Pokémon: Chronicles of Freedom-Chapter 635 - 634: Marshtomp

Mudkip's light-blue body began to transform.

Originally standing at only forty centimeters tall, it started to grow visibly through the glow surrounding it.

The three yellow, whisker-like fins on its cheeks gradually fused into a single one.

The fins on its head and tail darkened, and the rounded fin on its head slowly transformed into a sharp spine-like structure.

Mudkip, which used to walk on all fours, began lifting its front legs, adopting a bipedal stance.

Its blue skin also began to change, blending shades of blue and green into a new color.

Beyond these basic changes, tiny vein-like patterns could be seen coursing through its body, as if searching for the most optimal place to settle.

Each time one of these veins integrated into Mudkip's body, the muscles in that area visibly strengthened.

This was the effect of the quality-enhancement potion Cain had prepared for Mudkip, and it was beginning to show results.

Cain observed Mudkip closely, not missing a single detail. This was his first time using a quality-enhancement potion, and the results on Mudkip would determine how he would use these potions on his other Pokémon.

The system was fully active, monitoring Mudkip's status in real time. All its values were steadily increasing, breaking previous limits.

This was the transformative power of evolution.

The evolution of a Pokémon always represents a drastic change.

Even a Pokémon of ordinary quality experiences a significant boost in physical strength and energy control upon evolving.

"It's almost done," Cain murmured softly.

"Mashh!"

Suddenly, Mudkip—no, now Marshtomp—let out a loud cry! The white light surrounding it disappeared, revealing a Marshtomp about seventy to eighty centimeters tall.

After its cry, Marshtomp collapsed onto the ground, visibly exhausted.

Cain quickly placed his hand on Marshtomp's body while the system evaluated its current status. He wanted to confirm whether the potion had produced the desired effect.

Pokémon: Marshtomp (Blue)

Gender: Male

Level: 16

Type: Water + Ground

Ability: Torrent freēwēbηovel.c૦m

Held Item: None

Egg Moves: Ancient Power, Bite, Ice Ball, Refresh

Basic Moves: Tackle, Growl, Water Gun, Mud-Slap, Foresight, Mud Shot

Learned Moves: Water Pulse, Aqua Tail, Icy Wind (taught by Weavile)

TM Moves: None

As Cain reviewed Marshtomp's information, he noticed that its quality had improved from light blue to blue, signifying a significant enhancement in its potential.

Furthermore, upon evolving, Marshtomp retained its Water typing while gaining the Ground type.

With its new Ground typing, Marshtomp now had a distinct advantage against Electric-type moves, which are usually devastating for Water-types.

It also gained increased resistance to Poison, Rock, Steel, and Fire types, with double resistance to some of these.

For Cain, the most exciting aspect of Marshtomp—and its final evolution, Swampert—was this unique typing.

The Water/Ground combination rendered Marshtomp and Swampert immune to Electric-type moves, a major weakness for Water-types.

In Cain's team, designed to take full advantage of rainy weather, Swampert would play a crucial role. Even without its Mega Evolution, its typing already made it incredibly versatile.

Cain stroked Marshtomp's head, noting its texture, which reminded him of the Slowpoke he once had.

Smiling, he said, "Congratulations on your evolution, Marshtomp! Now we'll work even harder to unlock your full potential."

"Mashh!" Marshtomp cried energetically, though it soon felt a bit weak again.

The quality-enhancement potion had worked remarkably well, improving Marshtomp's quality to blue, but the evolution process had also drained some of its energy, leaving it somewhat fatigued.

However, this wasn't a serious issue. With a few days of rest, Marshtomp would fully recover.

This minor side effect of the potion was negligible compared to the significant benefits it had brought.

With Mudkip's evolution and its quality improvement, Cain could clearly see the effectiveness of the potions.

The money spent on them had been a worthwhile investment.

"Rest well, Marshtomp. I'll give you two days off as a reward for being the first to evolve," Cain said, giving it a pat on the head as a gesture of praise.

The sensation of touching Marshtomp was genuinely pleasant, almost nostalgic.

After Marshtomp's evolution, the other Pokémon approached to congratulate it.

Honchkrow and the more experienced Pokémon offered brief congratulations before returning to their training. Having witnessed many evolutions and undergone the process themselves, they weren't overly surprised.

However, the younger Pokémon watched enviously, touching and admiring Marshtomp as they noticed the changes in its body.

Cain felt his shoulders lighten as the two small Swablu perched on him flew off to join Marshtomp's celebration.

They, too, were deeply intrigued by the evolution process. Although Altaria had cared for them meticulously and shielded them from hardship, they were gradually becoming curious about battles like Marshtomp's.

Whenever they played with Aron or Larvitar, they witnessed training sessions or battles, fueling their curiosity and admiration for combat.

Cain didn't have much to say about it. After all, the Swablu's mother was present and had promised not to restrict their freedom. He couldn't impose limits on them.

And most importantly, he wouldn't stand a chance in a battle against Altaria.

Altaria's strength remained considerable.

After a month of rest, Cain felt it was time to venture out again to continue training and improving his Pokémon's combat skills.

Staying at the gym only helped develop Marshtomp and Poliwag, but for Torchic and the others, progress was too slow.

In Cain's mind, Torchic would be the next to evolve.

It was already at level 14, just two levels away from its evolution.

Torchic had a dark blue quality, so Cain was very curious to see if the quality-enhancement potion, which required very expensive materials, would have a significant effect on it.

That evolution might be even more pivotal than Marshtomp's.

(End of Chapter)