Chapter 8: First meeting with Abe
Pinsir's level was not low. After all, within Arbok's territory, it was purely the law of the jungle. If Pinsir were too weak, he wouldn't be able to occupy such a tree as his nest. But his level was also very limited. Although Ryū could not see the levels of other Pokémon, he could make a rough judgment by comparing them with his own strength. This Pinsir's level should only be around 15. In a one-on-one fight, Ryū might not necessarily lose, as his intelligence was relatively high, and he wouldn't randomly use skills. With three Beedrill ganging up on it, Pinsir lasted less than 3 minutes before they beat him until his eyes were spinning.
As for Pinsir, Suzume glanced at him twice and then looked away; she had no appetite for him at all, and Kikō was even less interested. Ryū had asked, and Kikō had never eaten other Pokémon. Now that they had achieved food freedom, their desire to prey on other Pokémon was almost zero. So Ryū almost didn't hesitate and continued to move deeper with Kikō and Suzume.
Along the way, whenever a Pokémon entered their sight, Ryū would take Suzume and Kikō to gang up on it. Butterfree, Pidgeotto, Rattata, Ekans, Nidorino, Venonat, Gloom—these Pokémon had basically all been beaten by them. However, they finally encountered a Paras whose level was definitely above 20. After that battle, the stamina of Ryū's three Beedrill hit rock bottom, so they didn't continue moving inward but returned home.
Returning to his small territory connected by over a dozen trees, Ryū immediately felt a sense of relaxation. Shiro and Chairo had already eaten their fill and started sleeping soundly.
"Eat! Rest after eating!"
With an order from Ryū, he took the lead and started eating with Suzume and Kikō. Among these, Leppa Berry and Oran Berry, as berries that can restore HP, were their main eating targets. Suzume finished eating first, stopped on a random tree, and lay down to sleep, completely lacking any lady-like demeanor. As for Kikō, it had the largest build and the biggest appetite and was still constantly eating.
Ryū felt he had eaten enough, so he also lay down and then opened his personal panel.
[Beedrill]
[Potential]: Blue
[Level]: Lv. 16
[Attribute]: Bug/Poison
[Ability]: Swarm
[Height]: 1.85m
[Weight]: 60kg
[Skills]: Fury Attack, Bug Bite, Poison Sting, String Shot, Harden, Fury Cutter, Hone Claws
'Increased by 3 levels, the speed is quite fast, after all, the experience is split evenly with Kikō and Suzume.' Ryū stared at his panel, conducting his daily analysis. At the same time, he also found that his height and weight had increased again and couldn't help but marvel at the miraculous physique of Pokémon. As for skills, Hone Claws was added, which allows him to concentrate and make his next attack have a high probability of hitting a vital spot, causing a critical hit.
'Continue to increase the level tomorrow,' Ryū murmured in his heart and then closed his eyes and fell asleep. Level 16 was already considered upper-middle level in Poliwrath's territory; above level 20, the other party would likely start driving them away. Ryū estimated that in about two or three days, he would have to move with Kikō and the others to reside in the neighboring Arbok's territory.
The next morning, Ryū woke up to a rustling sound. Opening his eyes, he saw Kikō eating next to him. He got up and stretched, and casually used his white stinger to pierce a few plump, abundant berries to eat. You have to eat your fill in the morning to have the energy to go out and fight to level up.
The traveling party was still three Beedrill, and Ryū still went out to level up with Kikō and Suzume. What they needed now was not balanced development, but peak fighting strength. There was no rush for Shiro and Chairo's levels to increase; once Ryū became strong, everything else would be easy. They spent the next two consecutive days like this.
On the third day, Ryū had already led Kikō and Suzume deep into the most central area of Arbok's territory. Now, the levels of their three Beedrill had also reached level 20. This level had already reached Poliwrath's warning line, but the other party hadn't discovered Ryū's situation yet, so they hadn't come to drive them away. However, this level really couldn't be called high. They weren't seen within Poliwrath's territory because Poliwrath was too vigilant. But within this Arbok's territory, not to mention Pokémon above level 20 being everywhere, there were even Pokémon above level 30 in the central area.
Ryū was currently in the central area with Kikō and Suzume, looking for Pokémon to fight. However, before they could choose a satisfactory target, other Pokémon found them first.
"Arbok~"
The sound came from the nearby woods. The next moment, a giant creature hung down from the branches of the giant tree above them, scaring Ryū's three Beedrill into quickly retreating several meters. When he saw the target clearly, Ryū's expression couldn't help but become serious. Suzume even started to look a little restless, while Kikō still calmly flew behind Ryū. That was a giant Arbok over 6 meters long!
"Arbok." Arbok landed on the ground along the tree trunk. Even standing on the ground and only raising its front half, this Arbok was nearly 3 meters tall.
'This is the boss of this area, truly exaggerated.'
Ryū felt the strong oppressive feeling emanating from Arbok and felt his heart rate quicken. He didn't even need to fight to understand. This Arbok, even if the three of them went together, they would definitely not be its opponent.
"Go!"
After seeing Arbok, Ryū immediately turned around and flew away from the place with Kikō and Suzume. With their mobility, as long as they wanted to run, few Pokémon could catch up. Even if Arbok's level was higher and its physical condition stronger, they could fly higher, and Arbok would still have no way to deal with them. And Arbok was clearly aware of this, so it didn't plan to chase Ryū.
"Buzz buzz~ (Aren't we fighting it?)" Kikō asked with some confusion.
"We can't beat it for now; we'll fight it in a few days," Ryū shook his head. As the saying goes, a wise man knows when to retreat. There's no need to contend with that Arbok when they were still weak. Pokémon living in the Monster Era don't know what mercy is; once defeated, they will be swallowed whole.
While they were flying, a slight snake hiss came from the side.
"Hiss hiss~"
Ryū turned his head to look in the direction of the sound; it was an Ekans of considerable size. It seemed to be the same one they had seen in Poliwrath's territory a few days ago.
"Don't attack this time; I'll do it myself." Ryū sharpened his two large white stingers and charged up alone. Ekans's level would at most not exceed 22, because after reaching this level, Ekans will basically evolve into Arbok, and wild Pokémon themselves yearn for evolution and have no reason to refuse it, so they will follow their instincts and evolve immediately. For opponents of a similar level, Ryū didn't plan to split the experience with Kikō and Suzume anymore.