Chapter 333: The Clay Giant and the Brilliant, Colorful Blooming Flower

"Also, although during the Paldea Empire era, the extravagant lifestyles of the nobility and the Emperor meant that even the tombs of high officials were constructed with extreme solidity."

"But if possible, it's best to settle this as quickly as possible; after all, this structure has likely been buried in this scorching desert for over a thousand years, so its current structural integrity remains unknown."

"After all, you wouldn't want to be buried alive, would you?"

Seeing Lei He's tone was slightly frivolous at this moment, but Luo Mu knew she was likely using this method to dispel her nervousness.

Without uttering any useless words, Luo Mu merely nodded slightly and, holding a Poké Ball, responded with action.

Taking a deep breath, Seeing Lei He opened the already decayed great door; she, who had previously served as the vanguard for their advance, darted behind Luo Mu with extremely agile movements, and the instant she met Luo Mu's gaze, she flashed an awkward yet polite smile.

"."

Casting a helpless glance at Seeing Lei He, Luo Mu resigned himself to fate and stepped forward, passing through the great door into an extremely vast, empty space.

Even a high-intensity flashlight could not fully illuminate the surroundings, which was sufficient proof of the space's vastness.

But extreme vastness also implied dangers of an even greater magnitude.

Serperior's slender serpentine body wound nimbly into the encirclement formed by the four Golurk, moving so fast that Seeing Lei He didn't even have time to react.

Keeping her mouth shut and not causing trouble was her contribution.

She wanted to ask Luo Mu if it was really okay not to send out Dragonite to help Serperior, but then remembered she was a complete layman when it came to battles; in this regard, it was better to trust Luo Mu, the professional.

At this moment, Serperior had already raised its arrogant serpentine head; rather than it looking like four Golurk had surrounded it, it looked more like one Serperior had surrounded four Golurk!

In the region of the Golurk that could be called its "face" or "head," brilliant light gathered, then transformed into a thick, terrifying black-purple energy beam radiating an intense aura; it easily pierced the air, which trembled slightly due to the beam's presence, and roared toward the Serperior at the center!

The instant Seeing Lei He's voice fell, that "Pokémon Egg" seemed to complete its hatching; bright purple cracks immediately spread, and in the blink of an eye, they covered that huge "Pokémon Egg" like a spiderweb.

Apart from some meaningless murals on the walls recording the tomb owner's past romantic escapades, even though this space appeared to contain no useful information, Seeing Lei He's intuition as a former grave robber and current archaeologist told her things were not that simple.

"Golurk of this scale are likely at least three to four meters tall; ordinary Golurk are only 2.8 meters, making them special existences within their species. Be careful, Luo Mu!"

While loudly reminding Luo Mu through the built-in channel of her protective suit, Seeing Lei He also complained as if harboring resentment about the extravagance of that high official whom she had never met and whose name she did not know.

Staring at those four huge fellows, Seeing Lei He shouted, "Golurk are urban defense hubs created by ancient people; the moment they awaken is the moment of battle, and they will indiscriminately attack all living creatures before them!"

Having already sent out Serperior to shield himself and Seeing Lei He from the shockwaves, Luo Mu nodded slightly, spoke no useless words, and said in a deep voice, "Serperior, let's settle this quickly. Leaf Storm!"

As four brilliant white-purple halos exploded upon the crack-covered "Pokémon Egg," a violent shockwave immediately swept outward; amidst a blindingly strong light that could temporarily render one blind, four huge clay giants appeared out of thin air in this vast space, as if they had just been born!

Because the protective suit itself had the function of blocking intense light, Seeing Lei He's vision was not obstructed.

Four identical floor tiles immediately lit up with dazzling light; the next instant, a huge circular object with patterns identical to the floor tiles rose up, its appearance exactly like that of a giant Pokémon Egg!

"As expected, although the modern Paldea region has no distribution of Golurk, the Paldea Empire, which frequently interacted with the outside world in the past, did acquire the technology to create Golurk guards... placing them within tombs and ruins."

Danger often appears at the moment you are most relaxed.

Locked onto by four Hyper Beams, Serperior did not show the slightest trace of nervousness.

The four Golurk immediately turned their gazes toward the Serperior that had boldly entered their attack range.

"Truly wealthy, to have prepared four Golurk to guard your tomb; just how many bribes did you accept during your lifetime!"

Huddled behind Luo Mu, Seeing Lei He peeked out, sizing up the surroundings, her flashlight swinging around.

As expected, the moment Seeing Lei He's flashlight beam hit a section ahead that looked ordinary except for four circular patterned floor tiles with slightly strange designs, a sudden change occurred!

It was unclear whether Seeing Lei He's flashlight beam had triggered some mechanism, or whether Luo Mu and Seeing Lei He entering this space had destined this mechanism to activate.

Gently lifting the tip of its tail, emerald green leaves gathered, transforming in the blink of an eye into a terrifying storm of foliage; the rapidly spinning flying leaves could even slice through energy-constructed beams, while the whirlwind they kicked up easily tore the beams into countless beautiful points of light, making this place look less like a battlefield and more like the venue of a Pokémon Contest.

Seeing their Hyper Beams easily neutralized by Serperior, the four Golurk seemed to manifest emotions of anger; they clenched their huge fists, upon which Xiong Xiong burning flames immediately ignited.

Clearly, the Golurk had judged based on Serperior's type and chosen to use the move—Fire Punch!

The Golurk's Fire Punch perfectly illustrated the principle that once strength and size reach a certain realm, speed becomes less important.

Every time they swung their fists, the first thing to sweep forth was scorching fist wind; that wind was nearly equivalent to the air currents stirred up by ordinary Flying-type Pokémon, not to mention it also carried the scorching temperature of Fire Punch.

Yet, against these Fire Punches that made it difficult for ordinary Pokémon to dodge even a single blow, Serperior, facing four Golurk and eight fists, relied on its super-high agility and "snaky footwork" to forcibly cause every punch from the Golurk to miss, even guiding the Golurk's Fire Punches to strike their own companions.

Boom—Bang!

Seizing the gap when one Golurk's Fire Punch missed again, Serperior targeted the opening in its movement; coiling its serpentine body like a spring, it leaped into the air through that gap with astonishing jumping power.

Before the four Golurk could lock onto it and release Hyper Beam, Serperior's Leaf Storm erupted once more, blowing the four huge Golurk until they displayed expressions of pain.

As if anxious, one Golurk let out a sky-shaking roar, causing even this space to tremble for an instant.

This time, it wasn't just the fists that ignited with flames.

This Golurk's huge body immediately erupted in Xiong Xiong raging flames; it seemed intent on using the move "Heat Crash," relying on the size difference between itself and Serperior to decide the victor in one strike.

Serperior narrowed its eyes; naturally, it would not give the Golurk this opportunity. Its tail instantly transformed into a sharp emerald long blade, intending to slash toward the Golurk's chest to forcibly throw it off balance.

But at this moment, Luo Mu, who had remained silent since issuing the initial command for Serperior to settle this quickly, spoke again: "Don't attack the Golurk's chest; aim for its feet!"

Serperior's gem-like red pupils flickered slightly; long-established trust meant it believed Luo Mu's commands one hundred percent. The Leaf Blade slashing toward the Golurk's chest was forcibly redirected mid-air by Serperior's powerful control, changing its target to slash toward the Golurk's feet!

In an instant, the Golurk, which had been preparing to use Heat Crash, immediately toppled backward due to losing its balance and the pain in its feet, forcing the charging Heat Crash to be interrupted.

Having accomplished this, Serperior didn't even glance at that Golurk; continuing to rely on its terrifying battle experience and awareness, it easily dealt with the attacks of the other three Golurk while carrying out counterattacks in an orderly fashion.

Seeing Lei He opened her mouth, then obediently closed it again.

The look in her eyes as she gazed at Luo Mu and Serperior gained an extra layer of awe, along with a hint of contemplation.

She had just been about to remind Luo Mu that the Golurk's chest contained a seal structure that drove the energy of its huge body; if that were destroyed, the massive energy within the Golurk would go out of control and run wild.

But Luo Mu, who let Serperior fight four alone, clearly knew this; he wouldn't speak, but once he did give a command, it was at the most critical moment... So this is the capability of a truly powerful Trainer?

And Serperior's terrifying battle proficiency; even her team's most agile Zoroark and Gengar, if faced with a siege by four Golurk exerting such intense pressure, would most likely become flustered and get injured.

Yet Serperior perfectly embodied the concept of "I, one snake, have surrounded all four of you."

The battle had begun only two short minutes ago, yet the situation had already completely tilted in Serperior's favor.

After completing one final enhancement of Leaf Storm, gazing at the four somewhat resilient Golurk, Serperior rarely displayed a smile.

Can you withstand this move too?

Under Seeing Lei He's astonished gaze, the bracelet worn on Luo Mu's protective suit suddenly burst forth with brilliant Jin Guang; following Luo Mu's movements, it all converged onto Serperior, elevating Serperior's already powerful aura to another level, even reaching a point where the Golurk began to display emotions of "fear."

Adhering to the initial battle philosophy of settling things quickly, after Serperior had fully stacked its Special Attack using its Ability Contrary, Luo Mu unhesitatingly chose the most powerful move in his arsenal, intending to drain the Golurk's HP bars in one go!

"A riot of brilliant, colorful flowers bursts into bloom."

As Luo Mu's calm voice faded, the surrounding ground was instantly covered by a sea of brilliant flowers.

In the next instant, a point of light resembling a firefly rose from within every single flower.

Individually plucked, these glows appeared incredibly weak and utterly useless; even their energy fluctuations were pitifully faint, as if a single gentle breath would cause them to collapse and dissipate under the strain.

But what if every flower across this vast space simultaneously raised its point of light?

The Golem Giants' vision was engulfed by endless luminescence; each glow triggered violent explosions and booming roars upon their bodies, while highly effective attacks continuously stripped away their stamina, forcing the Golem Giants to emit roars of unwillingness and agony.

Thus, the Serpentine Monarch stood at the very center of the floral sea, like a supreme sovereign dispensing punishment upon the Golem Giants.

(End of Chapter)