Chapter 192: The Mystery of the Sea God

In a flash, half a month passed swiftly.

With the united efforts of all residents and Pokémon in Huang Tie Town, new houses rose from the ruins.

Many penitents, unable to bear the burden, tried to flee, but were all caught and brought back by Pokémon, forced to continue doing work they once made others do.

Yet the Rescue Organization had been remarkably merciful toward them.

Isn't operating a sewing machine or planting trees better than losing your head?

Interestingly, during this time, several poaching gangs failed to grasp what had happened in the Ore Region and came as usual to sell Pokémon—only to be caught red-handed by Team Rainbow.

At first, when captured, they shouted, "You're stealing from your own kind!" "I've got connections above!" "Who the hell are you?"—but by the time they came to their senses, they were already facing the earth, backs to the sky, planting crops.

A cause for celebration.

Precisely because of this, Team Rainbow restructured, transforming from Shan Renn's private syndicate into the entire Huang Tie Town's armed force, absorbing numerous combat-capable personnel to safeguard the town's peace.

Of course, Team Rainbow's rising fame was inseparable from N's efforts; in this reconstruction project, he and his Pokémon worked tirelessly, day and night.

After half a month of construction, not only had harmony between Ore Region residents and Pokémon been successfully fostered, but the residents had also grown less resistant to building homes for Pokémon—some even volunteered to design habitats for them.

Thus.

A grand environmental transformation began in full swing.

Master Liu Ge willingly relinquished power step by step; Shan Renn willingly gained more authority; both were delighted—

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And then they planted trees together.

At this stage, nothing in Huang Tie Town was trendier than planting trees or flowers—everyone from eighty-year-old grandfathers to five-year-old children, from the new mayor Shan Renn to penitents, from humans to machines had to plant.

Mandatory task.

This was the only mandatory activity the Rescue Organization had required of townspeople in over half a month.

Many townspeople initially complained bitterly, but seeing every member of the Rescue Organization working alongside them, and seeing Huang Tie Town's "strongest," Baimu's Bisharp, frantically rushing about, they fell silent.

Moreover, improving the environment genuinely aided their survival—no one enjoyed breathing air thick with grit every day.

The outskirts of Huang Tie Town had already been greened over a vast area, planted with drought-resistant vegetation.

It looked quite pleasing.

On the same day.

Baimu was summoned to Shan Renn's new office.

"When are you leaving?"

The latter tossed the former a drink and loosened his collar with relaxed ease.

"In the next couple of days."

Baimu glanced at his phone, where his planned itinerary was written.

Shan Renn smiled: "Looks like I picked the timing well… What do you think of Huang Tie Town now?"

"Full of vitality and life—very good."

"Indeed very good. What about the entire Ore Region?"

"Not bad either. Isn't your father working hard to eliminate Elder Ejin's influence across all social strata? I recall it's already showing results."

"You care deeply about the Ore Region. Knowing that, I'm at ease."

Shan Renn's words sounded odd—as if whether he cared about the Ore Region mattered greatly.

Baimu couldn't help saying, "Uh, I'm not indispensable to the Ore Region, am I?"

"Wrong. You are indispensable."

Shan Renn shook his index finger. "The Ore Region needs an idol whom everyone reveres and worships—a figure to show them how to live, just like Champion Dan Di in Galar."

"Dan Di's value isn't merely commercial; he's had immense impact on Galar's culture and education. Do you know what a champion with over 99% approval means?"

He raised his hand, squinting. "The people's hearts are with him! Everyone wants to be Dan Di, everyone loves Dan Di, everyone yearns for Dan Di. Nothing is more terrifying than that. And you—you are the Ore Region's future Dan Di."

"..."

"Of course, you're still young and need to grow. Traveling is a good way for you to develop." Shan Renn activated the projector beside him; a video suddenly appeared.

In the video, a massive black bird with wings blotting out the sky let out a shuddering cry; with each breath, it spat terrifying vortices, triggering wave after wave of black storms.

Amid the storms, a red-haired boy and his Pokémon dodged attacks and counterattacked, finally seizing the perfect moment to capture it with a Poké Ball.

"Dark Lugia!"

Baimu exclaimed in surprise.

Shan Renn nodded. "Correct—it's Dark Lugia. Captured and darkly modified by the second leader of Shadow Team, it became a Dark Pokémon. But Long Ren, the son of Professor Mu Yin, rescued it, restored it to its original state, and released it back into nature…"

"Released it?"

"Yes. Professor Mu Yin told me that Long Ren said Lugia is part of nature, not to be exploited by any human."

Not to be exploited by any human…

The second protagonist capturing Lugia and then choosing to release it genuinely surprised Baimu.

But what followed next surprised him even more.

"I want you to find that Lugia and persuade it to return to the Ore Region… or at least gain its aid."

"Wait—persuade it to return? Is it a Legendary Pokémon of our Ore Region?"

Baimu frowned.

"Not exactly. More precisely, it once dwelled beneath the sea of Nickel Island—the very site where Shadow Team transformed their base."

Shan Renn whispered, "You surely know that improving the Ore Region's environment is a massive undertaking. My original plan was five years; now it may take fifteen or more… You understand—the climate issue."

The southern Ore Region receives almost no rainfall and suffers extreme heat; many plants simply cannot survive such conditions. A few can be aided by Grass-type Pokémon, but once numbers increase, it becomes impossible.

They could only watch helplessly as one pile after another of plants withered under the sun.

Soil quality is equally critical. Though countless Ground-type Pokémon labor tirelessly to till the land, the Rescue Organization still must constantly supply scarce, plant-necessary substances—luckily, this can be solved with money…

All Baimu was silent for a moment, then said: "... So you need the power of the legendary bird?"

"Of course not—"

Shan Ren denied himself, laughing as he said: "I believe in human will triumphing over fate. Fifteen years is long, but it's not unbearable. But your departure needs a reason, otherwise the people of Olive won't remember you—they'd forget in the blink of an eye."

In other words, this ambitious fellow planned to use the excuse of going out to find the legendary bird to carry out his own publicity campaign while All Baimu was away traveling, so that by the time he returned, everyone would already know him.

All Baimu twitched the corner of his mouth. "Then what if I don't find the legendary bird?"

"Then you'll need to have the strength to overawe everyone. As long as you're strong enough to shut every trainer up, they'll naturally stop paying attention to this little matter."

Shan Ren patted his shoulder. "Pressure is also motivation. Keep it up—the burden on your shoulders is no small thing."

"Can I refuse?"

"You can refuse with practical actions, like never coming back or something."

"You brat!"

"Hahahahaha—Hey! Kicking people is rude behavior! Such things are strictly forbidden!"

The sounds of their bickering echoed through the office.