"Looks like it's because of the contract!"
Thinking this, Icarus deliberately ran a little farther away and began actively inhaling the Poison Powder still lingering in the air.
"Cough, cough!"
After observing his body's reaction, he confirmed that it felt almost the same as when he had accidentally inhaled it back at the Freshman Level.
He suddenly laughed, then quickly took out an antidote and drank it.
"It seems my physical fitness has improved, and my poison resistance has increased significantly! From now on, whenever Bellsprout releases Poison Powder, I can test my resistance if I have time."
As he spoke, Icarus dropped to the ground and began doing push-ups.
"1, 2, 3… 90, 91…"
Finally collapsing onto the grass, he burst into laughter.
"My stamina has increased by nearly half. No wonder running laps this morning felt so easy. I'll have to increase my training intensity!"
"Pidgey? Pidgey?"
Pidgey stared in confusion. Watching its Trainer suddenly start doing push-ups and laughing to himself felt very strange.
Since today's focus was testing Bellsprout's strength—and Pidgey might be needed to assist—it had been excused from training. Icarus had even promised new training content later.
After lying there for a while, Icarus felt his exhausted muscles slowly recovering.
"This? What's happening?"
He noticed his recovery speed was roughly one-third faster than before. Moreover, a gentle energy seemed to be nourishing his overworked body, accelerating the process.
"This must be Grass-type energy—it's increasing my vitality!"
Having exercised consistently for years, he could quickly assess the improvement in his physical condition.
Meanwhile, beside him, Bellsprout finally finished filling the three empty bottles. Though it felt nearly drained, it still retained some fighting capability.
"Sprout! Sprout~"
Using its vines, it lifted the three large bottles. When it stood up, it noticed that the previously green grass around it had turned yellow.
Soon it realized some Poison Powder still lingered in the air. It immediately understood—the discoloration was caused by its lack of control.
"Sprout…"
Although proud to have filled three bottles at once, Bellsprout handed them to Icarus with a disappointed expression.
"Well done, Bellsprout! You could only fill one bottle before, and now you can fill three. That means your energy reserves can fully support daily powder consumption. That's tremendous progress!"
Glancing at the three full containers, Icarus nodded in satisfaction. Of course, he had noticed Bellsprout's disappointed look and understood it had recognized its own shortcomings.
But for growth, encouragement came first.
"Sprout~?"
"Of course it's true!"
He patted its head reassuringly.
Bellsprout perked up, then lowered its head and voluntarily explained its control issues.
"That's excellent. You discovered your own weakness and had the courage to admit it. Now that we've identified it, we'll fix it through training."
"Sprout!"
Bellsprout nodded firmly.
"Alright. Next, we'll test the powder's effects on Pokémon."
Icarus turned his gaze toward Pidgey.
"Pidgey? Pidgey?!"
Realizing it was about to become the test subject, Pidgey tried to protest. It had only inhaled a tiny bit earlier and had already needed several mouthfuls of antidote!
"As a team member, Pidgey, are you willing to help Bellsprout test the powder's effectiveness?
You're already at the high stage of the Freshman Level, so your test results directly affect our future hunts. And I bought several antidotes—there's no danger."
Icarus held up a brand-new antidote as proof.
"Sprout~ sprout~"
Bellsprout looked at Pidgey expectantly, promising it wouldn't release too much.
"Pidgey…"
With a helpless cry, Pidgey accepted its fate.
"Alright. Let's begin. Stand about one meter apart."
Pidgey obediently positioned itself.
Rustle—
Bellsprout released Sleep Powder.
A thick cloud enveloped Pidgey. Within moments, it fell asleep.
"Pidgey? Pidgey?!"
Icarus couldn't wake it the old way—by smacking it—so he resorted to shouting.
Despite repeated calls, Pidgey remained asleep.
"Deep sleep. And it happened faster than with Caterpie."
He recorded the observation carefully.
Together with Bellsprout, he shouted into Pidgey's ear.
"Pidgey!"
"Sprout!"
"Pidgey…?"
Finally, Pidgey stirred awake.
"Next, five meters."
Pidgey trudged to the marked position.
Another wave of Sleep Powder drifted through the air.
"This concentration… only slightly weaker than at one meter. Still high density."
Icarus was pleasantly surprised. Bellsprout's field control had improved dramatically.
Soon, at nearly the same speed as before, Pidgey fell asleep again—once more in deep sleep.
Then came the ten-meter test. Previously, that had been Bellsprout's limit.
Now, after reaching the Normal Level, ten meters still induced a moderate sleep state.
Finally, testing showed that at around eighteen meters, Bellsprout could still affect a Pokémon's condition.
This result genuinely surprised Icarus. Bellsprout hadn't even undergone post-breakthrough training yet.
Next came Poison Powder and Stun Spore tests.
Pidgey once again played the role of volunteer.
The results showed that both powders had increased in effectiveness by nearly half, and their effective range matched that of Sleep Powder.
(End of Chapter 74)
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