Chapter 368: Jade Resonance

Huo La walked out of the tent alone, the bone‑piercing cold wind swirling snowflakes into his face, yet he remained completely unaware.

His gaze locked onto the Time and Space crack above TianQiong, and a curse slipped from his mouth: "Dammit… do you have to be so cooperative!"

The Time and Space crack, which had only been faintly glowing, had now widened considerably; within it, half of a massive wing covered in dark patterns was suddenly revealed, its tip shimmering with a cold luster—clearly the wing of Kyurem!

Huo La's heart sank abruptly: in just one night, Kyurem had already begun breaching the Time and Space crack and appeared on this Galar Land. At this rate, it would soon be able to completely break free from the crack's shackles.

At that moment, a faint stabbing pain suddenly spread through his palm, a sharp yet deliberately suppressed ache—not severe, but unmistakably clear.

Huo La instinctively clenched his hand, knowing that the sting was the result of Deoxys exerting its full power to suppress it—had Deoxys's protection not been on him, the pain would already have become unbearable.

He lifted his eyes to look again at the half‑exposed wing, his gaze growing darker, the weight in his brows nearly spilling over.

In the Tian Guan Mountain Foothills, within a jungle of layered ridges, ancient trees towered, their branches interlacing like a net.

Dense foliage blocked the sky's light, only specks of sun filtering through the leaves to fall on the slick mossy ground, outlining a winding path.

The silhouettes of the Three Bandit Sisters darted agilely through the forest, their steps light yet cautious.

A Mei gripped the dagger at her waist, her eyes scanning the surroundings warily, occasionally glancing back to confirm the route. Her voice carried a barely perceptible edge of anxiety: "Big sister, are those two Divine Treasure Pokémon Wang Luo talked about really hidden deep within this Mi Lin Shen Chu? This place is hard to even find a path—are they trying to trick us?"

A Song, leading the way, clenched tightly around the Great Diamond Ore that emitted a warm luster, her knuckles whitening slightly from the pressure.

She gave no immediate reply, merely kept moving; in her deep eyes churned complex emotions—both a dread of the unknown and a fervent yearning to command power.

A Zhu, following closely, lowered her head to identify the ground beneath, and upon hearing it spoke, her voice steady and firm: "It shouldn't be wrong. Wang Luo's Pearl Team and the Diamond Team's treasures are of no interest, so there's no need to deceive us over a matter concerning Divine Treasure Pokémon."

She gently pressed her hand to her chest, where another Great White Treasure Jade was hidden, its warm feel giving her added confidence.

A Song finally halted, turned to A Mei and A Zhu, her tone icy and resolute beyond doubt: "Whatever he intends, we must obtain those two Divine Treasure Pokémon! When the time comes, those who have always despised us and trampled our dignity will have to bow completely at our feet!"

As the words fell, the three set off again, following the direction Wang Luo had indicated in their memory, delving deeper into the Mi Lin Shen Chu.

The jungle grew ever deeper, vines coiling like pythons, the scent of decaying leaves and earth mingling with the musk of vegetation, assaulting the senses.

After crossing countless thickets and streams, the scene before them finally opened up—a relatively spacious clearing, enveloped by dense jungle layers, like a secluded realm cut off from the world.

"This must be it," A Song said, halting, her gaze fixed on the center of the clearing, her voice low.

Above the clearing stood two ancient shrines, long eroded by time, their mottled stone surfaces overgrown with moss and vines, silently devoured by the jungle's greenery.

The shrines' outlines were already indistinct, only the base's patterns faintly discernible, exuding an ancient, desolate aura, as if bearing witness to countless cycles of spring and autumn, wholly eroded by time.

A Mei circled the two shrines slowly, brushed away the vines on their surfaces, and stared at the identical stone shrines, her brows knit, voice full of confusion: "The two shrines look the same—where exactly should we place the two Jades? Isn't this making us guess blindly?"

A Zhu stepped forward, examined the shrines closely, and after a moment's thought her eyes lit up. Pointing to the left shrine she said: "I recall that the Diamond Team worships Sinnoh Almighty, whose form is quadrupedal. The lingering patterns on this shrine hint at a four‑legged silhouette; it must be this one."

The Pokémon relief on the shrine was already faded and indistinct, its features hard to discern, but following A Zhu's direction, one could indeed see remaining stone lines outlining a roughly quadrupedal stance.

A Song nodded, a flash of fervor in her eyes, hurried to the left shrine, drew the Great Diamond Ore from her chest, and solemnly placed it on the Stone Platform directly before the shrine.

The moment the Great Diamond Ore touched the Stone Platform, an invisible surge suddenly erupted from the shrine!

The surge, bearing a chilling pressure, swept outward like a tide; wherever it passed, surrounding vines withered instantly, and the fallen leaves on the ground rustled.

A Song's complexion changed abruptly, her brows furrowed tightly, and a sudden thought rose in her mind—"It's ruined!"

But as soon as the thought formed, her body stiffened sharply, as if bound by invisible Chains, fixing her in place, unable to move.

More oddly, her mind also stalled instantly, a blank void in her head; the once‑clear thoughts and urgent emotions were all suppressed by an inexplicable force, making even thinking extremely difficult.

A Mei and A Zhu, seeing this, both paled, instinctively tried to step forward, but were likewise pressed by that force, stumbling once and then unable to move further.

At the instant the shrine's pressure swept the entire area, a dazzling white light suddenly flared from A Zhu's chest.

The Great White Treasure Jade in her arms uncontrollably broke free from her grasp, bearing the shrine's unleashed power, and slowly floated upward.

The white light grew ever more intense, enveloping A Zhu entirely and forcibly cutting off the suffocating pressure.

The Great White Treasure Jade drifted slowly in the air, following an unseen guide, and settled steadily on the Stone Platform directly before the other shrine, opposite the Great Diamond Ore at the left shrine.

Almost the instant the Great White Treasure Jade settled, the shrine suddenly awakened.

A deep, weighty force burst forth from the stone patterns, unlike the chilling pressure triggered by the Great Diamond Ore; this power was subdued yet carried an unshakable momentum, like a sleeping giant slowly opening its eyes.

The two forces collided and intertwined over the clearing; the Power of Time emanating from the left shrine had originally enveloped the entire altar area, while the profound Power of Space triggered by the Great White Treasure Jade pierced like a sword, gradually tearing the Time's shroud and emitting a faint humming.

In a moment, the tear widened, the Power of Space spread continuously, counterbalancing the Power of Time on equal footing; ultimately, an invisible barrier formed at the clearing's center, separating the two opposing forces and plunging them into a stalemate.