Wen Qi had originally thought that after buying the Mega Evolution Stone, there wouldn’t be anything else to catch his interest. Although some items had appeared earlier that might offer a small bargain, they weren’t really necessary, and even if he resold them, he wouldn’t make much money. With that effort, he’d be better off making more Energy Blocks—that would earn him more. Plus, too many transactions would easily draw attention, which wasn’t worth it.
However, just then, a Pokémon appeared on stage—it was a Growlithe.
Wu Li on the platform introduced it: “This is a Green-quality Growlithe, with an auction price of one million.”
Instantly, the crowd below buzzed with excitement at the mention of a Green-quality Growlithe, but when the auction price was announced—only one million—the venue fell into dead silence. They knew there had to be something wrong with this Growlithe; otherwise, the price wouldn’t be so low. After all, the starting bid for that Charmander earlier had been two million. And since Growlithe, as a rare Pokémon, had a higher base stat total than Charmander, yet the price was so much lower, there had to be a catch.
Seeing the quiet crowd, Wu Li realized they sensed something was off. The auction house didn’t normally need to explain why the price was so low, but with no one bidding, she grew anxious. They could have set the price higher to avoid suspicion, but this Growlithe’s issue was too obvious. If they claimed the auction house hadn’t noticed, no one would believe it. While the second half of the auction was meant to test buyers’ discernment—with genuine and fake items, good and bad—those items were supposed to be ones the auction house itself couldn’t detect problems with. If they put up something with an obvious flaw, they’d face trouble later. Though the auction house wasn’t afraid of trouble, reputation mattered. Since there were other underground black-market auction houses, breaking the rules could mean fewer people sending items to auction or attending, which would be a huge loss.
So Wu Li quickly explained: “I’m sure you’re all wondering why this Growlithe is so cheap. Although it’s Green-quality and has decent development, for some reason, its Fire-type moves are exceptionally weak. It can learn Fire-type moves, but their power is pitiful—Ember can barely light a candle, and Flamethrower’s power is less than half of a normal Ember’s. That’s why the price is low. If you don’t mind, feel free to bid; if you do, then don’t.”
After Wu Li’s words, the crowd erupted into chatter. Some didn’t mind and were already eager to bid, while others thought a Growlithe with such weak Fire moves was worse than a Fighting-type Pokémon. Those on the second floor lost interest entirely—given their status, they had no need for a defective Growlithe, as they weren’t lacking.
But unbeknownst to everyone else, Wen Qi was genuinely excited. He had checked the Growlithe’s information through his system.
Pokémon: Growlithe Level: 18 Type: Fire Ability: Intimidate (Intimidates the opponent upon entering battle, lowering their Attack) Quality: Light Cyan (slowly improving) Moves: Leer (Proficient), Ember (Beginner), Howl (Proficient), Bite (Proficient), Flame Wheel (Beginner), Helping Hand (Beginner), Agility (Proficient), Flamethrower (Beginner), Double-Edge (Beginner), Protect (Beginner), Fire Fang (Beginner), Fire Spin (Beginner), Flare Blitz (Beginner) Status: Affected by an unknown Fire-type Legendary Pokémon, its internal Fire energy is concentrated, slowly improving its quality. It requires a large amount of energy to accelerate growth. During this period, Fire-type moves cannot gather energy and are weak.
This was the first time Wen Qi knew his system could check a Pokémon’s status. He guessed that his other Pokémon, except for his Turtwig with its special encounter, were all normal, so the system hadn’t shown any status. Initially, Wen Qi had no interest in a Growlithe that couldn’t use Fire moves, but he checked it with the system anyway and was surprised by this discovery. The Growlithe on stage had likely been misjudged by the quality-testing machine due to the Legendary Pokémon’s influence. If they had tested it more carefully and observed closely, they might have spotted the Light Cyan quality. The testers probably knew about the Growlithe’s condition and didn’t bother testing thoroughly. If the Growlithe’s quality had been Cyan—even just Light Cyan—today’s auction would have drawn more and higher-level attendees. Even if it couldn’t use Fire moves, with such good quality, it could still reach the Champion level, which was incredibly rare. If they had discovered it was Cyan quality, it wouldn’t be here now; some big shot behind the auction house would have taken it.
Though Wen Qi knew this Growlithe had great quality, he also thought its nature was important. So he carefully observed its every move. The Growlithe’s eyes sparkled with determination and hope. It stood quietly on the display stage, its fur a bit messy but unable to hide its strong physique. Its tail wagged slightly, as if sending some mysterious signal to Wen Qi.
The auction process was quite intense. Although the big shots on the second floor weren’t interested, for those who rarely got to buy Green-quality Pokémon, this was a treasure. The starting bid was one million, and soon people were competing to raise the price. Every jump in price tugged at everyone’s heartstrings. Wen Qi clenched his fists, his gaze never leaving the Growlithe. He trusted his judgment—this Growlithe was definitely worth catching.
As time passed, the price soared and finally settled at three million. When the auctioneer’s hammer fell, the whole venue erupted in applause. Wen Qi had successfully won the Growlithe, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. Under normal circumstances, if this Growlithe had no issues, the price would have been at least six or seven million, but with its defect, it could only go this high. Any more, and it would be better to buy a normal Green-quality Pokémon for three million.
Li Xiang beside him didn’t know what to say. Why did Wen Qi always buy such strange things? He couldn’t understand why he wanted this Growlithe. But since Wen Qi chose to buy it, Li Xiang couldn’t say much.
At that moment, Wen Qi realized that if he paid with cash, he’d have almost nothing left. After leaving, he still needed to go to the mall to buy things for the farm, and being broke would be inconvenient. He couldn’t sell Energy Blocks again—he had just sold some recently, and doing it again so soon would be foolish. Looking at Li Xiang beside him, Wen Qi asked, “Li Xiang, I’m a bit short on cash. I have two Advanced Evolution Stones—one Fire Stone and one Leaf Stone. Do you want them? I can sell them to you for just two million.”
Anyway, he had gotten these Evolution Stones as bargains, so selling them would still be a profit. He still had top-tier ones, so he didn’t need the Advanced ones anymore.
Li Xiang was surprised to hear that Wen Qi had such good items. Advanced Evolution Stones were valuable, and their prices were generally higher than market rates. Li Xiang didn’t want to take advantage of Wen Qi, so he said, “No need to be so polite. We’re old classmates—I can’t let you take a loss. I’ll pay you the same price I paid for the Fire Stone last time. Don’t be modest; Advanced gems are worth that much.”
Wen Qi thought it over and didn’t refuse, since Li Xiang wouldn’t lose out on this deal. So Li Xiang transferred three million to Wen Qi, and Wen Qi handed over the Evolution Stones.