Pokemon: Reborn Rich Alternate Earth

Chapter 1008: Short-Lived

Among Pokémon that lived in groups, only a small number of groups ever exceeded ten thousand in population, the most typical example being Magikarp.

When a Magikarp swarm appeared, the numbers usually started at forty to fifty thousand.

Other examples included Diglett, Rattata, and the like.

Of course, the most well-known of all was the Beedrill swarm. They were famous not because their numbers were exceptionally large, but because they were the ones you must never provoke.

Especially in Beedrill swarms where Kakuna were present—at such times, in order to protect their offspring, Beedrill would become extremely sensitive.

If you entered their territory, even if you had no hostile intent, they would attack you.

And in order to protect their young, they simply feared neither injury nor death. Even if your strength was far above theirs, they would still fight to the death.

That was why Beedrill swarms were so notoriously famous.

Particularly in Beginner and Intermediate-level secret realms, where trainers were generally weaker, and Beedrill lived in groups and prefered to attack en masse, so it was best to avoid provoking them if possible.

However, most Beedrill swarms consisted of around a hundred individuals. Anything over a thousand was already considered as a fairly large group.

But the Beedrill swarm in front of Julian now likely numbered in the hundreds of thousands, forming a golden-yellow cloud that gave off an overwhelming sense of pressure.

In fact, the largest Beedrill swarm ever discovered had over a million individuals.

Compared to that, Julian’s hundreds of thousands weren’t even that many.

"There must be a Beedrill Queen in there."

Despite the large numbers, Julian wasn’t panicked. His earlier expression was just due to unpleasant memories triggered by the Beedrill.

Only with the presence of a Beedrill Queen could such a massive swarm be sustained.

"But why are they appearing in Horseshoe Plains? Shouldn’t they be in a forest?"

Beedrill typically inhabited forests, as that was their most suitable environment.

After all, both Weedle and Kakuna stayed on tree branches, and Weedle primarily fed on leaves, not grass.

Yet now they were flying over the Horseshoe Plains.

"Could they be migrating?"

That seemed likely, as migration was the only reason Beedrill would leave the forest, and looking closely, many Beedrill were carrying Weedle and Kakuna.

"Julian, they’re coming this way," Celebi said nervously.

Seeing its somewhat frightened expression, Julian said, "Then it's decided—Celebi, I choose you!"

"Ah, I can't do it!"

Celebi quickly shook its head.

"You're a Pseudo-Champion, what are you afraid of?" Julian was a bit speechless.

"But there are so many of them! And their stingers are so long—getting stung would really hurt a lot!" Celebi shook its head even more vigorously.

Lilligant: 'Weren't you so brave when you were bullying me just now?'

"Metagross."

Julian already knew Celebi couldn't be relied on—he was just teasing it.

As Metagross unleashed its powerful Champion-level aura, the Beedrill swarm charging toward them suddenly screeched to a halt, as if a speeding car had slammed on the brakes.

The entire Beedrill swarm came to a stop about a kilometer away from Metagross. The buzzing of their wings was so loud that Julian had to use his psychic powers to block out the sound, or his ears would have gone deaf.

"Let's go."

Julian said calmly.

Sitting on Metagross's back, as it continued to move forward, the dense Beedrill swarm ahead stirred restlessly before suddenly splitting apart, clearing a path about ten meters wide.

Although they numbered in the hundreds of thousands, they weren't stupid. If they encountered an ordinary opponent—even one much stronger than them—they could overwhelm and defeat it with sheer numbers.

But the aura emanating from Metagross was so overpowering that it made their very souls tremble. Some of the weaker Beedrill even fainted on the spot, falling to the ground with a thud.

"Sure enough, there's a Beedrill Queen."

Julian spotted a Beedrill about four meters long—ordinary Beedrill were only about one meter. This one was exceptionally powerful, at the mid-stage Pseudo-Champion level.

Around it were over a dozen Elite-level guards.

A Beedrill swarm like this would force even an ordinary Pseudo-Champion trainer to avoid confrontation. If an Elite trainer encountered it and failed to escape in time, they would almost certainly be doomed—if they didn't have some special means.

The aura of this Beedrill Queen seemed weak—likely injured. Perhaps this was the reason for their migration.

Julian had no desire to capture it. Beedrill had no real use for him.

"Where did you come from?"

Julian's voice reached the Beedrill Queen's ears.

The injured Queen was wary of Metagross—it knew very well that if Metagross attacked, their entire swarm would be wiped out.

Hearing Julian's voice, it was momentarily stunned before hurriedly replying, "We came from the Floaro Gardens."

Floaro Gardens? Yet another new location name had been added.

"Does it also belong to the Grandtree Arena?"

"Yes."

"Here."

Julian tossed a bottle of Potion to the Beedrill as a token of gratitude.

Before long, Metagross carried Julian through the Beedrill swarm.

"Metagross, I have a feeling that in this secret realm, there would definitely be an opponent who would let you fight to your heart’s content." Julian’s gaze was fixed ahead, his tone slightly low.

"Meta~"

Metagross: "Below First-class Legendary, I’m invincible. Against First-class Legendary, I can trade one for—"

Julian: (⊙_⊙)?

"When did you start picking up lines from Kartana?"

Julian looked at Metagross with some exasperation. Here he was, being serious, and Metagross was acting cool in front of him.

Kartana’s Poké Ball shook lightly, as if expressing its dissatisfaction.

"Meta~"

Metagross: "Just stating facts."

From the day it debuted, Metagross had never lost to an opponent of the same level, especially as Julian kept pouring in resources, the number of Ultimate treasures it used also grew larger and larger.

Its foundation was incredibly solid, and its strength naturally soared accordingly.

Even though it was only at the mid-stage Champion-level, Metagross believed it could defeat a peak Champion if it faced one.

Though, so far, it had never actually fought a peak Champion.

Currently, no human trainer had reached the peak of the Champion tier.

Once a Pokémon reached the Champion-level, the resources required for each level-up were enormous, and it also took time—ranging from a few years to several decades.

At the same time—because of limited human lifespan—many Champion-level Pokémon could potentially just pile up strength over time, but their trainers were short-lived.

Dying at just over a hundred and so years? Meanwhile, as Champion-level Pokémon, they had a lifespan of at least a thousand years.

And with the trainer suddenly dead, the Pokémon’s strength became stagnant, and even with resources, its level could no longer increase.

So, to some extent, the reason human society had yet to produce a peak Champion trainer was not only the lack of massive resources but also the relatively short human lifespan.

At least compared to Champion-level Pokémon, humans really were short-lived creatures.

*****

Upto 30 chapters ahead on patreon :-

/ReduxMagister