Teleport

Watching Aoki as they left, Old Gastly stayed at the mouth of the cave for a long time, and finally sighed, returning to the cave alone. His back looked a bit lonely.

After a short while, in a ghost-like cave, Aoki and the others stood under a tree, looking at the Slowpoke.

Aoki lightly touched the back of the Slowpoke and said with a smile, "Slowpoke, take us back with Teleport. No need to force it, just go as far as you can, and focus on maintaining your combat power."

Aoki wasn't planning to return immediately. Team Rocket's base was at least three days away from here, so there was no rush.

Fortunately, the Slowpoke's Teleport had been calculated long ago, otherwise Aoki wouldn't have been able to hurry while training on the way, calm and collected.

I have to say, Teleport is a useful skill.

The Slowpoke's Telepathy wasn't very proficient, and it didn't speak, but it nodded slightly and instinctively wrapped Aoki and the others in the aura. Even the Gastly in Aoki's shadow was enveloped in its power.

The Gastly slowly appeared from Aoki's shadow, with curiosity in its eyes. It was pulled directly out of the shadow for the first time.

Ignoring the strange looks from the Murkrow and Slowpoke, the Slowpoke focused on finding the coordinates for the teleport. Transporting so many Pokémon over long distances was a challenge for it now.

As the psychic powers strengthened, the light in the Slowpoke's eyes grew brighter. With a flash of psychic power wrapping around them, the group disappeared in place.

Apart from a slowly falling leaf, no trace of Aoki and the others remained.

"Boom!"

On the Trial Island, somewhere in the forest, one person and three Pokémon suddenly appeared. It was Aoki and the Slowpoke who had just teleported.

"Hoo~" Aoki shook his head slightly. The sudden space shift made him dizzy, even though his physical fitness had improved a lot.

But for the Murkrow and the Gastly, it had no effect.

"Poof~"

With a slight noise, the Slowpoke couldn't control its floating body and fell to the ground. Its spirit looked a bit sluggish. Fortunately, Aoki had warned it beforehand, so it wasn't too serious—just a little disoriented.

"Slowpoke, meditate first. You're still too inexperienced," Aoki said seriously. Although he didn't know exactly where they were, it was clear they were far from the cave because of the Slowpoke's tiredness.

The Slowpoke nodded, using the last of its strength to deliver the incubator it had been holding to Aoki, then lay down on the ground with psychic fluctuations, beginning to meditate.

No matter where they were, Aoki's Pokémon trusted him, so they meditated in place.

"Murkrow, Gastly, keep an eye on the surroundings. If any Pokémon approach, attack immediately!" Aoki commanded.

"Caw!"

"Kekeke!"

The Murkrow and the Gastly nodded in agreement. Their companions' safety was at stake, so they remained vigilant.

Even the newly joined Gastly worked hard to keep an eye on their surroundings.

"Gastly, go through the shadows to scout the environment. Are there any strong Pokémon nearby? Be careful to stay hidden and don't engage," Aoki instructed.

Unfamiliar with the area, it was important for the Gastly to scout without revealing its position.

"Kekeke~" The Gastly nodded, eager to explore the outside world for the first time. But it understood the priorities—now was not the time for recklessness.

The Gastly sank into the shadow of the tree, moving freely as long as there was a shadow. The forest was full of shadows, and there was no one around.

Aoki, undistracted by the dust on the ground, sat quietly beside the Slowpoke.

The Murkrow hovered in the air, its sharp eyes scanning the surroundings.

Aoki looked at the incubator in his hand. It contained Lavitar's Pokémon egg. The readings on the incubator were very promising, with several values higher than average. However, the incubation time was listed as unknown.

Now, according to the incubator's technology, Lavitar's egg couldn't be hatched yet.

Aoki smiled bitterly, saying to the egg, "How am I supposed to hatch you? It's giving me a headache."

Time passed quickly. As the sun began to set, the Gastly returned.

Using various shapes of gas from its body, the Gastly reported to Aoki, telling him which Pokémon were more powerful and which were more special.

After hearing the Gastly's description, Aoki finally understood where they were.

"It's already within the territory of the Scyther, no wonder the Slowpoke was so tired," Aoki realized.

In fact, they were on the outskirts of the Scyther territory. A little further and they would be out of its range.

No wonder no powerful Pokémon had appeared here; most Pokémon avoid the Scyther. If they win, they might be challenged by a stronger Scyther. If they lose, they'll be faced with a weaker one—this cycle never ends. Any wild Pokémon would tremble at the thought of such endless battles.

But for Aoki, this was a relief. It meant the strongest Pokémon in the area were Scyther. If they encountered one, Aoki was confident he could retreat safely.

Also, the base wasn't too far off. With a little effort, Aoki could reach it within a day.

Of course, if the Slowpoke recovers and uses Teleport again, the time would be greatly shortened.

Finally, the Slowpoke recovered just as the sun hung low over the treetops!

Each use of Teleport drained a lot of the Slowpoke's psychic power, but the gains were huge.

It was like when the Slowpoke first used it, covering a distance of more than ten kilometers. Now, it had teleported over 100 kilometers—nearly ten times the distance.

More importantly, after this use, there was still some psychic energy left, enough to handle any sudden situations.

Of course, it wasn't always going to grow at such an exaggerated rate, but the Slowpoke's understanding of Teleport had greatly improved.

From the look in the Slowpoke's eyes, it was clear it had made great progress.

"Slowpoke, how do you feel now?" Aoki asked as he noticed the Slowpoke had recovered. Seeing the brightness in its eyes, Aoki felt relieved.