Chapter 357: The Evolution of Murkrow's Aptitude
At night, Cain and Alec set up camp in a corner of the forest.
Due to Alec's presence, Cain refrained from letting Mismagius appear. At this time, Mismagius should not be seen by anyone, not even by someone who had already been brought under his control.
Even the slightest chance of someone discovering that he had an Elite-level Pokémon with an innocent mind would tempt even Umbra to try and take it from him.
No matter how valuable Cain's abilities were, to an Elite-level trainer, having such a Pokémon under their control was priceless.
If anyone discovered Mismagius's existence, Cain would have to eliminate them—or be eliminated himself. There was no other option.
After dinner, Alec took Mightyena, which had recovered some of its strength, into the forest. He now needed to fully tame the three Pokémon he had obtained that day and analyze their battle styles as much as possible.
Fortunately, Shuckle, due to its nature, was nearly fully tamed, and Golbat wouldn't pose much trouble. Only Ponyta, with its proud personality, would be difficult to handle.
Cain had no intention of helping further. Capturing and taming Pokémon is something a trainer must do on their own.
In the darkness, Cain called Murkrow and Arbok to his side and brought out two specially prepared Pokéblocks.
"These are your special Pokéblocks for tonight. Since you've chosen this path, there's no room for regret. Eat as quickly as you can," Cain said indifferently.
However, before Murkrow and Arbok began eating, Cain added, "Arbok, eat first and then go rest. After enduring the first torture, the second shouldn't be as dangerous for you."
Cain allowed Arbok to eat first and withdraw to digest because that night, when Murkrow finished eating its special Pokéblocks, its aptitude would improve according to the system's calculations. Cain wasn't sure if anything unexpected might occur.
"Murkrow, after this, you should experience a transformation. I've never used this method to enhance a Pokémon's ability before, so I don't know what will happen. But I trust you'll endure it. You've done this many times already, and there's not much left until the final step," Cain said, stroking Murkrow's feathers.
"Craw!" Murkrow squawked determinedly.
It had eaten these Pokéblocks three times before, which had increased its size from the original sixty centimeters to sixty-eight centimeters. Both its physical strength and speed had improved noticeably.
It was confident that this final time would lead to a complete transformation.
It began eating the special Pokéblocks Cain had prepared for it, and as it felt the overwhelming energy surging within its body, a happy expression appeared on its face.
What joy!
It was about to complete its aptitude evolution!
Soon, it would no longer be the Pokémon with the lowest aptitude in Cain's battle team. It could contribute even more to Cain and finally be used more frequently.
Though eating these Pokéblocks had been very painful each time, Murkrow was genuinely happy inside.
It was truly happy.
That feeling of being valued had returned once again.
In the future, it vowed to grow even stronger and do more for Cain with its abilities instead of merely coordinating the rest of the team.
After eating, Murkrow closed its eyes and began to slowly sense the changes in its body.
Cain closely observed the system's data on Murkrow, monitoring every fluctuation in its stats.
From gradual changes to a complete transformation, Murkrow accumulated enough energy within its body to undergo this evolution.
The fluctuations in the data were more intense than before. At their peak, Murkrow's stats reached a dark green level; at their lowest, they dropped to a light green.
There were dozens of variations every second.
One side angel, one side demon—it all depended on Murkrow's willpower.
The intense energy stirring inside made Murkrow grip the earth beneath its talons tightly, leaving deep marks in the ground.
With its wings folded close to its body, its muscles were tense and trembling.
A faint amount of blood began seeping from its body, slowly staining its black feathers red.
It looked as if it were bathing in blood.
The other Pokémon, who had been training, noticed Murkrow's situation and began to gather around.
Slowpoke, Sneasel, Haunter, Skorupi, Miltank, and even Tropius, Gyarados, and Ursaring grouped together.
Cain gestured for them to remain silent. Murkrow was at a critical moment, and any disturbance could affect it.
The expressions of the Pokémon turned serious as they surrounded Cain and Murkrow, taking defensive stances to prevent any wild Pokémon from suddenly interrupting the process.
In the distance, Arbok endured the pain in its body, clenching its teeth, not daring to make a sound or move for fear of disrupting Murkrow's evolution.
Having experienced these special Pokéblocks once, Arbok felt a deep respect for Murkrow.
How had Murkrow endured such intense pain so many times?
This determination was why, although not the strongest in the team, Murkrow had become the respected leader of the group.
Only Murkrow and Arbok understood the intensity of the pain caused by these Pokéblocks.
Thus, Arbok held deep respect for Murkrow.
Moreover, Murkrow's evolution would also serve as an example for Arbok. If Murkrow succeeded, Arbok would gain more confidence.
Murkrow's evolution was affecting all of Cain's Pokémon. The camp's atmosphere grew increasingly tense.
The usually lazy Tropius now had a sharp gaze, scanning the surroundings, fully displaying its presence as a Level 40 Pokémon with dragon blood. It was as if it were warning nearby Pokémon to stay away.
All the Pokémon were on high alert.
Finally, thirty minutes passed, then an hour...
After an hour of consuming the special Pokéblocks, Murkrow's energy gradually stabilized, and the blood oozing from its body stopped.
Cain carefully monitored the system's data, recording every change in Murkrow's stats.
"Craw!"
Suddenly, Murkrow let out a sharp cry. Its energy peaked, then gradually settled at a middle point.
Murkrow had successfully improved its quality to dark green level!
(End of Chapter)