Grandpa Lin turned his head and, seeing Kyron, smiled kindly. "Kyron, you're back? I haven't seen you these past few days."
Kyron smiled and said, "I just got back yesterday. I haven't really gone out much."
Grandpa Lin had already retired. He used to be a Chinese teacher at Rongcheng No. 6 High School and had taught for decades. Three years ago, after he retired, his children, worried he would feel lonely, bought him a Caddy Dog to keep him company.
Grandpa Lin was especially fond of the Caddy Dog, doting on it like a treasure, and took it out for a walk every day.
As the two chatted while walking forward, Kyron suddenly felt his eyes warm up.
When his gaze landed on the frolicking Caddy Dog ahead, a green panel appeared in front of him, rapidly displaying lines of text and numbers.
He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him and shook his head vigorously—but nothing changed. The text and numbers were still there.
He slowed down and looked at it carefully.
Pokémon: Caddy Dog
Type: Fire
Talent: ★★
Level: Lv16
Ability: Intimidate...
"What... is this? A stat panel?"
"Am I hallucinating? Or did I eat too much and start imagining things?"
He shook his head harder and opened his eyes again—the green panel remained unchanged.
Kyron's heartbeat quickened. He had a feeling something unusual was happening. He turned to look for more Pokémon. Not far away, a young woman was walking a Yamper.
Pokémon: YamperType: ElectricTalent: ★Level: Lv12Ability: Ball Fetch
He looked at a few more Pokémon, and the data was different for each.
A wild thought popped into his head: Did I just get a stat panel system?
Could it be that the colored bead on the bus earlier absorbed Pokédex data and created a stat panel based on the games, manga, and anime I'd seen in my previous life?
The idea was so far-fetched it scared him, yet it didn't seem fake.
If that colored bead was his golden finger (cheat ability), then it was incredibly powerful.
With this stat panel, he could clearly see the data of any Pokémon.
While there were already machines to measure talent and level, they were bulky and hard to move. You had to keep them in fixed places under careful protection.
But in a battle with another trainer, being able to instantly view the opponent's Pokémon data would be a huge advantage—it would increase his chances of winning.
And if he ever got the chance to choose a new Pokémon, this would help him pick the best one.
Kyron calmed his excitement and returned home after parting ways with Grandpa Lin. As soon as he entered, he saw Pikachu and Jigglypuff sitting on the sofa watching TV. Their data panels immediately appeared before his eyes:
Pokémon: Pikachu
Type: Electric
Talent: No Star
Level: Lv18
Ability: Static...
Pokémon: Jigglypuff
Type: Normal, Fairy
Talent: No Star
Level: Lv19
Ability: Cute Charm...
Just as he thought—both Pikachu and Jigglypuff had no-star talents. After all, they were bought for just over three hundred yuan each, only suitable as pets.
After petting them for a while, he returned to his room. In the corner was a small gray circular bed—his mom had prepared it for Aron.
As soon as he looked over, the stat panel changed. He had rushed home to check Aron's talent and level.
Pokémon: Aron
Type: Steel, Rock
Talent: ★★★
Level: Lv1
Ability: Heavy Metal
Three stars?! Wow, that's amazing! He really hit the jackpot!
Kyron was ecstatic. Starting with such a high-talent Pokémon gave him a massive head start.
Then he remembered what happened that afternoon—the colored bead had released some unknown energy into Aron. Nothing seemed unusual at the time, except maybe its high talent.
Could it have boosted Aron's talent? The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
This colored bead was seriously powerful. The stat panel alone was a golden finger, and if it could boost talent too, that was two cheats in one. He was set for success.
He'd have to study this bead carefully from now on.
Speaking of which—how was he supposed to turn off the stat panel? It was constantly in his view and getting in the way.
He tried saying out loud: "Stat panel?"
"System!"
"Close!"
"Dude!"
Nothing worked. Then he tried some other phrases:
"Shut!"
"No!"
"Off!"
Still no response. Finally, he tried silently thinking the word "Close".
As soon as the thought formed, the panel vanished instantly. He could finally see clearly again.
Kyron's heart skipped—so that's how it worked! He silently thought:
"Stat panel!"
Nothing happened. Then he looked at Aron and silently thought:
"Stat panel."
The green stat panel reappeared in his view. Success!
After testing it a few more times, he finally figured out how it worked:
The panel only appears when there is a Pokémon in view.
You need to silently think "stat panel" while focusing on it.
To close it, silently think "close" or "shut".
Very convenient.
After playing around with it a bit, Kyron lay on his bed and calmed himself, but couldn't help pondering:
Since his eyes could see other people's Pokémon data, what should he call this power?
"True Sight?"Too dramatic. Better pick something more normal—how about "Data Eye"?
Simple and clear. It said exactly what it did.
Yes—Data Eye it is!
After settling on the name, he checked the time. It was already past 10 p.m., so he quickly got ready for bed.
June 26th – Clear skies, 31°C
This time, Kyron didn't take the bus. He decided to walk to his destination instead. The only downside was the heat—he was already sweating after a short walk.
His destination was the Hualan Pokémon Supermarket, about a kilometer from Taiyu Community. The full name: National Hualan Pokémon Chain Supermarket.
These Pokémon supermarkets specialized in all things Pokémon-related: food, energy cubes, clothes, toys, housing, medicine, Poké Balls—you name it, they had it.
As for Aron, Kyron left him at home to sleep. Newborn Pokémon love sleeping—they either sleep or eat—so he let it rest.
Along the way, every time he saw a Pokémon, Kyron couldn't resist using his Data Eye to check its stats, enjoying it thoroughly.
After about ten minutes of walking, he finally arrived. The supermarket was located on a busy commercial street, surrounded by various stores—pharmacies, restaurants, berry shops, bubble tea stores, and more.
There were plenty of people, and business seemed good.
From twenty meters away, Kyron could already see the stream of people going in and out of the Pokémon Supermarket.
The huge blue storefront stood out like a beacon among the surrounding shops. Cars and motorcycles were parked at the entrance.
On either side of the entrance stood one-meter-tall advertisement boards displaying various promotions. Cheerful music played from within the store.
Several people in mascot costumes—Pikachu, Eevee, Charmander, etc.—were handing out flyers. Above the store entrance, an LED banner read:
"This Sunday: Hualan Pokémon Supermarket—10% Off Storewide!"
That was why there were so many people today—because of the discount. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been this crowded.
Hualan Pokémon Supermarket had only opened last year. Another Pokémon store was just 100 meters away, but due to poor management, it had gradually been overtaken by Hualan.
Kyron quickly walked in and immediately noticed a huge banner hanging from the ceiling inside:
"July 25th – Join the Second Suicune Cup Pokémon Challenge!"
That caught his attention right away. Beneath the banner, a display board gave the full details of the event.
Around a dozen people were gathered there, reading the board and discussing the event.
Kyron read through the rules carefully and understood everything.
Anyone with a Pokémon could participate—even pets.
Small competitions like these were commonly hosted by malls, companies, or large institutions as promotional events to draw customers. They were essentially marketing tools.
This Suicune Cup was no exception. There were no restrictions on age, Pokémon maturity, or level.
Battles were 1 vs 1. Each participant could only use one Pokémon. The battle ended when one Pokémon could no longer fight.
It used an elimination system—defeat your opponent to move on to the next round, until one person remained and claimed the championship.
And of course, there were prizes. For Kyron, the rewards were very tempting:
Champion Prize:
¥20,000 shopping card
Three 2kg bags of basic Pokémon food of your choice
Please leave a vote if you enjoy the story!