The Assessment Begins

During the daytime, the special training mainly focused on Ditto's resilience and the conventional training of Strength. Of course, there were also occasional teenagers coming to challenge Cain.

Although battles of this level were almost always instantly won by Cain without much practical significance, Cain didn't refuse. Ditto, unlike other Pokémon, needed a wide range of experience. Only by battling different Pokémon and transforming into various Pokémon could it enrich its combat experience, making it much easier to handle the same opponents in future battles.

Throughout the day, Raikou and Strength trained listlessly, occasionally sneaking glances at Cain.

Cain planned to return to Ecruteak a bit earlier since he still had some shopping to do.

Seeing that Cain was about to leave, Raikou became a bit flustered and hurriedly approached him.

"Um, Cain."

Raikou called out to Cain, who was packing up his things.

"What's up? What do you need?"

Cain continued to pack his things, knowing who it was without looking.

"About our agreement last night, it's still valid, right?"

Raikou had thought that Cain was just verbally threatening him last night, but now, facing the powerful Cain, he naturally had some doubts, since Cain seemed capable of breaking the agreement unilaterally.

Raikou hesitated, unsure of what to say, his expression awkward.

Cain knew that he already had Raikou under control, so he picked up his backpack, patted Raikou on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry. As long as you behave yourself, I guarantee you'll be able to complete your mission smoothly."

Although Raikou was far stronger than the average teenager, his mentality was not as mature as one might imagine.

Having said that, Cain mounted his bike and left without looking back.

Cain returned to Ecruteak City, bought two archery targets, and carried them back to his home.

Since he had already purchased Venipede, there was no rush to buy Skorupi. After all, once it was bought, he would have to take care of it, increasing his own burden. And his current cash was probably just enough to buy a single Skorupi.

In the evening, he continued the secret training for "Flying Dagger Technique."

Cain set up the two archery targets, stepped back five meters, and said to Ditto, "In a moment, you'll transform into a dagger. I will throw you at the center of the target. This requires us to be in sync and work together. This move will be of great use in the future."

Ditto nodded, turning into a dagger, which Cain gripped in his hand.

What was the purpose of practicing this move?

To launch a surprise attack. The future world was filled with danger, so they needed to be well-prepared. If they encountered a stronger enemy, they could only rely on sneak attacks on trainers. By cooperating with Ditto and accurately hitting targets within 20 meters, it would provide them with additional security.

A distance of five meters is still quite short.

Even so, after all, the coordination between Cain and Ditto wasn't very harmonious. They trained until 11 o'clock, constantly hovering around the seventh and eighth rings.

Haste makes waste.

The assessment in Ecruteak City would begin tomorrow, so Cain decided to rest.

Lately, he might have been a bit too eager for quick success. Cain felt a headache after taking a shower and tried to calm himself down while lying in bed.

"In the deep night, all insects are silent; the moonlight comes out of the mountain and enters the door."

It was too quiet. Thinking about how he had spent almost every day recently rushing around and busily working, as if trying to complete everything he had done in his previous life in sixty years all at once, he realized he should slow down. If any major mistakes occurred due to his eagerness, it would not be worth it.

Finally, he had a good night's sleep.

In the next day, there were so many people signing up for the Ecruteak Gym trainee program that Yan, having no other choice, had to use the school's conference room for the first written test.

Cain received the test paper and briefly looked at the questions.

80 points for multiple-choice questions, and 20 points for essay questions.

To Cain, these questions were child's play, but for normal seven- or eight-year-old children, they might not be so easy. Yan probably put so many multiple-choice questions to ensure the test wouldn't look too difficult.

Seeing most of the test-takers scratching their heads, Cain felt more confident. He accidentally noticed Raikou, who was answering the questions methodically without any hesitation.

He was indeed well-prepared.

Cain first completed the essay question, which was fairly standard and naturally about Ghost-type Pokémon, as it was Ecruteak Gym's specialty.

What are the similarities and differences among the three Pokémon, Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar?

Gastly can evolve into Haunter by gaining experience, and Haunter will evolve into Gengar under the influence of special radio waves (Since the communication-based evolution was published by Professor Oak about five years later, this is the only answer at the moment).

Gastly and Haunter have the Levitate ability, while after evolving into Gengar, it changes to Cursed Body.

When Gastly evolves into Haunter, their weight remains the same at 0.1 kg, but their size volume increases. When Haunter evolves into Gengar, its volume slightly decreases, but its weight undergoes a substantial change, reaching 40.5 kg or even heavier, more than 400 times that of Haunter.

Regarding this question, Cain couldn't figure it out for a long time. How could the weight of an entire evolution line of Ghost-type Pokémon change so much, especially when their sizes were almost the same? Where did the extra 400 times the weight come from?

Although Professor Oak later gave a certain explanation on this point, saying that it was a gene mutation caused by radio waves, it was somewhat far-fetched. How did Gengar evolve in ancient times when there were no artificial radio waves?

It was truly astonishing.

After answering all the questions and checking them again from the beginning to ensure there were no mistakes, Cain handed in the test. By this time, quite a few people had also handed in their papers. After all, most of the test was multiple choice questions, and it was indeed quick to complete.

Tomorrow morning, their test papers would be distributed at the Ecruteak City Gym, and the list of the top eight would be announced.

Cain left the school along with the majority of students.

Outside the school gate, a black sedan was parked. Seeing someone come out, the car window was rolled down.

"Can we get the test scores of these people?" asked a man wearing sunglasses in the passenger seat to the driver beside him.

"Mr. Kurosaki, the Gym Leader of Ecruteak City Gym Yan, is not easily swayed. I'm afraid it might not be possible," the driver said with some difficulty.

"No problem, won't the top eight be announced tomorrow? Send someone to keep an eye on all eight of them. Once we find someone who meets the cultivation standards of our Shadow Demon Corps, notify me immediately. We still haven't settled on next year's 100 recruits, and half of this year has already passed. We need to hurry up."

Kurosaki showed a worried expression.

"Please rest assured, Master. I will do my best for the Demon Corps. However, what about my antidote this year?" The driver showed a flattering smile.

"You will not be overlooked for this matter."