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"Obsession, huh."
Slowking finished speaking, bent down to get closer to Riolu, and looked directly into its eyes.
Riolu forcibly suppressed the urge to step back and just blinked on the spot because this guy's dead-fish eyes were too terrifying.
"Having an obsession is normal; everyone has them. But this isn't something that can be resolved just by wanting to resolve it."
Slowking straightened up and looked at Li Xiang. "Before that, you need to figure out what it wants."
'What does it want?'
Li Xiang blinked. To be honest, he had never really considered this question.
In the past, aside from being interested in chocolate, Riolu didn't really care about much else.
Was it strength?
But if it was strength, that would be an endless loop. To evolve and gain strength, it first needed to obtain strength to evolve.
Li Xiang looked at Riolu, and Riolu looked back at him. Both wore blank expressions, their four eyes filled with confusion.
Clearly, Riolu itself didn't know what it wanted.
"Haha, looks like this isn't something that can be solved so smoothly."
Steelix laughed heartily, then turned serious. "You yourself know best what you want.
"We can only provide you with the means to solve problems; they can't directly give you the answers."
Meaning, go back and think about it slowly.
'Well then. This trip was a waste.'
Li Xiang barely suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, realizing he probably wouldn't get anything useful out of these sages.
"Don't make that face. It makes it seem like we two are bullying you." Steelix chuckled. "Since we couldn't help you, take this instead."
It shook its massive body, curling its tail like a dog scratching an itch, and scratched at its neck area.
Immediately, with a clinking sound, a small, spherical object fell down.
It turned out to be a somewhat dirty-looking silver bell?
"Take this. I got it when I was young."
Steelix pushed the bell towards Li Xiang. "I don't know what it's used for, but back in the day, whenever I couldn't sleep, listening to its sound would help me fall asleep."
"When you get old, your sleep quality is really poor. I'd wake up after just two days and nights, it's just."
Steelix complained.
However, Li Xiang's attention was entirely focused on that bell.
'A Soothe Bell? Really!?'
Li Xiang quickly crouched down and picked up the bell. He couldn't be sure if this thing was actually a Soothe Bell.
But if it was, then he had hit the jackpot!
"Thank you." Li Xiang thanked Steelix, never imagining that one day he would receive an object resembling a Soothe Bell from the hands of a Steelix.
A bell and a giant metal snake seemed somewhat mismatched, didn't they?
"I'm glad it can help you."
Steelix maintained its smile, even if it didn't match its fierce appearance at all.
Nearby, Slowking watched the friendly exchange between the two and seemed a bit embarrassed.
"Here we are, chatting and suddenly giving gifts. Alright, alright, I happen to have some small things too."
It reached into its snail shell hat and rummaged around, muttering, "Not this, not this either," which made Li Xiang wonder if that thing was a four-dimensional pocket.
"Got it!"
Slowking's eyes lit up, and it pulled its hand out.
Appearing in its palm were many small diamonds again. But unlike the brilliant, sparkling crystals from before, these leaned more towards a deep silver color.
Like artificially cut metal products, the kind with a fixed price, no haggling, like you'd see in a store.
Industrial by-products of modern manufacturing, a copper-nickel alloy with a bit of lead.
"I found these by accident. Haven't figured out their use, but they're very hard and won't shatter even when hit by moves. Go play with them."
Slowking acted like a parent fobbing their kid off with paste jewels.
However, Li Xiang was quite happy because he felt these things resembled [Steel Gems], a consumable item in the games that could somewhat boost the power of Steel-type moves.
Whether they actually were would need testing.
But regardless, they were freebies, something was better than nothing.
Besides, how could things like this, rarely seen even outside, exist within Mist Island?
Was it because of the special environment?
'Wow, just coming out for a stroll, and I get hit in the face with a jackpot of items. Maybe things like Choice Specs, Choice Band, Life Orb, and such could be found here too?'
Terrifying!
"You like them, that's good."
Slowking looked at Li Xiang's expression of feeling like manna had fallen from heaven, thinking to itself how humans, just like some birds and dragons, loved flashy but impractical things like gems.
After bidding farewell to the two Pokémon sages, Li Xiang didn't rush back to the base. Instead, he took Riolu and wandered around the market.
He strongly suspected that he might be able to collect gems of other types here in the market.
Although these were one-time consumables, using them occasionally could have remarkable effects.
When it came to stacking damage, one could never have too much. Furthermore, if he could find an Everstone, Eviolite, Mystic Water, or something like that, wouldn't that be a huge win?
Failing that, even getting a fossil would be great.
Harboring the idea of finding bargains, Li Xiang wandered through the market, full of anticipation.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as he wished.
There were many Pokémon in the market, and the variety of items sold was dizzying, but most of them were strange odds and ends.
Things like ropes tanned from bark, bowls ground from stone, or other special utensils.
There were even fur balls, catnip, bones, and such.
Li Xiang even saw somewhat shabby-looking dolls, ticking clocks, and other items from human society.
Additionally, there were pieces of broken glass, jade mixed with stones, agate, and the like. They glinted in the sunlight.
The more popular items were food, like dried nuts, plant roots, and such. Fragrant aromas wafted through the air.
"Roasted sweet potatoes?"
Li Xiang squeezed through a group of Pokémon, looking at the reddish-brown fruits placed in a ring-shaped stove, surrounded by plant ash and charcoal.
Two Magby were blowing on them, while a Magmar cheerfully attended to customers.
In its hands was the steaming hot, tempting orange-yellow flesh, with the dirty skin removed.
It even drizzled some Honey over it, the fragrance almost turning into a tangible, golden essence.
"Smells good."
Li Xiang rubbed his stomach. He had eaten just half an hour ago and nearly thrown up over ten minutes ago.
Now, he was actually feeling a bit hungry. He turned to look at Riolu and found the dog also showing a hesitant expression upon seeing the fragrant sweet potatoes.
Li Xiang then said, "How about we buy a small one and share it?"
"Riolu!"
Riolu was slightly delighted and quickly nodded. It took the initiative to step forward and chat with the shopkeeper, Magmar.
In the end, using a low-quality energy cube as payment, they bought a sweet potato the size of a fist.
Magmar thoughtfully split it into two portions, wrapped them in clean leaves, and drizzled plenty of fragrant Honey over the exposed surfaces.
"Riolu."
Riolu took its share, pushed through the other Pokémon, and returned to Li Xiang's side.
"Thanks."
Li Xiang held the sweet potato, first smelled its aroma, then took a bite.
Just as expected, it was very delicious. But as he ate, he found the sweet potato too cloyingly sweet. The natural sweetness plus the sweetness of the Honey combined to be a bit overwhelming.
Riolu, on the other hand, was eating happily. This guy loved sweets. It could down three Snickers bars, which were tooth-achingly sweet, without changing its expression.
Honey-sweetened sweet potatoes were nothing special.
"Hmm... items, huh."
Li Xiang crouched beside an alley, watching the Pokémon coming and going, while fiddling with the cleaned bell in his hand.
Without a system and lacking any official certification, it was really hard for him to determine if this thing was actually a Soothe Bell.
According to Steelix, its origin was that it had found it on Mirage Island when it was young.
'Mirage Island produces Soothe Bells?'
Li Xiang's expression turned strange. This Mirage Island wasn't a Mystery Dungeon, was it? Fancy and full of all sorts of things.
"Riolu?"
Having finished the sweet potato, Riolu licked its paws and saw Li Xiang staring blankly, showing a puzzled expression.
"Nothing."
Li Xiang snapped out of it and wrapped the remaining sweet potato, placing it in his backpack.
He planned to look around a bit more. If there really was nothing good, he would leave.
Man and dog continued weaving through the bustling market.
Afternoon.
The sunlight was warm.
It felt like a gentle gauze on the skin, involuntarily making one's mind hazy and wanting to sleep.
Due to the somewhat sensitive nature of being human, Li Xiang was always the center of attention in the market.
His figure, searching for something, also caught the attention of some Pokémon.
At a certain alley entrance, Li Xiang's pant leg was grabbed. It was a Sableye looking somewhat sneaky, with a face full of ingratiating, human-like smiles.
"Sableye."
Sableye let out a hoarse cry, pointing towards the slightly dim alley shaded by buildings.
"This is?"
Li Xiang didn't understand and took out his phone, waking Rotom. There was no network, but Rotom could still inhabit the phone.
"It says it has good stuff."
Rotom dutifully translated, but didn't forget to add, "I don't recommend you follow it. This guy looks unreliable. It'll just be a waste of time."
"Judging by appearance is wrong."
Li Xiang retorted, looked at the Sableye rubbing its hands, and smiled, "Anyway, I have bodyguards and you all here. Time is both the most precious and the least valuable thing. Better to err on the side of caution than miss an opportunity."
Sableye were Pokémon that naturally loved collecting and eating gems. Who knew if it had any stock that Li Xiang coveted.
Rotom shut up.
So, Li Xiang followed Sableye into the dark alley.
Considering this guy was a Dark-type, it wasn't impossible that it might find some companions and engage in the unsavory act of robbery.
He silently took out a PokéBall and held it in his palm.
Fortunately, Sableye was a Pokémon with a desire to get rich. It did have two Skuntank as companions, but it didn't try to rob Li Xiang.
Rows upon rows of gems placed on wooden boards were revealed before Li Xiang's eyes.
A wide variety.
Some were rough, some were exquisite.
"Sableye, Sableye."
Sableye screeched, gesturing for Li Xiang to take his pick.