Chapter 12: Entering the Black Gold Carbon Pit
Chenxi arrived at the Elf Garden in the morning, taking out the Yuan Family's direct lineage symbol.
Elder Zhou of the Elf Garden immediately greeted him respectfully and asked, "Young Master, what do you need me to do for you?"
"Prepare two skill scrolls for Shinny and Rock Smash for me. If you have it, bring Machamp's skill as well."
Elder Zhou respectfully replied to Chenxi, "Alright."
"These skills are often used in Oreburgh City due to mining, so they are not uncommon."
"We have them readily available in our Elf Garden. I will go get them for you now."
"Thank you, Elder Zhou!" Chenxi nodded and continued, "Also, prepare some survival supplies for the Heijin Mine, about... a month's worth. I might need to live in the Heijin Mine for a while."
"This..." Elder Zhou's expression changed upon hearing Chenxi's words. He said, "That place is not somewhere a noble person like you should go, Young Master. Moreover, the Heijin Mine has been a bit restless lately."
"Oh?" Chenxi was slightly taken aback by this and looked towards Elder Zhou.
For the Yuan Family, the Elf Garden is also a hub for information, where many pieces of intelligence are gathered.
Elder Zhou, seeing Chenxi's curious look, and wanting to dissuade him from going down into the mine, spoke first.
"It seems something is happening in this mine, which the Ju family has deliberately blocked, but the specifics have not yet been investigated."
"Although the number of Pokémon sent to the Elf Garden has not increased, the shipment of Energy Powder has increased several times."
"After investigation, it's all Spirit Hunters entering the Heijin Mine. It seems something big has happened in the Heijin Mine."
Upon hearing this, Chenxi couldn't help but ponder.
It seemed his original plan to cultivate in the Black Gold Carbon Pit would be greatly affected.
However, seeing the Ju family's secretive actions, there might be many secrets hidden beneath the Black Gold Carbon Pit.
If this secret were to be unveiled, he wondered if it would benefit the Yuan Family.
Chenxi regained his composure and said to Elder Zhou, "I understand. Continue to monitor the sales of medicinal herbs."
"Also, regarding this matter, you can contact Eterna City and ask if they want to intervene. Oh, and while you're at it, help me investigate a household."
"Understood, Young Master!" Elder Zhou quickly replied to Chenxi.
At this moment, Chenxi began to study the three skills: Shinny, Rock Smash, and Machamp.
Shinny was naturally for Floette to learn, and with Floette's current ability, mastering the Shinny skill, if not effortless, would certainly be achievable within a day.
As for Turtwig, he needed to learn Rock Smash and Strength to be prepared.
However, Turtwig spent a day on the Rock Smash skill and barely managed to make a crack in a rock. As for Strength, it was better not to mention it for now.
Once prepared, Chenxi planned to use the middle-aged uncle's connections to head to the Black Gold Carbon Pit.
Before leaving, Chenxi looked at Elder Zhou and asked, "What does the family say? Are they going to investigate the Black Gold Carbon Pit?"
"The family expresses concern about this matter, but advises against rash intervention. Even if we do intervene, there must be a reasonable justification. In short, Oreburgh City is the Ju family's territory, and if our family intervenes too much, it could be misinterpreted!"
Elder Zhou said this, then added, "So, Young Master, you really shouldn't go to the Heijin Mine!"
Most of the items in Chenxi's bag these two days were personally prepared by Elder Zhou, so he naturally knew Chenxi's purpose.
Chenxi replied, "I have no choice. The growth of my Pokémon must happen in the mine!"
"This is the best environment. If I hadn't passed through Oreburgh City, then so be it."
"But since I'm already here, I can't just give up without even knowing what the danger is!"
"Also, after I go in, tomorrow you should contact the Yuan Family."
"Just say that I, being ignorant, shook off my hidden bodyguards and entered the Black Gold Carbon Pit, and ask them to help search for me."
Chenxi said to Elder Zhou, "Afterward, there's no need to forcefully search for me. I won't cause trouble."
"I just plan to find a place in the Black Gold Carbon Pit to cultivate properly."
"And our Yuan Family can use this opportunity to figure out what the Ju family is really up to."
Elder Zhou was momentarily stunned upon hearing this, but he felt that arranging manpower to Protect Chenxi would also be good, so he quickly agreed.
Chenxi's instruction for the Yuan Family to inform the Ju family was, in fact, a way to show their stance.
The Yuan Family's twelve-year-old young master, being ignorant, accidentally trespassed into the Black Gold Cave, but the Yuan Family itself had no intentions against the Ju family.
After all, while the relationship between the Yuan Family and the Ju family couldn't be called a blood feud, as two of the Five Great Families, their relationship was indeed quite tense.
Giving a heads-up would make the Yuan Family appear magnanimous, thereby avoiding unnecessary misunderstandings.
Of course, for Chenxi, if nothing was happening in the Black Gold Carbon Pit, he would naturally sneak into the village without a sound, hoping the Ju family knew nothing.
But since something had already happened in the Heijin Mine, whether it was useful or not, it was best to put up a layer of protection for himself first.
After all, when playing the fool, if you keep playing, others might actually treat you like a fool and take advantage of you.
With preparations made, Chenxi arrived at the agreed-upon uncle's place two mornings later, greeted the blue-haired, silver-eyed little girl, and then, led by the middle-aged uncle, walked openly into the mine.
It must be said that the rules outside the mine were indeed strict. Disguised as the uncle's nephew, and following the uncle into the mine, having this guide allowed him to successfully enter, which made Chenxi breathe a sigh of relief.
Upon reaching what was roughly the entrance to the hunting area, the uncle stopped and explained to Chenxi:
"I can only take you this far."
"The tunnels inside this Heijin Mine are complex and intertwined. We've divided them into four areas: the work area, the training area, the hunting area, and the exploration area."
"The work area and training area are where our workers operate, mainly for collecting ore and training mine Pokémon."
"But you've come down, presumably to go to the hunting area and exploration area."
"There are wild Small Elves there. It's usually a place where Spirit Hunters frequently appear, so you must be careful!"
"Thank you!" Chenxi replied respectfully to the middle-aged uncle.
"If you get lost in the mine, don't panic. Look for the faint glowing fungal plants along the edges of the mine."
"These luminous fungi were specially planted by the company's upper management to facilitate the entry and exit of Spirit Hunters."
The middle-aged uncle thought for a moment and continued, "However, for some days now, we've been hearing faint sounds and vibrations from the bottom of the mine, so you must be careful and not go too deep."
"Understood, Uncle. Then you attend to your business, and I'll head down now!"
Chenxi suddenly stopped, turned around, and said, "If anyone above asks you about my whereabouts, Uncle, you don't need to deliberately hide it. If you feel it's necessary to say, then just say it. Oh, and remember to mention that I chose your daughter's Gligar for her."
The middle-aged uncle was slightly stunned by this, not understanding what Chenxi meant.
After all, even though revealing Chenxi wouldn't be a big deal, it would still violate discipline.
But Chenxi knew that, according to his plan, this middle-aged uncle would definitely be discovered.
And for the Ju family, they certainly wouldn't do anything to him, and they probably wouldn't bother too much with this 'ant'.
Or rather, in the eyes of the Five Great Families, it would be too humiliating to haggle with these mortals.
But the people below who wanted to curry favor with the Ju family might step on this uncle.
And that last sentence was a Guardian Charm for this uncle, which was the only care Chenxi could think of leaving him.
After all, it might be impossible for this uncle to get a promotion in the Ju family from now on, but a raise might be possible.
Chenxi quickly put this matter out of his mind and headed deeper into the mine.
Chenxi was in the hunting area, moving towards the exploration area. Throughout the entire Black Gold Carbon Pit's hunting area, there were many winding caves, and it was also the most densely populated area for Spirit Hunters within the entire cave system.
Moreover, these caves were not developed by the Ju family, but rather carved out by many Small Elves that originally lived underground.
The main contributors were Small Elves like Onix, who enjoyed moving deep underground.
Because areas where Onix had been active usually became the foundation for many underground-dwelling Small Elves to build their homes, gradually forming various wild underground Small Elf communities.
But with the development of the mine, the work area of the entire Black Gold Carbon Pit continuously expanded. To deal with the Pokémon here, the Black Gold Carbon Pit would issue tasks for Spirit Hunters to handle the Small Elves in the carbon pit, to facilitate the next stage of mining.
Of course, the Ju family would outsource this part of the task instead of handling it entirely themselves, firstly to reduce costs, and secondly because the Hunter Organization also owned a portion of the Heijin Mine's shares.
Therefore, a portion of Spirit Hunters were allowed to enter here.
Of course, in reality, the Hunter Organization not only held a portion of the shares in the Black Gold Carbon Pit, but also had a presence in areas such as the Yuan Family's Eternal Forest, the Great Marsh of the Wetland Shrine, and Mt. Coronet of the Temple.
Furthermore, Spirit Hunters of a certain rank were allowed free entry and hunting, as long as they didn't destructively exploit resources.
This was because the Hunter Organization had evolved from an initial mutual aid group of commoners into a formidable force that even the Temple found difficult to suppress.
At least, none of the Five Great Families individually had the confidence to win against them.
Therefore, in Sinnoh, being a Spirit Hunter was an important path for the vast majority of civilian Trainers.
However, most Spirit Hunters were just a joke.
But there was also a strict promotion system within Spirit Hunters; once one reached the Superior Hunter rank, virtually every one of them was an outstanding individual among Trainers of the same level.
At this moment, Chenxi walked through the Black Gold Carbon Pit with Floette, observing many Spirit Hunters moving with hurried expressions.
Spirit Hunters on missions are generally highly vigilant and do not typically interact with outsiders.
Chenxi also didn't seek out these Spirit Hunters, nor did he ask what had happened.
Because Chenxi came here to find a place rich in rock or ground power for Floette to comprehend the corresponding attribute.
Therefore, Chenxi was not only searching for a suitable location in the mine but also looking for suitable Small Elves in this cave, especially those that had mastered Ancient Power.
Regarding comprehending Awakening Power through Rock-type power, Chenxi felt that the two most suitable skills for Floette to comprehend Rock-type power were Original Power and Power Gem.
Because both of these are special attack skills, for Floette, using special attack skills to comprehend Awakening Power is always more convenient than other skills.
And among them, what Chenxi valued more was naturally Original Power.
Because this skill has the ability to tap into life potential and unlock life potential.
And what's interesting is that all Small Elves revived from fossils can learn and naturally master Original Power.
Is this because Original Power was the most common power system in ancient times, thus becoming an ability that these Small Elves revived from fossils would inevitably master?
Or is it that these Small Elves, revived from fossils, gained a new ability to stimulate their life potential because they were reborn from the dead in fossils?
Of course, whatever the underlying reason, it indicates that the skill Original Power has a great deal of potential to be explored.
And if possible, Chenxi naturally hoped that Floette would comprehend the Rock attribute through this skill.
However, Chenxi walked through these crisscrossing tunnels for a long time, encountering many wild Small Elves, but let alone Rock-type Small Elves that had mastered Original Power, he didn't even see a trace of wild Small Elves with Power Gem.
Chenxi sighed slightly, and couldn't help but think, "Is the skill Original Power really that rare for Rock-type Small Elves?"
"Why haven't I seen a single Small Elf with it!"
"If I can't find one, then to train Floette, do I have to train Pokémon with corresponding skills of different attributes?"
Chenxi scratched his head, frustrated.
How annoying!
Originally, Chenxi thought it was natural for Floette to reach a suitable environment, find a Pokémon with a suitable attribute, and learn the corresponding attribute skill.
But when he actually tried to do it, he realized it wasn't as simple as he had imagined!
And this was only the beginning; as Floette mastered more attributes, and more time was spent, he would need even more corresponding Small Elves to follow along.
Thinking about it, this was a plan that would involve Small Elves of all attributes!
If he weren't a direct descendant of the Yuan Family, with abundant resources at his disposal, the Floette training plan would probably have scared him to death.
But now, the most important thing was to find a suitable Small Elf for himself.
And in this continuous search, Chenxi unknowingly delved deeper into the more dangerous exploration area!