[Quest triggered: Boulder City Branch.]
[Please complete the construction of the Boulder City branch as soon as possible. The Pokémon arrival in Boulder City will begin after the branch is established. The Pokémon arriving this time will be from the Johto region.]
[After completing the branch, the host will receive a system reward!]
It really came.
The corners of Su Bai's lips curled upward slightly. Even the burly, sincere-looking Dong Feng suddenly seemed a little more adorable to him.
Still, Su Bai calmly nodded.
"The branch won't be a problem. I'll get in touch with the Zhang Group. As for the location…
He was about to say that he would have to make a trip to Boulder City himself.
But Dong Feng was even more eager than he was and immediately answered for him.
"Yes! We have one!"
"The entire section of the city wall where the Contract Master Guild used to be has already been demolished. The Boulder City Pokémon Center branch can be built there!"
"As for the land, I can promise you on behalf of Boulder City, Boss Su—there won't be a single cent in land costs!"
"Not only that, before you came back, Old Zhu and I already discussed this. Old Zhu will send some capable people over to teach us how to cultivate Berries."
"Other than the area Boss Su designates for the Pokémon Center, I plan to plant Berries throughout the entire surrounding area!"
"So don't worry, Boss Su! Boulder City has plenty of money now!"
In such a short time, Dong Feng had already repeated several times that Boulder City had plenty of money.
The words that had just reached Su Bai's lips were swallowed back down.
It seemed the Contract Master Guild really had been obscenely wealthy.
And now, Boulder City genuinely wasn't short on money…
That plot of land was quite large. A single Pokémon Center certainly wouldn't be enough to fill it, so planting Berries around it would actually be quite suitable.
However…
Su Bai glanced at Old Zhu, who was wearing a sly grin.
Their eyes happened to meet.
Old Zhu immediately looked away guiltily.
Su Bai narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"Um… City Lord Dong, regarding the Haicheng people who are going to teach you how to cultivate Berries…"
Before Su Bai could even finish his question, Dong Feng suddenly understood and slapped his broad chest with a resounding thump.
"Don't worry, Boss Su! Boulder City will absolutely not mistreat any high-level talents coming from Haicheng!"
"We'll give them the best possible treatment! You know us—Boulder City has a whole lot of money!"
Looking at Dong Feng's smug expression, Su Bai helplessly shook his head.
It seemed that Boulder City's reputation for having a "whole lot of money" was about to become a thing of the past…
But Dong Feng wasn't an idiot.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to become a city lord.
For him, the important thing was figuring out how to use this money to win over the Pokémon Center.
As for where the money came from…
Well, it had come from the Contract Master Guild anyway!
Now that Boulder City had lost the power of the Contract Master Guild, as a frontline city, he absolutely had to do something.
And spending money…
Was actually the easiest thing to do!
"All right, then. The branch is settled. Next is the matter of the Pokémon legion…"
Su Bai stroked his chin.
"Since you have so much money… what kind of Pokémon should I give you?"
At the rate Dong Feng was spending, this unexpected fortune Boulder City had acquired would probably be squandered away before long.
He might as well make sure the money was spent where it mattered!
At those words, Dong Feng immediately became nervous. He clasped his hands awkwardly in front of him.
The Pokémon legion was the most important purpose of his trip.
After losing the Contract Master Guild, Boulder City urgently needed to replenish its military strength!
Compared to those unpleasant Death Beasts, Pokémon could practically be described as angels.
Originally, he had intended to purchase exactly the same Pokémon as Haicheng's Pokémon legion.
But now…
It seemed the outcome might be even better than he had expected?
The Su Bai standing before Dong Feng appeared to be deep in thought.
In reality, however, he was already communicating with the system.
[A new large-scale order has been detected. Analyzing the situation…]
[Analyzing the terrain of Boulder City…]
[Analysis complete… Generating recommendations for the host!]
[Recommendations generated!]
[After comprehensively evaluating the conditions of Boulder City, three Pokémon species have been selected.]
[Species One: Skiddo. Mount Pokémon. Gentle in temperament and obedient to commands. It can use the leaves on its back to produce energy, allowing it to survive even in barren rocky mountains without food. It can easily adapt to Boulder City's unique mountainous terrain.]
[Species Two: Shieldon. Shield Pokémon. Possesses exceptional defensive capabilities. Although it is not good at dealing with attacks from behind, its hard face can provide powerful defensive capabilities when multiple Shieldon fight together.]
[Species Three: Flamigo. Flying/Fighting-type Pokémon. Synchronization Pokémon. It possesses a behavior known as synchronization, allowing an entire group to launch attacks in an orderly and coordinated manner.]
[The average price of all three Pokémon is 1.2 million Federation credits.]
"Just as I thought…"
Su Bai looked at the results rapidly generated by the system and cast a sympathetic glance at Dong Feng.
After selling Pokémon for so long, he had basically figured out the system's pricing rules.
The first and most important factor in determining a Pokémon's price was its rarity.
For example, common early-route birds and bugs might not have particularly low base stat totals after fully evolving, but their prices simply couldn't rise very much.
Next came base stats.
This was also an extremely important criterion.
Using the starter trio's 525 base stat total as a reference, a Pokémon at that level generally cost around one million Federation credits.
Then there was its evolutionary stage.
This was very important.
The one-million price for the starter trio referred to their unevolved forms!
Naturally, their prices would rise once they evolved.
There were also Pokémon whose initial form was already their final evolution. Those tended to be more expensive as well.
For example, Falinks definitely wouldn't have been so cheap if not for the group purchase.
And since Haicheng was the starting city, the system had most likely given them an additional discount on top of the usual discount.
Even then, the average price had still been 800,000.
Taking all of these factors into account, the 1.2-million price tag…
Was actually quite reasonable.
"All right… I've already communicated with the Pokémon world. The three Pokémon species for Boulder City's Pokémon legion will be Skiddo, Shieldon, and Flamigo…"
Su Bai put on his professional smile and began introducing the three Pokémon to Dong Feng.
Dong Feng listened and nodded repeatedly, his face lighting up with delight.
"Shieldon possesses powerful defensive capabilities, making it an excellent Pokémon for holding the front line."
"Skiddo has excellent mobility and is better adapted to life in Boulder City's mountainous environment. It would be particularly suitable for reconnaissance units."
"As for Flamigo…"
"This one is even more impressive."
"Since it is already in its final evolutionary form from the moment it is obtained and doesn't need to evolve, its offensive power can be described as extremely formidable…"
An image flashed through Su Bai's mind.
On the battlefields of Scarlet and Violet, Flamigo kicking one opponent after another into the dirt.
With an Attack stat of 115 and powerful moves like Brave Bird…
If not for its somewhat lacking Speed, it might have become yet another battle-format benchmark.
In fact, there had been a period when Flamigo's usage rate was quite high.
This Pokémon was far stronger than its base stats alone suggested.
So its relatively high price was perfectly reasonable.
"Furthermore, its synchronization behavior can ensure that Flamigo's attacks remain coordinated. That's similar to the way Haicheng's Falinks operate."
"Both are Pokémon particularly well suited for coordinated group combat."
"So, those are the three Pokémon I recommend. What do you think, City Lord Dong?"
Every word Su Bai spoke seemed to scratch precisely where Dong Feng was itching most.
He had personally witnessed Pokémon slaughtering their way through the battlefield in Boulder City.
The moment he finished dealing with the Contract Masters, he had rushed straight to Haicheng without stopping.
And what he saw here was a world that had already undergone a complete transformation!
What city lord wouldn't want his own city to become like this?
A Pokémon legion would be the greatest possible assistance!
Just imagining his own city possessing such powerful combat forces made the blood in Dong Feng's aging body seem to boil.
"No problem!"
Dong Feng agreed without the slightest hesitation and pulled a Black Crystal Card from his robes.
"How much? Boulder City will take them all!"
Su Bai fell silent for a moment.
He glanced at Zhu Jianyuan before calmly replying,
"Uh… It's not that expensive. The average price is 1.2 million."
"That comes to…"
"360 million Federation credits."
"How much?"
Dong Feng's hand, still holding the card, froze in midair.
His expression became strangely stiff.
Beneath that seemingly honest and simple-minded exterior, his mind began spinning at incredible speed.
Planting Berries.
Repairing the city.
Buying Pokémon…
His brain had probably never worked this quickly before.
It soon arrived at a single conclusion.
After buying all these Pokémon…
Boulder City…
Wouldn't have much money left, would it?
Su Bai leisurely took the card from Dong Feng's hand and gave him a sympathetic look.
So…
Could Boulder City still claim to have a whole lot of money now?