The Quicksand Team is a second-rate organization.
It can't be compared to a super-large crime syndicate like the Rocket Team, which spans multiple regions.
Therefore, its method of recruiting new members isn't as well-prepared as Rocket Team's and even seems somewhat rough.
The danger level also far exceeds the Rocket Team's assessment.
"Your task is simple: in the depths of the mine, there are scattered jade mines. Find any shape of jade, bring it out and hand it to me. The time limit is until the sun rises tomorrow morning."
The tall and rugged man held a piece of white jade, shouting at the crowd of thugs in front of him, while beside him, a heavy-armored, short-legged Donphan let out a deep roar.
Not far away.
Several bottomless abandoned pits emitted a cold and claustrophobic aura, and the unpleasant smell of dust irritated everyone's nasal passages.
"Another abandoned mine. People are going to die, right?"
"In a place that's not regularly maintained, people are bound to die. What were you thinking? Didn't two people die last year?"
"The jade mine deep inside... What if we can't find it?"
"Can I just dig one outside?"
"You should first worry about whether you can come out alive. I heard that there are Pokémon inside that will attack you!"
"No way..."
Baimu, in the crowd, couldn't help but touch the Iron Ingot hidden in his chest.
This thing was easy to obtain in Pyrite Town. As a peripheral member of the Quicksand Team, he could easily acquire it by saying a word at the smelting factory.
He was mainly curious about how this thing would function later.
In yesterday's second simulation, the fixed talent didn't change, but in terms of choosing a talent, the Hot-blooded Youth was replaced with [Unyielding (won't abandon Pokémon)].
Having suffered a huge loss once with [Peach Blossoms Luck], he'd have to be brainless to make the same mistake again, so he switched to [Careless (rough Pokémon health management)].
With rough health management, one can slowly improve and progress during travel. Most Trainers start from scratch, but another relationship that drags you down is insufferable.
In the animation, from the Champion to the Four Heavenly Kings and down to the Gym Trainers, among the younger generation, how many are actually in relationships?
Only Kukui, who isn't young anymore, ended up dating and marrying.
This says a lot.
The classic Nibi City Shorts Kid, who starts with a Rattata, emerged. His progress, like Bug Catching Boy, didn't go smoothly. He relied on luck and passion to fight Gyms, but the difference was he caught many of the same Pokémon...
For example, catching many Rattata, Pidgey, and the like.
One might say he's trying to pick strong individuals, but the Shorts Kid let each one battle, giving them equal attention in training and battles, leading to minimal overall strength improvement, making progress extremely difficult.
Thus, even without the burden of a relationship, he had to stop at the sixth Gym after suffering through eight battles and eight losses.
Even in pixelated form, Baimu could see the Shorts Kid's mindset exploding, causing him to remain at the sixth Gym until the Conference began.
Not seeing the Quartz Conference's gate left Baimu speechless. He selected a Pokémon below level 30 to level up, and with [Move: Brute Force], went to sleep.
Then energetically welcomed the next day.
Official members of the Quicksand Team not only were freely given Pokémon, but the benefits and compensation were also much higher than those of peripheral members. Although freedom was further restricted, the advantages outweighed the disadvantages.
It's best to strive for it.
"Baimu, aren't you nervous?"
A colleague's words interrupted his thoughts.
Baimu turned around and glanced at the other's oddly mountaineer-like attire, "You're carrying so much, it's probably tough to move."
"I think it's okay..." The person jumped twice with a relaxed expression.
It's only okay for now.
Baimu touched the miner's hat on his head. For convenience, he didn't carry much, such as a miner's hat, dust mask, and manganese steel pick, as well as some necessary water, and compressed food.
The Quicksand Team's recruitment tests were never a secret. They liked to artificially set up obstacles, like sending in some Pokémon to attack participants, or creating some traps.
Thus, being agile is crucial.
While waiting.
Noisy voices came from not far away.
"A poor bastard like you wants to pass the test? You're killing me with laughter, hahaha—"
The piercing mockery made Baimu frown.
He exchanged glances with familiar colleagues and they all walked towards the source of the voice.
Where there are people, there are conflicts, especially in organizations like the Quicksand Team that gain status through force. Internal disputes have never been lacking.
For people like Baimu, who are poor and have no support, there are countless within the Quicksand Team. Conversely, there are others with money and backgrounds. Each has their own small groups, despising and looking down on each other.
The importance of huddling together for warmth became apparent at this moment.
The group approached the source of the noise and suddenly saw a bunch of people who looked relatively clean and whose demeanor was different from the surrounding goons.
These thugs were shoving a rather frail young man, laughing and glancing at the other bystanders who dared not meet their eyes. They then turned their heads smugly.
"Oh, oh, oh! The leader of the poor gang is here, what, are you here to support your pathetic poor guys? Do you have the strength for that?"
The leading thug, seeing them approaching, arrogantly stuffed his hands in his pockets and swaggered over, aiming straight for the tallest and most composed Baimu.
Unfortunately, he was almost a head shorter than the latter, so he had to tilt his head up to meet his eyes, with a look of taunt on his face.
The group of thugs laughed and let the frail young man go, then stood in front of Baimu and his companions.
The two groups glared at each other, almost as if a fight would break out at any moment.
"You'll know whether I have the strength when the test comes." Baimu pulled the frail young man behind him, glanced over at the other group, and slightly raised his hand.
The group of thugs was startled and involuntarily stepped back half a step.
The leader, seeing his companions so timid, felt anger rise in his heart and sneered, "Are you good at fighting? What's the use of that? In this game, it's about power and background. Just watch, you little runt!"
With that said,
he led his group over to the other side.
The people next to Baimu, who had been tense, immediately breathed a sigh of relief and began to comfort the frail young man.
"Don't worry, they're not strong enough to interfere with the assessment, relax."
An older person spoke up, trying to dispel some of the potential worries of the group.
The troublemaker was named Chaitian, and his uncle was a mid-level member of the Quicksand Team—a Squad Leader level figure. Despite still requiring his nephew to participate in the dangerous assessment, for them, who were just common folk, this was already quite impressive.
It's likely that Chaitian will be given some advantages in this assessment.
As for whether they'll make a move against them is another question.
The Quicksand Team was in need of people, so during struggles among lower levels, the middle and high levels had set limits that couldn't be broken, such as no fatalities or crippling injuries that would affect labor force productivity.
These tough bone-headed goons could go against Chaitian and others partly because they didn't believe the other party would actually kill them, trusting that the Quicksand Team's leadership would maintain balance between the parties.
Until now, nothing had gone wrong, and as long as they stuck together during gang fights, someone would step in to mediate. Chaitian's uncle also didn't dare to do anything to them.
However,
what about secretly attacking them during the assessment?
Even knowing that there would be repercussions if discovered, would they still strike against the new blood that the Quicksand Team needed to supplement?
Expecting a minor gang leader to have a broad perspective and reconcile with a smile is the most ridiculous; they have their own unique thought processes.
It's already precarious to be a thief for a thousand days, even more unbearable to guard against thieves for a thousand days.
A one-time solution must be found...
Sounds simple, but the assessment itself isn't easy, where's the extra energy to sabotage Chaitian?
Baimu was quite troubled.
The conflict between the two sides was irreconcilable even before the crossing, directly cutting off his thoughts of working quietly.
No choice.
Chaitian and his associates had long been tyrannical among the outer goons, bullying countless individuals, calling those who kept to themselves spineless, until they met Baimu and others who knew how to stick together.
They, with comparatively tougher spirits, undoubtedly frustrated Chaitian and others.
The two sides had several gang fights, each resolved by Baimu through brute force.
Therefore, Chaitian and others always viewed them as thorns in their side, frequently causing trouble.
Today was no exception.
Ultimately, the root cause was the hands-off, half-breeding management approach of the upper levels.
A group lacking much intelligence and even uneducated could run rampant and act as they pleased based on meager family backgrounds.
In Pyrite Town, where legal constraints were weak and internal punishments ruled, such scenes were all too common.
The broader environment influenced Chaitian's mindset, and ever since he tasted the sweetness of bullying others without paying a "price," various bad behaviors were rarely constrained, and "catering to superiors and bullying subordinates" became his basic logic.
Fortunately, Baimu had a decent constitution.
Bodies in the Pokémon World are fascinating, ranging from being so weak one is bedridden all year to being so strong one can smash stones with fists and break wood with legs, even solo duel some Fighting Attribute Pokémon and use moves.
He was working towards the latter and now far surpassed his peers.
This outstanding physical talent made him quite pleased.
"Assessment starts! The first batch of people entering the cave, come over for a check. Anyone carrying jade, hand it over! Don't blame me if Donphan catches you!"
The examiner's shout and Donphan's trumpeting echoed one after another.