Chapter 178: Venusaur's Mega Stone and Key Stone

Pokémon Center, Brock's room.

With a soft "thud," Huo La and Bilan climbed in through the window, both of them still carrying the excitement of a successful operation.

Brock was sitting by the bed organizing his breeding notes; seeing this, he wasn't surprised at all—after all, Huo La had already explained the plan for tonight to him.

Bilan grabbed the water cup Brock handed over, drank it in one gulp, wiped the corner of her mouth, and laughed: "Huo La, I really didn't expect you to be so devious! We agreed on a frontal robbery, but you went straight for a sneak attack from behind!"

"A frontal robbery is too much effort, thankless work." Huo La smiled and waved his hand, simultaneously taking out three faintly glowing Mega Stones from his pocket and placing them gently on the table.

He didn't bring the safe back, fearing that Team Flare might have rigged it with tracking devices, causing more trouble.

Long before exposing himself to A Ke Bi, he had already let Salandit take Venusaur's Poké Ball and quietly hide in the shadows in the corner of the warehouse.

Waiting until he used his Team Rocket identity to attract everyone's attention before ordering the surprise attack was the safest and most reliable method.

After all, the system task was just to snatch the Mega Stones, not a forced frontal confrontation; as long as the goal was successfully achieved, that was enough.

"Three new ones, plus the one you gave me before, that's four in total." Huo La took out the Mega Stone Bilan had given him earlier and placed it with the newly snatched ones; the four stones shimmered under the light.

"According to what you said before, adding these up, I'm afraid it's worth over a million!" Bilan stared at the evolution stones on the table, her eyes lighting up, and she reached out to grab them.

Brock was also stunned on the spot; although he didn't participate in the operation, seeing the two go out and bring back treasures worth a million, he still looked incredulous: "Huo La, this..."

"Don't worry, Brock, this is a conflict between Team Rocket and Team Flare; it has nothing to do with us, it doesn't count as illegal." Huo La saw his concerns and hurriedly comforted him.

Brock sighed and didn't say anything more.

Although he didn't know the details of Team Flare, being able to be mentioned in the same breath as Team Rocket, and being an outside organization, he figured they weren't good people either.

"These three Mega Stones, except for the one I gave you before, the rest are just one for each of us! I want the Blastoise one!" Bilan decided first, pointing to one of the blue evolution stones.

Huo La glanced at her, didn't refute, and directly picked up the Blastoise Mega Stone and handed it to her: "Fine, it's yours. Finding the clues this time is thanks to you."

Bilan took the evolution stone, examined it back and forth, the corners of her mouth almost reaching her ears.

"Brock, this one is for you." Huo La picked up the Steelix Mega Stone and handed it to Brock.

Brock frowned, shook his head, and didn't reach out: "This thing is too precious, and my Onix doesn't have the will to evolve yet, I can't accept it."

Huo La held the evolution stone and looked at him for a few seconds, then didn't force it: "That's fine, I'll keep it for you for now. When your Onix evolves into Steelix one day, come find me to take it."

Brock nodded with a smile: "Alright, I won't be polite then."

"By the way, how exactly do you use this thing?" Bilan suddenly spoke, interrupting their conversation, holding the Blastoise evolution stone with a puzzled look.

Huo La thought for a moment and explained: "It has to be used in conjunction with a 'Key Stone.' The Trainer wears the Key Stone, the corresponding Pokémon carries the Mega Stone, and when the two are in sync, it can trigger the power, allowing the Pokémon to Mega Evolve."

"Oh? How do you know everything?" Bilan raised her eyebrows curiously.

Huo La paused and pushed all the questions away: "Thanks to having a good father."

At the same time, it was noon in the Kalos region.

Huo La's father, Yuki, was sitting in the lab when he suddenly sneezed several times.

Professor Platane walked over with two cups of coffee, handed him one, and smiled: "What? Caught a cold?"

Yuki took the coffee, shook his head, and smiled helplessly: "No, I guess it's my good son thinking about how to scam me again."

Hearing this, Platane couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Last time you finished his phone call, your private stash was almost squeezed dry, right?"

Yuki took a sip of coffee and gave a bitter smile: "Who told me he's my own flesh and blood."

He put down the coffee, his expression instantly turning serious: "Speaking of which, Team Flare has been getting more and more restless lately; there is news of their movements everywhere."

"Sigh, yeah." Platane sighed, his tone solemn. "I don't know where they got the information, but their research on Mega Evolution is actually faster and more comprehensive than ours. During this time, they have been frantically searching for Mega Stones and Key Stones."

"Fortunately, the Kalos Alliance has already paid enough attention; I believe it won't be long before they are suppressed."

"That would be best." Yuki breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes full of longing. "I've long wanted to go back to see my wife and child."

Platane patted him on the shoulder and comforted him with a smile: "Soon, once I finish writing and publishing this paper, you can go back."

"Oh right, there's one more thing." Yuki suddenly put down the coffee cup, as if remembering some important agreement, looked up at Platane, his tone carrying a bit of teasing: "You can't go back on the gift you promised to prepare for my son."

"Don't worry, I've had it prepared for you for a long time." Platane smiled and waved his hand, downing the rest of the coffee in his hand. As he set the cup down, his tone carried a hint of pride, "A Mega Stone for Venusaur, plus a Key Stone—as your uncle, I'd say my gift is substantial enough, wouldn't you?"

"Hiss—" Yuki was stunned at first, then shook his head and laughed out loud, his tone full of emotion and a bit of self-mockery: "It's still you research doctors who carry the Alliance name who are generous! Just one shot is a treasure worth hundreds of thousands of League Coins; compared to you, my private stash that I've saved for so long is simply not worth looking at..."

Platane patted him on the shoulder and couldn't help but tease: "Stop crying poor here. With your ability, if you were willing to come out and take a position, let alone the Kanto Alliance, even we here in Kalos would be fighting to invite you over."

He changed the subject, his eyes showing a bit more sincerity: "It's you, usually preferring to stay at home and do research, refusing to come out no matter what. This time, being able to 'catch' you to Kalos was thanks to the Mega Evolution research project hooking you, otherwise I really don't know when we would be able to gather again."

Hearing this, Yuki showed a helpless yet relieved smile on his face, picked up the coffee and took a sip: "Who told me that the topic of Mega Evolution is too interesting for me. But seriously, once you publish this paper, I really have to go back quickly; that kid at home might be causing trouble again."

Platane laughed out loud: "Don't worry, at most half a month, I guarantee you can go home and accompany your wife and child with peace of mind." ===== CHAPTER 179 =====