"What we did today isn't to be mentioned to the other Pokémon.
…Especially Beedrill. Understood!?" Tetsuya said.
Skorupi could only nod. After all, Weedle belonged to the same species as Beedrill. Doing something like this would certainly not sit well with Beedrill.
From now on, whenever Beedrill was around, Skorupi would feed on Venonat and Venomoth instead. If the opportunity arose, Venipede and Dustox would also make good prey.
When they returned to the glacier falls, all of the Pokémon were training. At that moment, Sheila also arrived.
Tetsuya walked over and asked, "Sheila, what brings you here?"
"Tetsuya! Come on, Pryce is waiting for you," Sheila said.
Tetsuya recalled all of his Pokémon and followed Sheila back to Mahogany Gym.
---◓---
Upon returning to the Gym, Pryce was sitting in the main hall with a face full of worry. His expression was extremely grim. Even Tetsuya was "intimidated" and did not dare speak carelessly.
When he saw Sheila and Tetsuya arrive, Pryce steadied himself before saying, "Have a seat."
"What happened?" Tetsuya asked. Although he already had a suspicion, he could not be certain.
"A group of people came here just now," Sheila said.
"Oh~? What kind of people?" Tetsuya asked, though by now he already knew the answer.
"They came from all over Johto. They were all parents whose children had been kidnapped by the Shadow Team. They searched for their children for years without success. Even after seeking help from the League, they were only brushed aside. Some families had even lost everything because of it. Having no other choice, they came to ask Pryce for help, because everyone knows about his sense of justice," Sheila explained.
"So… what now?" Tetsuya deliberately asked.
"I've struggled with this for more than a month… Now I've completely lost faith in the Johto League. So many children have died, yet they remain completely indifferent… Allowing the Shadow Team to run rampant! Heh~ It seems that being absorbed by another League is already inevitable." Pryce said, helpless. "There's no point holding on to false hope any longer… Get ready! Tomorrow we'll head to Ecruteak City to find Matsuba. Sheila, I'll have to leave Mahogany Gym in your hands."
"Don't worry. Leave Mahogany Gym to me! The Shadows must be eradicated. When the time is right, I'll personally go deal with those bastards!" Sheila said angrily.
"I don't have any problems on my end. We can leave at any time," Tetsuya said.
"Mm. I've also taken a look at your Pokémon's training. The ones most in need right now are Mamoswine, Beedrill, and Ditto. Your methods are real good. You can leave them at the glacier falls to continue training, especially Mamoswine. Its level must be the first to reach Elite Four level.
I'm currently raising a special Ice-type Pokémon. Once it has fully developed, it can accompany you to the arctic, break through ice layers hundreds of meters thick, and search for traces of Eternal Ice or Everfrozen Ice." Pryce had long been planning Tetsuya's Ice-type team for him, one that was destined to reach Champion level and inherit his legacy.
Tetsuya naturally welcomed the idea with open arms. Having someone of Pryce's level train his Pokémon for free was something he could only dream of. In his previous life, he had no family or friends.
Although Mr. Shellby had been on good terms with him, that man truly had no talent for training Pokémon… he only knew how to raise them until they were plump and well-fed. Under his care, their strength only declined.
Pryce also understood Tetsuya's training well. With Miltank's support and the unique environment of the glacier falls, Mamoswine's training had reached its most critical stage, and it could not be interrupted for even a moment.
Moreover, the glacier falls was the ideal place for it to make full use of its Ice-type energy. For the sake of his main battling Pokémon, Tetsuya decisively left Miltank behind to assist Mamoswine.
As a result, Mamoswine, Beedrill, and Ditto, who remained at the glacier falls, would truly be living well. They could enjoy Miltank milk every day, which was also highly beneficial for their physical condition.
As for Beedrill and Ditto, both were still working to conquer the glacier falls. Although they improved every day, they were still far from succeeding. If they left now, all of their previous training would be abandoned halfway through, so they had no choice but to stay behind.
Ditto had always remained attached to Tetsuya's wrist so it could protect him in critical moments. But now that he had formed the [Shadow Contract] and with psychic powers, his own strength had already surpassed Ditto's and even that of most Pokémon, although all of it relied on Gengar. Naturally, Tetsuya no longer needed Ditto's protection.
Now was the time for Ditto to devote itself to training. After all, Ditto also had a desire to become stronger!
As for Beedrill, this kind of training was extremely beneficial to increasing its natural strength, and the results were already obvious. Once it conquered the glacier falls, Tetsuya would have it learn Swords Dance. He was looking forward to seeing what level would reach by then.
As for Golurk, the seventh layer of energy was the strongest and also the deepest sealed. Although crossing the glacier falls every day provided a huge amount of exercise, it had only managed to spread outward from the sealed area by about the size of a palm.
Through training alone, it would probably be very difficult for the seventh layer of energy to spread completely. In fact, even the sixth layer of energy had already been difficult to expand.
The reason it had succeeded before was mainly because, after escaping Shadow Island, the nearly unbearable exhaustion at sea and the tense, life-or-death struggle had allowed Golurk to complete the sixth layer of energy.
As for the seventh layer, it would probably be very difficult to unseal it completely right now. Therefore, leaving Golurk back not be of much use, as it could no longer provide any meaningful results. Following Tetsuya might instead expose it to unexpected situations that could accelerate the unsealing of its energy.
Golurk's strength was second only to Mamoswine's, making it Tetsuya's second greatest combat power. It was capable of traveling through both the sky and ground, could fight, and could also carry Tetsuya away to safety.
With Golurk by his side, even venturing into a Tyranitar's den would allow him to retreat safely. It was one of his greatest safeguards. Therefore, the Pokémon Tetsuya would be taking with him this time were Golurk, Houndoom, Weezing, and Skorupi.
Houndoom and Weezing were also key combatants. Houndoom fought fearlessly, and with King's Rock and its intimidating presence, it was nearly unstoppable in battle. Even when it failed to win, it always left its opponent badly battered.
As for Weezing, it possessed terrifying toxicity. Its potential was immense, and it would closely follow in the footsteps of Mamoswine and Golurk. However, its current battle style still lacked flexibility. It always seemed to be missing something, and that could only be remedied through a great deal of battle experience.
As for Skorupi… well, since it had been able to grow within Koffing's Toxic's poison, its potential naturally spoke for itself. It had already surpassed the Skorupi Tetsuya had raised in his previous life.
At the very least, it should be capable of reaching the Elite Four standards. Whether it could go even further was something even Tetsuya could not say for certain, since in his previous life, he himself had only just reached the Elite Four level.