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[Quest Complete!]

[Rewards: Reveal Glass ×4, Fertile Soil ×10, Sunlight ×1, Blessing of Abundance ×?, Unknown Badge ×?, Unique TM (Fissure / Sandstorm / Psychic)!]

[Fertile Soil: Rich soil infused with the power of wind and thunder! Giving it to Ground or Grass-type Pokémon greatly boosts their strength and nurtures them effectively.]

[Sunlight: Solar essence condensed by Landorus from the desert’s scorching sun. Giving it to Pokémon who use light-based moves massively enhances their energy and affinity with light.]

[Blessing of Abundance: A blessing from Landorus that boosts Pokémon vitality. Number of blessings obtained: 5 (including yourself)!]

『Badge of the Emissary of Abundance ×5: Badge given by Landorus recognizing you as its emissary.』

『Description: Having earned Landorus’s recognition in any form, you may visit Landorus’s shrines throughout Unova to temporarily recruit it into your team.』

『Effect: Boosts Ground and Flying-type speed and power during land and sky battles!』

[Granted 3 Move Tutors!]

[Description: Landorus’s rage has calmed, and the ancient psychic force receded from it. Its choice… is to leave unnoticed to avoid being controlled by ill-intentioned humans. Thus, it seeks your help!]

Landorus temporarily joined the team!

Hikaru didn’t expect this outcome. But compared to its brothers, Landorus seemed better at understanding human hearts, concluding that these Team Plasma people were a threat.

And it wasn’t wrong—after all, in the Pokémon Adventures manga, Landorus and its brothers were captured by the Shadow Triad.

Hikaru walked over to the unconscious Team Plasma elites and used Psychic Break on them one by one.

Crack… crack…

The faint sound of mental shattering echoed.

This was post-battle cleanup!

“But I didn’t expect Team Plasma to appear here… Wait, the quicksand receded because of my arrival… That explains it!”

Hikaru smacked his forehead. He remembered that in the games, a Sage resided here long-term to capture Volcarona.

In the manga, they even succeeded!

Team Plasma had a Sage permanently stationed here, researching long before the Unova storyline began. Hikaru remembered clearly, because during his second playthrough when catching Volcarona, he encountered this old man.

Among the Seven Sages, only Rood and Asura could truly be called wise. The rest each had their own ulterior motives.

Team Plasma’s activities across Unova began far earlier than players imagined. Colress mentioned that by Black 2 and White 2, Team Plasma had been active for at least five years.

Meaning, three years before the Black and White storyline began!

Meanwhile, Riolu sensed a ripple… Its perception, enhanced by the Star Badge, picked up on the fluctuations around them.

Hmm… Earth’s ripples?

Though it felt like earth energy, it didn’t contain Ground-type power. Riolu tested it, channeling a faint earthy yellow aura into its paws, falling into thought.

“What are you thinking about?” asked Aegislash.

“Wuuu… (Ripples… Earth’s ripples),” Riolu murmured, lost in contemplation.

It felt like it was on the verge of mastering something new!

Another fruitful battle, it thought. Aegislash was envious.

Look at this kid—such a deep move pool! Every battle brings new insights. Truly a born martial arts master!

As for itself, its move pool was rated “average” by Trainers. Learning new moves always took twice the effort. Even its Aura Sphere was still a Brownian-motion projectile, useful only because opponents couldn’t predict its trajectory.

“Hey, did you catch that Pokémon?”

Sairen approached with his scanner, staring at Hikaru in disbelief before sincerely praising him:

“You’re honestly one of the most powerful psychics I’ve ever met… comparable to… Right, wasn’t the new Unova Elite Four member a lady named Caitlin? You might be as strong as her!”

“No, I know Lady Caitlin. Her psychic power far surpasses mine.”

Hikaru shook his head. “Let’s keep moving. That Pokémon has calmed down, and as for ‘catching’ it… I guess it’s temporary.”

“Something bad is happening deeper inside. If you need to adjust your equipment, I’ll go ahead.”

“Wait! I can’t handle those ancient guardians alone,” Sairen protested, shaking his head. “I’ll go with you.”

“I’ll finish scanning the lower floors with you. Besides, if something goes wrong, I can always hide. But… who are these people?”

He glanced at the bizarrely dressed, half-buried Team Plasma grunts. The two of them ran quickly towards the deepest part of the fourth floor.

“They’re a mysterious cult-like organization,” Hikaru explained. “They preach about ‘liberating Pokémon’ to force people to release their partners, and even use Pokémon to rewrite memories.”

“What?! That’s terrible…” Sairen shook his head, deeply disgusted by Team Plasma. If he ever lost his partner, that would be the greatest pain imaginable.

“But then again, Unova is full of these mysterious groups… Sometimes I feel like our region never cares about such issues. Everyone’s just busy with their own lives… I don’t know if that’s good or bad.”

People were scattered, absorbed in their own affairs. That was the nature of modern society.

Following Team Plasma’s trail, Hikaru quickly found the entrance to the fourth floor’s depths. Strong tremors erupted below them!

Deep underground—no telling how many floors down!

“La-don—”

Landorus’s voice echoed in Hikaru’s mind from its Poké Ball, pointing him towards the correct path. It guessed that the humans’ goal was the final psychic chamber below, where a powerful Pokémon resided. Landorus had fought it before.

The upper floors were its territory, untouchable, but the lower floors belonged to that other being.

Still, Landorus didn’t seem interested in going outside.

Hikaru and Sairen descended into the fifth floor, while Landorus began chatting with Deoxys in its Poké Ball.

Truth be told, Landorus was shocked.

This human has even more Pokémon he hasn’t released yet? No… three more!

But only one caught its interest—the luminous warrior of light.

Landorus continued acting as a guide while chatting, leading Hikaru quickly through the fifth, then sixth, then seventh floors.

Sairen’s scanner could no longer map accurately. The deeper they went, the stronger the psychic force became. It blazed like the sun, drenching Sairen in sweat and leaving him utterly exhausted.

“Huff… huff… I’m stopping here.”

Sairen raised his hand weakly. “I can’t go any further. Ordinary people might be fine, but for psychics like me, this immense force is crushing my mind. I’ll wait here.”

“The lowest floor has a huge staircase. The eighth floor should be the bottom. Good luck. I’ll finish my scanning here.”

He sat down heavily and released his Pokémon. To Hikaru’s surprise, his partner was also a Sigilyph!

“Hah, surprised, right?” Sairen stroked it, letting its psychic power share his burden.

“I met it in the desert. Back then, it was flying around like a headless fly, terrified of the world. I was training my psychic powers too. In a contest of psychic strength… I lost.”

“But because of that, it grew close to me. Catching it… felt like meeting a soulmate. It’s no longer just a friend or partner—it’s part of my life as a psychic. Our lives are one.”

“You’re running down there so desperately… Is the buried Pokémon your partner too?”

“From the moment you appeared, I knew you were special. Your psychic power parts the quicksand itself… You must be truly amazing.”

“That cult… you must… huff…”

Even with Sigilyph’s support, Sairen was overwhelmed. Hikaru gave him medicine.

“Go back up. I’ll come find you soon.”

“It’s okay. Things will be over quickly. I may not be good at fighting…”

“But my partners are experts.”

Hikaru’s words made Sairen smile. He nodded and ran back towards the sixth floor with his Sigilyph.

“I’ll be waiting for you there!”

Leaving these words behind, Hikaru dashed down the long staircase, charging forward with his fully recovered Pokémon.

Guided by Landorus and the surging psychic pulse from deep below—the same kind of frenzied aura that had overtaken Landorus—Hikaru sensed the Solar Spirit awaiting him.

Volcarona!

Blazing flames roared outward. Some Team Plasma guards stumbled into view.

“Who’s there?!” Hearing the rapid footsteps, they released their Pokémon in panic!

“Flash Cannon!”

Aegislash raised its massive shield and fired a brilliant silver beam, blasting the grunts and their Pokémon away instantly!

Homage to Champion Lance, the Hyper Beam representative!

“Slurp—”

Aegislash grabbed an emergency jelly with one ribbon-arm, eating while firing its laser.

The commotion drew the attention of Yogus inside the chamber. He and a few elites were attempting to capture Volcarona, but the ancient spirit’s power had boosted it to an overwhelming level.

“Mela!”

Larvesta peeked out from behind a sun mural, eyes wide at the raging battle. The psychic force was so immense it felt like a thousand Calyrex were using their powers at once!

Wow wow wow… that’s insane!

One Calyrex is weak, but a thousand Calyrex… that’s terrifying!

No time to mourn Calyrex becoming a unit of measurement. Hikaru entered the chamber, feeling the crushing psychic pressure immediately.

Here, the ancient spirit raged in fury. Ordinary people would sense only faint unease, but psychics saw visions: the Giant King, the Titans of legend, Volcarona who once bathed the land in sunlight, and even a blurry glimpse of a colossal dragon god!

Countless people, gifted individuals gathered in this city—the cradle of Unova’s civilization, rivaling the Abyssal Ruins beneath the sea. One buried underground, the other submerged in ocean, together representing Unova’s ancient history.

The torrent of emotions whispered here, hatred and fury enough to burn any intruder’s mind to ash.

[Celebration Quest: The Ancient Solar Spirit!]

[Rewards: Reveal Glass ×5, Unknown Gift ×1, Historical Record ×1, Unknown Badge ×?, Spark Scale Powder ×?, Revival Herb ×10, Ancient Medal ×1]

[Description: The Ancient City embodies Unova’s beginnings, gathering all history and psychic power within. This mighty force, hidden like the sun itself, rages at the trespassers. Calm it, and you will receive unimaginable gifts—and save your partner and the Solar God. Perhaps this is the trial set for you by the ancient spirit?]

The Linkage Tree’s quest notification reduced Hikaru’s burden, as it shielded part of his mind from the psychic assault.

If Caitlin, Sabrina, or Ingo were here, they’d handle it effortlessly.

He was still far from the level of the Elite Four—especially those true masters of psychic power.

First, he needed to master Teleport.

Short-range teleportation, then long-range… A psychic’s ability to teleport reflected their overall strength.

“Ugh… The energy is surging! Why—”

Yogus felt something heating up on his body. He pulled out an item: the TM Calm Mind given to him by Ghetsis.

It was glowing!

“Uwaah!”

The ancient spirit invaded his mind. Yogus screamed, clutching his head as solar radiance erupted from his body.

Blinding light blasted away the other Plasma elites. Hikaru entered just as Yogus, possessed by the ancient spirit, turned his blazing gaze upon him.

“Volcarona, burn all intruders to ashes—”

Under the ancient spirit’s control, Volcarona flapped its six crimson wings, unleashing an all-consuming inferno that lit the entire chamber like a miniature sun!

From Hikaru’s chest, a blue crystal burst forth with a brilliant light, clashing against the solar power.

As a human, his most important asset was his mind.

And faintly behind him appeared a tall blue-haired foreign prince, raising his hand to oppose the psychic might of the entire Ancient Castle.

(End of Chapter)

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep