Let you make a game, what the hell is Pokemon?.

Chapter 202: First Legendary Pokémon Acquired! A Pledge of Allegiance?
Pushing open the scorching passage behind the boulder, the heat wave that hit us was more than twice as strong as outside. The air seemed to distort, and the screen displayed wavy patterns as if it had melted from the heat.

Qi Shu subconsciously shrank his neck, the premonition that something was wrong growing stronger.

"Ugh... this feels even hotter than the Emerald Cave incident?" she muttered to herself, carefully maneuvering her character along the narrow path through the rock face. Deep within the cave came the gurgling sound of churning lava, and the firelight illuminated the rock walls a fiery red.

The tension was palpable even in the live chat.
[The temperature effects are amazing...]

[Be careful, strange tree! I have a bad feeling!]

Could they actually be hiding something big? Isn't Dark Phantom supposed to be a relaxing game?

Just around the corner, the view suddenly opened up. It was a massive lava cave, with a churning pool of crimson magma at its center, radiating intense heat. And in the very center of the magma pool was a solitary black rock platform—

A massive, imposing figure stood there silently.

It looks like a huge lion, with a thick, white mane that seems to be made of flames moving in the heat without wind, like a burning flag!
Its body, covered in dark gold armor, shimmered in the red light of the magma. Its limbs were strong and powerful, and wherever it stepped, the rocks were instantly branded.

A tail, also wreathed in flames, swayed slowly behind him, each movement sending up tiny sparks.

Its head was held high, its eyes were incredibly sharp, and it exuded an aura of inviolable holiness and power!

Qi Shu was only watching it through the screen when a sense of oppression from the level of life itself overwhelmed him, making it difficult to even breathe.

She has such a strong personality!

After a brief reaction, Qi Shu's eyes widened instantly, his mouth slightly open, his mind went blank, and his fingers froze on the keyboard.

"????"

She didn't even realize what sound she had made, and the screen was filled with comments that exploded just like her!
[Holy crap!! Who is this???]

[A mythical beast?! This must be a mythical beast!! That aura!!!]

[OMG! So handsome! So powerful! The sheer presence of him makes my legs weak just looking at the screen!]

[There's this thing in the dark?!]

What Pokémon is this? Does anyone recognize it?!

Never seen it before! Absolutely never seen it before!

This look, this aura—it's absolutely legendary!

[What happened to the health-preserving game we were promised? This thing just appeared?]

Just as the live stream and Qishu were in shock and confusion, a striking notification popped up and occupied the center of the screen:
The legendary Pokémon Entei has appeared!

"Emperor Yan?!" Qi Shu's heart skipped a beat.

A legendary Pokémon! It really is a legendary Pokémon! And it's in the Flame Cave!
Wait, isn't that the Dark Phantom? Why is it a mythical beast too??
Before he could react, the moment the notification disappeared, the battle interface was forcibly switched!

The background music suddenly became rousing and oppressive, and the majestic figure of Emperor Yan occupied most of the screen, his sharp gaze locked on the tiny character of the strange tree.

"Oh no!" Qi Shu jolted awake, barely managing to snap out of her shock. She had come in completely unprepared, her team wasn't at its best, and she hadn't even had time to switch in Pokémon that were effective against her or could withstand attacks!
Seeing Emperor Yan's level of 50, she felt a chill run down her spine, but quickly regained her senses.

The level doesn't seem as high as before this time. Does that mean there's a chance?

She immediately took a deep breath and sent her highest-level and best-condition Swampert to the front.

Swampert is a Water/Ground type, but this guy looks like a Fire type, so I'm not afraid of him!

The battle begins!
Emperor Yan gave Qishu no chance to catch its breath. With a deep roar, the temperature in the entire cave seemed to rise even higher, and a scorching flame that seemed capable of melting steel swept over in an instant!

boom!
Swampert fared even worse, being four times weak to fire. Even though the level difference wasn't that great, it was still burned to a crisp by this fire breath!

This damage is outrageous!
Qi Shu's lips twitched, and he quickly had Swampert use Protect to withstand the next attack.

Fortunately, Entei's next move was Superpower, and the Psychic-type attack didn't cause Swampert to lose much health.

Qishu seized the opportunity and directly fed the Swampert a healing potion, fully restoring its strength.

Grind it down! We can only grind it down slowly!

Qi Shu gritted his teeth, his mind highly focused.

She discovered that although Emperor Yan's attack power was terrifying, his speed did not seem particularly fast, and his moves seemed to follow a pattern.

Next, Swampert uses Earthquake or Surf to wear down the opponent, Blaziken uses its Speed ​​Boost ability to attack, and uses Double Kick to chip away at the opponent's health when the opportunity arises. Zoroark's Move Break can also deal some damage, and Beldum's Psychic Hammer can even cause it to flinch, giving Killua time to react—provided that it gets a turn.

As for the Burning Bug, Qishu glanced at its pitiful defense and health, and really didn't dare to let it go on the field as cannon fodder.

The process of this battle was naturally extremely dangerous.

Several times, Entei's Fire Breath or Flamethrower almost took away her Pokémon, and she barely managed to survive thanks to Protect, healing items, and luck.

When Entei's health bar dropped to red, Qishu's Poké Balls were being used up very quickly. She had already thrown out quite a few Great Balls and even regular Poké Balls that she could buy in the game so far, but every time she saw Entei struggling violently inside the Poké Ball, her heart would jump into her throat. Then, with a click, the ball would explode, and she would fail to catch it.

"Ahhh! So close!"

"No way! They're not even going in?!"

Please! Let me in, bro!

Qishu wailed at the screen, and the live stream was filled with tension.

[This capture rate is way too low!]

[After all, it's a mythical beast!]

[Keep it up, Qishu! Grind it!]

[This feels even more tiring than fighting in a dojo...]

After countless near-annihilation attempts and failed captures, the battle would automatically return them to the cave entrance, allowing for repeated challenges. Finally, in a desperate move, Qi Shu threw out the last Super Ball in her backpack!

The red and white Poké Ball flew in an arc and accurately struck Entei, who had just been grazed by Blaziken's final double kick and was now bleeding heavily!
Ding dong! Ding dong! Ding dong!

The Poké Ball shook wildly on the ground, its red light flashing intensely, as if it were about to explode at any moment.

Qi Shu held his breath, his eyes fixed on the screen, his heart almost stopping. The entire live stream fell silent instantly, and the chat stopped.

Deng!
A crisp, heavenly sound of taming rang out, accompanied by cheerful music!
A prompt appeared on the screen:

We have successfully subdued the Flame Emperor!
"Aaaaaaaahh ...

The live stream chat went completely crazy!
【Fuck! ! 】

[They really caught them? ??? ? ...

[Awesome!!! The streamer is awesome!!!]

[Legendary Pokémon! Alive! Catchable!]

[A phantom in the darkness! The eternal god!!!]

[I'm done talking, I want to play too! I'm going to go catch one right now!]

[I can't believe I saw this! My life is complete!]

[Host, check the stats! Check them out!] Qi Shu himself was clearly very excited, his hands were even trembling a little, and he quickly opened his backpack and clicked on the details of the Flame Emperor.

【Emperor Yan Lv.50】

[Attribute: Fire]

【Characteristic: Pressure - When entering the field, it puts pressure on the opponent, increasing the PP consumed when they use their moves】

[Skills: Fire Breath, Superpower, Crunch, Flame Burst]

Most importantly, this guy's HP, Attack, Special Attack, Speed... all his stats are ridiculously high! He's way ahead of Blaziken and Swampert, the highest-level monsters in her team!

"...These attributes...this skill..." Qi Shu stared wide-eyed. "The Intimidation ability! Holy Fire! This...this is too powerful!"

She couldn't wait to use the game's companion feature to add Emperor Yan to her party. Then, controlling her character, she used the release command in a safe corner of the cave.

Swish!
The majestic, divine figure of Emperor Yan, exuding a powerful aura, appeared beside the game character, accompanied by sparks of fire!

Although it was just a game model, its realistic details and powerful aura thrilled Qi Shu.

"Screenshots! I have to take screenshots! Take pictures!" She excitedly used the game's built-in camera function, circling around Entei from several angles and snapping away over a dozen pictures. "This is my first legendary Pokémon! I'm going to play Black & White forever! This game is amazing!"

The live chat was now filled with nothing but envy.

I'm so jealous!

[This modeling! This presence! Absolutely stunning!]

I want to go to the Flame Cave too! Now! Immediately! Right now!

[Streamer, hurry up and find a trainer to test its power!]

Qi Shu had the same thought about the last comment. Looking at the majestic Yan Di beside her, she chuckled. "Let's go outside! Let's find someone to test Yan Di's power! Let me show you what the might of a divine beast is!"

She excitedly controlled her character, carrying the Flame Emperor, and turned to walk out of the cave. However, just as she was about to step out of the entrance to the fiery cave—

The screen suddenly went dark!
A mandatory system prompt popped up:
[Pokémon Black and White 2023 Game Content Update Notice:]
Dear player, thank you for your enthusiastic exploration! You have currently reached the latest version of the game. To bring you a more complete and exciting adventure, the game will be paused here pending a future content update. Once the update is complete, you can continue your journey! Stay tuned!

"what??"

The ecstasy on Qi Shu's face froze instantly, replaced by disbelief and madness.

Update? Pause?
I just caught the Flame Emperor! I haven't even used him in a single battle yet!

Undeterred, she pressed some keys on the keyboard and clicked the mouse randomly, but the game screen remained motionless, with only the prompt box still there.

"Aaaaaaahh ...

"No!!! How could you do this!!! I haven't even started enjoying it yet!!!"

The live stream chat instantly transformed from an ocean of envy to an ocean of joy, though it might not have been joyful for Qishu:

[Hahahaha, that's hilarious!]

[Just caught a mythical beast and was forcibly logged off, do you like it, streamer?]

[Official: Surprised? Unexpected?]

[A live version of "Extreme Joy Turns to Tragedy"!]

[Anchor: This is so hard for me!]

[The official team knows how to keep people in suspense!]

[The timing of this update stop... it's infuriating!]

Seeing the comments of laughter and sympathy in the live chat, Qi Shu felt like crying but couldn't. He could only stare at the black screen of the game and utter a bitter, indignant complaint:

"I've been praising you the whole way, and you give me this big one."

She patted her chest and wailed:

"Dark Phantom! How are you going to repay what you owe me here?!"

Meanwhile, in Cerulean City.

Sunlight streamed through the blinds, casting neat streaks of light on the floor of the Lingfeng Villa.

He had just finished dealing with some trivial matters following the new game festival and was calculating the growth rate of his emotional points and the number of forum users. The numbers in his mind showed that he had already reached more than 99,000, which was very close to his goal of 100,000. Just then, a system notification sounded in his mind.

[Ding! High-intensity emotional fluctuations detected!]

[Received 1500 Emotion Points from special player Cynthia!]

[300 Emotional Points from the World's Special Player, Qishu!]

"Hmm?" Ling Feng raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

Cynthia contributed 1500 points in one go?
This kind of outburst usually occurs after a major plot development. It's probably after the earth-shattering battle in Sootopolis and the events involving Necrozma and Team Plasma.

As expected of a level 3 threshold, the points it provides are truly impressive.

In comparison, Qishu's 300 points seem a bit low.

However, Ling Feng was not disappointed; on the contrary, he felt like laughing.

He could roughly guess what Qishu was doing: either he was startled by the surprise of the dark phantom, such as encountering a high-level monster, or he had just finished an exciting battle, such as catching something good.

For her, a player who is still at the second-level threshold, 300 points is a small gain.

"It's really good that the level threshold has gone up," Ling Feng couldn't help but sigh. "Both provide points, but the difference is so significant."

Cynthia has reached the top of the tree five times already. Looks like we need to create more content that will motivate other special players and encourage everyone to break through together.

Before he could even think of a way to provoke the Strange Tree, a new notification sounded. This time, it wasn't for points being credited, but rather a rather strange notification:

[Ding! A special information stream from World One (the host's current world) has been detected.]

[Content Analysis: This is a "pledge of allegiance" information package containing confidential industry information, pointing to "Dream Factory" company, and clearly stating job intentions, targeting "Wind Studio." The sender's identity has been verified: a group of former core employees of Dream Factory (Li Xuan and four others).]

The information packet has been received and disposed of safely. The host can view the details at any time.

"A pledge of allegiance? A job application?"

Ling Feng was stunned for a moment, still a little confused.

Feng Studio? Isn't that just a pseudonym he made up?

Although it's called a studio, I've actually been working alone from start to finish.

Okay, if I had to say, there's another ghost.

But did some people actually take it seriously?

And what's with this "pledge of allegiance"?

(End of this chapter)