After seeing Professor Zhou and his group off, Chen Mo finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"This should count as the best possible outcome I could've hoped for…"
By borrowing Uxie's name, Chen Mo had successfully preserved his current pace of life while also securing an opportunity to cooperate with the Monster Research and Countermeasure Bureau. It perfectly fulfilled his earlier thought of resting in the shade of a big tree.
However…
As the discussions were coming to an end, Professor Zhou had also given Chen Mo a special gift, fulfilling the commendation that Officer Wang had promised earlier.
According to Professor Zhou, in order to optimize the viewing experience of Chen Mo's livestreams—and also to achieve better publicity effects—they planned to provide him with a brand-new set of livestreaming equipment. At the same time, they would assign a special assistant to help with operations. From then on, Chen Mo would only need to focus on the educational content during the stream.
As for that special assistant, Chen Mo already knew him—it was the silent bodyguard who had accompanied them during the visit.
Given how often unexpected incidents forced him to abandon his equipment mid-stream, Chen Mo felt this arrangement was actually quite reasonable and readily agreed.
"With official recognition backing me, the number of knowledge points I earn over the next period should skyrocket. I really need to think carefully about how to use them… Also, I should compile information on Pokémon suitable for cooperation and send it to Professor Zhou and the others…"
Just as Chen Mo began planning for the future, on the return trip in another vehicle, Officer Wang—who had fallen silent during the latter half of the journey—turned to look at Professor Zhou, who was deep in thought beside him.
"Do you think what Chen Mo said was all true?"
"Heh."
Professor Zhou smiled, then glanced at Hu Chengliang sitting in the middle of the back seat and the man in the white lab coat who had turned around from the front passenger seat.
"What do you two think?"
Hu Chengliang thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"I don't know."
He didn't like pondering over complicated matters that seemed to have little practical value. The communication was complete, cooperation had been finalized—there was no need to dwell on it further.
So he immediately entered his usual laid-back mode.
On the other hand, the man in the white lab coat quickly shared his view.
"I think some of it's true and some of it isn't. At the very least, the part about Uxie sounds believable. And honestly, half-truths are often the most convincing. Don't you think so, Professor?"
Professor Zhou continued smiling without answering, instead changing the subject.
"I asked you to watch Xiao Mo's livestreams and record anything of value. But do you still remember something he once said on stream?"
'Emotion is the most crucial link between humans and Pokémon. If you treat Pokémon with goodwill, they will respond with corresponding expectations.'
"He firmly believes in this model. And this old man believes as well that the way humans interact with Pokémon—and even with each other—is fundamentally the same."
Officer Wang nodded thoughtfully. The man in the white lab coat shrugged and said nothing more.
...
Elsewhere in Anping City.
Inside a luxurious private dining room of a restaurant.
"Everyone, don't hold back today—this meal's on me! Order whatever you like, drink whatever you want. Finally getting discharged from the hospital is something worth celebrating!"
In the lively room, a buzz-cut young man enthusiastically greeted everyone.
Ah Hui was among them, joining in the cheer.
Most of the people present were from the same group that had gone camping together. Seeing his companions' injuries improve and watching them leave the hospital safely made Ah Hui genuinely happy.
"By the way, Haoran, didn't the doctor say your injuries would take at least half a year to fully recover? How did you get discharged so quickly?"
After a few rounds of drinks, Ah Hui looked at the buzz-cut young man with surprise written all over his face.
When they had been attacked by the Butterfree, Haoran's injuries—while not the worst in the group—had still been far more serious than Ah Hui's own.
By Ah Hui's estimate, even a full recovery should've taken several months.
Yet it hadn't been that long at all—Ah Hui himself hadn't been discharged for very long, and now Haoran was already out too.
"How would I know?" Haoran replied with a smile. "The doctor just told me I could be discharged."
"While we're at it, here's some more good news—Rui Ming and the others, who were the most severely injured, have also started showing improvement recently. If things go smoothly, they should be discharged around mid-year."
"Holy crap, really!? Injuries that serious can actually be treated now? You're not messing with me, are you!?"
Although Ah Hui knew their group had been at fault, hearing that his friends' conditions were improving—and that they wouldn't be left permanently disabled—completely lifted the shadow that had been hanging over him.
"Hahaha, Ah Hui, you don't have to get so worked up."
At that moment, someone else in the room spoke up.
"Haoran's probably telling the truth. You know I've got an uncle who's a department director at a hospital in the capital, right? He came back from Beijing a few days ago and mentioned something related. He said the country has now confirmed that after the monster invasion, for reasons not yet fully understood, humans' overall physical fitness has been steadily improving—and our recovery ability far exceeds what it was before the invasion."
"Actually, Ah Hui, you should've noticed it yourself. Your injuries weren't light either, but didn't you recover pretty quickly too?"
Hearing this, the lingering gloom Ah Hui had been carrying over his companions' injuries finally began to fade.
"Uh… hahaha, that does seem to be the case… Damn, I thought it was just because I exercised a lot and was already in good shape."
"Give me a break," the buzz-cut youth scoffed. "From what I know, aside from camping, you usually just stay home all day, don't you?"
As he spoke, he rubbed his buzzed head.
"Speaking of which, what a shame about my beautiful hair. All because of that damned butterfly monster—not only did I end up hospitalized for so long, I even lost my hair. If I ever get the chance, I'm definitely getting my revenge on those butterfly demons!"
"You're getting worked up again. You think I don't know you? Next time you see a butterfly monster, you'll probably run faster than any of us."
"But Haoran's not wrong about one thing—those butterfly monsters really are hateful. We didn't provoke them at all, and they just rushed over to attack us."
"Don't worry. I believe that one day, those butterfly monsters squatting in Evergreen Forest will taste the might of humanity!"
The buzz-cut youth continued ranting, but then suddenly noticed that Ah Hui, sitting nearby, looked a little off.
He immediately teased him,
"Huh? What's with you, Ah Hui? Weren't you the one shouting the loudest before? Why are you suddenly so quiet? Don't tell me you've chickened out?"
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