Chapter 44: Miltank Ranch, An Old Friend of His Father

Congratulations, Host, for raising Vulpix's Joy from 50% to 88%. You've earned 10 bags of Golden Fertilizer, 3 Rare Candies, and a Soothe Bell (wearing it long-term increases the bond between Pokémon and Trainer).

"Hiccup~"

Only after lapping up every drop of milk from the bowl did the Alolan Vulpix let out a satisfied little burp, its gaze immediately locking onto Lin Feng.

"Vee vee vee?"

But before it could say much else, its eyelids began to droop heavily.

Clearly, as a newborn Pokémon, combined with the mild sedative effect of the Moomoo Milk, it was already getting sleepy.

"Hang on a bit longer, I need to wash you up. You're still all..." Lin Feng began to say but trailed off mid-sentence.

Because right in front of his eyes, Vulpix had already fallen fast asleep.

"Heh..."

Lin Feng let out a helpless chuckle and could only carry the sleeping Vulpix over to the water reservoir.

The water in this reservoir was managed by Milotic. No matter how heavy the rain got, it remained crystal clear.

"Milotic, use Ice Beam to freeze a bit of the surface for me."

Given that Vulpix was an Ice-type and still fast asleep, Lin Feng wanted to avoid waking it up. So he asked Milotic to create a small frozen surface, then carved out a hole in the ice. He gently lowered the slimy, newborn Vulpix into the water.

Milotic released a gentle stream of water to rinse the little fox, washing away the remaining birth fluids in moments.

Thanks to the Ocean Crystal, Milotic had been growing stronger at a breathtaking pace, practically improving every single day.

It had also learned many new moves.

Pokémon: Milotic

Gender: Female

Ability: Cute Charm

Potential: Gold Grade

Level: 28–29

Moves: Water Gun, Water Pulse, Tackle, Disarming Voice, Aqua Ring, Twister, Dragon Tail, Recover, Ice Beam, Safeguard, Muddy Water, Hydro Cannon…

Friendship: 100 (It trusts you unconditionally)

Joy: 80 (Feeling great!)

Milotic was already approaching Gym-level strength, so this task was practically effortless.

When Lin Feng lifted Vulpix out of the water, the little Pokémon seemed to instinctively sense the moisture clinging to its fur. Water vapor condensed around it, quickly forming a mist of ice crystals.

Even in its sleep, it shivered slightly, releasing a delicate mist of frost that left its coat fluffy and white as silken down.

The fur felt unbelievably soft and smooth to the touch.

Lin Feng blinked in surprise.

"Hmm? Did it just learn Powder Snow?"

Good grief.

It had just been born, and it was already learning new moves in its sleep?

How were the other Pokémon supposed to keep up?

Especially that Squirtle who had once been too timid even to raise its head for Tackle training…

"So cute~"

Lin Feng couldn't help but praise it as he gazed at the peacefully sleeping Vulpix, then turned and carried it back into the house.

But what he didn't see was the look in Snivy's eyes behind him.

A look filled with faint resentment.

So… this was what it meant to have a "replacement" in his arms, huh?

Because everything had happened so quickly, Lin Feng hadn't had time to prepare a small house for Vulpix to sleep in. So he simply laid it on his own bed.

Remembering how Vulpix had guzzled down the milk earlier, he realized that newborn Pokémon often stayed dependent on milk for quite some time.

High-quality Moomoo Milk was going to be an absolute necessity.

Plus, if he raised a few Miltank, he could produce milk not only for his Pokémon but also sell it at the breeding house to boost newborn Pokémon's Joy.

It was a win-win situation.

So he turned to Snivy and said:

"Snivy, keep an eye on Vulpix for me. If it wakes up, play with it a bit, and don't make it cry, okay? I'm going to Huaqiao Village to see if I can make some arrangements."

Snivy blinked in confusion.

"Sni… vy?"

Its tone seemed to ask, "You want me… to babysit?"

Lin Feng nodded. "Yeah, think you can handle it?"

After a moment of contemplation, Snivy's face relaxed into a look of determination, as if to say, "Leave it to me."

"Thanks a lot, then."

Lin Feng didn't think too much about it. He rushed off in a hurry, leaving Snivy in the room staring at the sleeping Vulpix on the bed, an expression of thoughtful seriousness on its face…

Huaqiao Village.

Despite being called a village, Huaqiao was far larger than Wutong Town.

That was because it housed the famous Miltank Ranch.

Now that he had some money, Lin Feng wasn't skimping anymore. He booked a DiDi ride straight from Wutong City to the village.

The moment he stepped into the village, he was greeted by endless green.

Lush, verdant grasslands stretched out as far as the eye could see.

The terrain here was flat and fertile, causing the pasture grass to grow thick and juicy, covering the fields all the way to the horizon.

The grasslands were bordered by wooden fences, leaving only a single road running through the middle.

Honestly…

The moment Lin Feng arrived, he felt a bit embarrassed.

Because the sheer scale of the pastures here dwarfed his own small plots of grass back home.

Compared to the endless fields before his eyes, his cultivated grass was practically a drop in the ocean.

All he could hope was that the quality of his grass could outshine theirs so completely that it made up for the difference in quantity.

"Young man, you don't look like you're from around here. Are you here for a vacation, or to challenge the Grass Gym?"

An elderly man with his hands clasped behind his back ambled over and spoke to Lin Feng from behind.

Lin Feng froze, then quickly remembered that this was the time of year when high school graduates often traveled around the region. And the owner of the Huaqiao Miltank Ranch was, in fact, also the Gym Leader of a city-level gym.

He shook his head. "No, I'm the owner of a plantation over in Wutong Town…"

The old man cut him off. "Wutong Town? But didn't the plantation there go out of business? You're…"

A look of dawning realization came over the elder's face, followed by a wistful smile.

"Ah, so that's why you looked familiar. You're Xiao Lin's son, continuing your father's work, huh?"

"Um…"

Lin Feng scratched his cheek, forcing a polite smile.

Although his father hadn't been particularly famous across the Donghua League, he had loved to travel far and wide in his younger days. And that habit had brought plenty of unintended consequences.

Like the old man standing before him.

Lin Feng couldn't even recall his name or remember ever meeting him before.

What he dreaded most right now was for the elder to suddenly exclaim, "Look at you, all grown up! I remember carrying you around as a baby!"

Luckily, the old man just chuckled.

"If you keep going straight, about one kilometer ahead, that's the entrance to the Miltank Ranch. Around this time of day, the ranch owner should be busy feeding the cattle and milking them."

Lin Feng sighed in relief and quickly thanked him.

"Thanks so much."

He picked up his pace and headed down the road. It wasn't long before he started spotting Miltank grazing leisurely across the pasture.

Up ahead, there was a gap in the fencing. Looking closely, he could see a wooden gate.

Just past the gate, a burly man with broad shoulders was crouched down, milking a Miltank.

Behind him, a line of over a dozen more Miltank were waiting patiently in line.

The one being milked looked downright blissful.

Lin Feng paused for a second, then stepped forward.

"Hello?"

The big man didn't even look up.

"Gym battles are in the afternoon. If you want fresh milk, you'll have to place an order in advance…"

"No, that's not it. I wanted to ask… do you buy pasture grass here?"

Lin Feng didn't jump straight into talking about buying Miltank. Instead, he decided to test the waters by bringing up pasture grass first.

"Hmm?"

The burly man turned his head.

When he finally got a good look at Lin Feng's face, he froze for a second.

Then a look of shock spread across his features.

"You're…"

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