Chapter 208: Muk vs. Raichu

"Since the opponent is Raichu, I'll leave this round to you, Muk!" Huo La no longer hesitated, tossing a Pokeball with his other hand.

Red Light landed, and the Alola Form Muk appeared steadily.

Its body is a dazzling multicolored hue, with viscous fluid constantly dripping yet instantly reabsorbed, and it faintly emits a unique odor that mixes with the rainwater on the field, creating a strange atmosphere.

"Alola Muk!" Red instantly recognized the Pokemon's origin, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, "Huo La, your Muk…"

"I rescued it from the Rocket Team." Huo La found a perfectly timed excuse; he couldn't outright say it was a "trophy" from the Rocket Team.

"Back then it was forcibly modified by the Rocket Team, its condition was poor, and after I saved it, it has stuck with me."

Xiao Gang and Bilan kept a tacit silence beside him, clearly not going to expose his story.

Red indeed didn't ask further, but his expression darkened, his tone tinged with anger: "Those Rocket Team are damn it! On my journey I've dealt with them many times, they only do vile, harmful deeds."

Huo La let out a dry chuckle twice, said nothing, and fixed his gaze on Raichu again; the system panel displayed the same information as before:

Pokemon: Raichu

Gender: Male

Level: Lv45

Su Xing: A

Status: Healthy

Nature: Cheerful

Type: Electric

Ability: Quick Feet (when the Pokemon is afflicted with a status condition, this ability raises Speed.)

Height: 0.8 m

Weight: 25 kg

Carried Item:

Moves: Electric Shock (Mastery 100%), Bite (Mastery 100%), High Speed Star (Mastery 100%), Electric Flash (Mastery 100%), Double Kick (Mastery 100%), Thunder Fang (Mastery 73%), Thunderbolt (Mastery 100%), Light Screen (Mastery 67%)......

Improvement Count: 0

The Quick Feet ability and a fully mastered Thunderbolt are indeed a tough nut to crack, but his Muk happens to counter this fast, fragile Pokemon.

"Muk, release Poison Gas first!" Huo La struck first, giving the opponent no chance to adjust.

Muk immediately opened its huge mouth in cooperation, spewing a thick violet‑green Poison Mist that instantly filled most of the arena.

The rain could dilute some of the mist but couldn't stop the spread of Poison Gas; soon the entire battle zone was shrouded in a faint purple haze.

Red furrowed his brows, evidently having anticipated Huo La's war of attrition, and immediately ordered: "Raichu, use Electric Flash to charge forward, then use Thunder!"

Raichu's body lit up with Electric Light, its form instantly became a yellow afterimage, trying to break through the Poison Mist with speed.

But the moment it was about to move, Huo La's precise command came: "Muk, Dig!"

The ground beneath Muk suddenly collapsed, and its massive body slipped underground unhindered, leaving only a pitch‑black hole.

Raichu's Thunder lost its target; the hefty lightning struck the empty ground, splashing mud, yet it didn't even touch Muk's shadow.

"Muk, unleash Sandstorm underground!" Huo La's orders followed in quick succession.

The next second, the whole arena shuddered violently, sandstorms surged from below, mixing with the lingering Poison Gas to create a choking, toxic environment.

The rain, caught by the sand, turned into murky sludge, and visibility dropped to the minimum instantly.

"Poison Gas and Sandstorm again, this is definitely a war of attrition," Red's brows knit tighter as he shouted at Raichu, "Raichu, use Thunderbolt to cover the whole field and blast it out from underground!"

Raichu tilted its head back and let out a sharp screech, its whole body surged with electricity, countless blue ElectricArcs instantly swept the entire battle zone, even the ground below emitted a sizzling electric hum.

"What a dense area! The power of this Thunderbolt must be close to a hundred thousand volts of current!" Xiao Gang stared at the sea of lightning and couldn't help exclaiming.

"Then Muk must be in danger?" Bilan nervously covered his mouth, his heart in his throat.

Xiao Gang shook his head, his tone firm: "Not necessarily. Huo La's Muk, though it has Evil and Poison attributes and isn't a proper Ground Type, has lived underground for years, mastering the subterranean environment far beyond ordinary Pokemon. Hidden in the Cave now, the lightning damage will be greatly dampened by the soil layers."

"On the contrary, Huo La covered the field with Poison Gas from the start, and the ongoing Sandstorm adds further attrition; now it's Raichu that suffers." Bilan followed Xiao Gang's gaze and indeed saw an abnormal pale purple tint spreading over Raichu's golden fur.

Its movements had become noticeably sluggish, and its breathing grew a bit rapid.

"Ah! Raichu is poisoned!" Bilan couldn't help shouting. Under the dual assault of sand and Poison Mist, Raichu, even without direct contact with Muk, couldn't escape the spread of Poison Gas.

"Raichu, can you still hold on?" Red asked, his eyes showing increasing anxiety as the purple on its fur deepened.

The ongoing poison erosion, combined with the abrasive Sandstorm, had noticeably weakened Raichu's vitality.

"Eevee!" Raichu raised its head and let out a clear cry, its round eyes still showing stubbornness, its little paws digging fiercely into the ground, indicating it could still fight.

"Alright!" Red's gaze hardened, quickly adjusting tactics, "Since it's hiding underground and won't come out, Raichu, use High Speed Star and blast straight at the cave entrance!"

Raichu instantly understood, its body sparkling with tiny silver‑white light points, countless starlights coalescing into sharp star blades that swept toward the opening of the cave left by Muk.

A muffled "pfft" sound echoed from the Cave, indicating Muk underground hadn't fully evaded and took a hidden hit.

Just as Red thought he could force Muk out, Huo La's command rang out abruptly: "Muk, change position, Dig, and surprise attack!"

Before the words finished, the ground beneath Raichu suddenly bulged upward, and Muk's multicolored body abruptly arched out from the earth, its massive form carrying the scent of soil, crashing solidly into Raichu's abdomen.

More deadly, the Toxic Orb on Muk burst into purple mist the instant of contact, and together with its Poison Touch ability, a double dose of lethal poison instantly seeped into Raichu's body.

Originally only mildly poisoned, Raichu's purple fur deepened instantly, its limbs began to twitch uncontrollably, each breath carried a faint tremor, and the poison damage accelerated rapidly.

"What a fierce poison! Your Muk must be holding a toxic‑type item, right?" Red reacted instantly, his tone showing a hint of understanding.

"Exactly, the Toxic Orb." Huo La didn't hide it, openly admitting.

Red nodded, a trace of solemnity flashing in his eyes; he knew they were in a desperate bind, only a death‑defying gamble left: "Then, Raichu, fight one last round! First use Electric Flash to close in, then follow with Thunder!"

Raichu let out a roar, its surrounding Electric Light surged suddenly.

Now afflicted with a status condition, its Quick Feet ability triggered instantly, boosting its speed several times over, turning it into a yellow lightning faster than when it defeated a Flying Mantis, dragging after‑images as it charged at Muk, even the surrounding sand being swept sideways by the high‑speed gust.

"So that's the power of Quick Feet, indeed faster by more than one tier," Huo La squinted.