The giant scissor mantis suddenly flapped its wings, quickly beginning to gather energy as an immense power surged within its body. It swiftly adjusted its stance, moving at lightning speed, and in the blink of an eye, it was in front of the Arbok. The Arbok, terrified, tried desperately to dodge, but its paralyzed body couldn’t react in time or effectively. The giant scissor mantis showed no mercy, swinging its razor-sharp forelimbs in a relentless flurry of consecutive slashes. Each strike carried immense force and astonishing speed, leaving the Arbok utterly defenseless. Under the mantis’s fierce assault, the Arbok’s body was instantly torn apart, blood splattering everywhere. It struggled painfully a few times before collapsing limply to the ground, completely losing its fighting ability. The battle ended in a perfect, overwhelming victory for the giant scissor mantis.
Wen Qi had just arrived here riding his Skiddo when he found the battle already over. He hadn’t expected the giant scissor mantis to be so fast. In just a moment, it had instantly taken down the Arbok. Although the Arbok had been stiffened by Wen Qi’s Sleep Powder, being dispatched so cleanly by the mantis fully demonstrated its precise grasp of the opportunity and the significant boost in combat power after evolution. Meanwhile, the darkness severely hampered the Pidgeot’s speed, and by the time Wen Qi arrived, they were only just slowly reaching the spot. When the Pidgeot first got there, it had planned to show off its prowess in front of Wen Qi. On the way, it had been thinking about impressing him. But upon arrival, it saw the Arbok already lying in a pool of blood. Though not dead yet, it was clearly helpless and unable to fight back. At that moment, the Pidgeot felt awkward, standing there unsure what to do, wondering whether to finish off the Arbok with an Air Cutter or just stand there. Wen Qi noticed the Pidgeot’s embarrassment and said, “That Arbok should be the one who attacked you before. Go over and sense its aura to see if it matches the culprit’s.” The Pidgeot quickly went over and confirmed it was indeed the same aura, then fixed its fierce gaze on the half-dead Arbok. Wen Qi sensed the Pidgeot’s intense killing intent but didn’t stop it. Instead, he led the giant scissor mantis and the others away, leaving the rest to the Pidgeot. He then returned to his camp. Wen Qi didn’t want to get involved in how the Pidgeot would handle the Arbok; as for the Arbok’s fate, it would likely be death.
Deep in the forest, the starlight gradually faded, and dawn began to emerge. The long night quietly passed, dew glistening on the leaves as if silently recording the night’s secrets. Some Pokémon were still asleep, while others had woken up, all welcoming the new day together. The forest slowly came to life, full of vitality and energy, as a fresh day was about to begin. Early in the morning, the Pidgeot and its group arrived. This time, their attitude was noticeably better; they could genuinely feel Wen Qi’s help and goodwill. Upon seeing Wen Qi, the Pidgeot said directly, “Thank you for your help last night in finding the culprit. So, what was it you wanted to discuss earlier? Do you need our help? If you do, we won’t refuse.” Wen Qi, seeing how agreeable the Pidgeot was today, replied straightforwardly, “Pidgeot, it’s like this: I’m a farmer near the forest, and in a few months, the berries will ripen. I’d like you all to come live in my berry orchard, help me look after it, and keep the farm safe. In return, I’ll provide you with some food. Also, if any Pidgey in your group show high potential, I can help train them. You’ve seen that the Pokémon around me are all exceptionally strong. If you come with me, your group will not only have more food but also a much better living environment.” Hearing this, the Pidgeot thought it over carefully for a long time and discussed it with its mate. It felt that what Wen Qi said made sense, and since he had helped them before, he probably meant no harm. Considering that its group was growing larger and it was struggling to feed everyone, and though it had evolved long ago, it hadn’t been able to improve its strength due to insufficient food. Still, the Pidgeot didn’t agree immediately. It said to Wen Qi, “Let me discuss this with the others and get back to you.” With that, it returned to the nest and gathered all the Pidgey and Pidgeotto for a meeting. Wen Qi watched the Pidgeot hurry back, realizing his invitation had made quite an impact. He wasn’t in a rush, feeling confident the Pidgeot would agree. Meanwhile, Wen Qi arranged for his Pokémon to start training. Recently, Venonat had leveled up again, reaching level 25. It seemed Bug-type Pokémon evolved quickly with enough resources. Turtwig had also gained a level, now at 21, making it an intermediate Pokémon. This step was easy for Turtwig, with no bottlenecks, just smooth progress. While Wen Qi trained his Pokémon, the Pidgeot’s group was in a heated debate. Some Pidgey and Pidgeotto didn’t want to agree, recalling that humans had come to the forest before and attacked them. Others thought they could go with Wen Qi, especially since the food he’d given them was delicious and rich in energy. Some were indifferent, willing to choose whichever option was better. The Pidgeot’s head was about to explode from all the chirping, with everyone having different opinions, leaving it unsure what to do. In truth, the Pidgeot wanted to go, knowing that relying solely on the group’s strength wouldn’t allow it to grow stronger. It needed Wen Qi’s help. After thinking it over and quietly discussing with its mate, it said, “Alright, stop arguing. How about this: I’ll take a few Pidgeotto and half the Pidgey to go with Wen Qi first and see how things are. If it’s as good as he says, I’ll come back and get you all. If he’s tricking us, we’ll return. We can fly fast, so it’s fine. What do you think?” The other Pidgeotto and Pidgey found their leader’s plan reasonable and stopped objecting. Thus, the group’s opinion was finally unified. The Pidgeot quickly flew back to Wen Qi. Seeing Wen Qi’s Pokémon, some were low-level, but their moves were incredibly powerful. Especially the red Pokémon from last night, which Wen Qi called the giant scissor mantis. It was not only high-level but also seemed to have more battle experience. Clearly very strong, no wonder it had defeated that Arbok so quickly.