"Excuse me, are you the Gym Trainer of this Gym?" Ye Feng walked straight in.
The pink-haired girl turned her head to look at Ye Feng. "Yes, my name is Xiao Qian, and I am indeed the Gym Trainer of this Gym."
"If I'm not mistaken, you are that Ye Feng, right?"
"Not bad, you look even better in person than on TV."
Ye Feng waved his hand. "Thank you for the compliment, you are also very beautiful."
"Alright, I'm here to challenge you."
"Challenge me?" Xiao Qian put her hands on her hips, her face full of confidence.
"Don't you just want a Gym Badge? I'll just give it to you."
After Xiao Qian spoke, she took out a badge from her pocket. It was a formal badge. She threw it directly to Ye Feng.
Ye Feng took the formal badge, a bit bewildered. Because he saw Xiao Qian's confident expression, a hint of the female version of Ash Ketchum. He figured this girl would probably want to battle him.
"Are you surprised?" Xiao Qian still had a confident smile. She was truly captivating.
"A little. After all, when I was in Goldenrod City, Asuka from the Goldenrod Gym said that all the Gym Leaders in the Johto region would target me, obstruct my progress, and make me fight tough battles."
"Oh? You mean Asuka? That bird-brain?" Xiao Qian said dismissively. "He told all of us other Gym Leaders beforehand, but if you know you're not a match, why still fight? Isn't that a waste of time?"
"Being a Gym Leader is very tiring."
"Already so tired, and then to deal with a battle you know you'll lose, it's quite annoying."
"Alright, here's the badge. I wish you luck in collecting all your badges and participating in the Silver Conference. I'll cheer for you!" Xiao Qian gave Ye Feng an encouraging look.
Ye Feng found this type of girl quite rare. The female Ash Ketchum vibe was becoming stronger.
Since he had already obtained the Gym Badge here, Ye Feng didn't linger in Goldenrod City. After leaving Goldenrod City, he summoned his Rayquaza and took flight. Ye Feng's travel was simple; when he got tired of flying, he would land and walk.
The Johto region, like the Kanto region, only requires collecting eight badges. Currently, Ye Feng had three and needed five more.
"However, at this pace, Ash won't be able to participate in the Silver Conference this year." Ash was still in the Orange Islands, living his life. He definitely wouldn't be able to participate this year. Gary also didn't plan to participate this year. He was overconfident at the Indigo Plateau Conference and was defeated by Jimmy. Although he didn't say anything on the surface, he was inwardly very frustrated. He originally planned to research Pokémon with his sister in New Bark Town and train himself, but because Ye Feng's actions spurred him on, he changed his plans again and decided to participate in the Silver Conference. Unfortunately, he would be spurred on by Ye Feng again this year.
After leaving Goldenrod City, the next stop was Ecruteak City. It was completely different from Goldenrod City. Goldenrod City was about technology and economy, a modern city. Ecruteak City, however, had an ancient style, full of antique charm. The city's architecture was all in ancient styles, traditional buildings. But these were not the most attractive aspects. What drew most people in was the burned-down Bell Tower in the city. Hundreds of years ago, Ho-Oh resided at the top of the tower. But because certain people at that time wanted to control Ho-Oh and obtain immense power, the Bell Tower caught fire. Ho-Oh, extremely disappointed with humans, left and never appeared before them again. In that great fire, three Pokémon died. Ho-Oh, pitying them, resurrected them and bestowed them with great power. This was the origin of Entei, Suicune, and Raikou.
Ye Feng traveled from Goldenrod City on Rayquaza, without much delay, and arrived at this ancient city. As he entered the city, he saw many people wearing ancient clothing. Everything looked ancient. Ye Feng's primary destination was the Gym here.
As he was on his way to the Gym, a middle-aged, fat uncle blocked his path. "Hey, young man! You have a remarkable bone structure. How about I sell you this treasure detector, huh?!" The fat uncle wore a ridiculous outfit. In his hands, he held two metal rods at a perfect 90-degree angle. "Only 1000 Yen! What do you say?! I guarantee you'll find treasure! Get rich quick!"
Seeing that Ye Feng had no reaction, the fat uncle was about to speak further. Then he heard Ye Feng say, "If I buy your so-called treasure detector and don't find any treasure, rest assured, no matter where you run, I will hunt you down and kill you." Ye Feng's tone was casual, but the sharp aura emanating from him made the fat uncle cower and quickly slip away. Ye Feng looked at the fat uncle and sneered. He had seen many such people; they were all tricksters who preyed on outsiders.
"This place? Is this the Ecruteak Gym?" It was different from what Ye Feng had imagined. It was a large wall enclosing a circle. A very, very large circle. From afar, one could see two towers within the circle. One on the left, one on the right. One was burned, and the other was new. Ye Feng pushed open the large gate and walked in. Directly ahead was an ancient building. Above it were the words "Ecruteak Gym." Ye Feng walked in and found no one, so he came back out. His gaze turned to the tower on the left. This was the Bell Tower where Ho-Oh had resided. The tower on the right was a new one built by people to commemorate and as a warning.
Ye Feng walked into the burned tower. The Burned Tower was ten stories high. From the outside, it looked dilapidated, with scorched black marks everywhere. He pushed open the door and entered. The interior environment was the same. Fortunately, the damaged walls around the tower allowed sunlight to filter through, making the vision clear. Ye Feng was on the first floor and was about to ascend to the second when suddenly, a large fire ignited beside him.
"Huh? Fake?" Ye Feng was unmoved because he noticed that the fire that suddenly erupted beside him, though appearing fierce, had no heat. As expected, seeing Ye Feng's lack of reaction, the sudden, strange fire disappeared. It was replaced by Pokémon with round heads, dark black bodies, and gas swirling around them. They were Gastly. The fire just now was caused by these Gastly.
At this moment, footsteps were heard from the stairs connecting the second and first floors. Ye Feng looked over. It was a young man about his age. He was dressed fashionably, wearing a loose blue t-shirt and a blue bandana. As he descended, he said, "It's alright, those Gastly are just playing with you."
"I am Morty, the Gym Leader of Ecruteak City Gym."
"Hello, my name is Ye Feng." Ye Feng introduced himself.
Morty said, "Oh, so you are that Ye Feng. Seeing you is even more impressive than hearing about you. I've heard a lot about you." Morty walked up to Ye Feng. "I know why you're here. If you want to challenge me, please follow me." Morty led the way out of the burned tower, heading towards the Gym.
As Ye Feng was about to leave, he sensed a pair of eyes watching him from behind. He turned around and saw that among the dozens of Gastly, there was one Gastly that was entirely white.