Urban Pokémon

As dawn broke, clear skies gradually chased the darkness to the horizon.

Guo Yi awoke in the guest room of the Shanghai Pokémon Fire Brigade.

By the time the fire was fully extinguished yesterday and the brigade returned to Shanghai, it was already approaching midnight.

Since it was so late, He Yongsen had insisted Guo Yi rest at the fire station overnight. The firefighters had warmly welcomed him, grateful for the hero who saved their comrade's life.

After quickly washing up, Guo Yi sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

I wonder which Pokémon this template connection will give me…

Ah, it's just like opening a blind box!

Yesterday, after officially accepting He Yongsen as his disciple, the system had rewarded him not just with Gary Oak's insights and [Mentor Points], but also with another linked [Pokémon Template]—the true prize.

After all, this directly impacted his own strength.

I really hope it's a pseudo-legendary Pokémon! Guo Yi eagerly thought to himself.

Although, with a template's support, any Pokémon could achieve great heights, Guo Yi secretly preferred something cool and iconic.

Strength was temporary, but style lasted forever!

Muttering a quick prayer, he opened the system interface.

[Would you like to begin drawing the Pokémon Template?]

The familiar notification appeared again.

"Yes," Guo Yi responded.

Immediately, a multitude of Pokémon portraits from Gary's roster appeared rapidly, cycling through.

As before, the portraits first displayed were all Pokémon that Gary Oak had owned.

But the sheer number of them was astonishing.

They densely filled the screen, easily numbering over a hundred Pokémon.

As Professor Oak's grandson, Gary had captured Pokémon purely on a whim—if he liked it, he caught it, never hesitating. After all, he never had to worry about their upkeep.

Of course, there were subtle differences in the displayed portraits. Gary's main Pokémon—Blastoise, Arcanine, Alakazam, and Exeggutor—appeared prominently, their images significantly larger, meaning a higher chance of selection.

There were also those familiar black question-marked portraits. However, perhaps due to Gary's enormous Pokémon collection, these black portraits appeared pitifully tiny this time.

A blinking light appeared, rapidly bouncing between the portraits, signaling the selection had begun.

Unlike the previous time, Guo Yi wasn't as anxious now.

Even if he drew a legendary Pokémon like Mew, with his current strength, it wasn't entirely impossible to acquire.

That was the confidence granted by true power.

With a soft ding—

All other Pokémon portraits vanished, leaving behind only one—a proud-looking Pokémon with outstretched wings.

"It's actually a Legendary Pokémon!"

"And it's one I already own!"

Guo Yi was genuinely startled—not only had he drawn a legendary Pokémon, but it was also one he'd recently captured.

Indeed, this template had linked directly to Zapdos.

Reflecting on it, Guo Yi found it understandable. After all, in the manga, Gary Oak had famously commanded Zapdos in battle.

Unfortunately, given Zapdos's current strength, he wouldn't see significant power gains from this template immediately. For meaningful boosts, he'd likely have to wait until He Yongsen reached Elite Four or even Champion-Tier levels.

However, this also implied something significant:

In the future, this Zapdos might reach a power level rivaling even a Tier-1 Legendary Pokémon!

After quickly linking the template to Zapdos, Guo Yi stood, pushing open the door, and stepped outside.

...

"Oh, Teacher Guo! What a coincidence—you're up so early."

The moment he stepped out, the Fire Brigade Captain appeared before him.

Guo Yi's gaze flickered oddly as he eyed the captain.

A coincidence, huh? You've clearly been waiting here deliberately!

The white marks on the captain's clothes—from leaning against the wall for too long—made that obvious.

Noticing Guo Yi's gaze, Captain Wang Yu awkwardly brushed off the dust, forcing an embarrassed smile.

"Captain Wang, whatever it is, please speak directly," Guo Yi said bluntly. "Since I'm Xiao He's teacher, there's no need to hide things."

He could guess roughly what this was about—clearly something related to accepting He Yongsen as a disciple.

Rather than being offended, Wang Yu, as a straightforward soldier, appreciated directness. He replied candidly, "Teacher Guo, I'll be blunt—I want to confirm your strength."

"Normally, a firefighter's choice of teacher wouldn't be my concern. But Yongsen's different. His father was my comrade, and I've always seen him as half a son myself. So… forgive my intrusion, but I must confirm this personally."

Though knowing this was impolite, Wang Yu felt compelled. Yongsen's desire to study under an accomplished mentor had his full support, and Wang Yu had already considered recommending him for further studies at Shanghai Pokémon University. Yesterday's heroic action had even made such an opportunity possible.

But then Yongsen abruptly took a mysterious trainer as his teacher instead.

Wang Yu had checked Guo Yi's background and discovered he was indeed a teacher, but only held the position of an assistant instructor. Harsh as it sounded, he believed a mere assistant instructor wasn't qualified to guide someone with Yongsen's potential.

Fortunately, Yongsen hadn't yet officially registered as Guo Yi's student, so there was still time to fix this.

Convincing Yongsen directly was impossible; the kid was as stubborn as a Tauros. So Wang Yu intended to indirectly encourage Guo Yi to retreat.

"How do you propose we confirm my strength, Captain Wang?"

Guo Yi showed no dissatisfaction. Since he didn't intend to publicly disclose his identity, these situations were inevitable. A teacher's most critical asset was always their reputation.

"How else?" Wang Yu said decisively. "Teacher Guo, why don't we battle?"

He didn't bother asking theoretical questions, choosing instead the most straightforward method—Pokémon battle.

Great teaching didn't necessarily require elite battling skills, but top trainers inevitably made excellent teachers. How could someone weak command respect as a mentor?

"All right," Guo Yi agreed immediately. "Lead the way."

"Teacher Guo, I admire your straightforwardness!" Wang Yu praised sincerely. No matter the outcome, Guo Yi's courage was commendable.

"Let's head to the brigade's training ground. We have a Pokémon battle arena there."

"Perfect."

Led by Wang Yu, Guo Yi arrived shortly at the arena.

Across the wide training ground, diligent firefighters were conducting morning exercises.

"One, two, one! One, two, one!"

The familiar cadence echoed clearly, reminding Guo Yi vividly of his own military training days.

"Hey Yongsen, isn't that your savior?" A firefighter named Xiao Wang noticed them. "Why is he heading to the battle arena with the captain?"

Another teammate, Xiao Li, chuckled knowingly, "Don't you know? Yongsen recognized him as his Pokémon teacher yesterday. Seems like Captain's testing him."

"No way!" another firefighter exclaimed. "Yongsen, don't rush into discipleship just because he saved you. That's a serious matter!"

"Exactly! This Teacher Guo only looks a year or two older than you!"

The squad buzzed with gossip, but Yongsen silently dismissed their skepticism.

Humph! If you knew Teacher's real strength, it'd scare you half to death.

Since his teacher wished to remain low-profile, he naturally kept quiet.

Hearing whispers, the squad leader barked sharply, "No talking while running! Add five more laps later!"

One bold firefighter suddenly spoke up, "Leader, I'll gladly do ten laps if we can watch the match!"

"Yeah, let's watch!" echoed others excitedly.

"The captain rarely battles openly!"

"We'll even do twenty laps if we can watch!"

Eventually persuaded by their enthusiasm, the squad leader relented. "Fine, twenty laps it is! Now let's go watch!"

Led by their leader, the firefighters hurriedly surrounded the battle arena.

Seeing the audience gather, Wang Yu quietly asked Guo Yi, "Teacher Guo, shall we send them away first?"

He fully expected victory and wished to save Guo Yi some embarrassment.

"No need," Guo Yi replied lightly. "This match will be over quickly. It won't disrupt their training."

His calm confidence startled everyone.

"Yongsen, your teacher's rather arrogant! Claiming to quickly finish off the captain!" someone teased.

Yongsen proudly smiled, "Just watch. The captain has no chance."

He knew the truth. How could the captain match someone capable of challenging Champions?

Hearing Yongsen's remark, Wang Yu grunted inwardly, determined to teach the kid a lesson. Originally intending not to humiliate his guest too badly, he now decided to use his strongest Pokémon.

Sorry, Teacher Guo—I'll apologize properly afterward!

Wang Yu tossed out a Pokéball, "Go, Swampert!"

A robust Swampert emerged proudly onto the field.

Guo Yi silently assessed its stats through his eyes:

[Swampert ♀, Lv69 (Pseudo-Elite Four)]

The surrounding firefighters gasped, recognizing their captain's seriousness.

"This is gonna be a one-sided massacre…" they murmured sympathetically.

But Guo Yi calmly released his own Pokémon:

"Go, Ninetales."

The elegant Ninetales appeared gracefully, surprising everyone again.

A Fire-type against firefighters? He must never have lost before!

Yet Guo Yi remained calm. "Captain Wang, please go first."

Seeing Guo Yi yield initiative despite the disadvantage stunned the onlookers.

"If you insist—Swampert, [Waterfall]!"

Wrapped in roaring currents, Swampert lunged.

"Ninetales, dodge and use [Hypnosis]."

Ninetales gracefully sidestepped the attack, gazing directly into Swampert's eyes. Instantly dizzy, Swampert collapsed helplessly, deeply asleep.

Shocked silence filled the arena as everyone watched the powerful Swampert effortlessly subdued.