Zhao Shan's arrogance vanished in the presence of Supervisor Qin. As the Flame Secret Realm's incubation room supervisor, she was at least a near-Heavenly King trainer with a formidable background.
He could lash out at a lowly guide like Jiang Qinglan, but in front of Qin, he was all deference. Outclassed in both influence and strength, he had to play nice. Fawning upward, bullying downward.
Halfway through the explanation, Qin had already pieced together the situation. Jiang Qinglan had clearly been wronged, and as her superior, Qin had to stand up for her. Failing to do so would demoralize her team. "Mr. Zhao, Jiang Qinglan was correct. Fighting in the treasure room would indeed give the Flame Secret Realm grounds to revoke your selection privileges."
Of course, Qin's warning was merely to uphold the realm's authority. Actually revoking the Zhao family's quota was unthinkable—Jiang Qinglan was just a backgroundless intern, and Qin wouldn't risk offending the Zhao family over her. "Let's let it go this time. Since you've chosen your egg, Mr. Zhao, please leave the treasure room. Xiao Lin, wrap up the egg for them."
Hearing Qin's polite eviction, Zhao Shan's face flushed, but he didn't dare challenge her. He left, humiliated.
Once Zhao Shan was gone, Qin's expression softened. She turned to Xia Luo with an apologetic smile. "Mr. Xia Luo, I'm sorry. The secret realm doesn't have strict first-come, first-served rules—it depends on personal integrity. We can't do much about someone as uncouth as Zhao Shan. My apologies. I see Jiang Qinglan is holding the egg you purchased from the outer area. Within my authority, I'll give you the maximum discount—40% off."
Qin's handling was masterful. She'd stood up for her subordinate, defused the conflict between Xia Luo and Zhao Shan, let Zhao Shan take the egg, and offered Xia Luo compensation. Her position wasn't just about strength—she was a skilled diplomat.
"Mr. Xia Luo, please continue your selection. I won't disturb you. Jiang Qinglan, do you need to rest?"
"I'm fine, Supervisor Qin," Jiang Qinglan said quickly.
"Alright. I'll get back to work. Keep up the good work, and after you're done with Mr. Xia Luo, take the afternoon off."
"Thank you, Supervisor Qin."
…
"Brother, don't be mad. That egg's potential wasn't great anyway—we wouldn't have wanted it," Xia Yu said, consoling Xia Luo. "Now that they're gone, we can take our time and pick something better than that Growlithe."
"I'm not mad." Xia Luo sighed. In the past, with the Xia family's strength, Zhao Shan wouldn't have dared speak to him like that. Now, with his power diminished, all sorts of opportunists were crawling out of the woodwork. "Let's keep looking."
The brothers continued their search. The treasure room was small, and they finished inspecting its dozens of eggs in just a few minutes.
Xia Yu spotted two Pokémon with Heavenly King-tier or higher potential: one was a Litleo, the other a Shiny Charmander with the Solar Power ability!
Of the two, Xia Yu had no doubt—he'd choose the Charmander. It was the only Pokémon in the room with near-Champion-tier potential.
Honestly, the Charmander's potential was so remarkable that even Xia Yu was tempted.
[*Pokémon Egg*]
Charmander
Gender: Female
Type: Fire
Potential: Near-Champion
Ability: Solar Power
Moves: ???
The Solar Power ability made this Charmander ideal for a special attack build. In sunny weather, a Solar Power Charizard's destructive power was terrifying.
Plus, Charizard could Mega Evolve. Whether into Mega Charizard X or Mega Charizard Y, its strength was immense.
Mega Charizard X swapped Solar Power for Tough Claws, transforming a special attacker into a physical powerhouse—an unexpected shift that was hard to counter.
Mega Charizard Y gained Drought, a weather ability of unparalleled value. Every weather setter was a team's cornerstone.
"Brother, check out this egg!" Xia Yu called.
"A Charmander egg?" Xia Luo trusted Xia Yu's appraisal skills but wasn't immediately impressed. He already had a Charizard, so he wasn't keen. "I've got a Charizard already. Train another one?"
"Your Charizard's potential is mediocre. It's peaked at Gym Leader-tier," Xia Yu said bluntly. He was getting cocky—dismissing Gym Leader-tier potential. A month ago, he was a nobody without a single Pokémon. Now, still weak, he had two high-potential Pokémon, but they'd need time to grow.
"Young and talking big, huh? Saying my Charizard's potential is no good?" Xia Luo ruffled Xia Yu's hair, chuckling. "My Charizard is Gym Leader-tier. Talk like that when you've got Gym Leader-tier strength yourself."
Xia Luo couldn't see anything special about the egg. Among the treasure room's high-quality eggs, it seemed unremarkable. "You sure this egg's potential is good? It looks pretty average to me. Here, check out what I picked."
"…"
Xia Yu was speechless. He wanted to yell, *This is a near-Champion-tier Charmander egg!*
But Xia Luo was stubborn, dragging Xia Yu to another egg.
"Xia Yu, I think this Chimchar egg is solid. It's large, with vibrant flame patterns and dense Fire-type energy. It's not as flashy as that Growlithe egg, but it's still great," Xia Luo said, analyzing confidently. Xia Yu checked—Gym Leader-tier. Worse than the Growlithe.
Wasting a precious quota on a Gym Leader-tier Pokémon? What a travesty.
"Brother, this egg's not as good as the one I picked. Trust me, that Charmander egg is the real deal," Xia Yu insisted.
"Really?" Xia Luo remained skeptical.
"Come on, when have I ever lied to you?" Xia Yu pressed.
"That time in junior high when you made a fake girl's QQ account, catfished me for a month, and scammed my allowance," Xia Luo deadpanned.
"Pfft." Jiang Qinglan couldn't hold back a laugh, leaving Xia Yu embarrassed. "Ahem, that was an exception. Serious talk now. I'm telling you, this egg's amazing. Trust me."
"You're sure?" Xia Luo asked.
"Absolutely certain," Xia Yu affirmed.
"Alright, we'll take this one." Convinced by Xia Yu's confidence, Xia Luo made the call without hesitation. Family trust ran deep—Xia Yu's certainty was enough for Xia Luo to back him fully. "If the potential's no good, I'm picking the next one myself. But if it's great, I'll give you the other quota. Deal?"
Xia Yu was tempted to say, *Just give me the Charmander egg then.* But he held back. This egg could be the key to Xia Luo becoming a Heavenly King trainer.
With his system's help, Xia Yu would find more powerful Pokémon in the future. Still, he silently vowed to get a Charizard of his own someday—Mega Evolve it into Mega Charizard X, black and badass, maybe even Gigantamax it.
"That's the egg then."