Chapter 292: Luxray's Path and Mewtwo's Arrival

June 18th, Tuesday.

The weather grew increasingly scorching; outside the farm, cicada cries rose in unison like a chorus, adding several degrees of swelter to this midsummer.

There is a saying that goes well.

When the cicadas cry, humans break down.

At least now, to dissipate heat, Luo Mu had already put on a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, donning the straw hat he wore for fieldwork to shield himself from the sun; if he were merely ten years younger and dressed in an even cooler tank top and underpants, he would be the very image of a Bug Catcher.

Luo Mu still held in his hand the identical fan crafted for him by Oranguru, fanning himself intermittently; when he first received the fan, he had been quite excited for a while.

In his eyes, this fan was Oranguru's psychic power amplifier; a gentle wave could generate surging telekinetic force capable of lifting even Meng Lei Gu's massive form.

Perhaps, under this fan's amplification, he too could awaken the potential within his body.

Fantasizing that he could be like Oranguru, Luo Mu swung heavily at the glass cup on the table; nothing happened, except that the house of cards painstakingly built by Victini and Shuang Nai Xian was blown apart by the wind from his swing.

At that time, having bled heavily to appease several Pokémon, Luo Mu understood a principle.

Gazing out the window and noticing the sky over the outskirts of Pingdie Town gradually turning pitch black, the operator asked with concern, "Chief, should we still go?"

Miss Miss Junsha crossed her hands, propping up her chin; after a moment of contemplation, she shook her head: "No need. Although he has retired, he is still a Champion-level Trainer cultivated by Paldea; since he said so, he will not endanger the surrounding environment."

Starting from 3% and climbing, about an hour later, the number reached 30%.

Due to the imposing aura released by Zapdos, Skarmory Skarmory Sanmao, fearing being struck by lightning without cause or explanation, had already led the Rookidee flock down to the ground, causing the Fire Type standing nearby to twitch its brow repeatedly.

Luo Mu, along with Luxray and Meng Lei Gu, stood at a position slightly farther from the power generation and storage facility group, while Zapdos, following their prior agreement, flew up into the high skies.

As a Legendary Pokémon, commonly known as a Divine Beast, Zapdos's lightning relies more on its innate talent to draw upon natural weather conditions to form.

At this moment, fanning himself, Luo Mu calmly tapped three digits on his battle-damaged phone's dial pad—

Pingdie Town Police Station.

Unleashing such lightning required little effort yet possessed formidable power; most importantly, it consumed relatively little energy, which is why every Legendary Pokémon creates such a grand spectacle during battle, squandering energy as if it cost nothing.

Gazing at the firmament, Luxray revealed a thoughtful expression; it seemed to understand why Luo Mu was so insistent on having Zapdos generate electricity for the farm rather than having it and Meng Lei Gu take turns.

Leaning on the table and endlessly stirring the spoon in her coffee cup, Miss Miss Junsha said with a deflated look: "I don't know why he retired to open a farm; hmm... could this be the decisive difference in brain circuitry between me and powerful Trainers?"

Before the power generation and storage facility group built in an open area, Luo Mu arrived here with Luxray, Meng Lei Gu, and Zapdos.

Over at the Pingdie Town Police Station, the female operator stared at the handset emitting a busy tone with a head full of question marks; after pausing for a moment, she quickly found Miss Miss Junsha to report this somewhat strange phone call.

"We only need to conduct publicity within the town to ensure the residents do not develop feelings of fear."

Under Zapdos's intentional manipulation, the sky above the farm had already been shrouded by dark clouds; these black clouds seemed to carry a pressure that made one's heart involuntarily sink, which was precisely the reason Luo Mu called to remind the Pingdie Town Police Station.

"Hello, this is the Pingdie Town Police Station; how may we assist you?"

Even though he has retired, he must be treated with the attitude due a superior; requests that can be fulfilled should be fulfilled as much as possible, and if necessary, we can even follow his dispatch orders.

This is something ordinary Pokémon like Luxray and Meng Lei Gu, which require precise control over energy, cannot compare to.

Having spoken, Miss Miss Junsha recalled an incident discussed specially during their Paldea region Miss Junsha family meeting, which had recently appeared alongside news of Orange Academy's great victory over Blueberry Academy.

To prevent wild Pokémon from breaking in and causing disturbances or explosion accidents, iron netting had already been erected around the power generation and storage facility group, while the airspace was being guarded by Skarmory Skarmory Sanmao's kin.

110.

Having spoken, Luo Mu politely expressed his thanks and hung up the phone; he knew the operator would report this matter to Miss Miss Junsha, and once she knew about the situation here, there would be no waste of police resources making a futile trip.

The true reason for Zapdos's fatigue was that it had to expend mental effort controlling the power of the current to avoid blowing up the facility group, just like Luxray and Meng Lei Gu did.

The pride of the Paldea region, a Champion-level Trainer, the one who defeated the Champion of the Unova region.

Hearing the operator's voice on the other end of the line, Luo Mu blinked and said: "Hello, I am Luo Mu, the farm owner of Luo Mu Farm in the outskirts of Pingdie Town; the outskirts may suddenly plunge into a period of thunderstorm weather, so please do not waste police resources investigating."

In an instant, vast torrents of golden electric current, like a dam releasing floodwaters, fell upon the silver tower bodies; transmitted through thick cables, they continuously flowed into the electricity storage warehouse.

Adhering to the principle of answering alarm calls from the nearest area, the operator answered the alarm call.

As for Articuno, in order to coax Victini and the others, Luo Mu could only use food to tempt Articuno into helping, having it use the purest Ice-type energy to build an ice house for the little ones.

Of course, if a Fire-type Pokémon interfered, the result would be different again.

Zapdos was also slightly tired.

As time passed, the numbers on the electronic screen of the electricity storage warehouse began to change slowly.

Once the operator left, Miss Miss Junsha finally could not maintain her stiff-faced, straight-backed posture.

Luo Mu and Zapdos had conducted experiments in advance, having Zapdos control the power of the current within a certain range; this way, it would neither overload the facility group nor fail to generate electricity at maximum efficiency.

Facts proved that if the person is incapable, one cannot blame the tool.

Above the farm.

Given Articuno's strength, the ice house it built could withstand exposure under the blazing sun for at least ten days to half a month without melting or deforming.

Deep within the dark clouds shrouding the farm, free ions constantly rubbed against each other, and golden lightning was already brewing.

What does this mean! What does this mean!

Clearly, these underlings had previously ignored my Divine Bird aura; why is their reaction so intense when it comes to Zapdos?

Moltres was so angry it was nearly puffing up into a ball.

Regarding this, Luo Mu had no solution; after all, the construction cost was only several hundred thousand; wanting equipment capable of withstanding the full-power current of a Legendary Pokémon would likely entail an exorbitant cost.

Perhaps, in the future, I can try borrowing natural energy for combat and cultivation like Zapdos, broadening my own path, so that I can catch up to Swampert's pace...

After the lightning within the dark clouds had accumulated to a certain degree, accompanied by Zapdos's sharp, oppressive cry, a muffled thunderclap suddenly exploded with a boom.

Do not misunderstand; as a Legendary Electric-type Divine Bird, the reason for its fatigue was not the continuous hour of falling lightning, as it basically relied on natural forces for this aspect, with its own stored energy consumption being negligible.

No... perhaps there really is a way.

Luo Mu's eyes lit up as he thought of that "trio" of one cat and two people; in terms of electricity, they were absolute experts, even capable of building mechs directly with minimal funding to nullify Pikachu's Electric-type attacks.

"If I have a chance to meet them, I'll try seeing if I can commission them to upgrade the farm's equipment."

Luo Mu murmured to himself.

After Zapdos landed, Luo Mu did not let it continue generating electricity; this was inherently something that could not be rushed, involving not only Zapdos's energy consumption but also considerations for the condition of the power generation and storage facility group.

The weather was already hot, and combined with the continuous transmission of current, if the temperature accidentally exceeded a certain limit, it would leave behind hidden dangers, which would not be good.

He had no idea what basis the Pokédex had for claiming that a single Electivire could supply enough electricity for an entire large city for a year; it was simply too unscientific.

Luo Mu was just about to dismiss his Pokémon when he remembered he had an appointment with Victini to go out later.

Behind him, a spatial fluctuation so faint it was nearly imperceptible rippled outward; even Meng Lei Gu failed to notice it, with only Luxray detecting the disturbance.

In the next instant, Mewtwo and Delibird materialized out of thin air; sensing the familiar aura, Luxray did not immediately drop its guard but instead pawed at Luo Mu's pant leg, signaling him to look behind.

He wondered if Mewtwo and Delibird had done it on purpose; teleporting was one thing, but arriving without making a single sound made them seem like ghosts.

Luo Mu turned around with a bewildered expression, and upon seeing Mewtwo and Delibird appearing there who-knows-when, his CPU nearly fried.

"M-M-Mewtwo and Delibird, how did you two get here?"

"De-li~"

Delibird excitedly pounced into Luo Mu's arms, while Mewtwo looked left and right, surveying the surrounding environment.

So this is the farm Luo Mu mentioned? At first glance, it didn't seem much different from the other human farms it had seen.

After making this initial assessment, Mewtwo's gaze landed on Zapdos and Meng Lei Gu, who were staring back at it, causing it to pause for a moment.

Why was Zapdos here?

And who was that strangely shaped Pokémon? It bore some resemblance to Raikou, the Legendary Pokémon it and Delibird had heard about while challenging gyms in the Johto region.

Though shocked for merely an instant, Mewtwo was the type who remained unmoved even if Taishan collapsed before it; reason quickly suppressed its emotions as it looked at Luo Mu and said in a Little Little Dandan tone, "As agreed, I have come to tour your farm."

Luo Mu was momentarily stunned, then recalled his previous agreement with Mewtwo; stroking Delibird's back, he smiled slightly and said, "I see, then I must prepare properly for today."

Mewtwo nodded slightly, deciding not to bring up the matter of Asertia Island just yet; it would be better to settle in first before discussing it.

At this point, Luo Mu asked Delibird, who was acting spoiled in his arms, "Weren't you traveling? How did you end up returning with Mewtwo?"

However, Delibird's barrage of "De-li-li" sounds was completely incomprehensible to Luo Mu; fortunately, Mewtwo directly recounted their experiences over this period, including how it had disguised itself as a Trainer and defeated all eight gyms in the Johto region.

After Mewtwo finished telling the story, Delibird proudly pulled a well-maintained case of badges from its tail, which gleamed under the sunlight, wearing an expression that clearly sought praise.

Just as Delibird expected, Luo Mu indeed looked shocked as he patted its head, exclaiming, "You cleared all the Johto gyms using only yourself as the deployed Pokémon from start to finish? That's truly amazing!"

It seemed that with Mewtwo's help, Delibird had grown significantly stronger over these past few months.

On the other side, Luxray watched Mewtwo with some surprise in its heart.

After only a short time, Mewtwo had become even stronger; this rate of growth was simply too fast.

Luxray pondered that if it fought Mewtwo now, the odds would probably be fifty-fifty; given Mewtwo's growth speed, it feared that before long, Mewtwo would surpass it in strength.

No, it absolutely must continue to become stronger!

As for Zapdos and Meng Lei Gu, they had never seen Mewtwo before; they only knew this Pokémon exerted immense pressure on them, but since Luo Mu seemed to know the creature, they held back from acting.

Mewtwo's gaze fell upon the fan in Luo Mu's hand; after inquiring, it took the fan from him.

The moment it held the fan, Mewtwo's expression changed slightly; this fan seemed to have an amplifying effect on psychic powers, making their use smoother and more effortless.

Overcome by intense curiosity, Mewtwo asked, "This is a fine fan with excellent psychic conductivity properties, but since you lack any psychic talent, what are you doing with it?"

"Who is its creator? Can I meet them?"

Feeling as though an arrow had struck his knee, Luo Mu fell silent: "..."

That hit close to home, old friend.

Forcing a strained smile, Luo Mu led the way for Mewtwo, first giving it a tour of the farm while simultaneously notifying Butler Slowking to make preparations.

After a thorough and satisfying tour, Mewtwo's evaluation of Luo Mu's farm improved considerably.

This place was undoubtedly a paradise for Pokémon, completely abandoning the manual labor used by other farms in favor of operating through the power of Pokémon themselves.

The distribution of work was quite reasonable, and the spirit and appearance of the Pokémon were excellent; this aspect, which appealed greatly to Mewtwo since it favored Pokémon over humans, earned extra points.

However, the overall level of modernization on the farm was still somewhat low; Mewtwo recalled passing through a city called Goldenrod while traveling with Delibird to challenge the Johto gyms, where automated assembly lines for milking Da Nai Guan already existed.

Yet here at Luo Mu's place, one person still had to slowly milk a single Da Nai Guan and two Mareep by hand.

Nevertheless, this was indeed a warm and cozy farm, a home where Pokémon could live happily, a fact Mewtwo would not deny.

Mewtwo was also very concerned about one thing: during the tour, it had seen Articuno building an ice house and taking a nap, as well as Moltres, which appeared to have gained a little weight.

This surprised Mewtwo greatly, making it feel that the coincidence was perhaps a bit too excessive.

When exactly had Luo Mu captured the three Legendary Birds?

Returning to the living room, Mewtwo finally got its wish and met the fan's creator, Butler Slowking.

The moment their eyes met, both knew the other was no ordinary individual.

In Mewtwo's eyes, one had to say, as expected of the Pokémon that created such a fan.

Even within the category of ordinary Pokémon, Butler Slowking's mental strength was quite formidable, not to mention its obviously high intelligence.

Meanwhile, Butler Slowking was shocked in its heart; so this was the Mewtwo Luo Mu had mentioned before. Merely being in its presence made Slowking feel that in the realm of psychic powers, it would likely be completely crushed by the other.

As Mewtwo tasted the black tea and cake served by Butler Slowking, even its serious face showed a trace of surprise after sampling both items.

It wasn't that it had never tried human food; on the contrary, for the sake of research, Mewtwo had specifically studied it quite deeply.

Both this cake and this cup of black tea were Top-Tier Among the upper grade, with flavors that were perfectly executed, completely preserving the inherent quality of the ingredients without waste.

Luo Mu introduced them with pride: "The cream and flour used to make the cake are produced on the farm, the honey is craft-brewed by wild Combee from the wilds, and the tea leaves for the black tea come from those two Meng Ya Lu in the pasture area; you are the first Pokémon guest to taste them since they were made."

"By the way, we also have floral tea that can be brewed; would you like to try some?"

Whenever speaking about his farm's products, Luo Mu always spoke endlessly, eager to introduce their virtues to everyone and every Pokémon.

Mewtwo nodded, its expression somewhat complex.

This place was just like the photograph it had seen, and just like it had imagined; could humans and Pokémon really coexist in such a manner?

"Bi-mi~~~"

Victini, wearing an expression of extreme impatience, suddenly flew into the living room, urging Luo Mu aloud.

Luo Mu knew exactly what Victini was urging him about; patting its head to soothe it, he said, "Eat a piece of cake and wait a little; I am still entertaining a guest."

"Ti-mi!?"

Upon hearing the word "cake," Victini's large eyes immediately sparkled with dazzling light; taking the already sliced and plated cake from Butler Slowking, who had anticipated the move, it immediately buried its head and began eating.

Noticing Mewtwo's gaze fall upon Victini, Luo Mu smiled helplessly and introduced, "This is Victini, a Pokémon I recently caught."

Mewtwo nodded; whether it was an illusion or not, it sensed an immensely vast energy emanating from Victini.

It seemed this Pokémon named Victini was no simple creature either.

After eating and drinking their fill, Luo Mu glanced at the Delivery Bird and Victini, who were still burying their heads in fierce eating, and said to Mewtwo, "I plan to go out shortly. Not only do I need to buy some ingredients for tonight's party, but I also need to take Victini to pick out a Poké Ball it likes."

"Can you wait on the farm for a while? An Oranguru will take my place in hosting you then."

Mewtwo fell silent for a moment before asking, "This small town likely doesn't offer the conditions to select from various types of Poké Balls. Are you going to a large city?"

Luo Mu was slightly stunned, not expecting Mewtwo to have noticed even this; he nodded slightly and said, "I'm going to Mesagoza, the most prosperous town in this Paldea region."

At this, Mewtwo made a startling statement: "Then take me along as well."

(End of Chapter)