Chapter 445: The Ominous Ghost

"Bonie!"

The source of the sound was some distance away from them.

Originally, neither Luo Mu nor Little Sha Li were the types to stick their noses into every affair.

Yet this slightly familiar cry was one Luo Mu had heard just last night.

"Is that the ghost?"

Luo Mu's brows furrowed slightly; compared to the ghost's warning last night for them to beware of Gyarados, this sound seemed more like a cry of being under attack.

Having been warned only yesterday, Luo Mu could hardly sit idly by and pretend he hadn't heard.

"I'll go check first; you follow shortly, or just stay here and wait for me."

After quickly explaining to Little Sha Li and leaving Mimikyu behind to protect her, Luo Mu flipped onto Feng Su Gou and rushed directly toward the source.

Before Little Sha Li could even get a word out, she saw Luo Mu riding Feng Su Gou dart away like a gust of wind.

Watching Luo Mu and Feng Su Gou vanish in the blink of an eye, Little Sha Li bent down, picked up Growlithe, pressed her cheek against it, and murmured, "With speed like that, I suppose it's no surprise it's a Pokémon he raised."

"If our ancestors were still here, they would surely be comforted to know that Hisui's Pokémon are still active in this world."

"No, perhaps it's better they aren't here; if they knew Galaxy Team had developed into what it is today, they'd surely be so furious they'd talk about leading the Diamond Clan to melt Galaxy Team down and recast it."

Without even employing Extreme Speed, in the time it takes to blink, Feng Su Gou carried Luo Mu to the source of the cry.

There, atop a large tree, a Pokémon with a purple body, a terrifying pattern on its belly, flicking a snake's tongue, and resembling a giant cobra, was coiling its thick tail around its prey, opening its blood-filled maw to reveal fangs dripping with venom, poised to bite down.

And that so-called prey was precisely the "ghost" Wuli had mentioned! The ghost was bound tight, with only its short legs, which looked as if wearing wooden clogs, exposed outside, struggling feebly.

Below, a green mask lay on the ground, seemingly connected to that ghost in some way.

Luo Mu frowned slightly.

He understood the logic... but why was the ghost, legendary for single-handedly slaying the three Treasures Companions, caught by a mere Arbok? The situation was urgent, leaving Luo Mu no time to ponder further; he couldn't just stand by and watch the ghost that had warned him last night be bitten by an Arbok's venomous fangs—after all, this ghost appeared to be a Grass-type Pokémon, disadvantaged against Poison types.

He flipped off the dog and commanded in a deep voice, "Thunder Fang!"

Compared to Fire-type or Rock-type attacks that might enrage the Arbok, an Electric-type move's natural paralyzing effect would prevent the Arbok from constricting its serpentine body, giving Luo Mu a chance to save the ghost.

Receiving the command, Feng Su Gou let out a low growl and lunged straight at the Arbok hanging from the tree branch.

Seeing Feng Su Gou charge directly at it, the Arbok instinctively loosened its tail's grip; after all, the prey could be dealt with anytime, but repelling this large creature that felt somewhat ominous took priority.

The Arbok straightened its body, displaying the terrifying pattern on its belly to the fullest extent, while emitting a threatening hiss to warn Feng Su Gou not to come closer.

However, Feng Su Gou wasn't the least bit afraid of such things; an angry Luo Mu's expression was far more terrifying than this!

Seeing Feng Su Gou continue its charge undeterred, a flash of shame and coldness passed through Emperor Yan Di's eyes; it suddenly opened its wide mouth, revealing sharp venomous fangs, and shot a stream of liquid emitting a strong, fishy stench toward Feng Su Gou.

The Poison-type move "Acid Spray"! This was Arbok's most confident move; not only was its release speed fast, but its accuracy was high, and once it hit an enemy, the opponent would surely panic as strong acid and toxins corroded their body, making it extremely effective for either driving off opponents or laying the groundwork for victory.

Arbok had already envisioned the future where Feng Su Gou, charging recklessly, slammed right into the Acid Spray and rolled on the ground in pain.

But... reality turned out somewhat different from what it imagined.

Seeing the Acid Spray flying toward it, a hint of disdain flashed in Feng Su Gou's eyes; it accelerated once more, a bright white light enveloping its body.

Extreme Speed! In that instant, to Arbok's eyes, Feng Su Gou simply vanished!

With no target, the Acid Spray landed directly on the ground, emitting a sizzling sound.

Arbok instantly froze in shock.

Before it could react, a tremendous force struck its body directly.

In the blink of an eye, Arbok was yanked down from the tree by Feng Su Gou; then Feng Su Gou opened its fangs, bristling with electric sparks, and bit down without mercy! In an instant, electric current surged through Arbok's body; its tail, which had been coiling around the ghost, loosened uncontrollably, and the entire Pokémon was straightened stiff by the electricity.

Once that wave of paralysis faded and it barely managed to rise, the shaken Arbok discovered that the large creature had already brought its prey over to the human's side.

A flash of fear and dread passed through Emperor Yan Di's eyes; it could only accept its bad luck, planning to flick its tail and flee.

It wasn't foolish enough to insist on fighting to the finish.

If it sustained any more injuries, it might not even be able to defend its territory.

"Please, wait!"

Luo Mu's voice suddenly rang out.

Arbok irritably flicked its tail, unwilling to stop, but it couldn't even see the large creature's speed; fearing it would be intercepted again before it could even leave, it halted in place and stared fixedly at Luo Mu.

But in the next second, Arbok was completely stunned.

That human had directly flung a bag of something unknown in its direction! Arbok watched the object warily, yet detected a very fragrant scent in the air.

Then that person spoke again.

"There's enough in this bag to feed you for several days, along with Berries that can heal injuries; consider it an exchange with you, is that acceptable?"

Arbok moved closer to sniff the bag; as a Poison-type Pokémon, it was highly sensitive to toxins and could confirm that inside were indeed fragrant foods it had never seen before, with no toxins added.

There were also several types of healing Berries that were difficult to find even within the forest.

Was this person serious?

Coiling the bag with its tail, Arbok gave Luo Mu a strange look, then turned and left.

As it slithered away, Arbok thought to itself.

Ah well, this is fine.

Although I took a beating, I also gained food enough for many days and precious Berries; it's not a loss.

This time, Luo Mu did not stop Arbok from leaving; he watched its figure disappear before withdrawing his gaze.

The bag he had just thrown to Arbok contained Pokémon food he usually prepared specially, along with various Berries; the bag itself was made of an eco-friendly, rapidly degradable material.

These were items Luo Mu had kept ready ever since the incident at Great Crater Lake, where he saved two Meng Ya Lu from a Lycanroc and made an exchange.

If he encountered or took a liking to any Pokémon along the way, he could use these items to make an exchange without disturbing other Pokémon.

This way, he neither interfered with nature nor acted against his own wishes; it was quite good.

Having resolved the Arbok issue, Luo Mu crouched down, lifted the rescued "ghost" from Feng Su Gou's back, and carefully examined its entire body.

Fortunately, there were no wounds from venomous fangs; judging by the current situation, it was merely suffering from hypoxia caused by tight constriction, along with some ligature marks on its body.

Fortunately, the injuries were not severe; otherwise, he, who had not brought his Heal Ring out this time, would have had to turn back and seek treatment in Emerald Town.

While administering emergency care, Luo Mu curiously examined the ghost's appearance.

It had to be said.

Aside from its tangerine-colored face and those pair of tiger fangs, the ghost truly looked like a child. Its neck was nowhere to be seen, and it was unclear how the Arbok had managed to strangle it into hypoxia.

Just as Luo Mu's mind was filled with all sorts of chaotic thoughts, the Pecharunt, gradually regaining consciousness, startled awake.

"Poni!?"

Its first reaction was to look left and right, thinking it was still bound by the Arbok.

Then, seeing Luo Mu's face as he lowered his head to spray a special-effect mist onto its ligature marks, it froze for a moment before panicking, trying to struggle free from Luo Mu's embrace and escape.

For a Pecharunt that had not interacted with humans for a very, very long time and subconsciously feared them, such an unguarded close contact with a human was undoubtedly as suffocating as forcing a person with social anxiety to perform talents in the most crowded place.

At this moment, the arm holding it tightened slightly, and a faint voice came from above.

"Rest assured, I bear no hostility."

Whether it was some magic contained within Luo Mu's voice or not, the Pecharunt's struggles grew weaker, finally ceasing altogether as it stared with those starry eyes, dazedly gazing at him.

In that instant, in the Pecharunt's eyes, a shadow seemed to overlap onto Luo Mu's figure.

Long ago, that person seemed to have treated its injuries in much the same way. But shortly after, the Pecharunt's filter of overlap shattered directly, making it deeply realize that the person before it was not that person.

After finishing treating the ghost's wounds, Luo Mu set it down and asked, "How is it? Can you still walk?"

The Pecharunt tried moving its body and discovered that the burning pains were rapidly disappearing; within moments, its body regained its original lightness.

"Poni!"

With a look of astonishment, the Pecharunt stomped its foot and gazed at Luo Mu in surprise.

How miraculous; it even seemed as though scars it had left behind before had vanished! Seeing this, Luo Mu smiled. "After all, I used the best healing medicine; it can quickly heal wounds from battles, let alone these mere ligature marks."

After the surprise passed, the Pecharunt suddenly realized something was missing from its body.

The next instant.

Realizing this, it panicked again, and visible anxiety appeared on its small face.

Where had its mask gone! A warm, large hand pressed down directly, holding the ghost that had become agitated again, while Luo Mu used his other free hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, wearing a helpless expression.

"Calm down."

"Feng Su Gou, trouble you; it seems that mask is very important to it."

Looking at Feng Su Gou, Luo Mu pointed to the other side.

Feng Su Gou nodded slightly; its movements were swift, completing a round trip in mere seconds as it ran back carrying a emerald-green mask stained with quite a bit of dust in its mouth.

Taking the mask from Feng Su Gou, rubbing its head, and offering a word of praise, Luo Mu's gaze fell upon that mask.

It looked like a smiling old man's face; embedded upon it were gems of unknown variety, which glowed faintly even in the near absence of light.

Regrettably, this mask was somewhat damaged, causing many of the gems embedded upon it to develop cracks and chips, which was a pity.

Removing the hand pressing down on the Pecharunt and casually handing the mask to it, Luo Mu even teased,

"To hold you down, I even had to bend my waist."

"Poni?"

Having retrieved its mask, the Pecharunt, filled with joy, did not immediately understand Luo Mu's meaning.

After a few more seconds, once its crashed brain began operating again, it understood.

This person was beating around the bush to say it was short!

Instantly, the filter in the Pecharunt's eyes regarding Luo Mu shattered into pieces; it puffed up its cheeks in anger, continuously emitting sounds of fury and condemnation.

"Poni! Poni! Poni!"

The Pecharunt immediately forgot all about reserve and sense of distance; fuming with rage, it raised its small fists and hammered wildly at Luo Mu's knees.

Unfortunately, its strength was truly a bit too small.

Rather than giving Luo Mu a taste of its power, it looked more like a child massaging an adult's legs.

Enduring the ghost's neither light nor heavy punches, Luo Mu, amused, took the opportunity to voice his doubt.

"Are you really that ghost who fought three alone? This strength is far too weak, isn't it?"

Hearing this sentence, the Pecharunt instantly froze.

Then, its eye sockets turned red without warning; as if recalling some sorrowful event, teardrops the size of beans trickled straight down.

This reaction completely bewildered Luo Mu.

Wait, why is it crying?

The Serperior inside the Poké Ball could not bear to watch any longer; it came out on its own, casting a speechless glance at Luo Mu.

This trainer of theirs; sometimes, like a monster, he seemed able to perceive a Pokémon's thoughts, yet at other times, he was quite dull.

In this situation, wasn't it obvious that they had touched upon this little one's sore spot? Pondering this, the Serperior began comforting the Pecharunt using its own methods.

With the Serperior taking charge, the Pecharunt's emotions stabilized quickly, and it even softly apologized to Luo Mu.

Although Luo Mu could not understand its language, he could roughly grasp the meaning.

His suddenly stalled brain began to operate, instantly realizing that regarding that legend, there were likely hidden circumstances.

However.

Before exploring the truth, Luo Mu asked the Serperior to inquire of this somewhat short and timid ghost why it had appeared in this Eternal Forest, which was some distance from Ghost Mountain, how it had been captured by the Arbok, and also what the ghost's name was.

The Serperior cast a dissatisfied glance at Luo Mu; he only knew how to order snakes around.

Nevertheless, it still asked diligently and, through some of its own methods, enabled Luo Mu to understand the general situation.

It turned out.

The ghost's name was Pecharunt.

The reason it had appeared here was because it had been following Luo Mu.

Normally, relying on its own agility, few could ever catch the Misfortune Phantom Ape.

But the Misfortune Phantom Ape, trailing far behind Luo Mu, was caught red-handed by Arbok due to the darkening sky and its unfamiliarity with the environment of the Eternal Forest.

Which led to the present moment, where it was rescued by Luo Mu.

After grasping the general situation, Luo Mu finally asked the question he had long wanted to ask.

"Why were you following me?"

(End of Chapter)