Chapter 146: That

Huo La trudged down the mountain with his head down, sighing nonstop, his steps heavy with weight.

Xiao Gang, seeing his demeanor, turned his head in puzzlement and asked, "What's wrong with you? You've been sighing ever since we came down from the summit."

Ash hurried forward, patted his shoulder, and said with self‑reproach, "It wasn't your fault we couldn't save Moltres; it's all on me. If I hadn't been so obsessed with finding Moltres and becoming a 'Rainbow Hero', none of this would have happened."

Huo La looked up at Ash, then glanced down at the faint candlelight in Xiao Gang's Shadow—traces of Marshadow—before his face fell again and he let out a heavy sigh, "That has nothing to do with it. Even if you hadn't come, that Masked Man would eventually make a move on Moltres; it's unavoidable."

He clenched his fists, his voice tinged with physical pain, "I'm upset because… we're going to lose a huge sum of money again! A huge sum!"

Just the thought of Marshadow demanding a 200,000‑per‑year 'collaboration fee' made his whole body tense.

He was already broke to the bone, and now this massive expense—had he known, he would never have mentioned a partnership in the first place; it's like digging a huge pit for himself.

Meanwhile, halfway up the mountain on a sturdy pine, Musashi spat out the leaf he'd been holding in his mouth, massaged his throbbing occiput, and strained to lift his head, "What on earth happened? How did we end up on this tree?"

"Meow~" the cat hung weakly on a neighboring branch, its claws gripping the bark, "I don't know. I only saw three streaks of light dash by, then I suddenly lost consciousness and woke up right here."

"Ah~~~ my waist~~~" Kojiro strained to sit up.

The two of them and the cat hung on the tree, the wind swaying the branches, and they complained in unison, "What an annoying feeling~"

When Huo La, Ash, and Xiao Gang returned to the Pokemon Center in Yuhong City, night had already fallen.

Outside, the street was lit by warm yellow streetlamps, and the Rainbow Gym next door had scaffolding erected, with workers laboring through the night on renovations; however, no clues have been found about the culprit who blew up the gym.

Huo La stood in his doorway, one foot just stepping inside, then suddenly stuck his head out and called to Xiao Gang in the next room, "Brother Xiao Gang, shall we check out Beauty Street in Yuhong City tomorrow?"

"Hm?" Xiao Gang was startled by the words.

Ash, puzzled by what he heard, leaned over and scratched his head, "Huo La, since when are you interested in Beauty Street? That's way too girly, isn't it?"

"Pika‑pika!" Pikachu nodded along, its little paw gently patting Ash's arm as if to agree.

Huo La gave Ash a withering glance and snapped, "Scram......"

Xiao Gang was silent for two seconds, then broke into an understanding smile, "Alright, I've been wanting to go for a while; I heard there's a flower shop there with especially good potted plants."

Seeing Xiao Gang agree, he turned his head toward Ash, his tone becoming serious, "Ash, come into my room for a moment; I have something to ask you."

Ash, though puzzled, nodded, casually closed his own door, and followed Huo La into the room.

As soon as he entered, he flopped onto the bed, shaking his head with a sigh, "Sigh, Huo La, I really didn't expect you'd still want to go to Beauty Street; that's so different from how you usually are."

Pikachu mimicked his posture, squatting at the foot of the bed, its tiny head bobbing, still chirping "Pika‑pika," looking like a little adult sighing.

Huo La watched the increasingly alike man and pet, his eyebrows twitching, a wave of speechlessness washing over him—how on earth did those two manage to make even their sighs look identical?

"Don't you know Beauty Street is a Pokémon Breeding Street?"

"Ah, I've never heard of it," Ash scratched his head in surprise, "No wonder you suddenly want to go there, Huo La—it must be because of Brother Xiao Gang, right?"

"Yes, that's right." Huo La nodded, "I also suggest that if you have nothing else, you can come with us."

"Ah, I was just saying I'd have another battle with Xiao Chi Ge tomorrow."

"Sigh, never mind, make your own plans. I called you because I have something else to ask." Huo La tapped the table with his finger, his voice dropping a few tones.

Ash sat up straight instantly, his casual expression wiped clean, and even Pikachu perked up its ears, staring at Huo La.

"Where do you plan to go next?" Huo La asked bluntly.

"Huh? Where to go?" Ash blinked, then scratched his head and answered honestly, "I've already earned five Badges, still need the last three. My original plan was to depart from Yuhong City, head to the next town, then go to Qian Hong City for the Qian Hong Badge. What's the problem?"

Huo La was silent for a moment, his fingertips lightly tapping the tabletop, "What if I said I wanted you to take a different route?"

"Huh? Change the route?" Ash's eyes widened, even more puzzled, "Why change it? The Qian Hong Gym is right ahead, on the way."

"Literally, change the line of gyms you challenge." Huo La slowed his speech, explaining patiently, "The Pokemon League does require eight Badges, that's true, but the Kanto Region has sixteen gyms that award Badges—you don't have to follow a fixed path; you just need to challenge any eight of them."

Ash nodded, "I know that!"

"So my suggestion is, skip Qian Hong City." Huo La continued, "From Yuhong City, take a ride and switch routes to challenge the Dual‑color Badge in Liangye City, the Goose‑yellow Badge in Autumn Yellow City, and the Star Badge in Xing Yao City. Those three Badges together will be enough for you to enter the League."

"But… why must we switch to those three?" Ash still didn't get it, his brows knitting, "Liangye City and Autumn Yellow City are pretty far from here; besides the detour, I've never even heard of those gyms."

Huo La lifted his gaze to Ash, his eyes showing a hint of complexity, then rubbed his face and softened his tone, "If you really need a reason, just consider it one of my experiments."

"Experiment?" Ash's eyes lit up instantly, and even Pikachu let out a "Pika," full of curiosity.

"Yes, an experiment." Huo La nodded affirmatively.

"What kind of experiment? Is it about Pokémon? Or about Gym challenges?" Ash leaned in, bombarding with questions.

"Um…" Huo La hesitated, averting Ash's gaze, "It's only a preliminary hypothesis right now; I can't spell out the details, fearing that saying too much might affect you."

He shifted his tone, giving Ash room to choose, "But don't feel pressured; it's just my suggestion. If you want to stick to the original plan and go to Qian Hong City, that's perfectly fine—I won't interfere with your decision."

Ash lowered his head, silent for a moment, his fingers absent‑mindedly brushing his hem, "Let me think it over. Huo La, is there anything else?"

Huo La opened his mouth as if to say more, but ultimately just shook his head, "Nothing."

"Then I'll head back now." Ash nodded, turned, pulled the door open, gently nudged the frame, and his figure vanished outside.

Staring at the shut door, Huo La leaned against the desk edge and let out another heavy sigh.

"Little ghost, that's not fair, making someone take a detour," Gengar's voice suddenly echoed in the room, a pale‑purple mist drifting out of Shadow, circling Huo La once.

Huo La lifted his eyes, his tone even, "I just wanted to run an experiment, to verify my hypothesis."

"Oh? What hypothesis could make you so invested?" Gengar curiously drifted closer, the mist forming a vague face, full of inquiry.

Huo La fell silent, his gaze drifting to the night outside the window, and after a few seconds he spoke, "Nothing."

Seeing he didn't want to say more, Gengar politely stopped probing, the pale‑purple mist slowly receding back into Shadow.

The room instantly fell silent again, only the occasional night breeze outside and the muffled tap of Huo La's fingertips on the desk remaining.