After a night passed, as the first rays of sunlight streamed through the window, Wen Qi couldn't wait to open his eyes. His first move was to pull up the system interface, wanting to confirm that yesterday's experience wasn't just a dream.
Seeing those familiar messages, the weight finally lifted from his heart.
Just then, a spark of inspiration hit him—he remembered the system seemed to have a check-in feature. Excitedly, he called out to the system:
"System, check-in!"
The moment the words left his mouth, a crisp "ding" sounded.
System prompt: "Congratulations, host, on a successful check-in. First-time check-in reward: host receives points!"
Seeing this, Wen Qi leaped straight out of bed, hardly believing his eyes. This system was way too generous—so many points for a first check-in, instantly jolting him awake from his drowsy state.
After washing up, he remembered it was the weekend, so no school today.
Recalling his plan from yesterday, he decided to go claim his Pokémon first.
Just then, the system chimed in with a new notification:
"Ding! System mission released: Obtain your first Pokémon. Mission success rewards 2000 points; mission failure deducts 2000 points."
Wen Qi thought to himself, this mission was practically a freebie—why wouldn't he take it?
After a quick breakfast, he rushed out the door.
Walking toward the breeding house, he felt the weather was especially bright today, and his mood was equally lifted, so much so that he couldn't help skipping along.
But then, realizing he was a grown adult, he toned it down a bit.
He noticed plenty of others on the road were just as excited, some accompanied by parents—all likely heading to claim their Pokémon.
Soon, Wen Qi arrived at a bustling street, home to most of the city's breeding houses, including official ones, private ones, and those run by big corporations.
But to claim a starter Pokémon, you had to go to an official breeding house. After all, the League was the biggest power, capable of distributing starters to so many people.
Before he even reached the entrance of the official breeding house, Wen Qi saw a long line already formed.
There were people like him coming alone, and whole families showing up together.
After all, starter Pokémon weren't cheap—not every family could easily afford them. Though thousands of people in the city claimed Pokémon each year, fewer than ten percent of families qualified for starters, showing just how popular they were.
The League put great effort into breeding starters, but numbers were limited, which only made Wen Qi more eager to successfully claim his own Pokémon.
Standing in line, his heart brimmed with anticipation and excitement, waiting for that moment to come.
Every year, these slots were scarce. If not for his parents having some standing back in the day, this good fortune probably wouldn't have fallen to him.
Stepping into the breeding house, he saw the staff bustling about, busy attending to customers.
The official breeding house, after all, offered reliability, so everyone flocked there, making it always crowded.
Wen Qi wandered around the place, his eyes lighting up when he spotted a "Starter Pokémon Claim" window.
He sidled over and saw quite a line of people. Judging by their attire and demeanor, they were likely from well-off, influential families.
Finally, it was Wen Qi's turn. He stepped up to the window, pulling out his documents and qualification certificate.
The staff member took one look and immediately warmly led him to the back courtyard.
Once there, the staff member asked:
"Mr. Wen, do you have any particular Pokémon in mind?"
Wen Qi rubbed his chin and said:
"Let me take a look first; I haven't decided yet. You go ahead with your work—I'll find you when I've made up my mind."
The staff member nodded and added:
"Mr. Wen, please don't touch these Pokémon casually. We're not responsible if you get hurt. Also, don't harm them."
Wen Qi smiled and replied:
"Don't worry, I know the drill."
Standing at the door to the breeding house's back courtyard, Wen Qi's heart raced with excitement. He'd heard so much about the amazing Pokémon here, and today he'd finally see them in person!
He looked out and saw a Charmander lying on the ground dozing off, its red skin glowing and a blue flame flickering at the tip of its tail—totally cool!
A Torchic was much livelier, hopping around and occasionally pecking at bugs on the ground.
A Cyndaquil, on the other hand, looked lazy, basking in the sun with its eyes half-closed, utterly comfortable.
In a corner, a Bulbasaur sat quietly, its small green body covered in spots, looking both cute and mysterious.
A Chikorita swayed gently in the breeze like a verdant leaf, as if greeting Wen Qi.
A Treecko hid behind a rock, only its wary eyes peeking out, as if observing this newcomer.
And there was a slow-moving Turtwig, its shell covered in green sprouts—the more he looked, the more interesting it got!
A Squirtle swam joyfully in the water, its limbs paddling fast, splashing everywhere like a water ballet dancer.
A Totodile lounged lazily by the water's edge, its big mouth open as if saying, "Bring the food to me!"
A Mudkip danced happily on the water's surface, its light blue sheen absolutely stunning!
Wen Qi's eyes were glued to the scene, as if he'd traveled through time to a fantastical Pokémon paradise.
Each of these little creatures had its own unique charm, making Wen Qi's fingers itch to reach out and touch them.
But remembering the staff member's warning, he held back—after all, disturbing them wouldn't be good.
So, Wen Qi pulled out his system and started scanning the Pokémon's information.
But after a sweep, he found they were all yellow-tier, like a bunch of little yellow ducks—some light yellow, some medium, some dark—but not a single green one.
This left Wen Qi a bit disappointed. While yellow-tier Pokémon were rare, their combat strength and evolution potential were limited.
He knew that to find a powerful partner, he'd need to aim for higher tiers.
So, he turned and walked back to the staff member, politely asking:
"Miss, do you have any Pokémon eggs I could look at?"
The staff member's eyes lit up at that, thinking: This young man has good taste! She smiled and nodded, leading Wen Qi to the back of the shop.
There, rows of Pokémon eggs were laid out, resting quietly on soft cushions like sleeping dreams.
Wen Qi crouched down, carefully examining each egg, his heart full of hope.
Though the tier of an egg was hard to predict, maybe, just maybe, among this pile, there was a future battle star hiding!
Like a treasure hunter, Wen Qi took a deep breath and activated his "Pokémon radar"—the system's scanning function—to scrutinize the eggs.
He scanned through piles of yellow-tier ones, thinking to himself:
"This color is way too ordinary. And how did orange-tier 'duds' sneak in? Which unlucky person would pick that?"
Pretending to browse, Wen Qi finally fixed his gaze on an unassuming egg.
He decisively said to the staff member: "I'll take this one."
Inside, though, he was overjoyed, because the system had quietly told him this was a green-tier Turtwig egg! Even if it was just a light green, it was still a huge win!
After all, on the market, a green-tier starter Pokémon egg cost three to five million at the very least—prices that made ordinary families turn away.
As he left, Wen Qi splurged ten thousand dollars on an incubator and a bunch of young Pokémon nutrients, then hummed a tune as he walked out the door.
Having snagged such a bargain, he felt so elated he could practically float.
Thinking about the legendary Landorus blessing still in his gift pack, Wen Qi grew even more excited.
This Pokémon would surely become one of his strongest partners, journeying with him through the Pokémon world and starting their own adventure!