This sudden turn of events left Officer Jenny Yoko frozen in place.
Until now, she hadn't paid much attention to Chen Shi and the others, assuming they were merely a few young people who had accidentally wandered into the area.
She never expected them to possess such terrifying strength—
They had subdued Hunter J in an instant.
In fact, it wasn't just Hunter J.
Every single Pokémon Hunter below had been completely crushed by that overwhelming psychic pressure, unable to move at all.
The once fierce and imposing Salamence now had nothing left in its eyes except fear.
Steven let out a helpless sigh.
This guy really managed to show off again.
Chen Shi looked at the terrified Hunter J with a gentle smile on his face.
Yet the words he spoke made her feel as if she had fallen into an icy abyss.
"I heard you captured a group of Pokémon."
"Mind telling me where they are?"
"Of course, it's fine if you don't."
"After all, I'm not an investigator, nor am I an Officer Jenny."
"So I won't treat you according to Alliance law."
"I'll simply kill you."
"And make today next year your death anniversary."
At the final sentence, a trace of viciousness flashed through Chen Shi's eyes.
He genuinely despised Pokémon Hunters.
Because he had personally witnessed the methods they used to capture Pokémon—
And the cruel ways they treated innocent Pokémon afterward.
Back when he first encountered Lady Florges, when she was still just a Flabébé, she had been skin and bones.
Her entire body had been covered in dense wounds.
And the reason those Pokémon Hunters treated her that way—
Was simply because Flabébé couldn't be sold.
What a ridiculous reason.
Just because a Pokémon couldn't fetch a good price, they tortured it to such an extent.
How could someone who deeply loved Pokémon possibly tolerate that?
So ever since then—
Any Pokémon Hunters who crossed paths with Chen Shi basically ended up buried underground.
...…
"Old Chen, take it easy."
"There are still Alliance investigators and Officer Jennys here."
Steven quietly reminded him.
It wasn't that he opposed Chen Shi killing Hunter J.
After all, he hated Pokémon Hunters just as much.
It was simply because their identities were somewhat sensitive, and there were so many Alliance officers present.
Saying things like that openly wasn't exactly appropriate.
What Steven didn't realize, however—
Was that Officer Jenny Yoko showed absolutely no reaction whatsoever.
It was as though she hadn't heard a thing and was deliberately pretending to be clueless.
The other investigators and Officer Jennys were the same.
Every single one of them wore expressions that practically screamed:
I know nothing.
I saw nothing.
What a joke.
This was a world where strength ruled supreme.
The person before them was monstrously powerful.
If they chose this moment to jump out and stop him, wouldn't they just be making life difficult for themselves?
Besides—
Chen Shi had technically just saved them.
And the person he wanted dead was an infamous top-tier criminal.
So they were more than happy to silently return the favor and pretend none of this ever happened.
Hunter J swallowed with difficulty.
She knew she had kicked an iron plate this time.
If she didn't cooperate obediently—
She might actually die here today.
"They're inside the hotel…"
"Stored inside Poké Balls."
"See? That's much better."
Chen Shi nodded in satisfaction.
"Jirachi, let them take a little nap."
"Okaaay!"
Jirachi waved its tiny hand and strengthened its psychic force slightly.
In an instant, every Pokémon Hunter present—including Hunter J and all their Pokémon—fell unconscious.
Afterward, Jirachi released its psychic restraints.
Hunter J, Salamence, and the two men they had brought all dropped straight from the sky.
BANG!
They slammed heavily onto the ground with dull thuds.
Then Chen Shi turned toward Officer Jenny Yoko with a warm smile.
"Officer Jenny, I'm actually a law-abiding citizen."
"What I said earlier was just to scare her a little."
"You can proceed with the arrest now."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Shi lightly patted Jirachi.
The next moment—
The group vanished from midair instantly.
"What do we do now, Chief?"
A male investigator stepped forward and asked quietly.
Officer Jenny Yoko looked at the collapsed pile of Pokémon Hunters and let out a faint sigh.
"What else can we do?"
"Arrest them."
"Yes, ma'am!"
...…
Inside the hotel, Chen Shi searched through a large pile of Poké Balls and opened them one after another.
As expected—
The Pokémon inside were exactly what he had guessed.
Carbink.
The Carbink that had just been released looked nervously at the four humans before them.
Their tiny bodies trembled as they huddled together in fear.
"Nah… nah nah…"
"Nah…"
"Nah nah…"
Seeing how frightened they were, Chen Shi spoke gently.
"You don't need to be afraid."
"We're not bad people."
"I'm here to save you."
As he spoke, Chen Shi continued opening more Poké Balls and releasing additional Carbink.
"Nah… nah nah?"
One of the first Carbink released stepped forward and called out toward Chen Shi.
Chen Shi nodded.
"That's right."
"I came to save you."
"So you don't need to be scared."
"I'll send all of you back to your original home."
The Carbink froze for a moment before surprise gradually appeared in their eyes.
"Nah nah?"
(Really?)
Chen Shi smiled slightly.
He didn't expect Pokémon who had been captured by Pokémon Hunters to trust him immediately.
Instead, he turned toward Steven and the others.
"Come help me."
"Let's release all the Carbink first."
"So they're called Carbink…"
Cynthia murmured softly before stepping forward to help.
Steven and Diantha joined in as well.
Very quickly, through the combined efforts of the four of them, all the captured Carbink were released.
Chen Shi roughly counted them.
There were nearly two hundred Carbink in total.
The enormous number completely filled the abandoned hotel's lobby.
The previously quiet environment was now full of soft "nah nah" cries everywhere.
"Hm?"
At that moment, Chen Shi suddenly noticed something unusual among the Carbink.
One Carbink was especially unique.
The crystalline gems on its body—and even its eyes—weren't the usual pale crystal color.
They were red.
After this special Carbink was released, all the surrounding Carbink instinctively gathered around it protectively.
A thought immediately surfaced in Chen Shi's mind.
Without hesitation, he used the system to scan the special Carbink.
Pokémon: Carbink (Mutation Progress 95%)
Level: 59
Potential: Legendary
Ability: Clear Body
Gender: None
Moves: Tackle, Harden, Guard Split, Smack Down, Flail, Ancient Power, Rock Polish, Light Screen, Rock Slide, Skill Swap, Power Gem, Stealth Rock…
Chen Shi stared blankly at the system results before him.
Even though he had already guessed it—
The result still shocked him immensely.
This was actually a Carbink in the middle of mutation!!
And its mutation progress had already reached 95%!
If it completed the final 5%—
Then this Carbink…
Would become the next Diancie Queen!!
...…
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