After some searching, Alex Carter finally found Ash and the others at the Pokémon Center and joined them.
"Ah, Alex, are you alright? I heard you were attacked by Team Rocket and were quite injured," Misty said with a worried expression.
"Didn't Alex defeat them? It was even on the news, and look, isn't he fine now? Misty, you don't need to worry anymore," Brock said, remaining calm and steady.
"I'm fine. I just got back after getting the Golden Badge. What's wrong with you guys? Why is Ash looking so down? Did something happen?" Alex pretended not to know anything.
"Sigh, it's all because of that Psychic Gym Leader! Ash didn't win against her, and as a result, the three of us were turned into dolls and almost couldn't escape. It was really annoying!" Misty said angrily.
"No matter what, she's a Psychic Gym Leader; her strength shouldn't be underestimated," Brock added.
Looking at Ash's troubled expression, Alex thought about the task the system had given him, which was to help Ash grow as quickly as possible. Perhaps in the future, Alex might even be able to use Ash to his advantage. After all, in this world, Ash is destined to become a very strong Trainer. No matter what, history will continue to progress, and Ash's ultimate achievements will still exist.
It would be better to give him a helping hand along the way and do him some favors, so that even if his identity as a member of Team Rocket is exposed later, he'll have an easier time.
Thinking of this, Alex carefully recalled the plot from the anime, then looked at Ash.
"Ash, I know there's a place nearby called Lavender Town, where Ghost-type Pokémon exist. If you can catch one or a few, you should be able to counter Natsume's Psychic powers," Alex said, patting Ash's shoulder.
"Really? If I catch one, I can defeat Natsume?" Ash's eyes suddenly lit up after hearing Alex's words.
"Of course! Why would I lie to you? The reason I could defeat Natsume is that I have a Haunter!" Alex laughed triumphantly.
"Alright, I'm definitely going to get a Ghost-type Pokémon living in Lavender Town!" He then rushed out.
"Hey, Ash, you're going the wrong way! It's over there!" Misty shouted in Ash's direction, while Brock and Alex shook their heads helplessly. On their way to Lavender Town, a very thick fog suddenly enveloped the forest.
"The fog is getting thicker and thicker. Everyone, please don't get separated. If we get lost, we won't be able to leave this forest," Alex said, looking at the fog around them.
"I really don't want us to become ghosts before we even get a Ghost Pokémon," Misty said, frowning.
"I think it's better if everyone holds hands. That way, we won't have to worry about getting lost," Alex suggested.
"Alright, that works," Brock agreed.
As they walked, night fell. Suddenly, a tower appeared before them, looking incredibly eerie and terrifying.
"Ash, hurry up and catch a Ghost Pokémon," Misty said to Ash.
"The rest of us will wait for you here," Brock said with a smile.
"Huh? What are you talking about? Didn't we agree to stick together and catch Ghost Pokémon together?" Ash asked, confused.
"You're not scared, are you, Ash?" Misty said with a mischievous smile.
"It's okay, Ash, I'll go with you. Anyway, I have Haunter, so there's nothing to be afraid of," Alex said, laughing heartily. He genuinely found it funny that the three of them, as the protagonists of the anime, would be so afraid of ghosts.
Meanwhile, the Jessie, James, and Meowth trio was watching Alex and the others from a window.
"They're here! Those kids are finally here!" Jessie exclaimed.
"All our hard work rushing here has finally paid off," James added.
"This time, we must get our hands on that kid Alex's Pokémon, Meowth," Jessie commanded.
James had just turned to walk a few steps when he suddenly broke through the floor and fell down.
"What are you doing, James? Are you okay?" Jessie shouted down.
At that moment, a Gastly was awakened, yawned, and floated out.
Meowth was so scared that he couldn't stop screaming, his mouth wide open and covered in sweat.
"Meowth, what are you doing? Why is your mouth so wide open? Didn't we just eat dinner?" Jessie asked with a confused look.
"Behind you, Meowth!" Meowth said, his hand trembling as he pointed behind Jessie.
"Huh? You mean behind me? What's behind me?" Jessie turned her head to look but saw nothing.
"There's nothing there! What are you doing?" Jessie said, a bit annoyed.
"Meowth, it disappeared?" Meowth wondered if he had seen things earlier.
Suddenly, Gastly reappeared, landing on Jessie's head. Jessie, with a Gastly on her head, said, "Meowth, are you sleeping silly?"
Meowth screamed in fright, then immediately extended his claws and scratched, leaving three bloody marks on Jessie's face.
Jessie touched her scratched face and roared at Meowth, "Ah, that hurts! Don't you know that a face is an actress's life, Meowth?"
Then she pulled out a large iron hammer and directly hammered Meowth, sending him flying.
After bouncing a few times on the ground, Meowth also fell into the hole James had fallen into earlier.
"Honestly, what the heck is going on?" Jessie took out a small mirror and looked at her face.
"How unlucky, three lines scratched."
"Yes!" Gastly suddenly appeared in the mirror, looking as if Jessie had a Gastly head.
Afterwards, Jessie screamed in fright and also fell into the hole, landing on James and Meowth.
"Ah, hahaha, I'm so sorry, James," Jessie said as the three of them fell further down together, letting out a collective scream.
Misty outside heard it and said, scared, "It sounds like strange screams are coming from inside."
"That's the sound of those wandering in the abyss of hell," Brock said with a serious expression.
"Is that so?" Ash also wavered a bit.
Inside, Jessie and the others had just woken up, rubbing their heads as they stood.
"How annoying, what exactly is going on?" Jessie punched Meowth's head and said angrily.
Suddenly, Gastly reappeared in front of their faces, scaring them into screaming and fainting again.
"It's... it's coming again," Misty whispered, trembling.
"Could it be the screams of Ghost Pokémon?" Brock said, frowning.
"How could that be? I actually find these sounds very familiar, like I've heard them somewhere before," Alex felt a little apprehensive but was still very curious.
"Anyway, thinking too much now is useless. Ash, let's go quickly," Alex said, pulling Ash inside.
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