In recent days, online news and social media have been buzzing with praise for the Xia family's heroic deeds. Xia Luo, Xishu Province's youngest near-Heavenly King trainer, was being hailed as a heroic model, with calls for others to follow his example. The bounty on Xu Xiu had also been increased.
Life in Xingguang City was gradually returning to normal, though the streets were now filled with out-of-town vehicles. Clearly, many were drawn by the newly discovered secret realm, eager to claim a share of its opportunities—whether through real estate speculation or securing construction projects. The realm's development was set to spark a boom in industries, particularly real estate. Xingguang City's housing prices had been rising daily.
The Xia family's 20% priority purchase rights for the secret realm's shares were a golden ticket. The realm's value was immense—despite the high initial investment, its long-term profitability was nearly guaranteed, making it a no-lose venture. Normally, the Gym Leader of the city hosting a secret realm would receive only a 10% share priority, but due to the heroic efforts of the Xia family's two Gym Leaders, their share was doubled to 20%.
This secret realm, the only Grass- and Bug-type dual-attribute realm in Xishu Province, was uniquely valuable, its potential profits evident to all.
As of today, three groups had approached the Xia family, offering to buy their priority purchase rights. Not only were their offers exorbitant, but the groups were backed by powerful figures. The weakest had at least two near-Heavenly King trainers, while the other two each had a Heavenly King trainer—though these were unnamed Heavenly Kings, possessing the strength but lacking an official title.
In the entire Southwest Region, only four Heavenly King trainers held official titles—the four strongest, known as the Four Heavenly Kings.
Li Yunyao was one such titled Heavenly King. Had Xu Xiu not turned traitor, he would have been an unnamed Heavenly King. The gap between the two was vast. Any trainer with a single Heavenly King-tier Pokémon could be called a Heavenly King trainer, but titled Heavenly Kings like Li Yunyao typically commanded entire teams of Heavenly King-tier Pokémon, including at least one pseudo-legendary.
In a real fight, Xu Xiu wouldn't stand a chance against Li Yunyao, which is why he fled so quickly.
The issue of the secret realm shares had left Xia Yong deeply worried. He was reluctant to relinquish the shares but feared the Xia family lacked the strength to hold onto such a large stake. The stress was turning his hair white.
Xia Yu, lacking the status or strength to get involved in the share purchase, couldn't participate. Instead, he'd been busy training his two Pokémon. Treecko, ever diligent, required little oversight and was progressing rapidly, having already learned the Detect move. Noibat, still young and growing, was developing more slowly but within a normal range.
"Xia Yu." Xia Luo's voice came from outside.
"Coming, Brother." Xia Yu opened the door to find Xia Luo, who, after days of rest and the engagement, looked in good spirits, having emerged from the shadow of recent events.
Xia Luo held the box containing the Thunder Stone and handed it solemnly to Xia Yu. "Xia Yu, keep this Thunder Stone. I thought it over, and I'm not suited for training Electric-types. I still prefer Fire-types. This stone's no use to me—you take it."
"Brother, I gave it to you. It's yours." Xia Yu refused. The Thunder Stone was of little use to him since his mission required training Dragon-types. Unless he caught an Alolan Raichu or Ampharos, the stone would be useless.
"Xia Yu!" Xia Luo's tone turned stern. "Listen to me. I'm a near-Heavenly King trainer with some savings. This Thunder Stone will only distract me from my path to becoming a Fire-type Heavenly King! If you don't take it, I won't bring you along to pick a Pokémon today."
"Brother."
…
In the end, to ensure he could help Xia Luo choose a high-potential Pokémon, Xia Yu relented and took back the S-tier Thunder Stone. After all the back-and-forth, it ended up in his hands again.
The two set out, riding Flying-type Pokémon to Xishu Province's Flame Secret Realm, the province's flagship realm and its largest. Home to numerous rare Fire-type Pokémon, it housed nearly every Fire-type starter found in the Hua Nation.
Located in the provincial capital, Tiandu City, the Flame Secret Realm was heavily restricted. As they approached, a trainer on a Flying-type Pokémon signaled them to land, indicating they'd entered the no-fly zone.
"We're here," Xia Luo said, familiar with the place. Xia Yu had visited once before but lacked clearance for the core areas. "This is your second time, right?"
"Yeah." Xia Yu nodded. The last time was when he was ten, brought by his father to choose his first Pokémon.
The Flame Secret Realm was vast, its grand entrance exuding opulence. Vehicles lined up in long queues at the gate.
This time, they didn't need to wait, taking a dedicated VIP passage that required only a security check.
"Xia Luo, Xia Yu. You're cleared to enter."
Walking through a glass corridor with heat-resistant windows, they could see numerous Fire-type Pokémon within the realm.
"This is just the outer area. The Pokémon here have limited potential," Xia Luo explained. "The core areas are the Fire Mountain, Sunlit Valley, Blazing Jungle, and Inferno Plains. The outer area is like a showcase for lower-potential Pokémon."
Lower-potential was relative—these Pokémon were still far stronger than most wild ones.
"Fire Mountain is home to Pokémon like Numel, Magcargo, and Magmortar, which thrive in high heat. Rumor has it the Flame Secret Realm plans to introduce Litleo and Turtonator."
"Sunlit Valley has Charizard, Typhlosion, Darmanitan, and Volcarona."
"Blazing Jungle is where you'll find Blaziken, Infernape, Talonflame, and Pyroar."
"Inferno Plains hosts Houndoom, Arcanine, and Rapidash. Two years ago, they introduced a Paldean Tauros Blaze Breed population, and this year, they've bred Paldean Tauros Blaze Breed eggs."
As a former Fire-type Gym Leader, Xia Luo kept close tabs on the Flame Secret Realm, rattling off its Pokémon distributions like a guide for Xia Yu.
"Let's check out Inferno Plains first." Compared to his old Pokémon, Xia Luo was more intrigued by the newly introduced Paldean TaurosBlaze Breed. As they walked, he chatted with Xia Yu. "I really like some of the unique Fire-types from Paldea, like Scovillain. Both its evolutions are strong—Capsakid's Grass/Fire typing is unique. Shame we don't have them here."
"I'm partial to Charizard, Blaziken, and Houndoom," Xia Yu said deliberately. Charizard, Blaziken, and Houndoom could all Mega Evolve. Once Mega Evolution became public, their value would skyrocket, especially Charizard and Blaziken.
"We'll see." Xia Luo sighed. One of his fallen Pokémon was a Blaziken, and training another would bring back memories of their time together. "Let's look at the Paldean Tauros Blaze Breed eggs first."