Chapter 1436: Crown of the Earth

A silver-white beam of light pierced the air, striking the Mr. Rime squarely without the slightest deviation.

Boom—!!

A massive cloud of smoke and dust shot into the sky, mixing with the falling hail to make the entire arena hazy. Inside, Leon, All Baimu, and the two Pokémon were all barely visible, blurred as if behind a strange filter.

At the same time, the host's voice echoed through the arena, invigorating the dejected Leon fans.

That's right!

Charizard is still here!

Leon's strongest Pokémon, the invincible and ever-victorious Charizard!

Like the first ray of dawn piercing the dark night, the gloomy atmosphere caused by Mr. Rime's defeat instantly lifted.

To Leon's fans, Charizard's significance was equivalent to Mawile and All Baimu in the early Grand Festivals; countless people called them soul partners and gave them the highest respect.

To put it bluntly, the "undefeated" in "Undefeated Champion" should be attributed to Charizard, simply because Charizard had never lost until now. Other Pokémon had been defeated by opponents to varying degrees in their early years, but not Charizard.

The title of "Strongest Charizard" was well-deserved!

The smoke cleared.

Deng Pei entered the arena to confirm Mr. Rime's status, raised his right hand, and said: "Mr. Rime is unable to battle! Mawile wins!"

Ding!

Another icon dimmed, striking the hearts of Leon's fans like a heavy hammer.

They simply couldn't bear to look at the big screen, finding it hard to accept the current massive "score gap." Zero to five—in the past, it should have been the other way around!

The live audience could ignore it, but the viewers of the broadcast couldn't. The Rotom Drone deliberately focused the camera on the big screen. Sighs and groans were everywhere in the major towns of Galar, and some were even crying their hearts out.

If not for the fact that one Charizard hadn't appeared yet, they probably would have turned it off already.

It wasn't that they were too fragile to accept Leon's defeat; it was just that the current scene transcended the scope of a mere defeat.

Inside the arena.

"Mawile~"

Mega Mawile hopped back to All Baimu's side. It didn't choose to return to its Poké Ball, opting to stay on the field instead.

All Baimu glanced at it.

"Do you want to watch the upcoming match up close?"

"Mawile."

"Alright, alright."

He chuckled and nodded. "I'll try my best to let you watch from this position until the end."

Suddenly, a uniform sound began to echo through the arena, gathering from all directions into a wave.

"Charizard! Charizard!"

"Charizard!"

As Leon recalled Mr. Rime into its Poké Ball, the audience began to call out for Leon's Charizard, carrying all their expectations.

Similar calls echoed within the various towns of Galar.

Hop shouted particularly loudly, and the Wooloo in his arms let out a sharp, high-pitched bleat as well.

Ash and Pikachu looked solemn. They were participating in the World Coronation Series largely because they were attracted by Leon and Charizard. Now that it was about to enter the fray, both their hearts couldn't help but tighten, and they were very curious about which Pokémon All Baimu would send out to counter it.

And Leon—did he have the ability to turn the tide with just Charizard?

The Galar Gym Leaders in the preparation room were already discussing it heatedly.

"It should be Hydreigon."

"I think so too."

"From the perspective of type compatibility, the probability of Aggron isn't small, right? Rock-type is very advantageous against Charizard's Fire and Flying types."

"But All Baimu already used Mega Evolution on Mawile, Aggron... wait, I remember he has another system?"

"That's right, I remember it's called Terastallization."

"Does anyone here know much about this Terastallization?"

The Gym Leaders looked at each other. Finally, Cynthia spoke up to explain: "Terastallization is a magical power that can enhance and change a Pokémon's type."

"As far as I know, All Baimu used it during his battles against Kalos Champion Diantha and Kanto Champion Lance." Raihan crossed his arms and said, "It's a very magical power. It can double the power of moves! And it doesn't wear off until the match ends!"

Melony adjusted her sunglasses and said, "Sounds like Mega Evolution?"

"There aren't many similarities."

Cynthia didn't have a deep understanding of Terastallization either. If All Baimu hadn't been the first to use it, her knowledge might have been limited to written reports, knowing only that such a thing existed.

Nessa asked curiously, "So which Pokémon will All Baimu choose?"

That's right.

Which Pokémon would he choose?

The same thought surfaced in Leon's mind. He gripped the already scorching Poké Ball, infinitely anticipating the existence All Baimu was about to send out to face Charizard.

Who exactly could be considered by All Baimu to be capable of a battle against his Charizard?

"Champion Time!"

Leon struck his victory pose. Even though the current situation was greatly unfavorable to him, his heart remained full of confidence.

Because the Pokémon about to appear was his strongest partner!

Bang!

The Poké Ball opened in mid-air, and the sturdy Charizard flew out, its feet trampling the rubble and shaking up a large cloud of dust.

"Roar—!!"

It tilted its head and roared, the visible sound waves spreading across the entire arena!

The audience stands instantly boiled over. Countless expectant gazes were cast toward the Charizard below, accompanied by heartfelt screams and cheers.

"It's appeared!! Leon's ace, Charizard! The Undefeated Champion's strongest Pokémon!!"

The host was also so excited he lost his voice.

Charizard—this was a Pokémon you could completely trust, and it would never let down the faith of any Leon fan!

Mega Mawile frowned slightly: "Mawile."

"That's right, so at a time like this, only it is the most suitable!"

All Baimu threw the ball forward. "Go! Show the former World Champion some courtesy!"

Bang!

Light shone.

A heavy body crashed to the ground. The metal behemoth's feet sank into the rubble, grinding it into powder.

Hail fell onto its shimmering silver shell, leaving dazzling halos of light.

"Groar."

Ace Pokémon—Aggron enters the fray!

The host shouted again: "It's appeared! All Baimu's ace Pokémon! The indestructible silver fortress, Aggron!"

Cheers belonging to All Baimu's fans erupted, and within a very short time, they were evenly matched with the shouts of Leon's fans!

Although Aggron's exposure was far less than Mawile, which had multiple media outlets and had been in the public eye since early on, its status as an ace had never wavered, and no fan had ever questioned it.

The Iron Wall of Sighs! The Desperate Silver Fortress!

Praises for Aggron were everywhere on the internet. Many fans admired and yearned for this low-key ace Pokémon. Its reputation within All Baimu's fan group was also in a league of its own!

Seeing the great monster, Leon's face was also overflowing with joy.

"Good! Very good!"

He had thought that a Trainer like All Baimu, who liked to give every Pokémon a chance to appear, would send out Hydreigon, which resisted Fire-type moves, to battle him.

Although Hydreigon was also very strong, if it wasn't an ace-versus-ace battle, he always felt something was missing.

Seeing Aggron appear now, a feeling of satisfaction instantly arose in Leon's heart.

"Let this match come to a true conclusion!"

He raised his right hand and shouted: "Let's go! Charizard!"

"Roar!!"

Charizard roared in response, and was immediately recalled into its Poké Ball by Leon, waiting for the power it had experienced a thousand times to pour into its body.

Hum!

Purple-red light flew out from the Dynamax Band, surging wildly into the Poké Ball.

Leon smiled, looked at All Baimu not far away who had also taken out a crystal ball, and shouted: "All Baimu! Let me show you our—Gigantamax!!"

The giant Poké Ball flew toward the arena, and as it burst, the Gigantamax Charizard, with its changing form, appeared before all the spectators!

"Roar—!!"

The roar was like thunder!

Host: "It's appeared! Charizard's Gigantamax! Leon's posture of giving it his all!"

Under those fanatical faces, Gigantamax Charizard's body expanded rapidly. Its wings turned into sprawling, surging wings of flame, and the majestic pressure blanketed the entire arena!

The temperature of the entire Wyndon Stadium soared instantly, and the air was continuously distorted and steamed by the flames.

Its appearance alone caused a result comparable to Blissey using Sunny Day, showing just how terrifying its current flames were!

Not far away.

All Baimu gripped the Terastal Orb, which was shining with brilliant radiance. Terapagos, sleeping soundly in his pocket, flickered as if in response. He gazed at the Gigantamax Charizard, whose giant flaming horns seemed to want to pierce the sky, and threw the ball fiercely.

"Go! Terastallize!"

Hum~!

The crystalline, shimmering Terastal halo enveloped Aggron's body, turning into countless prisms that surrounded it, before bursting suddenly, leaving a crown on its head made of overlapping colorful rocks, resembling a planetary anatomy diagram.

Its body also seemed to be wrapped in crystal, with clear patterns visible.

The host exclaimed: "All Baimu has used Terastallization! It's—Ground-type!"

The data in his hands allowed him to introduce it to the audience.

Terastallization? Ground-type?

Many people were quite unfamiliar with this system, but All Baimu's fans were not among them; he had used it during his battles against Diantha and Lance.

In the preparation room, everyone who had guessed that All Baimu would Terastallize Aggron widened their eyes.

On the ocean liner, Nemona was so excited she almost attracted the flight attendants, and it was only thanks to Penny covering her mouth in time.

"Terastal Ground! Right, right! Use Terastallization to deal with that guy!"

Flames ignited in Nemona's eyes, as if she had replaced All Baimu and was about to command Aggron to fight to the death against Gigantamax Charizard.

In the Naranja Academy Director's office, Geeta, who was watching the match to relax during her spare time, smiled. "Very good, it's just a pity he isn't our Champion."

In her view, All Baimu using Terastallization during his decisive battle with Leon undoubtedly had promotional significance for the Paldea region.

She believed that after this match ended, many foreign tourists would definitely flock to the Paldea region, which would inevitably boost the region's economy.

After a moment of hesitation, she called her secretary, Raifort, and discussed matters regarding the post-Masters Eight tournament while watching the match.

Gigantamax Charizard VS Terastallized Aggron.

The far-reaching impact exceeded the imagination of everyone present, and also exceeded the two people in the arena who were focused intently.

Simply because all their attention was placed on their opponent.

"Let All Baimu and the others see our full power! Charizard! G-Max Wildfire!" Leon shouted loudly.

Gigantamax Charizard tilted its head and let out a heaven-shaking roar. Its sprawling wings of flame flapped fiercely, detaching from its body to turn into a giant fire bird. With a sharp hiss from air friction, it charged straight toward the Terastallized Aggron below!

All Baimu: "Protect!"

"Groar."

Terastallized Aggron's lake-blue eyes sank. It crossed its arms in front of its chest, propping up a translucent blue spherical light shield.

Rumble—!!

The red-and-black intertwined torrent of flames blanketed the entire battle arena. Upon landing, it ignited a ring of fire, and the violent waves of fire surged and crushed layer by layer, forming a pillar of fire that reached the sky, swallowing everyone's field of vision!

The flames scorched the rubble on the ground, causing rolling heat waves to rise. The earth was scorched white and cracked. The torrent of flames carried a destructive impact, continuously shaking the spherical light shield propped up by Terastallized Aggron, as if wanting to melt it.

However, this attack, which was so fierce that many Champion-level aces couldn't withstand it, was now being steadily received by Terastallized Aggron.

The violent waves of fire continuously struck the barrier, and the flames surged and burned wantonly on the surface of the light shield. High-temperature heat waves dissipated in all directions, but they could never penetrate the seemingly thin defensive barrier, only continuously scorching and dissipating on the outer layer of the shield.

Terastallized Aggron stood in the center of the waves of fire, its body motionless, steadily carrying the full impact of the first G-Max Wildfire.

Gigantamax moves were supposed to penetrate Protect, but it didn't happen this time.

The flames were completely blocked, and the additional effects of G-Max Wildfire naturally couldn't appear either.

When the arena became clear again, what everyone saw was a stark white field, like a purgatory on earth, and Terastallized Aggron standing majestically within it.

"Groar..."

It looked up at the giant Gigantamax Charizard. It no longer needed to rely on roaring to intimidate its opponent; just a single glance and the disdainful posture as it held its head high made the flames behind Gigantamax Charizard surge violently.

"Roar!!"

"Powerful defensive power! Unparalleled protection! Terastallized Aggron easily withstood this first attack!"

The host screamed at the top of his lungs!

The first one was blocked so easily?

Sounds of suspicion and uncertainty arose from the audience stands, but soon they began to look forward to Gigantamax Charizard's second Gigantamax move.

You can't possibly Protect twice in a row, right?

Dande's face was full of excited smiles as he waved his hand and ordered, "Once more! G-Max Wildfire!!"

"Roar!!"

The flames around the Gigantamax Charizard surged violently once again, the vortex of fire within its body spinning at full speed, all of it emerging from the massive flaming wings on its back.

The giant firebird shrieked as it took flight, circling briefly in the sky before plummeting from high above with even more intense and terrifying flames!

Rumble!!

The color of the flames grew darker, carrying a destructive heat, the torrent of fire expanding further, its density doubling as layers upon layers of fire waves crashed toward the ground like a tsunami.

This strike was even more powerful than the first!