It was just like the first time, when Marshadow had guided him into resonating with Zekrom's Source Power.
Chen Mo felt...
As though his consciousness and soul had once again entered an illusory realm.
Somewhere in the darkness...
He seemed to hear the Legendary Pokémon that embodied wishes, its voice filled with immeasurable sorrow as it whispered its own heartfelt wish into the endless void.
Without realizing it...
Chen Mo found himself drawn deeper into the darkness.
Just then—
A familiar voice, tinged with panic, exploded inside his mind.
"Wake up!!!"
In an instant—
The boundless darkness receded.
Blinding light flooded back into his vision, forcing Chen Mo to squint.
"Pika! Pika!"
Seeing Chen Mo finally move again, Pikachu—who had long since climbed onto Gengar's shoulder—cried out joyfully.
"Pikachu... Gengar... Pidgeotto..."
"...Hm?"
"Marshadow, so you can fly too?"
"...Well, I suppose that makes sense. You're a Ghost-type after all."
Chen Mo's gaze swept across each Pokémon.
Seeing the concern in their eyes, he asked in confusion,
"Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"Did something happen?"
Marshadow, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, immediately clenched its fists.
Green-yellow flames erupted around its head.
"Never use your Aura to pry into another living being's mind so casually again!"
"Especially not the mind of a Legendary!"
"Their will... their spirit..."
"Could drag you into an abyss from which there is no return!"
"You idiot!"
"Remember that!"
"..."
Looking at the obviously furious Marshadow, Chen Mo froze for a moment.
Then, in an unusually obedient tone, he nodded solemnly.
"Understood."
"Hmph."
The flames gradually died away.
By now, Chen Mo already understood what had happened.
Aura represented the spirit of a living being.
In other words...
Every living creature possessed Aura.
Some beings could even perceive and manipulate it.
Among ordinary Pokémon...
The most famous natural Aura user was Lucario.
Besides Lucario...
Certain Pokémon such as Squirtle and Clauncher also possessed the potential to wield Aura.
Still...
Among ordinary species, Aura users were extremely rare.
However...
Among Legendary Pokémon...
Aura users were surprisingly common.
Jirachi.
Marshadow.
Both belonged to that group.
That's right.
Marshadow could also wield Aura.
Back in Anping City...
Chen Mo had even tried bribing Marshadow with Poké Blocks in hopes that it would teach him more advanced Aura techniques.
Marshadow had refused outright.
No matter how much Chen Mo tried afterward...
Marshadow ignored him completely.
Sensing that Marshadow disliked the topic...
Chen Mo eventually stopped asking.
Returning to the present...
While using Aura to scan the surroundings...
His Aura had resonated with Jirachi's.
That resonance had pulled his consciousness directly into that strange mental space.
Influenced by Jirachi...
He had instinctively wanted to descend even deeper into that endless darkness.
That...
Was incredibly dangerous.
Aura represented one's spirit.
Just as Marshadow had warned...
Jirachi itself probably meant no harm.
But in its current condition...
Its overwhelming Legendary consciousness was simply too powerful.
The closer Chen Mo's Aura drew to Jirachi's...
The greater the danger to himself.
Fortunately...
Just before things reached the point of no return...
Marshadow had intervened with its own Aura...
Forcefully pulling Chen Mo's consciousness back.
"I really owe you one."
Smiling warmly, Chen Mo thanked Marshadow once more.
Marshadow glanced at the dark-purple crystal cradled in Chen Mo's arms.
"You should worry about this little fellow instead."
"After what just happened..."
"I have a theory."
"Oh?"
"Let's hear it."
Chen Mo looked intrigued.
Marshadow answered immediately.
"You mentioned before that Jirachi awakens when it hears the call of a comet."
"So I suspect..."
"Because it has never received that call..."
"Its instincts have taken over."
"Calling for the comet is instinct."
"Answering the Clefairy's wishes is instinct."
"Manipulating the earth veins and water veins is instinct."
"And all of it serves a single purpose."
"It wants to wake up from this endless sleep as soon as possible."
"So..."
"If nothing changes..."
"Whenever you release your Aura in the future..."
"There's a high chance it'll sense you again."
Marshadow's expression became incomparably serious.
"You now have only three choices."
"First."
"Never use Aura again."
"At least not until Jirachi wakes up."
"If it catches your Aura again..."
"Even I can't guarantee I'll be able to wake you every time."
"Second."
"Give Jirachi's Cocoon of Slumber to another human."
"For example..."
"That Countermeasure Bureau of yours."
"Third."
"Throw it away."
This time...
Marshadow hadn't limited its telepathy to a private conversation.
Pikachu.
Gengar.
Pidgeotto.
Every Pokémon heard everything clearly.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation...
All three looked anxiously toward Chen Mo.
They understood.
The third option...
Meant abandoning Jirachi forever.
Not to mention Chen Mo had already promised the Clefairy...
Given his personality...
There was no way he could ever abandon a Pokémon.
That choice was effectively impossible.
As for the second...
To the three Pokémon...
They doubted their Trainer would accept that either.
Which left only the first option.
And for Chen Mo...
The price was enormous.
That was why they were so worried.
After all...
Chen Mo had always been honest with his Pokémon.
Pikachu and the others knew perfectly well...
The entire reason for this journey...
Was to further develop his Aura.
"Pika..."
Usually cheerful and mischievous...
Pikachu now looked at its Trainer with obvious concern.
After a long silence...
Marshadow saw Chen Mo gently stroking the Cocoon of Slumber.
Just by looking at his expression...
Marshadow already knew which option he'd chosen.
Sighing softly...
It nevertheless felt strangely relieved.
"...Honestly."
"What am I supposed to do with you?"
Marshadow shook its head helplessly.
"Remember."
"No matter what happens..."
"Don't ever use your Aura again."
"As for keeping watch..."
"I'll handle that from now on."
"But don't misunderstand."
"I'm not doing it for free."
"Remember that."
Looking at Marshadow's obvious case of saying one thing while meaning another...
Chen Mo smiled gently.
Feeling awkward under that gaze...
Marshadow was just about to mutter something harsh before retreating into the Shadow World—
When Chen Mo suddenly spoke.
"Marshadow..."
"As much as I'd like that..."
"Just like you said before..."
"You can't stay with me forever."
"..."
Marshadow froze.
It looked at him.
Wanting to say something...
Yet unable to.
"It's okay."
"I'm only speaking realistically."
"No matter where you are..."
"You..."
"Me..."
"All of us..."
"We'll always be friends."
The moment Chen Mo finished speaking...
Pikachu leaped back onto his shoulder.
Raising one tiny paw with a bright smile—
"Pika Pika!"
"Pidge!"
Pidgeotto also nodded firmly in agreement.
As for Gengar...
It instantly flashed behind Marshadow.
Grinning mischievously...
It spread both arms wide, preparing to give Marshadow an enormous hug.
But Marshadow reacted even faster.
Two massive black shadow-hands burst from beneath its feet.
They grabbed Gengar...
And hurled the perpetually unserious purple blob straight into the distance.
"Gengar!"
Gengar stared at Marshadow pitifully.
Having shared the Shadow World with Gengar long enough to know exactly what kind of roommate it had...
Marshadow didn't even turn around.
Its shadow-hands continued restraining Gengar while it stared directly at Chen Mo.
"So."
"Which is it?"
"The second option..."
"Or the third?"
"Neither."
Chen Mo smiled and shook his head.
"Marshadow..."
"There isn't just three."
"You overlooked one."
"...What?"
Marshadow blinked in confusion.
Looking down at the Cocoon of Slumber in his hands...
Chen Mo's voice became firm.
"If no comet is answering Jirachi's call..."
"Then we'll create the conditions ourselves."
"We'll answer it."
"We'll wake sleeping Jirachi."
Beside the warm campfire...
"...That's what happened."
"The Clefairy's spacecraft didn't have enough fuel for extended exploration."
"So I used one of the benefits I received as the Hero of Ideals."
"I helped them replenish some energy."
"They've already set off into space in search of their home."
"It's not that I didn't want to keep streaming."
"You all know how the livestream situation is."
"So..."
"I also need some private time."
"Thanks for understanding."
"Hm?"
"Why didn't I restart the stream after helping them?"
"...Uh..."
"My bad."
"I was completely exhausted."
"I honestly forgot."
"Next time!"
"I promise!"
Sometimes...
Half-truths were more convincing than complete lies.
Successfully attributing everything to the privileges of being the Hero of Ideals...
Chen Mo easily gained his viewers' understanding.
After saying goodbye amid a flood of farewell comments...
He ended the livestream.
The instant the stream ended...
The smile disappeared from his face.
His expression became serious.
Now...
It was time to answer Jirachi's call.
Or rather...
To save it.
During that brief moment when his Aura resonated with Jirachi's...
Chen Mo had vaguely sensed Jirachi's current condition.
It was...
Very bad.
In the original story...
Jirachi could restore devastated environments in an incredibly short time.
That was true creation.
Bringing vitality from nothing.
But in the Clefairy's home...
Jirachi had instead drawn the power of the surrounding earth veins and water veins into the sinkhole.
There was an essential difference.
Creating life from nothing...
Only benefited the land.
Extracting and transferring energy...
Damaged the surrounding environment.
As for why Jirachi hadn't simply used the first method...
The answer was simple.
It couldn't anymore.
Creating life from nothing consumed the enormous energy Jirachi absorbed from the Millennium Comet.
Without the comet...
It simply lacked the power.
In fact...
Even siphoning and transferring the surrounding earth's energy had already pushed Jirachi to its limit.
When their Auras resonated...
Chen Mo could clearly feel just how weak Jirachi had become.
That...
Was why he'd unconsciously wanted to descend deeper into its darkness.
He wanted...
To save it.
"...Can it work?"
Marshadow slowly emerged from the shadows cast by the campfire.
Standing before Chen Mo...
It quietly asked.
"I don't know."
"But..."
"I want to try."
Chen Mo took a deep breath.
Then silently called out within his heart.
"System."
The familiar interface unfolded before him.
Opening the system shop...
Chen Mo quickly located the item he needed.
Comet Shard
In Jirachi's movie...
The little Pokémon had clearly said that the stars were calling it when it awakened.
But Chen Mo didn't believe a comet could literally call to Jirachi.
What Jirachi truly sensed...
Was the immense energy emitted as the comet passed nearby.
In other words...
It didn't need the comet itself.
It needed...
The comet's energy.
Comet Shards...
Were fragments that fell from a passing comet.
In the games...
They were almost useless.
Their only purpose was selling them for money.
But...
If they truly were pieces of a comet...
Then containing traces of a comet's energy made perfect sense.
Looking at the five-digit price tag...
Chen Mo didn't hesitate.
Not even for a second.
He immediately exchanged enough points for—
Ten Comet Shards.
"Gengar!"
At Chen Mo's call...
The already prepared Gengar floated over carrying Jirachi's Cocoon of Slumber.
Behind it...
Every one of Chen Mo's Pokémon followed closely.
Even Magikarp poked its head out of the large fish tank, watching curiously.
Everyone wanted to know...
Whether this would work.
Gengar carefully placed the Cocoon of Slumber in the center of the blanket.
Around it...
Forming a neat circle...
Lay the ten Comet Shards Chen Mo had just exchanged.
"..."
Chen Mo.
Marshadow.
Pikachu.
Every Pokémon present...
Stared unblinkingly at the Comet Shards.
Seconds passed.
Without realizing it...
Chen Mo had already clenched his fists.
"...Didn't work?"
Even outside Chen Mo's Shadow World...
Marshadow could still clearly feel his disappointment.
Just then...
A familiar Aura entered its senses.
Marshadow's expression changed dramatically.
"You—!"
Spinning around...
It instantly activated its own Aura.
Just as it prepared to drag this reckless idiot back—
The corner of its eye caught something.
A faint glow...
Was coming from the blanket.
The Cocoon of Slumber...
Began pulsing gently with soft light.
And one after another...
The ten Comet Shards surrounding it...
Lit up as well.
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