Chapter 282: Heavy Tasks, Tight Schedule
"Ah?"
A flashing number appeared on the screen, momentarily blinding Kei Yoji's eyes.
"Over two million?"
Kei Yoji furrowed his brows as he stared at the massive number. Among the sea of three-digit and four-digit numbers, this one stood out like a beacon.
"Did Metagross make a mistake?"
The thought briefly crossed his mind but was quickly dismissed.
Impossible... Metagross doesn't make mistakes.
"Let's see which student managed this."
His curiosity piqued, Kei Yoji delved into the data transmitted by Metagross.
"Hikaru, Sakura..."
Seeing these two names, Kei Yoji wasn't overly surprised. After all, he had his suspicions earlier. No other freshmen could realistically achieve this level of performance.
Recalling the past, Kei Yoji felt a sense of satisfaction. Back then, it was a wise move to personally approach Hikaru and secure him for Central Youth University. Furthermore, the girl from the Ye family, originally set on going to North China University, ultimately chose Central Youth University as well.
Kei Yoji rubbed his temples, unable to suppress the smile on his face.
These two... not just this year, but in the coming years, they're sure to bring several championships to Central Youth University. Especially that Hikaru—his potential is vast, and he might even challenge national-level gym leaders and participate in the World Pokémon Championships!
"Let's see exactly what kind of Changchun Fruits they collected to reach such astronomical energy values..."
Just as Kei Yoji was about to check the details of their harvest, a note caught his eye. Curious, he clicked on it, and his face froze.
[Note: Additionally, there are 89 Changchun Fruits with a 154-year maturity. Due to Rotom's scanning limitation, these were manually recorded.]
"One hundred and fifty-four years?"
He couldn't help but mutter in disbelief. Clicking on the accompanying image, his once clouded eyes became clear and sharp. For the first time in over a decade, he let out a rare exclamation:
"Whoa!"
In the image, a pile of apple-sized, glistening red Changchun Fruits lay together, exuding an aura of immense vitality. Just as he was absorbing the shock, his phone rang.
Picking it up, he saw it was from the head of the Battle Studies Department.
Upon connecting, the other party went straight to the point.
"Headmaster Kei, we've got a situation. A freshman collected Changchun Fruits of an unusually high value."
Kei Yoji listened while glancing at the report. He couldn't help but smirk at the absurdity of it all. Those fruits alone were worth more than five billion.
But Changchun Fruits couldn't just be valued in terms of raw money. Their real value lay in enhancing the success rate of high-tier energy cube production and mitigating Pokémon's dietary restrictions.
If used wisely, the value could multiply dozens or even hundreds of times.
He suddenly had a thought:
"I hope that kid doesn't just let his Pokémon munch on them raw..."
The voice on the phone pulled him from his thoughts.
"What should we do?"
After a brief silence, Kei Yoji replied,
"Inform him of the fruits' uses and let him know that the school can arrange professional breeders to process them if needed."
"Understood."
After hanging up, Kei Yoji sighed deeply.
He never expected that besides the two million energy value, Hikaru would also collect so many century-old Changchun Fruits. Even the school's annual yield from the secret realm rarely exceeded two to three thousand such fruits.
And this kid alone gathered about one-twentieth of that...
"Well, it is what it is..."
Rubbing his temples, Kei Yoji couldn't help but feel both pride and headache over this unexpected windfall.
---
Back at Home
Just after Hikaru returned home and parted ways with Sakura at the entrance, his phone buzzed.
The number was from Kyoto, and he answered it without much thought.
"Hello?"
"Is this Hikaru?"
A gentle male voice greeted him, making Hikaru feel slightly puzzled.
"Yes, this is Hikaru. Who's calling?"
"I'm Qin Xiao, the head of the Battle Studies Department."
Hikaru's heart skipped a beat.
"Hello, Dean Qin."
The other end spoke in a calm, collected tone.
"It's about the Changchun Fruits you gathered during freshman training. Some of the fruits you collected are of extremely high value. Changchun Fruits are excellent for making balanced energy cubes. The school has several professional breeders who can process them for you at a reasonable rate. Would you be interested?"
Realizing the purpose of the call, Hikaru felt a sense of relief. At least they weren't trying to confiscate his hard-earned fruits.
"No need, Dean. I'm actually a breeder myself."
Qin Xiao paused, seemingly taken aback.
"A breeder? The fruits you collected require top-tier processing to fully utilize their value."
Hikaru chuckled lightly.
"Actually, I'm a top-tier breeder myself, and my teacher is Luo Qingfeng. If necessary, I can ask her for assistance."
The other end of the line went silent for a while before finally responding,
"I see... Apologies for the disturbance."
After hanging up, Hikaru let out a long sigh of relief.
"Master's name really does come in handy."
Looking at Latias, who was doodling on a notepad, Hikaru called out,
"Latias, I need to make some energy cubes. Do you want to come along or stay here?"
Latias stopped drawing, her crimson eyes blinking.
"Coming!"
With that, Hikaru grabbed the harvested Changchun Fruits and headed to the training room, Latias following close behind.
The task was heavy, and time was tight.
---
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