Chapter 1223: Champion Three Kills

Dazzling blue light flashed, blindingly bright.

Whether it was the brilliant white eruption of the Terastal Burst or the pink-purple Psychic Terrain, both were now suppressed by the overwhelming psychic power.

In the arena, it was as if a translucent blue sun had risen.

"Ha——ppy——"

Happiny's small face was taut, straining to maintain its output.

Yet it simply could not break through the blockade, like a fist striking a wall.

One must know that its base Special Attack is even lower than Kingdra's, but its stat total sits here, plus the extra boost from Terastallization.

If Mega Gardevoir's move were merely matching the Terastal Burst blow for blow, Happiny could barely accept it, but to be locked down halfway through?

Just how vast must the gap be!

This kind of near-total crushing situation — Happiny had not experienced it in many years.

"Happy……"

Finally, accompanied by a breathless, exhausted panting sound.

The white light continuously welling from Happiny's small hands dissipated; the lingering Terastal Burst was completely wrapped by Psychic and drifted over at a not-so-slow speed.

In an instant.

Boom!!

Everyone felt their eardrums tremble; the ground beneath their feet shook, and the suddenly erupting milky-white shock wave resembled a wall of air, spreading violently outward.

"Ah!"

Quite a few spectators were frightened by this scene, nearly jumping to their feet in a startle reflex.

Fortunately the venue was equipped with sufficiently safe protective devices, which blocked the blast wave and dust entirely outside.

Scattered blue rays rushed straight into the sky, illuminating everyone's faces.

Pakila exclaimed excitedly: "Mega Gardevoir is full of momentum! As the match reaches its final juncture, Carney finally begins going all-out on output!"

No.

It's an explosive burst.

Baimu waved his hand, dispersing the dust and smoke before him.

His expression was exceedingly calm; even though his heart was heavy to the extreme, not a trace of it showed.

The next moment.

An invisible force dispersed the mist and haze inside the arena.

Mega Gardevoir's whole body was wreathed in a blue radiance like smoke and fire; the air around it kept twisting.

Its gaze fell on Happiny in the far distance.

This Pokémon, wearing a crown atop its head and possessing a plump figure, still maintained its crystallinely radiant posture, not showing the slightest expression of having suffered a painful blow.

As if it had merely been tickled.

"Sna……"

"Truly frightening."

Carney's willow brows furrowed slightly.

Just now Mega Gardevoir's output was by no means weak; unfortunately Happiny's Special Defense is simply too exaggerated.

Already nigh-impregnable, with two rounds of powering up on top of that, even a Gardevoir as powerful as the current one still finds it very difficult to pierce its Special Defense.

A strike entrusted with high hopes yielding such a result — how could she be satisfied?

Mega Gardevoir's eyes were deep; the blue light around its body brightened further, the twisted air seeming on the verge of collapse.

It began to gather power.

Seeing this, Happiny did not become overly tense.

Although the Terastal Burst being wrapped up did indeed make it unconsciously panic a little.

But fortunately its Special Defense stands out; no matter how formidable the special attack striking it, it is very hard to inflict effective damage.

For instance, the Aura Sphere Giratina unleashed some time ago — seemingly a type advantage — in reality completely failed to bring the damage that an advantage should bring.

"Happy!"

"Good, let's go all-out against them."

Baimu responded to Happiny's words.

Although his tactical style leans cautious, for decisions his Pokémon make in earnest, he has always been accustomed to giving them one hundred percent support from start to finish.

The present moment is no exception.

An opponent in explosive burst is naturally extremely difficult to deal with; after all, you can never be certain how much its output has increased, nor how many moves it will take to secure victory.

Like NPCs in a game facing a player's Pokémon — whether inflicting various status conditions or unleashing moves that could one-hit KO — in the end it is all futile.

The power of bonds surpasses everything!

Based on this, the solution is very obvious.

"Use magic to defeat magic, use bonds to triumph over bonds!"

Come on!

Stat monster versus stat monster!

Pink-purple light continued to shine over the entire arena; neither side's Pokémon made a move first, and the atmosphere fell into a bizarre stagnation for a time.

Pakila said in surprise: "Mega Gardevoir's attack isn't that effective…… Happiny's Special Defense is too terrifying!"

Quite a few audience members deeply agreed.

Just how great the power of that move was, they all saw with their own eyes; the result was that it barely had any effect on Happiny.

Putting themselves in her shoes, the fans couldn't help but feel suffocated for Carney.

It was obvious to anyone with eyes that Mega Gardevoir was in a state of continuous eruption, and unfortunately, it, which excelled in Special Attack, had run into a Pokémon that excelled in Special Defense.

How could Mega Gardevoir win?

The audience turned their gaze to Calem.

"Psychic Noise!"

She gave the order.

Mega Gardevoir opened its mouth and suddenly emitted an extremely sharp sound!

"Screee—"

Numerous pink-purple ripples appeared in the air, followed by a large wave of sound spreading forward, directly striking Happiny.

Happiny's steps were light, and thanks to its increased evasion from shrinking, it dodged the visible sound waves by shifting left and right in a small range; if it couldn't dodge, it simply didn't dodge at all, quickly closing in on its opponent.

This abnormal behavior reminded Calem of 【Ability Swap】.

Want to go again?

Should we bring in more Dragon Barbaracle or Big Mouth?

Calem thought quickly and said decisively: "Don't let it get close!"

No matter what, letting Happiny get close to Mega Gardevoir was definitely not a good idea.

"Scree!"

Mega Gardevoir's purpose achieved, its eyes lit up brightly.

Invisible psychic power like a great net suddenly lunged to capture Happiny!

Perhaps Special Attack couldn't deal much effective damage, but catching Happiny was certainly no problem!

"Egg Bomb."

"Oof!"

Happiny immediately pulled out the nutrient egg from its bosom and hurled it forward with force.

Bang!

Smoke exploded.

This nourishing supplement, unexpectedly, was like the steamed bun bomb in those anti-Japanese god dramas, possessing unimaginable terrifying power!

But could this tear through Mega Gardevoir's psychic power net?

The answer was no.

Mega Gardevoir's Special Attack ability only seemed somewhat weak when attacking Happiny; in reality, it possessed the power to make ordinary Pokémon despair!

Happiny could withstand it but absolutely could not break through!

It just hadn't thought about breaking through.

The smoke from the Egg Bomb was dispersed by the psychic power net, revealing Happiny lying prone behind it.

It seemed Happiny hadn't had time to get up, and was caught red-handed.

Calem showed no trace of joy on his face; his brows were tightly furrowed, as if in thought.

"Happiny is bound! Egg Bomb failed to break through the psychic power net! How will Calem deal with—ah!"

Patrat let out a startled cry.

Because on Mega Gardevoir's face, a faint purple halo suddenly appeared.

Poisoned!

It had been poisoned!

Calem quickly lowered his head and suddenly saw a small puddle of slime mixed with dust in front of Mega Gardevoir.

Baimu smiled faintly.

Although the Egg Bomb couldn't shatter the psychic power net, it was enough to temporarily tear a small hole in that great net.

And Happiny, which had stored up poison in advance, lay prone at that moment and spat the poison far toward Mega Gardevoir through the small hole.

Rather underhanded, but quite effective.

Of course, the collision of Egg Bomb with psychic power caused energy chaos in the blast zone, making it impossible for the opponent to probe the detailed situation—this was also the fundamental reason this tactic could work.

At the same time, the demand for Pokémon's sensitivity to psychic power was also very high.

In Baimu's team, only Happiny could "see" the weak points of psychic power, just as it itself possessed strong psychic power.

"Psychic Shock!"

Calem quickly regained composure and swiftly issued the order in his mind.

The side effect of 【Psychic Noise】 could prevent Happiny from using 【Lucky Chant】 to restore stamina for a short time.

She prepared to seize this brief opportunity and strike down in one go.

Although the poisoned state was certainly troublesome, the tactical strategy would not change in the slightest; she looked forward to Psychic Shock with strong anticipation.

Only by continuously and fiercely attacking Happiny's weak point could victory possibly be achieved!

"Scree!"

Mega Gardevoir endured the dizziness rising in its mind, raised its arms high, and rapidly gathered psychic power.

Buzz buzz buzz!

In an instant, deep purple light balls covered the sky and blotted out the sun!

They stuck to each other, almost occupying a large portion of the sky!

The air in the entire venue visibly began to tremble to the naked eye, and the scene before the audience's eyes became distorted.

Without a doubt, this was the symbol of immense psychic power!

"Happy!"

Happiny slightly tilted its head up.

The spiritual power binding it was indeed severed, but the sky full of deep purple light spheres had already turned into falling swords of Damocles, rushing toward it in frantic haste!

【Hold】 and 【Spiritual Focus】 were both sealed; it, which excels at defense, could not defend...

Then don't defend!

Happiness Egg abruptly twisted its body and continued charging toward Super Gardevoir—

Boom boom boom boom!!

Vast sheets of firelight suddenly exploded, swelling into one choking plume of smoke after another.

They were like artillery shells raining down from the heavens, relentlessly pounding, and like bone-deep maggots, clinging tightly to Happiness Egg and refusing to let go.

Smoke billowed thickly across the field—Happiness Egg could no longer be seen, and even Super Gardevoir's silhouette was completely obscured.

Battles between the strong are often like this.

Though the grand openings of various techniques appear spectacular, they actually place certain demands on the spectators' eyesight.

Especially when one side unleashes a major move.

Cheers and encouragement gradually faded; the audience focused intently on the arena, awaiting the outcome of Super Gardevoir's attack.

Even Pachirisu stopped commenting further.

Perhaps only the two trainers know the exact situation inside the field now?

——This is beyond doubt.

Karuni not only knows, but sees it very clearly.

Amid the swirling smoke and dust, Happiness Egg surged forth, astonishingly closing in on Super Gardevoir!

"Happy!"

Not defending?

Fooled you!

Happiness Egg's short legs moved with incredible speed.

Karuni couldn't help but feel puzzled—how did it come out?

The keenly observant Super Gardevoir gave the answer—

It was 【Substitute】!

Before enduring the frenzied barrage of spiritual impact, it promptly condensed a decoy body, using it as a shield to successfully close the distance between them.

This was undoubtedly a bold gamble.

Karuni's Gardevoir had certainly never used 【Substitute】 before, but who knows if it had been hiding it?

At least 【Seal】 and 【Spiritual Noise】—it had never used those two before either.

If it won't work, just harden and resist!

Baimu and Happiness Egg's thoughts were both straightforward—wasn't it a waste to have the light wall active and not use it?

Fortunately, it used Substitute.

Honestly, trading one-quarter stamina for distance, in Baimu's view, was quite a gain.

"Let it come! Meet it with spiritual impact!"

Karuri shouted inwardly.

The current Super Gardevoir fears no close combat!

In an instant, countless throbbing deep purple light spheres emerged from nothing, condensing into basketball-sized orbs that filled the entire sky in dense profusion, simultaneously swirling around Happiness Egg.

They resembled giant eyeballs, fixing it with a nauseating "gaze"!

"Happy!"

Happiness Egg seemed unaware, stepping forward briskly!

Boom boom boom boom!

The spiritual impact light spheres rained down like drops, then instantly exploded, stirring deep purple flames that surged and swept up thick smoke and dust into towering heights!

Repelled?

No!

Happiness Egg surged forth again!

Its crystalline body radiated brilliant light, as if an extra layer of luminous film had been plated over it.

This was the sign of 【Light Wall】 being triggered.

"Come on! Happiness Egg!"

From afar came a shout, not entirely clear but audible to Karuri, from a trainer who had always remained calm.

Her heart tightened, and she lightly bit her lip with her front teeth.

"We can't lose either!"

"Hiyah!!"

Super Gardevoir roared angrily in a low voice, heedless of the extremely close distance between them, stubbornly manipulating the light spheres to violently strike its back.

In an instant, those light spheres, while bombarding Happiness Egg, actually began to show a tendency to merge.

Rumble rumble rumble!

Fireworks surged and rolled on without cease.

The explosive barrage exhausted all the light spheres, and Super Gardevoir took a brief breather—

"Hiyah?"

Suddenly, before her eyes, a flash occurred, and immediately her body transmitted a strong sensation of being pulled away, uncontrollably tilting backward.

It was Happiness Egg, after being blown apart, that had once again shortened the distance, rolled up to its front, and forcefully tugged at its skirt!

"Ha——ppy——"

Dadan didn't rush to get up, but continued turning its round, rotund body, dragging Mega Gardevoir down with it.

Immediately after, it pulled its opponent's body sideways, explosive force erupting to fling it away!

【Seismic Toss】!

A move that consumes the opponent's stamina based on the user's own level!

Perhaps Psychic Terrain-boosted Psyshock would deal higher damage, but a ranged move isn't like Seismic Toss, which can physically entangle Mega Gardevoir.

To prevent it from using Psychic to wrap the energy again and return it perfectly intact.

Need to keep stalling for time.

Blissey thought wearily.

To take it down, Mega Gardevoir was willing to let the Badly Poisoned damage deepen step by step, refusing to spare a moment for a 【Heal Bell】.

They naturally had to shoulder this sentiment, couldn't let Carnet and Mega Gardevoir down.

Hold on just a bit longer!

Blissey sharply drew a breath.

The gunpowder smoke lingering in the arena dissipated.

The intense cycle of clashes ended, and the audience could finally make out the two Pokemon's movements.

Mega Gardevoir was flung away!?

Under everyone's astonished gazes, Mega Gardevoir hit the ground and bounced up, but before it could fall a few more times, it used psychic power to hold up its slender body.

"Garde..."

The blue light swirling around it suddenly dimmed, the purple light on its face deepening.

Time had dragged on too long; the Badly Poisoned was draining its stamina ever more severely.

Its body couldn't help but sway slightly.

"Gardevoir!"

Mega Gardevoir steadied itself quickly, raising its head resolutely, its gaze meeting Blissey's exactly.

Only now did it notice that its opponent's seemingly magnificent crystal-diamond body surface was actually also covered in wounds, panting continuously with a hint of fatigue.

This battle had gone on far too long; if the opponent had been ordinary it would be fine, but as it was, both felt the other was exceptionally troublesome.

The dual burden of continuously draining stamina and mental energy weighed on both Pokemon, coupled with the desire for victory, the determination not to disappoint their Trainers — the pressure was unprecedented.

Although neither had yet reached the state of hanging on by a last breath, they weren't far off.

Accumulated injuries consumed their remaining stamina every single moment.

"Gardevoir..."

"..."

Both Trainers looked at their own Pokemon, then at the other's Pokemon.

Finally their gazes met.

Their eyes revealed the same meaning.

'One strike, end the battle!'

It wasn't that they didn't want their Pokemon to hold on to the very last moment, but the very last moment had already arrived silently.

Rather than continue entangling, better to pour everything into this one strike!

"Happy!"

"Gardevoir!"

The Miare Conference venue began to tremble.

Starlight speckles sprayed from the crown atop Blissey's head, terrifying energy fluctuations gathering between its two hands.

Mega Gardevoir raised both arms high, eyes deep, a vast, boundless "starry sky" gradually emerging above the venue, clearly formed from countless deep purple orbs of light converging!

And shockingly, the orbs of light were gradually fusing.

No.

It was collapsing!

A huge depression suddenly appeared in the center, spiraling and absorbing to form a pitch-black void occupying most of the arena!

"Gardevoir—"

Mega Gardevoir shouted, its whole body trembling, as if it might exhaust its strength at any moment.

Carnet clenched her fists, similarly able to feel from Mega Gardevoir's heart the pressure that the pitch-black void brought her.

She had never seen Psychic undergo such a massive transformation.

Within the profound dark light, Mega Gardevoir's aspirations, resolve, and anger were fused, and her own heart's yearning to go a step further.

This step.

She would absolutely step across it!

Master Class Rank Eight was absolutely not her endpoint!

"Go!!"

Carnet screamed disregarding her image, and Mega Gardevoir resonated as if in ensemble, swinging its arms down with difficulty, as if manipulating a black hole symbolizing nothingness and annihilation!

Boom—!!

【226】 Brilliant white crystal light pierced the air, striking Mega Gardevoir's slender body a step ahead.

Dazzling bright white crystal light pierced through the air, striking a step ahead onto the Mega Gardevoir's slender body with a boom.

Yet it couldn't shake it from gradually lowering the "black hole".

Nowhere to dodge.

The "black hole's" range was large enough to cover the whole arena; without Protect and Psychic, there was only the choice to face it.

Substitute?

Instinct told Happy Egg that doing so would only cause it and the Substitute to be taken away together.

As the crystal-white light pillar twisted and vanished under the grinding pressure of the "black hole," the arena fell deathly silent, inside and out.

As if sound, light, and everything else had truly been stolen away.

"Happy……"

Happy Egg opened its mouth, but its fully crystallized body could not resist at all; it could only watch helplessly as its form was slowly devoured.

In the blink of an eye, only a single, constantly rotating pitch-black void remained in the vast arena.

One second.

Two seconds.

The pitch-black void began collapsing inward until it shrank to half a person's height, then suddenly burst!

Boom——!!

Blinding light, shockwaves, and dust swept over everything!

The tempered glass behind Baimu and Carolyne shattered with a bang into fragments, barely holding together without falling.

Their hair whipped wildly in the fierce wind, hems fluttering as if about to tear free.

But neither of them moved; they simply waited silently for the result.

The dust and smoke covering the field rose high into the clouds and spread outward, like a massive gray-brown mushroom.

Time slipped by quietly while waiting for the dust to settle.

Fortunately it did not last too long.

Hum!

A streak of blue light suddenly froze the dust and smoke in place.

By now the shockwave's trembling had ended, and invisible mental power began expanding outward from the center of the arena like a whirlwind.

The dust and smoke were abruptly pushed out of the arena, making the interior clear.

Pakila: "A truly soul-shaking strike! Let us see the final result!"

The entire audience looked on and could distinctly see that the central area had sunk in a semicircular shape, as if a huge chunk had been gouged out.

The crystallized Happy Egg stood at the deepest point of the semicircular depression, frozen motionless.

Opposite it, at the edge of the arena, Mega Gardevoir braced its forehead, body swaying unsteadily.

Deadly poison was eating away at its last reserves of stamina.

Is it over?

"Mega Gardevoir retains partial battle capability! What is Happy Egg's condition? Let us check with the referee——"

"Chansey!"

"Mist Explosion!"

Before Pakila could finish, Baimu and Carolyne suddenly shouted in unison, and Referee Deng Pei had not even entered the field.

It's not over yet!?

Amid a wave of incredulous uproar, Mega Gardevoir leaped with all its might above the depression, while the Happy Egg in the pit began to stir slowly.

It raised its head with difficulty, clutching the Lucky Egg at its abdomen.

"Ha……ppy……"

Boom——!!

Pastel-colored radiance lit up the sky above the arena, carrying Mega Gardevoir's final shred of strength.

The destructive might made the entire arena tremble violently once more.

Only, even though Mega Gardevoir gave its all this time, the power was far from as formidable as before.

It had already poured everything it had into that earlier 【Psychic】.

Mist Explosion……

Just a death throe.

Nameless wind blew into the arena; this time no mental power dispersed the smoke.

A round figure glowing with crystal-like radiance swayed left and right, cradling Gardevoir as it walked out slowly.

"Ha……ppy……"

It exposed itself before the crowd, carefully set down its unconscious opponent, and looked toward the referee.

Deng Pei raised his hand quite obligingly.

"Gardevoir is unable to battle! Happy Egg wins!"

Ding!

The big screen flashed, and the portraits of Baimu and his three Pokemon, including Happy Egg, rapidly enlarged.

A glittering gold "WIN" jumped at the bottom.

Happy Egg broke into a happy smile, then toppled forward and fainted as well.

Though both fainted, it had succeeded in standing until the end.

This mattered more than anything!

"——The outcome is decided! Baimu claims the final victory! Let us congratulate him!"

A hint of surprise still tinged Pakila's tone.

Clearly, even from her third-party perspective, she could not make sense of what had just happened.

But that did not stop her from formally announcing the match result in a rousing voice.

Rumble!

The crowd rose as one, offering cheers and applause for the Pokemon who had fought fiercely below, and for the two Champions.

In this battle, Carney displayed the Champion's strength to the fullest; unfortunately, what she faced was an entire monster legion!

Relying on merely two Pokémon, he defeated three of Carney's members, including her ace.

How absurd!

More critically, he only "expended" two Pokémon.

Big-Mouth Kid is still brimming with fighting spirit!

"Good work."

Carney stepped into the arena, helped Gardevoir to her feet, and fed her a Pecha Berry to cure the poison.

She looked toward Baimu, who was likewise helping Blissey up not far away, her face showing a maiden's melancholy expression, "【Endure】... huh."

What an enviable yet despair-inducing deep movepool.