r18novel Chapter 500
Chapter 500
Chapter 500
Xia Chi had just invited Xilona into the house, and before he could even sit down properly, the doorbell rang again.
Xia Chi: "————"
No, did you two plan this together?
Either none of them come, or they all come at once.
He sighed helplessly and stood up from the sofa.
I walked to the door and opened it.
Calderia, whom I hadn't seen in a long time, stood crisply at the door.
The newly crowned Unified Champion was wearing a moon-white silk nightgown.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't a nightgown; it was a loose-fitting linen dress. But the soft texture, combined with her current state, made her look like she had just crawled out of bed.
Her eyes were half-open, her deep purple pupils seemed veiled in mist, and she looked sleepy.
There was a small suitcase at her feet, with a Pokémon Center sticker on it.
They clearly flew all the way from the Unova region, and didn't even go to a hotel after getting off the plane; they just dragged their suitcases straight here.
However, this is actually quite normal.
After all, Xia Chi had known her for so long, and this great goddess spent far less time awake than asleep.
The champion of the Unova region, a master of psychic abilities, her name could be preceded by many dazzling prefixes.
But those who know her well know that there should be another one after these prefixes: narcolepsy patient.
It's not actually narcolepsy, but rather the excessive burden brought by superpowers.
Her mental strength was too great, so great that her body could not withstand it, and she had to recover and regulate through long periods of sleep.
For her, waking up is a drain on her energy; sleeping is when she recharges.
It's a sweet trouble, to say the least.
"Are there any rooms available? I need to sleep."
Cattleya's first words to him were straightforward.
Xia Chi twitched the corner of her mouth.
No, are you treating this place like a hotel?
And the way you're talking sounds like you're saying, "I'm sleeping here to give you face."
He asked speechlessly, "Dr. Kukui didn't arrange accommodation for you?"
In the players' village of the Ten Masters Tournament, each participant has an assigned independent residence.
They are all about the same width as Xia Chi's two-story villa.
Cattleya did not answer the question.
She merely raised her eyelids slightly, glanced at Xia Chi with her misty purple eyes, and then said something that left Xia Chi even more speechless.
"I want to sleep here with you."
After saying that, she didn't wait for Xia Chi's response and went inside with her suitcase.
Xia Chi couldn't stop him, and didn't even have time to react.
He stood there in the doorway, still in the open position, watching Cattleya, wearing those soft-soled flat shoes, walk down the wooden floor of his living room, making a soft "tap-tap" sound, all the way to the stairs.
Latias peeked out from the kitchen, saw Cattleya, paused slightly, and then instinctively stepped aside to let her pass, even though Cattleya didn't go into the kitchen.
"Eee?"
Latias cast an inquiring glance at Xia Chi.
Xia Chi shook his head, closed the door, and followed him inside.
In the living room, Cynthia and Dante were sitting on the sofa drinking tea.
Dante was still holding his teacup, the rim of which was about two centimeters in front of his lips. He froze, staring blankly as Cattleya dragged her suitcase through the living room.
Leon's self-light moved from Gadria's back to Xia Chi's face, then from Xia Chi's face to Cynthia's face, and finally back to Xia Chi's face.
His mouth opened and then closed.
Cynthia, on the other hand, remained quite calm.
"Don't worry about it. That's just how Gadriya is. She can only fall asleep in a place she likes when she's in a new place. She probably didn't like the accommodations arranged by the athletes' village, so she found her own place."
Dan Di nodded with an awkward laugh, picked up his teacup and took a big gulp, almost burning himself.
He didn't dare ask why Xia Chi was a place that Jia Deliya liked.
Asking this question will be awkward, no matter what the answer is.
Latias brought a plate of freshly baked kama-yaki biscuits from the kitchen and placed it on the coffee table.
She looked up at the building, then at Xia Chi, and tilted her head.
"Eee?"
"Ignore her."
Xia Chi said, "Let her sleep. She'll come down when she's had enough sleep."
Latias nodded and turned to go back to the kitchen.
Xia Chi leaned back on the sofa, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
"Speaking of which, I haven't heard any big news about you, Junior Brother Xia Chi, for the past few months. I'm starting to feel a bit out of sorts."
Dan Di started the conversation, making light of it with a smile.
No wonder he didn't adapt well.
Last year alone saw major events such as the discovery of crystallization, the paradox of Pokémon, the Hoenn battle, and the Unova battle.
Each one is a world-shaking achievement, and each one deserves a significant place in the history of Pokémon.
Xia Chi is the common protagonist of these events.
Sometimes, Dan Di would find it unbelievable when he thought back on it. How did his junior brother manage to get involved in so many earth-shattering events in just one year?
Since Xia Chi left Galar and returned to Donghuang, Dan Di has not heard any major news about Xia Chi for more than three months.
No legendary spirits awakened, no evil organizations were destroyed, and no new combat forms were discovered.
Calm seas and peaceful days.
When Dan Di said he "didn't adapt," he meant it absolutely.
Just like someone who is used to watching the sunrise every day, if it suddenly rains heavily for three days in a row, they will feel that something is missing.
Xia Chi replied with a smile, "Do you really want another legendary elf to awaken?"
Emperor Dan froze for a moment.
The image of Mukyuutai awakening and the darkness descending once more flashed through his mind.
Dan Di shook his head, trying to banish those images from his mind.
"Never mind, forget I said anything."
Each time a legendary spirit awakens, disaster is highly likely to occur.
Therefore, Xia Chi is right.
It's best if no major news breaks.
Calm and peaceful, that's good.
Cynthia suddenly interjected, "Another pattern is that whenever Xia Chi goes to a new place, something big happens there."
Dan Di was taken aback at first, then his eyes lit up.
"I know that too. They all say that Junior Brother Xia Chi is a human Absol."
Absol, the Pokémon of Calamity.
Legend has it that it can foresee disasters and will appear in places where disasters are about to occur.
In ancient times, seeing Absol meant bad luck was coming.
Of course, later research showed that Absolu was actually there to warn humanity, not to bring disaster.
But the title "Disaster Beast" is still deeply imprinted in people's minds.
Xiachi was compared to Absol.
It wasn't because he could foresee disasters like Absolu, but because disasters followed him wherever he went.
Dan Di laughed heartily and said, "But we shouldn't be superstitious about such things, right, Junior Brother Xia Chi?"
As he spoke, he looked at Xia Chi with a smile that said, "I was just kidding, you're not taking it seriously, are you?"
Xia Chi smiled and didn't dare to speak.
Dan Di's smile froze.
The corners of his mouth still held an upward curve, but the smile in his eyes had begun to fade, replaced by seriousness.
"Junior Brother Xia Chi."
"Um...
'
"Could something really have happened in the Alola region?"
Xia Chi coughed lightly, picked up his teacup and took a sip, using this action to conceal his expression.
"I have no idea."
He said, "All I can say is—I can't guarantee it won't happen."
Dan Emperor:
There was a three-second silence in the living room.
Dan's expression changed from serious to speechless, from speechless to despair, and from despair to resignation.
Thank you so much for your promise!
It's not even guaranteed that nothing will happen, which is no different from the Alola region definitely having an accident!
Dan Di took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.
"Is some legendary spirit about to awaken?"
His voice regained the composure of a champion.
Cynthia also put down her teacup, leaned forward slightly, and stared intently at Xia Chi with her gray-blue eyes.
She pondered for a while, then slowly spoke.
"But I remember—aren't the legendary Pokémon of the Alola region the guardian deities of their islands?"
Her fingers traced light circles on her knees, a habitual gesture she made when she was thinking.
"Tapoo, Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Fini—these four guardian spirits have protected the Alola region since ancient times, living in harmony with the local inhabitants. Even if they awaken, nothing should happen, right?"
It can only be said that Cynthia is indeed a mythologist. Even though it is not the Sinnoh region that she mainly focuses on, she still has some knowledge of the legends of the Alola region.
She could accurately recite the names of the Tapu and the corresponding islands.
However, she only knew about the Tapu, the island guardians.
They knew nothing about the legendary "Radiant Gods," or rather, the Ultimate Beasts from another world that included them.
But those creatures that don't belong to this world are what Xia Chi is truly worried about.
Xia Chi remained silent for a moment.
"Not the Tapu."
Cynthia raised an eyebrow slightly: "What is that?"
Xia Chi crossed her hands on her knees and leaned forward slightly.
Have you ever heard of—the Ultimate Hole?
Cynthia frowned slightly, a thoughtful glint in her eyes.
Dan Di shook his head directly: "No, what is it?"
Xia Chi did not answer immediately. Instead, he stood up, walked to the TV cabinet, and took out a map of the Alola region from the drawer.
The map was given to him by Dr. Kukui a few days ago, and it marked the terrain and important locations of each island.
He spread the map on the coffee table and pointed to Melemele Island, Akala Island, Ula Ula Island, and Pony Island with his finger.
"The Alola region is the place where this world is most closely connected to another world."
"In places invisible to the naked eye, there exist many passages connecting to another dimension; the Aether Foundation calls them the Ultimate Holes."
Dante's expression turned serious.
He put down his teacup, leaned forward, and focused his gaze on the map.
"Another world?"
Cynthia's brow furrowed even more. "You mean—parallel worlds?"
Not entirely.
Xia Chi shook his head. "It's not a parallel world, it's another dimension. A special kind of life form lives in that world. They are not Pokémon, at least not the Pokémon defined in our world. They are collectively called Ultra Beasts."
""
Cynthia stopped drawing circles with her fingers. Her eyes were fixed on Xia Chi.
Have you seen them?
She asked.
Xia Chi nodded.
"I've seen it in the Ethereum Foundation's research materials."
He didn't say that he knew this in his previous life, but instead found a plausible excuse.
"Rosamune... The chairman of the Ether Foundation came to see me yesterday and talked to me a lot about the Ultimate Void."
Leon interjected, "The Aether Foundation—that organization that researches Pokémon that exist in different dimensions? I think I've seen it on the news."
"right."
Xia Chi nodded. "Their core research project is the Ultimate Hole. According to Lusamine, the creatures of that world are also trying to open a passage to our world. And—"
He paused.
"Recently, energy fluctuations have intensified."
Leon and Cynthia exchanged a glance.
They both saw the same thing in each other's eyes: wariness.
"You mean, those Ultra Beasts might appear in Alola on a large scale?"
Cynthia's voice turned somber.
Xia Chi didn't answer directly, but said something that made both of them tense up.
"Lillie, Lusamine's daughter, was once attacked by a Nihilego that came out of Ultra Hole, and ever since then, she has been afraid to touch any Pokémon."
"One."
He emphasized the word, "Just one, and it caused a child years of psychological trauma."
"What if it's a group?"
The air in the living room seemed to freeze.
Dan Di's lips were pressed into a line, and his chin tightened slightly.
Cynthia closed her eyes and remained silent for a long while.
When she opened her eyes again, the relaxation and curiosity from before were gone from her gray-blue eyes; instead, a heavy seriousness remained.
"What needs to be done?"
She asked, her voice brief and crisp.
Their eyes met in mid-air, without sparks or electricity, only a tacit understanding that needed no words.
Xia Chi took a deep breath and expressed his thoughts.
"I want to take the initiative."
Dan Di was taken aback: "Take the initiative? You mean—"
"Actively open the ultimate hole."
Xia Chi's voice was calm, but it concealed a turbulent undercurrent. "Instead of waiting for those Ultimate Beasts to come out on their own, not knowing when, where, or how many there are, it's better for us to take the initiative ourselves."
"While the Grand Masters Tournament hasn't started yet and the champions are still in Alola, let's open the Ultra Slug and contain the Ultra Beasts that come out of it."
Xia Chi's gaze shifted from Dante's face to Cynthia's face, and then back again.
"At least it gives us a better understanding of Ultra Beasts, so we won't be completely clueless when we suddenly encounter them in the future."
Dan Di was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed.
"Junior Brother Xia Chi, you've really pulled off another big stunt."
Xia Chi smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "I didn't expect it to turn out like this either."
"You never think of that."
Although Dan Di said that, a smile had already crept onto his lips. "Tell me, when are we going to make our move?"
Xia Chi looked at Cynthia.
Cynthia didn't hesitate: "I'm fine with anything. Garchomp just happens to be pretty bored lately."