With this trait, they could basically treat every meal before battle or training like opening a blind-box buff.
Lin Yu immediately bought a portion of premium energy cubes.
Charmander swallowed it down eagerly.
A notification popped up.
[Buff Gained — Flame Activity +30%. Training efficiency increased.]
Charmander instantly felt like it had been injected with adrenaline.
Train!
Train harder!
One thing worth mentioning—
With the help of [Side Profession Expert], Lin Yu had also begun studying how to make energy cubes himself.
His results were already comparable to those sold in the System shop.
And expert-level breeders?
There were only a handful in all of Huaguo.
…
Training intensified over the following days.
A few days later, Wang Miao returned.
His Squirtle had reached Level 10.
Standard-tier.
He grabbed Lin Yu's hand, full of gratitude.
That first battle had been the push Squirtle needed to break through.
Then, brimming with confidence, he challenged Lin Yu again.
Reality proved one thing:
If you're meant to lose, you're meant to lose.
It was just unfortunate timing.
That day, Charmander had eaten an energy cube before the match.
The random buff?
"Damage from disadvantageous attributes reduced by 50%."
The best buff Charmander had rolled so far.
Combined with [Thick Hide], it perfectly demonstrated what "tank a Water Gun with your body" really meant.
Wang Miao was thoroughly enlightened.
After that, he stopped challenging Lin Yu.
And Lin Yu learned something important—
Blue-tier traits weren't necessarily weaker than Purple-tier ones.
August 28th.
School was about to start.
"Teacher Qin," who used to chat politely in the class group, had somehow evolved into "Old Qin."
From that alone, Lin Yu guessed she was probably a fresh college graduate.
Teacher Qin:
"As mentioned earlier, make sure to train your Pokémon well. After school starts, there will be a freshman wilderness training exercise.
Top 50 students will receive rewards!
I heard first place gets an evolution stone of any attribute!"
Every year, Shuimu No. 3 High held a similar competition for new students.
The goal?
Strengthen coordination between Trainers and Pokémon.
After all, most students at Pokémon high schools aspired to become professional Trainers.
And becoming a professional Trainer meant—
Entering Secret Realms.
Not all Pokémon were friendly.
Some were "nuclearly friendly."
Statistics showed that Trainer deaths in Secret Realms remained alarmingly high every year.
That was also why Pokémon high school tuition was expensive.
They had to construct realistic training grounds and provide live "materials."
"An evolution stone…"
Lin Yu wiped sweat from his forehead, eyes burning.
If it was any attribute—
Then obviously, a Fire Stone for Charmander.
This week's trait had been [Sing, Dance, Rap] — recover PP while singing and dancing.
Lin Yu dismantled it.
Fifty Trait Coins.
As for daily traits—
Other than [Trainer's Self-Cultivation] (boosting Pokémon morale and training efficiency when training together), everything else had been dismantled.
After nearly half a month of high-intensity training—
Charmander finally reached Level 10.
Standard-tier.
The speed was astonishing.
Years ago, the Flying-type Heavenly King, Du, once said his most talented Dragonite took about a month to go from Beginner to Standard.
From one perspective—
Charmander's growth speed, enhanced by traits, was approaching…
Champion-tier.
"We're getting that Fire Stone," Lin Yu muttered.
If you compete—
Compete for first.
That was his philosophy.
"Right, Charmander?"
Charmander was no longer the scrawny hatchling from before.
It now had visible biceps.
"Char!"
It thumped its chest confidently.
Lin Yu had every reason to be confident.
All that training wasn't for nothing.
"Char—!"
Suddenly, Charmander let out a sharp cry.
Lin Yu startled.
He turned—
And froze.
They usually trained in this abandoned construction building because it was quiet.
Almost no one came here.
Occasionally, wild Rattata would wander in—but ever since Charmander claimed the territory, they stopped coming.
But now—
Behind a concrete pillar—
A small white figure peeked out.
Green "hair" covered most of its face.
A tiny, cautious creature watching them.
Ralts?
It leaned around the pillar shyly, like a little girl peeking from behind a corner.
Ralts were highly sensitive to emotional bonds between humans and Pokémon.
It was the first time it had sensed something like this.
But—
Why was there a Ralts here?
Ralts were extremely rare.
And its evolution, Gardevoir—
Elegant, graceful, widely adored.
Even if this was the outskirts—
A wild Ralts?
Unlikely.
Did it escape from another Trainer?
Lin Yu's mind raced.
He needed to determine if it was wild.
Pokémon raised in breeding houses tended to be friendly toward humans.
Wild Pokémon were wary. Guarded.
After calming Charmander, Lin Yu reluctantly bought a Psychic-type energy cube.
"Hey, little one. Come here. I've got something tasty."
No Pokémon could resist System-shop energy cubes.
Ralts hesitated—
Then stepped forward delicately, like a tiny lady.
That reaction made Lin Yu's heart sink.
Friendly.
Which meant—
Probably owned.
But that was just speculation.
No matter what—
He wanted to try.
Because of its talent.
"Raaalts~"
Ralts licked the cube.
Its hidden red eyes lit up.
So good!
It began nibbling happily.
Watching it eat carefully, Lin Yu crouched down.
"Ralts… would you like to have these every day?"
Ralts finished the cube and looked up at him expectantly.
Its face was hidden by green bangs—but its desire was obvious.
Lin Yu slowly took out a Poké Ball.
"Become my partner. If you do… I'll give you these every day."
As he spoke, he activated Eye of Insight again.
[Pokémon: Ralts]