Passing through the "door," Roy stepped into the Spirit World for the first time in his life.
The air in the Spirit World was indeed a bit sweeter than the outside world, mainly because there was no industrial pollution...
Other than that, there wasn't much difference—just an ordinary forest.
Dragonite slowed its flying speed, careful not to disturb the forest ecosystem.
After flying for about three minutes, Roy saw the outline of a town. Several people were standing at the entrance, waving to him.
"Are you the tester this time?"
After Roy landed, a man wearing glasses approached to greet him.
The man looked slightly surprised. "So young... Hello, my name is Cole. You can just call me Uncle Cole."
Roy greeted him politely, then asked, "What do you mean by 'tester'?"
Hearing this, Cole smiled wryly. "As expected, Mr. Carter is still the same, leaving all the explanations to us."
"Never mind, we can talk as we walk."
Cole instructed some people to take care of Dragonite and personally led Roy into the town.
The architectural style of this small town differed from that of any other place on the planet. Some walls were peeling and old, while others had obviously been renovated. Roy vaguely felt that this small town seemed familiar, but couldn't remember where he'd seen it before...
"Is this a ruin from another world?"
"Yes." Cole nodded. "This Spirit World is one of the most important domains in China."
"The most important?" Roy guessed. "Are the Pokémon in this Spirit World rare?"
Cole shook his head. "The Pokémon species in this domain are actually quite common. There isn't even a single starter Pokémon here."
"The reason it's important is because this Spirit World hosts a—"
Seeing Roy's surprised expression, Cole smiled and continued:
"This Legendary has a very good relationship with China, allowing us to establish a presence in the Spirit World for research and training Pokémon. In return, we help maintain this town. Collecting 'trials' is also one of the requests made by this Legendary."
Roy thought of many game plots where divine tests required participants to risk their lives, with extremely dangerous trials.
No way—he just wanted to learn a mental training method.
"Don't worry, the trial isn't life-threatening," Cole explained. "Many testers have come over the years, and they all left safely even if they failed. I don't know the specifics of the trial... I heard from the previous town mayor that if you have psychic abilities, you have a high probability of passing."
"Young man, do your best. If you pass the trial, you can obtain the Infinite Calm Mind method."
"It's the top-tier mental power development technique."
Infinite Calm Mind method—Roy committed the name to memory.
'Now that I think about it, did Elite Carter choose me as a tester because they detected my aura abilities during the entrance exam?'
Carter himself wasn't psychic.
However, Roy found it hard to believe that a Psychic Elite would have no means to identify people with psychic potential.
While talking, they arrived at the fountain square in the center of the town.
Beyond the square was a clear lake, with a bridge leading to its center.
On the small island in the middle of the lake stood a temple-like building that caught Roy's attention.
"The Legendary is right there," Cole said, bowing respectfully.
Most people in China were pragmatic in their beliefs, only worshipping when it served a purpose, and Cole was no exception. His respect came from awe of powerful creatures rather than blind devotion.
Roy took a deep breath, stepped onto the bridge alone, and walked toward the temple.
Halfway across, a gentle spiritual energy suddenly emanated from the temple, caressing Roy's body softly.
Immediately, Roy faintly sensed a joyful emotion within the spiritual energy.
The next moment—
"BOOM!"
With a thunderous sound, the temple gates opened by themselves through some mysterious force.
Observing this from the square, Cole muttered to himself:
"He's passed the first stage of the trial... This kid is indeed psychic."
Walking into the temple, Roy didn't see any statue on the altar.
Of course... If the actual Legendary was present, there would be no need for a statue.
Roy looked around, hoping to see which Legendary Pokémon resided here. Soon, he noticed a figure emerging from the depths of the temple.
"A girl?"
Roy was taken aback.
The newcomer was a sweet-looking pink-haired girl who appeared a few years younger than him, perhaps just starting middle school.
A priestess? Or some kind of mystic?
As if aware of Roy's confusion, the pink-haired girl blinked, and her body suddenly began glowing.
Her form changed within the light.
She transformed into a Pokémon with a white upper body and red lower body. It had a streamlined form without feet but possessed arms. Jet-like wings extended from its back, with feathers reminiscent of elegant sails.
An incredibly peaceful aura surrounded the being.
Seeing this transformation, the Pokémon's name immediately came to Roy's mind.
—Latias.
A Legendary Pokémon of both Dragon and Psychic types.
Among all Legendary Pokémon, she wasn't considered the most powerful, ranking in the second tier.
According to Pokémon enthusiasts from Roy's previous life, Latias belonged to the group of "lesser Legendaries."
Upon recognizing Latias, Roy's first thought was...
"Where's Latios?"
Latios and Latias were a pair of twin Legendaries who had been together since birth and were rarely separated.
At that moment, a crisp female voice sounded directly in Roy's mind.
"Come with me."
Telepathy.
Roy set aside his questions and followed Latias deeper into the temple.
The temple was surprisingly vast. After walking about 300 meters, Roy reached its innermost chamber.
Upon entering, he saw an ancient altar at the far end with a crystal coffin approximately six feet long and wide resting on it.
Inside the coffin, a Pokémon slept silently.
This Pokémon looked almost identical to Latias, except for differences in size and color.
It was, unmistakably, the Latios that Roy had inquired about.
Latios appeared physically intact, but Roy couldn't sense any life force from it—as if he were looking at a preserved body...
"What happened to him?" Roy couldn't help asking.
"My brother is dead."
Latias's telepathic voice remained steady in tone, but Roy could feel a subtle sadness and loneliness behind it.
"Who killed him?"
Roy asked, mentally running through the list of more powerful Legendaries who might be responsible.
Rayquaza, Kyogre, Groudon, Dialga, Palkia, Necrozma...
Arceus!
There were too many temperamental Legendaries in the highest tier, all potential suspects!
"I don't know either," Latias replied, glancing back at Roy without hiding anything. "Before we arrived here, my brother went on a journey, and when he returned, he was in this condition. Then, our original world collapsed, and we came to your world..."
"After arriving in this world, my powers were enhanced, as were those of other Legendary Pokémon."
Roy understood this.
Pokémon weren't originally so powerful, but had lost some kind of limitation upon entering this world.
"You've been guarding your brother's body here since you arrived?" Roy asked gently. "I understand your deep bond, but since what happened can't be reversed, dwelling on the past won't help... It's been a hundred years. Don't you want to explore the outside world?"
Latias turned and gave Roy a surprisingly human-like smile.
"Thank you for your concern."
"But you misunderstand. Death is merely a state for beings like us."
"As long as my brother's power hasn't been lost, resurrection remains possible. I stay here to prevent others from taking his remaining power..."
Roy finally understood.
Essentially, Latios was dead but not completely gone—he could still be saved.
"To revive my brother, I need the help of a tester."