Dewford Town, a small island isolated overseas in the southwest of the Hoenn region, is famous for its Fighting Dojo and abundant waves.
For Jiang Han, this place was not unfamiliar.
But as for the Granite Cave in the northern part of the island, it was his first time stepping foot there.
The cave entrance was like the pitch-black mouth of a giant beast, with cold, damp air constantly surging out, carrying the fishy smell of soil and rock.
At the entrance, a six-man team had been waiting for a long time.
They wore uniform khaki jumpsuits and carried geological exploration equipment, looking no different from those scientific researchers from the League.
But Jiang Han's gaze swept past them and finally landed on the leading Middle-aged Man.
That man was slightly chubby, with a professional smile on his face, but a trace of shrewdness and vigilance deep in his eyes exposed his true identity.
Scientific research teams from the League would never have eyes like that.
Jiang Han calmly took out a mask from his space ring and put it on his face.
The cold touch of the mask instantly made him enter his state.
He walked slowly to the man and asked only four words in a raspy voice.
"Are you ready?"
The leading man's body stiffened, the smile on his face vanished, and he warily sized up the masked Jiang Han before tentatively reciting the first half of the code.
"To Protect the world from devastation."
Jiang Han's voice was flat and emotionless as he followed up with the second half.
"To unite all peoples within our nation."
Once the code matched, the man's attitude immediately took a 180-degree turn. His previously straight back instantly bent low, and his face was filled with a respectful, even somewhat flattering, smile.
"Executive Sir! I am Jiro, the captain of this survey team, primarily responsible for the team's security."
Jiang Han merely nodded slightly, his tone betraying no emotion: "When necessary, I will take action."
Jiro nodded and bowed repeatedly, then waved his hand, beckoning the team members to enter the cave.
The difference in light between the inside and outside of the cave was enormous; stepping inside, one's vision was instantly swallowed by endless darkness.
Only the beams of light from the searchlights on their heads tore a few narrow openings in the darkness, illuminating a small patch of rugged, uneven rocky ground beneath their feet.
The cave walls were damp, with water droplets sliding down the texture of the rocks. The dripping sound echoed in the silent cave, sounding exceptionally clear.
Jiang Han walked at the very front of the team, his senses becoming exceptionally sharp in the darkness.
He could even smell a faint, lingering scent of sulfur in the air, in addition to the damp, earthy smell.
"Executive Sir, our primary objective this time is to survey the rock layer structure and specific types of ores deep within the cave to provide data support for the organization's subsequent development plans."
Jiro, following cautiously behind, tried to explain something.
At the same time, he released his pokémon, a Sandshrew that was only level 15.
As soon as that Sandshrew came out, it shrunk its neck from the cold air in the cave and followed fearfully at Jiro's heels.
The other two members of the team responsible for combat also released their pokémon one after another.
One was a level 16 Nidorino, and the other was a level 13 Ekans.
Jiang Han glanced out of the corner of his eye, his heart completely unmoved.
In his view, pokémon of this level weren't even qualified to be cannon fodder.
If they encountered that Druddigon from yesterday, they would probably be torn to shreds in a single encounter.
He ignored Jiro's chatter, focusing all his attention on being alert to his surroundings.
He was determined to obtain the Protect and Dark Pulse tms.
After the team had traveled about a hundred meters, the path ahead was suddenly blocked by two Diglett that burrowed out of the ground.
The two Diglett shook their heads and let out "Diglett-Diglett" Growls, seemingly asserting their territory.
"Sandshrew, use Scratch!"
Jiro immediately commanded his pokémon to step forward.
Sandshrew summoned its courage and charged, waving its claws, but it was easily dodged by the agile Diglett.
Instead, an unexpected Tackle from a Diglett sent Sandshrew staggering back.
Back and forth, a level 15 Sandshrew was actually fighting on par with two lower-level wild pokémon.
"Captain, we'll help!"
Seeing this, the two team members behind him immediately wanted to have their Nidorino and Ekans join the battle as well.
"Enough."
Jiang Han's cold voice rang out, stopping them.
He really couldn't bear to watch any longer.
The combat power of Team Rockets' scientific researchers was, after all, no match for specialized combat units.
This was even more evident at this grassroots level.
"Inefficient."
Before his voice had even faded, he had already thrown a Poké Ball.
With a flash of red light, Sneasel's figure appeared in the darkness.
Its crimson eyes flickered with a heart-palpitating cold light under the beam of the flashlight.
There was no need for Jiang Han to give a command; years of combat had long ago established a telepathic connection between him and Sneasel.
Sneasel's body flickered, turning into a black afterimage that instantly swept past the two Diglett still entangled with Sandshrew.
Swish!
The soft sound of sharp claws cutting through the air.
Followed by two short cries of pain.
When Sneasel returned to Jiang Han's side, the two Diglett had already collapsed on the ground, completely lifeless.
The entire process was clean and efficient, without a single wasted movement.
The cave instantly fell into a dead silence, with only the beams of the searchlights swaying slightly.
Jiro and his team members all stared at the scene in a daze; they hadn't even seen clearly how Sneasel had attacked.
The Sandshrew, still in an attacking stance, looked blankly at its fallen opponents, seemingly not yet realizing what had happened.
Jiro swallowed hard. When he looked at Jiang Han's back, his gaze had changed from previous respect to deep awe and fear.
As expected of an Executive Sir!
This was the style Team Rockets should have: decisive, efficient, and merciless!
Unlike them, who wasted so much time dealing with two Diglett.
Jiang Han ignored the reactions of the people behind him; to him, this was merely clearing away two small obstacles on the road.
He just gave a faint glance to the unscathed Sneasel.
"Keep up."
Jiang Han coldly dropped those two words and continued walking deep into the cave.
Jiro and the others woke up as if from a dream, hastily recalled their pokémon, and followed him, quiet as cicadas in winter.
This time, no one dared to speak, and the atmosphere of the entire team became incredibly oppressive.
The way they looked at Jiang Han's back was like looking at a predator walking in the dark.
As they continued deeper, the terrain of the cave began to become complex, with more and more forks in the path.
That faint smell of sulfur in the air also became increasingly thick.
Jiang Han stopped, crouched down, and pinched a bit of ash from the ground with his fingers.
The ash still carried a hint of warmth.
He brought the ash to his nose to sniff it, his brow furrowing slightly.
This was no ordinary volcanic ash.
Just then, from deep within a fork ahead, a muffled roar faintly echoed, a sound filled with irritability and rage.
Immediately following, a wave of scorching hot air rushed toward them!
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