Chapter 483: Rayquaza… Huh?

"Cough, cough, cough…" Lan

The commotion was a bit too loud.

Baimu stood on the ninth-floor platform coughing, unable to see anything through the swirling smoke before him; beside him stood a Blastoise exhaling white steam from its mouth, and sitting on its shoulder was a Gulpin, looking utterly drained.

Without a doubt.

They had been caught in the blast and forced to fall from the eleventh floor.

Fortunately, Gulpin hadn't reverted from its Mega Evolution at the time, and by using Magnet Rise along with energy streams blasted from its two large jaws, it had barely managed to drag Blastoise down to the ninth floor.

Baimu, who had been on its back, was thus spared along with it.

Honestly, who could have expected that Dusknoir's Black Hole — which couldn't even be called a move that channels energy — would twist the coincidentally combined Double-Edge and Iron Head and detonate them? Lan

The two moves that represented his current strongest fighting power had directly shaken the pillar of the Sky Pillar, causing it to sway violently…

Will Rayquaza come after him when he goes back up?

He was a little worried.

He could only hope Rayquaza was magnanimous enough not to mind this little tremor.

"Good work, you two. Rest easy."

Baimu patted Blastoise's thick arm, then stroked Gulpin's head, recalled both into their Poké Balls, and sent out Hydreigon and Dragapult instead.

He headed back up to the eleventh floor. Lan

The smoke here lingered and refused to clear, and Dusknoir was nowhere to be seen in any direction.

It must have been blasted away by the explosion too — he didn't believe a shockwave powerful enough to send Blastoise flying would have no effect on that thing; it wasn't a simple blast of normal-type energy.

"Use your wings to fan them away."

Baimu stayed put on the spot, and as a precaution chose to have the Hydreigon beside him clear his field of vision.

He hadn't expected that after fanning for a while, its wings suddenly kicked up a cyan-blue gale; they stirred the air inside the Sky Pillar and swiftly drove all the smoke before them away.

Dusknoir was indeed gone without a trace, but it was no longer of any concern.

"This is!" Lan

He turned his head in surprise, exchanged a glance with Hydreigon, and said, "Defog? You just learned it like that?"

They say a Pokémon picking up a new move on its own all depends on the right moment — you never know when that moment will come, or what surprise it will bring you—

It really was a surprise. In singles, Defog is a very important part of the game; even though in the anime world not as many people like to set up Spikes and Reflect, there are still plenty of situations where this move can be put to use.

"Saaa!"

Hydreigon proudly raised all three of its heads. Recently its progress in learning new moves hadn't been going smoothly, so it hadn't expected to stumble into learning Defog — at least it could give its Trainer an answer now.

Never mind what move it is, as long as there's a result.

Seeing it in this state, Baimu didn't stint on his praise. Although he always worried Hydreigon would get carried away, when praise was due, it definitely had to be given. Lan

【A novel app that has run stably for many years, comparable to the old version of the caterpillar app everyone uses for source-swapping, huanyuanapp.】

Otherwise it would dampen his Pokémon's enthusiasm.

"Extra dinner tonight!" He pinched Hydreigon's cheeks and shook them side to side.

Every time one of his Pokémon learned a new move, an extra Chansey egg was added to their dinner plate. Although they could eat them normally too, to them this was a reward for their hard work.

The meaning mattered more than the taste itself.

The invisible Dragapult watched Baimu and Hydreigon grinning from ear to ear, and for some reason felt a little envious — though whether it envied the extra dinner, the praise, or the atmosphere of the two of them, it couldn't say.

It didn't know itself.

And compared with its emotionally reserved self, the Dreepy siblings were far more direct: not only did they fly out of their launch holes to join in the happiness, they also looked at Baimu with great anticipation. Lan

Those two were simply greedy for Chansey eggs — after all, an egg's taste is influenced by Chansey's own emotions, and the more positive those emotions are, the better the egg tastes.

Recently Chansey had been striving hard to develop into an ace, and had just won the Petalburg Conference, causing the eggs' taste to reach an exquisite level.

It was no exaggeration to call them the finest ingredient.

"You two haven't learned any new moves, so keep working at it." Baimu poked their noses.

If a Pokémon wants to get stronger, whatever the reason, a proper Trainer should give it support; besides, who said the Dreepy siblings had to be "missiles" for life?

It was perfectly normal for them to want to act as launchers once in a while.

Setting off again. Lan

Baimu advanced toward the twelfth floor.

That was the final floor — there should be something even more outrageous than Dusknoir… what would it be? A swarm of Duskulls opening the gate to the Spirit World and luring him inside?

Or perhaps a Gengar that could hook a person's soul right out of their body? Like the three Ash met in Lavender Town's Pokémon Tower?

He was a little nervous, yet for some reason also a little expectant.

Through the cracks in the stone it was easy to see that it was already completely dark outside, but there was nothing to be done about it — no matter how fast he hurried, it was still night by the time he got here; what could he do?

The twelfth floor was right before him.

Only the walls of the Sky Pillar seemed to have stopped glowing, leaving everything before him pitch-black, unable to see a thing. Lan

Baimu had no choice but to take out his flashlight again.

The next instant.

He turned off the flashlight, waited a few seconds, then turned it back on.

The various Ghost-type Pokémon that almost completely filled the twelfth floor once again bared savage or sinister smiles at him and Hydreigon — the scene was silent and eerie.

"Hiss—"

Baimu sucked in a cold breath, half-wondering if his posture going up the stairs was wrong, and half-retreating back down.

The Hydreigon beside him likewise stayed silent, very quiet. Lan

With that many Ghost-types, even if he sent out his entire team he couldn't win — let alone the fact that so many familiar faces were among them; every floor's guardian from the first to the eleventh had all crowded together here.

Try to blast a path through?

How did Miss Xijiana get up there in the first place? There was no reason she would have been stronger than he was now.

"……"

No matter how All Baimu thought it through, he couldn't figure it out. Standing in the middle of the staircase, he paused to think, then looked around. Figuring it might be a special pass-through method like the seventh floor, he decided to go back and take another look.

Once again, he arrived at the twelfth floor.

He turned on his flashlight, and swarms of Ghost-type Pokémon were piled together like a human tower, all flashing eerie smiles at him.

If Pokémon weren't mostly still rather cute, this scene would be indistinguishable from an illustration of hell.

All Baimu waited a few seconds on the spot. Behind him, Hydreigon's expression was taut, its thick long tail wrapped around his waist ready to flee at any moment, and the hidden Dragapult had also prepared to receive him.

But just as expected, the Ghost-type Pokémon didn't attack him — they only kept up that grinning, teeth-baring pose.

God knows what they're so happy about.

"Hmm… what are you guys planning to do?"

All Baimu tried to communicate with these fellows, even taking out his phone to have Porygon2 help translate, but got no reply. They simply, of their own accord, peeled off to both sides as he stepped forward, opening up a path.

A path leading to the spiral staircase.

What's that supposed to mean?

Counting him as having cleared the floor, so they gathered specially to congratulate him?

He walked forward quietly, his gaze drifting over the faces of the Ghost-type Pokémon on either side. The bizarre scene was as if he had fallen into some peculiar hallucination, but the occasional tingle from his phone proved he was in reality.

Unless… that Pokémon's illusion was powerful enough to affect all five senses.

In the span of a breath.

All Baimu had already arrived before the spiral staircase. He couldn't help but turn and look once more at those smiling Ghost-type Pokémon, and suddenly felt their strange grins were a little cute.

"……Thanks, this is for you."

He thought for a moment, then pulled a few cans of Pokéblocks out of his bag and set them on the ground.

Although he didn't know whether they could leave this place, Pokéblocks were certainly not something they ate often. Forget filling their stomachs — at least they could have a taste of something new.

All Baimu gave a nod of acknowledgment, then stepped up onto the stairs one pace at a time, heading toward the top of the tower.

The surroundings along the way were still so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

It seemed that once night fell, the walls lost their ability to glow, leading him to guess that the thing absorbed sunlight through the outer wall to make the interior shine.

"Good thing I brought a flashlight."

He turned and said this to Hydreigon. At the same time, a noisy commotion came from the twelfth floor below, which had already vanished completely into darkness.

Are they fighting over it?

Probably.

All Baimu had great confidence in the Pokéblocks he had made. Even if they weren't as exaggerated as glowing cuisine, it was perfectly normal for them to cause a scramble among a bunch of wild Pokémon that hadn't tasted anything good in years.

He hoped it wouldn't get too out of hand — otherwise the Pokéblocks offered in gratitude would instead become a disaster, and that would be rather embarrassing.

He raised his flashlight and shone it upward, finally catching a hazy glimpse of the top of the tower.

What should he say when he saw Rayquaza?

Just go with what Miss Xijiana had told him to say? What if the tremor from earlier had angered Rayquaza — should he run, or just stand there and take the beating……

Lost in random thoughts.

He had already arrived before the exit leading to the top floor outside the tower.

A faint starlight fell across All Baimu's face. Without a doubt, the world outside was now full of twinkling stars, with the pale moon hanging in the black night sky.

He hoped Rayquaza hadn't gone to sleep yet.

His nose twitched slightly, and he caught a faint, elusive stench—

Ozone.

Rayquaza generally lived in the ozone layer and almost never descended to the ground. Every time it landed on the Sky Pillar to rest, it would wrap itself tightly in a layer of ozone.

Therefore, this faint stench was practically the signature for identifying it.

But when All Baimu had fully stepped onto the top floor and directed his gaze toward the triangular altar on the long staircase, the completely empty sight made him freeze.

……Where's the dragon?

Such a huge dragon — where is it?

Not home sleeping at this hour — where did it go? Out for dinner?

Dragapult slowly revealed itself. Its bewildered gaze met the equally bewildered looks of All Baimu and Hydreigon. "Lugho?"

"You ask me, I don't know either……"

He looked around the surrounding sky speechlessly. Confirming Rayquaza wasn't playing nearby, he called Miss Xijiana down below, deliberately walking to the edge and sticking his head out to look down.

He could faintly make out what seemed to be a bit of firelight.

Click.

The call connected.

Miss Xijiana's voice was clear and pleasant. "What happened? During the trial, it's best not to call casually — this is very sacred—"

"I'm up at the top of the tower getting blown around by cold wind, and I haven't seen the Dragon God, my lord."

All Baimu cut in.

The other side immediately went silent.

A few seconds later, Miss Xijiana asked carefully, "Are you sure you're at the top of the tower? And not under an illusion?"

"I can have Hydreigon fly down to prove it." He tightened his clothes. The wind up on the Sky Pillar was strong, and combined with the extremely high altitude, staying too long really was a bit cold. Rayquaza, a Pokémon that was 4x weak to Ice, should have a hard time enduring such cold.

Could it be that ozone had an insulating function?

Miss Xijiana on the phone: "……"

All Baimu said, "What do I do now? Wait for it to come?"

Miss Xijiana said vaguely, "There's no reason… waiting, I guess waiting won't work. Once the Dragon God leaves the Pillar of Heaven, it might fly off to another region and not come back for a week or two."

Another region… off to Alola to play games with the little meteorites, maybe. Or to fight off the invading alien Deoxys.

He plopped down on the steps and asked again, "So what do I do now? Does that count as passing? Successor?"

Miss Xijiana replied, "…How about this, I'll teach you a method—try summoning it."

"Summoning?"

"Yes, you should be on the altar right now, right? This place is called the Dragon Calling Altar. Walk to the center, hold the Key Stone in your palm, and chant along with me."

Under Miss Xijiana's guidance, All Baimu came to the center of the altar, held the Key Stone, struck a sincere prayer pose, and murmured softly.

"O hallowed jade and noble spirit, grant me your power…"

"I offer my flesh and blood to begin this sacred rite!"

The words fell.

The Key Stone in his hand immediately emitted a brilliant light, and a mysterious sense of rhythm surged into his heart.

It actually works!

All Baimu's face showed shock, but Miss Xijiana's voice on the phone hadn't stopped yet, so he had no choice but to keep chanting along.

"May you descend to the mortal world to save the suffering masses at dawn!"

"Eternally grateful, willing to die ten thousand deaths without regret!"

This is… the prayer the People of the Meteor once uttered atop the Legendary Titan when they begged Rayquaza to stop the war of the ancient Pokémon?

The content's a bit blunt—turns out it's not in some flowery classical style after all.

Holding the glowing Key Stone, he looked up at the sky, his eyes full of anticipation, because he suddenly remembered that in the game, Miss Xijiana seemed to summon Rayquaza exactly like this.

Miss Xijiana hadn't hung up on the other end of the line; the occasional nervous breathing that came through showed she wasn't sure either whether she could call Rayquaza over.

But All Baimu believed.

And when the emerald light poured down from high above, he couldn't help getting even more excited.

Rayquaza!

It's coming!

As if answering his call, a tiny black dot at the edge of his vision rapidly grew larger; even though it was far away and the night was dark, he could still make out that dragon-like figure.

In a daze, Rayquaza's long cry rang beside his ears.

"Rooaaar—"

Miss Xijiana seemed to have heard the howl too; her breathing instantly became clear and rapid. "Rayquaza's here?"

"It's here, it's here!"

All Baimu replied excitedly, his eyes never once leaving the heavens, and shouted, "That move of yours really works! I think my trial should be in the bag now… huh?"

"What's wrong? What happened now?" Miss Xijiana heard his "huh" and hurriedly asked.

"Nothing's wrong, it's just… I feel like the color doesn't seem quite right."

All Baimu said softly. The "Dragon God" Rayquaza descending in a jet-black form was now clearly visible, its golden dragon pupils shining down, leaving him unable to help but stare blankly.

"Oh no, I summoned the wrong one."