"Nido!"
As if it suddenly realized how ridiculous it looked, Nidoking's face showed a rare flicker of embarrassment.
Even though its usual meals were top-grade Pokéblocks, this one tempted it like nothing it had ever felt before.
"Nidoking—here. This Pokéblock is for you."
The Pokéblock in Guo Yi's hand was made using those Zygarde scales.
Aside from the scales themselves—which were a pain to acquire—the other ingredients could all be bought from the shop.
Of course… anything that even brushed up against a Legendary Pokémon became absurdly expensive.
This batch cost a full fifty thousand Mentor Points to make.
And even then, he only got ten.
Fortunately, Guo Yi was long past the stage of worrying about money. Fifty thousand Mentor Points didn't even make him blink.
"Nido!" [Thank you, Trainer!]
Nidoking thanked him, then reached out and snatched the Pokéblock it had been drooling over.
It swallowed it in a single bite.
As Nidoking licked its lips, savoring the taste—a surging power began to well up inside its body.
Without the slightest hesitation, Nidoking dropped low to the ground and began absorbing and comprehending that energy.
Second by second, a faint earthen-yellow glow bloomed over Nidoking's body.
Like a protective shell, it batted away the raindrops, isolating Nidoking from the downpour.
At the same time, tiny points of earthen-yellow starlight flickered in and out around it.
Using Aura, Guo Yi could sense dense Ground-type energy radiating from those sparks.
"I wonder if Nidoking can grasp an exclusive move directly this time."
Watching the scene unfold, Guo Yi found himself quietly—unexpectedly—excited.
After all, the Pokéblock was only an assist.
Whether Nidoking could actually comprehend the exclusive move from it—that depended on Nidoking's talent and potential.
Still... Guo Yi was confident on both counts.
Nidoking's innate potential had already reached Elite Four Tier.
Then it had undergone Template binding with every one of Su Qingxue's Pokémon—pushing its potential even higher.
It still hadn't reached Master Tier, but Champion Tier was absolutely within reach.
If even that kind of potential couldn't learn it, then Guo Yi really wouldn't have an answer.
And Nidoking didn't disappoint.
Half an hour later, the starlight orbiting its body condensed, hardening into thin rock blades—so fine they looked like cicada wings.
"NIDO!"
With a roar, Nidoking sent those blades shooting outward, transforming into a storm of arrows that sprayed in all directions.
THOUSAND ARROWS!
"Yes!" Guo Yi let out a breath, delighted.
Through Data Eye, he immediately confirmed which exclusive move Nidoking had mastered.
Thousand Arrows.
In Nidoking's hands, it looked a lot like stone blades—but Thousand Arrows was a true Ground-type move.
And the most terrifying part was this: a Ground-type attack that could hit airborne Pokémon.
It even came with a knockdown effect—exactly the kind of secondary effect that could trigger Sheer Force.
Once Nidoking fully mastered it, its strength would rise again.
On paper, Thousand Arrows and Earth Power both had a base power of 90.
But as a physical move, Thousand Arrows suited Nidoking better.
After all, Nidoking's base Attack was higher than its Special Attack.
After another fifteen minutes or so, Nidoking finally stirred.
"Nido!" [Trainer, that Pokéblock was so weird!]
"Nido~ Nido!" [After I ate it, it felt like I was dreaming—like I was put through special training under a green, humanoid Pokémon.]
Nidoking looked at its Trainer with open curiosity.
"A dream…?" Guo Yi murmured, lowering his head in thought.
This was his first time using Pokéblocks for exclusive-move learning.
So even Guo Yi didn't know exactly how they worked.
Then he asked, "Can you enter that dream again right now?"
Nidoking closed its eyes and felt around for a moment.
Then it shook its head and reported honestly.
"Nido." [No.]
"Nido... Nido." [It feels like something inside me is missing… something that connected me to the dream.]
"I see."
From the brief exchange, Guo Yi more or less understood what this special Pokéblock did.
It was like teaching: after you ate it, the Legendary Pokémon tied to the Pokéblock would act as the "teacher" and run move training.
From there—how much you learned, how fast you learned it… depended entirely on the Pokémon's own talent and luck.
"Let's go, Nidoking," Guo Yi said.
"Next, you're going to use that move you just learned to fight other Pokémon."
Now that he understood how these custom Pokéblocks worked, Guo Yi naturally intended to squeeze every drop of value out of them.
Before Nidoking hit a bottleneck with Thousand Arrows, he wouldn't waste a single Pokéblock.
And besides—if possible, Guo Yi also needed to prepare to capture a Dragon-type Pokémon with solid potential.
Compared to the three Ground-type moves, the Dragon-type move Core Enforcer was Zygarde's strongest exclusive move.
There was no way Guo Yi would give that up.
"Nido!" [Trainer, bring it on!]
The moment it heard "battle training," Nidoking's eyes lit up.
These days, aside from sparring during routine training, it had barely had any real fights.
The battle instinct in its blood had been itching for an outlet for a long time.
It immediately surged forward, aggressive and eager, searching for a suitable opponent.
…
"Peli—!"
Not long after, cries rang out from above.
Guo Yi looked up.
In the stormy sky, a Pokémon with a huge yellow beak, white-speckled plumage, and blue claws—plus blue wing tips and a blue forehead—was flying through the downpour.
"Pelipper!"
Guo Yi recognized it at a glance.
[Pelipper (Water/Flying)]
[Gender]: Female
[Level]: lv60 (Gym Leader Tier)
[Ability]: Drizzle
[Moves]: Hurricane, Water Pulse, Wing Attack, Air Slash(commonly used moves)
[Taught Moves]: Steel Wing, Aerial Ace, Hydro Pump
[Egg Move]: Aqua Ring
[Held Item]: None
[Potential]: Gym Leader Tier
"A Drizzle Pelipper—perfect weather support for a rain team."
"Shame the potential's a bit low."
After reading the panel, Guo Yi shook his head with a hint of regret.
This Pelipper had already hit its ceiling.
Without a heaven-sent opportunity, it probably wouldn't take another step forward.
But…
"Level 60, and Flying-type too. Perfect for Nidoking to practice on."
With Template's boost, Nidoking was also at Lv60 now.
This Pelipper was an ideal opponent.
Guo Yi pointed at the Pelipper in the sky and swept his arm.
"Nidoking—[THOUSAND ARROWS]!"
"Nido!"
The instant it heard the order, Nidoking began drawing up energy and preparing the move.
However—Nidoking was still only a beginner with this move.
From gathering energy to actually firing, the whole process took more than thirty seconds.
With a charge time that long, Pelipper had already noticed its intent.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh!
Countless rock blades condensed from Ground-type energy screamed upward toward Pelipper.
Pelipper showed no fear.
Not only did she not retreat—she tucked her wings and charged straight in.
At the instant the rock blades were about to collide—
"Peli—!"
A dazzling white light burst over Pelipper's body, and her flight speed jumped sharply.
A blur of afterimages flickered and danced between the incoming blades.
To Nidoking, that was blatant provocation.
Electric arcs immediately crackled across the horn on Nidoking's head.
THUNDERBOLT!
A "gift" it fully intended to deliver.
But before Nidoking could strike, Guo Yi stopped it.
"Nidoking. Aside from the move you just used, you're not allowed to use anything else."
If he simply wanted Pelipper down, Guo Yi had plenty of ways to do it.
But right now—his goal was to raise Nidoking's proficiency with the move.
He couldn't let the battle end that easily.
After all, a Sheer Force Thunderbolt paired with a Life Orb wasn't something a same-level Pelipper could withstand.
One hit—maybe that was all it would take for Pelipper to drop on the spot.
"Nido!"
Under Guo Yi's command, Nidoking begrudgingly dispersed the lightning it had gathered.
But Nidoking stopping didn't mean Pelipper stopped.
With the boost from Aerial Ace, Pelipper showed off extremely sharp flight control.
First came a straight dive—then a sudden ninety-degree cut.
The next second…
Pelipper slammed headfirst into Nidoking.
Screeech!
A harsh grinding sound tore through the air.
Even with Nidoking's massive bulk, it was pushed back several meters before it fully bled off the force.
"Peli, peli—!"
After landing the hit, Pelipper cried out in gleeful triumph from midair.
Nidoking was furious.
It immediately began gathering power again, preparing to unleash Thousand Arrows once more.
But—even an eight-second charge was still far too long.
Every time Nidoking hit the halfway point, Pelipper would dart in and disrupt its focus.
It left Nidoking feeling completely pinned down.
---
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
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