Chapter 44: Pikachu God Sweeps Through the Fantastical Color Crystal Tower!

Four people and one Pikachu passed through the rectangular ventilation duct,

Pikachu walked in the front, with Clemont and Yurie closely following,

Ash followed behind Yurie, and Serena was at the rear.

After crawling through the long ventilation duct, Pikachu flicked its tail and knocked away the fan at the vent, jumping down first,

Before Clemont went down, he didn't forget to turn back and remind everyone,

"Everyone, we're about to go out, be careful!"

Having said that,

With a bang, Clemont fell straight down.

A mechanical arm reached out and grabbed Yurie down, Ash arrived at the exit and jumped down neatly,

Serena rode on Ash's neck,

Her black-stockinged beautiful legs wrapped around Ash's head, and in front of his chest Ash firmly gripped them with both hands, stabilizing her posture to prevent falling,

Ash carefully placed Serena on the ground.

"Thank you, Ash!" Serena thanked him, her face slightly flushed.

He lowered his head to brush off the dust on his body, but saw nothing, feeling somewhat surprised,

"Clemont, how come your ventilation duct is so clean?"

"Of course! I'm a tech genius; setting up a little automatic cleaning system is a breeze."

Talking about inventions and creations, Clemont's face showed a confidence completely different from his usual nervousness and social anxiety.

At the same time, a tiny figure silently approached from the corner.

The Waveguide Power sensed the comer, and Ash spoke up to warn,

"Be careful!"

Clemont turned his head, saw that the comer was his little Magnemite, and couldn't help but smile.

"Little Magnemite, is that you!"

Recognizing Clemont's identity, the little Magnemite's face flashed with a hint of joy,

Just as it was about to get close to Clemont for friendly interaction,

But then it remembered the order it had received before coming: to eliminate intruders, and its expression changed again,

Golden lightning surged from its body and struck down.

"Not good!"

Just as Clemont turned around intending to run away,

Sizzle!

In almost an instant, the electricity originally heading for him was completely absorbed by the motionless Pikachu beside him.

The Lightning Rod ability is truly reassuring.

"Pika-pika~!"

Pikachu smiled and gave a thumbs-up,

Seeing this, Clemont likewise gave a thumbs-up, and all the tension in his heart dissipated in the sense of security brought by Pikachu.

The little Magnemite and the Magneton encountered later were all used by Pikachu as power generators,

One in each hand, endlessly absorbing, tightly restrained.

Soon,

After winding around, the four arrived at the entrance of the Miare Gym's battle field.

After Clemont used his authority to open the battlefield gate, everyone finally reached the interior of the Miare Gym.

"Phew, we finally made it!"

Ding!

Accompanying Clemont's sigh, the dark room was suddenly lit up,

Opposite the battlefield, the robot that Clemont had made began to introduce itself.

"Welcome to the Miare Gym, I am the substitute Gym robot, Hetroit."

"Hetroit! Activate Cognizant Owner Battle Mode!"

"To activate Cognizant Owner Battle Mode, you must input a voice password."

"Clemont, believe in yourself, think hard."

Hearing this, Clemont earnestly nodded, closed his eyes, and fell into contemplation.

After a while,

Clemont suddenly opened his eyes, excitement shining in them.

"From today onward, I'll be relying on you—I am the Gym Trainer Clemont!"

"Voice password entered correctly! Activating Cognizant Owner Battle Mode."

"Success!"

Ash, Serena, and Yurie all saw this and broke into smiles.

"Great, as long as we can beat the opponent next, we can re-enter the command, right?"

"But..." Clemont scratched his head embarrassedly, "I left my strongest Pokémon with Hetroit; even the strongest I carry is only level 50, while the opponent is level 80—ahhh, what should I do!"

The level-50 Pokémon Clemont referred to is the Light-Electric Umbrella Lizard he had previously released.

In reality, involving levels, it naturally won't be as vague as in the anime.

Using the newly captured Diglett to defeat the Gym's Light-Electric Umbrella Lizard is completely unrealistic.

"Did you catch a Pikachu, Clemont?" Ash asked.

Clemont scratched his head, "What does Ash mean?"

"Just have you command Pikachu to face the opponent; after all, it's not an official battle."

"Pika‑pi~"

Pikachu, hearing that, quickly ran onto the battle field, turned back and gave Clemont a confident look that wrapped around me.

"I understand! Then I'm counting on you, Pikachu!"

He took a deep breath; Clemont's face was full of excitement.

This was a chance to experience commanding Ash's Pokémon battle.

"Pikachu, can you set Electric Terrain?"

"Pika!"

Pikachu immediately released Electric Terrain, and teal‑blue currents covered the entire arena.

"Thunderbolt!"

"Light‑electric Umbrella Lizard, Heavy Stomp!"

On the other side, the intelligent AI robot Hithroite chose to use a counter‑type move.

The destructive force of Heavy Stomp gathered beneath Pikachu's feet, transferred to Pikachu, causing slight damage.

But Pikachu's Thunderbolt struck straight to the soul!

An explosion suddenly erupted,

The shockwave knocked the Light‑electric Umbrella Lizard to the ground, and the scorching heat burned its skin, leaving it charred black.

The explosion dissipated, and the Light‑electric Umbrella Lizard lay flat.

"One‑second… one‑shot?!"

Although it had been anticipated, Ash's Pikachu was indeed powerful.

But actually seeing his own ace Light‑electric Umbrella Lizard, an 8‑star Gym‑level creature, fall, he couldn't help feeling a huge shock.

On the other side, Hithroite quickly recalled the Light‑electric Umbrella Lizard and released a second Pokémon,

"Self‑Destruct Magneton, Cannon Light Beam!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

It was still the familiar Thunderbolt! Although Electric Steel resisted electric attacks, Pikachu's boost was too high,

and with the power of a Second‑Tier God, there was no doubt,

Thunderbolt quickly suppressed and devoured the Cannon Light Beam, and the Self‑Destruct Magneton was also knocked down.

The extreme temperature from the ultra‑high voltage turned the Self‑Destruct Magneton's body blazing red, even triggering the indoor fire‑prevention system to spray water for cooling.

Another one‑shot!

For the third, Hithroite sent out an Electric Shock Beast.

The Electric Shock Beast, with a base stat total of 540, was stronger than a starter Pokémon.

However, the result was not as expected,

"Electric Shock Beast, Earthquake!"

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"

Relying on its extraordinary speed, Pikachu struck first, and a single Iron Tail flung the Electric Shock Beast away, knocking it out cold.

It averted the doom of the entire Prismatic Crystal Tower.

"Owner battle mode recognized, welcome back, Clemont's master!"

With Hithroite's recognition, Clemont finally breathed a sigh of relief.

As a spectator, Ash's mind was still full of grievances,

"Clemont, you AI robot are really going all out; how could you use Earthquake here? Do you want to destroy the whole Prismatic Crystal Tower?"

"Hehe, that's why I mentioned a small problem."

"Is that a small problem?"

"Ahem, in any case, I'm really grateful to you, Ash, and of course Serena as well."

After thanking Ash and Pikachu,

Clemont turned around and immediately began correcting Hithroite's program.

The main task was to modify several items,

First, the attitude toward challengers should be as friendly as possible; of course, be strict when needed and gentle when appropriate.

Second, after the battle ends, do not forget to give the challenger good advice.

Third, do everything possible to help the challenger grow.

Fourth, one must restrain oneself and remind the opponent not to use moves like Earthquake.

After about two hours,

"Done!"

Clemont stretched lazily and casually closed Hithroite's trunk lid.

"Great, Clemont!"

The long‑waiting crowd together voiced their blessings,

"Thank you all, sorry for the long wait."

"It's fine," Ash said casually,

Of course, it also matters who we're with; being able to go with Serena alone to appreciate the Scenery atop the Prismatic Crystal Tower, feeling the breeze, was quite enjoyable.

He even felt that time passed a bit too quickly.

"By the way, it seems we haven't booked a room yet?" Serena suddenly exclaimed,

Ash calmly nodded, "I think, unless something unexpected happens, yes!"

Serena's face showed an expression that something was seriously wrong,

"No way, how are we supposed to sleep tonight?"