After capturing Steelix, its level 66 immediately became Julian's highest among all his Pokémon, even surpassing Metagross, who currently sat at level 55.
He knew that the further ahead a Pokémon was in levels, the slower it would progress. Many Pokémon remained stuck at certain levels their entire lives due to their qualifications.
Despite Steelix's high level, Julian understood that a high level did not necessarily equate to high combat power.
In terms of pure combat ability, Steelix still ranked as a junior compared to Metagross, and even his Lucario and Dragonair surpassed Steelix in strength.
They had all grown with the help of system points, elevating them to a level that far exceeded that of a wild Pokémon like Steelix.
However, one aspect stood out: Steelix's unique connection to the rough diamonds it had guarded. This had allowed it to polish its body over time, making it harder than most Steelix in the wild.
"Come out, Steelix!"
Julian released Steelix again, and the moment it emerged, excitement radiated from it. The Pokémon wagged its massive tail joyfully, clearly it seemed to like the environment in Poké Ball.
"I guess Steelix isn't as stiff as I thought," Julian mused to himself, chuckling at the sight.
He returned Metagross to its Poké Ball for some much-needed rest, knowing that it would be needed later for mining and battling.
Steelix, sensing Julian's intentions, tried lowering its head, but just as he was about to, Julian jumped up and landed on Steelix's head.
Mega Pallet Town Physique sure was useful.
"Departure, Northwest!"
Julian commanded, clutching the Dowsing Machine tightly. A large red dot blipped on the screen, as promising as the one that indicated the soft sand he had previously unearthed.
This new unexplored intermediate-level secret realm was really a treasure trove. If he had more time, Julian would have loved to explore all the little red dots scattered around, but he focused on maximizing his chances by pursuing the larger ones.
While Steelix was not as swift as Metagross in the air, its steadiness made it a reliable ground mount.
'Soon, I'll have a soaring mount like Dragonite, and maybe even a water mount like Kyogre,' he mused, anyway it's just a fantasy, Such fantasies made the journey enjoyable, and before he knew it, they had reached the location of the red dot.
But at this moment, Julian noticed another figure near the red dot. The person eyed Steelix cautiously and quickly recognized Julian sitting on its head.
'I thought it was just another Pokémon in the secret realm, but it seems there's a Trainer here,' he thought.
The man held a square device about 30 centimeters long in his hand—an energy detection device capable of sensing the unique energy emitted by treasures.
However, its accuracy and range were limited, and many treasures do not emit energy at all, making it far less effective than Julian's Dowsing Machine.
The man's ability to find this spot was partly due to luck.
As it turned out, the treasure in this area did emit energy, which had been detected by his device.
"Young Master Walker"
The man said, recognizing Julian seated atop Steelix. His expression shifted, a mixture of surprise and concern crossing his face.
Not only was Julian's identity known, but the pseudo-Elite aura radiating from Steelix made the situation even more complicated. If Julian had the desire to take the treasure, the man could do little to stop him.
"Steelix, let's go," Julian commanded.
He had no intention of robbing the man. It wasn't that Julian didn't want the treasure; but the other Trainer was a local from Lake City, And the man hadn't been rude or aggressive, and the other party came here first, so it seemed only fair to allow him the opportunity to claim the find.
However, whether the man could actually locate the treasure was another matter. The accuracy of his energy detector only reached a few dozen meters, or at most, 100 meters.
Given that treasures are often buried deep, the likelihood of him finding anything substantial was slim.
'I'll come back tomorrow,' Julian thought. 'If he doesn't find it, then it's mine.'
When the man saw Julian leave, he couldn't help but sighed in relief.
"This Steelix must have been captured in the secret realm," he whispered to himself.
While only Meltan remained hidden due to its special Condition, everyone else knew which Pokémon Julian possessed.
After letting Steelix roam the Rock zone for over an hour, Julian noted the red dots displayed on his Dowsing Machine changed several times, but they were all of minor value, around 10 million.
It wasn't worth a special trip.
After returning Steelix to its Poké Ball, Julian released Metagross once more.
"Metagross, keep flying towards the north," Julian instructed.
He was ready to leave this Rock zone. The intermediate secret realm spanned several cities, naturally featuring a variety of environments.
Julian had already passed through four distinct areas: forest, swamp, lake, and rock.
The forest, lake, and rock environments were the most common in all secret realms. Apart from a few exceptions, most secret realms incorporated these three settings.
More than half an hour later, Metagross was still traversing the Rock area, but Julian noticed the color of the rocks shifting from taupe to black. The temperature began to rise, and the humidity steadily dropped.
As he squinted through the shimmering heat, Julian wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Fire-type Pokémon occasionally popped up, their warmth mixing with the rising heat from the ground.
"It seems there's a volcano nearby, or maybe even one underground," Julian speculated.
This black rock formation was likely the result of cooling magma after a volcanic eruption, with a layer of mud on its surface formed from accumulated volcanic ash.
Due to the relentless heat radiating from the surface, most plants struggled to survive, leaving only a few heat-resistant species scattered across the barren ground.
After taking a swig from his bottle of water, Julian muttered, "My Mega Pallet Town body is definitely not built for this heat. I thought I'd be fire-resistant."
As he ventured deeper, the temperature continued to climb. Checking his thermometer, it read 43 degrees Celsius.
Thanks to his Mega Pallet Town physique, Julian was holding up against the heat; otherwise, he might have succumbed to heat stroke. Although his body wasn't heat-resistant, it prevented him from collapsing.
Charizard's Flamethrower would also char Ash at best, before quickly returning to normal.
At this heightened temperature, the fire-type Pokémon below had also leveled up considerably. Fortunately, Metagross was flying high enough that their Flamethrower attacks couldn't reach him.
Suddenly, a level 57 Talonflame appeared before Metagross, followed by dozens of Fletchinder. The heat radiating from their bodies, combined with the powerful flapping of their wings, all rushed toward Julian.
"Dragonair, use Thunderbolt!"
*****
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