Bulbasaur Gains the Power of Free Evolution!
It had been a while since the last quiz, but the familiar four options popped up once again.
This time, aside from the first choice, all the other three seemed plausible.
Though Black Ash was careful and calculating, he still carried the same fiery passion that White Ash possessed.
Running away in fear? That wasn't his style at all.
So, option A could be ruled out immediately.
With only twenty seconds to answer—and the quiz being a speed challenge—everyone held their breath and waited.
The livestream chat fell into total silence…
Then—after twenty seconds—the results came in.
Participants this round: Ash, Bruno, Lance, and Damalanthi.
Ash chose D; Bruno, Lance, and Damalanthi chose C.
Since Bruno answered first, Lance was reassigned to A, and Damalanthi to B.
One D, three Cs.
Only Ash believed that his counterpart from another world would fight head-on.
The others thought Black Ash would move only after careful planning.
[Lance: Ah, too bad—I was just a second too slow. Bruno beat me to it.]
[Damalanthi: Tch, got dumped onto B… guess I'm doomed this round.]
[Bruno: Hahaha! Finally, it's my turn to win a reward! Hope it's a training manual or something to power up my Machamp! But Ash—why'd you pick D?]
[Ash: Uh… if I had Aura powers, I think I'd charge right in.]
[Bruno: Ah, Ash, you're still thinking the same way! That's Black Ash we're talking about, not you. He's cautious—he always thinks before acting. There's no way he'd rush in like that!]
[Bruno: He'd definitely go to Lavender Town first to catch a Ghost-type Pokémon, that's the smart play!]
Congratulations, Ash—your answer is correct! Reward: Bulbasaur gains Free Evolution!
Free Evolution: Evolve or devolve at will—change forms freely whenever you want!
[Bruno: …]
[Lance: …]
[Ash: …]
That slap in the face came faster than a hurricane.
Bruno hadn't even finished typing his explanation when the system announced that Ash had guessed correctly.
The smugness on Bruno's face froze instantly.
He had already been fantasizing about what kind of reward he'd get—only to plummet straight from heaven to hell in an instant!
No way!
How could C be wrong? There was no way Black Ash would act as recklessly as White Ash!
But… no matter what Bruno thought, the result was already set in stone—Ash was right.
[Lance: Free evolution and de-evolution… that kind of power goes beyond the limits of our world. As expected of something from beyond the void. By the way, Ash, your Bulbasaur hasn't evolved yet, right?]
[Ash: That's right, Mr. Lance. Bulbasaur always wanted to grow stronger in his base form! So he never evolved—but now, this power is perfect for him!]
Bulbasaur had always refused evolution to prove that even in his original form, he could become powerful.
But with this new gift, the burden of that choice disappeared.
Whether to evolve or not was no longer a limitation—it was freedom.
Ash was overjoyed.
As they chatted, a beam of light burst from the black screen—
shooting straight toward Bulbasaur at Professor Oak's lab.
At that moment, Bulbasaur was still squinting hard, trying to read the words on the mysterious black screen.
He never expected that his reward would arrive out of nowhere!
In an instant, he understood the ability's power—
he could now evolve or revert freely at will!
"Bulba! Bulba-saur!"
(Ash… I'll take good care of the backyard for you! I'll help with the Silver Conference too!)
Bulbasaur's heart filled with emotion.
He had refused evolution to prove that strength didn't depend on appearance.
But in battle, opponents wouldn't go easy just because he chose not to evolve.
Evolution always brought an advantage.
Now, with this gift of free evolution, he could fight however he needed to.
He could stay in his current form to keep training…
but when it came to protecting Ash or winning a fight, he would evolve without hesitation!
Compared to his own pride, Ash was far more important.
After the short quiz, the dark screen resumed its playback.
Everyone was curious—why would the normally composed Black Ash suddenly decide to charge in this time?
Inside the dark world—
Ash finally decided—
to fight!
But even so, before challenging, he needed to learn more about Sabrina, the Saffron Gym Leader.
Unfortunately, Nurse Joy didn't know much.
All she could say was that the trainers who challenged Sabrina…
never dared step foot in Saffron City again.
They had no idea where to turn for more information—
until a middle-aged man appeared before them.
It was Sabrina's father!
Having noticed that they were asking around about his daughter,
he decided to approach them himself.
At last, someone who actually knew her.
Ash asked him everything in detail,
and soon learned the horrifying truth of why so many challengers never returned.
Teleportation. Psychokinesis. Shrinking people. Turning them into dolls.
Her powers were far beyond human comprehension—
and her mind was that of a cold, unfeeling little girl.
Those who challenged her had suffered immensely.
But there was one silver lining—
her Pokémon themselves weren't all that strong.
Sabrina only had two Pokémon: an Abra and a Hypno.
However, she could amplify their power with her own psychic energy—
which still made her a formidable foe.
"Stronger than her Pokémon, huh? Interesting."
Ash grinned. "Let's go—we're heading there now!"
Misty and Brock ran after him, panic written all over their faces.
"Ash, are you sure about this? Maybe think twice?"
"Yeah, Ash! We don't need this one badge. There are plenty in Kanto! And your team isn't built to fight Psychic-types! What if she turns us into dolls for a whole day?"
"Relax. I've got this."
Ash smirked. "After all, who said I'm not a Psychic too?"
Both Misty and Brock froze for a moment—
then exchanged awkward looks.
They'd almost forgotten.
Ash was technically an aura user—
a kind of "psychic," though of a different kind.
If he said he could handle her,
then maybe he really could counter Sabrina's power with Aura.
At this point, all they could do was trust him.
Though their journey together hadn't been long,
they already trusted one another completely.
Sabrina's father watched their retreating backs and sighed deeply.
He was already preparing to save them.
He'd told them to go to Lavender Town and catch a Ghost-type Pokémon first—
but they wouldn't listen.
Sigh… foolish kids.
Author's Note:
According to the Pokédex, Damalanthi is the Keeper of the Sacred Flame.
In many fan works, he's depicted as the President of the Pokémon League.
I'm not sure where that originated, but since it's a common interpretation,
I'll be using that version here as well.
If you Enjoyed Reading
Visit my p@treon for more chapters
Advance 80+ Chapters Available
patreon.com/Sagamaster789
If you really Enjoyed Reading. Give Power Stones and Reviews !