Under Arcanine's pitiful gaze—the kind that screamed "Master, you don't love me anymore"—Moltres swallowed the Triple Flame in one gulp.
Moltres: "Absolutely delicious. I can feel myself getting stronger—my level just went from 85 to 86."
The words were spoken quite loudly, clearly meant for Arcanine to hear.
Julian had just barely managed to calm Arcanine down when Moltres's taunt sent the fiery dog into a frenzy again. Julian quickly grabbed Arcanine's tail, or else the mutt would've started a brawl with the bird on the spot.
Moltres: "Stupid dog, I can knock you flat with just one move now."
Arcanine: "Master, let me go! I'm gonna bite that thing to death!"
Moltres: "Master, let it go! Let's see if it can bite me to death, or if I peck it to death first!"
Arcanine grew even angrier, and Julian realized he was barely holding it back—in fact, he was now being dragged forward by Arcanine.
With no other choice, Julian recalled both troublemakers into their Poké Balls with a weary sigh.
"Meta~"
Metagross: "Is it my turn now?"
Now, only the final Ultimate treasure remained—Blood of the Gods.
[Blood of the Gods: A crystallized remnant of the blood shed during the War of the Gods. When used, it enhances a Pokémon's potential. (Only usable by Pokémon with Purple-grade potential.)]
Just from the description alone, it was obvious this thing had an extraordinary origin.
It was about the size of a palm, a golden crystal that looked like some kind of gemstone—but was in fact crystallized divine essence.
Its sole function was to elevate a Pokémon's potential—but only those already at the Purple-grade could use it.
Among Julian's team, the Purple-grade Pokémon had grown from just Metagross to now include Melmetal, Dragonite, Gengar, and Tyranitar—five in total.
The rest of his main team were all Blue-grade, but it was only a matter of time before they advanced to Purple.
Of these five Purple-grade Pokémon, Metagross and Gengar had the highest potential.
Metagross's Purple-grade potential was already one-third Gold, while Gengar's was about one-fourth. Melmetal, Dragonite, and Tyranitar, however, showed no traces of Gold yet.
Naturally, Julian gave the Blood of the Gods to Metagross.
After consuming it, Metagross's potential didn't immediately change—it would need time to fully absorb it.
But Julian had a strong hunch: once Metagross fully digested it, its potential might very well turn completely Gold.
With the five Ultimate treasures now distributed, the remaining hundred or so treasures—slightly inferior but still immensely valuable—could be classified as Sub-Ultimate Treasures.
These, Julian allocated to the rest of his team who hadn't received an Ultimate treasure.
Among these hundred-plus sub-Ultimate treasures, there were items corresponding to all eighteen types, and even some that humans could use.
After distribution, about thirty treasures remained—mostly those that didn't match anyone's type.
Each Pokémon received two or three items on average, while the lucky ones got five, like the "child of fortune" Gengar.
That guy walked away with five sub-Ultimate treasures—three Ghost-type and two Poison-type—worth almost as much as two full Ultimate treasures combined.
That guy's luck was truly unmatched.
Meanwhile, its fellow Ghost-type, Aegislash, received one Ghost-type and one Steel-type sub-Ultimate treasure.
After being showered with so many treasures by Mew, Julian had completely lost interest in further exploring the Ancient Great Tree.
Besides, the Regi trio was still watching him intently.
The three Legendary titans were practically green with envy. Among the treasures, many would have suited them perfectly—consuming those would undoubtedly boost their strength significantly.
For wild Pokémon like them, gaining even a single level could take decades, if not centuries. But with treasures like these, they could cut that time drastically.
Unfortunately, Lord Mew had given them to the human.
If it weren't for that, they might've already gone up to snatch them.
---
"The environment here is nice. Let's set up camp for the night."
It was already past 3 PM, and while there was still some time before dusk, Julian had no intention of continuing the exploration.
His Pokémon nodded in agreement. Having consumed several treasures, they needed time to digest them.
Besides, the natural energy around the Ancient Great Tree was incredibly dense—a place they all loved.
Pokémon that stayed here for extended periods would see gradual improvements in their potential. For humans, it meant immunity to illness and prolonged lifespan.
In short, areas rich in natural energy were blessed lands, beneficial to all living beings.
Julian released Arcanine and Moltres again.
He placed three Fire-type sub-Ultimate treasures in front of Arcanine.
"I already gave Moltres one earlier, so here's three for you. That's more than it got."
He patted Arcanine's big head. The dog was still a little sulky, its tail stiff with displeasure—clearly in need of some coaxing.
'Three?!'
Arcanine stared at the treasures, its mood lifting instantly.
Though sub-Ultimate treasures weren't as potent as the real deal, they were still highly attractive to Pokémon.
Sure enough, Moltres's eyes were already drifting toward them. Even though it knew these three weren't as good as the Triple Flame it had devoured earlier, but good things were still good—and the temptation was strong.
Noticing Moltres's gaze, Arcanine proudly spread out its three treasures in front of it.
Arcanine: "Stupid bird, Master loves me the most. I've got three—you only got one."
Its tail immediately started wagging happily.
Moltres: "Your three can't even compare to my one."
Arcanine: "I got three."
Moltres: "Mine was a Fire-type Ultimate treasure."
Arcanine: "I got three."
Moltres: "The Triple Flames enhance the power of all my Fire-type moves!"
Arcanine: "I got three."
Moltres: "Other than quantity, what else do you have?!"
Arcanine: "I got three."
Moltres: "I'm gonna burn you to ashes."
Watching the two clowns bicker again, Julian decided not to recall them this time. He could tell they were just messing around—no real fight would break out.
Leaving them be, he turned to Slowking.
"Slowking, let's have a barbecue tonight. It's been a while since we had one."
The last time they had barbecue was only three days ago.
Slowking: "…Alright."
Under Julian's pleading gaze, Slowking reluctantly agreed.
If it had been Indeedee in charge, even if Julian got on his knees, it wouldn't have agreed.
Though both Pokémon loved bossing Julian around, there was still a difference.
The moment Slowking agreed, Julian immediately pulled out all the barbecue ingredients and equipment from his system space.
"Slow~"
Slowking: "Garchomp, Lucario, come with me to find some fresh berries."
There were bound to be berry trees around the Ancient Giant Tree—ones nurtured by its dense natural energy. Making juice from them would undoubtedly taste amazing.
The two Pokémon quickly followed Slowking's lead.
The rest of the team either relaxed or chatted among themselves.
*****
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