Soon, everyone had eaten their fill. Heracross felt this was the fullest and most delicious meal it had ever had. Staring at the remaining energy cubes, it thought to itself that if it weren't so stuffed it couldn't eat another bite, it would love to keep feasting.
Wen Qi noticed this scene, feeling both a pang of sympathy and a touch of amusement. He walked up to Heracross, gently patted the honest creature, and said, "Don't stare anymore. Look how much you've eaten—aren't you afraid of bursting yourself? Now that you're with me, do you think you'll ever go without food? Don't be so pathetic."
Hearing this, Heracross felt a bit embarrassed and scratched its head.
"Alright, I still have important matters to attend to here. Do you need to say goodbye to your group? Is there anything you need to take with you?"
Heracross thought for a moment and realized it didn't really have any close friends. Most of the Heracross in the group were rather lazy and didn't care much about its impending departure. However, when it came to its belongings, it suddenly remembered a treasure it had. It could leave everything else behind, but this thing had to come along. After telling Wen Qi, it immediately dashed back to its home and retrieved the carefully hidden stone.
Soon, Wen Qi saw Heracross returning with some food. It cheerfully said it wanted to give Wen Qi a precious gift. At first, Wen Qi didn't think a Heracross so impoverished could have anything truly valuable to offer. Watching the cautious Heracross, he took the stone it handed over. The moment he looked at it, his previously casual demeanor instantly turned into excitement.
It turned out the stone was a Mega Stone. Through the system's detection, it was specifically a Heracross Mega Stone. Now Wen Qi understood how a Heracross with such mediocre talent, whose combat ability was even weaker than the un-evolved Scyther, could so easily break through its natural limits. While part of it was due to his own rigorous training and brushing against life and death in battle, the greater help came from this Mega Stone. Even though he couldn't use it himself before, the stone had been a tremendous aid.
Wen Qi hadn't expected such good luck—casually capturing a Pokémon and obtaining a Mega Stone. Truly wonderful! He happily put away the Mega Stone and told Heracross, "This stone is a Mega Stone, very beneficial to you. For now, rest well with me, and I'll teach you how to use it later."
Hearing that Wen Qi planned to return the stone to him, Heracross was overjoyed. This stone was the last keepsake from its parents. If Wen Qi hadn't promised to provide food and shelter, it might have been reluctant to part with it. Now that he intended to give it back, it was naturally thrilled.
Finally, Wen Qi asked Heracross if everything was settled. After receiving an affirmative answer, he took out a Poké Ball and captured Heracross. Then, finding a secluded spot, he returned to the small world with his Pokémon. He first arranged for Heracross to stay in Bug Valley to recuperate properly. At this point, Heracross had many hidden injuries and severe life-force depletion, urgently needing rest and recovery there. Since the small world could slowly heal any hidden damage, once those were fixed and it rested well, even if its life-force couldn't fully return to its original state, recovering over ninety percent was no problem. Later, once it broke through to the Gym level, its life-force would increase again, making up the difference.
After settling Heracross, Wen Qi returned to the forest. Guided by Scizor, he soon arrived at a wooded area. Though this was in the inner zone, the trees weren't particularly lush. Wen Qi noticed numerous slash marks and some fallen trees. Seeing this, he guessed the sparse vegetation was likely due to the Scyther's cutting. Scyther were naturally aggressive; if they didn't train in battle daily, they felt restless, which led to damage in their territory. If not for the elders' restrictions, the area would probably have turned into scrubland.
When Wen Qi arrived, the Scizor beside him began trembling involuntarily. He could sense that Scizor was extremely agitated. But Wen Qi just watched quietly, not disturbing it. Though he didn't know why Scizor was so stirred up, it was clear this Scizor had quite a story.
As they were lost in thought, several Air Slashes suddenly flew out from the forest, striking the ground not far from Wen Qi and his companion. Even though they were spacing out, they could still detect and assess danger in an instant. Scizor realized the attack was only a warning, with no intention of hitting them, so it ignored it. Wen Qi trusted his Pokémon—since they showed no reaction, he knew there was no major issue.
Soon, the dust kicked up by the attack settled, revealing three Scyther on the ground. Good grief—though not as impressive as the Venusaur's territory guards, these three Scyther included one at the Gym level and two at the Elite level. Scizor, still lost in memories, saw these three Scyther and immediately called out excitedly. But the reply to Scizor's words, Wen Qi could tell, was a question—something like "Who are you?"
Instantly, Wen Qi felt Scizor freeze as if turned to stone, probably unable to accept that after being gone less than half a year, they didn't recognize it. Wen Qi spoke up: "Scizor, don't be upset or sad. Have you considered that you've evolved? It's only natural they don't recognize you."
Scizor's hollow eyes regained their light upon hearing Wen Qi's words. Indeed, its master was right—it had evolved and grown so strong; it made sense they didn't know it. So Scizor stepped forward to communicate with the three Scyther. Though Wen Qi didn't eavesdrop closely, he could tell from the tone of the conversation—shifting from confusion to surprise, then certainty and joy—that the three Scyther had finally recognized Scizor.
Seeing Scizor happily chatting with them, Wen Qi didn't want to intrude and waited nearby, since there was still plenty of time. Just then, the sound of a tree crashing down came from the jungle, instantly drawing the attention of Wen Qi and Scizor.