Spinarak stood atop a Rhyhorn. After defeating so many opponents in succession, it was naturally overflowing with a sense of accomplishment, and its excitement had reached its peak, triggering its…
Evolution!
White light surged around Spinarak's entire body, making it difficult to keep one's eyes open. Immediately afterward, Spinarak's body began to change.
The entire process lasted around ten minutes, and an Ariados appeared before everyone!
Ariados immediately sprayed out a patch of pale purple poison, its color similar to that of Toxic Spikes.
"Venom Drench."
Tetsuya nodded in satisfaction. It had finally learned this move. Venom Drench would lower the Attack, Special Attack, and Speed of poisoned Pokémon. When used in combination with Toxic Spikes, the damage it could inflict on an opponent was simply lethal.
The next stage of training now had a clear goal as well, which was to combine Toxic Spikes and Venom Drench, followed by bringing out Ariados's potential so that it could learn Swords Dance, Focus Energy, and Fell Stinger, the three moves it could learn after evolving, as soon as possible.
---◓---
Twenty Rhyhorn lay on the ground, and Tetsuya caught them one by one. This was another decent source of income. However, he would not be leaving this forest anytime soon. After all, he still had to find the Imite Family, and he might not be able to get out even after a month.
Keeping them with him was impossible. Not only would he have to cure their poison, but he would also have to pay for their food, which would be another considerable expense. This created a dilemma…
This kind of "dilemma" existed for every Pokémon Hunter. Hunters who went into forests to capture Pokémon would not come out for at least a month or two. First of all, frequently going in and out of the forest would attract the attention of Rangers or Investigators, making it very easy to expose their identities.
Furthermore, venturing into a forest required a great deal of preparation each time. Who would not want to capture more "goods" and reduce their costs?
However, the Pokémon they caught also needed to eat, and they had to keep them alive until they could sell them. This was also something that troubled Pokémon Hunters…
This was where the Hunters Guild came in. It had personnel specifically responsible for purchasing Pokémon from these Hunters.
Of course, the prices were lower than those in cities or the Black Market, allowing the guild to profit from the difference. Naturally, Hunters Guilds possessed a certain degree of strength and could even contend with the local police.
Large underground forces such as Team Rocket, Team Galactic, and Team Magma, the well-known underground organizations of the various regions, generally had a Hunters Guild division like this. It was simply a matter of killing two Pidgey with one Rock Throw, allowing them to collect powerful Pokémon while also profiting from them.
Tetsuya now had twenty Rhyhorn in his possession, all of which were poisoned. If he did not cure them, their lives would be in danger, but leaving the forest now was also unrealistic. At this point, Tetsuya naturally thought of one person… Giovanni.
Tetsuya did not have Giovanni's private number, so he could only call the landline at Viridian Gym that Giovanni had left him.
After dialing the number, it was Giovanni's secretary who answered. Giovanni simply did not have time to personally receive him. Even though Tetsuya could now be considered someone of some importance, he could only explain his purpose to Giovanni's secretary.
Team Rocket was currently in a period of rapid expansion, and what it needed was large numbers of Trainers and Pokémon. Giovanni naturally would not refuse such a favorable opportunity. Tetsuya had already taken this into account.
Sure enough, Giovanni's secretary soon replied. Archer, one of the four Admins, was currently responsible for purchasing Pokémon.
From now on, Tetsuya could simply contact Archer directly, and Team Rocket would purchase his Pokémon at the normal market price.
Rhyhorn was a rare Pokémon, and its base stat total after evolving was quite high, so its market purchase price was also quite favorable.
Rhyhorn's final Evolution was Rhyperior, but the method for evolving it had not yet been discovered. At present, only Rhydon was known.
Even Rhydon had a base stat total of 485, placing it in the 450 to 500 range. Pokémon in this range sold for between twenty and forty thousand on the Black Market.
Rhyhorn sold for at least thirty thousand on the Black Market, but the purchase price was generally only half the selling price. That was simply how the market worked, and prices were determined by the market itself.
Archer quickly contacted him as well, purchasing the twenty Rhyhorn for sixteen thousand each. Tetsuya immediately transferred all twenty Rhyhorn to Archer, never imagining in his past life that the Pokédex's Pokémon transfer function also facilitated crime.
Archer's tone was still quite courteous. Team Rocket had now also established a dedicated Pokémon purchasing department, and Jessie and James were currently working under this department, responsible for receiving Pokémon.
After the Pokémon transfer was completed, Archer did not forget to remind Tetsuya, [Tetsuya, whenever you want to sell Pokémon in the future, just come directly to me. The price will definitely satisfy you, and the more, the better. This way, you'll also become a long-term partner of Team Rocket.]
"Definitely."
Since he could no longer shake off his association with Team Rocket anyway, he might as well go along with it.
It was convenient and also earned him a profit.
By unloading twenty Rhyhorn this time, 320k was deposited into his account all at once. Even selling them at a Black Market purchasing center could not possibly have gone this smoothly.
Setting aside whether the purchasing center even needed that many, negotiating the price alone would have been troublesome.
Selling directly to the Rockets earned him just as much money while also being quick and convenient.
Tetsuya now had more than 3.4 million in savings. All of this money was being set aside for the abandoned factory in Gringey City.
The pollution in Gringey City was worsening by the day. Once everything completely collapsed and the government ordered an evacuation, he had to secure the industrial area surrounding one of the "sludge lakes" before then.
Afterward, he would also have to renovate it so that it could be used to raise and train Muk and Weezing. He could even establish a dedicated wastewater treatment plant, allowing him to make a profit while raising Pokémon, killing two Pidgey with one Rock Throw… again.
If he could establish a Gym in Gringey City, then his hold over this base would also be secure. This was his new plan for this lifetime.
Of course, being a so-called "Gym Leader" was merely a transitional stage for him. His only purpose in Gringey City was to establish a "Pokémon Breeding Base" of his own, and this was the perfect location.
---◓---
After successfully selling the twenty Rhyhorn, Tetsuya continued searching through the forest. At the same time, his Pokémon continued their training.
The Pokémon with clear goals now were Mamoswine, Drapion, and Ariados. The other Pokémon continued with their regular training, which consisted of drinking Miltank milk and, under Miltank's Helping Hand, training their physical condition and moves within the Gravity field created by Golurk.
As Golurk's capabilities increased, the power of its Gravity field also continued to increase, and the field it created lasted longer as well. Golurk itself could now train within it.