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In front of the dense forest was a grey sandy beach accompanied by clear lake water. The sand was littered with strangely shaped rocks, large patches of weeds, and plants resembling dog tail flowers.
When Li Xiang and Mewtwo set foot here, countless small, long, yellow heads pushed aside the rocks and emerged, densely packed and rather eerie.
"Shuckle!"
"Shuckle, shuckle!"
They made tiny, sharp cries, cheering the return of their companions who had gone out to sell berry juice.
Shuckle is a gentle-natured Pokémon. After storing berries inside their bodies, they remain motionless hidden beneath rocks to prevent being attacked.
The Shuckle that landed under Mewtwo's control rolled about, bringing the Pokeblocks tied with ropes to their companions.
"Shuckle, shuckle!"
They distributed the Pokeblocks, asking about the whereabouts of their clan leader. It strongly resembled the scene of uncles and elders returning from doing business in town, being pestered by children for candy. If not for their very distinctive appearance.
Listening to the Shuckle's conversation, Mewtwo looked deeper into the forest and sensed countless peeping gazes. It instinctively wanted to use its psychic vision but then remembered what Li Xiang had said earlier about using its eyes to see the world. So it gave up.
There are more inside the forest. Mewtwo warned Li Xiang.
"Oh?" Li Xiang looked in the direction Mewtwo was focused on. "Should we go straight in? Rotom."
Rotom then spoke with the Shuckle on the ground.
The Shuckle belatedly realized there was still a major customer here and quickly rolled to Li Xiang's feet, climbing up his body with its tentacles.
"Shuckle!" It pointed in a certain direction.
The group then stepped into the thicket overflowing with the fragrance of berries.
It was visibly obvious that not all berries grew on trees. They could be found on the ground, in the soil, among vines, and in bushes. Li Xiang also discovered some fungi, grown to an enormous size.
Clearly, the Shuckle didn't eat them, causing them to grow wild. After obtaining the Shuckle's permission, he picked some edible ones.
Mewtwo crouched down to help.
"Fungi are known as nature's gift. They're a very delicious ingredient." Li Xiang turned to the curious Mewtwo and smiled. "Very tasty, whether stir-fried, braised, stewed, or boiled."
Are they the same as Foongus and Paras? Mewtwo recalled the strange, dumpling-like creatures covered in green spots it had seen before.
"Of course not. Pokémon are Pokémon, plants are plants." Li Xiang chuckled helplessly.
This question was like pointing at a rock and asking Geodude if it was its kin, or pointing at a mangosteen and asking Bounsweet if they were born from the same mother.
After picking some particularly plump specimens, the rocky area where the Shuckle clan leader resided came into view. An especially large Shuckle could be seen poking its head out by the rocks, its eyes lighting up slightly when it saw Li Xiang and Mewtwo. It was evident that someone had already tipped it off.
Li Xiang was undoubtedly a major customer, a very special one at that, because he didn't want juice, but the precipitated pulp after fermentation.
For the Shuckle clan, this was like earning extra income. So they were particularly enthusiastic.
According to Rotom's translation, Li Xiang learned that after the initial fermentation of the berry juice, the Shuckle would uniformly pour it into tree hollows for storage. When it was time to sell, they would take it out. It sounded similar to monkey wine.
Li Xiang couldn't help but anticipate whether there might be some aged residue inside the tree hollows, with particularly good effects. But then he thought, aged residue might have gone bad. This was fermented pulp, not high-proof alcohol with disinfecting and sterilizing properties.
Arriving at the place where the Shuckle stored their berry juice, the fragrance was exceptionally strong, almost to the point of being cloying.
Li Xiang couldn't help but take out a mask and put it on, but he noticed several sneaky figures in the thicket that were clearly not Shuckle. One large and two small.
"Shuckle!" The Shuckle on his shoulder let out an angry cry, and the leading clan leader also issued a sharp howl.
Instantly, countless Shuckle rolled out of the thicket and charged towards the three dark figures.
"These are... Ursaring and Teddiursa?" Li Xiang looked in surprise at these three juice thieves. It was clearly visible that the largest one was running while carrying a wooden barrel, with berry juice constantly spilling out.
The two Teddiursa kept throwing rocks at the attacking Shuckle to block their advance.
Good grief. They not only go after Combee's Honey, but also the Shuckle's berry juice?
Mewtwo asked in a low voice, Should we...
"Of course we should. Who knows, that barrel they're carrying might contain something particularly good." Li Xiang had no intention of interfering in the conflict between the Shuckle and the Ursaring, but he couldn't possibly let go of the pulp inside the wooden barrel.
Hearing this, Mewtwo's eyes lit up slightly. It waved its hand at the Ursaring and Teddiursa, whose figures had almost disappeared from sight. The three dark figures were enveloped in a blue glow, breaking through branches, and arrived before them.
"Gurr!"
"Gurr, gurr!"
The three bears, one large and two small, waved their paws in panic, seemingly not expecting to be caught even though they were about to escape successfully.
The Shuckle clan leader was extremely grateful for Li Xiang and Mewtwo's assistance and told them that the Ursaring and Teddiursa were not first-time thieves.
Even when punished by the museum, they seemed to forget as quickly as they ate, and would come back again. It gave the Shuckle endless headaches.
They were truly incorrigible scoundrels. Li Xiang offered silent condolences to the Shuckle. There was really nothing they could do against these wild and shameless creatures.
How should we deal with them?
Mewtwo controlled the Ursaring and Teddiursa, completely ignoring the sobbing expressions on the latter two's faces. This appearance might fool others, but it definitely couldn't fool Mewtwo, which could see through their hearts.
'It seemed cunning isn't unique to humans.' Mewtwo pondered.
"Leave them to the Shuckle to handle themselves." Li Xiang waved his hand. The usual fate for Ursaring and Teddiursa after being caught was to be beaten up, then have a museum member brought in to make the judgment. It had nothing to do with them.
Conveniently, the Shuckle clan leader used the barrel stolen by the Ursaring as a sample. Mewtwo precisely separated the juice and pulp. The wooden barrel contained about four hundred kilograms of berry juice, but the pulp was less than one twentieth of that, settled at the bottom of the barrel.
"Semi-transparent pulp." Li Xiang looked at the residue inside the barrel and couldn't resist scooping out a little with a spoon and putting it into his mouth.
Instantly, an overwhelmingly sweet taste surged into his senses.
"Ugh, is this edible?" Li Xiang hesitated slightly, wondering if he should ask Mo Ye to find a professional institution to test it. Who knew if there might be some precipitated toxins inside.
Mewtwo ingested a little and nodded. Edible. This is definitely it. The energy increased a tiny bit.
"Huh? Are you sure?" Li Xiang personally trusted scientific testing methods more.
Of course. Mewtwo nodded. It could still distinguish between what was edible and what wasn't. The body doesn't lie.
Of course, the burden on the body from excessive intake was not within its consideration.
"That's good." Li Xiang nodded. Regarding sugar intake, he had naturally considered it as well. Portion control of food was a trainer's basic skill.
Afterwards, they negotiated the price with the Shuckle clan leader. Because it was a byproduct, the price couldn't be set too high.
Although Li Xiang had previously offered a very attractive price, the Shuckle clan leader was an honest creature. It felt uneasy accepting such a price and lowered it itself. In the end, they reached a result that both parties were very satisfied with.
"I'm sorry to trouble you, carrying so much." Li Xiang looked at Mewtwo, who was controlling the wooden barrel with its telekinesis, feeling a bit embarrassed because they couldn't find a suitable storage container temporarily.
Small matter. Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue. Its psychic waves were plain in color, not as cool as a Shiny Metagross's. But the unpretentious color couldn't hide its powerful might.
"By the way, do you have any berry juice that has been stored for a long time?" Li Xiang asked the Shuckle clan leader as if something had just occurred to him.
Rare Candies might have enhanced effects the longer they are stored. The specific principle was unclear, but that didn't stop Li Xiang from imagining.
The biological enzymes inside Shuckle's body were already very special.
"Shuckle..." The Shuckle clan leader seemed to be thinking, its four yellow tentacles squirming on the ground like a snail.
Li Xiang had only asked casually, since the Shuckle had no reason to store berry juice for that long. But unexpectedly, it seemed there might actually be some.
Because the Shuckle hibernated for long periods each year, they might not remember which tree hollow they had put how much berry juice in. It was inevitable that one or two would be overlooked, and by the time they were discovered, they had already changed.
"Changed?" Li Xiang was surprised, then remembered the fungi and guessed they had likely spoiled. In dark, damp places, fungi always tend to proliferate easily.
However, it was still worth taking a look, even if they had molded.
Conveniently, at the Shuckle clan leader's summons, the Shuckle found a tree hollow that had been forgotten for who knows how long. The bark remained sealed, indicating the Shuckle had never opened it.
"Wow, a strange smell." Li Xiang took a flashlight from his pocket and shone it inside. The berry juice had long since dried up, whether evaporated or absorbed by the tree itself. All that remained was a layer of black, muddy substance.
Li Xiang certainly didn't think this was some legendary miraculous ointment, but he couldn't resist scraping some off with a spoon.
In an instant, as if a seal had been broken, a refreshing fragrance rushed towards him, sweet but not cloying, delicate and fruity. The color... golden!
"No way?" Li Xiang stared blankly at the golden paste beneath the black grime, its brilliant color like Honey, strangely alluring.
A genuine Rare Candy?
"Mewtwo, Mewtwo!" Li Xiang turned and waved to the artificial Pokémon. "Come quick! There's something incredible here!"
Mewtwo came over and immediately saw the golden paste.
This is... It used its telekinesis to extract a little and put it in its mouth. This creature was quite fearless, eating anything recklessly, relying on its innate advantages. If this guy were any more human-like, it would eventually die from its lack of caution.
Mmm! The light in Mewtwo's eyes grew brighter. It waved its hand and levitated two grains of sand from the ground. The difference is about this much.
One grain was roughly several tens of times larger than the other, meaning this stuff had several tens of times the effect of the latter.
They had struck gold! The smile on Li Xiang's face gradually grew unrestrained.