The first night in the Ecological Zone.
Late at night.
This was the deepest part of the forest, right next to the new coastline created by the zone's terraforming.
On the beach, gentle waves lapped against the shore.
The starry sky above their heads was filled with constellations, both familiar and new.
Two tents were set up, and soon a campfire lit up the surroundings.
In the dense jungle nearby, there were many powerful wild Pokémon peeping with bright, predatory eyes. But after taking one look at the Lugia baby splashing water and playing with Lapras on the shallow beach, these eyes quickly disappeared into the shadows.
A Mythical Beast?
Even if it is just a child, Authority is Authority. It cannot be offended by mere mortals.
The aroma of grilled meat filled the air.
Venti had made a rare trip back to Mondstadt's stash and brought a jar of Dandelion Wine that had been buried in the wind for hundreds of years to entertain Hiroshi and Mr. Morax.
Two Earthly Gods, plus the Store Manager of the Pokémon Home.
The atmosphere was as harmonious as the reunion of three old friends after a long absence.
Venti took a sip of wine. "Hey... I watched the exploration videos in the group chat today. Most of these people are Vision bearers, but they are quite restrained. If their lives are not in danger, they will not use the power of their Visions easily."
Hiroshi spread his hands.
"I didn't set this rule."
"They got it completely wrong!"
"Using a Vision, one's own bravery... isn't this a very reasonable and legitimate method to weaken a Pokémon before capture?"
"Even if you use Energy Cubes as bait or traps, as long as the wild Pokémon are willing to follow you and be conquered by your Poké Balls eventually, then I don't care about the method."
Venti smacked his lips and said cheerfully:
"Okay! After hearing what you say, I will start using the power of the Anemo Archon to conquer some Pokémon tomorrow!"
Hiroshi tilted his head.
"Wild Pokémon... well, if you like, Barbatos. You can subdue them as you like, and I will not set any restrictions. But don't bully the weak ones too much."
The Gods naturally have very high standards. After they tried to tame a few wild Pokémon and cultivated them for a period of time, they realized that most of the wild Pokémon were generally not qualified to stand by their side.
Zhongli obviously thought of this and looked outside the camp at a nearby reef.
His Kubfu (Disciple Bear) was still practicing its fighting skills under the moonlight, punching the rock rhythmically.
Hah! Hah!
"This Ecological Zone is not big."
"The species are quite rich!"
"However... I have not found any type of Pokémon whose Will and Spirit can rival those of the Kubfu."
Hiroshi rolled his eyes. "Old Man, if you want to find someone who is comparable to Kubfu in temperament and has the potential of a Sub-Legendary God... I advise you to give up looking here."
"Kubfu is like a human martial artist. It is keen on exercise and constantly strives for self-improvement. It also has a unique breathing method given by its bloodline. It keeps practicing and feels good doing it!"
"When it's done training... it can even ascend to the level of Gods!"
Zhongli nodded, taking a sip of tea (he refused the wine).
"In terms of universal rationality..."
"This type of Pokémon indeed belongs to the rarest category."
Hiroshi had eaten and drank enough, and had strengthened his relationship with the Gods of Anemo and Geo. He stood up and stretched.
"It's time to get back into the world of code."
He smiled at Venti and Zhongli.
"In a few days..."
"An interesting Pokémon game will be available on the Pokédex."
"When you two are messing around or bored, you also have a game to pass the time. So stay tuned!"
Leaving Venti and Morax behind to continue warming up at the seaside camp in the Ecological Zone, Hiroshi teleported away.
...
The Next Day.
Liyue Harbor.
The morning sun was bright.
Yoimiya got up very early, opened the hotel window, faced the rising sun outside, stretched her waist, and yawned.
"I will go to the Qixing, who is in charge of this Lantern Rite Festival, to collect the remaining money for these fireworks later."
"Then, I can travel around Liyue easily!"
Suddenly, Yoimiya's body froze.
On the windowsill, a very thick and khaki-colored insect crawled across.
The girl was very afraid of this kind of creeping thing.
This insect had distinct segments, a sharp stinger on its head, and several pairs of pink limbs under its abdomen.
"Weedle~"
It said hello to Yoimiya leisurely and softly.
"Weedle, come back!"
The window of the room next to hers in the hotel was also open, and a woman in adventurer clothes called out.
Immediately, Yoimiya was stunned.
Zzzzt!
This big earth-yellow bug actually turned into a red light and disappeared back into the Poké Ball.
"Hey, hello!"
The female adventurer nodded to Yoimiya, holding a shrinking Poké Ball in her hand.
She put the Poké Ball into her pocket and said calmly:
"My name is Zhiqiong, and I was urgently recalled from the Chasm."
The words just fell.
On the street below the hotel, there were several adventurers ready to go, calling up to Zhiqiong at the window.
"~ Zhiqiong! Hurry up! Lan is waiting for us!"
"This is the first time our Liyue Branch has sent out an Environmental Protection Team, so we must perform well!"
"Yesterday, two teams from the Mondstadt Branch handled many incidents and were said to have received a lot of Merit Points in the internal store..."
Another Place.
General Affairs Office.
The Millelith and the General Affairs Office staff were almost exhausted early in the morning.
The Millelith garrison was empty, and soldiers were dispatched everywhere to deal with the Pokémon disturbances in the city.
The General Affairs Office was handling reports and complaints from businessmen and citizens one after another.
For example:
Hongyi (Millelith Captain) had to personally lead a team and visit the scene of an incident.
"Help! Captain Hongyi! The Mankey named 'Zhou Cao' has a bad temper! If I feed him a few less Energy Cubes, he tears the furniture apart!"
"It's okay if I don't raise it anymore! Please take this ancestor away!"
A Liyue martial artist almost knelt down to plead with Hongyi. His house had been completely destroyed inside.
On the ruins of a table...
A Mankey named "Zhou Cao" roared violently.
Mankey!
Hongyi asked this Liyue warrior patiently. He found out that this man had succeeded in luring the Mankey with Energy Cubes initially.
But after returning home, he failed to deliver the delicious food and drink he promised, trying to feed it leftovers.
No wonder he was beaten. The angry Mankey will throw a tantrum instantly if slighted.
"Calm down."
"Are you sure you want to abandon this Mankey? Then please sign this contract. Our Millelith Pokémon Coordination Bureau will subdue the Mankey and release it back to the Ecological Zone..."
The warrior signed with tears in his eyes: "Okay, okay!"
"Send Mr. Monkey away quickly!"
Hongyi commanded his Level 10 Growlithe, plus two Millelith soldiers with Rattata and Skorupi, and easily knocked out the Level 8 Mankey.
At the scene of the incident, a crowd watched.
The outer layer of Millelith responsible for maintaining order couldn't help but cast envious glances at their colleagues in the "Coordination Bureau" (Department of Environmental Protection) who were handling the incident with their own Pokémon.
Having a partner like that... is the dream of every soldier now.