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

Chapter 101: I'm not afraid of others spending money, I'm afraid of others both grinding and spending money.

Five days passed quietly, like sand slipping through your fingers.

In the underground world, Zhang Jianying, with dark circles under his eyes, mechanically swung his pickaxe, prying a pinkish-glowing Heart Scale out of the rock strata.

He glanced at the numbers on his watch and felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

Points: 901275.

This number would be enough to make anyone stand out in any mining competition, but unfortunately—

He looked at the top of the leaderboard.

1st Place: Anonymous contestant (Daigo), Points: 1169850

Although there were two strokes of luck along the way, allowing them to briefly overtake the champion thanks to the discovery of high-quality evolution stone veins, it's unclear whether this truly ignited the champion's competitive spirit or if the opponent simply took a break midway through the match—

In short, neither of those two leads could be maintained for more than half a goal.

Daigo is like an insurmountable mountain; every time he gets close, his points surge even faster, widening the gap again.

"This is no longer a matter of effort —"

Zhang Jianying felt a dull ache in his liver.

He put down his pickaxe and said to his equally exhausted companions, "Let's take a break, everyone."

"squeak----"

"squeak----"

A pair of mice sat slumped on the ground, their eyes lifeless. The two little creatures were covered in mud, and their fur had changed from grayish-white to brownish-red.

Five consecutive days of intense digging almost turned them into "Jerry".

The Egui Pong also slumped its head, its stove mask lying askew to one side, and its thorny vine club carelessly tossed at its feet. Although it was full of energy, the repetitive process for five consecutive days had left it feeling mentally exhausted.

"Turtle, come out and help everyone recover."

A flash of red light appeared, and the steady figure of the Earth Platform Turtle emerged.

It glanced at its exhausted companions, and the trees on its carapace swayed gently, spreading out emerald green energy like ripples.

【Green grass field】.

Gentle grass-based energy seeped into the ground, nourishing everything around it. A pair of mice and a pesky creature lay on the soft grass, their fatigue gradually dispelled.

However, mental fatigue cannot be easily cured by techniques.

"never mind--"

Zhang Jianying sighed. "That's enough for today. Go back and rest for the night, and we'll see how things go tomorrow."

He paused, then added with a wry smile, "We might really not be able to compete with that first place."

"Squeak—" x2

A pair of mice let out a weak squeak in response. They didn't understand why, despite their best efforts, they still couldn't catch up.

Ergui sat on the ground, hugging his knees. The excitement of opening blind boxes was gone from his eyes, replaced by a hint of confusion.

Zhang Jianying returned the Earth Platform Turtle to the ball, leaving only the Evil Bumper to follow beside her.

He bent down, picked up the two exhausted mice in each hand, and carried them like two plush toys towards the nearest exchange point.

On the way back, Erguilan glanced at the eye-catching number at the top of his watch screen and made a puzzled "Bonnie" sound.

Zhang Jianying understood its question, shook his head and chuckled: "Whales aren't scary, what's scary is whales who grind even more than you."

Ergui nodded his little head as if he understood but not quite.

At the exchange point, Zhang Jianying poured out all the gains he had made over the past two days.

After the appraiser finished counting, he announced the numbers: "Total redeemed points: 87600. Confirm?"

"confirm."

With the points credited, Zhang Jianying's total became: 988875.

It's 181975 short of Daigo.

A chasm that seems close but is actually as insurmountable as a chasm.

"Forget it, let's just give up."

Zhang Jianying rubbed his temples and walked out of the exchange point.

My luck has been pretty bad these past two or three days. Not only have I failed to catch up in points, but I've only managed to dig up one Fighting-type [Fist Stone].

It's not needed for the time being; it's already been stored in Gengar's Shadow Dimension.

He did let Hu Hu study the rock slabs, hoping that Hu Hu could learn something from them.

But whether it was because Huhu itself wasn't very interested in battles, or for some other reason, after a few days Huhu said that apart from sleeping comfortably on the stone slab, it hadn't learned any new skills or discovered any special effects.

"It seems we'll need some time to get to know each other, or some specific opportunity."

With that thought in mind, Zhang Jianying led the tired little guys back to the Pokémon Center.

Eternal City Pokémon Center, evening.

After handing the Pokémon over to Nurse Joy to restore their strength, Zhang Jianying received a message from Caizhong.

"Training is over! Goosebumps has improved tremendously, and my Pokémon have benefited greatly as well. You can come pick it up anytime!"

In the video feed, Cai Zhong smiled brightly, and behind her, on the training field, Bingqi Goose was giving a proper lesson to a Sakura Baby.

The little penguin had the air of an old cadre, with its wings folded behind its back and its square, icy head nodding occasionally.

"I'll be right there."

Zhang Jianying changed out of his mud-covered mining clothes and washed his face, but the dark circles under his eyes were still impossible to hide.

Baidai Dojo.

When Zhang Jianying appeared at the entrance of the training ground with dark circles under his eyes and a tired look on his face, Cai Zhong was taken aback at first, then suppressed a laugh.

"Are you going to a competition, or to dig coal?"

She teased, handing over a cup of hot tea, "Why aren't you keeping pushing? I think the gap between you and the first place seems to have narrowed quite a bit."

Zhang Jianying took the teacup, took a sip, and let out a long breath.

"Forget it, we simply can't compete."

He sighed, "I suspect the first-place winner is all liver. Being a little more laid-back isn't so bad."

Just then, a cheerful cry of "Bingqi Bingqi" came from the other end of the training field.

Ice Goose, chirping "biaji biaji," came running over with its short legs and leaped into Zhang Jianying's arms.

Zhang Jianying quickly caught it; the little guy's cold head pressed against him, and the familiar touch of ice gave him a jolt of energy.

Five days later, the ice-cure goose looks even more energetic.

The ice energy on his body solidified.

Moreover, Zhang Jianying could sense that the little guy's control over energy had significantly improved.

It was now nestled in his arms, but its temperature hadn't dropped significantly, and the ice cube head wasn't as cold as before, indicating that it could now freely control its own coldness.

"Looks like you've had a very fruitful week."

Zhang Jianying rubbed the icy head of the ice-covered goose.

"Iceman!"

The ice-cure goose nodded vigorously, its little wings flapping, eager to show off its week's achievements.

Cai Zhong chuckled from the side, "Ice Goose is really hardworking and has a real talent for teaching. My Pokémon's resistance to and ability to deal with Ice-type moves have improved a lot. I'll definitely give Xiao Song a surprise next time we battle!"

As she spoke, she took out a crystal-clear blue ice block from the prop box and handed it to the ice goose.

"This piece of ice won't melt," I thought, as a thank-you gift for the junior coach.

The ice-carved goose took the unmelting ice and held it in its arms; the round eyes on the ice block curved into crescent moons.

"Iceman!"

It turned its head to look at the vegetable seed and the few Grass-type Pokémon behind it that it had become familiar with, and waved its little wings as a farewell.

Good luck at the League Conference!

Cai Zhong waved to the ice-cure goose, "Looking forward to seeing you on TV!"

It was already late when we returned to the Pokémon Center.

After washing up and changing into clean pajamas, Zhang Jianying went into the Pokémon's rest area.

New Leaf Cat was using its nimble tail to tease a pair of mice lying sprawled on the cushion.

Normally, the two mice would have jumped up and fought it for three hundred rounds.

But today—

The large mouse merely raised its eyelids, glanced at New Leaf Meow, and then let out a weak "squeak".

The smaller hamster simply closed its eyes and pretended to be dead.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Xin Ye Miao tilted her head, somewhat unwilling, and poked the big mouse's belly with the tip of her tail.

The large hamster rolled over, hid its belly, and continued to pretend to be asleep.

Zhang Jianying watched this scene and smiled helplessly.

He went into the kitchen and began preparing dinner for the Pokémon.

Tonight's dinner is especially lavish, as a reward for everyone's hard work over the past five days.

As for himself?

Zhang Jianying "borrowed" a few packets of snacks from Gengar, made a bowl of instant noodles, and hastily ate a few bites.

"Genga!"

Gengar, lifting its head from its food box, stared at the empty snack wrappers on the table, and its entire appearance seemed to turn grayish-white.

After all the Pokémon had eaten and drunk their fill and found a comfortable spot to lie down, Zhang Jianying also collapsed onto the bed.

He fell into a deep sleep almost the instant his head hit the pillow.

The next morning.

Zhang Jianying was awakened by a soft touch on his face.

He groggily opened his eyes and saw Xin Ye Miao squatting by the pillow, stomping on his face with its little paws.

Seeing that he was awake, Xin Ye Miao tilted her head, her emerald eyes filled with innocence, as if to say, "It wasn't me, your face bumped into me by itself."

Zhang Jianying sighed helplessly, reached out and hugged the little guy, rubbing him gently.

Have you gained weight recently?

New Leaf Cat: "Σ(°△°\ID){"

It quickly looked down at its own body, twisting and turning, and even stretched out its little paws to press its belly.

Then, it rolled its eyes at Zhang Jianying, nimbly jumped out of his arms, and landed on the ground.

After taking two graceful steps, Xin Ye Miao suddenly sped up and darted to the side of a pair of mice who were diligently eating.

While the two mice were still half asleep and sluggish, it stealthily stretched out its paw and snatched a sweet potato pie from the plate in front of the larger mouse.

"squeak?"

The large mouse raised its head, looked at its empty paws, and then glanced at the smug-looking New Leaf Cat next to it.

It exchanged a glance with the little mouse next to it.

The two mice sighed at the same time.

Then—they acted as if New Leaf Cat didn't exist, lowered their heads, and continued to eat their breakfast slowly and deliberately.

New Leaf Cat: "???"

This reaction is wrong.

Shouldn't we normally jump up and chase it all over the house?

The little guy, with the sweet potato pie he'd snatched in his mouth, blinked his eyes in a somewhat bewildered way.

Zhang Jianying couldn't help but laugh when he saw this scene.

It seems the pair of mice are truly exhausted; they don't even have the energy to play around with Xinye Miao.

The Underground World, the final day of the competition.

Zhang Jianying led his Pokémon back into this familiar cave.

But today, his mindset is completely different.

"Just wander around, dig wherever you happen to be, no need to force anything."

He said to a pair of mice, "Just keep the special ability on. If there's a reaction, we'll go check it out; if not, we'll just treat it as a walk."

"Squeak squeak".

The two mice nodded, happy to be off.

The group wandered aimlessly through the underground cave.

Without the pressure of surpassing the number one spot, Zhang Jianying was in the mood to appreciate the surrounding scenery.

Natural light strips made of glowing crystals, unique landscapes formed by stalactites and stalagmites, the murmuring sound of underground rivers, and the occasional wild Pokémon emerging from rock crevices, curiously observing them—

It turns out that this underground world has so many scenic spots worth seeing besides mining.

After walking for about an hour.

The large mouse on my shoulder suddenly perked up its ears.

"squeak?"

Its little nose twitched a few times, and a hint of doubt flashed in DouDou's eyes.

Almost simultaneously, the little mouse also poked its head out from Zhang Jianying's other shoulder, looking in the same direction.

"Is there a response?"

Zhang Jianying stopped in her tracks.

"Squeak!"

The two mice nodded at the same time.

"Let's go take a look."

Following their senses, they arrived at the edge of an underground river.

The river water shimmered with a deep blue luster under the reflection of the glowing crystals, and the banks were lined with soft alluvial soil.

Shortly after they stood still, the Poké Ball on Zhang Jianying's waist suddenly opened automatically.

A flash of red light appeared, and the steady figure of the Earth Platform Turtle appeared on the riverbank.

Zhang Jianying was taken aback.

The earth turtle slowly lowered its head and pressed its cheek close to the ground.

In its usually calm and steady eyes, an indescribable tremor flickered at this moment.

"Could it be the same situation as Bosscodora?" Zhang Jianying's heart skipped a beat!

Torterra let out a low growl, signaling the trainer to come with it.

It took heavy steps, walked along the riverbank for several dozen meters, and then stopped in front of a river beach.

Four legs stomping heavily, [Power of the Earth]!

But this time, the earth turtle used extremely gentle force.

The earthy yellow energy seeped into the ground like flowing water, gently parting the soft alluvial soil and flowing slowly to both sides.

A pit with a diameter of three meters and neat edges slowly formed.

The Earth Tortoise did not stop; it manipulated the power of the earth, causing the pit to deepen as its own body sank.

Zhang Jianying, accompanied by a pair of rats and a strange creature, jumped onto the carapace of the earth turtle.

They sat on the broad tortoise shell, watching the surrounding soil separate layer by layer, the opening above their heads grow smaller and smaller, and the light grow dimmer—

Until the earth turtle stopped.

The bottom of the pit is about fifteen meters deep from the ground.

The sound of the underground river can no longer be heard here; all around are dense, ancient layers of soil.

In the center of the soil, a warm and rich yellowish-brown light is quietly emanating through the cracks in the soil.

The earth turtle stretched out its vines and gently parted the last layer of soil.

A stone slab, engraved with strange patterns and warm earthy yellow in color, lay there quietly.

Zhang Jianying jumped off the turtle's back, picked up the stone slab, and his data field of vision expanded.

Earth Slab

[A Ground-type stone from Arceus. When a Pokémon holds this stone, the power of Ground-type moves is increased. When Arceus holds this stone, it becomes a Ground-type Pokémon.]

[Note: Based on the energy contained within, it is speculated that suitable Pokémon have a chance to learn moves of the same type as the plate through prolonged contact.]

"Found it—"

Zhang Jianying took a deep breath and turned to look at the earthen tortoise.

The turtle's usually calm eyes were now filled with an unprecedented brilliance.

"That's rare, turtle."

Zhang Jianying chuckled and patted the Earth-Platy Tortoise's head. "The Forest Blessing's luck boost finally worked for once!"

The earth turtle let out a low growl, its voice filled with obvious joy.

It approached the stone slab, carefully sensing the profound energy contained within it.

Then, it stretched out the vines generated by the [Grass Knot], carefully rolled up the earth stone slab, and placed it at the base of the large tree on its carapace.

Then, it transformed into a red light, carrying the stone slab, and eagerly returned to the Poké Ball on its own.

Zhang Jianying chuckled and shook his head. Just as he was about to say something, the miner's watch on his wrist vibrated.

The screen lights up and displays a line of text:

[The competition time has ended. All participants must return to the ground within one hour for score calculation. Failure to return within the specified time will result in disqualification.]

"Perfect."

Zhang Jianying looked at the stone slab in his hand, then at the gap between himself and the first place on his watch, and smiled.

"It's time to go back."

Ground level, mining company building.

The final rankings have been displayed on the giant electronic screen:

1st Place: Anonymous participant, Points: 1169850

2nd Place: Zhang Jianying, Points: 988875

3rd Place: Yamamoto Mining, Points: 402150

Daigo won first place with an overwhelming advantage.

Zhang Jianying ranked second with nearly a million points, but there is still a significant gap compared to the first place.

The third place only had a little over 400,000, a much larger gap.

On the podium, the host was enthusiastically introducing the winners.

Zhang Jianying did not attend the award ceremony. He approached a staff member and asked if he could receive the award directly.

After verifying his identity, the staff handed him an exquisite box.

Inside is a complete set of high-quality evolution stones, each with an energy reading of over 95, making them quite valuable.

Congratulations on getting second place. Your digging skills and luck were both outstanding.

The staff member said politely.

Zhang Jianying smiled but didn't say anything more.

He's still far from being a champion who's practically living on his liver.

However, he didn't care.

The gains from this trip far exceeded the value of that "sophisticated three-piece set".

"That's enough."

Backyard of the Pokémon Center in Bourne City.

As evening approached, the setting sun painted the sky a warm orange-red.

Zhang Jianying, holding a glass of his special juice, sat on a bench by the lawn, quietly watching the Pokémon.

Figures playing in the yard.

Gengar's gaze swept over the little penguin showing off its training results to its companions. The penguin's head, no longer icy and imposing, seemed to have transformed into a giant popsicle in its eyes. It stealthily emerged from the shadow of the icy penguin and took a big slurp.

As a result, the tongue tragically stuck to the ice. The Ice Goose shoved Gengar while disdainfully tilting its head back, trying to pull the tongue off, but to little avail.

With a smile in his eyes, the Greatsword drew its foot blade and deliberately gestured between its tongue and the ice block, startling Gengar and the little penguin. They quickly pulled hard and finally managed to yank the tongue off. Only then did the Greatsword sheath its blade with satisfaction.

The pair of mice have also regained their energy and are chasing and playing with New Leaf Cat. The two mice work together perfectly, keeping New Leaf Cat spinning around in circles.

Egui Peng and Hu Hu were sitting together under the tree of the Earth Turtle. Behind the green grass mask, their eyes were fixed on the branches of the tree. They held a big stick in their hands, as if they were comparing something.

The earth tortoise lay in the middle of the lawn, its massive body casting a broad shadow in the setting sun. It closed its eyes, digesting the insights gained from the earth's stone slabs.

Salamence folded its wings and, just like when it was a Bagon, lay down and dozed off beside Torterra, its blood-red wings gleaming beautifully in the setting sun.

Gardevoir sat quietly beside Zhang Jianying, watching this heartwarming scene with him.

A gentle evening breeze carries the coolness of early autumn.

Zhang Jianying leaned back in his chair, his heart filled with emotion.

more than a year.

From feeling lost and helpless when I first came into this world, to now being surrounded by so many reliable partners.

From embarking on a journey alone to forging deep bonds with them, growing and living together.

Gardevoir seemed to sense his feelings, and reached out to gently take his hand.

A cool, warm touch came through, carrying a reassuring power.

Footsteps could be heard at the entrance to the courtyard.

Zhang Jianying did not turn around; the waveguide had already told him who the visitor was.

Daigo carried a silver-white suitcase and walked into the backyard.

Beside him, Bosscodora followed closely, its eyes scanning the yard anxiously, as if searching for something.

But when Aggron saw Zhang Jianying and his Pokémon's peaceful and heartwarming figures under the setting sun, even the impatient Aggron couldn't help but slow its pace. The steel behemoth seemed to sense the beauty of this tranquility and couldn't bear to break it.

Daigo also stopped in his tracks.

He stood at the entrance of the courtyard, watching this scene, a gentle smile unconsciously curving his lips.

"These are my true treasures."

Zhang Jianying didn't turn around, but said softly.

The voice was calm, as if stating a self-evident fact. "I am very grateful for their companionship along the way."

Daigo listened quietly.

He walked to the bench and sat down next to Zhang Jianying.

With his suitcase at his feet, Bosscodora stood quietly on the lawn behind him.

Steven looked at the Pokémon playing in the yard and said gently, "The bond between Pokémon and their trainers is the most precious reward of the journey."

He paused, then continued, "My first partner was Iron Dumbbell. I was young then, but I had a strong interest in ore. However, I wasn't strong enough, so Iron Dumbbell and Coco Dora helped me dig and carry it."

A nostalgic look appeared in Daigo's eyes: "Later, I had more and more companions, and strangely enough, they all shared the same hobbies as me."

He smiled, a hint of helplessness in his smile: "Later, as I was playing during the journey, I found myself inexplicably becoming the champion—I really didn't want to be the champion."

Zhang Jianying, who had been listening quietly to Daigo's reflections, was suddenly speechless at this point.

He glanced at Daigo with a complicated expression. Although he knew it was true, could he please not say it so casually?

Zhang Jianying retorted, "If you say that out loud, countless trainers will come after you and fight you to the death."

Daigo paused for a moment, then chuckled, "Sorry, that's not what I meant. It's just that the title of champion is indeed less attractive to me than a newly discovered rare mineral."

He said earnestly, "My hobby will always be stones. Although I'm not very interested in winning the championship, I will still fulfill the obligations of a champion."

Daigo looked at Zhang Jianying, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes: "It's a pity I didn't bring any other Pokémon this time, otherwise I really wanted to have a good match with you. I wanted to see just how strong a trainer can build such a deep bond with their Pokémon really is."

Zhang Jianying waved his hand: "There's no need for that. I don't want to be crushed by the champion."

"That's too modest."

Steven shook his head, his gaze sweeping over the happy Pokémon in the yard. "Based on the bond between you and them, I believe you will become incredibly strong."

He paused, bent down, picked up the briefcase at his feet, and opened it. Inside, the briefcase was lined with dark blue velvet.

On the left, there is a fist-sized Salamence Mega Stone fixed in place.

On the right is a silver-white card with fine crystals inlaid along its edges.

Daigo handed the box to Zhang Jianying.

"The Mega Stone belongs to Salamence. This card is my personal redemption voucher, which can be redeemed at any branch of Devon Corporation for a complete set of 'Refined Series' items. These items can also be optimized and adjusted according to the Pokémon's size and abilities, and I believe they are no worse than Silver Company's products."

He looked at Zhang Jianying and said sincerely, "This is to express my gratitude for your generous donation. Please accept it."

Zhang Jianying remained silent for a moment, without saying anything more.

He took the box and said to Gengar, "Take the contents out."

"Genga~"

Gengar emerged from the shadows, its short arms reaching into its belly to retrieve two stone slabs.

Steel slabs, rock slabs.

Zhang Jianying handed both stone slabs to Daigo.

"I don't need these two stone slabs, so I'll give them to you."

Daigo was taken aback. He took the two stone slabs and felt the immense energy contained within them. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.

He came here intending to exchange only one piece, but unexpectedly—

"You—"

Daigo looked at the stone slab in his hand, then at Zhang Jianying, and finally let out a soft sigh.

I owe you a favor.

He carefully put the stone slab into his specially made safe and said solemnly, "Contact me anytime if you need anything in the future. In the Hoenn region, the promises of the Zvog family still carry some weight."

"

Zhang Jianying smiled but did not reply.

The sun had completely sunk below the horizon, the sky gradually changed from orange-red to deep blue, and the stars began to appear.

The lights in the backyard turned on automatically, casting a soft glow on the lawn.

The two young men sat quietly on the bench, watching the Pokémon play and rest.

I didn't say anything more; some things don't need to be expressed in words.

As night deepened, a cool breeze brought relief.

Daigo finally stood up.

"Let's go, I'll buy you a drink. As a thank you, and also as a farewell gift." He looked at Zhang Jianying, "You should be leaving Baidai City soon to continue your journey, right?"

Zhang Jianying nodded, stood up, and put the Pokémon back into their Poké Balls one by one. "Yes, it's time to go to the next city."

He looked at Daigo and suddenly joked, "What, you want to be number one in drinking too?"

Upon hearing this, Daigo smiled arrogantly, his short, silver-blue hair fluttering slightly in the night breeze.

"That's right."

He said with a smile, his tone relaxed.

"After all, it doesn't matter what field it is."

"In the end, I am still the strongest, the most powerful one."

Zhang Jianying chuckled to himself.

The two walked out of the Pokémon Center side by side, their figures disappearing into the night of Bourne City.