Chapter 37: The "Toxic" Training Method?
Chapter 37: The "Toxic" Training Method?
"Kya!"
Ghastly suddenly poked its head out from behind Jing He, putting on a fearsome and menacing face.
Jing He had long grown accustomed to Ghastly's sudden and mischievous scares, but this time, he couldn't help but pause when he saw Ghastly's appearance.
Because this time, Ghastly had transformed into a vampire, with black mist forming a cloak around its head. The sharp, blood-red fangs were real and eerily familiar.
"Are these... Ekans' fangs?"
"Kya~"
Ghastly grinned, proudly displaying its trophy.
Jing He couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time.
"Even though the fangs will grow back, you still..."
He hadn't expected Ghastly to go back and pull out the fangs. These were one of Ekans' most important features, through which most of its toxins were released. The fangs were undoubtedly highly toxic.
Ekans, which would normally have to hide for three to four months, would now have to hide for even longer, as it had lost its primary means of defense.
"Don't get poisoned yourself."
"Kya!"
Ghastly looked at him with a "How could I?" expression. As a Poison-type Pokemon, it was immune to poison, unlike other Pokemon.
Jing He knew this, so he was just joking. Even without the immunity, Ghastly was quadruple-resistant to poison.
"Kya kya—"
Ghastly floated in front of Jing He, the black mist around its body stirring.
Hmm?
What's going on?
Then he heard a "slurping" sound from Ghastly, followed by the sound of chewing jelly and smacking lips, as if it were eating jelly.
Jing He's expression became somewhat strange.
Ghastly had eaten the venom from Ekans' fangs?
"Kya!"
After smacking its lips and swallowing, Ghastly's large white eyes immediately sparkled with delight.
It was unexpectedly delicious!
But Ghastly wasn't done yet. It smacked its lips a couple more times, as if savoring the taste, and the black mist around its body swirled again, revealing a purplish haze.
Smog!
However, instead of releasing the Smog directly as usual, Ghastly compressed it into the fangs.
Suddenly, a blackish-purple bubble appeared at the tip of the crimson fangs, which then transformed into thick, sticky drops of venom that dripped onto the ground, hissing and corroding the small road tiles into tiny holes.
"Kya!"
Ghastly grinned, raising its eyebrows at Jing He.
See, my venom is strong!
Jing He was a bit surprised by this. He stopped in his tracks, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"Indeed, the venom seems much stronger after being compressed by the fangs," he said, looking up at Ghastly. "Ghastly, did you use the Toxic Orb?"
"Kya?"
Ghastly blinked.
No.
Jing He nodded slightly, speaking to himself.
"Even if Ghastly's Smog is compressed into a liquid, theoretically, it shouldn't be as toxic as this. Is it because of the fangs, or because it ate the venom from Ekans' fangs?"
With a sense of exploration, Jing He said to Ghastly, "Ghastly, try adding the toxicity from the Toxic Orb."
Aoh.
Ghastly, not quite understanding but following orders, made a couple of gulping sounds, and its tongue curled around a deep purple orb, which it then spat out.
Then its tongue "slurped" around the Toxic Orb a few times before quickly swallowing it again. Following Jing He's instructions, it once again used Smog.
The venom dripped from the tip of the fangs, becoming even more viscous and darker than before, with the toxicity and corrosiveness significantly increased.
The results were clear, and Jing He's eyes lit up.
Perhaps, this method could really help Ghastly master the "Toxic" ability!
With this thought in mind, Jing He continued his journey to Blazing Town, his pace quickening.
"Kya—"
Seeing this, Ghastly hurried to catch up.
Why are you running so fast?
Jing He caught a glimpse of a dark, corroded pit in the dirt path behind him.
If I don’t run, do you want to get caught?
Noticing Jing He’s gaze, Gastly also realized the situation.
It immediately floated in front of Jing He, adopting an expression that clearly said, "I didn’t do it, not my fault."
But then it seemed to remember something and flashed a mischievous grin, asking:
"Kyeu kyeu?"
Right, you mentioned earlier—how long does it take for a Ekans to regrow its fangs?
Back at the Pewter City Pokemon Center.
Jing He found Nurse Joy at the Pokemon Center.
Due to the incident at Chimney Hill the day before and the academy’s arrangements, Jing He, an unregistered trainer, had Gastly undergo its first official Pokemon check-up.
The free kind.
Standing outside the large transparent glass window, Jing He watched as Gastly, looking bewildered, was guided by Nurse Joy and Chansey from one sophisticated machine to another. He couldn’t help but chuckle.
Gastly’s expression was like that of a country bumpkin entering a grand mansion—completely overwhelmed and lost.
But Jing He couldn’t hide the worry in his eyes.
Gastly had been in a deep sleep for so long, was it really fully recovered?
Had his methods of training Gastly been correct? Would they leave any hidden issues?
Would the check-up reveal any bad news?
Gastly had eaten so much, both what it should and shouldn’t, would it be feeling unwell?
Inside the examination room.
Although Gastly had been exposed to new gadgets like computers and smartphones under Jing He’s influence, these advanced, large-scale instruments were a different story.
The little guy was genuinely bewildered and unsure.
But as long as it looked up to see the familiar and comforting figure outside the glass, it felt less anxious.
And then,
"Gastly, we’re going to go in here next, be careful not to bump into anything," Nurse Joy’s gentle voice said.
"Kyeu—"
Nurse Joy smells so nice.
Gastly: (●｀●)
Seeing Gastly’s cooperation and Nurse Joy’s normal demeanor, Jing He let out a slight sigh of relief and took out his phone, which had been vibrating several times.
【Eevee Eats Cabbage】: If it’s because of the time, it’s fine, I can come to you. You’re in the Hoenn region, right?
【Eevee Eats Cabbage】: Gyarados has been getting better over the past few days, but it seems a bit off today. (Video.MP4)
In person?
No, no, no.
We’re just close friends.
He opened the video.
In the few days since they last met, Gyarados’s body color had become noticeably brighter, but—
【Jing He】: Is there a possibility it’s just indigestion from overeating?
Gyarados wasn’t just brighter in color; it had also grown in size. This might not be as noticeable to someone who had been around it all the time.
【Jing He】: Also, don’t keep Gyarados with so many Water-type Pokemon for now. It might be a bit uncomfortable to use the bathroom after just starting to feel better.
Click—
The examination room door opened, and Jing He put his phone away.
"Kyeu~~"
Gastly floated over happily.
"Teacher Jing He, your Gastly is in excellent condition," Nurse Joy smiled.
"Thank you," Jing He sighed in relief.
"However, don’t let it eat too much recently. It might have a bit of indigestion."
"Uh." Jing He was taken aback, looking at Gastly, who still looked bewildered. He nodded, "Okay."
"By the way, there’s one more thing."
As Jing He was about to leave after thanking Nurse Joy, she called him back.
"The Houndoom has woken up, and Gym Leader Sousei just arrived in Pewter City. He hopes you can assist them in the investigation."
"Okay, what?"
Gym Leader Sousei?!
Read on, more and more!
(End of Chapter)
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