Pokémon: I have no choice but to do this old thing?

The morning sunlight filtered through the thin curtains, casting warm dappled patterns in the room.

Zhang Jianying awoke from his deep sleep, feeling the comfort of the soft bed beneath him—this was the first truly peaceful sleep he had experienced since transmigrating.

He turned his head and found that Ralts had already woken up and was floating in front of the window, gently parting a corner of the curtain with her small hand. Her hair shone softly in the morning light, and her crimson eyes curiously looked at the street outside that was gradually becoming lively.

"Raru!" Noticing that its trainer had woken up, the little guy excitedly floated to the bedside, gesturing with its little hand towards the view outside the window, and then pointing to the slightly deflated backpack they had placed in the corner.

Zhang Jianying smiled knowingly and gently stroked its head: "Yes, I understand. Today we're going to the market to sell what we've collected and then buy some treats for my little guy."

After a simple breakfast provided at the rest stop—just basic bread and hot tea—it was delicious for them after a long struggle to survive in the snowy plains. The one human and the elf then headed to the trading market in Snowflake Town.

The market was already quite lively in the early morning, with various stalls lined up along the street and vendors calling out their wares. There were stalls selling all kinds of berries, medicine and Poké Balls, and even one stall that specialized in selling evolution stones of various types.

Zhang Jianying silently observed the prices: a bottle of the most common wound medicine was priced at 200 Alliance Coins, an Orange Fruit was about 50 Alliance Coins, and a Pomelos Fruit was 80 Alliance Coins.

After thinking it over for a while, they found an empty spot and carefully laid out the berries they had collected in the snowfield and the gifts from wild Pokémon—in addition to the common Orange Berry and Grapefruit Berry, there were also a few more precious Limousine Berry and Frugiperda Berry.

Thanks to the fact that the fruit was well preserved, and with Ralts gently brushing away the dust from the surface of the fruit with her Nen, making them look even fresher and more appealing, their stall quickly attracted attention.

A housewife with a large doll bought all the Orange Berries, saying she wanted to make jam for her Pokémon; a passing trainer took a liking to the Limousine Berries, saying he needed to prevent frostbite for training in the snowy mountains.

Soon, the tree fruits sold out, earning a small stack of Alliance Coins.

Next comes the main event: the thank-you gift from the parents of the sneezing bear—a crystal-clear ice stone.

As soon as Zhang Jianying took it out, the pure ice-type energy attracted a lot of attention. Several trainers gathered around to inquire about the price, and finally, a young female trainer with an Eevee bought it for 5500 League Coins.

"This ice stone is of very high quality, its energy is very pure," she said, examining the stone with satisfaction. "Where did you find it?"

Zhang Jianying vaguely stated that he obtained it by chance in the snow-capped mountains, and the other party did not ask any further questions.

Holding the much thicker wallet, Zhang Jianying felt much more confident.

He first took Ralts to a Pokémon food store, carefully selected several high-quality foods for Psychic-type Pokémon, and bought some mangoes, which it liked, as snacks.

Next, he acquired a sturdy and durable travel outfit, a larger backpack, some basic healing and antidotes, and a more detailed map of the Sinnoh region. As for why he knew it was the Sinnoh region...

Zhang Jianying said that after hearing about Lucky City at the Pokémon Center last night, he searched for relevant information and finally determined the world region it belongs to.

After his shopping spree, he had nearly 3000 Alliance Coins left, which he carefully put into his inner bag as travel expenses for the rest of his journey.

"Ralts," he said to his companion, who was munching on a mango, as he weighed the new backpack on his shoulder, "it seems the Pokémon we helped gave us a wonderful farewell gift."

The little guy swallowed the fruit with satisfaction, made a happy "lalu" sound, and his little face was full of pride, as if to say that this was the reward he, the "big sister," deserved.

The sun was shining brightly in the afternoon.

They strolled to a wide-open space outside town, which had been simply converted into a battleground for trainers to spar.

Several trainers passing by were directing their Pokémon in battle. Chimchar's flames and Budgie's Razor Leaf clashed, drawing cheers from the crowd.

The appearance of Zhang Jianying and Ralts immediately attracted everyone's attention. The heterochromatic Ralts was simply too eye-catching.

A boy wearing a baseball cap, who looked about the same age as Zhang Jianying, approached them with an eager expression: "Hello! Your Ralts has a really unique color! Want to battle? My Staraptor has seen a lot of battles!"

Zhang Jianying glanced at Ralts on his shoulder; the little guy's crimson eyes sparkled with curiosity and a hint of fighting spirit.

A thought struck him; this was a good opportunity to test the results of their collaboration over the past period. "Okay, we accept the challenge."

He focused his mind, and the stats of his opponent's spirited Staraptor immediately appeared:

【Muk Bird】

【Attribute: Normal/Flying】

【Characteristic: Intimidate】

[Skills: Lightning Strike, Wind, Shadow Clone, Glare, Wing Attack]

[Inherited Skills: Charge, Feather Dance, Startle]

Battle begins!

The boy in the baseball cap launched the first attack: "Starving Bird, Quick Attack!"

With a sharp cry, Staraptor transformed into a streak of white light, hurtling towards Ralts at incredible speed. Its speed far surpassed the lightning bolt Zhang Jianying had ever witnessed in wild Pokémon!

However, at the very moment Staraptor activated, Ralts seemed to instinctively sense something.

It did not panic, but closed its eyes slightly, and the horn on its head emitted an almost imperceptible light.

An invisible, fine thread of psychic energy, like a spider web, silently and rapidly spread out from its center, covering a small area around it.

In the next instant, through the subtle fluctuations transmitted back by the psychic threads, Ralts clearly "sensed" the trajectory and speed of Staraptor's charge!

It suddenly opened its eyes, looked at Zhang Jianying, and let out a short, urgent cry. At the same time, it used its telekinesis to transmit a vague but accurate directional premonition to the trainer—left, quick!

Zhang Jianying instantly understood its meaning! "Move to the left rear, a small-scale instantaneous movement!" He gave the order without hesitation.

Ralts's figure blurred for a moment, then instantly reappeared a meter to its left and rear. Almost at the same time it disappeared, Staraptor, in its white form, narrowly missed its previous spot, swooping down on nothing!

"What?!" The boy in the baseball cap exclaimed, his eyes wide. "It predicted the trajectory of the lightning bolt?"

Zhang Jianying was equally surprised, but even more so, delighted.

He had originally planned to rely on the information provided by his cheat ability for a conventional response, but he never expected that Ralts would be able to achieve a near-predictive effect through such exquisite use of Nen! This combat intuition and talent far exceeded his expectations!

"Well done, Ralts!" He immediately suppressed his surprise and seized the opportunity to counterattack. "Since we know it's coming, let's prepare a 'surprise' for it! Set up a psychic barrier in front of us, then unleash the Illusion Beam!"

Ralts understood immediately, and an invisible psychic barrier instantly formed in front of it.

At that moment, the Staraptor, having missed its attack, used its momentum to turn back and charged forward with a stun charge! "Bang!" The Staraptor crashed solidly into the psychic barrier, shattering it but momentarily halting its movement.

Just as it was disoriented, the blue-green illusion beam from Ralts' horn tip shot out and accurately hit its target!

A fatal blow! The Starbird let out a mournful cry and wobbled as it plummeted from mid-air, rendered unable to fight.

"Staraptor!" The boy in the baseball cap rushed over, recalled his Pokémon, his face filled with disbelief. "Wow... such amazing teamwork and anticipation! You guys are incredible!"

This clean and decisive victory, along with Ralts's incredible predictive abilities, piqued the interest of the other trainers present. Several more then issued challenges.

Faced with a young female trainer Geodude's Rolling attacks, Zhang Jianying, combining the information he saw with his cheat code (【Skills: Roll, Stomp, Round, Rock Smash】), knew that Rolling would get faster and faster and more powerful, and he couldn't just take it head-on.

He used Ralts's teleportation agility to order a dodge just before the opponent was about to collide with him, causing Rollout to miss repeatedly and depleting the opponent's stamina.

"Now! Its speed has reached its limit, turning will become difficult! Use telekinesis to interfere with its balance!"

Ralts' eyes flashed blue, and a precise burst of psychic energy struck the side of Geodude. The rapidly rolling Geodude immediately lost its balance and, like an out-of-control tire, veered off course and crashed into a tree trunk at the edge of the field, leaving Ralts dizzy.

Facing a challenge from another trainer named Bellsprout, who attempted to restrain him with Vine Whip, Zhang Jianying immediately recognized the stats ([Ability: Chlorophyll] [Movements: Vine Whip, Growth, Sleep Powder, Poison Powder]) and became wary of the opponent's powder-type moves.

"Don't let it get close, use your mental power to create a physical obstacle!"

Ralts understood immediately, its mental energy surging as it quickly materialized several seemingly fragile but effective transparent barriers between Bellsprout and itself.

Bellsprout's vine whips lashed at the barrier, barely managing to break through, while Ralts seized the opportunity to use its type-advantageous Psychic Beam for a ranged attack, easily securing victory.

In each battle, Zhang Jianying can use his cheat code to anticipate the opponent's Pokémon's move pool and abilities, and combine this with the rich experience he accumulated as a veteran player in his previous life, such as type advantage, speed control, and status disruption, to formulate targeted strategies.

Ralts, on the other hand, demonstrated exceptional execution and combat intelligence. Not only did she perfectly understand and execute his commands, but she also frequently used her keen senses and Nen abilities to make more optimized responses in the details.

The two worked together more and more seamlessly, as if they were of one mind.

Just as Zhang Jianying was about to leave with Ralts, a gentle and steady voice came from the side:

"A brilliant performance."

Zhang Jianying turned his head and saw a purple-haired young man wearing a well-fitting dark blue suit and glasses standing not far away.

He had a refined and scholarly air about him, with his hands in his pockets and a composed demeanor. He wasn't accompanied by any Pokémon, but just standing there, he naturally exuded an extraordinary presence.

Zhang Jianying felt the man looked familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but couldn't quite place him. Out of politeness, he nodded in response, "Thank you."

The purple-haired youth adjusted his glasses, his gaze falling on Ralts, a barely perceptible hint of admiration flashing in his eyes behind the lenses:

"The technique of using psychic powers to create thread-like structures and sensing airflow vibrations to predict the trajectory of physical attacks is a very clever application. This Ralts' talent and control over its psychic powers are quite outstanding."

Zhang Jianying felt a slight chill; the other party had seen through Ralts's method at a glance. "You flatter me; we're still in the exploratory stage."

"No need to be modest." The purple-haired youth smiled slightly. "It's a rare coincidence that an excellent trainer meets a Pokémon with extraordinary talent. Judging from your teamwork, you must have gone through a lot together."

His gaze seemed to see right through people, but he didn't press for details. Instead, he changed the subject, "Speaking of which, did you come from the snowy plains to the north?"

Zhang Jianying was wary, but remained outwardly calm: "Yes, I just came out not long ago."

"I heard the avalanche a few days ago was quite large," the purple-haired youth said casually, as if chatting, "Did you encounter any... unusual people or things in the snowfield?"

Zhang Jianying's heart skipped a beat, recalling that Miss Officer Jenny had also been investigating avalanche-related matters.

He shook his head: "We've been trying to survive, and apart from wild Pokémon, we haven't encountered anyone else." He was basically telling the truth, but he omitted the details of being helped by Pokémon and receiving ice stones as gifts.

The purple-haired youth nodded, seemingly unsurprised. "Is that so... then I wish you a safe journey ahead."

He handed Zhang Jianying a simple business card with only the pen name "Wu Qing" and a contact number on it. "I'm a writer, currently collecting stories from trainers around the world. If you encounter anything interesting or... unusual during your travels, especially on the way to Zhuqing City, feel free to contact me and share."

Wu Qing... This pen name didn't remind Zhang Jianying of any famous person at all. He took the business card and thanked him.

The young man who called himself Wuqing nodded slightly to him and Laltras, then turned and left, his figure quickly disappearing at the end of the street.

"Ralts?" Ralts tilted its head, looking in the direction the young man had left, seemingly also somewhat puzzled.

"A slightly strange person, but not a bad one." Zhang Jianying put the business card away. Although he didn't quite understand why a writer would be interested in unusual situations, having multiple ways to contact him was never a bad thing.

He was completely unaware that the person he had just spoken to was none other than Gosho, one of the Sinnoh Elite Four, renowned for his Psychic-type Pokémon and his intelligence. After all, there are some differences between real-life characters and those in games or anime.

At this moment, Wusong is unable to reveal his true identity due to certain investigations...

As evening fell, the setting sun painted the sky orange-red. Zhang Jianying and Ralts sat on a bench outside the Pokémon Center to rest.

The little guy sipped a bottle of warm Moo Moo milk, looking completely content. Zhang Jianying, on the other hand, was organizing his thoughts on today's battle, writing and drawing in his notebook, while also recalling the words of the purple-haired youth.

"Something unusual..." he muttered to himself. "Could there be something else behind this avalanche? Is it related to the poachers that the Night Hawk mentioned earlier?"

He recalled some unnatural traces and tools he had found on the edge of the snowfield. At the time, he thought it was just ordinary poaching, but now he realized it might not be that simple.

"Ralts?" Ralts sensed his thoughts and looked over with concern.

"It's alright," Zhang Jianying shook his head, temporarily suppressing his doubts. "In any case, we just need to be vigilant. Let's focus on our immediate objective."

He gently stroked Ralts's hair. "You did a fantastic job today. We need to review and practice that kind of intuitive anticipation. There will be even more challenges when we get to Festive City."

"Raru!" The little guy nodded vigorously, his crimson eyes gleaming with unwavering fighting spirit.

As night deepened, the starry sky shone brightly. Zhang Jianying returned to his room at the rest stop and carefully packed the newly purchased supplies into his backpack. Ralts floated beside him, using its telekinesis to help deliver some small items.

Looking at the reliable little figure beside him, Zhang Jianying felt a sense of security and anticipation, but also a heightened awareness of the challenges that might lie ahead.

With a legitimate identity, a reliable partner who understands them, and the tactical knowledge and cheat codes they accumulated in their previous lives as assistance, their path as trainers can finally be steadily on the right track.

The mysterious young man named Wu Qing, and the clues hidden in his words, were like pebbles thrown into a lake, creating ripples in Zhang Jianying's heart, foreshadowing that the journey ahead might not be so peaceful.

Tomorrow, they will leave Snowflake Town and head towards Lucky City, a major city in the Sinnoh region. What awaits them is not only an unknown journey and stronger opponents, but perhaps also hidden storms lurking in the shadows.