Chapter 66: Just like Yveltal... Retribution from the gods

Has Absol already entered the visitor center?

Qian Lin looked at the Absol standing in the center of the lobby, a smile involuntarily spreading across his face.

[Holy shit! What a huge kitty!]

[A tiger? A leopard, surely.]

[A feline anyway, definitely not canine.]

[Such a cool Pokémon, even cooler than Pangoro.]

[Huh? Say that again while looking into the eyes of a Sichuan local?]

[The horn on its head is so cool!!!]

[Even while looking into your eyes, I have to shout it out! Absol is the coolest!]

[Milotic: Oh?]

The squad of five soldiers followed closely behind Qian Lin into the lobby. The instant they laid eyes on Absol, they raised their weapons. Two of them flanked Qian Lin, another two guarded the front, and the last one covered the rear.

Absol turned its head to look at the six of them. Facing the dark, gaping barrels of the firearms, its gaze sank entirely. Its body lowered to the ground, resembling a hunting leopard poised to strike.

Qian Lin glanced at the live stream chat and patted the shoulders of the two men beside him. "Put your weapons away."

Without hesitation, the five men lowered their weapons the moment they heard the command. However, their bodies did not move, and their tense postures clearly showed they had not yet fully let down their guard.

There was no helping it; Absol’s appearance bore no resemblance to a friendly Pokémon. It looked exactly like encountering a wild tiger or lion in the wilderness, making their instincts urge them to draw their weapons.

Still, Qian Lin understood. If Absol looked gentle and benevolent, it wouldn't have earned the moniker of the Disaster Pokémon among the people of the Pokémon world, instilling fear in everyone.

Fortunately, once the weapons were put away, Absol’s expression noticeably softened. It could probably empathize with human vigilance toward it; this was hardly the first time something like this had happened.

Swablu flew closely beside Qian Lin, its gaze fixed intently on Absol.

"Chirp—"

It stood ready for battle at a moment's notice.

Qian Lin chuckled softly, stepping forward two paces to stand in front of everyone. He looked at Absol and spoke, "Absol, I am... a League Trainer, here to investigate the volcanic anomaly. If your goal is to have the humans here leave, then there is no conflict between us."

The League? Absol blinked, genuinely surprised to hear those words in this world.

Where on earth would a League come from in this realm?

However... Absol glanced at Qian Lin, then at the Swablu beside him. Theoretically, the unfamiliar term "Trainer" shouldn't exist here either, but it was abundantly clear that this human was indeed Swablu's Trainer.

The credibility was quite high.

Absol slightly relaxed its defensive posture and let out a soft grunt toward Qian Lin.

"Are you asking me about the League?" Qian Lin asked.

Absol nodded slightly. Since there was no League in this world, it wanted to know how Qian Lin had come to know of it.

Qian Lin thought for a moment and replied, "I received knowledge from the Pokémon world. I know that a Pokémon League exists there, and in fact, I am preparing to establish a Pokémon League in this world as well. Although I haven't started yet, but... I am the League's very first Trainer."

Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind, and he rubbed his chin in contemplation. "Wait, if I put it that way, does that make me the reigning League Champion?"

After all, he was the only Trainer in existence.

Absol struggled slightly to follow Qian Lin's train of thought, but it nonetheless grasped the meaning behind his words.

The person before it had received the inheritance of knowledge from the Pokémon world and was working to accelerate this world's acceptance of Pokémon. In this way, Pokémon that had already arrived would receive better treatment, and those descending upon this world in the future would not face hostility.

Well, that was a good thing.

Absol's gaze softened, and its guarded posture vanished completely.

At that moment, the predator aura belonging to Absol faded away, leaving behind only the noble grace characteristic of felines.

[So cool!!!]

[I'm in love! I'm totally in love!]

[Wait a minute, streamer, aren't you going to introduce it? Are you just going to stare like this?]

[Everyone, pay attention to the atmosphere... haven't you guys noticed something is wrong?]

[It feels like Qian Lin is really nervous.]

[Nervous isn't quite right; it's more like he's a bit... solemn.]

[Indeed, this live broadcast feels a bit different than usual.]

Qian Lin still ignored the questions scrolling through the chat.

"Mmm~"

Absol gave Qian Lin a gentle nod before turning its gaze toward the volcano behind them.

Seeing this, Qian Lin knew that Absol had placed its trust in him. He breathed a sigh of relief, flashed a smile at the five soldiers behind him, and then slowly walked over to stand a short distance in front of Absol.

The five men relaxed their defensive postures and turned to walk toward the makeshift shelter where the civilians were hiding.

Their mission still included the evacuation of the remaining personnel stationed here. Evacuation vehicles were already prepared, but since they couldn't keep pace with the soldiers' transport, they would arrive in a little over ten minutes. The men needed to gather the people together.

Qian Lin arrived before Absol and followed its line of sight. The space above the summit of the volcano had begun to distort.

"So this is the reason for the rising temperature." Qian Lin felt a headache coming on. "Absol, do you know what kind of Pokémon caused this?"

Absol nodded, a solemn expression lingering on its face.

Unable to understand Absol's speech, Qian Lin could only rely on guesswork. "Though I'd desperately hope it's a Pokémon like Magmortar, something capable of producing this kind of overwhelming pressure... it's a Legendary Pokémon, isn't it?"

Absol nodded once more.

It had observed the five men heading toward the civilians' hiding spot and, connecting that with Qian Lin's current words, realized those men were merely evacuating the others. Given that, there was no need for it to linger here to scare these humans anymore.

"Groowl—"

Absol let out a cry toward Qian Lin, signaling him to follow, and then broke into a run toward the volcano.

Qian Lin motioned for Swablu to keep up and tossed out Growlithe’s Poké Ball. "Growlithe, trouble with you to keep pace with Absol. Remember to stick to a visible path, and Swablu will guide me from the air."

"Awooo!"

ᕦ(･ㅂ･)ᕤ

Leave it to me!

With that, a flash of pale red light washed over Growlithe, and its body surged forward with a sudden burst of speed, chasing after Absol.

"Swablu, keep up." Without hesitation, Qian Lin stepped back out from the cool lobby. Feeling the scorching heat wash over him, he took a deep breath and started running to follow them.

Now having a moment to spare, Qian Lin checked the chat. Most viewers were discussing what he was currently up to.

Among them, one viewer was continuously explaining the situation to everyone. That person was presumably 'I Am Not Pleedle', the netizen who had contacted him earlier.

A faint smile touched Qian Lin's lips. The figure of Absol ahead was already growing distant. "Absol, the Disaster Pokémon, Dark type. They inhabit rugged mountainous regions and rarely descend to the foothills."

"They are acutely sensitive to changes in the sky and earth, possessing the ability to foretell disasters. They appear from the deep mountains to warn humans of impending calamities. Because a disaster invariably occurs whenever Absol reveals itself to people, it has been dubbed the Disaster Pokémon."

"But in reality, only its appearance is ominous; its temperament is quite gentle. It will even help humans guard their fields or warn them of anomalies..." Qian Lin looked up, but Absol had already vanished from sight.

He took a deep breath. "The reason I came here this time is because of Absol's appearance. Normally, Absol would foretell a disaster, warn humans, and then return to try and prevent it. But this time, it didn't do that. Instead, it was in a frantic rush to drive the people here away."

"Under normal circumstances, records from the Pokémon world show only one possible cause for such behavior." Qian Lin turned to face the camera, his expression dead serious. "Only when a disaster is brought by a Legendary Pokémon does Absol refrain from acting recklessly to stop it, opting instead to urgently drive humans away."

"That's right, brothers... we might be about to face a Legendary Pokémon."

[What does Legendary Pokémon mean?]

[Anyone saying that clearly hasn't done their homework. The answer is in the recording of Qian Lin's first live broadcast. Legendary Pokémon are literally the gods of the Pokémon world... Holy shit!]

[A god!!!]

[Oh crap, crap, crap, crap!]

[Even if it's a Legendary Pokémon, it's still just a Pokémon, right? Probably just a bit stronger than ordinary ones.]

[I think the guy above is right. Don't panic; Qian Lin wouldn't have come here directly if he didn't have a plan.]

In truth, Qian Lin didn't have a plan at all.

He had only come here because a netizen's words tipped him off that something was wrong, which was why he treated the matter with such gravity. At the time, he had agreed to the transport chief's request to come without a second thought, but now that he was actually here, he found himself at a loss for what to do.

Battle?

With Swablu, Growlithe, and Pangoro, he was going to battle a Legendary Pokémon?

You've got to be kidding me. Though he didn't know which entity resided atop the volcano, it was a Legendary Pokémon. Even if he dragged Milotic all the way here, Qian Lin doubted he would have a hundred percent chance of winning—though adding the Overlord Mismagius to the mix might give him a fighting chance.

Qian Lin remained silent, simply pressing onward at a run.

Yet, this very attitude caused the viewers to grow increasingly anxious. Even those who didn't fully grasp what a Legendary Pokémon was could sense an atmosphere entirely unlike previous broadcasts emanating from Qian Lin.

He didn't voice it, but the pressure was overwhelming.

Right as he was pushing forward in silence, Qian Lin's phone suddenly rang.

Instinctively pulling out the device, the words "Chief Vehicle" flashed across the screen.

Seeing this, Qian Lin wore a faint smile, pressed the answer button, and brought the phone to his ear. Before he could speak, Chief Vehicle's imposing and authoritative voice boomed through the receiver: "Turn back immediately! Our forces are not prepared to face a Legendary Pokémon..."

"It's too late." Qian Lin stared at the increasingly distorted light above the volcano. "Absol already made its stance clear. The Legendary Pokémon up there has either just woken up or been provoked by someone, but regardless of the reason, it is about to emerge."

"Chief Vehicle, to be honest, I don't believe current human weaponry and firearms can handle a Legendary Pokémon, even if it's just a lesser deity—unless you're willing to plant a mushroom cloud here." Qian Lin drew a sharp breath.

Chief Vehicle did not reply immediately. Planting a mushroom cloud was obviously out of the question: "We will send forces to stall it. I've already mobilized reinforcements; air support will arrive shortly."

"My apologies, Chief Vehicle." Qian Lin wore a helpless smile. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"If you insist on using methods other than Pokémon battles to deal with a Legendary Pokémon, what humanity will face in the aftermath is a retaliation even harder to resist..." Qian Lin looked up.

"The wrath of a god."