Chapter 441: The Crystal Light Pool and the Ghost!

Hearing Luo Mu's question, the four of them—grandfather, grandmother, and the two grandchildren—exchanged glances; Xue Zhong, the most well-traveled among them, pondered for a moment before replying, "Could it be that you are asking about the Crystal Light Pool?"

"The Crystal Light Pool?"

Luo Mu blinked, repeating the name softly to himself.

Xue Zhong nodded, adopting a reminiscent expression as he said, "Yes, the Crystal Light Pool; it is one of the six selected sites in the northern region, boasting splendid scenery. At the bottom of the pool lie many crystals emitting multicolored light, making photographs taken there exceptionally beautiful!"

Shuzi chimed in as well, "Miss Little Sha Li went there to take photos; worthy of her reputation as a professional photographer, those pictures could likely be published in the Northern Daily!"

"However, reaching that place is somewhat difficult."

Seeing that Luo Mu seemed somewhat tempted, Xue Zhong promptly poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

"When that young Miss Little Sha Li took her Eevee, Noctowl, and Growlithe up the mountain, she returned in quite a disheveled state, covered entirely in dust."

"The Crystal Light Pool is located at the summit of Ghost Mountain. Setting aside the immense effort required just to climb up, Ghost Mountain is inhabited by many dangerous wild Pokémon; a moment's carelessness could lead to injury. Even townsfolk needing to ascend the mountain must hire trainers and travel in groups of multiple people!"

"Moreover, on Ghost Mountain there are..."

For some reason, as he spoke these final words, Xue Zhong's originally worried expression grew far more complex, as if harboring some concern, leaving his words unfinished.

Meanwhile, Danyu murmured in a voice only she could hear, "There are ghosts on Ghost Mountain."

The scene immediately fell into silence.

Three complex gazes turned toward Wuli, who had his head bowed.

Wuli, however, remained oblivious to this; instead, he lifted his head and said to Xue Zhong, "Danger doesn't matter!"

"Mr. Luo Mu is a powerful trainer who defeated Champion Alder; with him here, I fear no danger whatsoever!"

Xue Zhong and Shuzi instantly widened their eyes.

Could the guest before them truly be such a powerful trainer?

At this moment, Danyu seized the opportunity to support him, "Wuli is right; furthermore, we siblings have improved greatly at Blueberry Academy and are no longer children incapable of tying a chicken."

"If we depart now, we can climb to the summit before nightfall; then we can admire the magnificent sight of the starry sky reflected upside-down in the Crystal Light Pool, camp at the summit, and descend early tomorrow morning, just in time for the fierce competition over the strongest Applin!"

Danyu understood her grandfather's reluctance to let them venture into danger, yet she cared even more about the certainty of battles during the ascent; once battling commenced, they would have the chance to receive Luo Mu's guidance.

As for safety, could there possibly be any environment safer than staying by Luo Mu's side?

Hearing Danyu's description, Luo Mu indeed felt somewhat tempted.

With a full team at his disposal, protecting these two children posed no problem; not only could he see the so-called Crystal Light Pool and enjoy the night scenery, but he might even encounter that legendary "ghost," the tough guy who supposedly took on three opponents alone.

However one looked at it, it sounded extremely interesting.

Thinking thus, Luo Mu voluntarily spoke up, "I will ensure the safety of both Danyu and Wuli; judging by their expressions, they seem very eager to visit the summit. Mr. Xue Zhong, what do you say?"

"Sigh... very well, you may go."

"I will apply for permission from the warden."

Xue Zhong sighed; unable to withstand the intense gazes of his granddaughter and grandson any longer, he chose to compromise.

Shuzi also smiled cheerfully and said, "In that case, I shall prepare lunchboxes for everyone's breakfast and dinner."

After making slight preparations and carrying several large boxes filled with their grandparents' "love," Luo Mu, along with the siblings Danyu and Wuli, directly left Verdant Town and headed toward Ghost Mountain.

As for the matter of the Treasure Companion Plaza, that could wait until tomorrow.

Along the way, not only Danyu, but even the previously gloomy Wuli became considerably livelier.

"Ghost~ Ghost~ Ghost~"

Holding the map of Ghost Mountain given by Xue Zhong, his eyes shining brightly, he searched for something upon it while softly murmuring the names of ghosts under his breath.

Hehe, perhaps today he would finally witness the legendary ghost with his own eyes! Although in childhood he had secretly sneaked into Ghost Mountain many times without encountering danger or seeing any ghosts, only to be loudly scolded by the adults afterward.

Yet for some reason, today Wuli felt a strong premonition that his wish was about to come true.

Danyu offered an apologetic smile to Luo Mu and said, "Sorry about this; this child Wuli likes ghosts to an extreme degree."

Intrigued, Luo Mu had the two place their lunchboxes into his spatial backpack and asked with keen interest, "Are not all residents of Verdant Town reverent toward the three Treasure Companions? Why does Wuli like ghosts?"

Without waiting for Danyu to answer, Wuli chimed in first, "Naturally, it is because the ghost in the legends is incredibly cool!"

"Although everyone in town fears the ghost, I really like the ghost."

"The ghost is both powerful and handsome; even when ostracized by humans, he remains utterly unconcerned. Since childhood, I have admired the ghost and wished to become as cool as he is."

"Being able to fight multiple enemies solely by one's own strength is truly awesome!"

Hearing Wuli's self-description, Luo Mu raised an eyebrow, not expecting that Wuli actually harbored some admiration for strength.

No, rather than admiring strength, it seemed more like he longed for the ghost's carefree freedom and desired to become that kind of person.

Beside them, Danyu spoke with earnest gravity, "Wuli, saying these things in front of me, Mom, Dad, Grandpa, Grandma, and Mr. Luo Mu is fine, but you must not say them in town."

"Have you forgotten why other children your age refused to play with you when you were little?"

Wuli pouted and muttered softly, "I didn't want to be friends with people who don't like ghosts anyway."

"Hmph, I don't even want to bring up your embarrassing incidents from childhood; who was it that, because..."

Danyu pretended she was about to expose Wuli's dark history, but a flustered Wuli immediately stopped her; as the two siblings bickered and played, the three of them arrived at the foot of Ghost Mountain.

Luo Mu observed the surrounding environment.

Without needing any system prompt, through certain clues and traces, he could already discern that many wild Pokémon had been active in this vicinity recently.

Luo Mu reminded the two, who were becoming overly relaxed, "Release your Pokémon; although I will protect you, they are your most trusted partners."

Luo Mu's voice rang in their ears like an alarm bell; the two exchanged glances, discarded their playful moods, and each took out a Poké Ball, pressing the button.

"Milcery, I'm counting on you."

"Come out, Sinistcha."

Two Pokémon characteristic of the Kitakami region instantly appeared beside Danyu and Wuli.

Setting Milcery aside for now, regarding the Sinistcha released by Danyu, he had seen it before while drinking tea at the inn.

Sinistcha's main body is a damaged teapot with black-and-white patterns; the white portions form its face, while the black parts, resembling graffiti, constitute its eyes and mouth.

The teapot body shows slight damage in all cases; Sinistcha extends hands formed from green tea powder from within, with its right hand holding a tea scoop.

This Pokémon seemed somewhat related to Sinistea, but Luo Mu was unsure whether there was actually a connection, or if Polteageist was merely a regional form of Sinistea.

Seeing Polteageist and Dipplin already guarding their Trainer's side, Luo Mu smoothly took out several Poké Balls as well; red light flashed.

Luxray, Feng Su Gou, Spectrier, and Applin appeared before Danyu and Uli.

Aside from the harmless Applin, seeing three Pokémon that grew increasingly handsome one after another, Danyu and Uli's eyes sparkled brightly, their hearts surging with excitement.

So handsome! So powerful!

"Uli, you sit on Feng Su Gou's back; Danyu, you sit on Luxray's back; let's try to reach the mountain before dark."

Originally, Luo Mu had intended for Danyu to ride Spectrier, but he suddenly recalled that among the Pokémon on the farm, if one asked who had the most arrogant personality...

... aside from Serperior and Moltres, it would undoubtedly be Spectrier and Glastrier.

These two Legendary Pokémon could be said to submit to no one except Luo Mu and Lei Guan Wang; even if Luxray, who could beat them senseless, tried to ride them, these two would dare to turn hostile.

At worst, they would just suffer a thorough beating; it wasn't as if they hadn't endured one before.

This was the true thought of Spectrier and Glastrier.

Of course, recently Glastrier had gradually awakened a new hobby, so this description was no longer up to date, but Spectrier... had not undergone any major changes.

Seeing both of them properly mounted with their partners on the backs of Luxray and Feng Su Gou, and noting their slightly expectant expressions, Luo Mu, whose heart was as clear as a mirror, smiled lightly and said, "Just right; Applin needs to warm up in advance for tomorrow's competition."

"If we encounter suitable wild Pokémon along the way, we'll stop and battle them; is that okay?"

"Okay!"

"Yay!"

The brother and sister suppressed their voices, cheering softly.

Seeing them so happy, Luo Mu smiled and shook his head, then whispered to the Mimikyu hiding in his shadow, "Leave the matter of finding wild Pokémon of suitable strength to you."

The Mimikyu in the shadow did not answer, merely extending half a Shadow Claw to make an "OK" gesture, before transforming into a shadow moving at high speed and darting forward.

Seeing this, Luo Mu also felt reassured as he climbed onto Spectrier; once seated firmly, he spoke, "Then let's set out!"

Three urgent sounds of footsteps rang out, then gradually faded as their owners moved farther away.

At this moment.

From a spot nearby, covered by dense vegetation that appeared to grow naturally, a small head poked out.

"Boni..."

Ogerpon stared with its distinctive star-shaped eyes, curiously watching the direction where Luo Mu and the others were departing.

After hesitating for a moment, it turned around, retrieved a slightly damaged emerald-green mask from within, lifted the plants used to disguise the cave entrance, and carefully followed after them.

Perhaps those people would go to the mountain peak; if so, it might have the chance to climb the mountain while battling; time always passed very quickly.

Approaching six in the evening, the three finally saw the outline of the mountain peak, as well as the faint, multicolored treasure light emanating from the summit.

Danyu and Uli's faces were filled with satisfaction; this afternoon, they had experienced no fewer than ten Pokémon battles, which not only allowed Polteageist and Dipplin to gain training but also earned them many suggestions from Luo Mu!

Although they were unclear why wild Pokémon of just the right strength always happened to appear exactly on their necessary path, Danyu and Uli paid no attention to such trivial details; their hearts were already filled with joy and excitement.

Until Luxray and the others agilely leaped over steep rocks, arriving at the summit of this Ghost Mountain.

The beautiful scenery before their eyes caused the three humans and their Pokémon to freeze in astonishment for a few seconds.

Atop this towering Ghost Mountain, a beautiful lake lay quietly.

Beneath the unruffled surface of the lake, many strange crystal stones emitting light stood silently at the lake bottom.

It stood to reason.

That fleeting glimpse of radiance was emitted by these crystal stones.

Danyu and Uli, with flushed faces, gazed at the glittering crystals at the lake bottom, their eyes full of Tao Zui expression.

This kind of beautiful scenery was the first they had ever seen.

Previously constrained by adults, having never seen the Crystal Pool, they became momentarily mesmerized.

Just at this moment.

An urgent cry suddenly rang out from behind them.

"Boni!"

That sound came precisely from Ogerpon, which had followed far behind the three all the way to the summit of this Ghost Mountain.

The three first looked behind them, discovering a Pokémon resembling a child shouting anxiously at them, as if warning them of something.

That Pokémon wore a green cloak resembling ginkgo leaves, and its matching frilled little skirt looked very cute, adorned with white five-pointed star patterns.

Along the edge of the cloak, a ring of black thorny vines with protruding spikes encircled the Pokémon's face; on its orange little face, that pair of yellow eyes with star-like pupils suddenly made Luo Mu feel a sense of familiarity.

It was as if he had seen identical eyes on the face of a certain deceased popular idol in the past.

The Pokémon, holding an emerald-green mask in its small hands, shouted anxiously, even exposing its slightly sharp little fangs.

In contrast to the bewildered Luo Mu, Danyu covered her mouth in surprise, while Uli shouted even more excitedly, "It's a ghost!"

But Uli had no time to be happy; only a loud boom erupted from the calm lake surface behind them, as a massive creature emerged from the water, the falling droplets landing on the exposed skin of the several people, feeling slightly cold.

Uli and Danyu turned around blankly to look behind them.

They saw a Gyarados with a ferocious, gaping maw and a vicious expression staring menacingly at them.

Even Luo Mu, who had anticipated something, felt a glint of surprise flash in Emperor Yan Di upon seeing this Gyarados.

This was solely because the surface of this Gyarados's body had now transformed into crystals shining with brilliant light.

On its head, a Terastal Crown, resembling a miniature giant dragon, proclaimed its current type.

A Terastal Dragon-type—Gyarados!

Although he very much wanted to make an ill-timed joke about "Lance's ecstatic joy," Luo Mu still suppressed the questions in his mind: "Why would there be a Terastallized wild Pokémon in Kitakami?" and "Why would a Gyarados appear on the summit of this Ghost Mountain; is it because it can fly?"

Luo Mu, with Applin on his head, spoke calmly, "Luxray, Feng Su Gou, protect Danyu and Uli well; Mimikyu, leave this Gyarados to you."

Perhaps, in the wild, Gyarados was a ferocious creature that many Trainers avoided at all costs.

But facing this luxurious lineup, it had simply intimidated the wrong target!

(End of Chapter)