Beldum’s Ability was Clear Body, which didn’t surprise Adrian Sterling in the slightest.
After all, this Beldum had been split from his grandfather’s Metagross, so inheriting its Ability was only natural.
What truly caught Adrian’s attention was the additional note displayed before him.
Shiny Trait: Damage dealt increased by 100%.
In other words, if an ordinary Beldum’s Tackle dealt 40 points of damage, Adrian’s Shiny Beldum could deal up to 80 damage with the same move.
That was an astonishing boost.
After all, Take Down, the advanced version of Tackle, only had a base power of 90.
Thanks to its Shiny Trait, Beldum’s ordinary Tackle was already approaching the power of Take Down.
— Shiny Pokémon were incredibly rare color variants.
After years of research, Pokémon scholars had discovered that Shiny Pokémon were naturally superior to their normal counterparts in certain aspects.
Some possessed faster reaction speeds.
Others had greater physical strength.
Some excelled in the power of their moves.
Every Shiny Pokémon possessed an exceptional quality that ordinary Pokémon lacked.
Naturally, these were exactly the traits every Trainer dreamed of obtaining.
Because of this, Shiny Pokémon were virtually impossible to buy on the open market.
Their birth rate was extraordinarily low, and only large-scale breeding programs could slightly improve the odds of producing one.
Even breeding two Shiny Pokémon together did not guarantee a Shiny offspring.
However, Metagross was different.
Through its unique form of asexual reproduction, a Shiny Metagross could split off a Beldum that inherited 100% of its potential, Shiny status, and Ability.
Among all Pokémon, Magikarp had the largest number of recorded Shiny variants.
The reason was simple.
Magikarp reproduced rapidly, adapted to almost any environment, could survive even in polluted waters, and would eat nearly anything.
They were every fisherman’s nightmare.
On the market, a Shiny Magikarp was worth around one million Daxia Coins.
In Yindu City, one famous aquarium even displayed ten differently colored Magikarp as its main attraction.
— A Metagross could only split off a limited number of Beldum during its lifetime.
Each split consumed an enormous amount of both energy and life force.
Adrian’s Beldum had been created from Xia Wudao’s Quasi-Champion Peak Metagross, perfectly inheriting every aspect of its parent.
Because of that, the cost paid by Metagross was even greater.
If Adrian hadn’t been Xia Wudao’s own grandson, there was no way he would have sacrificed so much.
Although the lost strength could eventually be restored, doing so required time, delaying Metagross’s chances of advancing to the Champion Rank.
— “With your Perfect Steel Heart, this Beldum’s growth speed will be comparable to that of an ordinary Pokémon.” Xia Wudao looked at both Adrian and the tiny Beldum.
At that moment, the little Steel-type Pokémon showed overwhelming affection toward Adrian.
It continuously rubbed its metallic head against his palm as though saying, “Hurry up and pet me!” There wasn’t the slightest hint of the pride expected from a Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon.
— In this world, Pokémon were generally divided into four categories.
First: Ordinary Pokémon, such as Caterpie, Charmander, Geodude, and Phanpy.
Even after reaching their final evolutions, they remained ordinary species.
Second: Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon, including Dragonite, Metagross, Tyranitar, Salamence, Garchomp, Hydreigon, and other exceptionally powerful species.
Third: Mythical Pokémon.
Fourth: Legendary Pokémon.
The third and fourth categories were collectively referred to as Divine Beasts.
For ordinary Trainers—even Champions—earning the recognition of a Mythical or Legendary Pokémon was nearly impossible.
As a result, Pseudo-Legendaries became the ultimate dream partners for countless Trainers.
Unfortunately, they were incredibly rare.
Most Trainers would never even have the opportunity to own one.
Furthermore, raising a Pseudo-Legendary required more than five times the resources needed for an ordinary Pokémon of the same level.
Their growth during the early stages was notoriously slow.
They were true late-game powerhouses.
— Dragon-type Pseudo-Legendaries were especially difficult to raise.
A Dratini evolved into Dragonair at Level 30.
Dragonair then required Level 55 to evolve into Dragonite.
Most two-stage Pokémon reached their final evolution around Level 35.
Dragonair, however, required almost twenty additional levels.
The Deino line was even worse.
Deino evolved into Zweilous at Level 50.
Only at Level 64 would it finally become Hydreigon.
The time and resources required were several times greater than those of ordinary Pokémon.
Even with unlimited resources, raising a Dratini into Dragonite required eight or nine years.
Training a Deino into Hydreigon often took more than a decade.
The same resources could easily raise six ordinary Pokémon to similar levels.
— Compared to Dragon-type Pseudo-Legendaries, the Metagross evolutionary line was much more manageable.
Beldum → Metang: Level 20 Metang → Metagross: Level 45 Although still demanding, it was far easier than raising Dragonite or Hydreigon.
Even so, nurturing a Pseudo-Legendary required patience.
No amount of wealth could completely eliminate the time needed.
There was, however…
One exception.
— In this extraordinary world, some Trainers awakened unique supernatural abilities.
Among the most famous were Psychic Power, Aura, Dragon Heart, Fire Heart, Water Heart, and many others.
These abilities were classified into five levels: – Primary – Intermediate – Advanced – Top-Tier – Perfect And Adrian Sterling possessed the rarest ability of all…
The Perfect Steel Heart.
Throughout the thousand-year history of Daxia, this supreme ability had appeared only twice.
The first was over a millennium ago.
The founder of the Xia Family used his Perfect Steel Heart alongside a majestic black Shiny Metagross to establish the family’s glorious legacy.
That ancestor’s Metagross had never split itself, so no second black Metagross was ever born within the family.
Adrian’s grandfather had obtained his own Shiny Metagross through sheer strength and incredible fortune.
Back when it was still a Beldum, he had successfully captured it despite being surrounded by three Trainers of equal strength.
The second person to awaken the Perfect Steel Heart…
Was Adrian Sterling.
Even Xia Wudao himself possessed only an Advanced Steel Heart.
Most Trainers who awakened special abilities remained stuck at the Primary level throughout their lives.
Intermediate abilities were already uncommon.
Advanced abilities were exceedingly rare.
Top-Tier abilities might appear only once every few decades.
As for a Perfect ability…
None had appeared for hundreds of years before Adrian.
— Adrian’s Perfect Steel Heart awakened the moment he was born.
When it happened, every Champion-level Steel-type Pokémon belonging to the Xia Family appeared one after another.
They silently surrounded the newborn child.
After watching him for a long time, they finally departed with obvious reluctance.
Even the legendary black Shiny Metagross of the family’s ancestor appeared.
From that day onward, Adrian became the Xia Family’s most important member.
In terms of strategic value, he even surpassed his grandfather.
After all, while the Xia Family had several Quasi-Champion Peak Trainers besides Xia Wudao…
There had been only two Perfect Steel Hearts in an entire millennium.
This miraculous talent all but guaranteed Adrian’s future as a Champion.
It even gave him the possibility of surpassing the Champion Rank.
Naturally, the Xia Family protected him with the highest level of security.
— The Steel Heart possessed extraordinary powers.
It greatly increased a Trainer’s affinity with Steel-type Pokémon while dramatically accelerating their growth.
Its effects scaled according to its level.
– Primary: 1–2× faster growth – Intermediate: 3–4× faster growth – Advanced: 5–6× faster growth – Top-Tier: 7–8× faster growth – Perfect: 9–10× faster growth As for the attraction of a Perfect Steel Heart toward Steel-type Pokémon…
Words simply couldn’t describe it.
Just look at Beldum.
This was their very first meeting.
Yet the little Pseudo-Legendary was already overflowing with happiness.
To Beldum, Adrian was the perfect partner.
One glance was enough to earn its complete trust and devotion.
— Gently stroking Beldum’s smooth metallic body, Adrian smiled warmly.
“From today onward…” “We’re partners, Beldum.” “Hmm!” Beldum responded with a cheerful burst of magnetic energy, its single crimson eye narrowing happily into a crescent as it affectionately nudged Adrian’s hand once again.
Give me more motivation!