Ariados had much less to worry about now. These dozen or so Beedrill were enough to last it three or four meals.
As the training in the humid forest continued, the three Poison-type Pokémon benefited the most. It was practically their home field. Weezing could absorb the miasma rising everywhere, while the Pokémon Drapion and Ariados ate were extremely nourishing.
Tetsuya continued exploring the forest, focusing primarily on his Pokémon. As time passed, he gradually lost track of the path and unknowingly ventured deep into the mountains.
The miasma grew increasingly dense. It would be difficult for humans to remain in an environment like this for very long, but Tetsuya was not afraid in the slightest!
What had happened in the forest of Fuchsia City remained deeply etched in his memory. Agatha's "colleague" had used a terrifyingly powerful Venusaur.
Because of that, Tetsuya had sacrificed his Beedrill, the first Pokémon he had lost in this life…
Then, because of the old man's inexplicable death, he had obtained the Emerald Orb. It could be considered the most valuable thing he had gained, even more valuable than that formidable Venusaur and the Sea Spirit Sapphire.
Anyone who raised Poison-types would inevitably be accidentally poisoned by their own Pokémon at some point. But with the Emerald Orb, Tetsuya could not be poisoned at all, so there was no need to worry about being accidentally harmed.
This Emerald Orb could be said to have been exchanged for Beedrill's life, making it exceptionally precious.
Although the miasma was dense, this place was also a utopia for Poison-type Pokémon. The four-headed Weezing, Drapion, and Ariados had all ventured deeper into the forest.
It was inconvenient for the others to venture any farther, so Tetsuya also recalled the Ditto on his wrist into its Poké Ball and entered the depths of the miasma with his three Poison-type Pokémon.
Tetsuya switched on a powerful flashlight. Purple miasma had already shrouded the entire forest, severely limiting visibility.
However, Weezing suddenly became frenzied, all four of its heads absorbing it. The miasma here was practically inexhaustible.
From time to time, Poison-type Pokémon would rush out and attack Tetsuya, but he dealt with all of them. By now, he could tell that every Pokémon appearing here was quite powerful. After all, only strong Pokémon could occupy such a utopia for Poison-types.
Moreover, this place could be said to contain Poison-type Pokémon from every region.
There were Seviper and Swalot from Hoenn, Ekans, Koffing, Nidoking, and others from Kanto and Johto, Toxicroak and Stunky from Sinnoh, and even Scolipede from Unova.
Now that Tetsuya had come here, he had no intention of leaving until he had razed this place to the ground and wiped out every Poison-type Pokémon within it.
For his own Pokémon to grow stronger and stand at the very highest peak, the ground beneath them would inevitably have to be littered with corpses…
With that decision made, Tetsuya simply transferred Mamoswine, Golurk, Miltank, and Ditto to Mahogany Gym and asked Pryce to train them in his place.
Naturally, Pryce's methods were far more sophisticated than Tetsuya's own, but when it came to Poison-types, Tetsuya was unquestionably an expert.
Moreover, in a place like this, Tetsuya could still live normally. An opportunity like this was practically tailor-made for him, so he was determined to thoroughly harvest every resource this place had to offer.
---◓---
For three consecutive months of venturing deeper into the forest, Tetsuya and his three Pokémon had only one objective: to leave no survivors wherever they passed.
As a result, they were constantly engaged in battle. Weezing now fed entirely on miasma, while Ariados and Drapion ate nothing but poison sacs. They were living incredibly lavish lives, and the improvement in their strength was immediate. Gengar only needed to follow behind and finish off whatever remained.
Even if the poison sacs of many Pokémon were ruptured, at most they would lose their Poison type and would not die outright. At that point, however, Gengar would step in and drain away all of their vitality, killing them outright and putting an end to it.
However, it was obvious that the deeper they ventured, the stronger the Pokémon became.
As Tetsuya's own power increased, naturally, the stronger his opponents were, the stronger he became as well.
One day, while traveling through the forest as usual, Tetsuya suddenly heard a furious roar. Following the sound, he found six Seviper surrounding and attacking a Zangoose. Winter was already approaching, and these snake Pokémon would soon enter hibernation.
However, Hoenn's climate was warm, so their hibernation would not last very long. At this location and this time of year, these Seviper were all quite formidable. Moreover, this was precisely the period when Seviper prepared food for hibernation, when they were at their most frenzied, making their combat power exceptionally alarming.
Seeing Seviper here was perfectly normal, but seeing a Zangoose was definitely not. How could a Normal-type Pokémon possibly live in a miasma-filled forest like this? And it was battling six Seviper. Wasn't that simply seeking death?
The Zangoose's eyes were blood-red and terrifying, while its two claws were pitch-black and gleaming, with blood dripping from them. The six Seviper watched it menacingly, looking as though they were about to tear the Zangoose to pieces!
That was hardly surprising.
Seviper and Zangoose were natural enemies, and it could be said that they would start fighting the moment they saw each other.
Two Seviper took the lead and moved forward. One opened its jaws wide and lunged at Zangoose with Poison Fang, while the other swung its Poison Tail with tremendous force!
Zangoose did not linger for even a moment, doing several consecutive backflips and easily avoiding the pincer attack from the two Seviper.
However, another Seviper swiftly made its move. Before its body had even approached Zangoose, its Poison Tail had already swept out!
Zangoose instantly had nowhere left to retreat. It swung out with Slash, immediately leaving three deep, clearly visible bloody gashes across Seviper's tail. Blood instantly gushed out, forcing Seviper to retreat.
The setbacks suffered by these two Seviper only enraged their companions further. They swiftly closed in on Zangoose, coiling their bodies in preparation to trap it. These Seviper were all exceptionally robust, and once they put all their strength into Coil, they left Zangoose with nowhere to escape.
Zangoose swung its claws once again. This time, the Seviper had learned their lesson and twisted their bodies, preventing Zangoose from landing a hit so easily.
By now, all six Seviper had recovered and surrounded Zangoose from every direction!
This time, without the slightest pause, all of them unleashed powerful moves and charged straight at Zangoose. With nowhere left to evade, Zangoose could only face them head-on.
One of its claws had just used Slash to strike a Seviper using Iron Head, then its Iron Tail swept out and knocked away another Seviper behind it that was using Poison Fang!
Ultimately, however, it still could not overcome the Seviper's advantage in numbers…
Immediately afterward, two Seviper behind it used Poison Tail and struck directly into Zangoose's abdomen. Two wounds instantly opened across its belly, and blood began to flow.