[Flavorful Leek: Fighting-Type Version. After losing the original effect of the ingredient itself, it has gained a Flowing Flame effect. When facing fire, it can absorb damage from Fire-type moves, increasing the weapon's own strength and the power of Fighting-type moves. It also possesses an effect that can break through illusions!]
Hmm...
It really had become a signature weapon.
Lin Feng found it rather fascinating.
The leek that had been soft and floppy just moments ago had somehow become incredibly tough the moment Farfetch'd took hold of it.
And it even came with such powerful effects...
[Gaa gaa...]
Farfetch'd wanted to test out its new weapon immediately.
But Lin Feng stopped it.
There was no fighting allowed inside the plantation.
Lin Feng looked at the leek Farfetch'd had discarded earlier.
An idea immediately came to him.
[B-Rank Ingredient: Leek. This was once a leek held by a Farfetch'd. After countless battles and years of becoming accustomed to its owner, it has accumulated a certain amount of Fighting-type energy. When used to prepare food, it seems to possess a special effect.]
The leek Farfetch'd had replaced actually seemed to have some use for him as well.
[Then I'll take this leek, alright?]
Lin Feng picked it up as he spoke.
"Gaa gaa..."
Farfetch'd agreed without hesitation.
Lin Feng put the leek away.
Then, with Gible and Farfetch'd having both gained something from their trip, he led them back to the living room.
The moment Farfetch'd walked in carrying its red leek, it immediately attracted the attention of every Pokémon.
The bright red leek had completely erased the nervousness it had shown earlier.
Farfetch'd was confident again.
It could feel it.
With this leek in its hands, its strength had increased tremendously!
"Wow! That's so cool!"
Qin Shu's eyes lit up the instant she saw it.
She hurried over to Farfetch'd and began admiring it.
Although she didn't know exactly what had happened, judging from Farfetch'd's completely different aura and the appearance of its new leek...
There was no doubt that Farfetch'd had undergone a qualitative change!
Lin Feng's own Pokémon weren't particularly surprised.
After all, Lin Feng had occasionally used leeks like this in his cooking, so they were already familiar with them.
And when it came to the strange things their Trainer could do...
They had seen far too many examples already.
But for Zoroark, Noivern, and Meowscarada from Qin Shu's team, it was an entirely different matter.
That red leek gave them a faint sense of danger.
They couldn't quite explain what kind of aura it carried.
But they instinctively felt wary of it.
As for Qin Shu's Meowscarada...
"Meow..."
It had never received anything particularly good from Lin Feng before.
Yet these two new Pokémon had only just arrived, and they had already received such amazing gifts...
He's so biased... meow...
...
.....
Over the next few days,
nothing particularly strange happened at the nursery.
Meanwhile, in the northeastern region...
Inside a city filled with towering skyscrapers stood an imposing research facility.
Sunlight streamed through the windows of one of its rooms.
Various types of research equipment filled the space.
It was obviously a laboratory.
And inside one of the laboratory's sealed rooms...
A young man wearing a white lab coat stood in front of a strange object.
His features were sharp and well-defined.
Behind his gold-rimmed glasses were dark circles under his eyes, clearly showing that he had been staying up late for a long time.
Floating before him under electromagnetic force was a dazzling, multicolored stone.
The stone shimmered with an unusual radiance.
"Did it work?"
The young man spoke with uncertainty.
Then he released the electromagnetic force.
He carefully took the crystal into his hands.
After leaving the laboratory, he dismissed the other researchers.
He hurried downstairs, found a car, and drove toward the outskirts of the city.
After passing through several layers of concealed passages, he finally arrived at a dimly lit room.
Inside were rows of iron cages.
And inside those cages were Pokémon.
One glance was enough to recognize them.
Garchomp.
Charizard.
Beedrill.
Gengar.
Houndoom...
A whole group of Pokémon had been imprisoned inside specially reinforced cages.
Various restraints were fastened around their bodies.
This was clearly not a legitimate Pokémon facility.
And more importantly...
These Pokémon seemed to share something in common.
The gold-rimmed-glasses young man looked at them.
Then he looked down at the stone in his hand.
Excitement and brilliance flashed through his eyes.
[A stone containing the energy of the Ley Lines excavated seventeen years ago. My father was buried in the disaster surrounding it and believed the stone was useless. But...]
He paused.
His expression gradually became crazed.
"A stone protected by the Ley Lines..."
"How could it possibly be useless?!"
[What my father failed to accomplish back then... I'll accomplish it myself!]
"Twelfth attempt..."
Holding the stone, he walked toward a Beedrill.
Among all the experimental subjects, Beedrill was the easiest Pokémon to obtain.
He placed the stone against Beedrill's body and secured it with straps.
Then he took out a control device.
The moment he pressed the button, the machinery began glowing.
Energy traveled through a series of cables and eventually flowed into the wristwatch he was wearing.
If one looked closely, there was another stone embedded in that wristwatch.
"Bzzzz..."
Violent energy surged through Beedrill's body.
The Pokémon was jolted awake from its hypnotized state.
Powerful waves of energy swept across its body.
Then, surrounded by brilliant multicolored light, its body began to change.
It stretched.
Its long stingers grew even longer.
Its already streamlined body became even more aerodynamic.
Its eyes narrowed.
And when the light finally faded...
A gigantic Mega Beedrill stood inside the cage.
Its body resembled a living weapon covered in enormous stingers.
But the transformation was clearly imperfect.
Mega Beedrill let out a painful screech.
Its body slammed against the iron cage again and again.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The cage shook violently.
But its quality was astonishingly good.
It didn't break.
The young man beside the cage immediately pressed another button on the control device.
The energy intensified.
Beedrill's suffering became even more severe.
[Stop resisting, Beedrill!]
[You can't escape!]
His voice was filled with madness.
His expression had become almost deranged.
As long as he could control the first Pokémon that underwent this transformation...
There would be a second.
Then a third.
And countless more after that.
And...
He looked at the stone in his hand.
His excitement grew even more intense.
He had more than a dozen stones like this among the things his father had left behind.
And inside those Ley Lines...
Who knew how many more were waiting?
With stones containing this kind of energy...
The possibilities were endless.
Eventually, Beedrill's violent movements began to slow.
Its body gradually relaxed.
It had finally become docile.
The young man's laughter grew louder.
More arrogant.
More unrestrained.
He was going to collect more Ley Line Stones.
And once he had enough...
He would create even more Pokémon like this one.
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