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Chapter 101 Magikarp Evolution

"Xiao Jin, look, we've found a way!"

Hong Xiu couldn't wait to take out the small cloth bag containing calcium powder.

"These are calcium tablets, from Teacher Lin, the really amazing Teacher Lin on TV. He said these can cure your pain!"

Magikarp seemed to understand the term "Teacher Lin," as it remembered the human who had explained Pokémon knowledge on Hong Xiu's phone.

It glanced at the unfamiliar white powder in Hong Xiu's hand, then at Hong You beside it who had a serious expression, and tilted its head slightly.

"Come on, open your mouth." Hong Xiu carefully poured some calcium powder into her palm and held it to Xiao Jin's mouth.

Xiao Jin hesitated for a moment, then opened its mouth. Hong Xiu poured the powder into its mouth.

Xiao Jin closed his mouth, swallowing with some difficulty, since the powder wasn't as smooth as the energy cubes.

It submerged in the water for a moment, then surfaced again and shook its head.

The two brothers watched nervously.

A few minutes later, Xiao Jin seemed to calm down a bit, and the restless urge to rub his body lessened.

It even took the initiative to approach Hong Xiu's hand and gently touch it.

"It works! Brother, it really works!" Hong Xiu almost cheered out loud, then quickly covered his mouth, but his eyes were overflowing with joy.

Hong You breathed a sigh of relief and a smile appeared on her face.

He carefully wrapped up the remaining calcium powder and broke up the two oranges that Hong Xiu had found and fed them to Xiao Jin.

Xiao Jin ate very quickly, clearly showing that her appetite had improved after the pain subsided.

Watching Xiao Jin swim gently on the shore, Hong Xiu suddenly whispered, "Brother, do you remember the first time I brought you to see Xiao Jin?"

Hong Youdian nodded and sat down on the nearby reef.

Hong Xiu also sat down, hugging her knees, her gaze following the golden figure in the water.

"Actually—before that, I almost didn't want to live anymore."

Hong Xiu's voice was very soft, almost drowned out by the sound of the waves.

Hong You froze and abruptly turned to look at her younger brother.

Hong Xiu didn't look at him and continued talking to herself: "Those people at school are always laughing at me."

"I know you used to fight them for me. But after you graduated, they started again. I didn't dare tell you anymore, afraid you'd get into fights and cause trouble again—Mom and Dad are already exhausted enough."

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Hong You's throat tightened; he wanted to say something, but no sound came out.

He only knew that his younger brother might be bullied at school, but he didn't know the details were so unbearable, and he didn't know that his brother had such thoughts.

Hong Xiu's voice trembled slightly, "I ran away, ran here, sat on the highest rock, looked at the sea, and thought—would it be easier if I jumped down?"

"Then I saw Little Gold." His voice suddenly softened. "It was surrounded and attacked by several agate jellyfish, its body covered in wounds, but it just wouldn't run away, repeatedly ramming its head and slapping its tail. One of the jellyfish's tentacles wrapped around it, but it managed to break free of that tentacle and knock the jellyfish over."

"It was so small, it was in so much pain, but it didn't give up." Hong Xiu turned to look at her brother, her eyes shining brightly in the night. "I thought to myself, if it didn't give up, why should I?"

"Then I pushed those bad guys away, really, I pushed all three of them away by myself."

Hong Xiu smiled, a smile that held a boyish sharpness he had never shown before.

"I told them that if they messed with me again, I would tell my brother that my brother hits people really hard. Although I have never actually hit anyone hard, they believed me."

Hong You reached out and ruffled her younger brother's hair vigorously, her voice hoarse: "You silly boy—you must tell me if anything happens in the future."

"Yes." Hong Xiu nodded vigorously, then looked at Xiao Jin in the water. "Xiao Jin taught me that I can't give up."

Therefore, I must cure it.

The two brothers sat quietly for a while, watching Xiao Jin swim slowly in the moonlight-lit sea, and the pain seemed to lessen a lot.

As night deepened, they had to go home.

"I'll buy more calcium tablets tomorrow," Hong You stood up. "Teacher Lin said we should give them more in the early stages. Money—"

I'll use this month's salary to cover it first, and we'll see if it's not enough.

“I can help the old man move goods at his grocery store on weekends,” Hong Xiu said immediately. “He said he would pay me.”

"You should focus on your studies first," Hong You glared at him, but her tone wasn't harsh.

"I'll figure out a way to treat Xiao Jin. Didn't Teacher Lin say that if there are real difficulties, we can apply for help? Let's try it ourselves first."

On their way home, the sea breeze was biting, but the brothers' hearts were warm.

In the following days, the two brothers seemed to have found their pillar of support.

Hong You secretly used the money she earned from her part-time job to order several large bottles of the most economical calcium tablets online.

They dared not feed Xiao Jin too much at once, strictly following Lin Dao's advice of "a little more at the beginning and less after it stabilizes". Every day, they would come to the beach on time and mix the ground calcium powder into a small amount of energy cubes that Hong Xiu bought, or dissolve it in water to feed Xiao Jin.

The changes are obvious.

Xiao Jin's pain attacks have decreased significantly, he rubs against rocks less and less, and he has regained his previous vitality when swimming, even more so than before.

Perhaps it is because the sub-healthy state accumulated over a long period of time due to physical pain and the fact that its bright color makes it vulnerable to attack has been improved, and the sufficient calcium supplementation seems to have activated its deeper potential.

Its body began to grow at a visible rate, becoming thicker than a regular carp, and the unique golden luster on its scales became increasingly warm and bright, like flowing liquid gold in the sunlight.

Occasionally, Hongyou would splurge on some slightly better quality water-based universal energy cubes as a "supplement".

Xiao Jin accepts everything and digests and absorbs it at an astonishing speed.

The two brothers could sense that a surging power was constantly accumulating and brewing within Xiao Jin's body, like an undercurrent surging beneath the surface of the sea.

That evening, the setting sun dyed the sea a brilliant golden-red.

Hong You and Hong Xiu came to the beach as usual.

Little Jin was already waiting there. When it saw them, it happily leaped out of the water, drawing a golden arc.

After feeding them their daily dose of calcium powder and energy cubes, Little Gold didn't immediately swim away to play as usual. Instead, it floated quietly in front of the two of them, its golden body reflecting a dazzling light in the afterglow of the setting sun.

It remained motionless, as if it were gathering something.

"Xiao Jin?" Hong Xiu called softly, somewhat puzzled.

Just then, without warning, a white light, brighter and more dazzling than the setting sun, suddenly emanated from Xiao Jin's body! The light was so intense that it instantly illuminated the surrounding seawater, reefs, and the astonished faces of the two brothers, turning them all white!

"This is... evolution?!" Hong You suddenly realized, both surprised and delighted.

Although he lacked theoretical knowledge, he knew that Pokémon could evolve under certain conditions.

Within the light, Xiao Jin's form underwent a dramatic change, stretching and expanding! Its original size of less than a meter grew rapidly, and its outline became ferocious and full of power.

The light of evolution lasted only a few seconds, yet it felt as long as an eternity.