Age of Elves: I started flashing with my handheld.

Without the participation of the four Heavenly Kings involved, the online buzz gradually subsided. As for the outcome of the Heavenly Kings Meeting, no matter how much speculation there is, we still have to wait for the battle to determine the champion to take place before we can have a definitive answer.

Early in the morning, Nanfeng and senior Dong Yan met at Beijing Airport and boarded a special passenger plane called "Ferryman". Another person joined them: senior Huo Wenjie.

"Junior, who won the Four Heavenly Kings Conference in the end?" Huo Wenjie asked, putting his arm around Nanfeng's neck as soon as they boarded the plane.

"Is it true what's circulating online? That you fought a fierce battle with Dong Yan and ultimately won the chance to challenge for the championship!"

"When did you become so gossipy?" Before Nanfeng could speak, Dong Yan interjected. "Weren't you always uninterested in the results of the Heavenly Kings Conference?"

"That was before. You always won the previous Heavenly King Meetings, what's there to ask?" Huo Wenjie snorted, then suddenly realized something and looked Dong Yan up and down. "Wait, if you win again this time like before, you'll definitely just smile and say nothing!"

"So, in the end, Nanfeng really did win!" Huo Wenjie stared wide-eyed at Nanfeng 180.

Nanfeng smiled but didn't say anything.

"Hey, junior Nanfeng, say something! What's with that laugh?" Huo Wenjie scratched his head.

Nanfeng shook his head silently. "I've already given you the answer, but you just didn't realize it."

"What do you mean by shaking your head like that!" Neither Dong Yan nor Nan Feng answered him, which made Huo Wenjie feel like countless kittens were tickling his heart, almost making him burst.

"The airport in Beijing has direct flights to famous secret realms abroad. These realms are quite dangerous, so the entry requirement is a gym leader level. If you are interested, you can check it out using the communicator," Dong Yan said to Nan Feng.

"The secret realm we're heading to this time is called Halloween Island. It's an island inhabited only by Ghost-type Pokémon. It boasts a unique spirit-like environment and has produced a large number of treasure-level Pokémon items, making it a great place to improve the strength of Ghost-type Pokémon."

"Here's some information about that place, you can take a look," Dong Yan said, handing over a printed document.

Nanfeng took the document and examined it carefully.

　(adag) The content is about Halloween Island. In addition to the basic introduction that can be seen in the official materials, there is also a part of detailed information that only people who have traveled here for many years can compile. For example, the strength of the elves on the island, where the dominant elves are, where the gathering points of ghost attribute energy may produce secret treasures, etc.

Clearly, this is an internal document personally compiled by senior student Dong Yan.

However, Nanfeng searched through the entire document but couldn't find a "reason" for Senior Dong Yan to bring her along.

After all, the strongest being on Halloween Island is only a near-champion-level overlord, the Night Demon. Senior Dong Yan could take it down by himself.

If they asked me to come along, it must be because there's some kind of trouble or difficulty that even Dong Yan and Huo Wenjie couldn't handle together, which is why they needed my help.

You can't guess just by looking at this information. Oh well, I'll stop thinking about it. We'll find out when the time comes.

Because it was a dedicated plane and a direct flight, it didn't take much time. It departed at 8 a.m. and arrived at 12 p.m.

After landing at a small airport on the outskirts of Halloween Island, the three of them enjoyed a hearty lunch in the deserted airport. The entire airport, including the chefs and waiters, had fewer than ten people, and every single one of them was a trainer.

Since they would be going deep into Halloween Island and didn't know how many days they would have to endure the elements, the three of them took some extra time to have a good meal before setting off.

At 1:30 p.m. sharp, the three set off.

Stepping out of the airport, I stood before a grove of shadowy trees, a chilling wind blowing in my face. Just moments before, it had been a bright, sunny day at the airport, but here the sky was overcast and gloomy, as if an invisible blade had cleaved the two places apart.

Unlike traditional secret realms, the Halloween Island secret realm, which has existed for hundreds of years, has long been integrated with the original island, so there are no teleportation portals. Only the strange phenomenon of yin and yang being divided proves that there were once two "worlds" here.

"Which route should we take this time? Should we take a longer route, or take the risk and take a shortcut?" Huo Wenjie took out a map that had been marked up so much that only he could understand it.

“We’re not going to take any of the previous routes; we’re going to take the straight line,” Dong Yan replied.

Huo Wenjie looked at Dong Yan in shock. "There's nothing much going on lately, you don't need to work so hard, do you?"

Dong Yan didn't answer Huo Wenjie, but instead looked at Nanfeng. "Nanfeng, send out your Gengar."

Nanfeng was unaware of Dong Yan's plans, but he did as he was told and sent Gengar out.

"Good afternoon, my master!" The chubby purple creature jumped out of the Poké Ball and twirled around Nanfeng.

Dong Yan frowned slightly as he sized up Nanfeng's Gengar. "Can it switch to its strongest form from when it battles me? Without Mega Evolution or Dynamax?"

"Uh...."

"Can't you?"

“That won’t work either,” Nanfeng said apologetically to Gengar, and snapped his fingers.

Immediately, Greninja, Gardevoir, and Blaziken came out and gave Gengar a good beating.

"Kuojie~~~ (No! Frog Bro!)"

"Kuojie~~~ (No! Brother Sha!)"

"Kuojie~~~ (No! Chicken Bro!)"

Amidst a series of wails, Gengar's body color changed from purple to purplish-gold, then to pure gold, and finally back to pure purple. Its HP dropped to 25%, and Gengar's "King Form" reached its final stage.

The King of Gengar makes his appearance, but his disheveled state lacks any of the imposing presence befitting a "king".

"Koh-heh-heh-heh~ (Master, what did I do wrong? Why are you beating me?)" The chubby purple boy looked at Nanfeng with a mournful expression.

Nanfeng helplessly shrugged. "Who told you that you can't fully control the 'King's Appearance'? You can only change it by lowering HP."

Sensing the aura of the Gengar King, Dong Yan nodded in satisfaction. "Let it release its aura; we can go further in now."

Huo Wenjie was stunned. "Junior, is your Gengar some kind of Ditto?"

"No," Nanfeng replied casually, taking Gengar the King with him and following Senior Dong Yan inside.

(I tested positive for COVID-19 a couple of days ago (maybe)... there will be another update later).

443. A Secret Realm Within a Secret Realm

The three walked for a long time before reaching their destination. They passed through the territory of several Ghost-type Pokémon with strength reaching the Elite Four level, but did not encounter a single Ghost-type Pokémon along the way.

"Hey, this is strange. Usually, even if we take a detour, we'll still run into quite a few Ghost-type Pokémon, but today we haven't encountered a single one?" Huo Wenjie walked along, puzzled.

“Nanfeng’s Gengar is special; even its unintentional aura can intimidate most Ghost-type Pokémon,” Dong Yan explained casually.

"That powerful?" Huo Wenjie looked at Gengar the King in surprise. "We should have brought Nanfeng along earlier; it would have saved us a lot of trouble."

Nanfeng had anticipated Dong Yan's thoughts.

Although the "King's Appearance" attribute provided by the system does not include the ability to "intimidate" Pokémon, as a king, Gengar's kingly aura naturally suppresses most Ghost-type Pokémon. Especially against Pokémon like Gengar, it can even exert a commanding presence akin to "rule."

However, this ability is only slightly effective against Ghost-type Pokémon of similar level.

So far, I haven't encountered a single Ghost-type Pokémon, simply because the Ghost-type Pokémon around me are relatively weak.

When I fought Dong Yan's Gengar before, I didn't see that the opponent was affected much.

“We’ve arrived,” Dong Yan suddenly stopped.

The three of them were now standing in a dense forest. Not far away was a clearing no bigger than a basketball court, with a millstone-sized "suppressing stone" in the very center of the clearing.

In the very center of the stone, a golden rune imprint radiating a holy aura seemed to be suppressing something.

As soon as the three approached, a huge phantom appeared and stood on the stone.

It's a domineering Night Demon!

If Nanfeng remembers correctly, this guy should be the strongest on Halloween Island, with a strength level equivalent to a near-champion.

"Gengar!" Nanfeng raised his hand, revealing the Key Stone, preparing for Mega Evolution.

But before it could begin to evolve, Dong Yan stopped it. "I've already subdued it."

The Night Demon Lord did not launch an attack; instead, it nodded slightly to Dong Yan.

"So what is the purpose of our trip?" Nanfeng asked.

"Under that stone," Huo Wenjie gestured with his lip towards the stone.

What's underneath the stone?

"An ancient secret realm" was Dong Yan's answer this time.

"An ancient secret realm? And a secret realm within a secret realm?" Nanfeng immediately became interested.

It's rare to see a nested secret realm within a secret realm, especially an ancient secret realm.

Dong Yan stepped forward and placed his hand on the golden runes. The runes immediately disintegrated, and the stone was instantly lifted up by an invisible force.

A light blue circular portal, resembling a pond, appeared beneath the stone.

"Once inside, we'll be thousands of meters in the air. Remember to release your Pokémon the first time," Dong Yan reminded him before leaping in first, followed closely by Huo Wenjie.

It's clear that this isn't their first time here.

Nanfeng quickly followed and jumped into the portal.

After all three entered the portal, the stone returned to its place, the vanished golden runes reappeared, and the Overlord Night Demon slowly disappeared, as if nothing had ever happened.

Inside the portal.

Upon entering, a chill immediately hits you.

The south wind had already found itself in a clear, azure sky.

The azure sky is like a pond, so clear that it feels like a mirror, reflecting the whole world. It's hard to imagine that such a "paradise" exists on Halloween Island, where the sun never shines!

Dong Yan and Huo Wenjie have already sent out their Flying-type Pokémon.

Nanfeng also raised his hand and released a giant salamander to follow.

The three landed on the summit of a snow-covered mountain.

“One of our purposes for this trip is to explore this secret realm that has never been discovered by anyone else,” Dong Yan tossed Nanfeng a handheld-style encyclopedia device.

Nanfeng had seen this thing at the Breeders Association. Many Pokémon researchers carry it. It has functions such as regional communication, taking pictures, and scanning, and it is a good helper for researchers when studying Pokémon in the wild.

"Remember to scan the surrounding terrain while exploring. If you encounter any Pokémon you've never seen before, remember to capture them. If you encounter danger or a Pokémon you can't defeat, remember to send a distress signal through the Pokédex," Dong Yan instructed.

0 ···Requesting flowers 0 ······

"However, before we embark on our free exploration, there's something I need to ask of you, Nanfeng."

"Please speak, senior."

"When Wenjie and I explored this place last time, we discovered a Ghost-type Pokémon in the river of this secret realm that we had never seen before. Its strength was close to that of a Champion-level Pokémon. Although we defeated it last time, it escaped because we were unaware of its abilities."

"The power of Psychic-type Pokémon is suppressed here, making it difficult to scan using Pokémon energy. Furthermore, Wenjie and I don't possess any powerful Water-type Pokémon, so we'd appreciate your help in finding them."

"A Ghost-type Pokémon I've never seen before?" Nanfeng looked down from the mountain peak at the entire secret realm.

The rivers in the entire secret realm don't have any large lakes; they're mostly seven or eight meters, at most ten meters wide, meandering and winding throughout the realm. Without the ability to scan with psychic powers, especially when searching for a Pokémon with near-champion-level combat strength, it would be extremely difficult.

. ..... 0

However, even Senior Dong Yan has never seen a Ghost-type Pokémon before, and it's in the water, so what kind of Pokémon could it be?

"After this is accomplished, I am willing to give you the cultivation method of the Demon God Shadow as a reward."

Nanfeng suddenly turned around and looked at Dong Yan.

A demonic shadow?!

Nanfeng immediately thought of the great general with six arms and six swords!

"No need, no need, senior. It's too formal of you to ask for payment," Nanfeng quickly waved his hand. Although he really wanted to learn, he felt embarrassed to ask for such a "secret skill" from Senior Dong Yan, who had helped him so much in the past.

"Just accept it. It's precisely because we're on the same side that we need to be clear about these things, otherwise we won't have a chance to cooperate in the future," Huo Wenjie said casually. "Besides, I've already accepted it. If you don't, how am I supposed to face others?!"

"Well... alright." Having heard that Senior Huo Wenjie had already accepted it, it would seem a bit hypocritical for Nanfeng to be any more polite.

"Brother Yan, how's your other target? Do you need our help?" Huo Wenjie asked.

"No need, I've already figured out a way to deal with that target. I'll take care of it myself."

"I'm counting on you to take care of the one in the water." (Six)

444. Seeking the Treasure Vessel

The three of them split up.

Senior Dong Yan went to capture his other target.

Senior Huo Wenjie searched from the north of the secret realm to the south, while Nanfeng searched from the south to the north.

"Please, I'm counting on you," Nanfeng said, throwing out a Poké Ball.

Greninja, Gyarados, Gengar, Latias, and Salamence appear, ready to begin their search.

Greninja and Gyarados are Water-type Pokémon, and they went directly into the river. Greninja activated Substitute, splitting into two and leaping into the water, then disappearing into the river as quickly as a fish.

The red Gyarados is exceptionally arrogant. Its roar upon entering the river intimidates the Pokémon that haven't yet had time to escape. With its terrifying face, it "rules" the Pokémon in the river, having them help it search. It's believed that it won't be long before it gathers a large group of followers.

Besides the "180" Water-type Pokémon, Latias also plunged into the water with a "plop." Although it doesn't have a Water-type, Latias, known as the "Red Latias," has a much better grasp of water currents than ordinary Pokémon.