CIATB Chapter 171 Solans: The Taste of Heart-wrenching Pain!
Chapter 171 Solans: The Taste of Heart-wrenching Pain!
Chapter 171 Solans: The Taste of Heart-wrenching Pain!
Higana's question echoed through the sea fog.
Mikoli turned around abruptly, her face full of apology: "I'm sorry. This is my incompetence as a citizen of the Glass People."
His previous focus on Contests and Pokémon training has left him somewhat unfamiliar with some of the responsibilities of the Crypt Clan.
This left the usually confident "Water Prince" with a slightly embarrassed expression.
"But based on my memory, it's roughly in this direction!"
"There's no mistake, the Sky Pillar should be in this direction!"
Mikkel looked around and confidently assured them.
Higanbana hummed twice: "Then hurry up..."
The road to the Sky Pillar is fraught with difficulties.
A layer of mist always shrouds the sea, making it impossible to distinguish directions or know one's location; the waves are constantly surging, making it impossible to stay calm; and there are many piles of rocks that have emerged from the seabed, forcing one to tread carefully.
But with Mikoli, a person of the Glass People, leading the way...
I don't know how much time passed.
The sea gradually calmed down, and the stones gradually disappeared.
The sea fog gradually dissipated, making it possible to see the outside world clearly.
The outline of an "island" gradually came into view in the distance.
"Are we almost at the Sky Pillar?" Little Blue asked, standing on Blastoise's back alongside Zeki.
"Y-yes..." Mikuri looked at the outline of the island in the distance, her tone uncertain. "This should be the Sky Pillar."
But as he got closer to the "Pillar of the Sky," his expression became increasingly strange.
"this"
"The Sky Pillar built by us Meteor Clan, dedicated to the Dragon God—" Higana's eyes widened, "How could it possibly be a city bustling with people?!"
Green Ridge City.
Located northeast of Ruri City, where Zeki and the others started.
It is located in a position completely opposite to the Sky Pillar, which is located on the southwest side of Ryukyu City.
Walking on the roads of Green Ridge City.
Mikoli tossed her long green hair, repeatedly apologizing, "I personally checked the tribe's map before we set off..."
Higana's face turned red with anger; she felt she had been tricked by this person of the Glass Clan.
"You're even more incompetent than me, the Meteor Dweller's successor who's been called 'incompetent'!!!"
Mikkel did not refute.
Ze Shu said, "It's unbelievable that someone can so confidently say they're incompetent."
Higana turned around and glared angrily at Ze Shu, but quickly lowered her head: "What should we do now...?"
Ze Shu said, "What should we do? What's there to be upset about?"
Higana asked, "Do you have a way to make us 'whoosh' to the Sky Pillar in an instant?"
Ze Shu shook his head.
"But let's go again. I think Mikuri won't lead us astray the second time we go to the Sky Pillar, right?"
"And while we're in Green Ridge City, we can also—" he thought for a moment, and said, "get a meteorite."
As he finished speaking, Ze Shu looked towards the northeast side of Green Ridge City, where there was a landmark building that could be seen from anywhere in Green Ridge City—the Green Ridge Space Center, a research building for launching rockets and observing the universe.
From the direction of the Green Ridge Universe Center, Ze Shu saw a strange and suspicious figure.
This is someone who perfectly fits the image of a mountain climber in the Pokémon world.
But what's special is:
His backpack was bulging and looked very heavy; carrying it almost crushed his body.
He also peeked around cautiously, having just emerged from the Green Ridge Universe Center. He was wary of everything around him, looking furtive and dragging his backpack with difficulty, heading straight for a certain place in Green Ridge City with a clear purpose.
Ze Shu said, "Xiao Lan, don't you think this figure looks familiar?"
Xiao Lan blinked and then smiled: "It does look familiar!"
Green Ridge City is an island city, and it's not very big.
Following the furtive man, they turned left and right through Green Ridge City, quickly arriving at the outskirts of the city from the bustling residential area. In this outskirts, there stood a small, inconspicuous bungalow.
You could clearly see the man breathe a sigh of relief, wipe his forehead, and then, dragging his heavy backpack, he opened the door of the small house.
Step in.
Even now, perhaps because the backpack was too heavy, carrying it only made him feel tired. Perhaps it was also because he was about to reach his destination...
So he relaxed and didn't even notice that Ze Shu was following him, or that Ze Shu had walked up behind him.
There was a loud "smack"!
Ze Shu placed his hand heavily on the man's shoulder and laughed:
"Hey! Dr. Solans."
"Why are you sneaking around here carrying things? What are you up to? Is it some shady deal, or...?"
"Huh? Don't scare me to death! How can you be so timid?"
Ze Shu had not finished speaking.
Dr. Solans was so frightened that he was covered in cold sweat and collapsed to the ground:
"You you you—"
"What are you doing here?!"
Solans looked at Ze Shu, feeling utterly astonished and incredulous.
Ze Shu simply said, "Yeah, I'm here anyway."
"Keeping my promise, I've come to collect the meteorite from you."
His gaze casually drifted to the small, unfinished house, its door now open. Everything inside was ordinary—an ordinary bed, an ordinary cabinet—except…
At this moment, Dr. Solans hurriedly waved his hand in front of Ze Shu, frantically saying, "Of course I will keep my promise!"
"But, but, the meteorite isn't here! Ze Shu, Investigator Ze Shu, you, you should go to Green Ridge City to rest for a while."
"I...I'll take you to get the meteorite soon."
Ze Shu: "Oh?"
He looked at Dr. Solans with a half-smile.
His flustered tone was so obvious that even a ghost could tell he was guilty.
Ze Shu said, "Isn't this the place where you hid the meteorite, Solans?"
Solans repeatedly said, "No! No!"
"I see.:::" Ze Shu suddenly realized, seemingly without doubt.
"Yes, yes!" Solans nodded repeatedly, just as he was about to feel relieved.
But who knew?
"But—" Ze Shu pointed his finger directly at the cabinet in the room and said, "Behind the cabinet, a dark corner of the hidden tunnel is already showing."
"If this isn't the place where you, Dr. Solans, hid the meteorite, could it be...:"
"What other dirty dealings have you made?!"
Solans was startled and suddenly turned around.
He broke out in a cold sweat when it was foggy.
"This, this... no, it's not..."
He wanted to explain, but his mind went blank, and he hated himself for being so careless.
He was so anxious that cold sweat poured down his face, mixed with the hot sweat from carrying the heavy objects, soaking him completely.
Ze Shu said speechlessly, "Why don't you take it slow?"
Seeing Solans in this state, he found it outrageous.
However, with a loud "whoosh," Solans could no longer support the backpack on his back.
The backpack hit the ground, perhaps because the contents were too heavy, and it smashed a hole in the backpack, exposing the contents.
This is a... meteorite.
No wonder it's so heavy.
Ze Shu:
"......"
He should be ashamed, ashamed that he suspected Solans of having other dirty dealings besides meteorites; it was simply a stain on Solans's pure and devoted love for meteorites.
However, judging from Solans's nervous appearance...
And his earlier vehement denial that this was the site of the meteorite's hiding place.
"Oh...I see," Ze Shu said suddenly, "Why did you come here so suspiciously?"
Solans was stunned and exclaimed, "W-what?!"
"It's a very simple principle. Your love for meteorites is indeed unparalleled, but I have a 'promise' with you to take your meteorite," Ze Shu said with a smile. "So, since you're reluctant to part with it, you've come up with a plan."
"You want to move your valuable meteorite collection to another location."
"Then, when I arrive, I can only choose from the less precious meteorites that you've already selected."
Is that right?
Before Ze Shu could finish speaking, Solans's head drooped dejectedly.
He said dejectedly, "Yes...that's how it is..."
"However..." Solans looked down at the meteorite he had been carrying in his backpack and weakly retorted, "This one, I just got from the Green Ridge Space Center. It wasn't moved here from the old inventory."
Ze Shu asked, "So the other meteorites were taken from old stock?"
Solans: "..."
He did not refute it, which means he confirmed it.
Ze Shu chuckled, picked up the slumped Solans from the ground, then placed his hand on Solans's shoulder and said:
"Why are you looking so worried? Take me inside and show me your 'carefully selected' inventory."
He emphasized the phrase "carefully selected".
Upon hearing this, Solans felt as if everything was about to go black and he was about to faint.
"What are you doing? What are you doing—" Looking at Solans's state, Ze Shu continued with a smile, "I didn't take many meteorites, just a few. Your precious, carefully selected meteorites are about to find new owners. Shouldn't you bless your meteorites and send them off with a smile?"
After saying that...
Solan's vision went black immediately; he had completely fainted.
Ze Shu: "....."
No, why is Solans so easily "teased"?
Higana stared wide-eyed from afar:
"This is Zeqi! A demon, a demon!"
Higana couldn't help but wonder if she could withstand Zeki's "persecution" if she really continued to be Zeki's enemy!
Solans had a dream.
He dreamt that his most precious meteorites were taken away by that despicable Ze Shu, and his entire inventory was almost completely wiped out by Ze Shu. Then he had to put on a brave face and send off Ze Shu's meteorites as they left.
Before his most precious and cherished meteorites left, they spoke in a human voice, saying to him, "We don't want you anymore. We want to go with Mr. Zeki. We'll be played with by Mr. Zeki at will, and turned into whatever shape he likes..."
"The man's heart-wrenching pain..."
Thinking of this, Solans suddenly woke up.
He found himself lying on a bed in a bungalow.
"You're awake?" came Ze Shu's voice.
"Wh-what...:" Solans hadn't reacted yet.
"While you were unconscious, I selected the meteorites I wanted," Ze Shu said, placing five meteorites in front of Solans. "Here, these are the five."
"Five, five..."
Before even seeing what the meteorites looked like, Solans heard the numbers and felt a sharp pain in his heart, as if he were about to faint again.
He struggled to sit up and looked at the meteorite that Ze Shu had placed in front of him.
What attracted his attention the most, and what first caught his eye, was a meteorite radiating a seven-colored light. This meteorite was also engraved with inexplicable patterns, with a faint seven-colored light flowing within it; just by looking at its appearance, one could tell it was extraordinary.
This was also Solans's favorite meteorite.
"This—this—" His eyes widened, and his weak body produced an unusually loud voice, "This is not allowed! This is all I have, please don't take it away!"
But what drove him to despair was...
Ze Shu shook his head and said, "This is the only one I absolutely must take. You promised me that I could take the meteorite I want unconditionally."
Solans demanded, "Why?!"
Ze Shu said, "Because this is a meteorite with seven-colored patterns."
"A meteorite with seven-colored patterns..."
Solans didn't understand Ze Shu's meaning, nor did he understand the significance of the name Ze Shu gave to his favorite meteorite.
He could only say with sorrow and heartache, "This is my favorite meteorite!"
"The moment I dug it out of Meteor Falls, I fell in love with this 'rainbow meteorite' you called it. Why, why did you have to do this, separate us!"
Ze Shu said, "Then I'm sorry."
Solans: "..."
Your apology is so insincere!
He tried to suppress the heartache, but couldn't help it.
With a heavy heart and a sense of unbearable pain, he could only continue looking at the other four meteorites that Ze Shu had laid out. Although these four meteorites were also very precious, with the 'Seven-Colored Meteorite' in front of him, he didn't feel so heartbroken, after all, he had already reached the extreme of pain.
Ze Shu laughed and said, "Finished watching? We're leaving now."
Solans: "No, don't..."
Ze Shu advised, "It's better to have a short, sharp pain than a long, drawn-out one, Dr. Solans."
After leaving Solans's Heartbreaking Hut, Xijiana couldn't help but ask, "What kind of meteorite is that seven-colored meteorite? I feel like... this meteorite is familiar."
Ze Shu paused for a moment, then casually said, "Perhaps it's your Dragon God's favorite ration?"
Upon entering the tunnel behind Solans's cabinet and into his vast collection of meteorites, Zeki immediately spotted the rainbow-patterned meteorite. This rainbow-patterned meteorite was an item in the modified version of the game, Ultra Emerald, that allowed Rayquaza to Mega Evolve.
Although Ze Shu was unsure of the exact extent of the meteorite's existence in reality, there was no doubt that it was closely related to Rayquaza.
Take it!
As for the remaining four meteorites...
Ze Shu could only say that he truly lived up to his reputation as the "Meteorite Maniac" Solans. The Silph Corporation had only managed to find one meteorite containing cosmic radiation after searching the entire Kanto region, yet five of them suddenly appeared in his collection room!
As for why Ze Shu took four.
Well, let's keep one as a memento for Solans.
If Deochis hasn't absorbed enough cosmic radiation energy from these four meteorites, he'll come back and take away the last meteorite Dr. Solans left.
"Hmph! No matter what!" Higana said, "This time, we all have to go inside the Sky Pillar!"
"That person from the Glass Clan has returned, saying he'll search through all the clan's records and memorize the path to the Pillar of Heaven. Let's give him a chance!"