Chapter 23: Sea God's Cave and Fu La Da Li
"I watched your Pokémon Battle just now, it was very exciting. I was right about you after all," the young woman said as she walked up to Bai Feng.
The person was none other than Kalos, whom Bai Feng had met at the Bi Yi Gym over two years ago. Compared to two years ago, she had grown taller, looking more slender and mature. The childishness had faded from her delicate face, making her appear even more stunning.
"Thank you for the compliment, I still have a long way to go," Bai Feng said humbly. "Are you perhaps thinking of having a Pokémon Battle with me too?" Remembering their agreement when they parted ways, Bai Feng suddenly asked.
"That was the original plan, but after seeing your condition today, I feel like there's no need to rush," Kalos said playfully.
"What do you mean?" Bai Feng asked, puzzled.
Kalos explained, "It's like this, I came to Couriway Town this time because I accepted a Task from the League that requires exploring the Sea God's Cave.
I've been there once before, and it's inhabited by many Wild Pokémon, which greatly interfered with my exploration Task. So now I need a helper to assist me in completing the Task. I didn't expect to run into you at the Pokémon Center today..."
"So you hope I'll go to the Sea God's Cave with you?" Bai Feng understood her meaning before Kalos finished speaking, so he asked in return.
"Exactly, if you have the Time," Kalos nodded, looking at Bai Feng with anticipation.
"Can I think about it?" In truth, Bai Feng wanted to go.
It had been over four years since he left the Island, and he had been holed up in Couriway Town, never going out once. It would be nice to have an Opportunity to see the outside world.
But the Orchard was currently very Busy...
However, thinking that he would soon be entering Middle School for studies, and going out would be even more troublesome in the future, Bai Feng felt that taking this Opportunity to go out and see things was a good choice.
"Of course, I'll be at the Pokémon Center until tomorrow noon. If you've thought it over, contact me." Saying this, Kalos gave Bai Feng her contact information. "I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the Pokémon Center then."
"Alright, it's a deal."
After making their agreement, the two parted ways.
After returning Home, Bai Feng performed the "surgery" to light up the Hidden Energy Circuit for Popplio, Helioptile, and Bai Ye respectively. While they were resting, he chatted with Fuyu, who had come to report the accounts.
After the accounts were sorted out, Bai Feng said to Fuyu, "Brother Dong Yu, a friend invited me to go out on a Task. Could I trouble you to look after things at the construction site here?"
"I can... but how long will you be gone?" Fuyu asked with a frown. "You'll be enrolling in Middle School soon, don't miss it."
"It shouldn't be too long," Bai Feng replied after a moment of thought. It shouldn't take too long, right? The Sea God's Cave wasn't far from Couriway Town.
Fuyu nodded upon hearing this. "Then go ahead, don't worry. I'll look after the construction site and the Orchard for you. Be careful out there and don't push yourself too hard."
"Okay, I know."
After explaining the Orchard matters to Fuyu, Bai Feng called Kalos and told her that he agreed to go to the Sea God's Cave together.
Getting up the next morning, Bai Feng began packing his Luggage. Change of clothes, Emergency Food, Pokémon Rations, camping gear, and so on. There was quite a lot to bring.
Since it was his first Time going out, Bai Feng wanted to bring this and that, which made him very conflicted. Bai Ye was just like him, wanting to stuff everything into the bag, feeling like everything could be useful outside.
One could only say they were truly mother and son.
Fortunately, the Pokémon World had amazing Items like Space Backpacks, which brought great convenience to Trainers going out. Otherwise, Bai Feng and Bai Ye wouldn't know how much Luggage they'd have to carry for a trip.
Bai Feng's Space Backpack was new. He bought it after he had Money, and he had barely used it since buying it.
When he bought this backpack, it was purely out of curiosity about this magical Item. In reality, staying at Home all day, he had no use for it. If it weren't for the high price, he almost would have given this Space Backpack to Dean Meili for grocery shopping.
Now it finally came in handy.
At noon, Bai Feng rode his Talonflame captain and set off.
Considering that having a Flying Mount was very necessary for adventuring outside, Bai Feng thought for a long Time and finally decided to bring the Talonflame captain along, in addition to Bai Ye, Popplio, and Helioptile.
Moreover, in terms of Combat Power, the unevolved Popplio and Helioptile were no match for the Talonflame captain. Only Bai Ye could consistently win against the Talonflame captain.
With the Talonflame captain there, Bai Feng felt much more secure. At the very least, it was much more convenient to escape when encountering danger!
"Yarok~"
With a long cry, Bai Feng steered the Talonflame captain towards the West District of Couriway Town. Before long, they arrived at the entrance of the Pokémon Center, where Kalos was indeed waiting for him.
Seeing Bai Feng's majestic Talonflame, Kalos exclaimed, "Is this the one you rode to the Bi Yi Gym back then? It's gotten much stronger!"
Bai Feng proudly patted the Talonflame captain's wing and said, "That's right, it's him!"
"Then let's go," Kalos nodded. Seeing this Talonflame, she felt more confident about this Task.
Bai Feng, however, pointed to the Pokémon Center and said, "Wait a moment, I need to buy something inside."
"Okay, hurry up!" Kalos nodded, not asking what Bai Feng needed to buy at this point.
What Bai Feng wanted to buy were Poké Balls. Besides the Poké Balls for Bai Ye, Popplio, and Helioptile, he didn't have a fourth one. He needed to buy a few spares for this trip.
The Talonflame also needed one, otherwise, it would be troublesome if he needed it to enter a Poké Ball outside.
Bai Feng quickly came out of the Pokémon Center. He held a newly bought Poké Ball and gestured to the Talonflame captain. The Talonflame captain understood and lowered its head, gently pressing its forehead against the Poké Ball's button. The next second, it turned into a red light and was recalled.
This was something Bai Feng had discussed with it before setting off.
Seeing this scene, Kalos looked surprised. She didn't understand why this Talonflame, which had been with Bai Feng for two years, still didn't have a Poké Ball.
Could it be a Pokémon left by his elders?
Seeing Kalos's puzzled expression, Bai Feng smiled and explained, "I'm Different from you. I'm not a Trainer in the true sense. The Talonflame is the captain of the Patrol Team at my Home's Orchard. It was temporarily assigned to me. I don't have a dedicated Flying Mount myself."
Kalos suddenly understood upon hearing this, realizing she had misunderstood just now.
She suddenly remembered that Bai Feng seemed to have explained the Talonflame this way before, but he hadn't specifically introduced the relationship between the Talonflame and himself at that Time.
"In that case, let's set off!"
Saying this, Kalos released a Braviary and rode on it.
Seeing this, Bai Feng also released the Talonflame captain again, and after riding on it, he closely followed behind Kalos and her Braviary.
Along the way, Kalos introduced the Situation of the Sea God's Cave to Bai Feng.
The Sea God's Cave is located in a dangerous Sea Area east of Couriway Town, a place known as both wondrous and perilous.
Countless Trainers have always wanted to unveil its mystery, but those who entered either gained nothing, were severely injured, or even disappeared there entirely.
According to the League scientists' detection, the area around the Sea God's Cave is filled with a large amount of special Energy, and this Energy is suspected to be from ancient times.
For this reason, the League has issued many Tasks to explore the Sea God's Cave, attempting to figure out the source of the overflowing Energy. Unfortunately, those who took on this Task changed generation after generation, but none succeeded in the end.
This also made the Sea God's Cave even more mysterious.
The reason Kalos took on this Task was because she felt her Strength had hit a bottleneck and needed an Opportunity for a breakthrough.
However, when she truly delved into this Task, she felt it was more complicated than she had imagined. To be cautious, she decided to find a strong helper.
After half a day, Bai Feng and Kalos successfully arrived at the outer area of the Sea God's Cave.
The Sea God's Cave is located in the center of a vast blue Bay, surrounded by large areas of ring-shaped Reefs, guarding the entrance to the Sea God's Cave like sentinels.
According to Kalos, many dangerous Pokémon are hidden among these Reefs.
Looking at the setting Sun, Kalos suggested, "It's getting late today, let's find a place to rest for the night and explore tomorrow."
"Okay, I'll listen to you." It was Bai Feng's first Time adventuring outside, and he didn't understand many things, so of course, he had to listen to the senior.
The two found a place to land and were about to set up camp when they suddenly heard the sound of a Pokémon Battle coming from a distance. The commotion was quite significant.
"Let's go take a look!" Kalos said, and immediately urged her Braviary to fly towards the direction of the sound.
Seeing this, Bai Feng quickly had the Talonflame follow.
Before long, the two found the source of the sound. On a giant Reef, five young Trainers were being surrounded and attacked by a group of Skrelp and Dragalge.
The Quantity of Skrelp and Dragalge was extremely large, and the five people were clearly about to collapse.
"Go save them!" Kalos said anxiously.
However, just as the two were about to go forward to rescue them, a tornado appeared out of nowhere, sweeping a large area of Skrelp and Dragalge into the air, temporarily relieving the crisis for the five people.
Not far away, on the Sea surface, a giant Gyarados had appeared at some point. More importantly, an exceptionally tall young man was standing on the Gyarados.
The young man had bright red Hair, like a lion's mane surrounding his head. His expression was firm and serious, and when commanding the Gyarados in Pokémon Battle, his attitude was decisive and his movements were sharp, looking quite extraordinary.
This is... Fu La Da Li?
Although Bai Feng didn't recognize Kalos the first Time he met her, he couldn't mistake Fu La Da Li this Time, because his male Pyroar-like hairstyle was simply too iconic.
Unlike the middle-aged man in Bai Feng's impression, the Fu La Da Li before him was still a young man, probably in his early twenties, who could be considered a very handsome young fellow. (The protagonist is twelve years old, Kalos is fourteen years old.)
Just a little less handsome than me! Bai Feng thought silently to himself.
"Help out!" Kalos turned her head and said to Bai Feng.
Although Fu La Da Li and his Gyarados were strong, the Quantity of Skrelp and Dragalge was too large, and the Situation of the five young Trainers was still not optimistic.
Hearing this, Bai Feng quickly took the Talonflame captain forward to assist.
Kalos's Braviary used Tailwind, and their flying speed suddenly increased. In the blink of an eye, they were above the group of Skrelp and Dragalge.
Upon entering the battlefield, Bai Feng and Kalos leaped cleanly from the backs of the Talonflame captain and Braviary, allowing the two Pokémon to battle without restraint.
The Talonflame captain used Quick Attack, swiftly weaving through the Skrelp and Dragalge swarm. Each attack could knock a Skrelp or Dragalge into the Water.
The Braviary quickly flapped its wings and sharp claws, using the Fury Swipes Move to knock away all the Skrelp and Dragalge approaching the five Trainers, protecting them in Time.
The five Trainers saw the sudden appearance of Bai Feng and the other two and breathed a sigh of relief. Just now, they almost thought they were going to perish here today.
The Sea God's Cave truly lived up to its reputation!
In the battlefield, Bai Feng released Helioptile. It first used the Charge Move to strengthen its Electric Type Moves, then its body glowed with golden light, and streams of Electric Current were controlled by it, shooting out and electrocuting the Skrelp one by one.
The Move Helioptile used was Parabolic Charge, which not only damaged the enemy but also converted the damage dealt into Stamina for Helioptile, so Helioptile became more energetic the more it attacked.
In addition, Helioptile's Ability is Dry Skin. When hit by Water Type Moves, it not only becomes immune to damage but also recovers a certain amount of Stamina.
So, against Water Type Pokémon, Helioptile was a professional.
However, besides using Water Type Moves, Skrelp also used Poison Type Moves, which was a bit tricky to deal with.
The five young Trainers were facing a situation with no retreat precisely because all their Pokémon had been poisoned.
Fortunately, Kalos was very capable. She released a Gardevoir and had it use Misty Terrain.
Misty Terrain can make all Pokémon on the field immune to status conditions, and also halve the Power of Dragalge's Dragon Type Moves. It could be said to be the most effective Move for dealing with the current Situation.
With the combined efforts of Bai Feng, Kalos, and Fu La Da Li, the Skrelp and Dragalge were quickly repelled, and everyone's crisis was resolved.
"Thank you all. If you hadn't intervened in Time, we probably would have been buried in the Sea," the five rescued Trainers, dragging their weary bodies, came to Bai Feng and Kalos and sincerely thanked them.
These five people consisted of two men and three women, all looking around twenty years old, and all had injuries, some light, some heavy.
At this Time, Fu La Da Li also steered his Gyarados ashore and joined Bai Feng and the others. The five people also thanked him.
"How did you provoke so many Skrelp and Dragalge?" Fu La Da Li asked, puzzled.
One of the girls among the five said with a bitter smile, "It was our own greed..."
They had come to explore the Sea God's Cave, originally only planning to look around the outside, as this place was well-known and not somewhere to be reckless.
However, they later accidentally saw a Piplup. While chasing the Piplup, the five people unexpectedly entered the Sea God's Cave.
They were also young and impulsive, not having truly witnessed the terror of the Sea God's Cave, so they pushed forward, continuing to chase the Piplup, after all, a Pokémon like Piplup wasn't easy to encounter elsewhere.
Lured by the Piplup, they eventually fell into the encirclement of Skrelp and Dragalge.
The five people spent a great deal of effort to escape from inside the Sea God's Cave, but who knew that those Skrelp and Dragalge would also follow them out in a rush.
"What are you going to do next?" Kalos asked.
"Of course, we're leaving here immediately," one of the boys said without hesitation.
"But our Pokémon are all poisoned..." another girl said dejectedly. How could they leave without their Pokémon?
At this point, Bai Feng took out some Pecha Berries from his backpack and handed them over, saying, "Take these. Just feed them to your Pokémon."
Pecha Berries can cure severe poisoning and poisoning status.
As a Berry farming expert, how could Bai Feng go out without bringing Berries!
"That's great, thank you! We'll definitely repay you if we have the Opportunity in the future!"
The five were overjoyed. They took the Pecha Berries Bai Feng gave them and fed them to their Pokémon.
After their Pokémon recovered, the five quickly left the Sea God's Cave. Before leaving, they exchanged names and contact information with Bai Feng and the others, promising to repay the three for saving their lives if they had the Opportunity in the future.
It was this mutual introduction that confirmed to Bai Feng that the red-haired young man was indeed Fu La Da Li.
After the five people left, only Bai Feng, Kalos, and Fu La Da Li remained.
(End of Chapter)