Chapter 10: Chance Encounter
Chenxi silently watched Floette's comprehension of Water Type. This kind of thing naturally wasn't an overnight success, and it could even fall into a deadlock for a long time.
Compared to other Small Elves, Floette taking this path was much more convenient.
The key to this was the two inherited skills of Floette: Protect and Mimic.
It was the existence of these two skills that made Chenxi determined to take this path.
After all, compared to other Small Elves who purely rely on their comprehension to understand other attributes, Floette can master other attribute skills through Mimic, and change the attribute of the corresponding environment through Protect.
Combining the two, at least comprehending the corresponding attribute of Awakening Power is not a flower in the mirror, or the moon in the water.
But for each attribute comprehended, the Small Elves' ability to finely control energy needs to go up another level.
Because the comprehended attribute ultimately needs the skill Awakening Power as a host to exist.
This requires the Small Elves to have extremely strong control over Awakening Power, otherwise, it might cause an imbalance of power.
Not to mention self-recoil, but if Awakening Power cannot bear the load and collapses, everything will have to start from scratch.
Therefore, if the Small Elves' control over power is not up to standard, it will also prevent the Small Elves from continuing to comprehend new attributes.
After about two hours, Floette's Mimicked Water Gun skill naturally lost its effect because Floette's stamina was almost depleted.
At the same time, Floette also shed its Protect, flying out of the water on a Fairy Wind, and landing on Chenxi's shoulder.
During the flight, the Fairy Wind carried away all the water.
Compared to Turtwig, Floette's training for the day was almost over.
Chenxi's training requirements for Floette were not high; she just did some exercises daily to maintain her condition, and then focused on Awakening Power.
There were no other additional training sessions, just trying to store some power in the gracidea flower, allowing it to participate in Quasi-Heavenly King battles in another way.
Awakening Power, besides persistent grinding, relies more on destiny and comprehension, so Chenxi didn't force Floette.
After all, as his initial Pokémon, even if it wasn't strong, it was still great for being cute.
As Floette's training ended, the sun in the sky rose little by little.
Chenxi packed his things and said to Turtwig with a smile, “Today's workout is about to begin!”
“Le’er~”
Turtwig responded weakly at this moment but still trotted behind the bicycle Chenxi was riding.
This time, Chenxi only rode about fifteen kilometers before stopping.
Turtwig was still panting, but at least it didn't collapse directly.
After all, Chenxi knew roughly where Turtwig's physical limit was yesterday, so he could control this standard.
Ultimately, repeatedly pushing a living being's limits is a very dangerous thing.
Perhaps this could indeed rapidly make Turtwig's stamina grow by leaps and bounds, but it would also leave Turtwig with hidden injuries that even Chenxi might not be able to predict.
So, at Turtwig's stage, gradually exercising its stamina is enough.
This time, not long after Chenxi arrived at this camping spot, lit a campfire, set up a tent, and arranged a perimeter.
A middle-aged man brought a girl who seemed slightly older than Chenxi here.
However, considering that girls mature earlier than boys at this age, it's possible that this girl, who looks a bit taller than me, isn't necessarily older than me!
The middle-aged man looked at the campfire Chenxi had lit, with a hint of shyness, but still asked Chenxi, “Little brother, can we share this campfire today?”
Chenxi sized up the man in front of him. The man was quite muscular, but his complexion was somewhat sallow and dark, with blue-gray hair and silver pupils. If this were the Naruto world, Chenxi might even suspect he had a Sharingan.
What caught Chenxi's attention most were his fingernails, which seemed to be worn down almost to the flesh, with a layer of dark marks on them.
However, it was getting dark, and Chenxi couldn't see very clearly.
“Of course, this place is for travelers passing by!”
Chenxi gave a hearty laugh, revealing eight pearly white teeth, making himself appear quite harmless, at least.
“Then we apologize for the intrusion!” The middle-aged man, hearing Chenxi's words, smiled shyly and thanked Chenxi.
Then the middle-aged man summoned a level 28 Machoke to help him set up the tent.
It must be said that Machoke, this kind of muscular Pokémon, is much better than ordinary Pokémon at physical labor.
Afterward, the middle-aged man did not proactively engage Chenxi in conversation, nor did Chenxi say much to the middle-aged man.
Instead, Chenxi summoned Floette, set up a Grassy Terrain around his tent, and at the same time, had Turtwig quietly plant Leech Seed in the surrounding area of the Grassy Terrain.
Although Chenxi felt that this person should just be an ordinary person, at most a worker who moved bricks and dug mines.
And the blue-haired, silver-eyed little girl next to him looked like his daughter, and she was quite delicate.
But who knows if this world is as abnormal as the Ancient Dragon world? Maybe this ordinary person is some hidden BOSS. It's never wrong to be a little careful.
However, when the little girl saw the Turtwig that Chenxi had summoned, she said to the man with a hint of surprise, “Dad, look, it’s a Turtwig! Can we catch a Turtwig this time?”
The middle-aged man's expression changed slightly when he saw Chenxi's Turtwig. As an adult, he naturally knew the value of the starter Pokémon.
A twelve or thirteen-year-old boy owning a Turtwig, which is at least quite rare in ordinary families, though he didn't know Chenxi's background, he figured he must be either rich or noble, completely unrelated to ordinary people like himself.
And hearing the little girl's words, the middle-aged man's face showed some difficulty.
If he could get a Turtwig, then he wouldn't have to come all the way here to catch wild Small Elves.
“The relationship between Pokémon and humans isn't just about catching or not catching…” Chenxi, after setting up the perimeter, happened to hear the little girl's words and, being bored, started to trick her, “It's about fate.”
“Fate?” The little girl turned her head slightly to look, asking Chenxi with a hint of confusion.
Chenxi said, “The encounter between humans and Small Elves, that is an unspeakable fate.”
For example, my encounter with Turtwig, for example, my encounter with you, these are all fate.
Therefore, there will definitely be a Small Elf that belongs to you, destined to meet you.
At that time, you will find that the relationship between Small Elves and humans is a fated connection.
The little girl listened to Chenxi's words, her face full of bewilderment, feeling as if it made a lot of sense.
But did Chenxi say anything? The little girl thought back, feeling her mind was blank, as if Chenxi hadn't said anything at all.
She just felt that this older brother was very handsome, so his words must be very reasonable.
In reality, Chenxi himself had completely forgotten what he said after he finished speaking.
Because it was all nonsense.
However, it was just boredom during the journey, and seeing someone talking, he just chimed in a few words to pass the time.
At this moment, the middle-aged man thanked Chenxi.
At least Chenxi's words diverted the little girl's attention, temporarily solving his problem.
Otherwise, not getting Turtwig was a small matter, but disappointing his daughter was a big deal for the middle-aged man.
The two opened up a conversation, chatting idly.
After all, although Chenxi looked like a child on the outside, his thinking was no different from an adult's. He quickly and subtly extracted a lot of information, clarifying the background of the two: a miner from the Black Metal Carbon Pit and his daughter.
Apparently, the middle-aged man didn't have much guard against Chenxi, after all, he hadn't read Gu Long's novels.
“Are you here on Route 206 to find a starter Pokémon?” Chenxi asked.
“Yes, to find a suitable starter Pokémon for Xiaoju!” The little girl said proudly when she heard Chenxi's words.
“A starter Pokémon?” Chenxi paused slightly, pondering, “Generally speaking, Grass Type and Water Type Small Elves are more suitable for girls to raise. The former is easier to raise, and the latter is easier to care for.”
Chenxi thought for a moment and then said, “And because this area is close to Eterna City, some Small Elves from near Eternal Forest occasionally get lost or migrate to Route 206.”
At the same time, because it is close to the Mt. Coronet branch, some Small Elves seeking refuge from the cold come here.
So, on Route 206, although the density of Small Elves is not high.
But the types of Small Elves are quite numerous, it's just that encountering what is a matter of great fate!
“Little brother, you seem to know Route 206 very well…” The middle-aged man said, looking at Chenxi.
“I've only seen it in textbooks!” Chenxi replied to the middle-aged man, “I have no practical experience.”
The middle-aged man, upon hearing Chenxi's words, became even more respectful, and his gaze towards Chenxi changed.
It's a simple truth: the middle-aged man was illiterate, or rather, the illiteracy rate in the entire Sinnoh region was not 99.9%, but at least 99%.
This is unavoidable. Not to mention the extremely low barrier but very popular professions like Pokémon Trainer and Spirit Hunter, being literate or illiterate, at least for the bottom-level commoners, doesn't really have a big impact.
Especially in Sinnoh, a quasi-feudal social system constructed by divine power and aristocratic organizations, literacy is even more a privilege of nobles or Elite Trainers.
Because if you can't read, you won't understand a Pokémon secret manual even if given one.
But for ordinary commoners, they don't have enough foresight to try reading, nor do they have enough ability to support a nearly unproductive scholar.
After all, they are already doing their best just to survive.
Even if a family is slightly affluent, the vast majority of commoners choose not to send their children to school, but rather to try their best to help them acquire a Small Elf with sufficient potential.
Because in the eyes of most commoners, reading does not directly bring financial income; instead, it is a money-llosing endeavor.
On the contrary, becoming a Pokémon Trainer or a Spirit Hunter is a clear upward channel.
However, after these people, by chance, become Elite Trainers, knowledge and written words will become a new bottleneck that traps them.
This requires them to learn to read.
Therefore, although many people in this world are illiterate, this world highly respects scholars.
Because these people possess knowledge, and in this world, knowledge is power, not just a slogan.
“That…” The middle-aged man hesitated slightly, seeing the little girl looking at Turtwig with a longing expression, and said to Chenxi, “I wonder if you are in a hurry for your next journey, little brother.”
If you have free time, I hope to hire you for a day.
Just one day, I wonder if it's possible.
“Oh?” Chenxi was slightly taken aback, but looked at the middle-aged man with curiosity.
“I want to choose the best possible Small Elf for Xiaoju. You are a scholar, so you must know more than a crude person like me.”
The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, then sincerely said, “I will pay you for this day.”
“As for payment, forget it! After all, we met by chance.” Chenxi smiled slightly, “However, if possible, I hope Big Brother can help me arrange a visit to the Black Metal Carbon Pit once. What do you think?”
Through the previous probing, Chenxi already knew that the middle-aged man in front of him was a worker in the Black Gold Carbon Pit, and also a team leader.
So, arranging for him to go down to the Black Metal Carbon Pit next time should not be a difficult task.
“This…” Hearing Chenxi's words, the middle-aged man's face couldn't help but show some hesitation.
Chenxi smiled and said, “I'm mainly going to the Black Metal Carbon Pit to see the unique Small Elves there.”
But as a twelve-year-old child, it's naturally impossible for me to just go down there.
So, please help me, how about it?
The middle-aged man hesitated slightly after hearing Chenxi's words, but looking at Xiaoju, he nodded and said, “Okay!”
Chenxi smiled slightly when he saw the middle-aged man agree, at least this matter was resolved.
If Chenxi revealed his identity as the direct descendant of the Yuan Family, it would indeed not be difficult to go down to the Black Metal Carbon Pit.
But Chenxi's main purpose in going down to the Black Metal Carbon Pit was to enable Floette to comprehend the Ground Type or Rock Type Awakening attribute.
He couldn't possibly just blurt out his Small Elf's training situation like that.
Of course, the biggest reason is that the Black Metal Carbon Pit in Oreburgh City is an industry of the Ju family.
Although the current person in charge is East Steel, who came from Qiefeng Academy (also translated as Donggua, but that name is really too lame), the vast majority of shares are still held by the Ju family.
So, in the Ju family's territory, Chenxi felt it was better to keep a low profile.
He also had no intention of causing trouble in the Ju family's territory; he just wanted to quietly let Floette comprehend the Ground or Rock attribute of Awakening Power at the bottom of the Black Gold Carbon Pit.
Throughout Sinnoh, the Black Metal Carbon Pit should be the most suitable place to comprehend these two attributes.
Anyway, he would definitely not do anything to cause trouble.
So, Chenxi looked up at the middle-aged man in front of him again, thinking to himself, this is indeed a very good intermediary.
However, the middle-aged man couldn't help but shiver when he saw Chenxi observing him.
It must be getting dark, so it's a bit cold, right…