Chapter 171: Rapid Growth
"Saur~ Saur~"
The unique training method of Excadrill and Lileep left not only the young Basalt but also the ancient Mega Venusaur completely stunned. It was a mix of surprise and a little bit of envy.
And so... Excadrill was also brought into the Mega Venusaur's tutelage, and it began to teach it how to properly utilize Grass-type energy.
This left Bronzor blinking its single eye, completely at a loss.
"This is awkward," Basalt thought with a wry smile, looking at his neglected Pokémon. Bronzor clearly wanted the master's guidance as well, but the Mega Venusaur had no interest in it. The battle prodigy Bronzor was on the verge of another existential crisis.
"It's okay, it's okay," Basalt said, trying to console it. "I still have that 'Substitute' Tutor Manual for you. You can start learning it whenever you want. With your talent, I'm sure you'll master it in no time."
Since the Mega Venusaur was showing favoritism, Basalt would just have to show some favoritism of his own to even things out.
"I'm fine!" Bronzor's telepathic voice shot back, a clear note of defiance in its tone. "I can learn on my own without its guidance. The Substitute manual can wait. I'm going to master Solar Beam first."
"Alright, then. Just be careful," Basalt nodded. The Substitute manual could be studied anytime. With the current benefits of Sunny Day and Grassy Terrain, it was best to take full advantage of them.
And so, after a short break, the three Pokémon resumed their training.
A month flew by. With diligent training every day, the strength of Basalt's three Pokémon grew at a tremendous rate.
First was Excadrill. It had now mastered Hidden Power. Normally, with its weak Special Attack and minimal affinity for the Grass-type, the move should have been quite weak. But since most of the Grass energy it possessed had been "freeloaded" from Lileep, the energy was incredibly pure, making the final attack nearly as powerful as one of its native-type moves.
In addition to Hidden Power, Excadrill had spent a great deal of time on the Substitute manual. It could now create a basic substitute, though it was nowhere near as solid as its Double Team clones and still needed a lot of work.
Next was Bronzor. The battle prodigy, after about a week in the sanctuary, had successfully learned Solar Beam, and the power of its Grass Knot had also increased dramatically. It even claimed to have gained some insight into the move Sunny Day, though its own energy reserves were still too low to use it effectively. As for Substitute, it had mastered the basics in no time, creating a clone just as solid as Excadrill's, much to the Sandstorm Sovereign's annoyance.
But the Pokémon that had grown the most was, without a doubt, Lileep.
With its incredible natural talent, a wealth of resources, and the constant guidance of a master, it would have been more surprising if it hadn't grown quickly. In just one month, Lileep had reached a level of power that had taken Excadrill two months to achieve: it was now on the cusp of the intermediate tier.
In addition to its power level, Lileep had also learned two new moves: Synthesis and Rock Tomb. It had learned Synthesis under the direct, tentacle-by-tentacle tutelage of the Mega Venusaur, further boosting its incredible stamina. Rock Tomb, it had learned on its own during its energy exchanges with Excadrill.
In the forest clearing, Lileep used Ingrain. The range of its roots had expanded to cover several hundred square meters, more than four times its original size. With Mega Drain, countless motes of light flowed from the earth into its body, replenishing its energy.
"Ancient Power!"
At Basalt's command, Lileep formed an orb of amber energy and fired it, blasting a large crater in the ground.
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!
Five waves of light washed over its body, and its stats began to rise.
"Here we go again," Basalt said, his eye twitching. For some reason, perhaps because it was an ancient Pokémon, Lileep had a roughly fifty-percent chance of triggering Ancient Power's secondary effect on its first use. Not even the Mega Venusaur, or the world's most advanced Tutor Manual, could replicate that. Basalt could only attribute it to Lileep's unique status as a revived Fossil Pokémon.
Once Lileep's stats were fully boosted, it transformed into a brand-new turret.
"Bullet Seed!" Basalt commanded.
"Liii~" Lileep shook its head, looking adorable and harmless. But the seeds that shot from its head were like real bullets, tearing up the ground and sending grass flying. And unlike a normal Bullet Seed, which lasted only a few seconds, Lileep's, fueled by the Miracle Seed and sustained by Ingrain and Mega Drain, was a continuous stream of projectiles that could last for half a minute.
"Lileep, that's enough," Basalt said, calling a halt to the training.
The time in the Cinnabar Sanctuary had been incredibly productive. The only downside was that without anyone his own age around, it had been a little lonely.
"It's about time I went home," he murmured to himself.
He had stayed in the sanctuary for two reasons: the excellent training environment, and to wait for the results of his application. Yesterday, Agent Zhou had informed him that his request for a pseudo-legendary had been approved. He just had to wait for the official notification on when and where to pick it up. The Tyranitar population in their nation was much smaller than the Dragonite population, but with the Director's guarantee, he knew it wouldn't be long.
"Lileep, I have to leave today," he said, stroking its tentacles. "You be good and listen to the Venusaur, okay? Keep training hard and get strong."
"Liii~ Liii~" it cried, clearly not wanting him to go.
But there was no other choice. The fossil revival was still a top-secret project. Basalt couldn't risk leaking the information, and he couldn't bear the responsibility if he did. For now, Lileep had to remain hidden from the public eye.
"Venusaur, I'm leaving Lileep in your care," he said, bowing respectfully to the giant Pokémon before turning to leave.
"Liii~ Liii~" Lileep's cries followed him, but he didn't dare look back, afraid he would be tempted to stay.
"You're finally willing to leave," Agent Zhou said, clapping him on the shoulder when he returned to the castle. "To spend a whole month doing nothing but training... that kind of dedication is impressive."
"I had to," Basalt said with a wry smile. "If I didn't go home soon, my parents would have exploded." He had to see them. They, along with his Pokémon, were the most important things in his life.
"Alright, I'll fly you back. It's faster than the train," Zhou said. His Gym Leader-level Charizard could make the trip from Cinnabar Island to Metro City in less than an hour.
"I really need to get a flying Pokémon," Basalt thought. "Traveling long distances is such a pain without one. I wonder if Director Sterling could give me some advice now that he's a Gym Leader."
An hour later, he was back in his hometown of Seaside County. He took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and called out, "Mom, Dad, I'm home!"
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