Chapter 135: The Money-seeking Spirit
The Team Rocket Trio cautiously made their way towards the bottom of the shipwreck.
Before long, in the deepest room of the shipwreck, they discovered a treasure chest with a golden-red exterior and something resembling a belt in the middle.
"A treasure chest?"
"Treasure?"
"Give me gold coins!"
The Team Rocket Trio were all mesmerized by the treasure chest before them.
They hurried to the treasure chest, eager to open it.
Just then, Ash and the others, led by Haunter, found them.
Ash warned, "Hey, you three idiots, if you don't want to be unlucky, I advise you not to touch that treasure chest."
That treasure chest was, of course, not a simple treasure chest, but a Ghost-type Pokémon—Gimmighoul.
Pokémon: Gimmighoul
Type: Ghost
Gender: Genderless
Level: Gym Beginner
Ability: Cowardice
Potential: Quasi-Champion
Skills: Astonish, Tackle, Confuse Ray, Hex, Endure, Nasty Plot, Night Shade, Shadow Ball.....
If it were an ordinary Pokémon, Ash naturally wouldn't stop the Team Rocket Trio, but Gimmighoul, this kind of Pokémon, would punish those with ill intentions. In its treasure chest form, if someone tried to steal its treasure, it would drain their life force; in its walking form, if someone tried to pick up the gold coins it carried, it would drain their vitality.
The Team Rocket Trio were not truly bad guys; in fact, their unwitting assists often had a better effect than Ash's main efforts, so Ash didn't want these three to suffer greatly.
"Ash, this treasure chest was discovered by us, so it's ours! You can't steal it!"
The Team Rocket Trio fiercely guarded the treasure chest behind them.
Ash shook his head and said, "It's not necessarily yours, but if you open the box, I'm sure you'll be unlucky."
"Ash, what do you mean by that?" Jessie asked, confused.
"Can't you three figure it out? This ship is a ghost ship. Are you really sure this treasure chest is a real treasure chest?" Serena asked with a smile.
"Could it be..."
Hearing the words "ghost ship," the Team Rocket Trio immediately felt uneasy. They unconsciously shuffled two steps to the side, distancing themselves from the treasure chest.
Meanwhile, Gastly and Haunter set their sights on the bag James was carrying.
The two Pokémon cooperated very well; Haunter grabbed one side of the bag, while Gastly used Psychic on James. James barely struggled before his things were snatched away.
"Damn it, this trophy is ours!" James pulled out a Poké Ball. "Victreebel, come out!"
Victreebel came out and immediately bit James's head. James struggled, "Ah! I didn't tell you to bite me! The enemy is over there!"
"Victreebel, Razor Leaf!"
Victreebel shot several blade-like leaves at Gastly.
Jessie also released Arbok to attack Haunter.
Seeing this, Misty couldn't help but shake her head, "These three guys are truly hopeless."
Facing Victreebel's attack, Gastly retaliated with Night Shade. With just one move, Victreebel lost its ability to battle, while Haunter used Confuse Ray on Arbok.
Arbok was also unlucky; after just one hit from the move, it entered a confused state and immediately turned to use the Tackle move on the Team Rocket Trio.
The aftermath of the battle woke up the Gimmighoul that was sleeping nearby.
Ding-a-ling~
Gimmighoul opened its treasure chest eyes, revealing a bewildered expression.
Clearly, the surrounding environment felt very unfamiliar to it.
"Huh? Is that treasure chest also a Pokémon?" Tracy looked at the treasure chest in confusion.
"Yes, that little guy is called Gimmighoul. It's a Pokémon unique to the Paldea region, a special treasure chest Pokémon. Information about this Pokémon in the Paldea region is quite limited; we only know that it's a Pokémon born in a treasure chest 1500 years ago.
It has two forms: one is the treasure chest form we see now, and the other is the walking form carrying gold coins. Both forms have one common point: they have a very strong protective instinct over their treasure chests and gold coins. If someone tries to steal their treasure, it will drain their life force," Ash explained.
From the current situation, it's highly probable that this Gimmighoul was brought onto the ship by an unknown Pokémon while it was sleeping; otherwise, it wouldn't be so bewildered by its surroundings. Of course, it's also possible that it drifted here on its own in the sea.
"So, Ash, you were actually saving those three idiots when you stopped them just now, weren't you?" Serena said.
"Pika Pika!"
The sociable Pikachu went up to Gimmighoul and greeted it.
The moment Gimmighoul saw Pikachu, it immediately shrank back into its chest, clearly startled.
"It seems very timid, doesn't it?" Misty said.
"That's their nature. Gimmighoul only has one ability—Cowardice. However, when it sees certain things, that's not necessarily the case."
Ash pulled out a few special gold coins and walked up to Gimmighoul.
"Little guy, don't be scared. Let me show you a treasure."
Gimmighoul listened to the clinking of the gold coins in Ash's hand and carefully opened a tiny slit. Upon seeing the gold coins, its small eyes were filled with fervent desire.
That's right, what Ash was holding were Gimmighoul Coins. These coins are the only item needed for Gimmighoul to evolve into Gholdengo, but it requires collecting 999 coins to achieve evolution.
The Gimmighoul Coins in Ash's hand were purchased from the system's mall. Each coin cost him a full 50,000 League Coins, and he had three coins in his hand, totaling 150,000. Calculating it, to evolve Gimmighoul into Gholdengo, he would have to spend at least half a small fortune.
However, half a small fortune for a Steel/Ghost-type Gholdengo is indeed quite worth it. In the game, it's immune to Normal, Fighting, and Poison types and has strong resistance to 9 types, with even higher resistance to Bug-type moves.
Of course, Ash is currently in the real Pokémon world. While it can't be said that it's completely immune to the damage of three types like in the game, the damage these three types can cause is also quite limited.
The only drawback is that Gholdengo has two more weaknesses than Gimmighoul: Ground and Fire types.
"Little guy, do you really want these gold coins?" Ash tempted.
Gimmighoul poked out its small head and nodded. Its small eyes never left the gold coins in Ash's hand.
"If you want them, I can give them to you, but the condition is that you have to join my team."
The dagger was revealed, but this dagger plunged straight into Gimmighoul's heart, leaving it unable to even think of refusing.
After Gimmighoul agreed, Ash handed the gold coins in his hand to Gimmighoul, then took out a Poké Ball, gently touched Gimmighoul with it, and captured it.
"Ding, detected that the host captured Gimmighoul. Reward obtained: 10,000 points, Gimmighoul Coin * 996."
"Damn it, this dog-like system really knows how to play; it won't let me take any advantage, will it?"
Ash was speechless. This dog-like system wouldn't even part with 150,000 League Coins. If he had known, he would have just violently captured it and waited for the reward. Now he's just lost 150,000 League Coins.
The Team Rocket Trio, pinned down by Arbok, saw Ash capture Gimmighoul and became agitated. Jessie shouted, "Damn it, Ash, we discovered that Pokémon first!"
"That's right, Ash, quickly return that Pokémon to us!" James also said.
"You three guys still have the nerve to say that? If I hadn't stopped you just now, you would have already had all your life force drained by Gimmighoul. So, I saved your lives, understand?
A Pokémon you didn't even know saved your lives. You're the ones who profited greatly from this deal.
Forget it, I'm in a good mood today, so I won't blast you off. You can leave on your own." Ash put on a magnanimous facade, leaving the Team Rocket Trio stunned.
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