"Now, Nidorino—use [Peck]!"
Guo Yi carefully timed his command, decisively ordering Nidorino to attack.
Sizzlipede heard a sound approaching from its right side, and in the next instant, intense pain shot through its body.
Nidorino's horn gleamed with blinding white light, clearly saturated with concentrated Flying-type energy. With full force, he plunged it straight into Sizzlipede's back.
Sizzlipede, being both Fire and Bug-type, didn't have many weaknesses—apart from the quadruple vulnerability to Rock, only Flying and Water moves posed double threats. While Peck wasn't particularly powerful, the type advantage made it effective enough to deal substantial damage.
Having landed a solid blow, Nidorino didn't hesitate. With a nimble leap, he vanished underground with [Dig], repeating the pattern—
[Dig].
[Peck].
[Dig] again.
This relentless harassment left Sizzlipede increasingly frustrated. Though none of the blows were decisive, each small injury stacked up. If this kept up, defeat was inevitable.
Unable to find a solution, Sizzlipede curled its body tightly and activated [Coil].
[Coil]:The user coils up, concentrating to boost Attack, Defense, and accuracy.
Buffing itself, Sizzlipede became hyper-vigilant, scanning the area cautiously.
With its body curled defensively, Nidorino found fewer openings to exploit. Empowered by [Coil], Sizzlipede's senses were sharpened to their peak, and it missed nothing happening nearby.
Finally—
As Nidorino emerged from beneath the ground once more, Sizzlipede's eyes flashed sharply. A crimson cross-shaped glow appeared overhead as it launched itself forward, accurately striking Nidorino with [X-Scissor], sending him hurtling backward.
"Nido!"
Nidorino landed heavily, claws desperately gripping the earth to regain his balance. Even then, he skidded a good four or five meters, illustrating just how powerful Sizzlipede's attack was.
Although Nidorino held a higher level, the fact remained that Sizzlipede had already reached its final evolutionary stage, outclassing Nidorino in terms of raw stats.
Falling into a disadvantageous position was understandable.
Seizing the opportunity while Nidorino struggled to regain footing, Sizzlipede swiftly attacked again. Using its elongated body, it tightly coiled around Nidorino, immobilizing him completely.
At the same moment, the underside of Sizzlipede's body emitted intense heat, scorching Nidorino relentlessly and causing him excruciating pain.
"Nidorino—[Thunderbolt]!"
Seeing Nidorino immobilized, Guo Yi remained calm, swiftly giving the command. Though Nidorino hadn't directly trained in [Thunderbolt] himself, Nidorina had mastered it—which meant Nidorino, too, had effectively learned it.
Crackle!
Electric arcs sparked from Nidorino's horn. A powerful yellowish-orange [Thunderbolt] exploded forth, completely enveloping Sizzlipede in its electrifying surge.
The intense voltage forced Sizzlipede's grip to loosen, allowing Nidorino to break free at last.
Facing the enemy now mere inches away, Nidorino's immediate instinct upon escaping was to strike back.
"Nido!" he roared furiously.
A [Poison Jab] smashed brutally into Sizzlipede's face.
But it wasn't over yet—
Again, that familiar white light appeared.
A final [Peck] decisively took Sizzlipede down.
Pant, pant!
Looking down at his defeated opponent, Nidorino panted heavily. This battle had indeed posed a considerable challenge.
Suddenly, a flicker of flame flashed over his body, and Nidorino collapsed weakly.
Burn status.
After fighting in close quarters for so long, [Flame Body] had inevitably triggered.
Fortunately, Sizzlipede was already defeated. Otherwise, Nidorino's first major battle since evolving could have ended in a humiliating defeat.
"Come on, Nidorino, eat some Pokéblocks to recover."
Guo Yi approached, gently using [Power of Viridian] to heal Nidorino's injuries, simultaneously feeding him energy-rich Pokéblocks.
Under the combined effects of healing and nourishment, Nidorino quickly recovered significantly.
"Nido…"
[Trainer… I'm sorry…]
Regaining consciousness, Nidorino lowered his head, discouraged.
Earlier, he'd been brimming with confidence, only to be painfully humbled by reality. He'd barely managed a draw with a wild Pokémon that appeared out of nowhere, leaving him feeling he had disappointed his trainer.
Seeing Nidorino's downcast expression, Guo Yi gently stroked his head reassuringly.
"Nidorino, you performed remarkably well. Honestly, since that Sizzlipede had evolved fully, I didn't even think you'd stand a chance."
He smiled lightly. "I was even prepared to call your father out for help. But you really surprised me."
[Really?!]
Hearing Guo Yi's praise, Nidorino instantly perked up, his eyes shining once more with renewed confidence.
I really am strong!
"Absolutely." Guo Yi nodded. "If you evolved into a Nidoking right now, you'd have easily crushed that Sizzlipede."
Guo Yi wasn't merely saying this to comfort Nidorino—it was simply the truth.
If Nidoking had faced Sizzlipede, equipped with the [Life Orb] and the [Sheer Force] ability, Guo Yi would have countless ways to effortlessly secure victory.
Not even mentioning the potent combination of [Sheer Force] and [Life Orb], Nidoking's diverse moves alone—[Rock Slide], [Water Pulse]—would have posed severe threats to Sizzlipede, unlike Nidorino's current limited arsenal, in which only [Peck] could reliably deal effective damage.
...
"Nidorino, rest well for now."
Once fully healing Nidorino's injuries, Guo Yi recalled him back into his Poké Ball, then walked directly toward the unconscious Sizzlipede, searching around its body.
Perhaps because it had fainted, the Sizzlipede's body temperature was no longer as extreme as before. It was still hot enough to sting, but at least within bearable limits.
"Found it."
Guo Yi smiled in satisfaction at the gleaming golden pearl he now held in his palm.
Truthfully, the Sizzlipede had performed decently in their fight, but unfortunately, its potential was nearly exhausted—rendering it worthless for capture. Had it been a Sizzlipede in its earlier stage, he could've at least fetched a good price selling it to breeders. But a Centiskorch like this?
Forget it!
Selling it wouldn't earn him much.
It wasn't that Centiskorch lacked value—this one, even at its worst, was still an experienced-level Pokémon. But it suffered from a classic problem: there simply wasn't a market.
Due to the Dragon Nation's policies, trainers received government subsidies when buying Pokémon eggs or recently hatched Pokémon. Given that, why waste money buying a fully grown Centiskorch when you could instead purchase a young Pokémon with far greater potential?
Besides, purchasing a mature Pokémon like Centiskorch came with additional headaches—concerns about its obedience, the cost of feeding it during training, all of which made it a losing deal.
In another country, perhaps it could fetch a decent price. But in the Dragon Nation's ecosystem, raising your Pokémon from infancy was simply far more cost-effective.
But this Nugget?
Though his system couldn't convert it directly, gold was hard currency no matter the world, and he definitely wouldn't pass it up.
Having pocketed the Nugget, Guo Yi ignored Centiskorch and rose to his feet, pulling another Poké Ball from his waist. With a flash of red, the familiar figure of Beedrill appeared before him.
"Initially, I wanted to take this chance to train everyone."
"But now, looks like we'll have to speedrun this."
Guo Yi hadn't expected to be ambushed by Centiskorch before he'd even set out, completely disrupting his plans.
"But a speedrun it is, then."
"Judging by this Secret Realm, it's likely appeared due to natural disasters."
Guo Yi had heard rumors about Secret Realms manifesting in response to calamities, though he had never encountered one personally. That was why, at first, he hadn't recognized the connection when he saw the Centiskorch's state. Now, realizing this Secret Realm had arisen from a disaster, he needed to hurry.
Because once the disaster subsided, the Secret Realm would vanish with it.
...
An abandoned coal mine sprawled ahead, the ground covered in black stones that crunched loudly under Guo Yi's feet.
Given this was an abandoned coal mine, those black stones were naturally nothing else but chunks of coal.
"Strange," Guo Yi muttered. "According to the map, there should be a colony of Torkoal here. Yet, I don't see even a single one."
The layout of the mine was simple enough—aside from a collapsed shaft, the whole area was clearly visible at a glance.
Yet…
Guo Yi stood at the entrance, scanning carefully for a long moment. Apart from endless heaps of dark coal, not another living thing stirred in sight.
"Bzz!"
Beedrill suddenly buzzed, pointing toward a small mound in the distance with its stingers, indicating the presence of their targets.
With Beedrill's capabilities, locating the Torkoal was trivial.
"Over there, huh?"
Following Beedrill's direction, Guo Yi noticed that the mound indeed appeared different from its surroundings. He could faintly see flickers of fire within.
"Even a natural disaster didn't shake off their lazy temperament," Guo Yi murmured softly.
Pokémon like Torkoal generated energy by burning coal within their shells, fueling their movement and battles. When the flames within their shells weakened, they became lethargic. With a coal mine readily available, these Torkoal had no shortage of food, making them even lazier—true salted fish through and through.
Not even a disaster had changed their nature.
Unfortunately, their lazy days were about to be rudely interrupted.
"Beedrill, [Pin Missile]."
Having located the Torkoal, Guo Yi had no reason to hold back.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Beedrill took flight, soaring overhead and unleashing a hail of needle-like missiles from its stinger.
"Torkoal!"
"Torkooal!"
...
As cries of pain rose and fell, several Torkoal collapsed immediately, stars spinning before their eyes.
The gap in strength was simply too large. Despite Fire-type Pokémon having strong resistance against Bug-type moves, they couldn't withstand Pin Missile's sheer power.
However—
One Torkoal stood tall amidst the fallen, eyes burning fiercely in anger.
And this particular Torkoal was precisely Guo Yi's target for this trip.
[Torkoal (Fire)]
Gender: ♀
Level: Lv.60 (Gym Leader-Tier)
Ability: Drought (Upon entering battle, it instantly creates sunny weather.)
Moves: Shell Smash, Inferno, Heat Wave, Flamethrower, Body Slam (Frequently used)
Egg Move: Skull Bash
Held Item: Charcoal (Elite Four-Quality)
Potential: Elite Four-Tier
The Torkoal had an orange-brown body, with a massive dark-gray shell on its back. Five glowing red indentations decorated the shell, flickering faintly as if something within burned steadily.
"A Torkoal with [Drought]—this is a must-have for any [Sunny Day] team."
Guo Yi was more than familiar with Torkoal. As a devoted [Sunny Day] enthusiast in his previous life, Torkoal had been essential for weather control.
Aside from Torkoal, only four Pokémon could boast this ability: Mega Charizard Y, Vulpix, Ninetales, and the legendary Groudon.
Setting aside the legendary Groudon for now, there remained Ninetales—a Pokémon clearly superior to Torkoal in both appearance and base stats. Why, then, had Torkoal still been indispensable?
The reason was game mechanics.
In the games, weather could be overwritten by slower Pokémon, meaning the Pokémon with the lower speed stat always gained final control over the weather. And among known weather-setters, none were slower than Torkoal. Therefore, in simultaneous match-ups, Torkoal always had the advantage.
Reality, however, differed greatly.
Here, weather dominance hinged purely on strength. In a real-world scenario, Ninetales indeed made an excellent choice for [Sunny Day] teams.
As for why a mere Gym Leader-Level Torkoal possessed Elite Four-Quality [Charcoal], Guo Yi guessed it had something to do with this particular coal mine environment.
After all, [Charcoal] was an item Torkoal naturally produced. Given the abundant resources here, it wasn't surprising that Torkoal had managed to craft such high-quality [Charcoal], surpassing even its current strength level.
Of course—
It was also possible that this [Charcoal] was inherited from a previous leader.