Chapter 71: The Unknown Totem Bewitched Turtwig

Shen Du, Traveler’s Workshop.

The dream faded gradually; Guang Tai and Lilyroot Doll both awoke, and outside, light slowly spread.

The night had passed.

The moment Guang Tai woke, he heard the cry of Double-Edge!

“Yowuu!”

A piece of wood had appeared in the room, resting squarely atop Double-Edge!

Double-Edge stared blankly at the suddenly spawned log, then at Guang Tai and Lilyroot Doll, both now awake—it instantly understood.

There’s only one truth!

You two sneaked into the dream world without me!

“Yowuu~” Double-Edge floated quickly before Guang Tai, asking if he’d seen that great dragon this time.

“I saw it!” Guang Tai recounted what he’d encountered in the dream; Double-Edge was startled—had that dragon truly come to this world?

Unova. Again, Unova. That place where the nation-fraudster dwells.

“It is indeed over there, but we can’t get there yet. Let’s set out in autumn, to bring back our companions.”

“And then.” Guang Tai looked at the Dreamwood, then at Double-Edge: “This is special wood brought from the dream world. It’s extremely important.”

“Yowuu!” Double-Edge’s ribbons fluttered up!

No need to say more—we know. Double-speed cutting, begin!

Guang Tai glanced at the sky outside; far on the horizon, light broke through—the dawn pierced the darkness. July had arrived; today was a fine day.

Then, Guang Tai and Double-Edge began cutting and carving the Dreamwood.

As for the design, Guang Tai did not use Lilyroot Doll, because its rare ability, Leaf Guard, was useless—far inferior to Chlorophyll and Own Tempo. Even under permanent weather, it had no meaningful application; being immune to status effects only in sunny conditions was far too limiting.

As for Double-Edge, Water Wave—it’s a Pokémon with only one ability, and not of Grass, Bug, Electric, or Poison type; this wooden carving would have no effect on it.

So—for Grass type, Guang Tai first thought of Turtwig. But Turtwig’s problem was the same as Lilyroot Doll’s: its rare ability was worse than its common one.

Wait—wasn’t there a Pokémon of Grass type that desperately needed a rare ability? And it was from Unova!

“Serperior! Including its pre-evolutions, Snivy and Servine—Serperior’s family has the rare ability, Contrary!”

Contrary: a Pokémon with this ability reverses all stat changes—what should rise instead falls, and what should fall instead rises!

Guang Tai began carving, and finished quickly.

[Crafted Item: Dreamworld Carving—Design: Servine.]

[Effect: Carved from Dreamwood using specialized Dreamworld craftsmanship, synchronized through the dream world, this carving changes Servine’s ability to its rare one. One carving works only once on the corresponding Pokémon!]

[Double-Edge completed the craft, gained experience and growth.]

[Gained Knowledge: Dreamblade—All moves’ power increased by 10%, precision in elemental energy use +20%.]

“Done. The first item that can change an ability!”

Guang Tai paused briefly.

Items that change abilities were too powerful; their price would naturally be beyond ordinary people’s reach—at least one million, and “Ability Capsules” and “Ability Ointments” likely didn’t exist in this world yet.

In other words, this was a true exclusive product!

But Dreamwood was scarce, so it could only be made as a custom order—if someone was willing to pay a high price for customization, he’d carve it for them.

Then again, some Pokémon’s rare abilities weren’t better than their common ones, so there was no need to blindly chase rarity.

Meanwhile, Guang Tai glanced at the Symbolic Tablet on the table—the word Regirock remained.

Would it be today?

Guang Tai armed himself fully, prepared for departure, and slung his large backpack once more.

He left the Servine carving behind.

Because today wasn’t just about helping Lilyroot Doll reclaim her habitat and fulfill her wish—it was also a prime chance to gather vital materials.

He also took the “Double Pickle,” which had fermented for about half to a month—now ready to use.

The pickle was nearly perfect.

[Completed an extra craft!]

[Crafted Item: Double Pickle.]

[Effect: A pickle granting doubled effects. After consumption, a Pokémon’s move damage becomes temporarily 1.5x.]

[Extra Effect: Focus—After eating, concentration increases.]

[Gained Knowledge: Pickler—Pickle conversion speed +20%. Food made this way puts humans and Pokémon into Focus state.]

Guang Tai packed the Double Pickle. Lilyroot Doll donned her protective gear, her skirt rolled up—today, she was full of spirit!

We’ll win for sure!

“Yowpu~” Double-Edge floated beside Lilyroot Doll, tapping its blade with its ribbons:

Shall I put the Evolution Stone on you now?

Double-Edge’s other ribbon picked up a leather collar, like a neckpiece, with a pouch—obviously meant to hold the Evolution Stone.

It was sewn by Guang Tai yesterday.

“Bai…” Lilyroot Doll glanced at the Evolution Stone behind Double-Edge, then at her own body—she thought the stone was too big. Better to wait until battle to wear it.

Guang Tai led the way, wearing the Destruction Gloves, carrying a pickaxe and a spade. At his waist hung two Poké Balls, plus a backpack filled with tools.

He brought the sticky pills too, but there weren’t many left; without finding Bulbous Fern or large quantities of Wormy Fruit, he could only make mud balls, drying their shells as a backup. Bulbous Fern is a type of fern; Shen Du’s environment resembles Xicui’s, so it should be found in the forest.

He didn’t use normal fruits, storing them instead as reserves—hoping someday he’d find the right materials in the forest and replenish his stock.

Of course, when entering the forest, he mustn’t forget to pack the Timburr carving—this carving prevented him from getting lost and reduced the chance of wild Pokémon attacks, avoiding pointless battles and conserving stamina.

After Guang Tai and his Pokémon left, Turtwig crept quietly out from another forest.

“Nah?”

Everyone’s out today? Then no one’s home!

What a fine day!

Through observation over time, Turtwig had learned Lilyroot Doll had lost her habitat—that this human was helping her reclaim it. Probably.

Today looks like a good day to soak up more earth energy.

Turtwig dug a small hole, buried itself quickly, and used photosynthesis. The plants on its back grew stronger—this land was even richer than the patch the Thunderbolt Ball Pokémon had seized from Xicui!

“Nah-nah~~”

No one’s home. Though a little lonely, at least I can soak up the sun properly—Turtwig thought this, when suddenly, an E-shaped eye appeared before it.

Unknown Totem E: “...?”

No one’s home? You’re clearly ignoring me, Unknown Totem!

Can’t you see I’m this big a Pokémon?

Turtwig’s mouth opened wide, staring dumbfounded at this “Pokémon with only eyes,” then screamed!

“Nah!!”

I’ve been spotted!

“Anong~!”

Seeing Turtwig’s expression, Unknown Totem instantly understood—the little land-hog was terrified. And now, Unknown Totem had an idea!

It floated, blocking Turtwig’s path:

“Anong~”

This land isn’t free for the taking, you know~

Turtwig’s tender leaves swayed, adopting a battle stance—extremely tense. Unknown Totem emitted soothing sounds:

“Anong~ Anong~”

Don’t be nervous, little turtle. I’ve known about you all along.

But for all these days, I never told the human.

Hearing this, Turtwig relaxed its guard, staring blankly at the giant eyeball before it. Unknown Totem patiently began explaining:

“Anong~~”

I, too, live here—but like you, I’m unknown to that human.

But that human is kind. Sneaking over daily to steal earth energy isn’t effective, and it’s exhausting. Why not consider being captured by the human?

You have no companions, right?

You crave companions, right?

Turtwig’s mouth opened slightly. Hearing Unknown Totem say it had no companions, its leaves drooped. Unknown Totem continued gently:

“Anong... Anong”

Don’t worry—the human won’t pluck your herbs. If you show willingness, it will respect you. Lilyroot Doll was once just like you—no companions, came here to grow stronger.

Later, the human took her in. Day by day, they became companions.

Friends must be sought actively. If you don’t act, nothing happens. You seem so timid in the forest...

“Nah! Nah!”

Turtwig wanted to protest that it wasn’t timid, but lacked conviction—because yes, some Pokémon had only cared about plucking its rare herbs, ignoring it entirely.

It was weak. It could only survive by hiding, unable to protect its plants...

“Anong~” Unknown Totem’s persuasion continued.

Carrying so many plants requires a lot of nutrients. But if you live here, you’ll have rich soil, abundant herbs, and high-efficiency food—your nutrition will skyrocket!

Unknown Totem coaxed patiently—it remembered Guang Tai had once said he wanted a Turtwig. Unknown Totem had messed up before and dared not show its face since. This little turtle was brought by Timburr—if it could lure it here, that would be a great deed! Not to mention this turtle carried its own herbs!

Plan successful!

Bulbasaur looked at the ancient workshop, then at the fertile and lush farmland around it, and finally tilted its head slightly to gaze at the plants on its back. It thought of the workshop’s perpetually cheerful atmosphere, and of that bouncing, hopping Bellossom.

It felt a slight wavering. But it wanted to observe a little longer.

Togepi secretly rejoiced.

It’s fine—sometimes, observing more isn’t a bad thing, as long as you have that intention!

(End of Chapter)