Chapter 658: The Dragon Pokémon

Fire burned the sky.

Orange-red flames and black smoke churned like cumulus clouds, continuously releasing rolling waves of heat.

The earth was scorched, emitting a choking smell of char.

Such a powerful Fire-type move—no wonder the Trainer told it to avoid direct confrontation.

"Kichido…"

Super Garganacl regarded Super Flygon warily; its Electromagnetic Float had succeeded, making Fire its sole weakness.

Moreover.

Though its Special Defense had improved with Super Evolution, it was still far from outstanding—this kind of flame couldn't be tanked more than a few times.

Thinking this, its gaze shifted to the massive rocks encircled by electricity, hovering midair and gradually dispersing.

"Go!"

The Trainer's voice rang out clearly.

Even clearer commands were transmitted through the mental link—something impossible in the past.

But as mastery of Super Evolution grew, not only had the wild Super energy been calmed, but more unique abilities had been unlocked.

Super Garganacl knew its strength was no longer comparable to what it once was.

Just Super Flygon—

"Kichido!"

It leapt sharply toward a nearby massive rock.

Meanwhile.

Far away, Shi Yuan Zhi gave his order: "Destroy those rocks! Katana Slash!"

As experienced as he was, he could not miss that these floating boulders were deliberately placed by Baimu.

He could even foresee Super Garganacl leaping between the rocks, moving at high speed to confuse the enemy's vision.

"Aoh!"

Super Flygon moved in sync with the command.

Its broad crescent-shaped blood wings were suddenly engulfed in a radiant light shifting from white to blue, then it spun like a giant boomerang, unleashing howling gales across the entire battlefield.

All floating boulders around it were struck as if by a storm of blades, shattering into countless fragments and dust.

The Super Evolution trait 【Flight Skin】 allowed it to convert normal-type moves into Flying-type moves and enhance their power.

Thus, under its control, the Katana Slash executed via its wings rivaled divine blades.

Even the wind from its slashes alone could pulverize the boulders into powder!

Yet.

Super Garganacl moved faster.

As Shi Yuan Zhi predicted, it used the rocks as springboards, its body darting like lightning across the battlefield.

In the blink of an eye, it had bounced over a dozen times—each leap escaping just before Super Flygon's wings severed the rock, so swift that eyes could barely follow, only catching fleeting streaks of ice-blue light.

Czzz!

The air rang with shrill whistles of flying projectiles!

Suddenly.

A pale-yellow afterimage shot through the dust upward, freezing midair to reveal the massive rock wrapped in electricity.

"Up! Cough!"

Shi Yuan Zhi coughed again—he didn't need to shout the command, but certain habits had become ingrained, impossible to break.

More importantly, he sensed his focus was slipping; just now, he'd lost concentration for half a second.

That's why Super Flygon, despite being faster, had failed by half a step to catch up.

"Roar!"

Super Flygon, still spinning, lifted its head—suddenly, it saw a massive rock had appeared directly above it, but before it could react, the ice-blue streak shot ahead to the rock's underside.

"Kichido!"

Super Garganacl hung upside down, fists clenched and radiating frost, glancing coldly at Super Flygon, then slammed its foot down hard on the rock beneath it.

Crak!

The rock shattered!

Brilliant ice-blue light exploded before Super Flygon's eyes, growing rapidly like a star blazing in the night.

【Ice Punch】!

Boom!

An astonishing cold current erupted like an avalanche, spreading into thick white mist.

Hu—

Wind howled; the Starfall folk and Dragon Pokémon watching from the sidelines felt the bone-deep chill radiating from the mist, their bodies trembling instinctively.

Yet in the next instant.

"Aohhh!!"

A deafening roar erupted.

Within the mist, blinding fire erupted violently, followed by a heatwave laden with countless colorful sparks that exploded like lava, shattering the cold.

Boom!

"Such fierce heat!"

The heat that followed the cold struck the Starfall folk, forcing them back; the sudden shift between freezing and scorching made them suffer, yet their eyes never left the battlefield.

Within the searing, rolling flames,

The super Flygon, long since ceased spinning, tilted its head and let out a long roar; the crescent wings, their glow shifting from sky-blue to blazing crimson, curved and contracted until each single wing became a double wing, slowly flapping to stir visible streams of starfire and heat, like a flamestorm intent on burning everything to ash.

Far away.

Suspended high in the air, the super Gargoyl wore a solemn expression; threads of blue smoke rose from multiple points on its body.

Though it had never expected to knock out the super Flygon with a single devastating move, the opponent's reaction speed still exceeded its expectations.

It had planned to freeze the opponent's wings with Ice Punch and force it down from the sky, but the moment the cold current touched them, the super Flygon's wing-released heat wind largely melted it away.

The goal was not achieved.

It was nearly impossible to gauge how much damage had been dealt from that grotesque, ferocious face.

What a stubborn bastard!

But.

The super Gargoyl firmly believed that as long as it landed its blows accurately, the super Flygon could never survive two direct hits.

Even after its own Mega Evolution, Bisharp dared not casually take a punch head-on.

No matter how exaggeratedly perfected the super Flygon's stats became, could its physical defense possibly match that of Mega Bisharp?

It simply did not believe it.

The only problem was that it might not survive several of the super Flygon's fierce attacks—its Dragon-type immunity and Flying-type resistance gave it a significant advantage.

Yet the Fire-type moves the super Flygon unleashed now carried real threat to it.

And then there were the two moves its Trainer had always warned it to watch for: Ultimate Impact and Hyper Beam—both converted into Flying-type moves, their power, even with its type resistance, would still require serious consideration if taken head-on.

Besides, the thing was extremely fast; if it focused on movement, it might be impossible to catch, but if it slipped up and exposed a weak point, it would suffer dearly.

"Kido!"

The super Gargoyl exchanged a glance with its Trainer, and a plan solidified in its mind.

It swiftly retreated, putting distance between itself and the super Flygon; its massive posterior jaws opened wide, drawing in countless golden specks of light, then snapped shut—its exterior now visibly enlarged.

"Charge."

Orange waves surged from beneath its feet, boosting both its Physical and Special Defense.

How do you deal with a Pokémon whose offense is overwhelmingly strong?

One: lower the opponent's Physical and Special Attack.

Two: raise your own Physical and Special Defense.

When neither side can switch Pokémon, altering stats to hinder the opponent's offense is one of the best strategies.

Baimu believed that against an opponent like the super Flygon, restricting its moves would be harder than boosting his own stats, so he chose to rely on Charge to enhance the super Gargoyl's dual defenses.

The limit of Charge is three uses; three layers of dual-defense boosts would grant it sufficient power to withstand the super Flygon's assaults.

Even if it couldn't hold out, it could recover lost HP with Swallow.

Of course.

He had to ensure the super Flygon remained in a taunted state, unable to use any status-changing moves.

That way, aside from landing a critical hit, the super Gargoyl's survival was guaranteed.

With survival secured, its attack frequency could increase; even if each strike dealt minimal damage, it would still be enough to wear the opponent down.

Seeing the super Gargoyl retreat rapidly and prepare to charge defensively, Shi Yuan Zhi did not hesitate.

"Hyper Beam!"

"Aoooo!"

The super Flygon let out a guttural roar; the rear edges of its crimson wings expanded again into full crescents, and its long tail whipped as it shot rapidly skyward.

Once it reached a height where it could look down upon the super Gargoyl, it suddenly dove, its gaping maw swelling with a terrifying black energy ball!

Boom!!

A deafening roar erupted as a pillar of light—black at its core, flecked with sky-blue energy particles—ripped through the air, plunging the entire battlefield into sudden darkness with a force that seemed ready to annihilate all.

Thick clouds of smoke and dust flew everywhere.

The terrifying destruction beam had already disrupted the sunlight illuminating the surroundings, sending chills down the spines of the Meteor Folk nearby.

Do not take it head-on!

When Baimu saw the black energy ball forming before the super Flygon's mouth, he knew accepting this move would come at too high a cost, compromising the super Gargoyl's condition for the rest of the battle.

"Shadow Clone."

His command came swiftly, but the speed of the energy ball transforming into a fearsome beam was no slower.

At the last instant, the super Gargoyl's form trembled into countless false illusions; the incoming black beam obliterated the original position into fragments, then plunged straight into the ground!

Boom!

Flames shot skyward!

Then.

Realizing it had missed, the super Flygon switched to sweeping mode; its horizontally moving Flying-type Hyper Beam ignited vast sheets of fire across the ground, as if struck by a saturation barrage of missiles.

The super Gargoyl's Shadow Clones shattered one after another into ash, yet its true body remained untouched until the Hyper Beam's release ended.

"..."

Shi Yuan Zhi frowned, then relaxed his brow.

His gaze settled on the few scattered super Gargoyls, finally locking onto one.

Found it?

Through the line of sight connecting the super Flygon and Shi Yuan Zhi, Baimu realized his Pokémon's true form had been exposed—and instead of panic, he thought: perfect opportunity!

"Taunt."

The super Gargoyls sneered, beckoning the super Flygon in the sky with a flick of their tiny fingers.

Though it was merely such a simple gesture.

The super Flygon, paralyzed by the disruption beam, could no longer endure it—its fury exploded as it bared its sharp, snow-white fangs.

Flames of rage nearly burst from its eyes, ready to incinerate the thing on the spot.

But the black mist rising from its body caused its pupils to contract sharply.

"Aoooh!"

Again—【Taunt】!

At its level, the paralysis duration of the disruption beam had already been reduced to a minimum; with proper body control, it could even make opponents believe there was no paralysis at all.

Unfortunately, during paralysis, it remained vulnerable.

If the Super Gyarados had launched an attack, the Super Flygon could still counter—but who knew the trainer would strike with a second 【Taunt】 while it was searching for its true form!

It was utterly unpredictable.

Its inner frustration was unbearable—it never expected the trainer to know precisely when the 【Taunt】 was about to end.

At that moment.

Shi Yuan Zhi shouted: "Big Blazing Fire!"

"Aoooh!!"

The Super Flygon tilted its head upward and roared in fury—a crimson flame ignited, then erupted the moment it lowered its head!

Boom!

The air trembled.

The crimson flame burst open, rapidly swelling from the size of the Super Flygon itself into a colossal "Big" character large enough to engulf the entire battlefield!

Fortunately, this move was far easier to dodge than the disruption beam—the Super Gyarados all avoided it by standing firm.

Big Blazing Fire missed, crashing onto the shattered ground and blazing fiercely.

Baimu seized every opportunity to attack.

"Charge!"

Second charge!

Defense and Special Defense rose again!

"Kee-doh!"

The few remaining Super Gyarados opened their twin massive jaws behind their heads; more golden sparks flew into them, their bodies swelling another full circle, plump and round like two black pea pods.

An orange wave surged once more.

It gazed up at the Super Flygon, its eyes gleaming with eagerness.

Two boosts to Defense and Special Defense should have been enough to let it try absorbing the opponent's attack—but for safety, it waited until the third charge was complete.

Outside the arena.

The young Dragon Tamers were deeply confused.

"Why isn't Baimu attacking? Why keep charging?"

"Yeah, yeah! Playful's so powerful—just hit it a few more times and the Flygon won't survive!"

In Grand Showcases and League Tournaments, Super Gyarados had repeatedly demonstrated Playful—its expressiveness and power both at peak levels.

Even though Dragon Tamers hated to admit it, the truth remained: few Dragon Pokémon in Meteor Village could withstand Playful as shown on TV.

But strangely, from the start of the battle until now, Baimu had never let the Super Gyarados use Playful.

Old Qingliu shook his head slightly and murmured: "Don't underestimate the Flygon, and don't overestimate Gyarados's Playful—there's no absolutely invincible move in this world.

"Shi Yuan Zhi's Flygon has defeated even stronger Fairy-type Pokémon before. Baimu knows this perfectly—that's why he's slowly increasing his advantages, leaving Shi Yuan Zhi no opening at all."

The moment he finished speaking.

A terrifying roar echoed!

Boom!

High above, the Super Flygon unleashed a torrent of flame as if it meant to scorch the heavens and obliterate the earth—its power rivaling that of the earlier disruption beam.

The Super Gyarados, head raised, once again used its shadow clones to respond—but it hadn't anticipated that this dragon-like breath of flame would collide with the Big Blazing Fire still blazing on the ground.

A strange, special reaction occurred!

The flames of Big Blazing Fire surged violently, transforming into five massive walls of fire that instantly annihilated the multitude of Super Gyarados' shadow clones.

The remaining shadow clones were all separated and isolated.

Then.

The Super Flygon shifted the angle of its flame blast, prioritizing the burning of every Super Gyarados that rose above the fire walls—maximizing combustion efficiency to its peak!

Hoon!

Scorching heat waves burned everything within and beyond the arena.

Due to perspective, the people of Meteor Village could only see a small portion of the battlefield—but seeing those shadow clones vanish rapidly, they couldn't help but cry out in shock.

How could Super Gyarados possibly block this assault!?

Among the crowd.

Old Qingliu looked anxiously at Shi Yuan Zhi, showing no concern for the Super Gyarados trapped in this predicament.

Has he been pushed this far…?

You've always favored a slow rhythm to counter a slow rhythm—why are you deviating now?