After Ye Mingcang left the conference room, he connected his computer to the base's main control system, overwriting all surveillance cameras in the base with virtual footage.
Then, he located each one individually and physically disconnected them from the network—literally unplugging the network cables.
At the same time, he cut off all external network access for every device he would need later, only keeping the external security surveillance of the base operational.
Afterward, he went to the treatment room, changed Beldum's held item to an Everstone, and then submerged it in the nutrient solution of the treatment pod.
When Beldum was first caught, it was already Level 16.
In the past few days, it had absorbed a large amount of top-tier Steel-type and Psychic-type energy blocks, and also consumed many rare metals.
In just four days, it had reached Level 18, almost at the peak of the Entry Class.
Once it broke through to the Superior Class, it was highly likely to evolve.
Ye Mingcang dared not let it evolve before resolving its aptitude issue.
Beldum itself was aware of this, so it had been actively suppressing the increase in its energy level.
However, Beldum had lived alone in the wild before, possessing extremely high aptitude, yet the food energy it could obtain was severely insufficient.
Ye Mingcang speculated that Beldum's decline in aptitude was likely related to this.
Therefore, in the past few days, he risked Beldum evolving by mistake and allowed it to absorb a large amount of energy.
Indeed, after Beldum entered the treatment pod, its data was as follows:
Pokémon: Beldum (Shinny)
Gender: Genderless
Category: Iron Ball Pokémon
Type: Steel/Psychic
Ability: Clear Body
Aptitude: Light Purple (Originally Dark Purple)
Level: 18 Entry Class
Held Item: Everstone
Moves:
(Self-learned) Tackle;
Shinny Trait: Fire-type move damage reduced by half!
...
The original Dark Purple aptitude further solidified Ye Mingcang's determination to solve this problem—a definite Master Class Pokémon!
Since he had encountered it, he would strive for the pinnacle with it!
According to Beldum's condition, it would need to stay in the treatment pod for at least four days.
Beldum could be said to be his greatest gain since transmigrating, even surpassing his Psychic Aura.
Ye Mingcang didn't go anywhere else but sat cross-legged beside the treatment pod.
Nidoking also walked in at this time, giving all the spoils of war to Ye Mingcang, a full large box, and then it turned and left to the training room to practice its move proficiency.
Indeed, Nidoking often went to the training room by itself.
Recalling what Ye Mingcang shamelessly told him four days ago when they first returned, Nidoking shook his head helplessly.
"Nidoking, you are already a Pokémon capable of standing on your own.
Here's your ID card; you need to learn to train yourself!"
Ye Mingcang first transferred all the points from all the point cards (including his own) to Gu Ya's card via a specific machine.
Then, he transferred all the base's shared points to Gu Ya's card as well.
Now, there were a total of 53 million Team Rockets points (1 point could be converted to 10 league currency at any time, but no one within Team Rockets would do so).
Among them, 50 million was precisely the base's operating budget for the coming year.
To say it was a lot was indeed true, equivalent to a full 500 million league currency; to say it was little was also true, considering a Team Rockets HQ only had 500 million for a year.
Ye Mingcang was still very satisfied.
He knew that even at the peak of the First Generation, there were only 4 million points on the card.
The First Generation was a mission fanatic, constantly executing missions for two years without rest.
Now, Ye Mingcang had essentially obtained over 20 years' worth of mission points in one go.
With an excited heart and trembling hands, Ye Mingcang logged into the Team Rockets point exchange website using Gu Ya's ID card via an encrypted computer.
Yes, this scoundrel used Gu Ya's point card and ID card.
In the future, when reporting the base's location, he also planned to use Gu Ya's identity.
What Gu Ya did had nothing to do with Ye Mingcang. (Gu Ya, I thank you!)
First, he searched for information regarding Pokémon aptitude, and soon he found one, authored by Dr. Fuji, titled "Methods and Ways to Improve and Enhance Pokémon Aptitude!"
Ye Mingcang immediately decided that this was it.
Dr. Fuji was Team Rockets' chief scientist, the "Father of Mewtwo"; the methods in his data were highly likely to be feasible!
Upon checking the exchange points, it was 10 million, indeed, 10 million points!
However, thinking about it, data concerning Pokémon aptitude, even for the League, was top secret!
If he weren't in Team Rockets, let alone 100 million league currency, even 1 billion wouldn't buy it, because others simply wouldn't sell it!
He clicked exchange, and the data was sent to Ye Mingcang's computer in one second.
One could only say it was worthy of Team Rockets.
Ye Mingcang initially thought it should be a physical copy, which would be harder to hack, but then he realized that Team Rockets' technological level was far Superior to the League's, so he was relieved.
Clicking to view, the content wasn't extensive, just a dozen short pages, and the content wasn't complex, but it was the conclusion derived from countless experiments.
The basic principle was simple: the period of change for each form of a Pokémon was also the best time to alter its aptitude.
Form change, as the name implied, was before a Pokémon egg hatched and every time a Pokémon evolved.
During a form change (the entire hatching process of a Pokémon egg was considered a form change), providing a large amount of corresponding type energy, the higher the energy level, the higher the degree and probability of aptitude improvement.
Energy could come from top-tier energy blocks, type gems, ites, type treasures, type origins, type divine items, etc.
According to Dr. Fuji's description, a large amount of top-tier energy blocks had a small chance to improve a Pokémon's aptitude.
When absorbing higher-level energy, simultaneously providing a large amount of top-tier energy blocks had a certain auxiliary effect.
As for how much constituted a large amount, Dr. Fuji also provided a clear standard: providing an unlimited supply for the Pokémon to absorb until it could no longer absorb the energy from top-tier energy blocks, reaching the so-called large amount.
At the same time, in Dr. Fuji's data, he also pointed out that normally absorbing high-level type energy could only slowly improve a Pokémon's aptitude, unless there was origin-level or divine-item-level energy, which might improve a Pokémon's aptitude without a form change.
Regarding dual-type Pokémon, Dr. Fuji also explained that the energy of the first type had a more significant benefit for improving a Pokémon's aptitude.
As for potential energy imbalance, it was not a particularly serious problem and could be gradually resolved by increasing the proportion of top-tier energy blocks.
Ye Mingcang felt that the 10 million points were well spent.
Although it seemed simple, without this data, who would be determined to invest a large amount of resources to gamble on that probability during a Pokémon's evolution?
But with this data, Ye Mingcang felt that every one of his main Pokémon, every time, should be gambled on with all his might!
If it succeeded, they would soar; if it failed, it would just be considered an increase in the Pokémon's energy level, merely a waste of some resources.
As he thought, Ye Mingcang sighed softly, the data still came a bit late, his old partner Nidoking missed out.
Never mind, at worst, after becoming Master Class, he would go and fight Groudon; its armor fragments would definitely be the top-tier Ground-type divine items.
Although Dr. Fuji's data only proposed methods for improvement, one could think in reverse.
Beldum's aptitude drop was related to the loss of its origin, and it would probably only be possible to find Steel-type origins or Steel-type divine items.
As for Psychic-type ones, if he encountered them, he would count them; if not, he wouldn't force it.
To solve Beldum's problem, Ye Mingcang had thought of three methods, but unexpectedly, after only using one, he was close to the truth.
The other two didn't need to be tried, to avoid further complications.
Ye Mingcang even thought that the reason Beldum's initial aptitude was so high was likely because its parents had nurtured it with their origin while its Pokémon egg was still hatching.
However, after hatching, it was ostracized by its Family due to its unusual color and could not obtain enough energy, which led to the decline in aptitude.
Ye Mingcang guessed most of it correctly; the only thing he hadn't thought of was how the offspring of an ordinary Metagross could have such aptitude.
His Shinny Beldum's parents were the leaders of the Metagross Family.
It wasn't ostracized; it simply got lost and couldn't find its way back.
There were still 43 million points left, and the points definitely had to be spent all at once, because Ye Mingcang didn't know when Team Rockets would discover that there was a problem with the Sinnoh base.
Thinking that energy blocks, if properly stored in a spatial backpack, would be fine for several years, he directly spent 2.1 million points to exchange for Nidoking's top-tier energy blocks for the next three years, 3 million points for Beldum's rations for the next three years, and 10 million points for a large quantity of high-grade ores that the Metagross Family could absorb, as these ores were not easy to buy outside.
Later, he thought, he might as well exchange for a year's supply of the remaining 14 types of top-tier energy blocks, just in case, spending nearly another 10 million points.
Besides energy blocks, essential Pokémon items also included TMs.
Ye Mingcang simply exchanged for 6 copies of each TM that could be redeemed, feeling like he was stocking up, spending 7 million points.
With 11 million points remaining, Ye Mingcang began to look at the redeemable Pokémon.
To reach the threshold of the Master Class, the minimum starting aptitude had to be blue, but unfortunately, blue aptitude Pokémon were extremely rare, even in Team Rockets.
Ye Mingcang directly set to view blue aptitude Pokémon, and according to Dr. Fuji, Pokémon eggs were best!
This would give one more chance to improve aptitude than a hatched Pokémon.
In the vast Team Rockets exchange list, there were only three pitiful options:
(1) Nidoran♀ (Egg), light blue aptitude, other information unknown, required points 15 million.
(2) Rhyhorn (Egg), light blue aptitude, other information unknown, required points 15 million.
(3) Rookidee (Egg), light blue aptitude, other information unknown, required points 11 million.
"The first two are clearly descendants of Boss Sakaki's Pokémon, quite possibly siblings of my old partner.
The third is a regional bird, and according to the Second Generation, no one even wants regional birds... Wait! ... Rookidee?
Isn't this the juvenile form of a steel battleship!
After evolving, it becomes a cool Corviknight, with amazingly high resistances, only two 2x weaknesses.
I just don't know what its ability is.
It seems that current Pokémon world technology cannot detect the ability of the Pokémon inside, it would be great if I could take a close look.
Never mind, better safe than sorry, this is it!"
He chose to exchange for it and swapped the Dark-type and Normal-type energy blocks from before for Flying and Steel.
After all, Ye Mingcang felt he had no affinity with these two types of Pokémon, and if he really encountered them in the future, he could just buy them from the League mall or the black market.
The points were spent, and the exchanged items would be delivered by Team Rockets' Delibird, which would take about three days.
This was just right, as Beldum also needed three more days in the treatment pod.