Chapter 105: Bulbasaur vs. Swalot

"Next up, it's your turn, Swalot!"

"Swalot!" Its body is slimmer than Absol's, the left leg supporting it bulging with muscle, the right leg slightly raised, the knee glinting with a cold, hard metallic sheen, its sharp eyes locked onto Scolipede.

"Swalot..." Huo La stared at the poised figure in the arena, his fingertips gently rubbing the Pokeball.

Swalot specializes in leg techniques, its speed and burst far surpassing Absol's; he decisively raised his hand to recall Scolipede: "Come back, Scolipede, thanks for your effort."

The Red Light faded, Huo La glanced at another Pokeball at his waist, a faint smile curling his lips: "When Red and Blue-Green Challenge used their original partners, then Bulbasaur, you go."

The Pokeball hit the ground, and Bulbasaur emerged on cue, its blue‑green body slamming onto the earth, kicking up a spray of fine dust. It shook the bud on its back, two thick Vine Whips swaying lightly at its sides, its gaze full of composure.

"Bulbasaur?" Wude raised an eyebrow, his tone tinged with surprise, "If you keep using Flying Type, I'll have to think harder to counter, but Bulbasaur…"

In his view, a Pokemon standing on the ground facing Swalot had virtually no chance of winning.

Huo La lifted his eyes to the blazing sun overhead, the glare bright, perfectly providing Bulbasaur's Natural Buff.

He said no more and ordered directly: "Bulbasaur, strike first, scatter Poison Powder!"

The bud atop Bulbasaur's head quivered slightly, a cloud of purple powder instantly spreading like a thin mist drifting toward Swalot.

"Swalot, dodge backward and surge forward, use a low kick!" Wude's command was as fast as lightning.

Swalot thrust a single leg powerfully, its body springing like a coil, leaping lightly over the Poison Powder mist, and at landing became a fleeting afterimage, charging straight at Bulbasaur.

It raised its right leg, glinting with metallic sheen, wind howling, delivering a low kick to Bulbasaur's supporting leg— a low kick that targets the opponent's foundation, and if it lands, it can instantly shatter the defense.

"Bulbasaur, brace with Vine Whip, jump!" Huo La had already anticipated.

The two Vine Whips instantly tensed, striking the ground like springs, and using the reaction force, Bulbasaur's body vaulted upward, perfectly evading Swalot's kick.

Before Swalot could recover, Huo La's new command rang out: "Now, Leech Seed!"

Bulbasaur twisted mid‑air, the bud on its head firing three glowing seeds that landed precisely on Swalot's back.

The seeds, upon touching the skin, instantly rooted and sprouted, delicate tendrils piercing Swalot's hide and burrowing deep inside.

"Swal—!"

The Leech Seed's tendrils dug into flesh, Swalot winced, arching his body and letting out a sharp wail; the tendrils on his back glowed faintly, continuously draining his stamina.

"Million‑Ton Heavy Kick, kick it away!" Wude's roar suddenly rang out.

Swalot spun sharply, its right leg gleaming metallicly snapping tight, the leg wind carrying a cataclysmic force, sweeping horizontally toward the airborne Bulbasaur yet to land.

"Boom—!"

A deep, muffled boom; Bulbasaur couldn't fully dodge and was forced to take the hit sideways.

The massive force hurled it hard, its body tracing a parabola in the air before crashing heavily onto the ground several meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Bulbasaur, are you okay?" Huo La's tone could not hide his worry.

"Seed... seed..." Bulbasaur replied weakly, voice broken, its leaves even stained with a bit of grassy juice—clearly the blow had wounded it badly.

"Hmph, if Leech Seed weren't silently siphoning Swalot's stamina, it would have lost combat ability by now." Wude's voice carried some resentment, yet he acknowledged the subtlety of the situation, "Swalot, give it no chance to recover, Close Combat!"

A fierce glint flashed in Swalot's eyes, a faint red battle aura flaring over its body, its foot planting firmly as it surged forward like an arrow toward Bulbasaur.

Its speed had slowed slightly from stamina loss, yet it still bore a fighter's fierce aura, its fists clenched white, clearly intending to finish the battle with close‑quarters grappling.

"Bulbasaur, Vine Whip! Bind its leg!" Huo La's command was precise and swift.

The two thick Vine Whips, like coiled serpents ready to strike, shot out from Bulbasaur's side with a light whoosh, precisely latching onto Swalot's powering right leg.

Before Swalot could react, the Vine Whips snapped tight, yanking hard backward—Swalot's balance faltered, and with a "thud" it crashed heavily to the ground, dust rising and coating its body.

"Dammit! Swalot, get up! Use Earthquake!" Wude growled through clenched teeth.

Swalot struggled to lift its body, its foot just touching the ground when Huo La's new command rang out: "Don't give it a chance to rise! Drag it with the Vine Whip, keep the distance!"

Bulbasaur immediately complied, the two Vine Whips tightly cinching Swalot's right leg, its body pulling backward, and under the support of its Chlorophyll trait, its speed increased rapidly.

With its leg bound, Swalot could not rise at all, forced to be dragged by the Vine Whip across the rough ground, the abrasive surface hurting its skin; worse, the Leech Seed on its back continued ravenously siphoning stamina, gradually steadening its once feeble breath, while Swalot's struggles grew ever weaker.

The karate students at the sidelines stared in amazement, even Damo couldn't help but gape—no one had ever seen a battle like this, lacking fierce skill clashes, yet dragging down the mighty Swalot through a War of Attrition.

Minutes later, the battered, exhausted Swalot, dragged to the point of ruin, finally stopped struggling, its head drooping weakly to the ground, completely losing its combat ability.

"Swalot has lost combat ability! Bulbasaur wins! In this Gym Challenge, challenger Huo La wins!" Damo recovered and loudly announced the result.

Wude hurried forward, carefully lifting Swalot, his gaze at Huo La full of resentment, his tone laced with obvious irritation: "Your tactics... are downright shameless! Relying on Leech Seed to sneakily recover, then dragging with Vine Whip for a War of Attrition—where's any fighting thrill in that!"

"Lost is lost, stop making excuses." Binli stepped in front of Wude, tapping him.

He then pulled a brown Badge from his pocket—a Badge engraved with a clenched fist, its edge shimmering metallically.

He thrust the Badge into Huo La's hand: "League rules are that a win earns a Badge; this Badge is yours."

Huo La took the Badge, bowed slightly to Binli, his tone sincere: "Thank you, Gym Leader."

Binli turned his back to Huo La: "The match between Scolipede and Absol, punches and blades clashing, truly counted as a 'battle', spectacular!"

Then, shifting tone, he sighed heavily, "But your Bulbasaur and Swalot... rather than being dragged to death by your Vine Whip, Swalot would've been better off taking the Poison Powder head‑on from the start; even if poisoned, that's still stronger than being forced to run dragged."

Damo hurried forward, urging: "Master, Huo La's tactics are indeed... unique, but they are a reasonable use of Pokemon traits, not a violation."

"I know it's not a violation!" Binli snapped around, his brows knotted, "Not to say Wude is upset, I'm upset too! Swalot has trained leg techniques for years, yet couldn't even brush the opponent a few times, and ends up dragged into this state..."

He said, glancing at Wude holding Swalot, feeling both heartache and helplessness, "Fine, fine, the Badge's given, you should leave quickly."

Huo La, reluctantly bowing again to Binli, said: "Then I shall take my leave, thank you for the Badge, Gym Leader."

As he left the Fighting Gym, Gengar finally couldn't help but snicker: "Hahaha, I've lived this long, and it's the first time I've seen anyone make the Fighting Type look so 'squeezed', truly embarrassing."

"Tactics are just about winning." Huo La twirled the Badge in his hand, feeling pleased, "Swalot's leg techniques are too fierce; brute force would definitely lose, so a War of Attrition wears it down. And…" a sly smile curled his lips, "occasionally making these 'Hard Clash' fighters a bit irritated is also quite fun."

"Wait, wait a moment!"

As Huo La was about to leave, a crisp voice came from behind. He turned, seeing the female disciple who had been on guard at the door.

Before Huo La could speak, the girl thrust a silver metal disc into his hand.

"Th-this is a Skill Machine for Million‑ton Heavy Punch that Senior Brother Damo asked me to give you," the girl's cheeks slightly flushed, speaking quickly.

Huo La clasped the icy Skill Machine, nodding thanks to the girl: "Please thank Senior Brother Damo and Gym Leader Binli for me; this gift is very useful."

The girl waved, then lifted her head, her eyes earnest: "Although your tactics are indeed... hmm, a bit sleazy, I think you won beautifully! Especially when Bulbasaur used Vine Whip to bind Swalot, the timing was spot‑on!"

She obviously sincerely approves Huo La's tactics, and when she speaks her eyes brighten a bit, showing no trace of resentment at all.

"By the way, I'm Ci Shi, Binli's junior disciple!" the girl volunteered her name, her tone tinged with curiosity, "You're called Huo La, right? Are all Trainers from Pallet Town this strong?"

"Just luck," Huo La replied with a smile, feeling rather fond of this straightforward girl, "Trainers from Pallet Town really are inventive; perhaps after a while, you'll meet the fourth one."

"Really? Then I'll wait patiently!" Her eyes brightened even more; after speaking, she turned and ran back to the dojo.

"This little girl actually knows value better than that old stickler," the Gastly in his sleeve snickered, "Knowing that winning is winning, regardless of whether the tactics are sleazy or not."

"Indeed." Huo La packed the Skill Machine into his backpack and nodded.