"Are you ready?"
Gu Yuan looked at the three youngsters and asked seriously. Without hesitation, the three youngsters nodded in unison, appearing particularly determined.
Seeing this, Gu Yuan said no more. He immediately opened their status panels and filled in the last bit of strength for them. As the points vanished, a surge of power generated within the three Pokémon. Having prepared for this, they all closed their eyes and began controlling this power using the techniques they had learned from Charizard and the others. Correspondingly, the Aura around them also changed.
Once their Auras were completely stabilized, the process of breaking through to Junior Rank was complete. They simultaneously opened their eyes, which were filled with excitement, eager to immediately find an opponent and fight three hundred rounds.
"Alakazam."
Sensing their thoughts, Gu Yuan immediately had Alakazam act. It used Teleport, and soon, three Beedrill were caught and brought over, all possessing Junior Rank strength.
"Go, use your opponents to adapt to your newfound power."
As Gu Yuan spoke, Charcadet and the others stopped holding back and rushed forward, competing to be first. Previously, a swarm of Beedrill might have been a very tricky problem for Gu Yuan. Now, however, Gu Yuan could easily crush a colony and select suitable Beedrill for his Pokémon to practice against, silently confirming the progress in Gu Yuan's strength.
Even without Gu Yuan's command, the three youngsters easily won, relying on their accumulated combat experience and excellent battle abilities.
This was just the beginning. To allow the three youngsters to adapt to their strength as quickly as possible, Gu Yuan had prepared more than just these three Beedrill.
Through continuous, back-to-back battles, the three youngsters quickly adapted to their Junior Rank strength.
By now, the veterans of the team, like Charizard, all possessed Senior Rank strength. Furthermore, if Charizard was already fighting at quasi-Ace Rank level, Gu Yuan was confident that it could break through to Ace Rank before the Indigo League began.
As for the three youngsters, based on the rate of strength increase seen in Charizard and the others, they should reach Intermediate Rank strength by the time the Indigo League starts. Whether they could break through to Senior Rank would depend on the specific circumstances. Regardless, Gu Yuan was confident that with his power, he would definitely be a strong contender for the Champion title!
"Let's go, Alakazam. Head to the dock as fast as possible. We are setting sail!"
With the battle over, Gu Yuan recalled the three youngsters to their Poké Balls to rest, leaving only Sylveon, Alakazam, and Ditto by his side. Gu Yuan looked ahead, his eyes filled with anticipation.
Alakazam unleashed its psychic power and used Teleport to make Gu Yuan and his companions vanish from the spot. After several successive warps, Gu Yuan clearly felt that the number of people around them had increased. Gu Yuan stopped Alakazam from continuing, recalling it to its Poké Ball, and proceeded on foot with Sylveon and Ditto.
Along the way, Gu Yuan saw many Trainers preparing to set sail. Although Cinnabar Island had just begun developing its hot spring inns, the Cinnabar Gym's reputation was still considerable, attracting many people. Furthermore, the allure of the hot spring inns was increasing the number of travelers heading to Cinnabar Island each year.
Trainers who were still collecting Gym Badges at this stage generally had decent strength, with their accompanying Pokémon mostly being Intermediate Rank, with occasional sightings of Senior Rank or Junior Rank Pokémon.
After walking for a while, Gu Yuan saw the small town next to the dock. Relying on this dock, the town was also developing quite well, with many people selling Pokémon like Magikarp.
Although Magikarp evolves into a powerful Pokémon like Gyarados, it remains one of the least popular Pokémon among Trainers. Even the League's management of Pokémon like Magikarp is not strict, which demonstrates how useless it is. After all, with the Moves Magikarp knows, it would be difficult to win a battle even if its strength level was higher than its opponent's, and the training difficulty is also very high. Evolving it into a Gyarados is an extremely long process.
Initially, Gu Yuan considered finding a Magikarp to train. After all, with points available, it would be quite easy for Gu Yuan to train any Pokémon. However, Gu Yuan quickly gave up the idea. Choosing a Magikarp meant that the initial investment would yield no return, and even if Magikarp successfully evolved, its strength wouldn't necessarily be considered invincible within its rank. Moreover, to make up for its earlier shortcomings, it would require even more time for training and battle, making it simply not worth the effort.
Entering the small town, Gu Yuan prepared to resupply. Along the way, Gu Yuan saw countless shops selling Magikarp, and he couldn't help but be impressed by Magikarp's astonishing breeding capability. Most importantly, quite a few people were actually buying them. These people weren't intending to train Magikarp into Gyarados, but rather to buy one or two to keep, as preparing some Water-type Pokémon is necessary when traveling on the open sea.
This wasn't necessary for Gu Yuan, however. With Ditto around, it could transform into any Water-type Pokémon. If that failed, he still had Charizard, who could fly, and Alakazam, who could use Teleport; any of those options would be much more useful than a Magikarp.
After resting, Gu Yuan went to the pier to wait quietly for the next ship to arrive. Many other people were also gathered there. Since it was dark, most of those setting sail at this time were Trainers.
With Ash's experience in mind, Gu Yuan had booked a room on Cinnabar Island early, preventing him from having to sleep on the street when he arrived. As the sky gradually darkened, a ship cut through the sea and slowly docked at the pier.
After lining up and boarding the ship, Gu Yuan checked his room, then took Sylveon and Ditto to the deck. The sun had not yet completely set, and the last remnants of the afterglow spread across the sea, as if coating the entire surface with gold. In the midst of this splendid scenery, Gu Yuan quietly enjoyed the sunset.
Naturally, Gu Yuan would not let Charizard and the others miss this beautiful scene. He released them to appreciate the rare sight together. After the sun fully set, Gu Yuan recalled Charizard and the others to their Poké Balls and went to get some food.
Because the ship was sailing on the sea, the dinner primarily consisted of fish and seafood. Although the seasoning was light, the food was exceptionally delicious, and Gu Yuan thoroughly enjoyed it. He secretly decided to buy some seafood and fish as supplies once they reached land, noting that they would be an excellent choice for soup or grilling. Crucially, the preparation process was not complicated, and Gu Yuan could handle it with his cooking skills.
While Gu Yuan was traveling to Cinnabar Island by ship, many boats were still out on the ocean catching Pokémon. Their main target was Magikarp, which is one of the few Pokémon the League does not prohibit from being captured. Perhaps the profit from a single Magikarp is small, but the large volume makes up for it. Furthermore, these Pokémon offer little resistance, so there's no need to use Poké Balls to restrain them, saving on costs.
However, these people failed to notice that more and more massive creatures were gathering in the ocean.