Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 686: What a Big Cauliflower! (Two-in-One - )

"So you really did go find Shaymin?"

Johan looked at the screen showing Giratina, that colossal creature, his eyes widening slightly.

Giratina had somehow heard that honey was very sticky, so it went searching for places with lots of flowers, looking for the so-called honey.

And then...

Naturally, it found Gracidea and, as if destined, encountered the "Gratitude Pokémon" Shaymin.

What happened in between was unknown, but it seemed Giratina and Shaymin had established a fairly good relationship.

While this was somewhat unexpected, it was also reasonable.

"Garrr..."

Giratina nodded somewhat embarrassedly.

Only afterward did it learn that Johan and Gengar were looking for it, apparently delaying something. Fortunately, the problem wasn’t major...

Johan sighed inwardly:

Finally, finally not getting involved in everything. This movie version "Giratina and the Sky Warrior: Shaymin" was one he didn’t encounter.

So indeed...

The problem wasn’t with him, but with others (certain)!

That would be you, Flint!

"Ka-ka, Ka-kaah..."

But unlike Johan and Giratina’s composure, Gengar’s expression was somewhat stiff.

No, it couldn’t even be called stiff—it should be called... dazed, its little face had turned pale.

Saliva?

After learning from Giratina that what had condensed on those diamonds was its saliva, Gengar’s entire state deteriorated.

It stiffly shifted its gaze.

Suddenly, it saw Flint working "diligently" not far away, and its condition slowly recovered.

Good thing that guy Flint ate some too.

Then it was fine.

Gengar’s mood even became somewhat pleased, humming a little tune as it floated toward Flint, looking at him with teasing, mocking eyes that made Flint feel uneasy all over.

"More, more work?"

"Ka-kaah~~"

Gengar cheerfully waved its hand.

Nothing, you’re busy, I’m just watching~

Flint breathed a sigh of relief, while Gengar felt a kind of... pleasure of knowing a secret that the other didn’t.

Often things were like this.

When one person suffered misfortune, they would feel very uncomfortable, but if two people suffered misfortune, and the other was worse off than oneself, then they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable at all—instead, there would be a kind of schadenfreude happiness.

"Mewtwo, I’m leaving the house to you."

Johan looked at Mewtwo, who had changed into different attire, with considerable gravity.

It had to be said, this appearance of Mewtwo... though not as impressive as armored Mewtwo, was still somewhat handsome.

Mewtwo kept a straight face, glanced sideways at Johan, turned its head aside, and said nothing.

However, Johan understood Mewtwo’s personality—not answering meant agreement.

"Indeedee, thank you for your hard work. I’ll bring back gifts for you when I return."

Johan waved his hand, making a brief farewell.

"Indee~~"

Unlike Mewtwo’s coldness, the Indeedee siblings were much gentler, waving lightly.

"Wait for me, Teacher Johan!"

Flint, with a bun in his mouth, ran over from the side, quickly catching up.

Johan held his forehead.

"Wait, I’m going to the Galar region. You want to come too?"

That’s right, this time Johan was preparing to make a trip to the Galar region, more precisely to the Crown Tundra.

Since he had promised Regieleki he would send it back "home," no matter how reluctant he was to part with Regieleki, he had to keep his word.

Additionally.

He was also planning to meet Calyrex.

He still didn’t know what kind of situation Calyrex was in or its current state, but judging from the wooden carving’s "reaction," it should have already awakened.

If he could establish a truly friendly relationship and have Calyrex look after his fledgling island farm more... this would be far more rewarding than his own hard work.

Of course.

The most important point.

Was for Snivy.

As one of the few Grass-type legendary Pokémon, and the only Grass-type first-tier legendary, the legendary "God of Abundance," perhaps it could tell him why Snivy couldn’t evolve.

Whether Snivy evolved or not was its own choice, but as a trainer, he needed to eliminate factors that might influence Snivy’s own decision.

If Calyrex couldn’t answer either, then he could only go to the Alola region and ask Tapu Bulu.

"Of course!" Flint patted his chest, swearing earnestly.

He wasn’t stupid.

Either go back to Sinnoh to handle some so-called "affairs" that made his head spin.

Or stay in Hoenn as "labor" for Teacher Johan.

Or go together to the Crown Tundra to escape the heat.

The Crown Tundra!

The famous "dangerous land" of the Galar region, year-round devoid of human presence.

Wild Pokémon were incredibly powerful. Even if not comparable to the Mt. Silver range in Kanto, it was at least on par with Mt. Coronet in Sinnoh.

Going on an adventure to such a "dangerous" place—how could he be left out?

Johan looked Flint up and down, thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Suit yourself."

At least, as a Fire-type Pokémon specialist Elite Four, Flint could definitely contribute quite a bit in the Crown Tundra.

At worst...

He’d make excellent "cannon fodder."

Watching the two departing figures, Mewtwo looked down at the two round, seven-colored stones in its palm.

Forget it, wait until he returns to try.

Mewtwo was willing to stay.

On one hand, it was because Johan asked it to stay, to let it experience what the human world was like, how humans and Pokémon got along outside the trainer-Pokémon relationship.

On the other hand...

Mewtwo slightly closed its eyes, its psychic power spreading imperceptibly, enveloping the entire coffee shop.

In the vast expanse, it sensed an aura that was both strange and familiar, yet gave it a slight flutter of emotion.

Mewtwo had a feeling this aura came from a Pokémon very important to it, but...

Who was it?

Buzz—

Before Mewtwo could think of a result, another gentle psychic power slowly approached.

Though much weaker than its own, it was also one of the few powerful psychic presences Mewtwo had encountered among ordinary Pokémon.

It opened its eyes and looked at the gently smiling Indeedee sister.

"Indee~"

Indeedee sister placed her hands at her chest, smiling gently at Mewtwo.

Mewtwo also set aside its thoughts, nodding slightly, communicating through telepathy:

"Don’t worry, practice will continue as usual."

"If not comparable to that somewhat ’abnormal’ guy Gengar, competing with that red explosive-haired Infernape should be no problem."

As one of the few Psychic-type Pokémon in the coffee shop, Indeedee brother had no pursuit of training or battling, only wanting to brew better coffee.

But Indeedee sister was different.

After Mewtwo returned to the coffee shop with Johan, it discovered Indeedee sister, who had outstanding psychic talent and seemed somewhat enthusiastic about battling and training.

So.

At Indeedee sister’s request, Mewtwo temporarily agreed to serve as her "instructor," helping her train her psychic powers.

Johan naturally knew about this matter. Johan understood Indeedee sister’s personality better than Mewtwo, so not only did he not stop it, he was very supportive.

Having Indeedee sister train with Mewtwo...

Perhaps when he challenged the "Champion’s Path," Indeedee sister could give everyone a big surprise.

"Indee~o(〃’▽’〃)o"

Indeedee sister’s eyes showed some barely contained excitement, bowing slightly.

Because the invisible aircraft needed to be left for the Indeedee siblings to travel between the island and coffee shop, this time Johan and Flint still took a regular flight to the Galar region.

The next morning, the flight arrived at Motostoke in the Galar region, a massive industrial city located in the center of the Galar region.

According to Johan’s knowledge.

Gordie, who had battled him at the Lily of the Valley Conference in Sinnoh, had now reclaimed his position as Gym Leader of Motostoke Stadium.

Johan and Flint, bringing Gengar and Snivy, left the airport and walked with interest through this city filled with industrial atmosphere.

The climate here was much cooler than the Hoenn region, and also warmer than the Sinnoh region.

Though it was an industrialized city, the city’s roads were very clean. Along the way, you could always see some huge industrial factories, accompanied by rumbling sounds, as if they were the main melody of the entire city.

Along the way, besides the most numerous factories, you could also see quite a few shops, equipment stores, parks, and most numerous of all—Pokémon battle venues.

Almost no battle venue was idle; there were always many trainers gathering here, either participating or watching, creating a very lively atmosphere.

It had to be said.

In terms of promoting Pokémon battles, the entire Galar region should be the most prevalent, forming an extremely sharp contrast with the lazy Kalos region Johan had visited.

This gave people a somewhat... vaguely urgent feeling.

But this made Flint scratch his ears and cheeks, becoming somewhat impatient.

Battles!

If not for Teacher Johan stopping him, he would definitely have to fight one or two hundred matches before ending, the kind where no one was allowed to leave. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

For battle maniacs like Flint who were passionate about fighting, wasn’t the Galar region like "heaven"?

"Speaking of which, Teacher Johan, since the Galar region doesn’t have Elite Four, does that mean there’s no ’Champion’s Path’ either?" Flint tried to distract himself.

"The Champion of the Galar region doesn’t have as much power as Champions in other regions."

Johan first made a seemingly irrelevant statement, then answered: "Although there’s no ’Champion’s Path,’ the Galar region has the ’Champion Challenge.’"

"Champion Challenge?" Flint was stunned.

"The Galar region is currently the only region that has completely commercialized Pokémon battles, whether basic competitions, ’Gym Challenge’ or ’Champion Challenge’—all of them."

Johan quite admired Chairman Rose for his promotion of Galar region and Galar League events.

Full of business acumen.

It was precisely because of Rose that Pokémon battles were so prevalent in the Galar region.

"The ’Champion’s Path’ requires challengers to battle through the Elite Four and even the Champion, while the ’Champion Challenge’ requires challengers to defeat all Gym Leaders and the Champion." Johan added.

The Galar region didn’t have Elite Four, but the competition among these Gym Leaders was quite intense.

Like Raihan from Hammerlocke, Piers from Spikemuth, Opal from Ballonlea, and even Melony from Circhester—at their peak, their combat power could, to some extent, rival Elite Four members.

Raihan needn’t be mentioned—Leon’s rival, also one of the few people who could threaten Leon.

Piers was the only one in the Galar region who didn’t use Dynamax, yet could fight Raihan evenly and nearly make Raihan stumble.

Opal needn’t be mentioned either—the oldest Gym Leader in the Galar region, contemporary with Master Mustard, had even competed with Mustard for the Championship. Though she failed, she had the aura of someone like Agatha of Kanto.

As for Melony, she was the only person among all Galar Gym Leaders who had never lost to Raihan, showing her considerable strength.

Looking at it this way...

Raihan—the Galar region’s "strength assessment tool"!

Besides these people, the other Gym Leaders like Milo, Nessa, and Gordie, though also decent in strength, gave off a feeling of Rose’s implemented "balance philosophy."

Balancing strength faction with idol faction.

That’s why the Galar region had the most widespread promotion of Pokémon battle events—Rose was quite capable.

"No wonder Leon rarely speaks up in the group lately. He mentioned preparing for battle before—he must be preparing for this ’Champion Challenge,’ right?" Flint realized.

"Probably."

Johan shrugged.

Leon’s own strength, plus Rose’s support and promotion, just like their little Cynthia, becoming Champion was practically a done deal.

Even to make Leon’s fame greater and the Galar region more well-known, Rose would organize the "Pokémon World Championship."

Of course, that was for later.

However.

As Johan said.

In the Galar region, the Champion’s power wasn’t actually as great as Champions in other regions. Chairman Rose was the one truly in control.

This was also why Leon would become Chairman after stepping down as Champion.

In short.

The operating model was very different from other regions.

In this regard, that "amateur organization" in the Alola region could really learn well.

After simply appreciating Motostoke’s scenery, Johan and Flint came to Motostoke’s train station.

The station’s ticket clerk smiled at the two.

"Where would you like to go?"

The Galar region, whether Flying Taxi or the trains connecting all areas, made the entire region’s connectivity much stronger.

"Crown Tundra," Flint said directly.

"Crown Tundra?"

Hearing this name, the ticket clerk was stunned, then said:

"Alright, please wait a moment."

Before coming, Johan had already checked online for train schedules to the Crown Tundra. This time they had timed it perfectly.

Soon, the two with tickets entered the station and found the train heading to Crown Tundra according to the signs.

Not long after the two boarded, the train began rumbling along.

Outside the windows, all scenery flew by rapidly.

This wasn’t Johan’s first time riding Galar region trains, so there was no novelty. But Gengar and the others seemed to have forgotten their feelings from the last train ride, pressing against the windows watching the rapidly passing scenery.

"So few people..."

Flint looked at the empty, spacious car with only two people and couldn’t help sighing.

Then he directly found an empty seat and lay down with his head pillowed.

Crown Tundra wasn’t popular in the Galar region.

Remember in "Pokémon: Twilight Wings," when Peony brought his daughter Peonia to Crown Tundra, the train was also empty.

After all, it was a place with treacherous terrain, covered in ice and snow year-round, an extremely cold land that also housed large numbers of powerful wild Pokémon, no less formidable than Mt. Coronet in Sinnoh.

Such a place having a few villages would already be surprising enough, let alone being popular.

However, in Crown Tundra, there were also many ruins and temples that held some attraction for explorers or those pursuing history.

Like Peony, or their little Cynthia.

Johan had Rotom make him a cup of coffee, then leisurely read a book.

There was still some distance before reaching Crown Tundra.

Crown Tundra, Crown Temple.

A majestic temple standing atop the snowfield, buried in ice and snow.

Outside the temple, a huge withered tree swayed its decaying form in the wind and snow, still struggling to persevere.

In the cloudy sky above, a gap suddenly tore open in the wind and snow, golden sunlight shining down. In the light beam, snowflakes danced crystalline and hazy.

Perhaps it was the sudden appearance of sunlight bringing warmth, or perhaps the swirling cold wind was summoned—a patch of snow on the withered tree’s branches was suddenly blown away, revealing a tiny green branch, crystal clear.

Within the tree trunk, a curled-up figure that seemed to be sleeping slowly opened drowsy, weary eyes.

Its head turned slightly, its gaze seeming to pierce through the thick trunk, the vast snow, the towering snow mountains.

Finally coming?

Hope... you won’t disappoint me...

The tiny branch resisted the cold wind and snow, stubbornly, persistently growing.

Cold.

Very cold.

As the scenery outside the window gradually changed from green to snow white, the temperature also rapidly dropped during the journey.

The train truly became a snow country train.

When the train stopped and Johan and Flint got off, walking out of the station, the moment a bitter cold wind blew over, Flint hugged his arms and sneezed, directly cursing:

"Damn, this is way too cold!"

This wasn’t "escaping the heat"—it was clearly coming to suffer.

He rubbed his arms up and down, his nose about to run.

Wearing just a T-shirt, it would be strange if he wasn’t cold.

Not to mention him, even Johan felt somewhat cold at this moment, though it was still within acceptable range.

"You’re a ’fire user’—you won’t freeze to death, will you?" Johan said.

Hearing this, Flint finally reacted, hurriedly trembling as he threw out a Poké Ball, summoning Infernape.

"Ku..."

As soon as Infernape appeared, it couldn’t help shivering, then hot air rose from its body and the flame on its head flickered as it adapted.

Flint hurriedly moved closer to Infernape, comfortably squinting his eyes and sighing deeply.

"Ahh..."

Infernape: "..."

It immediately glared at Flint irritably.

Where are you putting your hands!

At this time, Johan also threw out a Poké Ball, summoning Ninetales.

"Oowoo~"

Among the white snowy mountains, Ninetales landed lightly like an ice and snow spirit, its tails gently unfurling, showing a comfortable expression.

Though Fire-type countered ice and snow, in this kind of large-scale natural environment, Ninetales was undoubtedly much more at ease than Infernape.

Moreover, in such a place covered in ice and snow where it was hard to distinguish directions, Ninetales could undoubtedly ensure the two wouldn’t get lost.

"Teacher Johan, where are we going?"

Flint, warmed by Infernape’s flames, asked.

Johan looked at the vast snowy mountains.

"Let’s go to Freezington first."

Before coming to Crown Tundra, he had naturally contacted Peony in advance.

However, just like Mt. Coronet had weak signals, this remote Crown Tundra wasn’t much better. He still hadn’t received a reply from Peony.

But in his message to Peony, Johan had said he would go to Freezington first, hoping to meet Peony there.

This place would also be a "good place" for Boss Giovanni, Johan thought.

He just wondered.

When Rainbow Rocket Corporation met Rose’s Macro Cosmos, what kind of sparks would they create?

"This place has villages?" Flint was astonished.

In his view, Crown Tundra was even colder than Mt. Coronet, yet there were still villages?

The two stepped on snow, accompanied by "crunch crunch" sounds, walking along the barely visible snow path toward Freezington’s direction on the map.

At the same time, Johan also said:

"Once, this might have been the most prosperous place in the Galar region."

"Most prosperous? Here?" Flint looked completely disbelieving.

Johan shook his head.

Originally he wanted to educate Flint about the ancient Galar Kingdom, but now it seemed... better not cast pearls before swine.

Walking on snow paths, one had to be careful not to get lost while also watching one’s footing.

Some places looked like thick, solid snow, appearing to be very stable ground, but no one knew what the real situation was under the snow.

If unlucky, stepping into empty space could mean falling off a cliff.

Or thick ice crystals might be hollow in the middle—falling in, who knew where you’d slide to.

Of course.

One also had to be careful of certain dangerous Pokémon that might suddenly emerge from the ice and snow.

In Crown Tundra... there were quite a few Dragon-type Pokémon.

"Oowoo!"

Ninetales suddenly called out softly.

"Ku!"

Infernape immediately stepped forward, fire wrapping around its fist, preparing to punch toward where Ninetales sensed something unusual.

Whoosh—

A vine suddenly shot out, faster than Infernape, "thudding" into a patch of ice and snow on the snow path, gently trembling.

Rustle rustle—

The snow shook, and a dark cave appeared in view. Several Cryogonal that had been hovering at the cave entrance were startled and "tinkling" collided as they floated back into the cave, apparently frightened.

Seeing it wasn’t an attack, Infernape sheepishly withdrew its fist.

Snivy, nestled in Johan’s clothes, lightly curled its lip, adding a few more points to the "brute" label it had placed on Flint and Infernape in its mind.

Infernape returned to the shivering Flint’s side, scratching its head.

Sorry, had a bit of a reflex reaction.

However, Infernape’s action wasn’t entirely without "effect."

The flame that had just risen in this Crown Tundra was quite conspicuous, so...

Rustle rustle rustle—

Under subtle sounds, snow around the cave that Snivy had swept clear began continuously falling.

Flint’s expression immediately changed.

"Avalanche?"

But clearly the sounds came from inside the cave.

Soon.

One by one, snow-white Snom crawled out along the cave’s rock walls like snow.

And among these Snom, a Frosmoth with snow-white crystalline wings also flew out of the cave with fluttering wings, carrying an unmistakable chill.

"Frosmoth, the Frost Moth Pokémon, Ice and Bug-type, gentle in nature, but toward behavior that destroys mountain wilderness environments, Frosmoth will regard as enemies, using its giant wings that can release cold air to fly around, causing blizzards to punish them, Rotom!"

Rotom, wearing a scarf, began fulfilling its function again.

It had been taking photos just fine, but now encountered "danger."

The flames Infernape released had melted some ice and snow, and it was melted at Frosmoth’s cave entrance—it was regarded as "destroying the wilderness."

Hearing Rotom’s explanation, Flint and Infernape looked even more embarrassed.

At this time.

Suddenly an elderly voice called out.

"Darmanitan, Powder Snow!"

Whoosh—

A gentle flurry of small snowflakes passed by, and the previously melted snow gradually recovered.

Frosmoth looked at the Darmanitan that appeared in view, looking like a snowman, restraining some of its hostility. Flapping its wings, it led the Snom back into the cave.

As Frosmoth disappeared and the wind and snow gradually dispersed, Johan and Flint also saw an elderly man wrapped up tightly like a big bear, breathing slightly heavily.

Beside him, a Darmanitan followed step by step—but it was Galarian Darmanitan, the Ice-type Darmanitan.

The one who had earlier stopped and pacified Frosmoth was this Darmanitan.

The elder caught his breath, first praised Darmanitan and fed it some food, then looked at Johan and Flint.

"You’re from outside, aren’t you?" the elder asked.

"How did you know, old man?" Flint asked confusedly.

Johan slightly turned his head, very much wanting to indicate he didn’t know this "idiot."

The elder chuckled, pointing at the clothes Johan and Flint were wearing.

Would any normal person wear short sleeves in Crown Tundra?

Then he said seriously:

"Strange travelers, walking in the snowfield and carelessly using flames is quite dangerous—it’s easy to provoke some wild Pokémon’s rejection of fire."

After pausing, he introduced himself:

"This old man is the mayor of Freezington. Darmanitan saw the fire appear, and I was worried something might happen, so I rushed over immediately."

Unlike Fire-type Darmanitan’s aggressive nature, Ice-type Darmanitan mostly had timid personalities. When encountering strangers, they would even disguise themselves as snowmen to avoid attention, waiting for the other party to leave.

For Freezington to exist in such a dangerous place as Crown Tundra, if it had absolutely no combat power, that would obviously be impossible.

"Thank you, old man."

Johan smiled and stepped forward to express gratitude, then crouched down to speak to the shy Darmanitan: "Thank you too, Darmanitan."

Speaking, he gave Darmanitan several energy cubes as thanks.

Though even if all the Frosmoth and Snom had come out earlier, Johan and Flint wouldn’t have been in trouble, it still saved some bother.

"Daruma~o(////▽////)q"

Darmanitan blushed somewhat embarrassedly.

"Since you’re travelers from outside, you should come back to the village with me first. Looking at this weather, it’ll probably be a blizzard soon," the mayor said.

"Blizzard?" Flint looked at the hazy sun in the sky.

Johan ignored him, only saying to the elder: "Thank you for the trouble, Mayor."

Since someone was leading the way, it was undoubtedly much better than running around on their own.

Though they had a map, plus Ninetales wouldn’t get lost, but... in this vast snowy mountain, finding Freezington would probably still take some time.

Moreover, Johan also wanted to ask the old mayor about Peony.

So the two followed the old mayor to a quiet valley and saw this small village built in ice and snow.

At the same time, Johan learned from the old mayor that Peony had entered the snowy mountains about ten days ago and hadn’t returned since, with his safety unknown.

"This is Freezington."

The old mayor smiled slightly, "Though it’s a poor, dilapidated place, it’s at least a place to stay. If you two don’t mind, you can make do at this old man’s house tonight."

"Thank you so much, Mayor."

After Johan sincerely thanked him, his steps stopped.

At Freezington’s entrance, there was a sculpture completely covered by ice and snow with only some parts showing, decayed and wearing something crown-like.

The old mayor noticed Johan’s gaze and explained:

"This is a sculpture that our village has passed down for thousands of years. It’s said to have once been the village’s ’guardian deity,’ but unfortunately it’s severely decayed. We don’t know which deity it commemorated."

As he spoke, he shook his head and sighed.

"There aren’t many people left in the village now, and those remaining are all elderly. Any young person with ambition mostly takes the train away from the snowfield..."

Johan stepped forward and gently brushed away the snow on the sculpture, gradually revealing its appearance.

What the mayor called "decayed" was even an understatement—this so-called sculpture couldn’t show even a hint of its former appearance.

Only the crown-like wooden sculpture on top seemed to be preserved fairly well...

Suddenly.

Buzz—

The sculpture actually trembled slightly.

Flint rubbed his eyes, while the old mayor looked completely bewildered.

The wooden crown atop the sculpture even mysteriously began floating slowly upward, and a vague, blurry figure wearing the crown, supporting itself on its knees, appeared to struggle to stand up with great effort.

But from its body, one could still faintly sense a trace of dignified aura.

Seeing that blurry figure, Johan was also somewhat astonished.

It was actually... Calyrex?!

Flint even exclaimed:

"Holy crap! What a big cauliflower!"

The phantom immediately wavered and almost dissipated.

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