It was painfully obvious that Groudon and Kyogre had clashed inside that secret realm before.
The ground littered with Precipice Blades was the clearest proof.
No one knew how that battle had ended—but one thing was certain: those two titans were still in there.
After a brief silence, Chen Shi spoke cautiously.
"Hypothetically," he said, "just hypothetically… if I asked you not to enter that secret realm, would you agree?"
Steven looked puzzled. He didn't quite understand what Chen Shi was getting at. From the sound of it, Chen Shi clearly didn't want them anywhere near that place.
Cynthia, however, narrowed her eyes slightly. After staring at Chen Shi for two seconds, she spoke in the same measured tone.
"Hypothetically," she echoed, "if we listened to you and didn't enter that secret realm—would you also do as you said before and stay away from it?"
Chen Shi paused, then shook his head.
"I have a reason why I must go."
That was the truth.
This expedition was non-negotiable for him. But precisely because of that, he didn't want Steven or Cynthia dragged into it. That was why he had asked in the first place.
Yet Cynthia's response made her stance equally clear.
What was he supposed to do—tie them up and lock them away?
All he could do was try to persuade them.
"This secret realm isn't simple," Chen Shi said earnestly. "I really think it'd be better if you didn't go. Just stay back."
"The world's huge. There are countless places to train and explore. Why does it have to be this one?"
"If you like ruins, I can accompany you to others later. There's no need to fixate on this place."
Cynthia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her tone calm but firm.
"And if it's not simple—so what?"
"You can go, but I can't?"
"Or…" She paused slightly, her gaze sharpening.
"Do you really think you're stronger than me now?"
That last sentence carried a subtle edge.
After days of Chen Shi's guidance, Cynthia had already become much more familiar with Mega Evolution. At the very least, she no longer collapsed from the strain like before.
And losing to Chen Shi in their previous match still bothered her. She'd been looking for a chance to reclaim that loss ever since.
Of course Chen Shi understood what she was thinking.
"That's not what I meant," he said quickly. "It's just that this secret realm is genuinely dangerous, and I—"
Before he could finish, Cynthia cut him off.
"What exactly are you worried about?"
"My safety?"
She lifted her chin slightly, her eyes filled with unwavering confidence as she spoke each word clearly.
"Don't forget who I am."
"I'm Cynthia."
Chen Shi froze for a moment—then laughed softly, a sense of relief washing over him.
Right.
She was Cynthia.
The future Valkyrie of Sinnoh. A name that would one day inspire awe across the Pokémon world.
How could someone like her back down just because of a warning?
Steven shrugged from the side.
"With how serious you're making it sound, I'm getting more and more curious about this secret realm."
Chen Shi sighed. Seeing how determined they both were, he finally stopped holding back.
"Those stone pillars aren't ruins," he said quietly.
"They're Groudon's signature move—Precipice Blades."
"I got reliable information that a thousand years ago, Groudon and Kyogre were driven into a secret realm. This is almost certainly that place."
"On top of that, the orbs at Mt. Pyre were stolen at this exact time. It's too much of a coincidence."
"I'm worried that if you go in, something could go wrong."
Steven and Cynthia both went still.
If what Chen Shi said was true—if that secret realm really was where Groudon and Kyogre slept—then the League's decision was practically walking into the jaws of a disaster.
Steven swallowed hard.
"Old Chen… you're not joking, right?"
"I wouldn't joke about something like this," Chen Shi said, shaking his head.
Silence fell.
The names Groudon and Kyogre carried far too much weight. In legend, both possessed power capable of reshaping the world.
And now, the orbs tied to them had been stolen at the same time.
No wonder Chen Shi didn't want them involved.
Yet after only a brief hesitation, Cynthia still made her choice.
"I'm going."
Steven clenched his jaw—and then nodded.
"Count me in."
Chen Shi let out a long sigh and stopped trying to argue.
They had already made up their minds. Saying more would only be pointless.
All he could hope was that when the time came, he'd be able to stop Maxie and Archie, and that this expedition would end as nothing more than a dangerous training experience.
Not a catastrophe.
Seeing his troubled expression, Cynthia softened her tone.
"You don't need to burden yourself like this," she said gently. "Even if you convinced us not to go, what about everyone else?"
"This isn't just about us. The League will invite many top talents—can you stop all of them?"
Steven nodded in agreement.
"My father said the invitations will go out to standout performers from the World Championships. That's a lot of people."
Chen Shi understood then—this was inevitable.
There was no stopping it.
As for whether he should tell the League everything…
After careful thought, he decided against it.
Even if they believed him, there was a more pressing concern: the Red Orb and Blue Orb.
If the League got their hands on them, would they truly return them to Phoebe's grandparents?
He doubted it.
He wasn't willing to gamble on human greed.
Before, informing the League had been his only option—he hadn't known where Groudon and Kyogre were, nor where Team Magma and Team Aqua would strike.
But now?
Now he had a direction.
And since he had accepted the Mt. Pyre elders' trust—and their benefits—he intended to see this through.
The two orbs had to be reclaimed.
And they had to be returned.
Chen Shi deliberately changed the subject.
"By the way, Steven—didn't I give you the formula for Fairy-type energy blocks?"
"How's production going?"
He'd handed over the recipe back in Silver Town and asked Steven to ramp up output.
Steven's eyes lit up immediately.
"I was just about to tell you!"
"Since you annotated the techniques so clearly, we've already managed to mass-produce mid-grade Fairy-type energy blocks."
"The quality's not quite on par with handcrafted ones, but it's solid."
"We're planning to release them to the market starting tomorrow."
After Chen Shi published his Fairy-type paper, countless people online had been clamoring to buy Fairy energy blocks.
Steven could already imagine how explosive the market response would be.
Chen Shi was genuinely surprised.
He hadn't expected Steven to move this fast.
It had only been three days since he handed over the formula—and mass production was already underway.
"That's good," Chen Shi said.
"Get them on the market as soon as possible. Once Fairy-type energy fully recovers worldwide, these blocks won't be nearly as valuable."
Steven nodded confidently.
"Don't worry. I know exactly what I'm doing."
...
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