Chapter 132 — The Old Black Crow, Honchkrow, and Murkrow (Please Subscribe!)

"Honchkrow?" Tongsi murmured.

"That's right. You saw the Honchkrow in the painting outside, didn't you?"

Tongsi nodded. He had always felt that particular Honchkrow looked larger than the ordinary ones.

"That Honchkrow was one of the Pokémon hailed as a hero back then," Bai Chen continued. "The Honchkrow led a flock of Murkrow to defeat that gigantic Pokémon together."

Hearing this, Tongsi recalled the information he knew about Honchkrow. According to the basic knowledge of Pokémon in this world, if a Honchkrow calls out in a low voice, Murkrow will immediately gather, which is why they are known as the Summoners of the Night.

He understood the logic, but something felt wrong. That happened three hundred years ago! Back then, the species Honchkrow did not even exist! According to the textbooks Tongsi had studied, Honchkrow were first discovered only a little over a hundred years ago and were classified as rare Pokémon. If the Old Man of the Crows had a Honchkrow back then, wouldn't that mean the discovery of the species should have been dated to over three centuries ago? Why hadn't the Pokémon League corrected this? Was there something they were trying to hide?

Furthermore, while Honchkrow could lead large flocks of Murkrow, it was only confirmed to be the evolved form of Murkrow a little over a decade ago. It was only after a miner unearthed a Dusk Stone that the League officially certified the evolutionary link. Before that, Honchkrow were simply considered rare Pokémon, and Murkrow were thought to be incapable of evolution. The appearance of the Dusk Stone changed that. However, because Dusk Stones are so scarce, even though the League removed Honchkrow from the rare category, they remain incredibly difficult to encounter in reality.

Returning to the topic at hand, the Honchkrow led a massive flock of Murkrow to defeat a large Pokémon referred to as "the demon." Tongsi subconsciously concluded that this large Pokémon was likely of the Ghost type. Dark-type Honchkrow and Murkrow would have a type advantage against Ghost-type Pokémon.

"So, the person in the painting outside is the Old Man of the Crows, and the Honchkrow and the other five Murkrow were his Pokémon?" Tongsi asked.

"Exactly! After the Old Man of the Crows, along with his Honchkrow and five Murkrow, led a vast flock to defeat that 'demon,' they sealed it here. Later, to prevent the 'demon' from awakening, this Seven-Crow Tower was built. To the public, the Pokémon League claimed it was to honor the military exploits of the Old Man and his six Pokémon, but in reality, it was to suppress the 'demon' and keep it from waking," Bai Chen explained.

Hearing this, Tongsi gained a general understanding of the history of the Seven-Crow Tower. As it turned out, the tower existed solely to seal a gigantic Pokémon. Thinking back to the "demon" mentioned by the old man he met earlier, it seemed that the entity was real, just that the "demon" was, in fact, that giant Pokémon—likely, as Tongsi suspected, a Ghost-type. These were all the clues he had gathered so far.

"Then, why was the Seven-Crow Tower destroyed thirty-one years ago?" Tongsi asked again.

"I don't know, or rather, no one knows. The tower was destroyed overnight, and all those who were present and knew the truth died. Even those who tried to explore the ruins afterward were found dead in the streets, having suffered miserable ends," Bai Chen replied honestly, hiding nothing. From his words, it was clear that at least half of what the old man they encountered earlier had said was credible.

"Alright, one last question: have you been investigating this tower for a long time? You even knew about this secret room," Tongsi said, looking at Bai Chen.

"You could say that. Some time ago, flocks of Murkrow launched surprise attacks on the city, and I was sent by the Pokémon Association to investigate. But every time I was about to catch up with them, a violent gale would blow, and the flock would vanish. After this happened a few times, I locked my target onto this tower. I had snuck in before, and by accidentally bumping into a candle outside, I discovered this room. I searched it for a long time but didn't find anything unusual."

"What about upstairs? Since you've been investigating for so long, haven't you gone to the seventh or eighth floors?" Tongsi asked, unable to understand why Bai Chen wouldn't investigate the upper levels, given how strange they were.

Bai Chen fell silent. After a moment, he said slowly, "I couldn't."

"?"

"The seventh floor is an illusionary space! If I hadn't pulled you back just now, you would have fallen into it."

"An illusionary space?" Tongsi was bewildered again. Could it be that all the sounds he had heard earlier were illusions?

"Tongsi, this Seven-Crow Tower is extremely sinister. Every time I reached the seventh floor, I fell into an endless void of illusions. When I woke up, I would be back at the base of the tower, and three days would have passed! In other words, every time I step onto the seventh floor, I am trapped in an illusion for three days."

"Illusions, huh?" Tongsi rested his chin on his hand. This was certainly hard to believe. Of course, many Ghost or Psychic-type Pokémon were indeed capable of drawing people into illusions or dreams.

"Then have you ever thought about skipping the seventh floor and heading straight to the eighth?" Tongsi suddenly proposed a new idea.

"What do you mean?"

"You've always been going up from inside, right?"

"Yes..."

"Perhaps we could try going up from the outside. From the exterior of the sixth floor, we could bypass the seventh and enter the eighth."

Bai Chen frowned. Tongsi's suggestion was based on the assumption that only the seventh floor was an illusionary space. But what if the eighth floor was one, too?

"Let's try it." Tongsi understood Bai Chen's concerns. But since they had already reached the sixth floor, why not keep climbing? Perhaps the culprit behind the Murkrow attacks on the city was hiding on the eighth floor.

"Tongsi, you really are a crazy guy!" The look in Bai Chen's eyes changed slightly. He opened the door to the secret room, and the two stepped out. Everything outside remained as it was before. Upstairs, the sounds of the wooden fish, the old man's voice, and the bird calls continued incessantly. In the corner between the fifth and sixth floors, there was a damaged wall that led outside.

"Do you have a Flying-type Pokémon?" Bai Chen asked.

Tongsi shrugged. "I'm a novice trainer. Even if I had a Flying-type, I wouldn't be able to ride it."

Bai Chen couldn't help but roll his eyes at him, thinking, *You still remember you're a novice trainer, do you?*

... (To be continued)