Watching as Mew gradually flew out of his sight and headed toward the top of the Ancient Giant Tree, it didn't take long before it completely disappeared from view.
Julian withdrew his gaze and opened Celebi's Poké Ball.
He didn't really have a choice—this little guy was already using its own rule-based powers to try and break free from the Poké Ball.
Celebi: "That b*tch—where's that b*tch?!"
As soon as it came out, Celebi whirled around, scanning the area for any sign of Mew. But the Mythical Pokémon was long gone.
"I sent it away," Julian said, trying to calm Celebi down. "It wanted to stay with me, but I told it that might upset you—so I asked it to leave."
He comforted Celebi like coaxing an angry Persian with puffed-up fur.
Julian couldn't help feeling a little smug—seems like he still held a pretty important place in Celebi's heart. It was scared he'd spoil Mew and neglect it.
Who knew Celebi had such a competitive streak?
Celebi looked around again but still couldn't see Mew. And being easy to fool, its furious expression softened noticeably after hearing Julian's explanation.
Celebi: "Then why did you put me back in the Poké Ball just now?"
Julian: 'Hah, not completely dumb after all.'
"I was afraid you'd start a fight with Mew and end up hurting it. After all, it gave us all those treasures—it wouldn't be right to injure it after that."
Celebi nodded solemnly, then flexed its tiny fists with pride.
Celebi: "Hmph. Lucky it ran fast. Otherwise, I'd have knocked it out in two punches."
This thing really didn't know its own limits. Celebi wasn't even at the Pseudo-Champion level, while Mew was a bona fide First-class Legendary. If Mew got serious, it could probably pin Celebi down with one finger.
Meanwhile, the rest of Julian's Poké Balls were shaking violently—his team could sense the mountain of treasures nearby, and even seasoned veterans like them (who were used to seeing rare items) couldn't stay calm.
So, Julian simply released all of his Pokémon at once.
Out of the seven Ultimate treasures, the Glossy Ganoderma and the Ambrosia weren't intended for Pokémon—these were best used on humans. Their value for Pokémon was much lower.
So that left only five usable Ultimate treasures.
And with more than a dozen Pokémon under Julian's care, distributing those five items wisely became the main challenge.
Still, based on the properties of the treasures and the abilities of his Pokémon, Julian had already made up his mind about who would get what.
"Kartana, this one's for you."
Julian handed the Grass-type treasure the Minor Nature Core to Kartana. This item could only show its full potential when used by a Grass-type Pokémon, and Julian had only two of those: Kartana and Celebi.
Kartana had been with Julian for quite a while and had received many good resources along the way—but it had never once gotten an Ultimate treasure like this.
Looking at all of Julian's main Pokémon, the only one that hadn't received an Ultimate treasure yet was Kartana.
So now that he had a Grass-type Ultimate treasure, it was only natural that it went to Kartana.
As for Celebi? Well, it already had its fried chicken—that was treasure enough.
Kartana: "Since you're offering it to me, I suppose I'll accept it… reluctantly."
This guy was still as tsundere as ever.
After consuming the Minor Nature Core, Kartana's level instantly jumped from 77 to 79. Every Ultimate treasure shared one common trait: they raised a Pokémon's level.
However, compared to other effects—like improving foundations, enhancing potential, or boosting move power—level gains were actually the least valuable.
After all, levels could be grinded with enough resources and time. But improving a Pokémon's core stats, aptitude, or move strength took rare and special items far beyond the reach of normal means.
The second Ultimate treasure, Stone Marrow, went to Tyranitar.
As one of Julian's future dual-wall cores, the gap between Tyranitar and Aggron's levels was still too wide. It needed to catch up fast.
Stone Marrow's main effect was accelerated growth—but not in the sense of forced development. Rather, it sped up the Pokémon's absorption of energy.
If Tyranitar's usual energy absorption efficiency was a 2, then after consuming the Stone Marrow, it could jump to 3—or even 6, with luck.
The treasure was only about the size of a fist. In front of the massive Totem-class Tyranitar, it wasn't even enough to wedge between its teeth.
After swallowing the Stone Marrow, Tyranitar immediately felt hungry—faster energy absorption also meant increased consumption, including more food intake.
So going forward, Tyranitar's appetite would grow several times larger, and Aggron might finally meet its match when it came to devouring food.
Its level also skyrocketed from 55 to 61, breaking into the pseudo-Elite tier. Lower-leveled Pokémon reaped greater immediate gains.
"Aggron, the Heart of Steel is yours."
Aggron had the strongest defense among Julian's Pokémon and had always been nurtured as his ultimate shield.
The Heart of Steel's effect: 70% immunity to a fatal blow the first time, and 35% the second time, halving with each subsequent attempt.
It perfectly matched Aggron's tank role—used right, it wouldn't just save its life, it could even turn the tide of battle.
Maybe one day, Aggron would really become unkillable.
However knowing Julian's usual luck… it would probably trigger just once.
After consuming Heart of Steel, Aggron's level rose from 81 to 82.
Then came the fire-type Ultimate treasure, Triple Flame.
Julian stared at it, hesitating.
Arcanine: "Master, give that one to me!"
Moltres: "Stupid dog, you already got an Ultimate treasure last time. This one's mine."
Arcanine bared its fangs: "Last time was last time. I don't care."
Moltres: "I'll peck you to death."
Arcanine: "I'll bite you to death."
Watching the bird and the dog about to fight again, Julian sighed helplessly.
"Cut it out, or I'll just catch another Fire-type and give this thing to it instead."
In an instant, the dumb bird and the silly dog both froze.
They were already exhausted competing with each other. If a third Fire-type joined the mix…
They looked at each other, a silent understanding passing between them.
Arcanine: "If a third one shows up, we team up and murder it."
Moltres: "Agreed."
Julian roared: "I can understand what you're saying, you know!"
"Triple Flame goes to Moltres. Arcanine, you'll get the next Ultimate treasure," Julian declared.
Arcanine: "I'm going to bite this overgrown chicken right now."
Moltres (smugly): "So you're not going to listen to Master anymore?"
Julian had thought it through before choosing Moltres.
It had already consumed the Blaze Stone, which had doubled the power of its Flamethrower.
Now, the Triple Flame had a 50% chance of doubling the power of a Fire-type move, and a 30% chance to triple it.
If those effects stacked with the already-doubled Flamethrower, it could reach 4x or even 6x damage—enough to injure a Champion-level opponent in one hit.
So giving it to Moltres really was the best decision.
As for Arcanine… hmm… Julian could just take it to the dog park a few extra times.
Dogs were pretty easy to coax, after all.
*****
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