In an age of economic prosperity, city nightlife was always loud and restless.
Xinqing Town was no exception. Rows of barbecue stalls lined both sides of the street, packed with people drinking, laughing, and indulging in earthly pleasures. Passing through it all, Orion looked completely out of place.
After wiping out the Beedrill nest, he had dealt with the corpses he hadn't had time to process on the way back.
Leaving the outskirts and returning to the forest residence, he mounted his electric scooter and headed straight into town, preparing to dispose of the night's gains.
Ordinary Pokémon shops required official Trainer identification, and the sheer variety of items he carried made that route impossible.
But as the saying went—where there is light, there is shadow.
This world was far more dangerous than the one he had transmigrated from. Although Great Xia's internal control was strict, it only maintained a surface-level peace.
Being a Trainer was a high-risk profession. Beyond the dangers of the wild, there were murders, robberies, and betrayals driven by profit.
Because of illicit goods, hidden identities, and countless gray-area dealings, every populated area inevitably harbored a chaotic place—
The Black Market.
It was where humanity's darkest impulses ran free, and also where enormous profits converged.
Orion knew very well that the Black Market was merely a transit station for laundering transactions. Without tacit approval from the authorities, such a system could never have existed.
Black Markets varied in scale. High-end ones were hidden in villas, luxury residences, or scenic locations. Lower-end ones could even be found in villages or deep in the wilderness.
The rules were simple:
Once a deal was made, there was no responsibility afterward.
No fighting was allowed within Black Market territory.
Violators would, at best, be arrested, have their Pokémon and valuables confiscated, beaten half to death, and dumped into a river.
At worst—
They would be killed.
The Luqing Black Market, Orion's destination, lay between Xinqing Town and a neighboring small town.
He gazed into the distance with calm, deep-set eyes.
In his previous life, he had been here hundreds of times. Now, it felt both familiar and strangely distant.
It was a mountain villa hidden in the countryside, close to town, with a highway running nearby—an excellent location.
Wearing a hat and mask, Orion entered the village.
There was unexpectedly heavy traffic along the road. He knew these people shared the same goal as him—to enter the Black Market.
He parked his scooter in the square, then walked into a corner convenience store, paying 300 yuan for parking and the Black Market entry pass.
He could have skipped the parking fee—but then there would be no guarantee his vehicle would still be there when he returned.
Following a narrow path behind the store, he reached the villa entrance.
Artificial ponds surrounded the gate, each filled with Carvanha. Crossing a small bridge, he presented his pass and entered the Black Market under the guards' scrutiny.
The moment he stepped inside, a silent show of force greeted him.
On a massive tree covered in warning signs, countless red lights glowed—
A swarm of Zubat.
They specialized in sneaking up under cover of night, quietly latching onto people's necks and drinking their blood until their victims were on the verge of fainting, only then retreating reluctantly.
Orion sidestepped the ones in front of him and struck back at several attacking Zubat during brief openings.
They instantly realized this human was not someone to provoke and hurriedly flew back to the tree.
Others entering alongside him weren't so lucky. Some panicked, others endured silently, and some watched coldly before leaving.
This unspoken trial quietly separated newcomers from veterans.
Orion could sense several gazes watching him from the shadows.
The Black Market was never a safe place.
Inside, personal safety was temporarily guaranteed—but once you left, danger truly began.
Newcomers were always the easiest targets.
Like fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
"Hiss—! Roar—!"
In the bustling Pokémon trading zone, Orion looked up to see nothing but Pokémon locked inside cages.
Most wore blank expressions, their vitality drained.
A few—bodies covered in wounds of varying severity—roared and struggled violently. They had clearly been captured recently and still clung to a strong desire for freedom.
But once reduced to merchandise, the sellers' only requirement was that they didn't starve to death.
Over time, under constant oppression, these Pokémon became physically and mentally exhausted, their strength greatly diminished.
Even if one somehow broke free—
It would be killed on the spot as a warning to others.
The Black Market was steeped in negativity, its oppressive atmosphere even heavier than outside.
Orion searched for a buyer and finally stopped in front of a Pokémon shop.
Pokémon prices were determined by multiple factors: talent, strength, growth potential, and more. Normally, sellers received sixty to seventy percent of market value.
That was standard.
The Black Market shaved off another ten to twenty percent on top of that.
"We meet again," Orion murmured softly as he peered inside and stepped through the door.
In his previous life, he had frequented this shop for a long time. Prices were relatively fair by Black Market standards.
He'd been ripped off here before—but he'd had nothing to say about it.
This time, though, he planned to get it all back.
With interest.
If his memory served him right, it was during his very first visit to the Black Market that he learned a crucial piece of news.
Not long after, someone gambled on a Pokémon Egg here and hatched a Green-talent Tyrogue, sparking a small craze for egg gambling.
Because of that—and because he had just become a Trainer at the time—Orion paid close attention to developments in the following years, especially anything related to eggs.
He even knew the exact time and place where a Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon egg had once been overlooked and hatched.
That event caused a massive sensation and even made headlines.
That lucky individual eventually became an Elite decades later.
Later on, Orion focused solely on improving his strength and stopped paying attention to such information.
After all—who could have imagined life would give him an encore?
The shop's main hall came into view.
The most prominent spot on the wall displayed listings for rare Psychic-type and Ghost-type Pokémon, each with a clearly marked—and shockingly high—price.
The shop owner was a middle-aged woman, still alluring despite her age.
She had a fiery figure and a seductive face, greeting customers with a gentle, sweet smile, as though every movement carried a subtle charm.
Especially the crisp click of her high heels as she walked back and forth behind the counter—it struck straight at the heart.
Because of this, the long counter was always crowded, mostly with men.
As the saying went—
A venomous heart often hides behind a beautiful face.
For this woman to stand firm in the Black Market, she was anything but ordinary.
She possessed Elite-level strength, and more importantly, was backed by one of the Black Market's managers.
"Looking for anything you like?" the proprietress asked smoothly, winking out of habit.
Orion didn't respond to the flirting. He set his backpack on the counter.
"I'm selling—and buying."
As he spoke, his Elite-level aura leaked out ever so slightly.
"It seems a big client has graced our humble shop," the woman said with a meaningful smile, studying him carefully.
The commotion immediately drew the attention of other customers.
She opened the backpack and began taking items out one by one—carefully appraising each.
Naturally, there was some bargaining.
But sensing Orion's strength, she had no intention of offending him, conceding again and again until both sides were satisfied.
During this time, Orion casually strolled through the shop—
And almost instantly,
He locked onto his target.
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I'm posting many TL fanfic.
This fanfic will continue or not depends on how well this fanfic, survival of the fittest 😂