"Dead?!" Brad was stunned.
For a moment, he didn't know how to describe his current thoughts.
"Yes! If the Riley you mentioned is the person I showed you, then although he didn't die by my hand, he can be considered to have died because of me," Aoki said calmly.
"What do you mean?"
So Aoki briefly recounted Riley's identity and how he defeated him after Riley sought him out.
Brad's expression became very complex again. If it was truly as Aoki said, then for him, Aoki could even be considered a benefactor.
"How do you prove it?" Brad asked.
"Do you think I still need to lie to you when you're already like this? And…" Aoki hesitated slightly, took a Poké Ball from his pocket, and threw it into the air.
The Dark Messenger's Hydreigon was summoned.
However, after being trained by Agin, Hydreigon had become easy to tame. So, when it appeared, it didn't display the dominance and majesty of a pseudo-legendary Dragon-type Pokémon; instead, it seemed a bit timid.
"This Hydreigon is the Pokémon I obtained from that person. Although I don't know if you recognize it, this is the only thing I can prove it with. If you don't believe me, I also…" Aoki's words were cut short as he noticed that both Brad and Hydreigon were acting somewhat unusually.
Or rather, Brad and Hydreigon, one human and one Pokémon, stood rooted to the spot, staring at each other.
Suddenly, a flood of tears burst from Brad's eyes. Hydreigon was initially a bit unsure, but upon seeing the tears in Brad's eyes, it seemed to recognize him as well.
"Hydreigon—this… this is my Hydreigon!" Brad muttered repeatedly.
Aoki watched this scene with some surprise. This melodramatic reunion between a trainer and their Pokémon?
It turned out that the Dark Messenger's Hydreigon wasn't his own Pokémon; it belonged to this Brad in front of him.
The emotions revealed in that instant couldn't be faked. And not just Brad, the emotions Hydreigon showed upon seeing Brad couldn't be faked either.
It was just that Aoki truly hadn't expected things to turn out so dramatic.
But he quickly thought of the crucial point: Aoki wasn't surprised that the Dark Messenger was among the previous group of people who entered here. The identity of the commander of the Alliance's Second Legion was no less than that of a regional Elite Four member.
The Dark Messenger was a member of the Divine Cult. Including the Alliance, all major forces in the Pokémon world were currently searching for the Divine Cult's location and the secrets it harbored.
From Aoki's current perspective, the person who secretly occupied this continent was very likely a member of the Divine Cult, and the ambitious person Brad mentioned back then was very likely the true founder of the Divine Cult!
A person who came from the Alliance and originally held a high position within the Alliance would find it no difficulty to know so many of the Alliance's secrets.
Coupled with the existence of this continent and the other party's covert operations, they were able to plant many of their people within the Alliance, including high-ranking individuals like the Dark Messenger.
The Divine Cult's ambition was enormous! And they had been accumulating power so early. The abundant resources and accelerated time flow of the Time and Space Continent allowed the Divine Cult to have enough resources to cultivate new recruits and enough time for these new recruits to grow.
Even the secrets about the Time and Space Temple discovered on this continent might be why members of the Divine Cult could open interdimensional spaces.
The more he thought about it, the more terrifying it became. Aoki felt a chilling sensation about this suddenly appearing Divine Cult.
It was truly a case of the more he knew, the smaller he felt. And from very early on, he had already been deeply mired in this muddy vortex. It was simply impossible to remain aloof.
He glanced again at the agitated Brad. To be honest, Aoki truly hadn't expected things to unfold this way.
In fact, just as Brad had initially predicted, Aoki had indeed planned to eliminate him after asking his questions and learning what he wanted to know.
Not only did he want to conceal his identity, his Mega Evolution, and so on, but also because his first impression of Brad wasn't very good.
But gradually, he now realized that this person didn't seem as worthless as he had imagined.
Suddenly, a thought appeared in his mind and was infinitely magnified.
"Why don't you join me?" Aoki said abruptly.
Hearing this, Brad, who was still immersed in the joy of reuniting with Hydreigon, looked at Aoki in surprise.
To be honest, he truly felt that life's ups and downs were happening too quickly today, making it difficult for him to accept for a moment.
First, there was the joy of discovering Aoki, thinking he could obtain the Space Stone from Aoki and return to the Pokémon World. This was an up.
But the cruel reality told him that he was no match for Aoki. Twenty-five years of growth all shattered like a bubble. This was a down.
However, learning that his enemy, Riley, had already died at someone else's hands, and then seeing Hydreigon, his Pokémon lost for twenty-five years, again—this was another up.
And this "up" came in waves, gradually reaching its climax.
Aoki's suggestion to join him wasn't a sudden impulse, nor was it because he felt Brad was pitiful and wanted to give him another chance.
Of course, that was a very small part of the reason, but more of it was actually because he valued Brad's strength and abilities.
A person with three Champion-level Pokémon, two of which had even broken through the first hurdle of the Champion level—such strength, if simply paired with three other Pokémon that weren't weak, like experienced Elite Four members or pseudo-Champions, would easily make him an Elite Four member of a region.
And he would be one of those who could rank among the Elite Four.
It would be a pity for someone with such strength to be lost here. If he could be used by Aoki, no matter what he was asked to do, he would be a capable hand.
Coupled with the genuine emotion he showed when he reunited with Hydreigon, it made Aoki feel that he was at least someone who genuinely cared for his Pokémon.
Even when his Yanmega was so easily defeated by Blaziken, he didn't abandon Yanmega.
Having emotions and a bottom line meant that such a person could actually be controlled, and controlling him wouldn't be very difficult.
Most importantly, Aoki was gradually coming into contact with the deepest secrets of the Divine Cult, which put immense pressure on him. If he could have a few more subordinates of such strength, it would greatly alleviate his pressure.
"Join you?" Brad thought he had misheard.
He admitted that Aoki had given him the ultimate gift, helping him fulfill a great wish. Even his enemy, Riley, had indirectly died by Aoki's hand, and the Hydreigon he had lost was now before him.
He felt as if all his regrets had been resolved and achieved; even if he were to die now, he wouldn't feel resentful.
But if there was truly a chance to live, who would willingly choose to face death?
However, Aoki's change in attitude made it difficult for him to accept at once.
Becoming someone's subordinate? That wasn't an unacceptable thing.
Aoki nodded and walked closer to Brad. "That's right, join me. Anyway, you can't go back to the Alliance, and living here like a savage must be boring for you. Why not come back with me and let me see how much light you can emit?
Of course, as a token of sincerity, I can give this Hydreigon back to you first, and I can even give you a large amount of resources so you can train new Pokémon.
Although you are not young now, I believe with this Hydreigon and your original three Pokémon, there is still a possibility of reaching a higher level."
"You said… you'll give Hydreigon back to me?" Brad felt a bit incredulous.
One must know that this was a Champion-level Hydreigon. Even though he had been away from the Pokémon World for so long, he knew its value; it couldn't be calculated with simple numbers.
As a former trainer from the Unova region, he had only managed to successfully capture a Deino by luck, which later evolved into Hydreigon. He was highly regarded by the Unova Alliance and thus successfully obtained the precious qualification to enter the Time and Space Continent.
"That's right, Hydreigon will be returned to you, and you will receive even more resources," Aoki affirmed again.
"Aren't you afraid I'll betray you after taking Hydreigon?" Brad asked.
Becoming Aoki's subordinate wasn't something he couldn't accept. Aoki's strength and potential were the greatest he had seen among people of the same age. Possessing Darkrai, the Nightmare Pokémon, and having that special evolution method—even the Salamence, which hadn't participated in this battle and had obediently served as Aoki's mount, Brad could feel its potential and arrogance.
But if he were to become someone's subordinate and constantly be suspected and doubted, Brad felt it wasn't worth doing.
Because in such a situation, let alone accomplishing anything, he wouldn't even have the most basic freedom of action.
Aoki's smile remained unchanged, and he said calmly, "Of course I'm afraid. So, if you agree, I will plant a seed in your mind. It won't affect you in any way normally, but when you have the thought of betraying me, it will activate.
However, don't think I'm using this to restrict you. In fact, you might realize yourself that I'm using this to free you. This way, you'll not only have freedom of action, but I'll also be able to completely trust you.
So, as long as you don't have such intentions, it will never activate."
Brad's expression shifted as he listened to Aoki's words. It wasn't easy for anyone to accept the idea of someone planting something in their most vulnerable mind.
Aoki didn't pressure him, waiting for him to make his own choice.
He believed that any normal person would make the correct choice. On one side was death, and on the other was entrusting one's life to the person who would have killed him anyway, but as long as one maintained the right mindset, one could continue to be active for decades. Any normal person would know how to choose, right?
Brad quickly understood the key point and nodded, "Come on. Instead of wasting away here, it's better to return to the Pokémon World and command the winds and clouds. I've also seen through the true nature of the Alliance. But how will you get us back without the Alliance knowing?"
Aoki said, "Leave that to me."
With that, Aoki reached out towards Brad's head. Psychic energy slowly gathered in his right palm, and at the same time, the secret power of the Unown was also mixed in.
"Relax, don't resist at all, otherwise you might directly turn into an idiot.
No one in the entire Pokémon World can break this Psychic Seed of mine, so if you're thinking of finding a stronger Psychic after returning to the Pokémon World to break it, I suggest you don't have such thoughts."
Brad said nothing, simply closing his eyes and relaxing his entire body.
Of course, he was prepared for what Aoki had said.
Seeing that he had no intention of resisting, Aoki said no more and placed his palm on Brad's head. The Psychic Seed, without any obstruction, was planted deep within Brad's mind.
From this moment on, this person with Elite Four level strength officially became Aoki's subordinate!
Aoki handed Hydreigon's Poké Ball to Brad.
Brad's expression was complex. Part of it was because from now on, he was no longer free, having become Aoki's subordinate. The other part was because Hydreigon, lost to him for twenty-five years, had finally returned to his hands.
A Champion-level pseudo-legendary Pokémon. Although its compatibility with him wasn't very high due to being trained by someone else, based on his past interactions with Hydreigon, all they needed was a bit of time to spend together, and everything would return.
The key point was: a pseudo-legendary Hydreigon, plus Haxorus, Feraligatr, and a slightly lesser Yanmega—four Champion-level Pokémon!
Originally, the lack of his Pokémon's potential had made his ceiling questionable, but now this Hydreigon had, to some extent, compensated for that.
"My lord!" Brad still didn't know Aoki's name, but he quickly put himself in his place.
Although Brad had recovered a lot of his strength now, his life was in Aoki's hands. He didn't doubt the truthfulness of Aoki's words.
On the surface, Aoki had lost a Champion-level pseudo-legendary Pokémon, which was a huge loss. The materials he had collected on this continent for so many days were not enough to compensate for this loss.
But in reality, Hydreigon was still in Aoki's hands; it was just handed over to someone who could use it better.
Not only Hydreigon, but he had also gained three Champion-level Pokémon that could fully display their strength, and a subordinate who could rival an Elite Four member.
A subordinate with such strength could help Aoki do too many things.
One must know that even Giovanni of Team Rocket, if one didn't count his hidden strength, Team Rocket had only truly cultivated Koga, an Elite Four member, to this day, and Koga's strength was inferior to Brad's at this time.
He added a formidable general to Aoki's Sky Team.
"My name is Aoki, but usually, don't say my name without my permission," Aoki instructed. He couldn't expose his identity yet, otherwise, it would still be very dangerous.
"Yes! Lord Aoki!" Brad respectfully called out.
Aoki was somewhat surprised to see him quickly put himself in his place.
In fact, Brad was open-minded. He knew his potential had almost been realized, and he could at most advance one more step. However, he couldn't see the limit of Aoki's potential at all. Moreover, submitting to someone who was superior to him in both strength and potential was not a difficult thing to accept.
He had lived here for twenty-five years, becoming like a wild man, completely accustomed to the law of the jungle in nature. For wild elves, respecting and obeying the strong was not a shameful thing, and the same was true for him.
"Summon all your injured Pokémon. I'll heal them. I might have a task for you later." Aoki said, taking out a brand new set of his own spare clothes, as well as some razors, soap, and other items from his storage space, and handing them to Brad.
"Take this time to take care of yourself. Since you want to live well, you should live like a human being."
"Yes!" Brad happily took the clothes, summoned his Yanmega and Haxorus, and rushed towards the nearby lake with his Feraligatr, ready to bathe and change!
Aoki, on the other hand, summoned Florges and Magearna, and had them treat Yanmega and Haxorus lying on the ground.
...
An hour later, Brad reappeared before Aoki with a brand new look, having changed his clothes, shaved off all the beard on his face, and smoothed and tied back his messy long hair.
He looked about forty years old, with yellowish-brown tanned skin, along with his appearance and the stubble that couldn't be completely shaved off, giving him the look of a big tree.
Aoki nodded in satisfaction. This was more like a human being.
"All your Pokémon have recovered. And these are some potions I made myself, much stronger than those so-called high-grade products sold in Alliance stores. This large box contains energy cubes that I no longer use. Although they may not be the most suitable for your Pokémon, they are at least much better than eating wild beast meat or Pokémon meat."
Aoki took out a large pile of items from his storage space and handed them to Brad.
Aoki was not stingy with those he recognized as his own. Moreover, these items were not of high value to him, but here, they could quickly win Brad's heart.
Brad was surprised as he received another large pile of items.
One should know that these items were the most precious resources on this continent, incomparable to ordinary things, especially those special potions and antidotes. These would allow him to roam freely in the wild Pokémon habitats on this continent without any worries.
"You... you might not be aware of the value of these things here..." Brad said, holding so many items.
Aoki waved his hand, "To you, they might be treasures, but to me, they are just ordinary items. As a senior breeder, as long as I have the materials, I can make as many of these as I want!"
Senior breeder!!
Brad's heart trembled!
Even though he had lived here for twenty-five years, far from the Pokémon world, he understood what a senior breeder represented!
He didn't expect Aoki to not only possess such powerful strength but also be a senior breeder, such a young senior breeder!
Now he was even more glad that he agreed to become Aoki's subordinate. Facts proved that this had almost no disadvantages for him; in fact, it had been nothing but benefits since he agreed.
A senior breeder could provide him with too much help!
"Thank you, Lord!" Brad happily accepted these items and put them all into the small-capacity storage space that Aoki had just given him.
But for him now, a backup storage space of this size was enough.
Then Aoki distributed many Poké Balls and other daily necessities to Brad.
The wild Pokémon resources here were abundant. As long as he had Poké Balls, Brad would quickly be able to replenish his Pokémon. Although he might not be able to unleash his strongest combat power in a short time, if it was just to assist those four Pokémon, there would be no problem at all.
After completing all the item transfers, Brad, who had originally been a stranger to Aoki, suddenly found himself back in modern society from a primitive one.
"Lord, please follow me!" Brad jumped onto the back of Yanmega, motioning Aoki to follow him.
Aoki didn't hesitate either. He recalled his Pokémon, jumped onto Salamence's back, and chased after him.
Soon, led by Brad, the two arrived in a small valley and stood before a small cave entrance covered by dense vines.
"Inside are the materials I've collected here over the past ten-odd years. Although I use a lot of them normally, I've still saved up quite a few good things.
However, I used to just let my Pokémon eat these materials directly, which was too wasteful. Since you, Lord, are a senior breeder, I believe these materials will definitely be able to maximize their value in your hands!"
As he spoke, Brad habitually pushed aside the vines covering the cave, revealing the scene inside.
Aoki looked at the scene inside the cave in shock. Numerous precious materials that he could name were casually piled on the ground, and some of them were even rare to Aoki himself, special materials that he would buy no matter how high the price if he encountered them normally.
The entire cave was not large, but the materials accumulated inside, if converted into Alliance currency, would be an astronomical figure.
To put it bluntly, their value was no less than the Hydreigon Aoki gave Brad. And in Aoki's hands, they could be transformed into finished potions, energy cubes, and other items whose value would multiply several times over!
This was truly striking it rich.
He had wondered why he hadn't found any valuable items in Brad's cave at first. It turned out they were all hidden here.
These were all the materials he had collected over these decades. Although he had wasted quite a bit, the quantity was still extremely terrifying.
"I won't be polite with you. Don't worry, I'll cover all your Pokémon's custom energy cubes from now on." Aoki made a bold promise and stuffed all the materials in the cave into his backpack.
While packing, Aoki realized that the value of these materials was much higher than he had imagined, because many very precious materials were buried deep at the bottom of the cave because Brad didn't recognize them.
Although Brad lost so many materials, he gained Aoki's promise, which he considered very worthwhile.
After packing up, the two people, who had originally been strangers, suddenly had nothing to do and didn't know what to say, falling into an awkward silence.
However, Aoki was currently in a leadership position, so if he didn't speak, Brad wouldn't know what to say either.
Because whatever he was to do next, whatever his task was, he needed Aoki's direct instruction.
"You've lived here for so many years, you should be quite familiar with the environment here. Let's go to a place first, and I'll tell you some things along the way." Aoki said to Brad.
After speaking, he jumped onto Salamence's back again and flew towards the other location they had agreed upon with Steven and the others.
However, he didn't fly at high altitude, but chose to fly slowly, close to the ground.
It had only been a week since they arrived here, and everyone could have been teleported to various different places. Even Aoki himself took a week to find the first waypoint, let alone Steven and the others.
So, although the situation was somewhat urgent now, Aoki could not lose his composure. The first priority was to gather the forces that could be gathered.
If, as he suspected, this place had already been secretly infiltrated by the Divine Cult, then they would truly be in danger.
The Divine Cult might really have a way to descend upon this continent. If they could then wipe out all these future leaders of the Alliance, the Alliance would fall into a state of decline, which might also be one of the Divine Cult's goals.
After all, they had been developing secretly, but in this past year, they had sprung up like mushrooms after rain, one after another.
No longer hiding indicated that the Divine Cult might have already prepared to contend with the Alliance.
And this continent of time and space, at this moment, was very likely the beginning of all this for them.
Gathering people, at least, could increase the probability of self-preservation.
However, no matter how urgent it was, everyone still needed enough time to adjust. If someone stumbled at this moment, it could only be said that their luck was not very good.
Aoki once again entered a routine of traveling, training Pokémon, and collecting supplies.
Brad, meanwhile, meticulously cared for Hydreigon during this time.
He and Hydreigon had not spent time together for so long. To display combat power, Brad at least needed to have a sufficient understanding of Hydreigon's current abilities.
...
At this moment, in an unknown corner of the Pokémon world.
A group of people dressed in white robes, their faces completely obscured, were sitting in a very secluded cave.
However, these people didn't fill all the seats; there were some empty spaces in between.
The location of this cave was very peculiar. At the entrance of the cave, it seemed as if a very poor quality glue had been used to forcibly bond this cave to the Pokémon world.
"This matter is crucial for us. I hope you are all prepared and don't fail me at the critical moment." The person sitting in the main seat said indifferently. Although his face was unclear, one could feel his gaze sweeping across the room, yet no one dared to look him in the eye. Everyone obediently looked at a white envelope in front of them.
The person in charge was quite satisfied with the reactions of those present and continued, "The envelopes in front of you contain your respective tasks for this time. You are only allowed to open them when the task begins, and the content of each person's envelope can only be known by yourselves."
Those present nodded one after another. This was how their organization operated: each person was responsible for their own part, and apart from the person in charge, no one else knew what they were going to do. This not only ensured everyone's safety but also ensured that their true identities remained unknown.
"I will transmit the items to your hands. Meeting adjourned!" The person in charge raised his hand high, then slowly lowered it. A miraculous scene occurred: the envelopes that had been quietly lying on the table slowly disappeared one by one, finally turning into nothingness.
This move of his also served as a deterrent to everyone present. His ability had become powerful to a non-human extent.
After the words "Meeting adjourned" fell, all the people who had been present also slowly dissipated. It was only then that it was discovered that all the people present were actually images, people who appeared here through projection.
However, not everyone disappeared; a few people remained seated.
"Is there anything else, Director?" The person in charge's attitude towards the remaining people was much better than before, and his tone of voice was also much softer, giving a sense of equality.
"Nothing, I just hope that after you complete this matter, Bishop, you will do as we agreed. After all, you were once the famous Dragon..." A woman's voice rang out, echoing in the cave, sounding somewhat ethereal, but the inherent noble demeanor in her voice could not be concealed, and of course, she had no intention of concealing it.
However, her words were not finished before she was interrupted, "Not anymore! Director, rest assured, as long as you help me complete this matter, I will naturally fulfill what I promised you."
Having received a satisfactory answer, the female director of this unknown company or organization nodded and slowly disappeared with the remaining people.
Watching the remaining people disappear, the person in charge slowly removed his white hood, revealing the face of a middle-aged man, but his hair had turned gray, with an indescribable strangeness. This person was the Bishop, the leader of the Divine Cult, whom the Alliance and various underground forces were all searching for!
However, his expression at this moment was not very good, clearly the words of the director just now had put him in a bad mood.
When he stood up, something like a black hole suddenly appeared behind him. The Bishop slowly walked into it and finally disappeared.
Also disappearing was this strange cave, which seemed to be forcibly glued to the Pokémon world.