Chapter 232: Can't Kill Me, Heh

He pushed open the golden gate, and what came into view was not the Gym battle arena Huo La had expected, but an absurdly large office.

The high‑suspended dome, walls of dark‑gold stone, a few statues in the corners, the entire space radiated an aura of keep‑out authority.

At the far end of the office, a pure black genuine‑leather chair faced away from him; only a hand with clearly defined knuckles could be faintly seen holding a wine glass, the scarlet liquid gently swaying inside, reflecting a faint light.

"Damn, it's pitch black—how scared of light is Sakaki?" Huo La muttered to himself, but his steps dared not slacken.

Just as he steadied himself, the crystal chandeliers throughout the room suddenly lit up in unison, the dazzling light causing him to instinctively squint, and a brief vertigo washed over him.

In the instant before the dizziness faded, the chair turned slowly to face him.

Huo La rubbed his eyes, and the moment his gaze focused, his heart lurched sharply.

The person in the chair held a glass of red wine; his face resembled Sakaki by about seventy‑to‑eighty percent—high nose bridge, deep eye sockets, eyes sharp as a hawk, and an Intimidation that radiated like a mountain.

But what made his heart sink most was the "R" emblem on the other's chest—not the familiar black, but swirling with a rainbow halo, identical to the Rainbow Rocket Team insignia.

More crucially, the age.

In this world, Sakaki had only just entered middle age, whereas the person before him already had frost‑white temples and deeper wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, clearly much older than the Sakaki in his memory.

"Banmu Laoda?" Huo La suppressed the turbulent surge in his heart, forced a perfectly timed smile onto his face, with a hint of deliberate restraint.

Sakaki withdrew his gaze, tapped the tabletop with his fingertip, pointed to the opposite chair: "Sit."

Huo La complied, moved forward to sit, and his back tightened subtly.

He was certain the person before him was not this world's Sakaki; the aura that towered over everything, and the mismatched age, both confirmed his suspicion.

"Huo La…" Sakaki stared at him, slowly uttering the two words, his voice low as a cello yet oddly penetrating.

"Boss!" Huo La immediately lowered his stance, taking the initiative, "Dr. Namba's matter is my problem… it caused trouble for the Rocket Team…"

The survival instinct of a former corporate drone was fully at play now—voluntarily admitting fault before a superior never goes wrong, especially when the situation is unclear; lowering one's stance is the only way to probe the other's limits.

"Heh." Sakaki chuckled lightly, his voice cold and bone‑chilling, "Just a few useless ones; even you can't deal with them, so they deserve it if they go in."

Huo La was momentarily at a loss for words.

He hadn't expected that reaction; the prepared stream of excuses instantly got stuck in his throat.

Fortunately, Sakaki didn't linger on it; he set down his wine glass, and his gaze fell on the palm of his left hand.

Following his line of sight, Huo La saw a silver light suddenly appear in the palm, the glow wavering, as if it could tear the air, emitting a pulse that made his heart race.

"Kid, it's the power of space! Stronger than what I felt before!" Gengar's voice suddenly echoed in Huo La's mind, tinged with an unmistakable panic.

Huo La remained silent, his confusion deepening—what exactly did the other intend by suddenly displaying this power?

"This is the power of space; doesn't it look ordinary?" Sakaki spoke to himself, his tone as flat as if discussing the weather.

Huo La gave no reply, merely waited quietly for what came next.

"I am not from this world," Sakaki said slowly, a hint of contempt flashing in his eyes, "but this world could be mine."

"Uh, Boss, you're right!" Huo La quickly echoed, "The Rocket Team will sooner or later control the Whole World; your wise decision, we will certainly follow to the death!"

"Our Rocket Team?" Sakaki suddenly looked up, his sharp gaze cutting across Huo La's face like a blade, "You aren't from this world either, right?"

Huo La's heart suddenly missed a beat, a chill racing from his feet to the top of his head.

He forced down his terror, maintaining respect on his face, "Boss, you're joking; I grew up in Pallet Town, how could I not be from this world? Perhaps the world's development deviated, leading to your misunderstanding…"

"Misunderstanding?" Sakaki chuckled lightly, "The world I come from is almost identical to this one. I've seen Ash, I've seen Red, Green, and I've also seen Dande and Du; they all tried to stop me, but each failed in the end."

He paused, his gaze growing even deeper, "But I've never seen you, not even heard of you. At first I thought it was a world deviation, until I replaced this world's Sakaki, and in his office desk I found your file—a Trainer who seems to know everything."

A chill ran through Huo La's heart.

He should have realized earlier that the Rocket Team, as a world‑spanning Dark Organization, couldn't have missed his anomaly; this world's Sakaki's tolerance of him was likely just to extract the secrets of Ancient Pokemon and Mew from him.

"He's too slow, too indecisive," Sakaki's tone dripped with contempt, "He clearly sensed your issue, yet only treated you as a League undercover, watching silently."

"And you?" Huo La lifted his head, staring into his eyes, "You displayed these powers, what exactly do you intend to do?"

"Me?" Sakaki's mouth curled into a cold smile, "The things he cares about, my former self might have cared about too. But now I've seen broader horizons—Mew, Ancient Pokemon… they are optional to me."

Huo La understood instantly.

In his memory, in the world where that Sakaki lived, he and the Rocket Team had long been the rulers of the world; the things the person before him had seen were indeed beyond what this world's Sakaki could match.

"Then what's your purpose in coming to this world?" Huo La pressed, his tone edged with urgency.

"You?" Sakaki raised an eyebrow, then laughed, his smile tinged with amusement, "You really know a lot."

He paused, his gaze suddenly turning icy, "Unfortunately, I cannot tell you."

The moment the words finished, Sakaki suddenly clenched his left hand, and the silver light in his palm vanished instantly!

"Gengar!" Huo La reacted swiftly, calling out in his mind.

A pale‑purple figure instantly emerged from Huo La's shadow, about to launch an attack, but an invisible force pinned it in place, unable to move.

At the same time, within the shadows behind Sakaki, a figure slowly materialized.

The Pokemon was entirely composed of black crystal, its hands ending in three sharp claws, its legs slender, and its eye sockets glimmered with a ghostly blue light.

"Nekrozma!" Huo La shouted in terror.

"You truly know a lot," Sakaki's gaze hardened, "Keeping you alive in this world is the greatest risk. Nekrozma, open the Ultimate Abyss!"

Nekrozma let out a low roar, its pupils rotating, and the space above Huo La suddenly warped; a pitch‑black opening materialized out of nowhere, emitting a powerful suction that forcibly lifted Huo La from his chair.

At that split‑second, the long‑dormant system emitted a harsh warning: "Warning! Ultimate Abyss energy fluctuations detected! Protection protocol initiating!"

A warm force instantly burst from Huo La's body, pulling him steadily back to the ground, counteracting the Ultimate Abyss's suction.

"Hm? Interesting," Sakaki watched the scene with interest, "You truly are different."

A shock ran through Huo La's mind, and before he could think further, the system voice sounded again: "System Energy insufficient, protection protocol about to fail, initiating teleportation protection mode! Detected companion Gengar, you may transfer teleportation permission to the companion, confirm?"

"Confirm!" Huo La said without hesitation, gritting his teeth.

He could feel his internal power draining rapidly, the suction growing stronger, and Gengar still pinned in place; if he didn't send it away, it would likely be sucked into the Ultimate Abyss together with him.

The moment the command was issued, Huo La distinctly felt the suction above his head surge suddenly, while Gengar's body began to emit a soft white glow.

Its form started to flicker, then transformed into a streak of light, disappearing from the spot.

When Gui Si vanished, that powerful suction had no longer any obstacle and forcefully dragged Huo La toward the Ultimate Abyss.

He struggled, but could not resist that space‑tearing force at all, and was finally completely sucked in.

The entrance slowly closed, and the office returned to calm.

Sakaki looked at the spot where Huo La disappeared, then suddenly spoke to the air, "Are you sure that merely exiling him is enough?"

There was no response in the air.

A cold smile curled at Sakaki's mouth, his gaze sinister: "Can't kill him? Heh…"