Chapter 3: The Mother Skilled in Action, the Father Well-Connected

Follow, follow, Dian Dian follows.

Following nonstop, updates nonstop!

"System! Damn it, why didn't you tell me they react so fast!" Huo La cursed, cradling the egg as he backed away, his other hand clutching a small knife.

The system gave no reply, but a new prompt suddenly popped up in his view: "Host detected in danger, temporarily unlocking Escape Route Optimization—ten meters north inside the Cave, there is an abandoned passage leading toward the riverbank."

Huo La didn't have time to think, he crawled in the indicated direction. Behind him, the giant needle bee had already burrowed into the Cave; the buzzing of its wings grew nearer, and Poison Needles occasionally stabbed the Cave wall, producing a "thud-thud" sound.

He tightened his grip on the egg, fearing it would break—he had risked being stung by Poison Needles to steal it, and if it shattered, the mission would fail and he might even lose his life.

After climbing about ten meters, a narrower passage appeared ahead, lined with dry straw—it must be a wild little Lada's nest.

When Huo La squeezed in, the straw brushed his face painfully, but the buzzing behind grew farther away; the giant needle bee was too wide for the passage, unable to enter, and paced angrily outside.

He kept crawling along the passage until he heard the familiar sound of running water outside, then dared to stop and catch his breath.

He brushed aside the weeds at the passage entrance, and the moment sunlight streamed in, he saw the river channel where he had fished before; the bamboo fishing rod that had been washed away was lodged in a stone crevice downstream.

"Phew... I'm alive."

Huo La slumped onto the grass, the Pokemon Egg in his arms still safe. He brushed the shell, the icy feel finally easing his tense nerves.

At that moment, the system voice in his mind sounded again, this time with a barely perceptible upbeat tone: "Congratulations, Host, for completing the Temporary Task and successfully acquiring a rare Pokemon Egg. Task reward: a random Secret Machine Skill 'Flash' has been granted."

"Flash?" Huo La was momentarily stunned, then realized—though the skill can't be used in battle, it's practically a divine tool in pitch‑black caves or forests; from now on, he won't have to grope in the dark when exploring.

He lowered his head to stare at the Pokemon Egg in his arms; the pale‑purple spiral pattern shone especially clearly in the sunlight.

Although he already knew which Pokemon would hatch from the egg, the mere words "rare individual" were enough to thrill him.

Compared to the still‑shadowless Golden Magikarp, this egg truly felt like the "protagonist's starting point" he had been traversing ten years and waiting three for.

From afar, the giant needle bee's buzzing faded; Huo La stood, egg in arms, and walked toward the fishing rod in the river channel.

The sun was perfect, the breeze carrying the scent of grass and trees; he suddenly felt that the three years of waiting and today's peril were worth it.

"Not bad, you're somewhat useful, damn system," he said to the air, a smile tugging at his lips—next, he'd wait for the egg to hatch, obtain his TrainerID, and officially set off for Kanto.

As for the Golden Magikarp... Huo La glanced at the river channel, thinking silently: Once I have a powerful Pokemon, I'll come back and clean up your crappy system mess!

At dusk, Huo La finally returned home, still cradling the giant needle bee egg.

Seeing her son holding the egg, Mother asked nothing, simply took it, turned to fetch a home Egg Incubator from the shelf, and skillfully filled it with nutrient solution in one smooth motion.

Huo La gazed at his mother's practiced demeanor and couldn't help speaking, "Mom..."

Mother, having just finished her task, turned and smiled at him: "You kid, you're just like your father when he was young—back then he also loved picking up Pokemon Eggs to bring home, saying he'd give them to me as gifts. After all these years, I've become quite practiced."

She shifted tone, scanning Huo La up and down: "But honestly, you managed to retrieve a giant needle bee egg, only tearing a bit of clothing and getting some mud on you—far more impressive than your father's feat back then."

"Uh..." Hearing Mother tease his father, Huo La's face flushed, and he quickly changed the subject, "By the way, Mother, how did you know this was a giant needle bee egg?"

Mother stepped in front of him, lifted her hand to gently brush away the broken leaves on his head, then placed a hand on his shoulder and calmly explained: "The egg you got must come from the nearby forest—the one where you often fish. The most common there are Bidoof, little Lada, and otherwise some Bug-type Pokemon."

"The egg you brought back has a pale‑purple spiral on its shell—that's a hallmark of a Poison‑type Pokemon egg; and looking at your disheveled state, hehe, if you weren't raiding a giant needle bee's nest, what else could you have been doing?"

Huo La stared dumbfounded, and after a while sighed, "Mother... you being a housewife really wastes your talent; have you considered switching to being a Pokemon detective?"

"Sigh, I've thought about it too, but... never mind. Go wash your hands and get ready to eat. Your father accepted BuLaTaNuo Bo Shi's invitation today and went to the Kalos Region; for a while, it'll just be the two of us at home."

"BuLaTaNuo Bo Shi?!"

Hearing that name made Huo La's heart jump.

BuLaTaNuo Bo Shi is a renowned figure in the Pokemon World—he's not only a guide for new trainers in the Kalos Region, but also a pioneer studying Pokemon Super Evolution.

To say without exaggeration, without him the mysteries of Pokemon Super Evolution might not have progressed so rapidly.

Huo La always knew his father was capable, but never imagined his father could be linked to BuLaTaNuo Bo Shi. That's a real 'close‑to‑the‑water' advantage!

One must know Super Evolution is definitely the future's big trend.

With that connection as a foundation, plus the advanced memories and knowledge in his mind, surpassing his peers as trainers is practically a walk in the park.

"By the way, another thing. If nothing goes wrong, your giant needle bee egg should hatch in about a week. As your mother, I must remind you to have Antidote ready in advance," Mother's voice suddenly came, but Huo La, lost in thought, didn't register it.

It wasn't until the day the Caterpie broke its shell that Huo La, poisoned and foaming at the mouth, suddenly recalled Mother's warning—unfortunately, it was too late.