Pokémon, but cultural invasion.

While Qishu might have some knowledge of common Rock-type moves, she couldn't help with Xinli's unique, self-created techniques.

"Electrode of Bright City: I recommend you ask the Gym Leader of Pine City. He may have squinty eyes, but he's actually quite easy to talk to."

When he's calm, Brock is known to be an honest man; even the gym leader of Padia knows that.

Going directly to ask for advice might not yield good results, so Quanshu decided to first try to improve Xiaogang's favorability.

Saltstone has practice quests for "Falling Rocks" and "Invisible Rocks," so learning rock polishing isn't that urgent.

The improvement of a Pokémon's strength takes time to accumulate.

Over the next few days, Izumi calmed down and prepared for the new game while occasionally going to Pewter City to challenge it.

Having learned his lesson, Xiao Gang no longer uses Geodude; it would be strange if he sent out a Tree, which is quite fast.

When you ask Izumi whether he won or lost these challenges, he says his favorability rating has increased.

In three or four days, Xiao Gang's favorability rating went from 5 points to 10 points.

The spring tree felt the time was about right.

He was on his way from the arcade to the Dark Grey Gym when he suddenly discovered that the arcade was holding an event with Plants vs. Ghosts merchandise as a prize.

"What does it mean?"

Quanshu found Gu Zong, a receptionist at the arcade whom he knew well.

"Why are you using pirated merchandise as a reward?"

Gu Zong looked bewildered and asked in confusion, "What merchandise? Aren't they just Grass-type and Ghost-type Pokémon plush toys?"

According to him, the arcade owner noticed that customers had been playing the same game and using the same Pokémon for the past few days, mistakenly believing that these Pokémon were exceptionally popular.

Therefore, the event rewards used their dolls. The reason for hanging up the "Plant Ghost" poster was simply because many people play with it, making it easier to attract customers.

Quanshu thought about it carefully and couldn't find any flaws in the boss's actions, nor had he violated any laws.

But he naturally didn't believe it was an unintentional act.

It's impossible for everyone in the Pokémon world to be good; there are bad people among the masses.

You can take ordinary Pokémon plush toys, pose them a few times, and sell them as merchandise for popular games without breaking the law.

Quanshu knew with his toes that there were many people who would do the same thing, and he couldn't possibly control them all.

The game wasn't designed with everything in mind; some compromises were made for localization and production convenience.

The best solution, of course, is to release official game merchandise, which can effectively reduce consumers' desire to buy pirated copies.

But this is not something that can be resolved in a short time.

Quanshu thought for a moment and then gave up. Anyone who dared to sell on a large scale under the guise of game merchandise would definitely be punished by Officer Jenny's Iron Fist.

As for small-scale retail sales or giveaways, there's really no good way to do it.

"I haven't even released the hybrid DLC to harvest the second round of profits yet, let these opportunists eat their meager profits first."

Quanshu reflected deeply and resolved not to make the same mistake in his next game.

At the same time, the plan includes finding manufacturers who can cooperate to produce game peripherals.

As he imports more and more games and movies, there's no reason why he shouldn't try to get a piece of the pie from the related industries.

Quanshu has a vivid memory of how fiercely certain grains were roasted in his previous life.

Arrive at the Pyrenees Gym.

"Izumi-ki, are you coming to take on the challenge today too?"

Having deliberately chosen the time when the gym was least crowded, Xiao Gang was applying oil all over the Steelix.

These past few days, Quanshu has been coming over for battles from time to time, but Xiaogang hasn't found it annoying at all.

The main thing is that he always has a little trick up his sleeve in every battle. Whether he's strong or not is another matter, but he always makes Xiao Gang laugh.

This is a talented and creative rookie trainer.

Furthermore, since they both use Rock-type Pokémon, Brock has a sense of admiration for his junior.

"No, I have some questions I'd like to ask you today."

The spring tree released the Salt Stone Treasure, sharing its special method of polishing rocks, hoping to receive guidance.

After listening, Xiao Gang fell into deep thought.

"I see. What an imaginative mind! The creator of this move is truly remarkable."

He originally intended to share all the specific training methods he had come up with, but after glancing at Yanshibao, he changed his mind.

"Your Salt Stone Treasure has the properties of cleansing salt, right?"

"Correct."

Quanshu didn't understand why he suddenly asked this question.

After spending some time together, Quanshu, through observation and practice, confirmed that his Salt Stone Treasure possessed the properties of cleansing salt.

Pokémon with this ability will not fall into status conditions and will take less damage from Ghost-type moves.

This is a very powerful feature.

Xiao Gang had already figured it out; he opened the picture on his phone.

"Today I received a request for help, saying that something unusual has been happening at the Dark Grey City Natural History Museum late at night recently."

Quanshu looked at the photo; it was taken by a security guard and showed the second floor of the Dark Gray Museum, where a model of a space shuttle was flying in the sky.

He had been to the museum once; the model there was a fixed object, without an engine, but it still managed to fly.

"Help me investigate this strange incident, and I'll teach you how to use a rock grinder, okay?"

Xiao Gang laughed, his already narrowed eyes narrowing even more.

"...sure."

Quanshu suddenly had a feeling that he had finally accepted the main quest.

I don't know what Xiaogang was thinking; perhaps he wanted to give him some experience.

He didn't mind, since the sources of any unusual events in the Pokémon world were always the same few.

Chapter 29 Dark Grey City Science Museum

The nights in Dark Grey City are peaceful.

The cool evening breeze swept away the last trace of heat, and the sound of shops closing their doors could be heard from time to time along the street.

The spring tree raised its head, and the crows on the telephone pole preened their feathers. Behind them, the brilliant starry sky was clearly visible.

"I haven't seen the night sky in a long time."

In the evenings in Pyrenees City, Izumi spent most of her time at the Game Center and Pokémon Center, rarely venturing out.

In the city of Blue Star at night, when he looked up, all he could see were billboards flashing with various neon lights, and skyscrapers crammed together as if trying to block out the sky.

"I wonder if we can still see the stars in the countryside, far from light pollution."

Not only during this period after the transmigration, but even in Izumi's memories, he has hardly seen any stars.

"Perhaps it's because I've always lived in the city?"

In Quanshu's memory, his family rarely left the city. His grandparents had long since passed away, and they would only return to the village to sweep their graves during the Qingming Festival.

Lost in thought, he had already reached the main entrance of the Dark Grey Science Museum.

Passing by the glass door that had been opened when I first logged into the game, Izumi looked at her reflection in the mirror and felt somewhat dazed.

A month or so is actually a short time, but it felt like a long time to him.

The cheap jacket he used to wear has been replaced with high-end outdoor clothing designed specifically for young trainers by Babysitter Apparel Company.

Quanshu thought sadly that it probably wouldn't be long before he would completely become a product of capitalism.

Security personnel at the Dark Grey Museum were notified in advance and waited at the main entrance.

"Hello, are you Mr. Izumi?"

The security captain felt that apart from the trainer mentioned by the gym leader, no one would come to the museum alone in the middle of the night.

Quanshu nodded and said, "I was commissioned by the dojo master to investigate the unusual situation at the museum late at night."

The seven or eight security guards following behind the captain all looked relieved.

This surprised him; he had expected some security guards to question his young age, leading to a classic scene.

It seems no one is a fool.

"Mr. Izumi, let's go inside and talk."

As the security captain led him into the hall, he said, "About a week ago, someone noticed that the museum's exhibits would occasionally move to places that didn't belong to them."

"At first we thought it was a prank by some tourists, but the night before last, my colleague on duty witnessed the exhibits moving on their own in the lobby, including a solid model airplane."

"So this museum might be haunted..."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but glance around. The exhibition hall was brightly lit, but it didn't bring him any sense of security.

The museum, which should normally be without power at night, is now brightly lit as if it were daytime because of the haunting.

Even so, every security guard's face still showed unease and fear.

At first, Izumi didn't understand. It was just a prank by a Ghost-type Pokémon. What was there to be afraid of?

But upon reflection, he realized it was because he hadn't put himself in the shoes of an ordinary person in the Pokémon world.

Since ancient times, this world has been associated with legends about ghost-type spirits consuming souls and abducting children. These legends have been highly unified across different regions, forming a unique cultural atmosphere.

Different cultures have different specific things that people fear.

Just as people in China don't understand the terror of vampires and werewolves, foreigners also can't comprehend what makes the red-clad female ghost so terrifying.

What Izumi Tree might have thought was just a prank by a Ghost-type Pokémon, to the ordinary people of Pyrenees City, it was a real ghost story.

As for ordinary people who also own Pokémon, they should have the ability to resist...

Is it possible that a Ghost-type Pokémon, which appears out of nowhere, will directly attack the trainer, without needing to defeat your Pokémon, but only defeating you?

That's right, this is the ultimate battle technique in the Pokémon world: attacking the enemy's crystal.

Being attacked by a Ghost-type Pokémon can cause anything from a week of lethargy and lack of energy to severe fright and illness.

It's perfectly normal for the security guards to be scared.

The first floor of the Dark Grey Museum mainly features fossil exhibits, including fossils of various ancient Pokémon that have been proven extinct, precious stones from the nearby rocky mountains, and colorful evolution stones collected due to their unusual shapes...

Rows of glass display cases are arranged in a row, displaying all kinds of stones under the lights.

In the center of the hall, there are also skeletal models of a sickle-shaped helmet and a fossil pterosaur, replicated one-to-one with lifelike appearance.

What are those wooden crates next to the display case for?

Quanshu noticed that around the neatly arranged display cases, there were some wooden boxes piled up haphazardly, which were particularly unsightly.

"Oh, those are exhibits at next month's stone exhibition."

The security captain explained, "Our staff are still sorting them, so they are temporarily placed in the museum."

Quanshu led Yanshibao on a tour of the first floor, but found nothing unusual. The strange and wonderful stones, however, broadened his horizons.

I really regret not exploring the museum properly last time I visited.

The museum's second floor is themed around space, with the most eye-catching exhibits being a model of the space shuttle and an outrageously large moon stone.

"This giant moonstone comes from Mt. Tsukimi. Legend has it that Clefairy and the others came from space on it, and it is very popular among the children in Pyrenees City."

The team leader explained, "The display cases on both sides also contain meteorites that fell from space, rocket booster models, and so on."

The space shuttle that was flying around on the second floor in the photo is now obediently hanging and fixed on the ceiling.

Quanshu and Yanshibao searched the second floor carefully.

"How about it?"

"Thita..."

Saltstone Treasure shook his head, seemingly having gained nothing.