After spending all his Team Rockets points, Ye Mingcang began to tally his league currency earnings.
Team Rockets, or rather, those who frequent the black market, use unregistered black cards with no passwords.
Anyone who gets a card can use it as long as they have a special machine and money on the card, and Team Rocket HQ certainly has such machines.
When Ye Mingcang transferred all the money from everyone's black cards to his own, he was stunned to see a balance of 232 million.
He could only conclude that Team Rockets, who commit arson and murder, were incredibly wealthy.
It seemed he could try his luck at the black market to see if he could find a suitable Pokémon and snag a bargain, just like the protagonists in novels.
Finally, there was a pile of Pokémon, some caught by Ye Mingcang himself, others belonging to Team Rockets members.
He planned to sell them all in a package deal on the black market.
“I’ve never been to the black market, but the First Generation and Second Generation are familiar with it, and their familiarity means I’m familiar!
It’s a pity they didn’t have a Data Eye back then.”
After inventorying the resources he had plundered from the entire HQ, Ye Mingcang felt a bit disheartened and began to mutter to himself.
“I was clearly a good socialist youth, how could I enjoy the feeling of arson and murder!
It must be the First Generation and Second Generation who corrupted me! It must be! No, Gu Ya was the one who committed arson and murder, what does that have to do with me? That’s right.”
“The original body seems to be turning 16 in a few days; he’s almost an adult! Congratulations, congratulations!”
“For becoming an adult, there still needs to be some sense of ritual!
It’s decided, no training today, I’m going to buy a cake to celebrate!”
“No! I’ve now recovered my status as a direct descendant of the League; I can claim a starter Pokémon!
But I haven’t paid fees for many years, so I don’t know if I’m still eligible.
Right, right, right, I’ll send an email to Professor Rowan and ask! No harm in trying!”
Acting on his thoughts, Ye Mingcang picked up his computer.
As a top hacker, finding contact information was easy.
He roughly described his situation (which had been whitewashed by Team Rockets) in the email: his parents were League Trainers who sacrificed themselves resisting a Pokémon riot.
Later, his adoptive grandparents also died in a Team Rockets attack, and he himself was kidnapped by Team Rockets.
He managed to escape from an island, was adopted by passing fishermen, and eventually came to live in the Sinnoh region.
For several years, due to financial reasons, he had not paid the required 100,000 league currency per year.
Now, almost 16, he wondered if he was still eligible to claim a starter Pokémon.
After sending the email to Professor Rowan's research institute, Ye Mingcang returned to the treatment room, intending to sleep in a treatment pod.
Who knew that Nidoking had just returned from training and planned to do the same.
“Together?”
“Nido!” (Of course!)
So, one person and one Pokémon each chose a treatment pod, crawled in, and went to sleep.
Taking the treatment pods with them would be useless anyway, because the treatment fluid was exclusive to Team Rockets and couldn't be taken away.
It would explode if it left a specific location, and there was plenty left in the HQ, so they might as well use it.
Beldum, nearby, blinked its crimson single eye at the person and the Pokémon, feeling speechless.
“Beta~” (My Trainer and my partner are a bit chuunibyou!
This family will definitely fall apart without me.)
The night passed uneventfully.
When Ye Mingcang woke up, he saw that Nidoking was already gone, presumably off to train.
Even Nidoking's Energy Cubes, Ye Mingcang had packed a month's supply in a special spatial backpack for Nidoking to carry.
Checking his email, Professor Rowan had already replied.
The gist was that after consulting relevant League personnel, Ye Mingcang needed to bring his League Trainer ID card and get it verified at any Pokémon Center in a Sinnoh city.
Once verified, if he paid a lump sum of 16 years' worth, or 1.6 million league currency, he could go to Professor Rowan's research institute to receive a starter Pokémon.
Ye Mingcang immediately replied to the email, expressing his gratitude.
“Nidoking is training himself; how do I feel like I have nothing to do, no sense of involvement at all!
It must be an illusion!” Ye Mingcang said faintly.
“Beta!” (No, you're just a slacker!)
Ye Mingcang glared at Beldum, then turned to look for Nidoking.
He planned to go to Jubilife City today, the largest city in Sinnoh, which also has the largest black market in Sinnoh.
He intended to verify his identity and pay the fees today, so that as soon as he turned 16 in a few days, he could immediately claim his starter Pokémon.
He was very much looking forward to his first starter Pokémon.
Ye Mingcang called Nidoking, and together they left the HQ and went to Xiaoshan City, which was not far away.
Xiaoshan City was truly small; it didn't even have a Gym, let alone a Pokémon Center.
He called a “Braviary Taxi” and flew to Jubilife City.
Xiaoshan City is located between Jubilife City, Twinleaf Town, and Canalave City, not far from any of them.
It was convenient, as he would likely spend most of his time in Sinnoh in these three places, with other times spent training at the HQ, since Beldum couldn't be seen by others.
The Team Rocket HQ had complete facilities, so he might as well use them.
In less than an hour, Braviary landed not far from Jubilife City.
“Braviary is truly handsome! It would be even cooler in its Hisuian form, but unfortunately, its development cycle is too long! Longer even than Metagross.
Only the Sinnoh League could operate a taxi company using Elite-level Pokémon, but the fares are indeed expensive!
It's probably modeled after Galar's Corviknight taxis!
Once I get my Corviknight, I'll definitely fly around on it everywhere!”
Later, Ye Mingcang paid a heavy price for this idea, simply because, like Steven's Skarmory, it was uncomfortable for his backside, and when the sun was hot, it burned his backside.
Didn't Steven always ride Metagross when he went out, or did people really think it was just for show?
Of course, that was a story for another time.
Walking into Jubilife City, it had to be said that the Sinnoh region, as one of the oldest regions, even its largest city was filled with historical and cultural charm.
In short, the commercial atmosphere was average, far inferior to Goldenrod City and Saffron City.
“I’m not here to shop; I’m here for business.”
Ye Mingcang quickly found the Pokémon Center.
He had to admit, this was Ye Mingcang’s first time entering a Pokémon Center, and he felt a little nervous.
“Chansey! Chansey!” A pink demon walked towards him, followed by a young lady with pink twin pigtails wearing a nurse's uniform.
It must be Nurse Joy, after all, Joy and Officer Jenny's two great faces are known to everyone in the Pokémon world.
Nurse Joy said, “Hello, how can I help you?”
“Hello, Nurse Joy, I am Ye Mingcang.
Professor Rowan asked me to come here to verify my identity and pay the League fees, because...”
As Ye Mingcang roughly recounted his life story to Nurse Joy, she was already teary-eyed, looking at him.
“You're so pitiful, and so strong!”
“Chansey! Chansey!” (Have some!) Chansey reached into its pouch and pulled out an egg, offering it to Ye Mingcang.
It was the skill Soft-Boiled; this egg could actually be eaten, and eating it replenished stamina and energy.
Ye Mingcang unceremoniously took it and bit into it.
It was his first time eating one, and it tasted good.
Should he snatch one, or rather, “request” a Chansey to come back with him?
Never mind, his life was more important.
“Cang, your identity has been verified; there are no issues.
You can come over here to pay the fees.”
Ye Mingcang didn't have a Pokédex or a League bank card, and he dared not take out his black card in the Pokémon Center.
So, before leaving, he had specially prepared 1.6 million in cash, which he took out and piled high on the counter.
Nurse Joy was momentarily stunned, then quickly reacted, looking at Ye Mingcang with pity and sympathy, probably thinking it was Ye Mingcang's hard-earned money.
If Ye Mingcang knew Joy's thoughts, he would definitely say, “There’s a lot of blood, but it’s not mine.
There’s sweat too, after all, counting 1.6 million in cash is quite tiring and heavy.”
After confirming the procedures were complete, Ye Mingcang left the Pokémon Center and walked towards the northwest corner of Jubilife City, which was the direction of the black market.
Reaching a deserted corner, he changed into a black robe and put on a mask, then entered an inconspicuous beverage shop.
Ye Mingcang placed a 1,000-league currency bill on the counter.
“Boss, one Bloody Mary.”
“It's in the back, go get it yourself.” With that, the boss opened the door behind him.
Ye Mingcang walked in, passed through a dark corridor, and soon entered the main street of the black market.
Even though it was daytime, the black market was still bustling with people, stall owners hawking their wares, and haggling, much like a market in his previous life.
“This time it's my turn to find a bargain, Data Eye, it's your time to shine.
I must have been infected by the Second Generation's chuunibyou.”
After looking around, Ye Mingcang expressed his disappointment.
There was no plot of finding a bargain like in novels.
In this world, all black technologies related to Pokémon are highly developed.
Pokémon detection instruments and Pokémon item detection instruments are everywhere.
Whether something is good or not can be determined with a single test.
Forget about finding a bargain; it would be good enough not to buy fakes!
Shaking his head in disappointment, he gave up on browsing the street stalls and walked directly to the largest shop in the center of the black market.
Entering the shop, Ye Mingcang picked out two Poké Balls, one for a green-Qualifications Zubat and one for a Noibat.
He casually handed the Rest to the clerk, telling him to sell them all and give him a price, including these two.
The clerk took out an instrument and placed each Poké Ball on it.
Goodness, the results displayed were almost identical to what the Data Eye showed: aptitude, level, and ability were all visible.
The only difference was that this machine couldn't detect moves, requiring a more advanced instrument.
And each time one was scanned, the machine would display the price, just like going to a supermarket in his previous life where a clerk scanned a QR code...
Although Ye Mingcang had seen this scene in the First Generation's memories, seeing it in person still made him a bit helpless.
What about the promise that with the Data Eye, high-aptitude Pokémon would be everywhere for him to find bargains?
Now, even selling Pokémon in the black market has clear prices; is it really that transparent?
“Hello, there are 58 Pokémon here in total, for a grand total of 34.5 million.
We can round it up for you, how about 35 million?”
This strangely familiar scene felt odd.
Rounding up in reverse, that's right, it's only reasonable for them to pay a bit more when purchasing!
Ye Mingcang complained inwardly, but his mouth was quick to respond, “Deal.
Take me to see your Pokémon Eggs, the best kind.”
“Certainly, here is the 35 million black card; please keep it safe.
The Pokémon Eggs are over here, please follow me.
Actually, we don't recommend you choose Pokémon Eggs, because the detection of hatched Pokémon is 100% accurate, but Pokémon Egg detection might have errors, and it cannot detect the Pokémon's ability.”
Ye Mingcang thought to himself, “Errors are exactly what I need, otherwise how can I find a bargain?
You can't detect the ability, but I can see it!”
Entering the Pokémon Egg warehouse, the clerk led Ye Mingcang directly to the innermost room.
Along the way, Ye Mingcang kept his Data Eye on.
Indeed, the aptitudes were generally average; he occasionally saw one or two green ones, but no cyan or blue ones.
Entering the innermost room, he saw about a dozen Pokémon Eggs on the shelves.
Ye Mingcang used his Data Eye to scan them one by one:
Elekid, Ability: Static, dark cyan, Egg Moves: Dynamic Punch, Focus Punch, Feint
Tyrogue, Ability: Guts, light blue, Egg Moves: Counter, High Jump Kick
...
Fletchling, Ability: Gale Wings, dark cyan, Egg Moves: Defog, Flame Charge
...
Drilbur, Ability: Mold Breaker, light blue, Egg Moves: Slash, Metal Sound
...
He was almost done looking.
Ye Mingcang felt that if he hadn't exchanged for Rookidee earlier, he would have seriously considered this Fletchling.
And this Drilbur was also good, but he preferred the Sand Rush ability over Mold Breaker.
Shaking his head, Ye Mingcang, who had given up all hope of finding a bargain, looked at the last Pokémon Egg, placed in the furthest corner.
If he hadn't held his breath, he would have almost cried out.
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, he looked at that Pokémon Egg again with a poker face: Duraludon!