Everyone Else Awakened, But I Just Opened a Pokémon Pet Shop

"High-level power?"

Su Bai couldn't help but interrupt, "Isn't S-rank the limit for human Awakened?"

Zhu Jianyuan nodded. "S-rank is the classification humans created to cope with Death beasts."

"It's based on the kinds of Death beasts people typically encounter… but in truth, the world that humanity can currently access is only the tip of the iceberg."

"When we first mapped out the S-rank zones, beyond that boundary lies what we call a true Forbidden Zone."

"And the most powerful Death beasts in those zones… we call them Dominators."

"If we were to rank them, Dominator-class Death beasts would likely be on par with Sub-beast like Marlene."

"This world has three great forces—Sub-Beast, Death beasts, and humans… Humans may be the weakest of the three, but that doesn't mean someone like me, an S-rank, is the ceiling of our strength!"

Su Bai nodded thoughtfully. "I've heard a bit about that."

Unlike the tightly locked-down information about Sub-beast, the idea that S-rank wasn't the true limit was fairly common knowledge.

While it wasn't printed in any textbook, rumors about Forbidden Zone Dominators were practically urban legends. Not everyone believed them, but many had heard of them.

Zhu Jianyuan suddenly smiled. "Over the years, many human geniuses have emerged. And yes, there are individuals who can go toe-to-toe with Sub-beast."

"My clearance doesn't give me access to much classified intel…"

"But I do know a bit."

"In the Eastern Divine Federation, there's a secret organization dedicated to hunting down Sub-beast infiltrators like Marlene."

"They're few in number, but every member is unimaginably powerful."

"They take their names from the ancient Chinese zodiac."

"From the Rat, Ox, and Tiger, all the way to the Pig—those Twelve Zodiac members represent humanity's most elite force!"

"Speaking of which…"

Zhu Jianyuan glanced at Su Bai. "I wonder if your current strength already puts you on par with the Twelve Zodiac?"

"One reason I didn't want you heading to Kyoto… is because of that."

"You have that hidden class—Pokémon Tamer. It's incredibly powerful. But if the Twelve Zodiac decided to detain you… they probably could."

"And if I'm not wrong, your strength has increased rapidly in this short time. Especially those trees you summoned—not something the old you could've managed."

"Keep it up, Su Bai."

"As your strength grows, what's hidden will one day be revealed."

"The truth of the world only opens itself to the strong!"

Zhu Jianyuan's words plunged the room into silence.

Dong Feng gave a wry smile. "You really don't hold back, do you? If someone overhears this…"

Zhu Jianyuan chuckled. "So what if they do? Haicheng is basically the Federation's forgotten child—we mind our own business!"

"Your Boulder City is still playing nice with the higher-ups, but what good did it do? Did the Twelve Zodiac show up when Marlene attacked?"

"There are too few high-level human combatants. If we want to protect our cities… we can only rely on ourselves!"

His words struck a chord with Dong Feng.

He wasn't like Zhu Jianyuan—he'd never had any conflict with Kyoto.

But when Marlene attacked, he didn't see any Zodiac coming to save the day.

If not for Su Bai, Boulder City might've already been reduced to ashes.

He was momentarily speechless.

And as he fell silent, he couldn't help glancing at Su Bai with a strange expression.

Boulder City and Haicheng were neighbors… and Haicheng's newfound strength was all thanks to Su Bai.

Maybe he should take a few notes from their playbook?

Just then, Liu Yunlan's loud, carefree voice broke the tension.

"Whew~ This is too much! I don't really get it."

She shrugged both hands. "Zodiacs, Sub-beast, power levels above S… whatever!"

"Basically, we're just still too weak to be part of that world, right?"

"And it's all thanks to Su Bai that we even got to hear about this stuff!"

"So let's get stronger! Problem solved!"

"Infernape, we're awesome, aren't we?!"

She slapped her trusty partner, Infernape, on the back.

Infernape immediately struck a bodybuilder pose and gave her a big thumbs-up.

Next to him, Growlithe barked energetically.

Her words snapped everyone else out of their daze.

Even though Liu Yunlan was a bit… dense, she had a point.

"Yeah! It's not like these threats just popped up yesterday—they've been around for years!"

Wang Tao chuckled. "We're Trainers! Before I got Turtwig, I never dreamed I'd face an S-rank Death beast."

"Let's be real—even C-rank monsters used to beat me up!"

"But now? If I raise Torterra well enough, even Sub-beast and Dominators will get steamrolled!"

Pei Jingguo and Xiao Zhang exchanged glances and nodded.

"You're right. We're no longer just Awakened."

"With our Pokémon by our side, it's only a matter of time before we defeat even the strongest enemies!"

Ding Yue raised her hand, eyes shining.

"Exactly! Let them see what the bond between Trainers and Pokémon can really do!"

"Talonflame, we're ready for battle!"

In that moment, the room's somber mood was completely swept away by youthful passion.

As the very first Trainers from Su Bai's pet store, they weren't crushed by the weight of the truth.

Instead, they were filled with unshakable determination!

Their source of courage?

The Pokémon that fought alongside them and grew stronger with them!

If they'd followed the standard training route, they might've never learned any of these secrets.

But now, they were here—part of the world behind the veil.

That alone made them surpass countless peers.

The truth was heavy, but it couldn't crush them!

"Ah… youth," Dong Feng murmured, watching the passionate group of Trainers.

"I was like that once…"

Zhu Jianyuan grinned and clapped Dong Feng on the shoulder.

He looked at the Trainers with pride.

These kids came from his Haicheng.

And Zhu Jianyuan believed—their ambitions today would become reality.

Just a month ago, he would never have believed students like them could take on S-rank Death beasts.

Now, they'd not only done it… they were getting even stronger by the day!

"Pokémon really are changing the world," he said with a smile.

"Thank you, Su Bai."

Su Bai waved lazily from his hospital bed and slowly sat up.

"This is just the beginning."

"Damn it, now they've got me fired up too."

Stretching, he got out of bed and walked to the door.

"I've rested enough. It's time to head back to Haicheng."

"The berry crops are just about done. All that's left is to make the energy cubes."

"If all goes well… the first batch of Pokémon should be ready to descend."

"And besides… I want to check if Xiaofei's awake yet."

Originally, Su Bai had planned to sneak a bit more rest.

But then—just now—the progress bar in the corner of his eye for berry cultivation…

Silently ticked up to 100%!

With that, the major pieces of the world-building are now in place.

The next few chapters will shift focus back to the arrival of Pokémon!

The spotlight returns to Su Bai—and his mission.