Elf: I have a secret realm of emerald green.

At 29 years old, she is already the strongest contender for the next King of the Stars.

What could it be that someone who is practically a miniature version of "Yan Yu from Xingguo" is coming to find me?

…………

"First of all, I would like to apologize for the rude behavior of Cole and Plymouth."

After taking a leisurely sip of the tree juice that had just been taken from the refrigerator, Jennifer spoke first.

Although her expression and tone didn't seem like she was apologizing.

Xia Shen didn't care. He knew that even if Jennifer apologized in the most sincere tone, it didn't mean that's what she really thought.

What she was about to say was the main event.

As expected, seeing that Xia Shen had no reaction, Jennifer finally got to the point.

"Xia Shen, you are the most outstanding young person I have ever met. In fact, I have been paying attention to you for a long time, ever since that Umbreon. Whether in the field of Pokémon research or in the field of Pokémon battles, you have a talent that no one in the world can match."

Xia Shen nodded without hesitation.

That's a standard way of praising someone; it's too ordinary.

It's not even worth a hair from a guy on Tieba.

In this respect, they are the true masters.

However, to be praised in this way by someone who could be called a future figure from the Star Kingdom's Elf Realm.

Despite feeling somewhat annoyed, Xia Shen was actually a little pleased.

……

"But have you ever considered that you could... go even further?"

Jennifer parted her red lips slightly, her voice as gentle as a sea breeze.

Xia Shen's heart skipped a beat; the form of this question was simply too classic.

They're trying to win them over.

This is the most likely scenario among all of Xia Shen's guesses.

With a clear understanding of the situation, I was able to handle it more calmly.

Xia Shen did not deny it, and smiled faintly: "Take another step? I'm still so young, I have enough time in the future to take another ten thousand steps."

He certainly understood what Jennifer was saying, but in this situation, letting the opponent reveal their hand first was the safest approach.

Jennifer wasn't surprised by Xia Shen's feigned ignorance. She smiled slightly and took out a storage ball from her pocket.

Holding the ball up to her eyes, Jennifer examined this cutting-edge technological product from Devon Corporation.

"It must be said that Devon's expertise in this field is undeniably world-class. Even the best products from Singapore are ten years behind."

Xia Shen nodded noncommittally. This is the Chinese brand with the greatest influence and the largest market share in the world.

It was precisely because of their strong research capabilities that Xia Shen chose Devon Corporation as an important partner for the Xicui Project.

But why did Jennifer bring this up?

Without further ado, the beautiful woman lightly touched the storage ball with her slender fingers, and several glass test tubes fell out.

Its appearance was nothing special, but the various colored liquids inside caught Xia Shen's attention.

He knew that this was the bargaining chip Jennifer had brought today.

…………

"However, in the field of Elf biotechnology, it is no exaggeration to say that Star Country is ahead of China... no, ahead of the whole world, by at least thirty years."

Her tone was calm, as if she were stating a given fact.

"These vials of power enhancers are the result of research from Plymouth Laboratory a long time ago. Why don't you guess what they do?"

Jennifer's smile was full of confidence, suggesting she was quite proud of her research.

"Permanently increase a Pokémon's base stat for a certain ability, right?"

Jennifer looked at Xia Shen, whose face remained calm, with surprise and praised, "Mr. Xia Shen, you guessed exactly right. Most people who hear this name for the first time think it's a temporary enhancement and don't dare to think about permanently improving the Pokémon's abilities. Moreover, this kind of enhancement has absolutely no side effects."

Hearing Jennifer's description, Xia Shen was shocked.

Sure enough, this is one of the products of Silver Corporation in the game: an ability enhancer!

The effect is almost identical to that in the game, increasing stats such as attack and special attack.

Silver Company is the company that developed the Masterball and possesses top-notch technology.

In the game, the Rockets' main objective in taking over Silver Company is to acquire the Master Ball.

In reality... the Master Ball has been taken over by a dark organization.

Now, another Pokémon item has appeared that is inextricably linked to the Master Ball.

Xia Shen hadn't forgotten what Yuxi had said about why Tibrim couldn't evolve.

The solution to that "genetic lock" must be hidden within the dark organization.

I must hold onto this clue tightly.

……

"The abilities enhanced by potions are ultimately external; they don't feel as good as... energy cubes."

Xia Shen shook his head slightly, such a sharp comment.

He didn't appear overly eager; such a stark contrast might arouse suspicion in the other party.

Jennifer smiled slightly and didn't argue with Xia Shen. There was no point in arguing about such a fundamental concept of trainers.

She simply took out another blue capsule, a mysterious look on her face, "This thing... can't be replaced by energy cubes."

This is... a special capsule?

They've figured out this thing too?

Xia Shen's understanding of Plymouth's research capabilities reached a new level.

The technology involved in this thing is obviously much more advanced than that of power enhancers.

"This is the latest research and development achievement of our laboratory, a special capsule."

Jennifer paused for a moment, "And its function... when used on elves, it can change their own characteristics."

After saying that, Jennifer smiled faintly, waiting for Xia Shen's shocked expression.

However, to her disappointment, Xia Shen's face remained as calm as still water.

No, with such cutting-edge technology and such amazing magical items, he didn't react at all?

Does he even understand Pokémon competition?

Do you even know how important abilities are to Pokémon?

Not only that, Xia Shen's next sentence completely broke her defenses.

"Can this be changed to a hidden feature?"

An embarrassed look appeared on Jennifer's face. "I can't..."

This is indeed one of the biggest pain points of the specialty capsules.

For many Pokémon, the most useful ability is often a hidden ability that is extremely rare within the Pokémon group.

Without this feature, the effectiveness of the special capsules is greatly reduced.

Because trainers nowadays are generally quite pragmatic, they think about the characteristics they want before deciding on a Pokémon.

With so many Pokémon in the breeding center, finding one with traits you're happy with shouldn't be difficult, right?

However, for some rare and hard-to-find Pokémon, Ability Capsules are still somewhat useful.

In short, it's something that's not as wonderful as I imagined, but it's still very useful.

However, despite Jennifer's enthusiastic sales pitch, customer Xia Shen remained unconvinced.

Jennifer even began to doubt the purpose of the special capsules developed in her lab...

…………

Jennifer took a deep breath and calmed herself down.

Fine, I'll just say this little guy has high standards. I refuse to believe you can remain unmoved by this!

With a click, the storage ball dropped out the last item placed inside.

A purple Poké Ball suddenly appeared on the table.

It's a Master Ball!

Xia Shen instantly recognized the object in front of him as the Master Ball he had just been talking about!

That Master Ball that can even catch legendary Pokémon in the game!

In other words, the one containing Tibrim is not the only one.

Furthermore, it can be concluded that Plymouth Laboratory behind Jennifer is definitely intricately connected with that dark organization!

Xia Shen's mind was filled with a myriad of thoughts, but he still managed to control the emotions on his face.

Pretending not to recognize it, she looked at the purple Poké Ball with a puzzled and curious expression, waiting for Jennifer to explain.

"This Poké Ball is called the Master Ball. It's the best-performing Poké Ball we've developed in our lab. No matter what level of Pokémon it is, just throw this Poké Ball at it... and it will become your Pokémon."

This time, Jennifer finally saw shock mixed with disbelief on Xia Shen's face.

That's more like it! This is how a normal person would react when they see something far beyond their level of understanding!

…………

She continued, "You can choose not to believe it, and even if you see it demonstrated live, you might still think it's fake."

Jennifer met Xia Shen's gaze and said sincerely, "But when you need to use it someday, just throw it away. Trust me, it will surprise you."

Xia Shen frowned slightly. What did he mean by that? Was he going to give him such an important Master Ball?

Could it be that this thing is already in mass production at the Plymouth laboratory?