Chapter 726: Billionaire

Return the Dragon and the relics.

Baimu's life in Huang Tie Town entered a new phase.

After internal deliberations within the Valley of Creation, an agreement was reached with the Salvation Organization and N to cooperate under the role of agricultural consultant, establishing a new department: the Department of Agriculture, responsible for this task.

They planned to locate two suitable sites near Silicon Beryllium City and N's Pokémon Valley as primary pilot zones.

Additionally, Dashan, Baimu's mountain, would serve as a secondary pilot site to cultivate a series of crops.

There was no pilot site near Huang Tie Town because it was a key mineral mining area in the Orei Region and hosted a transit warehouse connecting Jingqing Port and Silicon Beryllium City, making it unsuitable for large-scale farmland development.

During this time.

The mountain that Bidoof had long dreamed of finally received its name—

Platinum Mountain.

The name, deliberately modeled after the Johto Silver Mountain, drew a string of complaints from Shanren, who asked Baimu why he chose such a name.

His reply was only one sentence: "On Silver Mountain there is no Chi Hong; on Platinum Mountain there is Baimu."

Shanren thought about it all night but still couldn't understand what it meant.

Once the procedures in Silicon Beryllium City were settled, Platinum Mountain soon welcomed its first visiting officials from the Department of Agriculture—Barza and Melissa.

Though only a brother and sister, Barza, as the next village chief of the Valley of Creation, was exceptionally capable.

It was said that before they set out to seek the Punishment Vessel, their family's farmland had already been tended by Gulis, entrusted entirely to Barza—who was clearly a professional farmer.

So when he discovered Baimu carelessly planting precious fruit seeds, Barza harshly scolded him.

"You can't just consider location when planting fruit trees!"

"Exactly!"

"You have to thoroughly loosen the soil! Letting Pokémon till it once isn't enough!"

"Exactly!"

"The sun in the Orei Region is too strong and harsh—build the shade structures early, or the seedlings will be scorched to death as soon as they sprout!"

"Exactly!"

"..."

Baimu stared, dark lines forming on his forehead, at Hu Pa, who stood beside Barza, smirking as if he found mocking Baimu especially amusing.

He felt like punching a Pokémon...

He clenched his fists but chose not to stoop to Hu Pa's level.

【Till】 was a move Longsteel Snake had mastered long ago, possessing a magical effect that made plant growth easier—but perhaps due to its infrequent use, Barza was deeply dissatisfied with its tillage results.

He pulled out a Poké Ball and opened it.

Boom!

"Hoori!"

A Dugtrio with enormous ears, resembling an older man, appeared.

Barza said: "This is my father's Dugtrio; I borrowed it specially to help. Dugtrio, please use Till once."

"Hoori!"

Dugtrio's massive ears plunged into the ground, then churned up soil and dust in a whirlwind of excavation.

Baimu instinctively raised his hand to shield his face; only when the flying sand thinned did he lower it and look forward, astonished to find Dugtrio had already tilled nearly half an acre.

"Amazing!"

He couldn't help praising it, causing Dugtrio to puff out its chest proudly, "Hoori!"

Although Pokémon were originally designed for battle, in real life they clearly had far more uses than just fighting.

Each Pokémon had its own strengths.

At least when it came to tilling, the massive Longsteel Snake was far inferior to Dugtrio.

Barza reworked the soil entirely, then replanted the fruit seeds, placing his hand upon them, closing his eyes, and activating his power.

Golden light spilled from his palm, and a miraculous sight occurred.

The seeds took root and sprouted within moments, growing step by step into knee-high saplings, drastically shortening the growth cycle.

What an immense power!

Baimu marveled inwardly; ordinary Grass-type Pokémon, even those with seed-catalyzing abilities, could at best hasten germination.

Compared to Barza's power, they were vastly inferior.

Of course, he was unaware that in another parallel world, a colossal Oliva had once turned barren land into a lush forest with a single rainstorm.

After all, that event occurred after the conclusion of Pokémon Journeys, in Pokémon Horizons.

"The soil is too barren."

Barza, witnessing this, was still unsatisfied.

He sighed to Baimu: "My power can only catalyze the seeds; how they develop depends entirely on soil fertility and their own quality. Though part of it is due to my incomplete training, if my grandfather were here, he could at least make them bear their first fruits."

"If the soil's no good, what do we do?"

"Plant crops that improve soil fertility first, then add organic fertilizer... Forget it, leave it all to me! I guarantee that within a year, Platinum Mountain will be covered in forests!"

Seeing Baimu frown, Barza simply took full charge, declaring: "Your mountain is my answer to my grandfather!"

One year!

The kid was bold!

Baimu was stunned by Barza's ambition; even with countless Pokémon, half a mountain hadn't been planted in six months—could Barza and Mei Ya Li plant an entire mountain?

"Fine! I believe in you!" he exclaimed, clapping Barza on the shoulder.

No matter the final outcome, he trusted that once Barza made a promise, he would strive to fulfill it.

Moments later.

Baimu arrived beside Mei Mei Yali.

Unlike Barza, who helped prune the fruit orchard, Mei Mei Yali cared more about cultivating enough food for wild Pokémon like Lycanroc within a short time.

In the anime, Pokémon are mostly omnivorous; they can eat what humans eat, and also what humans cannot eat.

One could say that, merely to satisfy hunger, they are actually easy to feed.

"What do you think about planting some potatoes first?" Mei Mei Yali asked Baimu's opinion.

In the Pokémon world, potatoes are one of humanity's most important staple foods; centuries ago, humans already largely solved famine by using this generous crop.

Mei Mei Yali dared not plant wheat easily, but thought potatoes were fine.

"You decide." Baimu glanced at Bonsly, who was gazing at Mei Mei Yali with admiration—combined with the vines on the ground, it was clear the creature had just shown off a little.

Their own tree-planting pioneer had been utterly conquered.

Power transferred.

A grand, vigorous land reclamation officially began.

Unlike the earlier haphazard, disorganized planting schemes, Barza and Mei Mei Yali had detailed plans for what they intended to do and how to harness wild Pokémon's power.

As the nominal mountain lord, Baimu had no room to interfere; he could only stand aside, munching watermelon with Guzzlord that Hu Pa had given him.

Of course.

It suited him perfectly.

——

Several days passed.

Baimu met Chief Chiyansong.

The last time he came to Silicium City, Chief Chiyansong had been called back urgently to the Hoenn headquarters, causing them to miss each other.

But Chief Chiyansong sought him out not for anything important.

On one hand, this former Qianfan Sect member, who once devoted himself to expanding landmass using Groudon's power, wanted to thank him; while Oure seemed barren to others, to him it was the perfect place to realize his ambitions.

Aside from the slight regret that it wasn't his homeland, everything else was satisfactory.

On the other hand.

Chief Chiyansong wanted to deepen cooperation.

"Honorary Officer?" Baimu looked at the middle-aged man before him, wearing half-rim glasses and with immaculately neat hair, surprised by the proposal.

Chief Chiyansong nodded and pushed forward a contract: "Yes, Honorary Officer—just a title; you don't have to do anything for Team Magma."

Baimu opened it and the first thing he saw was the amount—one hundred million, annually, for five years.

What was the cost?

Among the clauses, he saw what he would have to give:

Add Team Magma's emblem to the Champion's cloak.

"Endorsement fee?" Baimu looked up at Chief Chiyansong.

Chief Chiyansong quickly shook his head, "No no no—the money is your salary as Honorary Officer; the emblem is your symbol as Honorary Officer."

Saying it so nicely was still endorsement!

Baimu felt Chief Chiyansong was treating him like a naive fool who'd sell out for money—perhaps he once was, when he lacked funds, but now his wings had hardened; why go through all this?

Learning from Champion Dan Di didn't mean becoming a second Dan Di.

Besides, shouting for Team Magma's cause? One time was enough.

They came to Oure to build infrastructure and saved the organization—didn't they pay him well enough? He didn't need to sell himself to repay a debt.

"Sorry, thank you for your kindness, but I have no intention of joining Team Magma for now." He smiled and pushed the contract back.

Chief Chiyansong paused slightly, then smiled, "If it's the emblem, we can discuss further. Why refuse so decisively? By the way, I heard you have a mountain outside Huang Tie Town? Let Team Magma build it for you—we can fulfill any design you want!"

"I sincerely appreciate your continued care, but I truly have no intention of joining any organization for now." Baimu bowed slightly in refusal.

Seeing this, Chief Chiyansong could not press further; helplessly, he said, "Then let's put cooperation on hold for now. Whenever you change your mind, tell Captain Huoyan—money or anything else is negotiable. Since you're here anyway, I'll have a few Team Magma uniforms made for you."

He gave orders without giving Baimu a chance to refuse.

And when Baimu was led away by Team Magma members to be fitted for the uniforms, Chief Chiyansong's smile gradually returned to calmness. Fat Huo Cun walked in and asked bluntly:

"Boss, did he agree?"

"Just as you thought—he refused." Chief Chiyansong glanced at him and replied calmly.

Huo Cun chuckled, "The new generation is arrogant—even with grand ideals, they won't compromise. Refusing is normal. But since he refused us, he'll refuse Team Aqua too."

"Hmph."

"There's plenty of time. With the internet developing rapidly, the Champion's fame grows daily; investing in him is definitely right."

Team Magma has already tasted the sweetness from Baimu—this year's membership applications are triple last year's, many drawn by his fame.

Team Aqua must be the same.

Champion Dan Di's commercial success is plain to all; countless people want a share of the rising Baimu.

The celebrity effect has been proven for decades.

But no Region Champion has ever personally engaged in commercial operations—Lopez truly is a business genius.

Just as Huo Cun thought.

The moment Baimu received his new Team Magma uniform, Team Aqua immediately extended an olive branch—even offering more money than Team Magma.

They also promised to dig a river and build a lake at Bai Yin Mountain.

Really?

When Baimu complained to Shanren, the latter looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Do you know what I turned down the other day?"

"What?"

You turned down Malocomon Group's exclusive investment—you almost became a billionaire! Just put a logo on your back!

Billionaire!

How did money suddenly stop being money?

Although his current wealth, accumulated through several bonuses, had reached the ten-million level, and with Pokémon world currency equivalent to yen purchasing power, roughly equivalent to a million in his past life, Baimu now felt he had missed the chance to become the world's richest person.

Billionaire!

How rich must Malocomon Group be! That behemoth dominating every corner of the Galar region, a global top-tier conglomerate!

After Lohz was arrested, Malocomon Group was taken over by Champion Dan Di—the employee suddenly became the boss.

No wonder he easily turned the corporate tower into a Battle Tower.

Wake up! Stop dreaming! I already turned it down!

Shan Ren snapped his fingers several times in front of Baimu's eyes, pulling him back from eyes nearly filled with "￥" symbols.

The temptations of being a clean Regional Champion are truly numerous.

Baimu said weakly.

With that much money, he could confidently build his own school.

Shan Ren asked: "Are you short on money?"

"Not now, but I will be—I want to build a school and become a teacher." He didn't hold back from his friend; they knew each other inside out, so what was there to hide?

Shan Ren was surprised by his goal: "A side career outside of Champion? I thought you'd want to wander the world like Champion Dawu."

"Who says being a teacher means you can't wander the world? The Orange Academy in Paldea encourages teachers and students to wander!" Baimu punched the air in protest.

"Since you're not short now, you'll be even less short once you become Champion—no need to sell your soul for money." Shan Ren had his own plans for many things.

——

After a week of training.

The Arena Trainers had made encouraging progress.

Though their Pokémon showed no major changes, their actual performance far surpassed their previous levels, especially among those with better talent and relative diligence.

However.

The most remarkable improvement was unquestionably Did Yin Ma.

Once secretly looked down upon by many Arena Trainers, he could now defeat the vast majority of Arena Trainers, utterly unlike his former self.

Those Arena Trainers who had been absent or resistant found it hard to believe Did Yin Ma could grow so much in just one week.

Baimu wanted to tell these people they were still too green, too young.

Don't you know there's something called "Ash's Special Training"?

Even the hardest opponent can be defeated after a period of special training—now that's what you call rapid progress.

You're just unlocking the potential you were always meant to have.

The afternoon before the exchange.

Baimu looked at everyone present.

"Everyone, are you ready to face the Silicon Beryllium City trainers?"

"Y-Yes, we're ready…"

"Should be ready, right?"

"Uh…"

Their voices came out hesitant, broken.

Baimu smiled faintly: "It's fine if you're not ready—they're ready. By the way, the Silicon Beryllium City exchange lasts two days; whether you're punished immediately after Day One depends on your performance… So let me ask again! Are you ready?!"

At these words, everyone's expression turned solemn; fear vanished as they exchanged glances, leaving only the resolve to defeat their opponents.

In an instant.

They shouted in unison:

"Always ready!"