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After seeing that Gloom's training was progressing well, Sato gave her a few words of praise before turning his attention to Nidoran, who was currently focused on his training in front of a large boulder.
The move Sato had arranged for Nidoran to train was Poison Jab, a move aligned with Nidoran's Poison-type. Having passed his infancy stage, Nidoran's physical attributes had improved significantly, no longer as fragile as he once was. The density of the purple keratinous spikes on his body had gradually thickened.
Especially notable was the sharp purple horn on Nidoran's forehead, which had now become as hard as steel, making it the toughest part of his body. This sharp horn was also Nidoran's primary weapon for attacks.
(Note: Poison Jab is a Poison-type physical move with 80 power. It uses a poisonous appendage or arm to stab the opponent, with a chance to poison the target.)
After passing infancy, Nidoran's current details were as follows:
Pokémon: Nidoran
Level: 5
Type: Poison
Ability: Hustle (Hidden Ability)
Gender: Male
Known Moves: Leer, Peck, Amnesia (Egg Move), Disable (Egg Move), Confusion (Egg Move), Hone Claws (TM), Poison Jab (TM), Water Pulse (TM)
According to Sato's guidelines, Nidoran would always begin his training and battles by using Hone Claws. This helped compensate for the accuracy drop caused by his Hustle ability when using physical moves, while also boosting his attack power.
At this moment, a Nidoran about the size of a medium-sized dog was charging forward, moving on his slightly clumsy limbs. As he charged, the sharp purple horn on his forehead glowed faintly with a dim purple light. When Nidoran was just half a meter from the boulder, he suddenly leaped forward with all his might.
With a "bang," Nidoran's horn pierced directly into the large red mark painted on the boulder's surface. The two-meter-tall boulder shook slightly, and small fragments of rock splintered off.
As Nidoran effortlessly withdrew his horn from the boulder, a small hole, leaking a faint purple liquid, appeared on the surface. Tiny cracks, similarly infused with the purple liquid, spread outward from the hole. The inner and outer edges of the hole showed signs of erosion.
Before long, a small piece of the eroded rock crumbled from the boulder, falling apart like tofu and shattering into several fragments.
As a Poison-type Pokémon, Nidoran's body was saturated with toxins, especially in the sharp spikes covering his body, where the most potent venom was secreted. Naturally, the most concentrated source of poison was in his sharp forehead horn.
When using Poison Jab, Nidoran focused the Poison-type energy into his horn. Since the horn was the hardest part of his body and could instantly secrete a large amount of venom at will, it was the perfect weapon to pair with the Poison Jab technique, which required the condensation of Poison-type energy for the attack.
As a Poison-type Pokémon, Nidoran had a natural affinity for the Poison-type energy in the environment. However, due to his young age and limited control, the amount of Poison-type energy he could currently gather was still low. This was evident from the faint purple glow on his horn when he executed Poison Jab moments ago.
Even though Nidoran had not yet fully mastered Poison Jab, not even reaching the beginner level, the move's power, combined with the physical attack boost from his Hustle ability and Hone Claws, still produced significant destructive force.
When facing tough rocks, Nidoran could easily pierce them with his horn, similar to stabbing tofu. His venom, released through his horn, and the Poison-type energy surrounding it would then corrode the rock. If it were a tree or a living creature instead of a rock, it would likely be pierced through, leaving a small hole, and there would be a high chance of the target being poisoned.
This was the result even though Nidoran could not yet condense much Poison-type energy for his Poison Jab. It was clear that as his control over Poison-type energy improved and he could gather more of it for his moves, he would be able to shatter rocks instantly, leaving severe corrosion marks.
In fact, Sato had already let Nidoran test Poison Jab on some nearby small trees, and without exception, those trees withered and died, poisoned by the venom.
After witnessing the terrifying power of Nidoran's Poison Jab, Sato no longer allowed him to use living creatures for practice, opting instead to train against inanimate objects like rocks.
In the world of Pokémon, Poison-types are much more dangerous than most others. A large part of this danger comes from the toxins they carry. If a living creature is injured by a Poison-type Pokémon, it could easily become poisoned.
(Note: Poison-type energy is highly aggressive and corrosive. Pokémon get poisoned because Poison-type Pokémon inject their energy into the target's body, where it wreaks havoc. This can be considered an energy-based toxin, which explains why non-Poison-type Pokémon using Poison-type moves can still cause poisoning. Custom lore)
In reality, poisoning is far more dangerous than it appears in games. Once a Pokémon is poisoned, the negative effects are much more severe than burns, paralysis, or freezing. While the effects might not be immediately apparent, once the poison spreads throughout the body, the Pokémon's combat abilities will rapidly deteriorate.
If an antidote isn't administered in time, the Pokémon could even die. Even if treated at the last moment, it would likely suffer a serious illness afterward.
Moreover, different types of Pokémon have different kinds of toxins, leading to varying symptoms when poisoned.
In most cases, a poisoned Pokémon will experience one of three symptoms: overall weakness, hallucinations, or localized decay in the poisoned area.
Of course, for more potent Poison-types, these symptoms could mix or occur simultaneously.
(Note: Poison-type Pokémon and certain others with innate toxins can induce physical poisoning in organic beings. Custom lore)
(Steel-type Pokémon have a natural immunity to Poison-type energy because of their Steel typing. Unless their Steel attribute is removed or their immunity weakened, Steel-types cannot be poisoned.)
Based on some practical experiments, Nidoran's venom showed clear corrosive properties. Once exposed to air, it underwent a chemical reaction, and when combined with the corrosive nature of Poison-type energy, it produced an intensified effect, easily corroding most materials.
"Well done! But don't always rely on your horn for Poison Jab. It makes it easier for opponents to target your weak spots. Try using your claws instead. They're just as tough as your horn, and you won't give yourself a headache from crashing into things," Sato said with an amused smile, seeing that while Nidoran had broken off a chunk of the boulder, he was also a bit dizzy from the impact.
Unfortunately, Nidoran seemed unfazed by Sato's advice. He still chose to use his horn as the focus for Poison Jab. After stepping back a bit, he braced himself and charged at the boulder again.
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