Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

"Who?"

Haiquan scanned the area and quickly located the source of the attack: Dr. Solans and his gophers.

At this moment, Dr. Solans looked as if he were facing a formidable enemy, staring intently at Haiquan and Xijiana.

"...You, this meteorite is an important treasure, a witness to the history of the entire Hoenn region, how can we let you take it away!"

Higana simply lowered her head and chuckled softly.

"Indeed, but what if I said that this meteorite originally belonged to 'us'?"

"Nonsense!" Dr. Solans exclaimed excitedly. "...How could this possibly belong to your Marine Team!"

"..."

No, actually I wasn't talking about Team Ocean...

...Although Higana knew that the other party had misunderstood, she was too lazy to refute anything. The meteorite had to be taken away today, as it was an important part of the plan.

"...You're not good at fighting."

Higana glanced at the Doctor and could sense a bit of bluff from his attitude and tone. Even his earlier sneak attack with a rock spike, fueled by a gopher, had revealed his fear.

Clearly, he's not good at battling, but that's to be expected. He's a geology PhD, a typical intellectual type. Although he's a trainer, he's not particularly skilled at Pokémon battles.

His gophers are primarily trained to assist him during surveys and research, rather than being trained for combat.

Asha had no intention of involving him in the battle. After leading him to the location, she simply told him to find a safe place to hide.

Seeing that the important meteorite seemed about to be taken away, he couldn't help but rush out to try to stop it.

However, the situation on the scene immediately froze. Seeing this, Haiquan glanced helplessly at Xijiana.

"...You'll handle it?"

"I understand~ I understand~"

She smiled and waved, taking the Poké Ball from her waist and preparing to step forward, but suddenly stopped.

"Ok?"

As she looked up, she saw several black projectiles suddenly fly out from the darkness. As soon as these projectiles landed, they spewed out a lot of smoke and sparks, and then exploded in a burst of bright light.

Meanwhile, from another direction, a familiar voice came...

"...Gardevoir, Psychic, Masked Meow, Dictation, oh my god, what a mess?"

The smoke and dust from the smoke bomb were forcefully suppressed by Gardevoir's psychic powers, and Lowe successfully arrived at the scene...

Meanwhile, the person who threw the smoke grenade was a figure completely shrouded in a black robe. He and Luo Wei arrived at the scene from opposite directions, but they were clearly not on the same side. Their simultaneous entry into the battlefield threw the situation into chaos.

In an instant, the scene was divided into three forces. Even Aysa and Shui Wutong, who were only at a moderate level, were a little confused by the continuous intrusions.

When Luo Wei arrived at the scene, his gaze quickly swept over everyone before stopping on Asha. He then smiled and waved to Asha.

"...It's a bit chaotic, but I'm here to help!"

Chapter 136 This is called "show effect"!

Now, let's rewind a little, to the moment when Rowe and Lillie had just arrived at Meteor Falls.

After passing through the fiery trail at the foot of Chimney Mountain and traversing areas covered in volcanic ash, we trudged along, barely touching the ground, until we arrived at Autumnleaf Town.

Upon arriving in Autumn Leaf Town, both of them were covered in dust and dirt. There was nothing they could do about it, since they were traversing an area covered in volcanic ash. No matter how careful they were, they were bound to get covered in the falling dust.

While Gardevoir could use its psychic powers to create a barrier to defend itself, it wouldn't matter for the time being. They didn't know how much time it would take to get here, and they would most likely have to fight Team Aqua next. It would be pointless to waste Gardevoir's psychic powers here.

So, Luo Wei gave up resisting and let the volcanic ash cover his head and face. Anyway, it didn't matter much. The volcanic ash wouldn't have any effect on the human body, and it could even nourish the local land when it landed.

The only problem is that I'm covered in dust, so I guess I'll have to take a good shower and clean myself up later.

When Luo Wei turned his head, Lillie beside him was also quite disheveled. The good news was that she was wearing a wig and a head covering, so her hair wasn't actually covered in much dust. It was just that her clothes were dirty, and she could just change into a new set of clothes later.

As for Meowth, Gardevoir, and Sylveon, they originally wanted to stay with Rowe through thick and thin, but less than five minutes after entering the volcanic ash area, they decisively chose to escape back to their Poké Balls.

"...Hey, what about our bond?! You guys just abandoned your trainers and hid away?!"

Luo Wei made a sarcastic remark, but it really was just a simple complaint. After all, if he actually got covered in dust and dirt, he would be the one with high blood pressure.

Just thinking about how much time it takes to groom Masked Cat and Sylveon every day, and then considering the possibility of actually turning around and getting their fur covered in grime, makes me feel suffocated just thinking about it.

After all, humans are only prone to getting dust on their hair, but for furry creatures like Meowth and Sylveon, running around in volcanic ash areas a couple of times would have unimaginable consequences.

So, only Rowe and Lillie were left speechless. After a while, neither of them could help but burst out laughing...

"Alright, now you have two choices: go to the Pokémon Center right away, take a shower and change your clothes, and then go to Meteor Falls, or go to Meteor Falls first..."

The first option, of course, is to quickly clean up your mess. After all, nobody wants to run around covered in dirt and grime; it's really unpleasant.

However, considering that going to Meteor Falls would inevitably involve battles and they would end up covered in dust, and given the current situation, there probably wouldn't be much time for the two of them to leisurely take a shower and change clothes.

Just as Rowe asked that question, his navigator received a private message.

"what……"

The private message clearly stated that a minor earthquake had occurred at Meteor Falls, suspected to be caused by an attack from Team Marines. Seeing this, Lowe could only clasp his hands together in response to Lillie.

"Sorry, it seems we need to take a break before we can get properly cleaned up..."

"Well, let's go~"

In the past, Lillie would never have imagined herself in such a disheveled state, but now she can actually accept this situation quite well. It just goes to show that people's potential is indeed brought out under pressure.

"Then, let's go!"

Strive for a swift victory...

Thinking of this, Rowe and Lillie immediately set off for Meteor Falls, where they encountered a very serious problem.

They had no guide and didn't know the way at all...

"……broken"

Faced with dozens of cave entrances of varying sizes on the mountain wall, Luo Wei was stunned. Although Luo Wei was not bad at directions and could find his way with a map, that was only on roads within the normal range.

Faced with this natural maze, without a map, the limit that Luo Wei dared to challenge was three forks in the road...

...In his mind, this kind of maze with more than a dozen branching paths was an absolutely forbidden zone that could not be challenged; once you went in, there was a high probability that you would not be able to get out.

As for Lillie, there's no need to say more. She's a pampered young lady who usually goes out with dozens of people following her around. The fact that she was able to come to Hoenn by herself on a regular ship is already considered an exceptional achievement.

“I remember saying…” Luo Wei’s gaze focused on the rushing waterfall, “that the large cave where the meteorite was located is behind the waterfall, right?”

In other words, as long as you cross the waterfall, you can reach the large cave, although a normal person would definitely not do that.

Most people would definitely take a detour through other caves to the main cave, rather than choosing the difficult path of crossing the waterfall.

and so……

"...There's no time to take other paths, and we don't know the way at all. We have no choice but to go straight through the waterfall!"

"what?"

Lillie stared blankly at the rushing waterfall before her. The water, carrying immense force, cascaded down the steep cliff face and plunged into a deep ravine. The roaring sound of the water was so loud that it hurt people's eardrums even from a distance.

No matter how you look at it, this doesn't seem like a force that "human power" could challenge. However, this is not an ordinary world after all.

Gardevoir can create a barrier with its psychic powers, and then Meowth can carry us over...

"Eh, but, but..."

Lillie hesitated slightly, but Loewon had already released Gardevoir and Masked Meow...

...However, Gardevoir seemed to have something to say but hesitated, as if she wanted to say something, but Loew had already indicated to Lillie.

"No problem, trust my Pokémon, this is our bond!"

"...No, no, no, there's actually an even simpler way."

The masked cat over there, having heard about Luo Wei's plan, was already eager to try it out and couldn't wait to come up and hug him. Luo Wei, on the other hand, calmly let the masked cat hug him tightly.

Next, Gardevoir will use its psychic powers to create a barrier to protect them, and then we can simply pass through...

Gardevoir raised its hand, and a layer of crimson light formed a barrier around Lowell and Meowth. Then, Meowth swept Lowell up in its arms in a princess carry.

Despite the fact that Masked Cat wasn't very big, just the size of an ordinary girl, and her weight was as light as a loli, she effortlessly lifted Rowe in a princess carry.

The next second, Masked Cat pushed off with its toes and leaped towards the rushing waterfall in front of it...

The roar of the water rushed past his ears in an instant. Luo Wei felt a blackout before his eyes and a gust of wind whistling past his ears. When his vision returned, he was already on the other side of the waterfall.

"Alright, then I'll trouble Masked Cat to go and fetch Lillie and the others next..."

However, before Lowe could finish speaking, a flash of white light appeared, and Gardevoir and Lillie had already arrived on this side of the waterfall...

"...Actually, wouldn't it have been better to just teleport here?"

...Holy crap!

Chapter 137 Attribute: Empty

At that moment, only four words remained in Luo Wei's mind...

...Holy crap!

Okay, I had a momentary lapse of judgment and completely forgot about the simple and useful method of teleportation!

And so, this awkward situation has arisen...

Rowe and Lillie exchanged a glance, and after an awkward silence, Lillie turned her head away...

"...Love, shall we continue on our way?"

"it is good!"

The large cave behind the waterfall had a relatively simple route, while Gardevoir simply gathered its psychic energy into a beam and released it to explore...

Master, there is a battle ahead!