After chatting with the viewers for a bit, Theo glanced at the time.
"Today's livestream ends here. Next, I'm going to take Feebas and Tyrunt into the deeper part of the forest to train near a waterfall.
Everyone, don't worry, before the Contest begins, I'll challenge the Rustboro Gym first. I'll notify everyone in advance and go live so you can all see the results of the training."
After saying that, Theo waved goodbye and ignored the viewers' attempts to make him stay. He ended the stream, and as the screen instantly quieted down, he finally let out a long breath.
[Today's Livestream Duration: 32 minutes]
[Peak Concurrent Viewers: 185,644]
[Total Popularity Points: 112,122]
By this point, Theo primarily regarded his "livestream golden finger" as a tool to assist in raising his Pokémon, rather than something to rely on completely. What he valued the most was still the daily, practical training he put into his Pokémon.
In recent days, thanks to uploaded videos and viewer donations, he had earned a decent amount of money. With that income, he bought this pokeblocks, the common items in this world for raising Pokémon— and compared them with the Energy Orbs from his system.
(TN: Supposed to energy orbs too on the pokeblocks, but does anime have energy orbs too?)
Although the commonly sold low- and mid-grade pokeblocks couldn't compare to the purity of the system's energy orbs—which could enhance a Pokémon's energy intensity far more effectively and required less absorption time—they were still more than adequate for raising his current early-stage Pokémon.
The system's rewards of Energy orbs and TM discs were pleasant surprises that helped his Pokémon quickly grow stronger, master many moves efficiently, and rapidly increase skill proficiency.
Of course, drawing items that directly benefited Feebas or Tyrunt was ideal.
But even if he didn't draw anything useful, Theo would never slack off or stop their daily training.
Among all types of training, what Theo emphasized most were two things:
Move usage and move proficiency.
Increasing a Pokémon's move proficiency strengthened not only its physical capabilities but also its internal energy.
At the same time, higher proficiency meant faster activation, greater control, and more precise manipulation of moves.
However, as for how to use those move creatively—such as Ash's Pikachu using "Counter Shield" in the anime—those innovative applications could only be learned gradually through consistent daily training.
Proficiency gave control, but training gave mastery.
A Pokémon and its trainer growing stronger together through training—that was the true meaning of being a Pokémon Trainer.
As for his system's purpose, Theo now cared more about the advanced draws, hoping he could obtain items like Protein that would increase a Pokémon's fundamental attributes. Items like those were crucial for widening the gap between his Pokémon and those used by other trainers.
After closing the stream, Theo turned toward his two Pokémon.
"Alright, the audience is gone now. We should continue heading deeper into the forest, look for a training spot, and begin today's training."
Tyrunt rolled excitedly on the ground before charging toward the forest's depths, calling back every so often as if urging him to hurry up.
Inside the fish tank, Feebas swam cheerfully as well, clearly looking forward to the new environment.
Shouldering the fish tank, Theo followed them along a forest path.
The deeper they went, the denser the trees became. Sunlight could only slip through tiny gaps between the layers of leaves, forming scattered patches of light across the ground.
Along the way, many wild Pokémon appeared—
a few Wurmple crawling along a branch, several Shroomish peeking out from behind tree roots, and distant cries of bird Pokémon echoing through the woods.
Tyrunt was curious about everything.
When it saw an Oddish, it immediately ran over and sniffed it, startling the Oddish so badly that it ducked straight into the soil.
When it spotted a Shroomish, it wanted to poke it with a claw, but Theo stopped it in time.
"Don't disturb them. We need to reach our training spot first. Once we're there, you can play as much as you like."
Tyrunt blinked, then nodded obediently and followed closely, focusing on the journey.
After about half an hour of walking, the sound of rushing water gradually filled the air.
Pushing past a cluster of shrubs, the scenery opened up—
A shimmering silver waterfall cascaded from a cliff dozens of meters high, crashing into a wide pool below and sending thick mist drifting through the air.
Smooth rocks surrounded the water, and when sunlight hit the mist just right, a faint rainbow appeared at its edge.
"This place is perfect. We'll do our special training here today."
Theo set down the fish tank.
The moment Feebas saw the large pool, it flicked its tail excitedly and leaped right in.
The instant Feebas entered the water, its entire body seemed to melt into a world that belonged solely to it. It swam in two joyful circles through the clear water, its tail flicking up a trail of delicate droplets.
Sitting on a rock by the water's edge, Theo watched the lively little Pokémon gliding effortlessly through the pool.
"Feebas," he called out in a clear voice,
"We'll start with Whirlpool. Your goal is to extend the duration to five minutes and keep the spinning completely stable."
Hearing the command, Feebas immediately stopped playing and moved to the center of the pool. It took a deep breath, gently flapped its fins, and began guiding the surrounding water.
At first, only faint ripples formed.
But as its mastery of Water Pulse guided its control, the ripples grew into a rotating current—this was Whirlpool.
Feebas' Water Pulse proficiency was already near mastery. Its precise sense of water flow—strength, direction, pressure—now transferred seamlessly to the Whirlpool.
For a normal Pokémon, practicing Whirlpool would require countless attempts to understand rotational momentum.
But Feebas, with its mastery over Water Pulse, already knew exactly how much force to apply so that the whirlpool would neither collapse nor spiral out of control.
"Yes, just like that," Theo encouraged softly.
"Keep it steady. Pay attention to the flow around the edges and keep the currents balanced."
Feebas' body moved gently in rhythm with the whirlpool. Every flick of its fins was perfectly timed, pulling any stray currents back into the center of the vortex.
A whirlpool that began no larger than a basin gradually expanded until it covered nearly half the pool, spinning faster and faster until it resembled a small aquatic tornado. Sunlight reflected off the spray, making it sparkle beautifully.
Tyrunt, who had been told to practice its own moves on the side, quickly became distracted. It lay at the water's edge, head tilted, staring wide-eyed at the swirling water tornado.
It reached out a claw to poke it, but Theo pressed its paw down.
"Don't disturb Feebas. Go practice your moves properly, or I'm cutting your dinner in half tonight."
At the mention of reduced food, Tyrunt froze. Its body trembled in fear, and after letting out a pitiful whimper, it obediently ran off to practice again though its eyes never once strayed from Feebas' whirlpool.
After half an hour of repeated practice, Feebas was able to maintain Whirlpool steadily for three full minutes, and the vortex remained perfectly shaped the entire time, without changing size or collapsing.
This meant Feebas had made significant progress in mastering the move.
When it finally exhausted its energy and the water tornado slowly dissipated, Feebas floated to the surface and blew a small bubble in Theo's direction—as if proudly asking for praise.
"Excellent work."
Theo clapped with a smile.
"Rest for a bit. We'll continue practicing Whirlpool later—but next, I want you to try multitasking. While maintaining the Whirlpool, also cast Icy Wind at the same time. Let's see if you can manage both at once."
(End of Chapter)