Tetsuya steadied himself. Fortunately, Haunter's Poké Ball was still on him. At the very least, it ensured that Haunter would not be caught by others. As long as it was not dead, there would always be a chance.
Who could ever say for certain about something like fate!
"I-I must exchange back my Pokémon… that is my partner!"
"I will never give up my Starter Pokémon!"
"Then… me too!"
Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Raven had his subordinates post the first list. Immediately afterward, he took out the second list.
"This list is for exchanging the Pokémon you catch for food, medicines, and Items. It clearly states what kind of Pokémon can be exchanged for. Of course… the stronger the Pokémon, the more you can exchange for."
After speaking, Raven once again had his subordinates post it.
The Shadow Team grunt who had just explained the rules received Raven's signal and continued, "I have already talked about the half-year requirement. If you do not catch three Pokémon within half a year, not only will you not be able to exchange back your own Pokémon, you will also be… 'taken', away by the ship…
In other words… those taken away will be thrown into the waters where our Shadow Team raises Sharpedo and become food for Sharpedo! Heheheh!"
Fear once again appeared on everyone's faces!
Resist? There were twenty to thirty Mightyena right in front of them. The scene of that boy being eaten was still vivid in their minds.
Escape? In such a vast ocean, even if there was no shipwreck and the sea remained calm, the Pokémon in these waters such as Gyarados and Sharpedo would mean certain death if encountered.
As for Flying-type Pokémon, aside from Catherine's Skarmory, how many could endure carrying a person over such long distances?
Not to mention that the skies also had their own territories. Spearow and Fearow were creatures that would not stop until one side was dead. If you encountered them, you would not have Ash's luck…
Although this was only meant to intimidate these people, those taken away from here rarely met a good end. They would be trafficked to other villainous underground forces. The first batch to be eliminated were naturally those with particularly poor abilities and could only become experimental subjects for those organizations, still unable to escape death.
As time went on and strength increased, the selling price would also rise. Of course, some with decent ability would become members of other underground forces, still living lives without daylight.
"So…! Only by becoming stronger can you survive. In the first year, you will be reduced to sixty people. In the second year, you will be reduced to thirty people. In the final year… only ten people can safely leave this island! Oh, those eliminated will also be fed to Sharpedo~"
Thud~
After speaking, some people directly collapsed onto the ground. Their psychological defenses had been completely shattered. Such a "competition" was not something ordinary people could accept.
Without strong mental fortitude, solid physical condition, keen perception, and powerful Pokémon… none of these four elements could be lacking to become one of the final ten!
After going through such a life-and-death struggle, it was no wonder that when he saw Catherine in his previous life, she gave off an "aura" of a fearless strong individual.
Tetsuya was already thoroughly familiar with the tricks of the Shadow Team, so he could remain so calm. Meaningless fear and despair would only make you die faster. Tetsuya swept his gaze around. Of the twenty to thirty people still standing, most of his "competitors" were likely among them.
"Finally, I want to emphasize one more point! Which is the careful use of the five Poké Balls in your hands. During these three years, you are only allowed to have five Pokémon on you.
Any extra Pokémon can only be brought here to exchange for resources! Of course, Poké Balls can also be exchanged. How you reasonably recycle and use them is your own matter."
The standard configuration for ordinary Shadow Team members was five Pokémon, which was already considered quite a lot among underground forces. Of course, as their rank increased, this number would also increase.
The Shadow Team followed an elite route. If it were not for the great disaster five years later that severely weakened the Shadow Team, it would have been impossible for them to be destroyed by Team Rocket.
At this moment, Raven stepped forward and said sternly, "You have ten minutes to look over the contents of these two lists! After that, get out of the range of the iron fence. Otherwise, do not blame my Mightyena for being nasty!
After you go out, how you survive in the forest is up to you. As long as after half a year you have three Pokémon.
Let me remind you! If after half a year you still cannot come to exchange back your own Pokémon and are taken away, then unless you come to exchange resources, you are not allowed to enter this enclosure. If you dare to violate this… hmph, you know the consequences yourselves!"
Raven's words were very clear. Once in the wilderness, no one would manage them. Everything depended on their own abilities. What he cared about was only the result.
After Raven finished speaking, everyone rushed forward to look at the two lists. After all, this concerned important information for the next three years.
Tetsuya first looked at the exchange for his own Pokémon. As expected, it was extremely harsh…
His Piloswine required a Houndoom to exchange, and Golett required a Rhydon to exchange.
In their current bare-handed state, catching even a Caterpie would be difficult, let alone fierce Pokémon like Houndoom and Rhydon. They would have to avoid them upon sight. Actively provoking them would simply be asking for trouble.
Seeing such a list, resentful voices surged, but all hatred and curses could only be kept in their hearts. Now no one dared to resist.
The other list was for exchanging Pokéfood, human compressed food, Potions, and status condition healing items. There were also Poké Balls, capture nets, and other Items. The exchange principles were naturally extremely unfair to them, but these were necessities for survival in the wilderness.
To increase their chances of survival, these things had to be exchanged!
Fortunately, there was still some food and Potions in Tetsuya's backpack. His own food supply only had about one week left, while the food for Piloswine and Golett could last for another month.
These supplies had to be conserved!
In fact, the most crucial thing for Golett was that the supplementary materials/ingredients were sufficient for three years, thanks to the large amount he had purchased at Mt. Silver. He had originally planned to use them at Ecruteak Gym, but ended up here instead… 'Truly, Arceus, sigh…'
Eternal Ice was absolutely the most precious item!
He had already placed it in a box and stored it in the Spatial Pouch inside his sleeve.
Ditto was still in the backpack. Its milk supply could only last for half a month, so it had to be rationed carefully. When there was no other choice, Berry juice could be used as a substitute. Moreover, the items available for exchange were all only the lowest grade Pokéfood, and the milk was also of poor quality.
Hopefully, there would be a Miltank in this forest. Otherwise, he really could not think of any substitute food. Piloswine and Golett both had specific supplementary ingredients/materials, so there was no need to worry about them. However, Ditto's nutrition falling behind was indeed a troublesome issue.