Chapter 254: Super Swampert VS Meng Lei Gu, The Legendary Battle!

Brother Brother Qingmu had a rather deep impression of this Swampert.

During Luo Mu's 6-vs-6 Elite Four consecutive battle back then, this Swampert had swung its fists, which seemed to possess innate tremendous force, relentlessly defeating four of his Pokémon in succession with Ice Punch and Waterfall, before finally falling to his ace, Flamingo.

Yet his ace, Flamingo, had fallen before the Luxray without any ability to fight back.

Now, the Thunder Beast below was an opponent that both he and Flamingo found tricky and disadvantageous in terms of compatibility; Brother Brother Qingmu could not understand how Luo Mu's Swampert intended to fight it—by relying on type advantage?

Don't joke; type immunity always has an upper limit. Could a newly born Sandshrew ignore the lightning bolts summoned by Zapdos from the cloud peaks?

Even if the current was conducted into the ground and dispersed, the terrifying energy surge alone would be enough to leave the Sandshrew hanging by a thread.

The Ground type indeed grants Swampert a very obvious advantage, but wouldn't the best choice now be to send out Luo Mu's ace, that Luxray, to confront it?

In Brother Brother Qingmu's mind, Swampert's combat power still lagged one notch behind Luxray's; the only confidence it could have against that Thunder Beast likely stemmed from its Ground-type advantage.

Ever since Luo Mu sent out that Swampert, unseen for so long, Brother Brother Qingmu had been curious about the purpose of the armlet embedded with beautiful stones on its arm.

The moment Luo Mu shouted "Mega Evolution," watching the bands of light emerge from the Swampert's armlet and Luo Mu's chest, meeting mid-air, Brother Brother Qingmu's expression froze in stupor.

What brilliant radiance this was.

Bathed in golden electric currents, the Swampert's life level began leaping to the next stage, and a heart-palpitating domineering aura rose like an underwater volcanic eruption.

Moments later, the radiance dissipated.

The Swampert had completely transformed into a muscular biological war machine, filled with explosive power, causing a heavy pressure, as if a massive stone were pressing down, to rise in the chests of Brother Brother Qingmu and Flamingo.

The Mega Swampert shook its body, and the terrifying electric currents were instantly shaken off with ease.

Under the surprised and uncertain gaze of the Ancient Raikou, the Mega Swampert opened all the bladders on its right fist, and the high-pressure water jets spraying out acted like thrusters, adding several degrees of power and speed to its heavy punch.

The ground cracked inch by inch under the Mega Swampert's immense strength, and in the next instant, its figure turned into streaks of afterimages, rushing forward at a speed barely visible to the naked eye until it appeared before the Ancient Raikou; in the Ancient Raikou's suddenly constricted pupils, a punch as heavy as a thousand-jin boulder fell!

Liquidation!

Boom—!

The water exploded on the Ancient Raikou's surface, and that massive body was actually hammered bodily by the Mega Swampert into the side wall, shattering even the crystals embedded there into fragments.

The Ancient Raikou rose in pain, its expression upon looking at the Mega Swampert no longer as arrogant as before, but now stained with a touch of solemnity.

From this moment on, it would no longer harbor any thoughts of underestimating the Mega Swampert.

Go all out and crush it!

"The effect of Liquidation seems somewhat weak; no, the Electric type should not resist Water-type attacks."

Under the protection of Mimikyu, Luo Mu frowned slightly; could the Ancient Raikou possess a second type that resists Water?

In the damage just dealt, the Water-type energy had basically no effect; if not for the Mega Swampert's unparalleled strength, it might not even have been able to shake the Ancient Raikou's body.

Boom! Thunder roared from the mane around the Ancient Raikou's neck, and swift Lei Guang shot toward the Mega Swampert like arrows; the terrifying Electric-type energy contained within was such that even ordinary Ground-type Pokémon could not guarantee conducting one hundred percent of it into the underground.

The Mega Swampert naturally did not underestimate it in the slightest; Mega Evolution was an all-around enhancement, including a correction to its dynamic vision, allowing it to now clearly see attacks as fast as Lei Ting!

Use the shockwave from Stomp to block the Lei Ting halfway!

The Mega Swampert immediately intended to Stomp the ground, but at that very instant its movement began, the speed of the galloping Lei Ting suddenly increased by several gears; before the Mega Swampert could react, terrifying lightning exploded across its entire body.

Most of the current and energy were conducted into the ground, while a small portion raged across the Mega Swampert's surface; the high temperature brought by the current collided with the moisture on the Mega Swampert's body, causing white mist to rise.

There was a momentary sensation of paralysis and burning, but this meant little to the Mega Swampert; under Luo Mu's command, it once again wrapped its right fist in water, clearly intending to try again whether the Ancient Raikou truly resisted Water-type moves.

When facing unknown types and unknown species of Pokémon, this is the trouble: one cannot deliver super-effective attacks based on the type-matchup formula.

At this moment, the interior of Observation Station No. 4 also seemed to notice the commotion caused by the battle outside; a man dressed as a researcher in a white coat opened the station door with a tense expression, stuck out half his body, and shouted loudly through a megaphone: "The two doctors say it is called Meng Lei Gu, an Electric-type and Dragon-type Pokémon!!"

"Its weaknesses are Ground, Ice, Fairy, and Dragon types!!!"

As soon as the words fell, the researcher shrank back inside; he understood clearly that staying outside beyond delivering the message would only be a burden.

Luo Mu pricked up his ears; an Electric and Dragon-type Pokémon named Meng Lei Gu? Understood!

With intelligence in hand, they could fight without holding back!

"Ice Punch!"

The Mega Swampert leaped high, and the water swirling around its fists instantly turned into hard ice with the addition of Ice-type energy.

Meng Lei Gu also realized that its usually unstoppable electric current posed little threat to this fellow, so it immediately switched tactics; a massive amount of Dragon-type energy gathered before it, instantly forming a giant dragon that roared at the sky and lunged to bite the Mega Swampert in mid-air.

The Mega Swampert in mid-air manipulated the bladders on various parts of its body to spray water, adjusting its direction at the very instant it was about to be bitten by the Dragon Pulse, narrowly avoiding the dragon's bite.

Immediately after, the Mega Swampert's left fist slammed down fiercely; the giant dragon formed by Dragon Pulse was instantly frozen solid by the extreme cold of the Ice-type energy, losing momentum and falling powerlessly to the ground.

At the exact moment the dragon ice sculpture shattered and scattered in all directions, the Mega Swampert swung its bulging right arm and, relying on inertia, smashed straight down toward Meng Lei Gu!

Meng Lei Gu showed no intention of retreating either; its body seemed to transform into a giant dragon hammer, breaking through the air with the force of ten thousand jun, crashing straight toward the Mega Swampert!

Bang—!

A fierce collision sound rippled outward—

This was a violent showdown of strength against strength; unlike the relatively weak physical attack base stat in the games, the power contained within Meng Lei Gu's massive body was far beyond what ordinary Pokémon could match.

Fortunately, the Mega Swampert was slightly different.

The sound of spreading ice layers was particularly conspicuous; Meng Lei Gu bore the full brunt of the Mega Swampert's terrifying immense force, and a trace of astonishment flashed in its dragon eyes.

Why was the energy covering its body penetrated so easily by the opponent's chilling energy?

Coming from ancient times, Meng Lei Gu was completely unaware of the concept of type matchups.

Frost covered Meng Lei Gu's entire body in an instant, freezing it into a huge ice sculpture five or six meters tall.

"Is it... over?"

Brother Brother Qingmu, positioned high up and ready to support at any moment, murmured softly.

This fellow called Meng Lei Gu could be said to be the natural enemy of his Flamingo; weaker in strength by a notch, and slower, it would be caught by those terrifyingly swift lightning bolts, making it impossible to fight at all.

Fortunately, there was Luo Mu and that strangely evolvable Swampert; otherwise, dealing with that Meng Lei Gu would surely have cost him a terrible price.

Crack—

Just as Brother Brother Qingmu was sighing, the ice sculpture began to tremble violently, countless cracks appearing upon it, as a golden light seeped out from within!

Meng Lei Gu was about to break free from the ice!

"As expected, it won't be that simple to resolve. The Paradox Species' vigorous vitality is nearly comparable to that of a legendary Pokémon."

Luo Mu sighed, took out a earth-yellow diamond-shaped crystal, embedded it into his Z-Ring, and began preparing to use a Z-Move.

If they continued fighting, Mega Swampert could indeed defeat Xiang Menglei, but that would certainly consume a great deal of time; fighting in haste could easily spill over and affect the nearby Observation Station No. 4.

Better to end this quickly.

"Swampert, use Earthquake to restrain it! Keep the range small so as not to affect the observation station!"

The moment Luo Mu's voice fell, Xiang Menglei burst forth from the ice, surging, turbulent electric currents sweeping indiscriminately in all directions, with Observation Station No. 4 falling within the affected zone.

Brother Brother Qingmu, standing nearby, hurriedly commanded his six Pokémon to block with all their might the Discharge unleashed by Xiang Menglei in its fury.

At the same time, Mega Swampert slammed both arms heavily onto the ground; violent tremors erupted with Mega Swampert at the center, earth-yellow shockwaves rippling outward, controlled by it to concentrate solely in the area surrounding Xiang Menglei.

The intense tremors and terrifying shockwaves forced a pained expression onto Xiang Menglei's face; having just broken free from the ice, the chill within its body had not yet dissipated, leaving it unable to escape the Earthquake for the moment, forced to endure the attack through sheer, innate physical stamina.

While the aftershocks of the Earthquake had not yet subsided and Xiang Menglei remained bound in place, unable to dodge, Luo Mu and Mega Swampert completed all preparations for the Z-Move.

"Tectonic Rage: Land's Wrath."

The brilliant light emanating from the Z-Ring, along with most of Luo Mu's physical strength, poured entirely into Mega Swampert; under Mega Swampert's control, the ground strata instantly split open a massive fissure, swallowing Xiang Menglei, whose face now wore an expression of horror.

Mega Swampert's figure vanished simultaneously, reappearing in the next instant before Xiang Menglei, who seemed to be plummeting into a bottomless abyss; clad in heavy Ground-type energy, as if bearing the will of the earth itself, Mega Swampert crashed violently into Xiang Menglei!

Surging energy torrents shot skyward; the entire cavern emitted a mournful, trembling hum as if on the verge of collapse, while wild Pokémon living nearby fled in panic toward the cave exit, fearing the cavern would cave in and bury them alive.

Fortunately, the caverns of the lower levels of Area Zero were sturdy enough; after the heavily wounded Xiang Menglei was spat out by the earth's giant maw and landed on the ground, the tremors ceased, Mega Swampert reappeared, and the massive fissure slowly closed, leaving not a single trace that it had ever opened.

The battle between Xiang Menglei and Mega Swampert ended with an overwhelming advantage for Mega Swampert and Luo Mu, once intelligence had been grasped!

A high-speed spinning Ultra Ball slipped from Luo Mu's hand, striking Xiang Menglei, who lay collapsed to the side, with pinpoint accuracy, turning the Pokémon into a red beam of light that was drawn into the ball.

Brother Brother Qingmu, who had struggled merely to resist the Lei Ting unleashed in fury by Xiang Menglei, raised the corners of his mouth slightly and remarked with deep emotion, "It's only been a few months, yet he has become even stronger."

"For an ordinary person like me, you are truly too dazzling... However, I understand a little now."

"I understand why Chairperson Geeta had me use Flying-type Pokémon while serving as an Elite Four member; some sceneries cannot be noticed if one only walks along flat roads... Ordinary as I am, occasionally I too need to look up at talents like you, who can ride the clouds and mist."

The two had been respectfully invited into Observation Station No. 4 by a young male researcher who had just stepped out with a megaphone to call out to them.

The researcher occasionally stole glances at Luo Mu, as if looking at some rare creature.

According to the researcher, the current situation inside Observation Station No. 4 was quite dire; due to that Xiang Menglei, most equipment powered by electricity was essentially ruined, which was also the reason they had been unable to contact the outside world for help.

From the researcher's mouth, the two also learned the specific process of how this place had lost contact.

The two professors, who should originally have been establishing a research institute at the very bottom, somehow appeared near Observation Station No. 3; when attempting to return, they had the misfortune of encountering Xiang Menglei, which lived in the distant river region.

This big fellow caused quite a ruckus, destroying Observation Station No. 3, which was temporarily unattended, forcing the two professors to move downward and seek refuge at Observation Station No. 4.

Who could have expected that Xiang Menglei would pursue them relentlessly, chasing them all the way from the middle layer down to the lower layer, yet for some reason did not destroy Observation Station No. 4, choosing instead to wander the surroundings, trapping them there for several days.

"I don't know the specific details very well either, since I'm just an intern logistics researcher left behind to guard Observation Station No. 4; I never expected to be trapped by Xiang Menglei for so long."

Facing the two's inquiries, the researcher scratched his head, his expression somewhat awkward.

Arriving before a door that stood half-open, through the limited field of vision, one could see a man and a woman lying quietly on a small bed inside.

They were precisely Sada and Turo.

Sada and Turo were wrapped in bandages, currently in a deep sleep, their complexions somewhat pale, with spots of blood staining the white bandages, indicating their condition was not good, and they might even be running a fever.

Luo Mu and Brother Brother Qingmu frowned, looking at the young male researcher who had introduced himself as Mulu, their eyes carrying a questioning intent.

What is the situation with the two professors?

Mulu's expression was somewhat heavy; lowering his voice, he said, "Because of Xiang Menglei, the equipment here is basically in an unusable state, including the medical devices."

"I could only temporarily bandage them and apply some medicine."

"To be honest, if you hadn't come, I was thinking that even for the sake of the professors, I would have to go out and try my luck."

(End of Chapter)