Exhausted, Qu Suxin didn't care about her image at the moment. Looking at the steaming dishes, she directly grabbed a piece of braised pork with her hands and stuffed it into her mouth.
"Mmm~"
If she didn't have strong self-control, Qu Suxin would have burst into tears.
It was so delicious!
Qu Suxin dared to swear to Arceus that this was definitely the most delicious braised pork she had ever eaten.
After finishing the last dish, Lu Li brought over a bowl of rice: "Here."
Qu Suxin looked at her greasy fingers with some embarrassment.
"Do you have any tissues?" she asked, feeling a bit awkward.
Lu Li pointed to the box of tissues on the table.
Qu Suxin quickly pulled out a tissue to wipe the grease off her hands, then eagerly took the bowl of rice Lu Li handed her.
Already starving, Qu Suxin, like a Snorlax, kept stuffing rice and dishes into her mouth.
Lu Li, standing beside her, was dumbfounded.
This was the woman with the best appetite he had ever seen, without a doubt.
Wei and Yu Lili's appetites were nothing compared to Qu Suxin's.
Qu Suxin devoured eight dishes and most of a bucket of rice.
The most outrageous thing was that Qu Suxin's stomach seemed like a legendary dimensional stomach, showing almost no signs of bulging.
After wiping the grease from the corners of her mouth with a tissue, she explained in a serious manner: "Champion-level trainers have this good of an appetite."
What could Lu Li say?
He could only nod, indicating that he believed her.
After eating her fill, Qu Suxin finally started talking about serious matters.
"How long have I been asleep?"
Lu Li took out his phone to check, then explained: "About 10 hours."
"That's indeed a bit long," Qu Suxin said with an embarrassed smile.
Lu Li asked curiously: "But speaking of which, are Champion-level battles really that energy-consuming?"
Hearing this, Lu Li asked, puzzled: "Don't Champion-level trainers have very long lifespans?"
Qu Suxin sneered and retorted: "Champion-level trainers can theoretically live up to 500 years, but truly powerful trainers are considered long-lived if they reach 200. What do you think is the reason for that?"
Lu Li: "..."
Facts prove that theory and reality are always two different things.
The theoretical lifespan of humans is still 120 years, but in reality, living to 100 is already considered long-lived.
Qu Suxin took the opportunity to teach: "This is the destiny of trainers—burning themselves in battle. Training and battling are never just about the Pokémon."
Lu Li nodded.
Then, he searched for his own lifespan.
Qi Refining stage cultivators have a lifespan of around 200 years, and unless their lifespan is exhausted, their physical condition will always be at its peak.
Plus, with the bond between trainers and Pokémon, his theoretical lifespan should be 700 years after becoming a Champion.
Even if he burns his life force in the bond state, he'll still be able to live 200 years longer than normal people, and with 200 more years in his prime.
Thinking of this, Lu Li couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth slightly.
Is it great to have a cheat?
Sorry! Having a cheat is just this great.
After feeling pleased, Lu Li returned to the main topic: "By the way, can the artifact in Gardevoir's hands help her step into the realm of gods?"
Qu Suxin didn't answer directly but released Gardevoir from her Poké Ball.
"It can't. Unless I can obtain another Fairy-type Grade One artifact, I might only be able to stop here in this lifetime," Gardevoir replied through telepathy.
At this time, Qu Suxin also took the initiative to say: "Psychic-type artifacts aren't rare. I have two on me. I can give you more if you want, just to exchange for this crystal."
Lu Li: "???"
Lu Li looked at Qu Suxin in surprise.
Is this rich woman really that rich?
"Can you show me what the artifacts are?" Lu Li asked curiously.
Qu Suxin nodded and took off the necklace around her neck.
After handing the still-warm necklace to Lu Li, she explained: "It's these two scales."
Lu Li curiously took the still-warm necklace.
The chain of this necklace was made of a special metal, and it should be a particularly rare precious metal. The main value of this necklace should be the pendant.
The pendant was composed of two scales, one red and one blue, corresponding to the front and back respectively.
"Dragon-type and Psychic-type?" Lu Li looked at the two scales in some surprise.
Could they be the scales of the Latias and Latios?
Qu Suxin said quietly: "These are artifacts of a Grade Two God. I was used by the Alliance quite a bit for these two scales."
The Alliance really didn't treat people as people when they used them.
Back then, as a Elite Four-level trainer, she was active on the front lines of fighting criminals almost every day, and even nearly lost her life several times.
What a Elite Four-level trainer risked her life for two years to get was these two scales.
However, the adventure and sacrifice were worth it. With the help of these two artifacts, Gardevoir successfully broke through to the Champion level.
But now, these two artifacts no longer helped Gardevoir much.
Lu Li, who had activated his Immortal Spiritual Eyes, could even see the charm of laws and authority within them.
This meant that these two scales came from a mythical beast that possessed authority.
The items were indeed good items.
At least Deoxys's core didn't have any traces of authority.
"We can exchange them temporarily, but I might need to use these things in the future," Lu Li didn't want to exchange them directly.
Qu Suxin didn't object.
As a Champion-level trainer, she could also tell that her necklace was different from ordinary artifacts.
If it was a living Deoxys's core, Lu Li wouldn't exchange it no matter what, but he didn't care about a dead Deoxys's core.
Gardevoir was also very happy to hold the purple crystal ball, and her gaze towards Lu Li softened a lot.
"It's a pity that he's a bit young, otherwise, he would be quite a match for my trainer," Gardevoir thought with some regret.
Her trainer was already quite old and hadn't experienced the beauty of love. Recently, she even seemed to have some endocrine disorders. Gardevoir was also very worried that her trainer would live a lonely life.
Over the years, she had been looking for a partner for her trainer.
Unfortunately, there hadn't been any success.
Those with strength were too ugly, those with strength who were handsome were too old, and those with strength who were handsome and not old didn't look up to Qu Suxin, who was already quite old.
It was because of this that Qu Suxin had remained single until now.
After handing the necklace to the Aron next to him, Lu Li took the initiative to ask: "Shall we continue searching for Xerneas next?"
Qu Suxin nodded and explained: "The overlord of the Secret Realm has already warned Matt. He shouldn't dare to clash with me in the Secret Realm."
"Then what if we encounter wild Champion-level Pokémon?" Lu Li asked.
Hearing this, Qu Suxin rolled her eyes at Lu Li and retorted: "I'm not an idiot. Why would I provoke Champion-level Pokémon for no reason?"
Lu Li nodded, also feeling that he had overthought it.
Why would they provoke Champion-level Pokémon for no reason? Wouldn't that be asking for trouble?
Qu Suxin asked: "Which direction should we continue searching in next?"
"Allow me to calculate it with the Power of Ideals."
After saying that, Lu Li couldn't wait to take out the turtle shell.
The previous divination was quite good, and the harvest was indeed great.
Three Secret Treasures and a Grade One artifact—this harvest could be described as heaven-defying.
Having become a bit addicted, Lu Li couldn't wait for such good things to happen a few more times.
The ancient copper coins landed, and Lu Li looked at the divination results with a face full of anticipation.
The south was auspicious, and the east was ethereal.
There was no need to say more about auspiciousness. In this super-large Secret Realm, a divination image showing auspiciousness meant a harvest of at least multiple Secret Treasures.
As for etherealness...
It wasn't to say that going east would yield nothing, but the east might involve gods, so the divination image showed a void.
This was actually a method of elimination.
In this world, the only things he couldn't see through were mythical beasts, especially those that possessed divine authority.
In other words, going east was very likely to encounter a mythical beast with authority.
Lu Li was also a bit troubled.
Mythical beasts naturally represented unknown risks. If it were just him alone, Lu Li would definitely go south without hesitation.
Lu Li, who only wanted to play it safe, didn't want to take such an unknown risk.
But Qu Suxin was different. She came for Xerneas.
In this super-large Secret Realm, the only thing that might involve a god with authority was probably Xerneas.
Thinking of this, Lu Li decided to hand this difficult problem over to Qu Suxin.
"We're facing two choices now. Going south will bring a great harvest, but it probably won't be the artifact you're looking for. Going east involves unknown risks, but it's very likely to encounter Xerneas or something he left behind," Lu Li said, then asked.
"So, what do you choose?"
Qu Suxin also frowned and began to think.
After a moment, Qu Suxin, her eyes gradually firming, said, "We'll go east!"
According to the habitat rules of those mythical beasts, there should only be one mythical beast in a super-large secret realm.
Since going east might lead to a mythical beast, it could only be Xerneas.
And Xerneas, as a neutral and benevolent deity, wouldn't pose any danger to us even if we encountered it.
Lu Li glanced at the Teleportation Charm in his space ring and nodded.
Although there's some risk in this, it shouldn't be too great.
With the Teleportation Charm, preserving our lives shouldn't be too difficult.
Having made their decision, the two cleaned up their dishes and left the secret space created by Gardevoir.
"This skill is really convenient. Can you teach it to my Pokémon?" Lu Li asked directly.
Gardevoir, having just received a benefit from Lu Li, was naturally embarrassed to refuse.
Although Gardevoir is a wolf in sheep's clothing, it's not that black-hearted.
Lu Li had calculated this point precisely before shamelessly making such a request.
Guidance from a Champion-level Pokémon, even if it's not of the same type, can greatly benefit Metang and the others.
Of course, Beldum is the main student, and Charmander and the others can only be considered secondary.
Gardevoir proactively asked, "Where do we go and what do we do next?"
Having learned from the last experience, Gardevoir knows just how outrageous the power of ideals is.
Gardevoir can be said to have 100% trust in Lu Li's power of ideals.
"About 1400 kilometers ahead, we should be able to find a significant gain there," Lu Li said.
Gardevoir nodded.
Psychic power activated.
In the blink of an eye, the group arrived in a valley.
As soon as they appeared, Gardevoir exclaimed in surprise, "The life energy here is so rich."
Lu Li couldn't help but take a deep breath.
The life energy here is truly too rich, like immortal energy. Just taking a breath here feels like it can prolong life.
"Wait, there's a new discovery."
Gardevoir took the two and disappeared again, arriving in front of a rock wall.
On the rock wall, some regular carvings could be faintly seen. Seeing this, Lu Li quickly approached.
The rock wall was covered with moss. Qu Suxin reached out and brushed away the damp green plants, revealing the clear lines underneath—simple symbols arranged in neat patterns.
"This is..." Qu Suxin's voice trembled slightly.
As a Champion-level trainer who had explored many ruins, she immediately realized that these symbols were by no means naturally formed.
The carvings on the rock wall varied in depth, but each one showed obvious signs of artificial work, and in some places, traces of repeated tool polishing could be seen.
Realizing that she was getting closer and closer to a god, Qu Suxin continued forward along the rock wall. The road under her feet became increasingly difficult, with vines and bushes almost completely obscuring the path.
Worried about missing key clues, Qu Suxin didn't ask Gardevoir for help, but instead bent down and crawled through a low-hanging branch.
Suddenly, the scene before her made Qu Suxin hold her breath—an open space appeared before her, with large and small stones scattered on the ground, arranged in a large circle.
In the center of the open space stood a stone tree, about ten meters tall, its surface covered with symbols similar to those on the rock wall.
At the top of the stone pillar was carved a peculiar pattern, resembling a stag or a dazzling star crown.
Sunlight shone through the gaps in the leaves onto the stone pillar, and the ancient symbols seemed to glow faintly.
Qu Suxin carefully approached the stone pillar, her fingers gently stroking the uneven carvings. The surface of the stone pillar was cold and rough, with the texture of accumulated years.
Lu Li used his divine sense to scan the ruins in this valley from the inside out.
Good news, this is indeed a ruin, and a very ancient one.
Bad news, there are no special energy fluctuations inside this ruin, and even divine sense hasn't detected anything special.
"Wait a minute."
Lu Li suddenly looked at the stone pillar.
Why does this stone pillar look so much like Xerneas after it turned into a tree?
