly acquired Aura Power,
he was sure to gain a great deal.
Many ordinary-born Masters and even Elite Trainers
got their start in Secret Realms:
finding treasures, bonding with high-potential rare Pokémon,
and rising to fame.
This Secret Realm…
it had once held Ho-Oh's Lost Feather — a feather with primordial power!
What if there was another one?
Could Charmeleon's talent rise even higher??
Lin Yu could clearly feel
that after absorbing the feather, Charmeleon's talent had jumped drastically.
And the Psychic Gem…
a treasure that Ralts could absorb
and also hold as an item.
It made Lin Yu's heart race.
A few more,
and Ralts would evolve even faster!
At the school gate.
A girl in the light blue school uniform, high ponytail, beautiful as a painting.
It was Ye Qingxue.
Lin Yu suddenly remembered it was Friday.
Tomorrow was National Day break, so school ended at noon.
"Brother?"
Ye Qingxue's expression was calm, then broke into a bright smile.
"Why are you at school today?"
Lin Yu scratched his nose.
"The school's taking us to a Secret Realm tomorrow. Coach called a meeting.
Are you going too, Xiaoxue?"
"Me? I'm heading home.
Dratini has to go to Dragon Island for inheritance training.
I won't be back for a long time."
The girl twisted her hands together, her eyes dimmed a little.
Watching Lin Yu slowly shine brighter these days
had made her so happy!
But time had passed far too quickly.
Her family wouldn't let her stay here and act carefree any longer.
Lin Yu's chest tightened.
"So soon?"
"Mm. Dratini's inheritance can't wait."
"Then go quickly. A Pokémon's growth is the most important thing.
I'll come find you later!"
Though he felt sad too, Lin Yu encouraged her to go.
After all, as a Trainer,
a Pokémon's growth could not be delayed.
During a Pokémon's golden development period,
Lin Yu would do everything for Charmeleon and Ralts.
The girl suddenly made up her mind.
She held out a white stone carved with a dragon emblem.
"If you come find me later, take this with you."
Lin Yu instinctively used Inspection Eye.
[Dragon Secret Stone: Contains faint Dragon-type energy.
Can be used to let Pokémon undergo Dragon Pool Baptism!]
The shadow behind the girl flickered faintly,
then fell still.
Dragon Secret Stone.
A key item for Ye family members to enter Dragon Island.
Incredibly useful for Pokémon that could hold Dragon energy.
The Ye family never gave these to anyone outside their direct bloodline.
Young Miss had just handed him something this precious…