Pokémon cross over into the real world

In the heart of Gambutu City, there's a newly built church. It's modest, resembling a spacious classroom, with rows of desks and chairs, similar to medieval European Christian churches. Inside, about a dozen villagers are listening to the priest's instructions.

Just as Wang Qiyi and Wang Lingqi were about to enter, they were stopped by the Holy Warrior at the door and the fire-breathing dragon beside him. "Are you here to recruit Saints?" The other party spoke in the local dialect, which Wang Qiyi didn't understand. He looked at Wang Lingqi with a puzzled look. The other party cleared his throat and said, "Where are you from? Are you here to recruit Saints?" This time, he actually used the Dragon Country's Chinese, and Wang Qiyi immediately understood.

Southeast Asia actually has a large number of Dragon Chinese, both businesspeople and immigrants, scattered across various countries. Southeast Asia comprises eleven countries, large and small, each with its own dialect and native language. This leads to the use of Chinese in trade between Southeast Asian nations, where it is considered the primary foreign language, much like English in the Dragon Country. Anyone who has spent a few years studying there can speak Chinese.

Seeing that Wang Qiyi and Wang Lingqi looked like Chinese, the jihadist tried to speak Chinese. Wang Qiyi quickly replied respectfully, "Yes, we are from Malacca, Malay Country." He handed over his ID card, which was forged for him by the International Alliance. The name on it was Xiaozhi, and Wang Lingqi's ID card was Xiaogang.

"We are loyal believers of the Elven Religion. Human technology is a disaster for the Earth. Look at these years. The rapid development of technology has caused such terrible damage to the Earth's environment. If this continues, humanity will destroy its own civilization. We are grateful for the greatness of God. The elves have come to save the world and eliminate human tyranny. The world belongs to the elves!" Wang Qiyi became more and more excited as he spoke. He raised his fist and shouted, and finally put his hands together. "We are here to follow the miracles and hope to see the glory of God."

The Saint Warrior at the door hadn't expected Wang Qiyi to be so eloquent; his heartfelt speech had warmed his blood. The man spoke like a priest, making a gesture of invitation: "Turn right upon entering and fill out your personal information. As long as you believe in the Pokémon Cult, you are a Saint. If you have certain abilities, and were a Pokémon Trainer in the past with powerful Pokémon, you can become a Saint Warrior."

"There are also different levels of holy warriors. Only high-ranking holy warriors are eligible to use Poké Balls. Only those who have made great contributions to our church can be promoted to priests and have the power to govern a diocese. However, even if you become a priest, you are not qualified to see God. If you want to see the glory of God, you must at least reach the level of a white cardinal."

"Thanks for the tip." Wang Qiyi led Wang Lingqi into the church and took the information form to register, which mainly recorded personal information. The form could be filled out in both Chinese and English. It seemed that the Elven Church was quite humane and accepted a wide range of believers. They were very lenient in recruiting lower-level believers, so it was easy for the Alliance to insert undercover agents.

However, the Elven Cult's promotion mechanism was very strict, and it didn't look like a newly established cult, but rather that it already had a relatively mature internal management system. Only those who reached the level of White Cardinal were eligible for pilgrimage. Could it be that the agents sent by the Alliance had not been able to reach this level?

"Are you a Pokémon trainer?" Wang Qiyi and Wang Lingqi exchanged glances, then both ticked "yes." The Pokémon they train are... Wang Qiyi ticked Pikachu and Chinchilla, while Wang Lingqi ticked Gengar. After filling out the form, they sat in the back row and listened to a lecture from a Western priest. His message was largely the same as what Wang Qiyi had just shouted at the door: a brainwashing message that convinced you that human civilization would destroy the world and that Pokémon could bring beauty to it.

Wang Qiyi was already familiar with this rhetoric, which was why the holy warrior had thought Wang Qiyi resembled a priest. After a lecture, the two were summoned to the priest's office, where a middle-aged Asian man sat. He wore a white robe trimmed with gold. The priest bowed to him and left the office, closing the door behind him.

The middle-aged man in the white robe was clearly the local Cardinal. He carefully reviewed the information forms they had filled out, then glanced at the two adorable elves on Wang Qiyi's shoulders. He had a rough idea of ​​Wang Qiyi's abilities.

Pikachu and Chinchilla's base stats aren't high. If Pikachu could evolve into Raichu, it would have some combat power. However, Pikachu's evolution requires a Thunder Stone, which ordinary people can't afford. Chinchilla also requires a Light Stone to evolve. Clearly, this young man can only afford one of the two, so his strength is only around Advanced, at best, Peak Advanced.

This level of strength is common in Southeast Asia, where people are relatively poor. For ordinary families, having a Pokémon to help with chores is already a great achievement; using Pokémon in battle is simply a waste of labor. Therefore, for ordinary trainers, being able to train a Pokémon to a high level is considered quite impressive.

The White Cardinal nodded and said, "My name is Robin. Welcome to the two trainers. We desperately need talents like you to serve the gods. However, I must explain one thing to you: your previous status as trainers will change after joining the Pokémon Cult. Our Cult respects Pokémon and does not allow the use of Poké Balls, which are tools for enslaving Pokémon."

"Bishop Robin, please rest assured. We are very devout to the Pokémon Cult. We never use Poké Balls to restrain my Pokémon... no, my partners." Wang Qiyi pointed at Pikachu and Jerry on his shoulders, and the two Pokémon greeted Robin.

Wang Lingqi still didn't say a word, but Gengar suddenly emerged from the shadow beside him and waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need a Poké Ball either.

"Very good. It seems you are very familiar with the rules of my religion. The Poké Ball itself is a tool. It is neither good nor bad. In the hands of pagans, it will become a tool for enslaving Pokémon. But if people believe in my religion devoutly and serve the great God wholeheartedly, then the Poké Ball is a gift from God. High-level holy warriors are qualified to use Poké Balls."

"Now is the time to recruit. Since you possess relatively powerful elves, I will directly promote you to junior holy warriors. You can assist me in managing this parish. If you perform meritorious deeds in the parish, I will consider promoting you to intermediate holy warriors."

"Bishop, we didn't come to serve our church empty-handed. We hope to quickly ascend and behold the glory of God," Wang Qiyi said, holding out two gold bars, each weighing one kilogram. As the saying goes, money makes the world go round, and with money paving the way, advancement is sure to be swift. However, he wasn't sure if Alliance Coins would be accepted here, so Wang Qiyi simply brought gold bars. Gold is an absolute universal currency.

Robin's eyes lit up the moment he saw the gold, and Wang Qiyi, seeing his expression, felt certain this was a possibility. Robin coughed softly and slowly put the two gold bars away. "Your pious deity will surely see. Since you've made such a contribution to our religion since your arrival, I will promote you to Intermediate Holy Warriors. This is your status badge, wear it on your chest."

The price of gold in this world is roughly 800 Dragon Coins per gram. If these two gold bars were pure gold, they would be worth about 1.6 million Dragon Coins. Such generosity meant they were definitely not ordinary people. Robin felt that she had underestimated these two trainers. Perhaps their Pokémon could reach elite level.

Damn it! Two one-kilogram gold bars can only be exchanged for an intermediate holy warrior. This is too unfair! Wang Qiyi complained in his heart, but he didn't say much. Instead, he said piously to the priest: "Thank you, Father! Praise my God!"

Wang Qiyi clasped his fists together and rested them on his forehead. This gesture was a common Elven prayer gesture, similar to the Christian forehead-shoulder cross. Before the mission, York George had already given Wang Qiyi all the information he had on the Elven religion. Wang Lingqi followed suit, and Bishop Robin nodded in satisfaction.