Chapter 65: Shining New Life

Kanto Region, Viridian City.

Professor Oak also received a package from Shinzo.

His reason for purchasing the Arceus sculpture was that the workshop’s description stated it would have a special effect on Pokémon hatching; as an expert in Pokémon breeding and Egg Group research, ever since Professor Oak clarified the phenomenon of Pokémon Eggs, breeding facilities across Kanto and surrounding regions had begun offering the special service of “nurturing Pokémon Eggs.”

Yet Pokémon Eggs always appeared suddenly, and even Professor Oak had never witnessed the exact moment one was laid.

“What does it mean that the hatched Pokémon will become stronger, and even have a chance to encounter a unique new life? Could it be a change in ability?”

The workshop’s description was vague; Professor Oak tried asking the seller, but received only this reply: 【“You’ll understand once it hatches.”】

It seemed likely to cause a tremendous impact—perhaps that’s why only three of these sculptures existed. If the seller wasn’t a fraud, Professor Oak felt he should thank his own quick hands.

Fortunately, he still had a batch of unique Eggs on hand.

Of course, Professor Oak also knew another colleague had purchased this sculpture: Professor Rowan of Sinnoh, his senior, from whom Professor Oak had learned his research on evolution and Abilities. Before this, Professor Oak had consulted Professor Rowan, who speculated that this unusual Pokémon might be connected to Sinnoh’s legends.

He had assumed it was an original artistic creation, but it turned out to be linked to a mythical unknown Pokémon. Even though Professor Oak knew nothing about sculpting, he could sense the intense ancient atmosphere radiating from the exquisite statue; if he listened closely, he seemed to hear faint music—but the moment he focused, the sound vanished, as if it were his imagination.

Beep-beep—the video call rang. Professor Oak quickly answered; on the other end was his mentor, Professor Oak!

“Master, you called at the perfect moment—I’m just about to hatch a new batch of Pokémon Eggs.”

Professor Oak greeted his mentor, who immediately became interested: “So, you’re going to use the sculpture?”

The three unknown Pokémon sculptures had indeed been purchased by three professors—the last one was bought by Professor Oak.

【“I bought some other sculptures too, but lately there’ve been too many things going on, so I haven’t had time to test their effects. I’ve already asked Professor Rowan about the unknown Pokémon carving—he’s having the Sinnoh Champion investigate it. She’s an excellent archaeologist.”】

【“I plan to buy more items and conduct a unified test all at once. For that, I’ve invited several top Trainers to help me.”】

“Cough! Anyway, let me see what happens when the new Pokémon Eggs hatch—it’s a test too.”

Professor Oak spoke, but his expression was unusual; Professor Oak didn’t notice, too excited to connect the video call remotely to the Pokémon Device so Professor Oak could observe the hatching Eggs from all angles.

Professor Oak approached the hatching device and explained to Professor Oak: “These are Eggs of the ‘Original Partners’—Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle.”

The “Original Partners” refer to the Pokémon given to new Trainers when they begin their journey, typically gifted by a Professor’s lab. They grow quickly and are powerful; every region’s lab carefully selects their Original Partners, and some are bred and uniformly distributed by the League or the Professor themselves to new Trainers who wish to receive a Pokémon.

Still, wild populations of them can be found in nature.

As an Egg Group expert, Professor Oak was also one of the finest Breeders; all his Pokémon Eggs were raised in his lab. Now, in three hatching devices, three Eggs waited quietly for the moment of hatching; fluctuations on the instruments could indicate whether a Pokémon Egg was about to hatch.

“According to my recent research, I’ve found that before hatching, some Pokémon can already perceive the outside world and sense our presence. Now, I’ll place the sculpture between the three Eggs.”

Professor Oak nervously waited for the hatching moment, but when it occurred depended entirely on the Pokémon’s own will—the hatching device could only assist, not make the choice for them.

Professor Oak knew this was a long process, so he waited solemnly too—until the next instant, the Arceus sculpture emitted a faint glow!

This sudden anomaly shocked both Professors!

“That sculpture…! It’s glowing!”

As the light shone, the three Pokémon Eggs inside the hatching device also lit up—this change was unmistakably a sign of imminent hatching!

“All three Eggs at once?!”

Professor Oak’s assistant was checking the instruments; Professor Oak had only one assistant, so they were always overwhelmed. The assistant’s expression was stunned—the instruments showed violent fluctuations!

“The hatching process is extremely intense—completely different from before, Doctor!”

“Observe the instrument changes closely and gradually adjust the power to the safety threshold!” Professor Oak stared intently at the three Eggs; Professor Oak on the video call wore an equally serious expression.

The glow on the three Eggs grew stronger; as the hatching device’s power decreased, their shapes began to change!

Pokémon hatching occurs in two ways: one is breaking out of the shell, the other is transforming directly into a new life while still inside the Egg—and now, the latter was happening!

“Chikorita?”

“Charmander?”

“Squirtle!”

All three Pokémon hatched simultaneously, transforming into Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle amid intense light!

Instantly, Bulbasaur’s body shimmered with bright star-like effects!

At the same time, Professor Oak immediately noticed: these three Pokémon were much larger inside the hatching device—they were significantly bigger than their species’ normal size!

In nature, larger Pokémon have greater competitive advantage within their species, meaning their strength and speed far exceed others of their kind. But in labs, Pokémon rarely show size differences because hatching conditions are uniform; the chance of hatching an exceptionally powerful individual is extremely low.

Yet these three were clearly unlike any previously hatched!

“How is this possible? This is an astonishing change! Open the hatching device!” Professor Oak ordered his assistant to open it, then stepped forward—his eyes locked instantly on Bulbasaur.

Bulbasaur’s leaves were a different color—no, its entire body was different!

“Chikorita?” Bulbasaur looked at Professor Oak with confusion; Professor Oak was overwhelmed with excitement.

“This… is the unique new life?!”

The Egg hatched—shiny!

On the video call, Professor Oak was equally stunned, murmuring: “A shiny Pokémon…”

“We’ve found them before!” Professor Oak quickly replied: “In normal natural environments, shiny Pokémon appear with extremely low probability and no pattern. Team Rocket once created a red Gyarados through special experiments in Lake of Rage; their research concluded the red Gyarados retained the coloration of its Magikarp lineage. But later, golden Magikarp were discovered that could evolve normally into red Gyarados.”

Professor Oak pondered: “Mm, yes—different-colored Pokémon have been found in the Orange Islands too, due to environmental changes. Those Pokémon exist between shiny and regional forms.”

“But we’ve now confirmed the sculpture’s function—its significance for hatching, breeding, and Egg Group research is undeniable!”

Professor Oak forced himself to calm down: “These Pokémon will soon be given to new Trainers. I must study them quickly!”

“The sculpture’s research…”

“Oh, leave that to me,” Professor Oak said eagerly: “What force altered the Pokémon’s color and made them stronger? The sculpture glowed before hatching—as if warning us a new life was about to be born. It must have influenced the hatching environment, causing this outcome.”

“Mm. Things tied to the occult are beyond scientific understanding. Similar events have happened many times in this world.”

Professor Oak spoke, his gaze shifting—as if recalling some distant memory.

————

Shinzo, Traveler’s Workshop.

Guang Tai closed the pop-up customer window and let out a long breath.

Some returning customers, and some new ones, had offered valuable feedback!

“Ice-type items—won’t they melt ice and snowballs? But I don’t know where to get them. Climbing the Ancient Spirit Peak would be too dangerous.”

“I could try making dolls—Substitute Dolls and Pippi Dolls? I still have some materials left; it should be enough.”

“Spiritual paper—this is a great idea. I never thought of using paper as a spiritual item. Maybe it’ll create something unexpected, like that cursed letter sent by Gengar of the Ancient Explorer? Then I should have Doublade learn modern script… no, better to write in ancient script—it would add more mystery! Right now, I’ll place the paper from my warehouse into Room Four for spiritual infusion. Wrap it in Spiritual Cloth, then have Doublade process it—it should make Spiritual Paper faster.”

“Paintings and decorative carpets, wallpaper, teaware, psychic glass whistles—my painting skill still lags behind my sculpting, but if I paint in ruin-style, maybe it’ll work!”

“Musical instruments—I’ve never made any, but perhaps I can try using forging techniques. Materials needed: brass, or fragments of Copperajah? I wonder if I can buy them.”

Though Copperajah aren’t rare Pokémon, they mostly gather at ancient ruins, abandoned buildings, and tombs—so they’re not easy to find.

“That means I need to buy large quantities of external Pokémon materials. Luckily, I’ve earned quite a bit recently—I’ll spend it all!”

Guang Tai began searching his computer for necessary items and materials. Some Pokémon materials could be bought online—like Pichu’s fur, a premium Pokémon material used to make high-grade yarn, so specialized ranchers raise them. But others couldn’t be bought easily; rarer ones were even harder to obtain.

“Recent income from selling sculptures and various items has accumulated to about 3 million.”

Sculpture prices weren’t uniform—some cheap, some expensive—and stock levels varied. The Arceus sculpture brought Guang Tai 600,000 in revenue; other sculpture items totaled around 1.5 million.

The rest—two talismans, battle items, Light Ceramics, and Snack Packs—added another 1 million.

“Also, there’s unrecorded income—Kuichin and Ma Shide’s sculpture sales aren’t included yet; I’ll record them only after receiving the goods.”

“Buy various Pokémon materials, common ores, cotton for stuffing dolls…”

“Cotton—Fairy-type cotton is a specialty of Unova.”

“Ores—Galar’s mines produce abundant brass and high-quality ores related to Copperajah.”

“For painting—Kanto’s Pancham’s tail pigment is top-grade!”

“Fabric—Kanto’s Pichu-fur yarn is the highest-grade product.”

These Pokémon are common, having lived alongside humans for a long time in a mutually beneficial symbiosis, so a quick search online sufficed to purchase them. But since premium goods were expensive, Guang Tai’s funds rapidly dwindled.

“Just buying extra amounts of these four materials cost 1.88 million—I now have 1.5 million left.”

“Odoruma’s art scrolls and stained glass, Popplio Town’s unique instruments, Rotom City’s retro crafts and clothing, Hoenn’s volcanic ash…”

“Spent 1.1 million. Indeed, art pieces are truly expensive.”

Guang Tai checked his balance—though only about 400,000 remained, it was enough to buy a few extra materials.

But next time Charizard and the others deliver more items, it’ll be exhausting!

(End of Chapter)