Pokémon: I just became a Gym Leader, and Cynthia proposed to me.

The Wood Demon stopped attacking.

Its branches droop down, and its roots retract.

The thirty-meter-tall torso began to shrink, and the shadow energy was stripped away from its body layer by layer by the power of the waveguide, as if a piece of contaminated armor was being peeled off.

The purple light faded from its bark, revealing the grayish-brown, normal wood grain beneath.

Then, the trunk of the Wood Demon split open.

From the very center, from top to bottom, the trunk is hollow inside; shadow energy has completely eroded its core.

In the instant before its last breath was about to dissipate, the Decaying Wood Demon used all its strength to condense its remaining life energy into a seed.

The seed rolled off the tree trunk and landed in Li Shuwen's palm.

It was warm and faintly glowing.

The seed's outer shell is translucent amber in color, and inside, a green light pulsates slowly, like a sleeping heart.

Li Shuwen looked down at the seed in his palm and remained silent for a moment.

"Is there little vitality left?"

"The only thing we can do is to condense our last bit of life force into a seed and pass it on."

He carefully put the seeds into his bosom.

The young man turned and tried to run away.

Li Shuwen didn't chase after him. He simply raised his eyes, and his superpower condensed into an invisible air barrier, blocking the young man's path.

The young man crashed into it, like hitting a wall, and bounced backward.

Li Shuwen walked up to him and squatted down.

His right hand, held in a sword-like gesture, touched the young man's forehead. His superpowers seeped into the young man's consciousness, hypnotizing him.

The young man's pupils suddenly dilated and then became empty, like a window that had been forcibly pushed open.

"Who sent you?"

The young man's lips moved, and his voice seemed to come from a great distance.

"Shadow Lord, I have received the call of the Shadow Lord."

A glint of surprise flashed in Li Shuwen's eyes. "Oh? What did the Shadow King send you here to do?"

A fervent glint flashed in the young man's eyes, a glint that even hypnosis couldn't conceal.

"Using the power bestowed upon me by the Lord of Shadows, I will darken this land, thereby absorbing its life force and creating conditions for the descent of the God of Shadows."

Li Shuwen raised an eyebrow. "Who were you before you received the blessing of the Shadow King?"

The young man said calmly, "I was originally just an ordinary player in the Pearl Team, doing nothing and being arbitrarily driven around by Pearl Shell and the Farm Manager."

"But the Shadow Lord has granted me power that even the Pearl Team cannot possess!"

"Loyalty! Sincerity! Offer your heart to the Lord of Shadows!"

Li Shuwen narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Where does the life force you absorb go?"

A fanatical expression appeared on the young man's face, an expression as distorted as the shadowy light on the trunk of the rotten tree.

"Your life force has already been transferred away and offered to the God of Shadows; you can't take it back!"

Li Shuwen's palm fell.

With a single, precise chop, he struck the back of his neck.

The young man's body went limp, his consciousness sank into darkness, and he fell asleep immediately.

With a wave of his hand, Li Shuwen used his superpower to levitate him in mid-air and take him down the mountain, out of the forest.

The bear apprentice followed at his feet, while little Lugia flew on his other side.

The black Charizard returned to its Poké Ball.

When they returned to Yuanzhi Village, it was already dark.

Azhu was patrolling at the village entrance when she saw Li Shuwen returning with a strange young man, and immediately went to greet him.

"Who is this?"

"The Followers of Shadows".

Li Shuwen handed the young man over to Azhu, saying, "Find a sturdy place to lock him up, don't let him escape."

"Remember to inform the Pearl Team that this guy was a member of the Pearl Team before he was bewitched. Also, there are remnants of shadow energy on him. Pearl Shell should be able to deal with it."

"Notify them as well."

Azhu nodded, "I understand. Now that time and space are in chaos, more and more ghosts and serpents are emerging on the land of Xicui."

Li Shuwen added:

"By the way, how much does Zhubei know about the Shadow Lord and the Shadow God?"

Azhu nodded and carried the young man toward the village warehouse.

Li Shuwen stood at the village entrance and took the seed out of his pocket.

Its amber-colored shell gleamed with a warm glow under the moonlight.

He could feel the green light inside pulsating slowly and weakly, like a tiny life that hadn't given up.

"You will survive."

He put the seeds back into his pocket and turned to walk towards his wooden house.

"From this day forward, you will grow up alongside this village, and hundreds of years from now, you will become a landmark of this city."

How can a city with a rich history not have a towering tree?

Li Shuwen planted the seeds in a corner where they wouldn't affect the city's future plans.

After dealing with the pollution of the other side's shadowy land, Cynthia found Li Shuwen and said:

"I also caught a follower of the God of Shadows, and that so-called King of Shadows, who is most likely that guy Wang Luo."

"Use your superpowers to interrogate him as well. Although the guy I caught was wearing Ginkgo Merchant Guild clothing, he may not necessarily be a member of Ginkgo Merchant Guild."

Li Shuwen nodded, "Leave it to me."

After some questioning, the person who was also bewitched by the power of shadow was indeed a member of the Ginkgo Merchant Guild.

Like the Pearl Team members, this guy was also neglected due to his lack of ability, and was even subjected to the release of his Domineering Will by others.

Therefore, the power of shadow easily bewitched them.

Cynthia gazed curiously at the clouds on the horizon, her voice soft and wistful.

"Shuwen, tell me, what exactly does Wang Luo want to do?"

Li Shuwen laughed. "He's still one of your ancestors, can't you show him some respect?"

Cynthia scoffed, "To resort to such despicable tactics because you can't win, trying to gain resources through sheer numbers—that's the mindset of a weakling, and I despise him!"

"No wonder, Senior Wusi told me to teach him a good lesson!"

"Next time I run into him, I'll make sure he knows how powerful my iron fist is!"

……

On the other side, after running to a safe distance, Xiao Zhao stopped and looked back.

The earth tortoise didn't chase after it; it was destroying the surrounding trees in place, as if venting some kind of uncontrollable rage.

"Are you alright?"

The three young men were panting heavily.

"fine."

One of the young men wiped the mud off his face and spoke.

He looked about sixteen or seventeen years old, wearing a short-sleeved uniform from the King Kong team, his hair matted together with mud.

"My name is Ashou, and they are Alon and Ayi."

He pointed to the other two, "We're from Team Kong."

Xiao Zhao raised an eyebrow.

"What are the Kongo Squad doing here?"

Ashou's expression turned ugly.

He exchanged a glance with Aaron and Ayi, then lowered his voice and said:

"There's someone on our team named A-Zhe. Three days ago, he went missing with an important prop from the King Kong team."

"We were ordered to retrieve him, and all the clues indicate that he was last seen in that twisted jungle!"