Chapter 492: Too Late, So It'll Be You (Second Update)

It was a Pokémon resembling a moth larva, with its head and upper body covered in thick downy fur, black claws and a black face, and a brown lower body like a cicada pupa.

At this moment, it looked just like a burning torch.

The tips of its five slightly curved, flame-like antennae continuously absorbed the surrounding flames; the blazing fire rotated slowly around it like a halo of light, as dazzling as a solar halo dominated by crimson red.

Indeed.

This was the first time in the entire farm that a Pokémon's hatching had caused such a massive commotion.

Everyone stared wide-eyed, watching the scene before them with slight shock, even their breathing becoming unconsciously cautious.

Nearby, Moltres and Feng Su Gou, noticing the scale of the fire rapidly diminishing, were both startled that Volcarona could consume so much flame, yet they simultaneously mobilized their Fire-type energy to release blazing flames.

Compared to the unrestrained Feng Su Gou, Moltres was obviously much more cautious, paying attention to the cluster of seven-colored sacred fire within its body while carefully releasing its own flames after applying a certain degree of suppression.

Volcarona consumed flames for nearly ten minutes before gradually stopping its movements.

Seeing this, the two Pokémon ceased releasing flames, their gazes fixed on Volcarona with its eyes tightly closed, waiting for its reaction.

Without the maintenance of the two Fire-type Pokémon, the burning flames consequently scattered like duckweed without roots, gradually dissipating to reveal a scorched black raised mound, a "tiny hill."

Luo Mu took two steps forward and called out tentatively, "Volcarona?"

As if his voice had pressed a start button, Volcarona's tightly closed eyes trembled slightly, then opened to reveal a pair of azure-blue eyes.

It looked left and right, finally facing Luo Mu directly, and let out a soft cry.

"Baa?"

Strangely, even though Lei Guan Wang, Oranguru, and Moltres nearby had not translated, Luo Mu could understand Volcarona's meaning.

A smile appeared on his face as he extended his right hand, saying, "Welcome to this world, Volcarona."

Volcarona stared at him for a moment, then moved its two pairs of black legs beneath its body; under the slightly vigilant gaze of Cangyan Cangyan Rengui behind Luo Mu, it approached the palm Luo Mu had extended and rubbed its head against it.

"Baa-ah~"

As for the tactile sensation, the first impression was fluffy and warm, just like petting a little lamb.

Its cry also sounded very much like a little lamb.

Luo Mu silently made this assessment in his heart as his hand slowly moved to stroke it.

He stared at Volcarona's face, feeling a peculiar sense of déjà vu.

Viewed from the side, it really looked like Arceus.

If it were a shiny variant, even the eye color would be exactly the same, making it a miniature Arceus.

Seeing Luo Mu bonding with Volcarona, Cangyan Cangyan Rengui breathed a sigh of relief, silently stepped back a few paces, and resumed its role as the silent knight.

Luxray, who had remained calm and composed throughout the entire process, raised its eyes to glance at him, the corners of its mouth lifting slightly.

Whenever it concerned Luo Mu's safety, Cangyan Cangyan Rengui would always become overly concerned and chaotic, its vigilance exploding.

In this aspect, Luxray felt that Cangyan Cangyan Rengui was quite "cute."

Seeing Luo Mu quickly grow close to Volcarona, many Pokémon could no longer hold themselves back.

"Victi-ni~!"

Victini flew over at the forefront, wanting to build a good relationship with Volcarona, which shared its typing, hoping best that Volcarona would become its underling to serve it hand and foot.

It had long coveted the relationship between Feng Su Gou and the Braixen sisters.

However, while it wasn't apparent before approaching, once Victini got close, it discovered with shock.

Compared to Volcarona, it was like a dwarf; where was there ever a boss shorter than its underling?

Victini, who had just been beaming with sunshine, silently shattered.

"Pecharunt..."

Pecharunt also looked in surprise at Volcarona, whose height was not much different from its own, thinking that this was the first time it had seen a Bug-type Pokémon born so large.

The Pokémon reacted in various ways, and Luo Mu also noticed Volcarona's size; even though it had just been born and hadn't fully grown, including its antennae, its height already reached over one meter.

It was a bit taller than his own leg, which was absurd.

After petting the fluffy Volcarona enough, Luo Mu attempted to shake one of the pair of small black claws in front of its body among its three pairs.

"Baa-la~"

Watching Volcarona's enjoyment, Luo Mu sighed again in his heart.

Indeed, it really was like a little lamb.

Volcarona's sudden hatching was somewhat unexpected, but it once again injected new vitality into the farm.

Its innate Fire-type talent was quite good; one could glean some insight just from the amount of flames it consumed.

Coupled with the dense vitality bestowed by Lei Guan Wang's blessing, as a Bug-type Pokémon, its innate constitution was also extremely healthy, just like a little Sandshrew.

In a certain sense, Volcarona could be considered born with a golden spoon in its mouth.

This kind of Pokémon naturally enjoys a long lifespan; in some ruins of the Unova region, there are still Volcarona that have lived for several hundred years.

On the contrary, Alder's Volcarona was a rare case; due to too many old injuries concentrating and erupting, it became incapacitated. Under normal circumstances, a Volcarona's lifespan would be sufficient to outlive Luo Mu and several generations after him.

Perhaps because it had absorbed a massive amount of flames and needed time to slowly digest the energy.

Not afraid of strangers in the slightest, Volcarona interacted with Luo Mu and the crowd of Pokémon for a while before feeling sleepiness descend; its eyelids fluttered a few times, unable to withstand the overwhelming drowsiness, and it fell into a deep sleep.

Seeing this, Luo Mu entrusted Bog Monster and Heavy to refill the land, then moved Volcarona back to the home where they currently resided.

On the equally fluffy carpet, Volcarona obviously slept even more relaxed.

Like a fluffy ball of fur, it lay quietly on the carpet, sleeping silently.

But before leaving, Luo Mu still instructed Oranguru and Lei Guan Wang to keep a close watch on it; if Volcarona accidentally lost control of its instincts and spewed flames, the house would be destroyed.

After properly handling everything, even preparing several portions of transitional food for Volcarona, Luo Mu finally took Serperior and prepared to head out.

When the little Tinkatink came to the farm yesterday to collect supplies, it mentioned that the Houndoom "Sang Sang Biao" indicated that they had accumulated enough strength and could launch a coup at any time.

However, although unwilling, given the strength of the Houndoom boss, neither Sang Sang Biao nor the other Houndoom that had slid to its knees after losing to the Eevee sisters—these two young dogs were still no match for their opponent.

Plus, with the protection of its several die-hard subordinates, ensuring the Houndoom boss was isolated and without aid was already their utmost effort.

I'm afraid the Monarch Snake will need to step in.

That's not a problem, but... such a minor issue hardly warrants the Monarch Snake's intervention.

Luo Mu had intended to call for Feng Su Gou, but didn't know where it had run off to rampage after the group disbanded.

He went to look for it in the places Feng Su Gou usually stayed, but found only the Twist Dog lying there on its back with all four legs in the air, sleeping with absolutely no sense of crisis.

Luo Mu could roughly guess why the Twist Dog hadn't disappeared along with Feng Su Gou.

Most likely, that fellow thought the Twist Dog's legs were a bit too short to keep up while running, so it didn't bring it along.

Otherwise, given the Twist Dog's tendency to stick like glue, how could it be sleeping soundly here?

After staring at the Twist Dog for a while, a thoughtful light sparked in Luo Mu's eyes.

A few seconds later.

He bent down, simply scooped up the Twist Dog in one go, and muttered to himself, "No time left; you'll do."

With that, Luo Mu tucked the Twist Dog under his arm—like a fluffy stuffed doll emitting the scent of freshly baked bread—and strode purposefully toward the farm gate.

The Monarch Snake nearby: "..."

(¬_¬) It rolled its eyes.

The Twist Dog's sleep quality was invincibly good.

It only slowly woke up shortly after Luo Mu and the Monarch Snake had regrouped with the Little Tinker.

Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings and sniffing unfamiliar scents, the Twist Dog's brain crashed for a few seconds before gradually starting to function again.

Its pair of shiny brown-black eyes turned toward Luo Mu and the Monarch Snake; with a heart big enough to instantly adapt to having changed locations mid-sleep, it wagged its tail and whined like a clingy little monster, seeking pets from Luo Mu.

This scene happened to be witnessed squarely by the Little Tinker and the others, who had just returned bringing the Houndoom named Sang Sang Biao.

Sang Sang Biao glanced at the Little Tinker, recalling the news mentioned on the way: the Monarch Snake wouldn't be fighting, and instead another canine Pokémon would take its place.

Then it looked at the Twist Dog.

Less than fifty centimeters tall, its entire body seemed to lack any part useful for attack, and instead it emitted a pleasant aroma of freshly baked bread.

Are you sure it can defeat the Houndoom Boss, who has fought through countless battles and bears scars all over its curved horns?

The Little Tinker: "... Kanuu."

It didn't know either.

The Little Tinker itself had only joined the farm not long ago and hadn't fully figured everything out yet.

However, with the Monarch Snake providing backup, even if the Twist Dog couldn't defeat the Houndoom Boss, there would be no problem.

"Little Tinker, Sang Sang Biao, you're back."

Luo Mu, who was vigorously rubbing the dog's head, looked up toward the cave entrance, temporarily letting go of the Twist Dog, and shifted his gaze onto the Houndoom.

This caused the Houndoom's muscle-packed body to tremble slightly.

This human's technique is no ordinary one! In truth, Luo Mu hadn't intended to pet the Houndoom this time; he merely frowned, lost in thought, and murmured softly, "Hmm, Sang Sang Biao... I feel this name is a bit too fierce and doesn't quite suit you."

"Wang Cai, Xiao Hei, Da Hei, Xiao Bai—all of those would work."

The more he spoke, the brighter Luo Mu's eyes became, making the Houndoom feel that the next second he would leap up and rename it.

Fortunately, the Monarch Snake didn't forget the matter at hand; subtly gauging its strength, a vine shot out like lightning and lightly tapped Luo Mu's palm, urging him to be serious.

The Houndoom cast a grateful glance toward the Monarch Snake.

No joke—if Luo Mu really called it Wang Cai, Xiao Bai, Da Hei, Xiao Hei, or the like in front of its subordinates, its dignity would be completely gone.

Thinking of this, and fearing that delay might bring change (meaning being forced to accept a new name), the Houndoom howled several times toward Luo Mu and the few Pokémon.

The current coup force had already fully assembled at the crooked-neck tree on the halfway slope of the other mountain; as soon as Luo Mu gave the order, they could launch the coup! Today was the day of uprising!

(End of Chapter)