Su Bai's words immediately brought the playful commotion to a halt.
To be honest, Pei Jingguo had originally wanted to enter the Secret Realm Trial first.
When he first heard about the champion's rewards, it wasn't the Pokémon draw that had caught his attention. It was the trial realm.
However, when he saw the curious and envious looks on everyone's faces, he suddenly changed his mind.
"Then I'll draw for a Pokémon first…"
Pei Jingguo smiled faintly. "After that, I'll see what's so special about this Secret Realm Trial."
Su Bai nodded and placed the Pokédex in front of him.
"Then let's begin."
"Although… your method of drawing as the champion seems to be a little different…"
Su Bai glanced somewhat helplessly at the lower-right corner of his vision.
The champion's method of drawing was indeed different from everyone else's.
A series of prompts quietly appeared there.
[The champion of the first Pokémon exploration holds great significance. As a reward to the Trainer, this draw will use a consciousness-based selection method.]
[The champion's consciousness will enter a mental space through the Pokédex.]
[Pokémon whose consciousness resonates with the champion's will engage in a mutual selection process with the champion!]
"This is a little difficult to explain…"
Su Bai scratched his head.
"Basically, your consciousness may leave your body for a while."
"During that time, your consciousness will come into contact with Pokémon that are capable of resonating with you."
"This is the first time this selection method has ever been used. To be honest, I don't really have any advice to give you."
"However… somehow, I feel like you're not someone I need to worry about."
Pei Jingguo was slightly taken aback.
"Consciousness resonance?"
Su Bai hesitated before explaining, "That's right. Actually, there was already a certain degree of consciousness resonance when you guys drew your Pokémon before. But yours is different…"
"This time, it's a two-way resonance. You can choose the Pokémon whose consciousness resonates with you most strongly, rather than simply having one selected for you."
"As for the specifics, you'll have to find out once you enter."
"Two-way selection…"
Pei Jingguo quietly repeated those words before looking up with a smile.
"That makes me even more curious. So basically, I can choose the Pokémon I like the most, right? And a Pokémon chosen this way will be the one most suited to me?"
Su Bai nodded.
"That's one way to put it. A Pokémon that can resonate with your consciousness and is willing to accept your invitation will definitely be the one most suited to you."
"Then what are we waiting for… Let's do it!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Pei Jingguo placed his hand on the Pokédex.
This brand-new method of choosing a Pokémon had clearly struck a particular nerve with him. For once, a rare excitement appeared on the face of this mature-looking young swordsman!
The moment Pei Jingguo's hand touched the Pokédex, his entire body suddenly became motionless.
Even his breathing became extraordinarily slow and steady.
It was as though his very "presence" had disappeared!
The Trainers immediately exchanged bewildered looks.
"Uh… Why does Pei Jingguo always have to do something like this…? Why does he have to be so special?"
Wang Tao looked at the Honedge quietly floating beside Pei Jingguo and mercilessly complained.
"It was the same when he caught Honedge last time. Does this guy just refuse to catch a Pokémon unless he makes it look like he's dying first?"
"He looks like he's in some kind of fake-death state…" Liu Yunlan muttered.
"It's like his soul has left his body."
Her hands were practically itching. She really wanted to poke this "soulless" Pei Jingguo just to see what would happen.
But she didn't dare!
This state looked almost like enlightenment. If she disturbed Pei Jingguo with a single poke, she would probably regret it to the end of her life.
"All right, all right. Just wait patiently. Don't touch him…"
Su Bai helplessly looked at the motionless Pei Jingguo.
This guy was far too decisive.
Su Bai had originally thought that something like this should be done somewhere more private—at the very least, inside the Pokémon shop.
Instead, this reckless idiot had simply gone ahead and touched the Pokédex right there!
"He's still young…"
"But his consciousness should already have entered that space, right?"
"I wonder what kind of place it is… I'm actually a little curious myself."
…..............
The instant Pei Jingguo placed his hand on the Pokédex, his consciousness was pulled out of his body.
After a brief moment of disorientation, Pei Jingguo found himself sinking into a vast darkness.
"So this is… the consciousness space?"
"Wasn't I supposed to draw a Pokémon? Where are the Pokémon…? Why is everything pitch-black?"
The instant that thought arose in Pei Jingguo's mind—
Countless specks of starlike fire suddenly ignited throughout the entire consciousness space!
"So… magnificent!"
Although Pei Jingguo no longer possessed a physical body, that didn't stop him from "seeing" the spectacular sight of thousands upon thousands of blazing stars!
"Su Bai said that the Pokémon and I will make a mutual choice within this consciousness space…"
"Were my previous Pokémon randomly selected from among these flames?"
"Interesting…"
Pei Jingguo's consciousness instinctively began to drift through the vast space.
He immediately understood what "mutual selection" meant!
Every one of these flames represented a Pokémon capable of resonating with his consciousness.
Previously, he had only been able to passively accept whatever Pokémon was selected.
But this time…
He could choose for himself!
"The flames are different in both size and color…"
"The size probably represents the Pokémon's strength. And the color should represent its typing?"
"Grass-type is green, Steel-type is white, Dark-type is black…"
"Hmm… Is that one coming closer?"
Within Pei Jingguo's "field of vision," a huge spark of flame stood out from the others.
It was a brilliant mixture of grass-green and white, and it was an entire size larger than the surrounding flames.
It seemed curious as it slowly approached Pei Jingguo.
The next moment, an unfamiliar silhouette appeared in Pei Jingguo's mind.
Its shape was strange and indistinct, but he could vaguely make out something resembling a bizarre humanoid figure.
It was unnaturally thin.
However, the sensation disappeared as quickly as it had come.
By the time Pei Jingguo realized what had happened, that flame had already vanished.
The strange image within his consciousness disappeared along with it.
"So this… is what mutual selection means!"
At that moment, Pei Jingguo finally understood.
Clearly, the consciousness of that Pokémon was much stronger than the others. It had been attracted to his consciousness and approached him.
Yet for some unknown reason, it had ultimately chosen not to make him its Trainer.
"A little unfortunate…"
"But if this is mutual selection, then the Pokémon should have the right to choose as well."
Pei Jingguo shook his head, a little disappointed.
He could clearly sense that the Pokémon from earlier had been an extremely mysterious and powerful creature.
In fact, he could vaguely feel the same oppressive presence from it that he had once sensed from Articuno!
"If that's the case…"
"Then I'll look for some flames that are especially conspicuous."
Although he had failed to gain that Pokémon's acknowledgment, Pei Jingguo wasn't discouraged.
Among these countless flames, there had to be one that belonged to him.
There was no reason to become disheartened over a single failure.
Without a steady state of mind, he would never have been able to endure all those years of swordsmanship training in the first place.
Pei Jingguo's consciousness began wandering through the space.
There seemed to be no concept of the passage of time here.
It felt as though a very long time had passed…
And yet, it also seemed as if only an instant had gone by.
Then Pei Jingguo suddenly sensed an unbearably scorching heat.
Calling it "heat" might not have been entirely accurate.
After all, within this space, Pei Jingguo was nothing more than a floating consciousness. He didn't even possess a physical body.
Yet simply sensing this presence was enough to make his spirit surge with excitement!
"What an incredibly powerful… flame!"
Pei Jingguo turned his "gaze" toward it.
A flame that was clearly pink, yet carried an incomparably majestic aura, was burning fiercely!
The flames around it seemed to instinctively retreat, giving it a wide berth.
"Not just powerful…"
"But… sword intent?"
Pei Jingguo was stunned.
This flame was clearly far more powerful than the strange multicolored flame from before—by an immeasurable margin!