Chapter 153: Black Cloud City

"Black clouds press the city, the city seems about to collapse, the red sun shines from the west…" Huo La stood before the monument at Black Cloud City's entrance, staring at the mottled "Welcome to Black Cloud City" and muttering to himself.

The night was deep, and the clouds on the horizon hung like heavy balls of ink, pressing on one's heart and making the very air feel oppressive.

"Huo La, what gibberish are you muttering?" Xiao Gang leaned in, looking puzzled, "You're not just confused from fatigue, are you?"

Huo La snapped back, shook his head, and smiled as he explained, "It's nothing—just read an old book earlier, a line stuck in my mind, so I muttered a couple of words."

He couldn't admit that it was a poem from a past‑life textbook; the black clouds before him oddly matched the verse's imagery.

"Oh, then don't just stand there!" Xiao Gang patted his shoulder, pointing toward the city's darkness, "It's almost midnight; let's hurry to the Pokemon Center to rest. The streetlights aren't even on—it's eerie."

Saying that, he was the first to stride over the monument and head into the city.

The two had just reached the Pokemon Center's entrance when Nurse Joy was anxiously pacing there, her brows tightly knit; she rushed up as soon as she saw them, "Trainers, wonderful! Could you do me a favor?"

"Nurse Joy, what's wrong?" Xiao Gang asked quickly.

Nurse Joy spoke at a rapid pace, "A man and two women just arrived with a Pikachu that was overheating, and then the entire Black Cloud City suddenly lost power."

"They left the Pikachu here, then went to the Heiyun City Power Plant to check the cause, and haven't returned yet. Could you help me look for them and see what actually happened?"

"What?!" Xiao Gang shouted sharply, his expression shocked, "You said a man and two women went to the power plant? And they brought a sick Pikachu?"

Huo La's eyes narrowed in an instant, a surge of alarm rose within—aside from Ash, Xiao Xia, and Lilian, who else could be the man and two women with the Pikachu?

Yet he had clearly agreed with Ash that Ash would take a boat on another route to Futaba City, so how could they suddenly show up in Black Cloud City?

"Huo La, stop overthinking! It has to be Ash and the others!" Xiao Gang tugged his arm, his tone urgent, "We must hurry to the power plant; if they're in danger it'll be terrible, and the Pokemon Center has been without power, the Pokémon inside can't hold out!"

"Alright, let's go!" Huo La pushed his doubts aside and nodded at once—now isn't the time to dwell on reasons; finding Ash first is the priority.

"Wait a moment!" Nurse Joy suddenly called them, pointing to the Pokemon Center's backyard, "There are two bicycles out back; you can ride those and get there much faster than on foot!"

The two thanked Nurse Joy and set off on the bicycles.

In the night, the bicycle wheels rolled over the road, emitting a "creak" sound.

While pedaling hard, Xiao Gang couldn't help asking, "Huo La, didn't you just say Ash and the others had taken a boat to Futaba City? How could they suddenly end up in Black Cloud City? Did something happen on the road?"

Huo La stared at the pitch‑black road ahead, the wind brushing past his ears with a chill.

He shook his head, his voice tinged with uncertainty, "I don't know either… logically, they shouldn't be here." At that moment his doubt was even greater than Xiao Gang's.

At the Heiyun City Power Plant's entrance, swarms of Magnemites and Magnetons circled the gate, pale‑yellow currents buzzing over them, and even the air tingled with static.

"How can there be so many Magnemites?" Xiao Gang halted his bike, frowning at the scene, "Could the blackout in Black Cloud City be their doing?"

"No." Huo La immediately shook his head, his tone certain, "Magnemites and Magnetons rely on electricity to survive; a power outage only unsettles them, they won't actively cause destruction."

"What do we do now?" Xiao Gang tightened his backpack strap, his gaze fixed on the plant's gate, "We have to find a way past these Magnemites and go in to find Ash, right?"

Huo La grabbed him, shaking his head, "Ash and the others won't be in danger; the most pressing issue now is the power problem—the Pokemon Center's backup power can't hold out long."

"Exactly, to fix the power issue we have to go into the power plant, right?" Xiao Gang still didn't understand, looking puzzled.

"Not the interior of the plant, but the intake." Huo La extended his hand, pointing to the rear of the plant—there stood a gray building larger than the main hall, "Heiyun City's power plant is hydroelectric, driven by upstream water flow turning turbines. A city‑wide blackout most likely means the intake is blocked, stopping water from reaching the units. I suspect the control area for the intake lies behind that building."

Xiao Gang looked in the direction Huo La indicated, then lowered his head to think, "You make sense. Ash may be reckless, but with Xiao Xia and Lilian watching, he can handle danger. We really should deal with the blackout first; otherwise, if the Pokemon Center runs into trouble, the problem will be even bigger."

He folded up the bicycle, followed Huo La around the plant's main gate, and headed toward the gray building at the rear.

Occasionally a few Magnemites drifted over, and seeing Huo La emit no hostility, they drifted back lazily to the gate area, not attacking.

"Huo La, how do you know so much? You even know the plant is hydroelectric." Walking along, Xiao Gang couldn't help asking; he recalled that Huo La rarely mentioned such factual matters.

Huo La's steps faltered briefly, and he offered a casual excuse, "I once came across a regional energy handbook in Yuhong City's library; it listed Black Cloud City's power generation type." He couldn't say that these were plot details he knew from a past life.

Xiao Gang asked no further questions and quickened his steps alongside Huo La.

Soon, the two arrived at the gray building's entrance—no Magnemites gathered there, only a tightly shut iron door bearing a "No Entry" sign, and behind it no machinery hum, only intermittent creaking sounds.