Last time, Duke was poisoned by a Champion-level Poison-type Pokémon. Normally, he should have melted into a pool of blood on the spot, but he happened to be carrying the Ultimate treasure, Glossy Ganoderma, with him.

Because of that, his life was barely sustained, and in the end, Celebi intervened to save him.

'Celebi—' Julian’s eyes suddenly lit up. 'How could I have forgotten about it?!'

At the same time, John, reminded of Duke’s case, also thought of Celebi and immediately looked at Julian.

Pop!

As the Poké Ball opened, a chubby Celebi appeared.

With his grandmother’s life on the line, Julian didn’t care about hiding its presence from the others.

"Celebi, take a look at my grandma. Can you save her?" Julian asked urgently.

While in its Pokéball, Celebi had already understood the situation. Its small face turned serious as it nodded and flew over to Evelyn’s head.

The surrounding members of the Cavendish family stared in shock at the sudden appearance of Celebi.

Among Mythical and Legendary Pokémon, Celebi stood out as particularly special—because, like the First-class Legendary Dialga, it possessed the ability to travel through time.

That single ability alone made Celebi one of the most extraordinary Mythical Pokémon in existence.

For the Cavendish family members, this was their first time seeing a real Celebi, and they couldn’t help but marvel at how deeply Julian had hidden his capabilities—'he even has a Celebi?!'

"…Why does it look kinda chubby though?" one of the Cavendish family members muttered under their breath.

After two or three minutes, Celebi flew back to Julian’s side.

"Well?" Julian asked anxiously.

"The toxins have completely fused with her body," Celebi said. "I could use the same method as last time to remove the poison, but her body would collapse in the process."

"What?! Is the poison in Grandma even worse than Champion Duke’s?!"

Julian’s face was full of disbelief.

After all, his grandmother had only been poisoned by a Pseudo-Champion Pokémon, while Duke had been poisoned by a true Champion-level Pokémon. How could it be harder to cure now?

"Because Duke’s poison never fully merged with his body—something was blocking it," Celebi explained.

Julian immediately understood: 'It must have been the Glossy Ganoderma!'

It must have isolated the toxins before they could fully integrate, preventing Duke from dying instantly.

But in Evelyn’s case, she had been poisoned when she was young. Without full purification back then, the toxins had slowly melded with her body over the years.

The Glossy Ganoderma’s purifying effect could separate the toxins from her body, allowing Celebi to safely remove them afterward.

Which meant—the Glossy Ganoderma was now an unavoidable necessity. They had to find it.

"Grandpa, where can I find the Glossy Ganoderma?"

Since the national treasury once had it, there must be records of its origin.

"In the Hara Desert—that’s where they obtained it last time."

The Hara Desert, one of Drakoria’s Nine Forbidden Zones, was among the most treacherous. Compared to places like forests or lakes, the desert environment was far more hostile.

With endless sandstorms and near-zero visibility, wild Pokémon ambushes were a constant threat.

Among the nine forbidden zones, the Hara Desert ranked in the top three most dangerous.

"How long can Grandma still hold on?"

This was the most critical question.

If she only had a few days, he might not even reach the desert before she passes away.

"Three days," John said bitterly.

Julian felt his heart drop. 'Three days…'

That wasn’t enough time at all.

The Hara Desert was on the far western edge of Drakoria. Even if Dragonite flew day and night without rest, it would still take at least two days to get there.

Just as Julian was sinking into despair, Celebi spoke up:

"I can’t cure her, but I can delay the poison’s effects. I can buy you some time—but no more than half a month."

"Really?!" Julian’s eyes lit up.

Celebi crossed its arms smugly: "Of course!"

"Alright. That Lucario Collector’s Edition skin you’ve been begging for? Yours."

Celebi: "And 5,000 more V-points."

"Done," Julian agreed without hesitation.

Celebi was instantly delighted—Julian was now officially the best human ever.

Since no one else present had psychic abilities, they had no clue what Julian and Celebi were discussing. But they could see the color returning to Julian’s face.

"Grandpa, Celebi says it can buy Grandma two more weeks," Julian explained.

John’s shoulders relaxed slightly. "Then there’s still hope. I’ve already sent people to ask other major families if any of them have the Glossy Ganoderma."

A treasure this rare—even the national treasury had only one, and it had already been used—but there was still a chance some ancient family might possess another.

Still, John refused to rely solely on others. He looked at Julian and said: "My dear grandson, stay here and look after your grandma. I'm going to the Hara Desert now."

Only by acting from both ends, could they maximize their chances.

"No, Grandpa—let me go."

Julian stopped him.

If John went to the Hara desert to look for the Glossy Ganoderma, it would be tantamount to finding a needle in a haystack.

Finding treasures like the Glossy Ganoderma didn’t just require strength—luck was just as important.

And while Julian lacked luck, he had the Dowsing Machine. As long as the Glossy Ganoderma was somewhere in the desert, the Dowsing Machine would find it.

The real problem was… if it wasn’t there at all. That would be the worst-case scenario.

"But the Hara Desert has a late-stage Champion Tyranitar, and two early-stage Champion Sandlash and Hippowdon," John warned sternly. "Are you sure about this?"

Why were the Forbidden Zones considered "forbidden"?

It was not just the treacherous environments—these areas were home to wild Champion-level Pokémon. Each of Drakoria's Nine Forbidden Zones harbored at least one such powerhouse.

However, these Pokémon typically resided deep within the zones. As long as no one acted recklessly and went too deep, there was still some level of safety.

Of course, that was only true if your strength had reached the Elite-level. Otherwise, you could only wander around the outer areas.

"Grandpa, I'm more confident in finding the Glossy Ganoderma than you."

Julian naturally couldn’t mention the Dowsing Machine. As for the Champion-level Pokémon in the desert—he could handle the early-stage ones, but the late-stage Champion Tyranitar? That was a different story.

Still, the Glossy Ganoderma might not even be in their territories. It could be buried in some forgotten corner of the outer or middle zones.

Getting into a fight with a Champion-level Pokémon was just the worst-case scenario.

"Then I’ll wait here for your return."

John stared at Julian for a long moment, then gave a slow, heavy nod.

He trusted Julian wouldn’t make empty promises—not with his grandmother’s life on the line, so Julian must have his reasons and some way to find that treasure.

Julian’s uncanny secrets had always proven reliable. So, John chose to believe in him now.

"Take Metagross with you."

John handed over Metagross’s Poké Ball.

After all, Julian’s current strength was no match for a late-stage Champion Tyranitar. A safeguard was necessary.

"Mm."

Julian nodded and clipped the ball to his belt.

Metagross wouldn’t obey his commands, but it would protect him in a crisis.

*****

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