"Ash, what is this gem? Why is it giving off this kind of light in your hands?" Liza's face still carried the aftermath of shock, her voice trembling slightly. A gem that had sat motionless in the valley for a hundred years had produced a light this violent the moment it landed in Ash's hands. Was this gem destined to belong to Ash?
"I'm not entirely sure. But going by the information the gem transmitted to me, it seems to be related to the Sky Dragon, Rayquaza. Miss Liza, can I take this gem?"
Ash didn't directly say that he'd known about the Green Orb from the beginning, but he did mention the connection between the Green Orb and Rayquaza. It was worth noting, though. Liza had said he could take the gem, since it belonged to the new King of Charicific Valley, and technically the gem was already his.
Even so, if an average person learned that this green gem was actually connected to a first-tier god like Rayquaza, they would absolutely think about reclaiming it.
Ash's straightforwardness in disclosing the Green Orb's true nature came partly from trusting Liza's character, and partly from the fact that he didn't consider the Green Orb that important.
The gem was indeed a treasure, but he had the Chat Group, his many mature companions, and Mewtwo. Even without this gem, even without Rayquaza's help, he believed he could stand at the top of the world and become a Pokémon Master. Having it was best, but not having it was fine. That was the real reason he mentioned the connection to Rayquaza.
When Liza heard the word "Rayquaza," her body stiffened. Her emerald eyes went wide in an instant, and shock replaced every other expression on her face. She staggered back half a step, instinctively gripping the rocks beside her with both hands. Her voice trembled.
"You. What did you just say? Rayquaza? The legendary first-tier god who watches over the sky?"
The relic of Charicific Valley was connected to that legendary Legendary? She'd been guarding this valley for over ten years, since she was small. She'd heard the family lore about the gem, but the elders had only ever said it was a treasure passed down from their ancestors. Not one of them had ever mentioned its link to Rayquaza.
This stone, which had sat unmoving for over a hundred years, was now not only glowing in Ash's hands but was also tied up in a background this terrifying. It was hard for Liza to process.
Ash, seeing her stunned expression, stayed calm. "That's what the information the gem transmitted said. It seems to be Rayquaza's treasure." He didn't dramatize or hide anything. His tone was as casual as if he'd said, "The weather is nice today."
This was a top-tier Legendary artifact. If word of it got out, it would send ripples across the entire world. Yet in Ash's mouth, the subject had become this casual, this light. He'd even directly informed her about the artifact, with no apparent worry that she'd try to reclaim it. Or rather, not "no worry," more accurately, Ash simply didn't consider the treasure important. Liza couldn't find a trace of greed in his eyes.
To keep this level of composure about a first-tier divine artifact, this young man had clearly walked a road she'd never seen the end of.
"What in the world?" Liza took a deep breath, and the tremor on her face transformed into a relaxed smile. "If the gem has chosen you, then no matter what Pokémon this gem is connected to, you should naturally take it. This is the honor you earned with your Charizard, and the rules of the valley won't change. You can handle the gem however you want."
Since Ash was this composed, how could she possibly do anything that would tarnish the reputation of Charicific Valley? Rules were rules. Since this gem already belonged to Ash, she wouldn't take it back, regardless of what Legendary it was connected to.
And honestly, she'd only been shocked by the gem's connection to Rayquaza. Not for a moment had she thought about claiming the Green Orb for herself. The Pokémon she was most interested in, the one she loved, was Charizard. So after the initial shock passed, she declared to Ash without hesitation that the Green Orb belonged to him. It had nothing more to do with Charicific Valley.
Unless the next King of Charicific Valley was elected in the future, and if the Green Orb was still in Ash's hands at that time, then it would have to be returned to the new King. But Liza felt that was probably impossible. Ash's Charizard could only keep growing stronger, and the newly elected King of Charicific Valley had a five-year protection period during which the position couldn't change.
She could hardly imagine what a Charizard trained for less than a year had already achieved. Given five years, how much stronger would he become? So as long as Ash didn't resign the position, the future King of Charicific Valley would still be him.
Hearing this, Ash broke into a bright smile. "Thank you, Miss Liza."
"Don't thank me too soon." Liza's tone shifted, and her gaze turned to Charizard, who was some distance off, exchanging brief words with another Charizard. "Your Charizard just became King, and now is the time to consolidate and strengthen his position. The environment of the Purgatory Valley is an outstanding training opportunity for him. Do you plan to take him with you and continue traveling?"
She wasn't exaggerating. Training a Charizard in the valley, especially in the Purgatory Valley's specific method, could absolutely accelerate the growth of Charizard's power. She didn't deny that Charizard could also improve very quickly at Ash's side.
But adding Charicific Valley's unique training method to the Purgatory Valley environment on top of everything else, who knew, it might even push Charizard's power ceiling one level higher.
Ash followed her gaze. Charizard seemed to sense their attention and turned his head. His azure eyes carried a note of anticipation, and a note of conflict. He wanted to stay here and train with the other Charizards. He also wanted to stay by Ash's side. This had nothing to do with the speed of his power growth. He simply didn't want to leave Ash.
Ash stayed silent for a few seconds, then shook his head. "No. Let Charizard stay in Charicific Valley. This place is more suitable for him to grow up in."
"What?" Not only was Liza surprised, even Misty beside her couldn't help exclaiming. "Ash, but Charizard is your absolute ace!"
Throughout their journey, Ash frequently rotated Pokémon in and out, but three had remained constant: Charizard, Pikachu, and Gardevoir. Charizard had teleported back to Oak's lab once before, but he'd soon come back. Gardevoir and Pikachu had never left at all. The reason was that these three were Ash's peak combat force.
While Ash didn't play favorites in training, they were essentially unchangeable, a kind of indirect preferential treatment on his part.
Now Ash wanted to leave Charizard at Charicific Valley. This didn't only mean leaving one of his main aces behind. It meant separating himself from a close partner. In any normal circumstance, Ash would absolutely be reluctant to part with him.
"I know." Ash walked over to Charizard and reached up to touch his broad back. "But this place has Miss Liza's unique Charizard training method, and the Purgatory Valley's lava environment.
With her training, and over two hundred Charizards to spar with, this kind of environment for growing up isn't necessarily worse than being by my side. It might even be better. Leaving you here definitely has more advantages than downsides."
Liza, somewhat displeased at Ash's self-praise, pouted slightly. She acknowledged that Ash's training was good, but she felt it was more the Charizards' innate talent shining through. What did he mean, saying being at his side was on par with Charicific Valley's environment? It sounded like he thought the environment he provided was excellent on its own.
Even so, however unique Ash's training methods were, the competitive atmosphere among a valley of Charizards absolutely couldn't be matched by being at his side. If Charizard were placed in the valley, his growth rate would only accelerate. And Liza wanted Ash to leave Charizard here.
Having a Charizard this gifted and this powerful in the valley would further push the other Charizards to grow stronger.
On top of that, she wanted to test Ash's Charizard and see just how far his potential could go. So in the end, Liza didn't object to Ash's framing. For now, she'd let him praise himself a bit. As long as he left Charizard in Charicific Valley, he could say whatever he wanted.
Charizard bowed his head and rubbed against Ash's palm, a low, choked sound escaping his throat. He still seemed reluctant to leave.
Seeing this, Ash pursed his lips, then forced a grin. "Let's say hypothetically. If you stay in Charicific Valley, you'll also free up a spot on my team. With one open slot, I can train even more Pokémon. That's killing two or three birds with one stone. So you'd better stay in Charicific Valley."
Charizard rubbed his hard head against Ash's, then immediately lifted his head and roared twice in indignation. You bastard, give me back my suffering and reluctance!
"Okay, I was just joking. But Charizard, the next time we meet, you'd better have truly reached Champion level. Otherwise the team will have to rely on our big sister to hold you up." Ash extended his fist toward Charizard, serious now.
He didn't know for certain if Charizard would be Champion level by the next time they met, but Gardevoir would definitely reach Champion. If Charizard didn't hit Champion by then, he'd be carried by Gardevoir.
Right now the two of them were constantly competing for the number-two seat on the team. If Pikachu was the eldest brother, then those two were fighting for the roles of big sister and number-two brother. At the moment, Charizard was narrowly in the lead, but he couldn't afford to relax at all.
"You know, Gardevoir has been trained by Mewtwo. That kind of gap won't take her long to close."
"Roar!"
Charizard nodded, extending his claws to bump Ash's fist. The agreement was made. Next time they met would be when he became Champion.
Liza watched the bond between the two, her eyes filled with admiration. "Don't worry. I'll personally guide him. With the Purgatory Valley and the valley's training methods, the next time he meets you, he'll surpass every Pokémon on your team and become your absolute ace."
"Then I'll be in your care, Miss Liza." Ash bowed deeply, then glanced at Charizard one last time. "See you again, Charizard."
"Roar!"
After bidding farewell to Liza, the group set off on the road to Azalea Town.
The scenery along the way gradually shifted from scorching mountain valley to dense forest. Fresh air mixed with the fragrance of plants and trees, bringing a sense of quiet to the mind. The parting sadness of leaving Charizard behind was slowly worn down by the peaceful travel, and the comfortable environment let the more unpleasant feelings fade.
Seven days passed since leaving Charicific Valley, and nothing major happened during that time.
At most, Team Rocket came to cause trouble twice, but as expected, they were both sent flying by Pikachu. Those three always brought some new robot each time they showed up, but in front of a Pikachu, whatever they built was just a pile of scrap metal.
However, although Pikachu could destroy Team Rocket's machines, he couldn't destroy their spirit. No matter how many times they were blasted away or where they were locked up, as long as Ash and Pikachu were on the road, they would reappear. In a sense, it was a kind of divine perseverance.
Ash had actually gone around asking other big names in the Chat Group about how to escape these three. Among them, Champion Ash had stated that even after becoming World Champion, he still couldn't shake them. And more than that, those three had almost unimaginable potential.
Even a god-level Pikachu like his own would sometimes lose to them in mechanical battles.
In Ash's current world, the reason Team Rocket kept getting defeated so easily was simply because Ash himself grew too quickly, and Team Rocket couldn't keep up. Thanks to the Chat Group, Ash's growth rate was accelerating faster than the normal timeline allowed, which made Team Rocket's robotics look like garbage.
In the normal timeline, though, Team Rocket's robotics were still a considerable threat to Ash's Pikachu.
At this point, Ash had given up on the idea of escaping Team Rocket. To shake off those three conceptual gods, he'd probably have to wait until he defeated Arceus. Only then could he even begin thinking about it.
On the seventh day, as the setting sun painted the horizon a tangerine hue, a small town nestled at the foot of the mountain finally came into view. Wooden houses were clustered together, smoke rose from the chimneys, and in the distance, the clanging of workshops could be heard.
At the town's entrance stood a wooden sign with "Azalea Town" written in large letters. They had finally arrived at the second Gym town. Mr. Kurt was here too, so Ash could finally hand over the GS Ball.
"Finally, we made it." Serena stopped and stretched, her posture cutting a striking silhouette against the setting sun.
Brock stroked his chin, looking out at the town. "Let's head to the Pokémon Center first and get settled. Tomorrow morning we can go see Mr. Kurt to deliver the GS Ball, and while we're at it, ask around about the Gym here."
Ash stood on the hillside, looking down at the town in front of him, absently stroking Pikachu beside him. His eyes were bright with anticipation.
"Let's go. Hopefully Mr. Kurt can unravel the GS Ball's mystery for us, and we can take down the Gym challenge here."