After the evolution of Slowbro was complete, Yuga prepared to help another Slowpoke evolve into a Slowking.
To evolve into a Slowking, the Slowpoke needed to wear the King's Rock and then trade with a Shellder.
So, Yuga handed the King's Rock to the Slowpoke and went to the Pokémon Center to ask for Joyka's help, giving her the Poké Ball containing the Shellder.
Yuga returned to the Gym and stood in front of the Gym's Pokémon Trade Machine.
Yuga and Joyka placed the Poké Balls containing Slowpoke and Shellder respectively on the Trade Machine simultaneously.
After the transfer was complete, if successful, Joyka would receive an empty Poké Ball, and Yuga would receive the Slowpoke wearing Shellder on it head.
After a burst of light on the Trade Machine, Yuga received a new Poké Ball.
Carefully, he opened the Poké Ball, and a red light flashed as the Pokémon inside was released.
It was a Slowpoke with a Shellder clamped onto its head.
Soon after, both Pokémon emitted a light of evolution, and the evolution process began.
Slowpoke, which was on all fours, transformed into a bipedal stance. Shellder's body gradually formed into a crown, firmly resting on Shellder's head.
When the light of evolution dissipated, a lively Slowking stood before Yuga.
Throughout the entire evolution process, Yuga followed the instructional video meticulously, and the evolution was a great success.
Moves: Heal Pulse, Power Gem, Hidden Power (Ice), Curse, Yawn, Water Gun, Confusion, Disable, Water Pulse, Trick, Calm Mind, Psyshock, Psychic, Scald, Block.
Just like Slowbro, after fusion evolution, Slowking's potential improved slightly, but not significantly.
However, Yuga felt that his Slowking's expression seemed even more intelligent than the Slowking shown in the instructional videos.
During Slowbro's evolution, it was hard to tell due to its inherently drowsy appearance. However, Slowking, which appeared more intelligent, made it evident.
Yuga's Slowking stood with its hands behind its back, looking at him with intelligent eyes, exuding an air of calm confidence.
Slowking belongs to the category of Royal Pokémon.
It is said that within a Slowpoke group, there can only be one Slowking, and Slowking holds an absolute leadership position within the group.
This is quite similar to the status of a Vespiquen within a Combee colony.
The difference is that a Combee's group is mostly composed of her offspring, while a Slowpoke group consists solely of other Slowpoke.
Could it be that after a high potential Slowpoke and a high potential Shellder fuse and evolve, their greatest enhancement is their intelligence?
The more Yuga thought about it, the more he felt this might be the case.
Higher intelligence implies greater understanding, although a Pokémon's understanding is greatly influenced by its potential. Still, there are exceptions.
For example, Solidad's Butterfree, despite having a green potential, it possesses intelligence far superior to its peers.
Yuga believed that his Slowbro and Slowking might have a similar situation.
Of course, it was difficult to discern from Slowbro's appearance alone.
However, the definition of intelligence here was not equivalent to IQ, but rather closer to perceptiveness.
Because Psychic-type Pokémon generally had high intelligence, like Metagross, Alakazam, Oranguru, and Slowking, their intelligence was higher than that of ordinary humans.
Especially Slowking, which had the title "the Sage of the Sea."
Even Slowbro, though it appeared sluggish, wasn't truly slow; it's like Payduck who was simply suppressed by the overwhelming psychic power within its brain.
This fact was evident in how precisely they executed a Trainer's commands during battles.
So, intelligence and understanding were distinct, much like a physics genius not necessarily being proficient in philosophy.
After the successful evolution of Slowking, Yuga returned it to the Ecopark.
Lying by the shore of Lake Verity, the Slowbro, lost in thought, finally showed a hint of emotion on its typically blank face when it saw its companion return. It was a feeling of joy.
Even after the evolution into Slowking, its appearance had changed, but Slowbro could still recognize its close friend, who it had spent so much time with.
Yuga thought to himself that perhaps he could indeed raise a group of Slowpoke, with Slowking as their leader. It should be manageable.
Moreover, Slowpoke, as Water and Psychic-types, were quite versatile.
However, Yuga knew that daily training for Slowpoke would require careful planning. As far as he knew, there were only two trainers who excelled at training Slowpoke.
One was Lorelei, one of the Elite Four in the Kanto region, and the other was Will, one of the Elite Four in the Johto region. Both of them had Slowbro in their main teams.
Lorelei specialized in Water-type Pokémon, while Will focused on Psychic-type Pokémon, so their strengths were different.
However, Yuga found Slowpoke quite adorable. Its blank expression, plump and soft body, exuded a unique cuteness.
But for now, Yuga could only think about it. While Slowpoke wasn't particularly rare, it wasn't something you could find everywhere.
Especially Slowpoke with good potential were even rarer.
Most Slowpoke in the Slowpoke breeding farms weren't of high potential. After all, high potential Slowpoke's Tail no more delocious than the low potential Slowpoke's tail. On the contrary, the cost cultivating high potential Slowpoke is much higher.
If they were bred solely for food production, those breeding farms would have gone bankrupt long ago.
Furthermore, who would be willing to send high potential Slowpoke to a breeding farm? Wouldn't it be better to evolve them into Slowking or Slowbro, which were more prestigious?
So, Yuga's idea of introducing Slowpoke would have to be put on hold for now.
After leaving the Ecopark and returning to his Store, Yuga was preparing for something when he saw the Persian walking in with a dirty Meowth in its mouth. Behind it were its three wives.
It seemed like they had just returned from patrolling outside.
The Persian placed the Mewoth it was carrying right in front of Yuga and let out a series of "Persian, Persian, Persian" sounds, as if telling Yuga something.
"Is it injured?" Yuga asked the Persian.
The Persian nodded and pushed the Meowth closer to Yuga, as if asking him to take care of it.
Yuga chuckled, "I never thought the Persian, who usually acts like a thug, would be so caring."
Could it be that it saw this Meowth and was reminded of its past self?
He picked up the Meowth from the ground, ready to examine it. However, the Meowth seemed a bit frightened of him, both in its eyes and actions, trying to avoid him. But with a stern gaze from the Persian, it immediately settled down.