Chapter 2: The Extraordinary Emerald and the Visitor

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The so-called Ultimate Emerald is actually a fan-made modification based on the original Emerald version. It adds many Pokémon and maps from later generations, alters some storylines, and is considered a masterpiece among fan-made games.

The difficulty of this game is several times that of the original Emerald. Each NPC possesses highly intelligent AI, capable of judging their actions based on the player’s team and Pokémon status. They perform advanced tactics such as switching Pokémon for linked defense, finishing moves, and using healing items—sometimes even smarter than real players!

Moreover, due to level restrictions in the game, players find it hard to overcome opponents by simply overpowering them with higher levels. Many players get stuck when first encountering this mod and need to consult guides just to pass certain stages.

The “Madman Mode” is a hidden difficulty setting in this game—aptly named, it’s essentially a hellish challenge, brutally tough and mentally taxing!

On top of this Madman Mode, Ling Feng has his own ideas, like further increasing the difficulty of levels and using the system to continuously enhance NPC AI intelligence, enabling even more flexible battle strategies.

After all, this is a world full of Pokémon and trainers everywhere; if the game’s challenge isn’t increased, it would be far too easy for some players.

Currently, Ling Feng’s main purpose in developing this game is to make it challenging… or rather, to increase the difficulty for players.

So, a simple mode will have to wait for another time.

With this thought, Ling Feng opened his folder and silently proposed several ideas in his mind.

“System, can these be implemented?”

[Yes. Should I start production immediately?]

Ling Feng nodded.

“Begin.”

...

According to Ling Feng’s original expectations, having the system should increase his game development speed by dozens of times.

Indeed, his efficiency improved dramatically.

But to realize some of his ideas and improve the game’s quality, he spent an entire night making modifications and adjustments.

Before he realized it, the whole night had passed.

Morning sunlight poured through the window as the city awakened in the dawn.

Ling Feng made the final edits to the game’s name and description, dragged the folder onto the webpage, took a deep breath, and clicked the upload button.

This time, there was no glaring red warning—only four green characters appeared: “Upload Successful”!

He exhaled deeply, drew the curtains, left the computer on, and collapsed onto the nearby bed, falling asleep instantly.

After a night of hard work, he was truly exhausted. Although staying up late was routine for him in his previous life, his body in this world seemed much weaker. Now, he really couldn’t hold on any longer.

If he didn’t sleep immediately, he feared a second time slip might occur.

I must sleep right now.jpg.

Seconds later, his eyes closed, his breathing steady in the room.

But just then, from behind the curtain’s shadow, a figure suddenly slipped out.

In appearance, it resembled a white candle, with a pair of dark green, large eyes and a flickering deep blue flame atop its head—strange and bewitching.

Upon closer inspection, the flame seemed weak, as if about to extinguish.

This was a Ghost-type Pokémon, Litwick.

Despite its cute appearance, it is a Pokémon that consumes the souls of other living beings!

It lights a candle on its head to pretend to guide passersby, but in truth, it quietly absorbs their souls...

At this moment, Litwick looked around the room in confusion, shaking its body slightly.

So hungry...

I wish there was something to eat...

In the next instant, its gaze locked onto the sleeping Ling Feng, eyes shining brightly.

This person’s scent...

So fragrant, so delicious!

If I only took a little soul, it shouldn't hurt, right?

Then... just a little nibble?

...

Today was Saturday. According to the League’s laws, most people were off work except those in service industries.

In this world where entertainment industries were underdeveloped, watching live streams was a popular way for people to pass the time.

At this moment, on QuackDuck—the largest live streaming platform—a long-dormant channel quietly reopened.

In the next moment, a flood of users rushed into the stream, the online count instantly surpassing 100,000!

“Here she comes! My wife is here!”

“Ahhhh finally live streaming!!”

“Wow! Early bird gets the worm!”

...

Amid the flood of enthusiastic messages, the live stream showed a computer desktop with a wallpaper featuring a fierce Garchomp in battle.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, a woman sat before that very computer.

Tall and graceful, she exuded a natural aura of warmth, though a closer look revealed an underlying confident presence.

Her gray eyes were deep and serene like a quiet lake.

Her knee-length blonde hair, like flowing creamy silk, shimmered alluringly in the sunlight.

This woman was none other than the strongest champion of the Sinnoh League, the legendary trainer at the pinnacle of strength: Cynthia!!

At this moment, Cynthia turned on her camera and smiled warmly at the viewers.

“Good morning everyone. The League has no tasks today, so I finally have time to see you all.”

“Did you miss me? Because I missed you all very much.”

With her appearance, the chat exploded again, and the viewer count soared.

“I missed you too, babe!!!!”

“She asked if I missed her—she’s thinking of me!”

“I was supposed to work overtime today, but when I heard you were streaming, I quit my job immediately.”

“I rode my bike three hours from my village to the town internet cafe just to watch your stream.”

...

Cynthia smiled softly, amused by the lively chat.

“You all are as entertaining as ever.”

“Alright, it’s rare to have a whole day to stream—what do you want to see me play?”

Her question triggered the chat’s response.

“Nana, I’ll watch whatever you play!!”

“Battle Road? Watching you play that teaches me so much.”

“Why not play something else? I’m tired of that.”

“To the person above—if not Battle Road, then do you want to watch that trash game where Geodude rolls on the street?”

...

Most messages supported Cynthia playing “Battle Road.”

Seeing this, Cynthia nodded and opened a Poké Ball icon on her desktop.

“Then Battle Road it is.”

Battle Road is a simulated battle game launched six months ago by Dream Factory.

Though its features were incomplete and riddled with bugs, and updates over the past six months had been quite lazy, this game allowed players to freely build teams and engage in realistic battles with others—a revolutionary game with unmatched competitiveness on the market.

Despite players’ complaints and dissatisfaction with Dream Factory, there was no alternative, making it a nationwide phenomenon.

From ordinary people to Elite Four and champions, everyone played it.

Choosing this game to stream wasn’t just because the chat wanted it, but because even as champion, Cynthia could conveniently experience and understand new Pokémon and teams to improve her battle knowledge.

However, as Cynthia opened the game to log in, she froze.

A message appeared before her eyes:

[Critical server error: Unable to connect!]

At once, disgruntled messages filled the chat.

“Damn, Dream Factory slacking off again.”

“Classic server crash. They make so much money every year but can’t even spend a tenth on server maintenance.”

“mgcsml”

“Well, no battles to watch today...”

...

Dream Factory’s servers were notoriously poor—everyone knew and had grown accustomed to it.

Cynthia merely frowned slightly and closed the game.

“Looks like we can’t play that today. Any other suggestions?”

Though she had lost some enthusiasm, Cynthia smiled gently, mindful of her many viewers.

“Angry Rocks!”

“Pikachu Legends!”

“Why not watch a movie?”

...

The chat erupted with suggestions again.

At that moment, a paid red message caught Cynthia’s attention.

This was from a longtime viewer who regularly gifted millions in donations.

[“Fish-Loving Cat”: Nana, the League’s official website seems to be promoting a new game festival. Maybe you should check it out?]

As the world’s internet organizer, the League naturally oversaw gaming culture matters.

Cynthia noticed an ad for the New Game Festival right beside her stream interface.

She clicked it casually to explore.

She wanted to see if there were any new games worth playing.

What she found was disappointing—mostly clichéd, low-quality games, including three reskins of “Angry Rocks” with Geodude replaced by Wynaut, Magnemite, and Miltank.

Just as Cynthia felt a bit let down, one game cover suddenly caught her eye, making her eyes widen.

Amidst a hazy mist, the silhouette of a massive dragon appeared, accompanied by shining golden symbols.

Even through the screen, one could vaguely sense the solemn and powerful aura emanating from this shadow!

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Impossible...

Cynthia was stunned.

She recognized the silhouette instantly—it was a legendary Pokémon!

The legendary sky ruler, the dragon god, Rayquaza!

She knew about Rayquaza because, as champion, she had access to numerous information channels and was also a mythology archaeologist.

Ordinary people knew nothing of such top-tier legendary Pokémon—their tales had vanished for centuries.

Even the last ancient text recording Rayquaza’s information had turned to ashes in a great fire.

Yet now, its image appeared on a game cover?

Could it be a coincidence?

This thought flickered momentarily but was immediately dismissed by Cynthia.

No, absolutely impossible!

Before the text was destroyed by fire, she had the fortune to glimpse its contents, and the description of Rayquaza’s appearance matched this silhouette perfectly!

Her gaze fell upon the game developer’s name—just a single character:

[Wind]

As champion, she had never heard of anyone by this name; it seemed like an alias.

She took out her phone to search for the game publisher’s information, only to find no contact details, not even a company—just an individual developer.

This complicated matters...

Originally, Cynthia wanted to contact the developer directly to inquire about Rayquaza.

But now, since the developer was an individual with no contact info, even using the League’s connections might not yield results.

Most importantly, her friend who was good at finding people had been unreachable lately...

As Cynthia pondered, she instinctively began examining the game itself.

The game’s title caught her eye:

“Pokémon: Emerald (Beta)”

What kind of name was this?

Completely unlike any other game on the market.

Moreover, the game’s style was pixel art.

This category was often associated with low quality and low tech—cheaper to produce, resulting in many shoddy titles designed just to make quick money.

She read the game description, which contained no flashy info, just a simple sentence:

“Encounter and nurture different Pokémon, form your team, and embark on a wondrous adventure.”

Beneath this sentence were two lines of small red text.

The first read:

“Warning! Non-professional trainers are prohibited from playing this game! Otherwise, high blood pressure, heart disease, cerebral hemorrhage, and other adverse effects may occur. The game bears no responsibility!”

Seeing this, Cynthia’s delicate brows lifted slightly in surprise.

High blood pressure? Heart disease?

Just playing a video game could cause such serious issues?

That sounded a bit exaggerated...

She then looked at the second line of red text:

“The first player to complete this beta version can use the friend code obtained to add the developer’s contact information and receive a 100,000-yuan reward.”

Cynthia’s eyes sharpened instantly.

Contact information!

She didn’t think this game itself was anything special—at least not comparable to Battle Road.

She, as a champion, certainly didn’t lack this small sum of money.

But if finishing the game meant getting the developer’s contact info...

She had to play it.

Since the developer could so precisely recreate Rayquaza’s image and symbols, he was no ordinary person!

He might hold more secrets about Rayquaza!

As a mythology enthusiast, Cynthia could not afford to miss such information!

With this thought, she added the game to her cart and clicked purchase.

But the next moment, the payment screen that popped up stunned her again!

“Purchase Pokémon: Emerald (Beta) for 288 yuan. Confirm?”

288 yuan??

Even for major games, she had never heard of a price over a hundred yuan...

And this pixel art game dared to charge nearly three hundred??

Even the usually composed Cynthia found this a bit much.

Though she wasn’t short on money.

That price... wasn’t it a bit too excessive?

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