The sky was just beginning to brighten. Qingwu yawned as he put on a red life vest, climbed down the ladder from the medium-sized yacht, and landed in the already inflated, slightly swaying lifeboat.
"Master Qingwu, I can only take you this far. You'll have to go the rest of the way yourself," the one-eyed captain respectfully told Qingwu, then started the yacht, which slowly sailed away.
"Come out, Crobat," Qingwu said. The most suitable Pokémon on him to tow this lifeboat was Crobat.
Crobat (ノ^口^)ノ _ Up, up!
Crobat hadn't quite woken up either. With a helpless yet powerful grip of its feet on the lifeboat, it suppressed its urge to doze off and flapped its wings, flying forward.
The morning seawater was bone-chillingly cold, and the sea breeze carried a distinct chill.
The meticulous captain had prepared a thin blanket and placed it in the lifeboat. Qingwu wrapped himself tightly in it.
Vermilion Port, their destination, was also Team Rocket's territory. More accurately, it was the territory of Lt. Surge, one of Team Rocket's three major executives. Sabrina and Koga were both Gym Leaders who had secretly pledged allegiance to Team Rocket. They controlled three important cities in the Kanto "940" region and simultaneously held vast resources.
They were on par with the Four Generals, all high-ranking executives within Team Rocket. However, they usually remained in their respective cities and did not easily make appearances.
Sabrina possessed psychic powers, Koga specialized in assassination and poisoning, while Lt. Surge excelled in Pokémon legion warfare. He was an outstanding commander, adept at leading three hundred Magneton in coordinated attacks and had even created a tactic of forming battle-ready giant ships using large numbers of Swampert and Magneton.
Team Rocket's infiltration work in the Kanto and Chengdu regions was quite successful. Koga even became a Poison-type Celestial King in the Chengdu region, and alongside Archer, the Psychic-type Celestial King, and Karen, the Dark-type Celestial King, who were other Team Rocket sleeper agents, he became one of Team Rocket's most successful hidden lines.
At its peak, Team Rocket almost seized control of the Chengdu region from Giovanni, but due to Bertha's obstruction, they fell short of success.
Bertha was a famous Ice-type powerhouse in the Chengdu region, her strength far exceeding that of ordinary Celestial Kings, almost rivaling a Champion.
If it weren't for her eccentric personality, Bertha would certainly have a place among the Four Celestial Kings. Even Lance, the Champion of the Chengdu region, would be unilaterally defeated by Bertha.
After all, Lance only held the Champion's seat in the Chengdu region because he couldn't defeat Lorelei in the Kanto region.
Although the Alliance publicly boasted about so many powerful Celestial Kings, Qingwu was certain that the Alliance had far more than just these visible Celestial Kings; there were many others deeply hidden.
These were all hidden assets deployed by the Alliance, much like the Poison-type Celestial King who got injured during the battle, having remained hidden extremely well and later hunting down many Team Rocket elites and executives.
Once an underground organization foolishly dared to challenge the Alliance, the Alliance would reveal its ferocious side and completely annihilate any underground organization that dared to provoke it.
The yacht dropped Qingwu not far from Vermilion Port. Crobat desperately flapped its wings and finally reached Vermilion City's port an hour later.
Vermilion City's port was also the largest deep-water port in the entire Kanto region.
Cross-regional cruise ships from other parts of Kanto stopped at Vermilion Port.
If Qingwu wanted to return to the Hoenn region, he would need to pass through Vermilion Port to return to Lilycove City in the Hoenn region.
Vermilion City was also known as the most prosperous city in the Kanto region. Seaborne trade brought massive tax revenue to Vermilion City, and Lt. Surge, who presided over Vermilion City, also benefited greatly.
After all, Vermilion City was a hub for rare goods transported from all over the world, including precious Pokémon resources.
Various cargo ships sailed in and out, and the busy people paid no attention to a young boy floating in from afar on a lifeboat. After all, many tourists enjoyed waking up early to ride lifeboats out to sea to watch the sunrise.
After Qingwu floated into the port, he sold the lifeboat at an extremely low price to a fisherman preparing for a long fishing trip, then left the port and headed towards the Alliance city.
Since Qingwu always carried his ID card and also had a Trainer's license, he could enter any Pokémon Center for free.
After coming ashore, Qingwu felt the bustling crowds of Vermilion City. The streets were packed with people. Qingwu bought a few sets of ordinary Trainer's attire from a shop.
After changing into the Trainer's attire, Qingwu also tidied his hair. Even the Team Rocket members most familiar with Qingwu, like Rai and Ariana, wouldn't recognize him at this point, as disguise was known as a great evil art.
The Pokémon Center occupied the best downtown location in Vermilion City. As a place for Pokémon treatment, it covered an extremely vast area, roughly the size of three or four stadiums, and was also five or six stories high.
As Qingwu stepped into the Pokémon Center, he heard the familiar voice of Nurse Joy. Qingwu suddenly felt as if he had been missing for two months. It was as if he was out of place with his surroundings, and from the depths of his heart, he returned from his confusion to the ordinary world of Pokémon.
"Oh, right, I must call Gardevoir and Gallade to let them know I'm safe," Qingwu said, tremblingly picking up the video phone hanging on the wall and skillfully dialing the number he remembered by heart.
After the call connected, Qingwu saw an elegant Gardevoir, who was gently looking at him.
News of Qingwu's disappearance only spread a month later. Everything was peaceful now. Qingwu looked at Gardevoir for a long time before tears welled up in his eyes.
Gardevoir saw her little master's nose crinkle, and a look like she was about to cry appeared on her face. She quickly comforted him and called Gallade over.
Qingwu looked at the two of them, who had struggled to support the development of the breeding house after his parents passed away. He smiled a happy smile. Nothing had happened yet; everything could be redone.
Qingwu smiled at Gardevoir and Gallade and said, "It's nothing, I just missed you all. I made a little money in the Kanto region, so our breeding house is saved. We don't have to sell the land anymore." Qingwu chuckled.
In his previous life, he had saved the breeding house by selling the land. After all, the breeding house still had several hundred acres of land. These were all properties left by Qingwu's parents. But after Gardevoir's child was kidnapped, Gardevoir had no heart to manage the breeding house.
"I'll be back soon, don't worry," Qingwu said. After hanging up the phone, he quickly lost control of his emotions, and tears poured down. He hadn't cried no matter how difficult the training camp was, but Gardevoir and Gallade had touched the softest part of his heart.
It's truly wonderful to have you all by my side in this life.
After wiping away his tears, Qingwu registered his stay with Nurse Joy, then registered himself and his Pokémon in the Alliance system.
The Alliance strictly required Trainers to carry only six Pokémon, but Team Rocket did not have this rule.
The Poké Balls Qingwu used were all specially made and were not within the Alliance's monitoring range.
Even if the number exceeded the Alliance's limit, there would be no phenomenon of instant teleportation of Poké Balls.
Nurse Joy could not treat unregistered Pokémon.
This was an Alliance rule. As a breeding master, Qingwu originally didn't need to go to the Pokémon Center for treatment.
However, Qingwu wanted to infiltrate the Alliance as a Team Rocket spy, so it was best to abide by the Alliance's rules.
Qingwu had another goal: to use the Pokémon Center's instruments to check if Aron had any hidden injuries.
After all, system scans could only detect Aron's aptitude. If too many hidden injuries accumulated, it would also affect Aron's aptitude.
The rest of Qingwu's Pokémon had been raised from a young age, so Qingwu was not worried about this issue.
Only Aron had suffered serious injuries as soon as it landed on the trial island. If it weren't for Qingwu's Pokémon breeding methods, Aron's final outcome would have been a severe loss of its origin, practically crippling it.
Qingwu also planned to perform a metal test on Aron, analyzing the strength of the metal in Aron's current metallic shell (0.4 degrees) and what kind of metal it contained.
Only in this way could he provide Aron with enough trace metals during subsequent breeding to enhance Aron's physique.
Qingwu also knew how to use these detection instruments, but since he couldn't return to Team Rocket's headquarters, he could only rely on the Alliance's resources.
When Qingwu returned to the breeding house, he would also focus on purchasing some detection instruments so that he could better conduct Pokémon breeding.
Qingwu registered Aron's and Squirtle's information into the Alliance system, then, led by Chansey, returned to his room.
Room 51, on the fifth floor of the Pokémon Center.
Qingwu lay on the soft bed. On the trial island, he had spent most of his time living outdoors, and the hard ground meant he hadn't slept well for nearly a month. However, the gains from his efforts were immense.
Zubat had evolved into Crobat, reaching level 35. Although Aron had not yet evolved, its level had reached 33, putting it at a stage where it could evolve at any time.
Even Squirtle, the lowest-leveled Pokémon, had reached level 15 after Qingwu's training.
🚨 Note : Consider to Support this Story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access +200 advance Chapters and To Support The Daily Update