Chapter 139

Huo La was suddenly a bit embarrassed, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the corner of his clothes.

The thin but spirited old man in front of him was definitely the author Fan Ye, but he had never read the book called "Phoenix King Is My Life"—just hearing the name, it carried an overly straightforward enthusiasm. The excuse he used before about seeing it in a book was just that, an excuse.

But since the words had reached this point, he couldn't say he hadn't read it.

Huo La could only scratch his scalp and find an excuse: "I haven't read the book directly; my father read it before. When I was young, he often told me the stories about the Rainbow Hero and Ho-Oh in it, so I have some impression."

"Oh~ so that's how it is." Fan Ye suddenly realized, then smiled and handed the yellowed book in his hand to Huo La. "This is 'Phoenix King Is My Life.' Although the words on the cover are a bit faded, the content inside is still clear. The book records not just stories, but all the data I've collected over the years while pursuing Ho-Oh—from the legend of Ho-Oh resurrecting the three legendary beasts, to the weather and locations of its every appearance, even the characteristics of the feathers it left behind, I've recorded them one by one."

"It's yours!" Fan Ye said, pushing the book toward Huo La.

"This isn't good!" Huo La waved his hand to refuse hurriedly. "Such precious data, it's more useful for you to keep it yourself; how can we be embarrassed to take it."

"It's fine, it's fine!" Fan Ye waved his hand, not giving Huo La any chance to refuse, and stuffed the book directly into his arms.

Then he turned and took out two identical books from his backpack, stuffing them into Brock and Ash's hands respectively—the three suddenly had a heavy book in their hands, looking at each other, a bit unresponsive.

Ash held the book and suddenly remembered something, asking instinctively: "Fan Ye, this book doesn't cost money, right?"

Fan Ye raised his eyebrows and glanced at him: "There is a price on the back of the book; it was originally for sale. But since you have the Rainbow Wing on you and are the people chosen by Ho-Oh, this book is a gift from me. However, there is a small request—that is, on the road ahead, you must take me with you!"

"Ah? You want to follow us to find Ho-Oh?" Ash suddenly pulled a bitter face, pulling the corners of Huo La and Brock's clothes secretly, his eyes full of dilemma.

Traveling with one more person is fine, but Fan Ye looks quite old. What if they encounter danger?

"What's wrong!" Fan Ye glared as soon as he saw his expression, his voice raised a bit. "I, an old man, gave you the book written with my life's work. Is there any problem with following you to point the way and talk about Ho-Oh's habits?"

Huo La didn't answer, lowering his head to open the "Phoenix King Is My Life" in his arms.

The pages were yellowed but neat. Inside, there were not only dense text records but also hand-drawn portraits of Ho-Oh—the Ho-Oh in the portrait spread its seven-colored wings, its tail feathers glowing with rainbow light, and even the texture of the feathers on its wings was drawn exceptionally meticulously.

In the margin of one page, there was a small note: "When Ho-Oh appears, it is often accompanied by seven-colored clouds, and there is a fragrance of grass and trees in the wind."

His fingertips stopped at the note, and he looked up at Fan Ye, his tone serious: "You wrote in the book that Ho-Oh once appeared at Mount Tianqing, and there is a Rainbow Rock there. Putting the Rainbow Wing on the rock can summon Ho-Oh?"

"Naturally!" Fan Ye straightened his back immediately, his tone iron-clad, as if he had seen it with his own eyes. "I checked many ancient documents and asked villagers near Mount Tianqing. They all said that the Rainbow Rock is the mark left by Ho-Oh. As long as a hero brings the Rainbow Wing, they can see Ho-Oh!"

"But have you seen anyone really summon Ho-Oh with the Rainbow Wing?" Huo La pursued, his eyes carrying a hint of inquiry.

Fan Ye's voice instantly choked, the firmness on his face slowly turning into embarrassment. He scratched his head and muttered in a low voice: "Er... that, that hasn't happened. However, it's written like that in the documents, it shouldn't be wrong, right?"

"Then you haven't even seen it, how dare you write it in the book?" Ash couldn't help but interject, full of curiosity.

Fan Ye was speechless, could only open his mouth, and finally turned his face away, pretending to look at the surrounding scenery, his earlobes quietly turning red—when he wrote this part, his mind was full of "maybe it can really summon Ho-Oh," and he didn't think much about the fact that he hadn't seen the real thing.

Huo La looked at his appearance and couldn't help but smile, taking the initiative to smooth things over: "Forget it, Fan Ye, it's fine to go with us, but the road to Mount Tianqing is not easy to walk; you have to follow us closely. If you don't want to walk for now, just give us a specific route, that's fine, right?"

As soon as Fan Ye heard this, he turned around immediately, the embarrassment on his face swept away. He hurriedly took out a crumpled map from his backpack: "I've already drawn the route! Walk east from here, pass through the Three-Way Canyon, and you can see the entrance to Mount Tianqing. The Rainbow Rock is on the cliff at the top of the mountain. I even marked the places with many wild Pokémon on the map, just avoid them!"

Ash leaned over to look, and the map not only drew the route but also drew small icons at key locations.

"Oh, right!" Fan Ye suddenly slapped his thigh, as if remembering key information. "According to ancient documents, for the Rainbow Hero to see Ho-Oh, they must first pass the scrutiny of the three legendary beasts—Entei, Suicune, and Raikou. Have you encountered them on this journey?"

"We've already encountered Entei and Suicune!" Ash nodded immediately, his tone carrying a hint of excitement. "We even battled them! But we haven't seen Raikou; I don't know where it is."

"Then there's no problem!" Fan Ye patted the map, his tone certain. "According to the documents, Raikou will definitely be waiting for you on the way to Mount Tianqing. Come come come, give me the map. You three little guys follow closely, don't get lost in the forest."

As he spoke, he took the map from Huo La's hand, confirmed the direction with narrowed eyes, and walked toward the east with steady steps.

Ash, Huo La, and Brock hurriedly followed. Pikachu stood on Ash's shoulder, occasionally looking up and scanning the surrounding woods vigilantly.

And in a bush not far from them, three figures were hiding sneakily.

"Did you hear that! It's Ho-Oh!" Jessie clenched her fists, her eyes shining like light, and she said excitedly in a low voice, "I knew that following that brat Huo La would definitely lead to extraordinary Pokémon! If we can catch Ho-Oh this time, the Boss will definitely praise us!"

"Jessie, wake up." James shrank his neck, his tone carrying a hint of hesitation. "We let the injured Entei run away before. Now we're going to catch Ho-Oh directly, just the three of us? I think it's better to tell the Boss this news and let the Boss send more people."

"Shut up!" Jessie suddenly turned her head and knocked on the heads of James and Meowth. "If it weren't for you and Meowth dragging your feet, could Entei have escaped? James, you didn't dare to rush, and Meowth was always thinking about its Madanana. Now you have the nerve to say this!"

"Meow! You have the nerve to say me!" Meowth was furious, holding its head, and directly waved its claws to slap Jessie. "It was clearly you who were worried about scratching your new clothes by running too fast in the woods and deliberately slowed down, which let Entei escape! Now you blame us instead!"

"You still dare to talk back!"

"It was you who were unreasonable first!"

"..."

For a time, sounds of fighting came from behind the bushes, Jessie's roar, James's wails, and Meowth's screams mixed together.