Whooo… whooo…
At that moment, the distant sandstorm finally began to subside, its furious winds gradually calming until the air grew clear once more.
On the battlefield, two different weather conditions could not coexist at the same time. The blazing sunlight weather overhead was far too strong, completely overwhelming and erasing the effects of the sandstorm.
"ROAARR!"
With a heavy gasp, Rhydon revealed its form, its rough armor glinting faintly beneath the golden light.
Right now, it was covered in wounds and scorch marks, its rocky armor cracked and scorched in many places but despite its battered state, its eyes gleamed with excitement and fierce pride.
Even the attacks of a King-level Pokémon could not bring it down. Rhydon could feel it—its body was on the brink of transformation, as if the very threshold of the King-tier level was within reach.
"ROOAAARRR!"
It bellowed loudly, roaring to the heavens in exhilaration, its voice filled with joy and pride.
But in the next instant, it suddenly froze.
Not far away, Lilligant—the newly transformed Pokémon—had just unleashed a brilliant beam of energy that blasted Dusknoir straight out of the sky.
Rhydon's expression turned to shock and confusion.
What was that?
What in the world was happening?
What kind of Pokémon was that? And that terrifyingly powerful beam of energy—how had it produced such strength!?
Its gaze darted across the battlefield until it locked onto Lilligant. The energy waves pulsing from her body felt strangely familiar.
Wait a minute… could that possibly be—Petilil?
Could that little Petilil have actually evolved?
Its eyes widened in disbelief. The energy surging from her body was far too overwhelming! Rhydon's mind struggled to accept what it was sensing.
"Nido nido!"
"Draa~?"
Nearby, the scarred figures of Nidoking and Drapion emerged from the haze. Both were covered in wounds, looking ragged and exhausted.
They, too, stared blankly at Lilligant, utterly dumbfounded by the sight of the enemy Dusknoir being blown away in a single strike.
But just then, a warm current of energy surged through their bodies. Their injuries—burns, cuts, poison marks all began to fade away almost instantly.
This healing… it was unbelievably powerful!
"Roaar!"
Meanwhile, Garchomp lowered its head to glance at itself. A sickly violet glow was spreading across its scales—it had been poisoned.
Yet in only a few moments, the purple hue vanished, and so did every trace of injury or fatigue!
"Lilli~"
Lilligant gently closed her eyes, concentrating on the grass energy flowing through her. She extended both hands, and waves of green light rippled outward, washing across the battlefield.
Since evolving, her control over grass and life energy had become even stronger. With a graceful wave of her hand, streams of brilliant green light drifted outward and merged into Rhydon, Nidoking, Drapion, and Garchomp.
That power carried not only pure life and grass energy but it also contained a surge of growth energy.
In the blink of an eye, the auras of all four Pokémon began to rise dramatically, their power climbing higher and higher!
It was the move Growth, a move that boosts both Attack and Special Attack. Under Sunlight, the effects of Growth became even more extraordinary, multiplying its strength severalfold!
At the same time, far across the field, the Cherrims also began to move.
Its petals shimmered under the sunlight as it released the Flower Gift, imbuing all its allies with a surge of radiant pink energy that enhanced their offensive power once more!
"ROAARR!"
Feeling their power skyrocket, Rhydon's entire body began to blaze with flames.
Under the scorching sunlight, the fire-type energy in the field grew denser and denser. The ground itself began to sizzle and crack beneath the intensity of the heat.
"ROOAAARRR!"
Rhydon let out a thunderous roar. Its eyes locked onto Chandelure in the distance—its target.
Flames erupted across its entire body as it charged forward with Heat Crash at terrifying speed. Every step it took left behind scorched black footprints, the ground burning beneath its feet.
From afar, Chandelure hesitated for a brief moment, startled by Rhydon's sudden assault. Then it quickly gathered ghost energy in its ghostly arms and hurled a Shadow Ball straight toward it!
But Rhydon didn't dodge.
Instead, it clenched its rocky fist tightly and met the attack head-on, punching the Shadow Ball with all its might.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion split the air as the Shadow Ball shattered under the impact, bursting apart in a shower of black flames.
Rhydon had completely destroyed it—with a single punch!
Right now, with Lilligant's blessings, Rhydon's attack had reached temporary King-level strength—just one strike from it could unleash the power of a true monarch!
On the other hand, Chandelure had already consumed nearly all its energy through the prolonged battle. Its ghostly flames flickered weakly, and its movements had grown sluggish. It no longer had the strength to continue fighting.
"Nido nido~!"
Nidoking, was in a similar situation but it had just crossed the threshold it had been stuck at for so long.
By merging the powers of its dual types of Poison and Ground it had just been one step away from ascending to the King-level.
Now, under Lilligant's powerful blessings, it finally broke through that final barrier!
With a roar, it charged forward, unleashing a mighty Drill Run!
The ground-type energy surged violently, while its Poison Point ability activated, infusing the spinning drill with a toxic purple light!
"Lass!"
In the air, the enemy Froslass swiftly gathered icy power around itself, forming a towering Ice Wall in front of her to block the attack.
But in the very next instant, Nidoking's spinning drill smashed straight into the wall!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The Ice Wall splintered, fractured and then exploded into shards under the roar of energy!
After successfully breaking through the barrier, Nidoking raised one arm and summoned forth a raging Sandstorm, mixing together poisonous mists and earth energy to form a massive sand tornado that tore toward Froslass!
The violent power instantly swept her up and hurled her into the air.
Almost simultaneously, Drapion lunged forward, its scorpion tail glowing with eerie violet light as it struck out viciously!
"Lass!"
The enemy Froslass frantically tried to dodge the blows, but the constant heat from the blazing sunlight was weakening her icy form. Her movements grew sluggish, and she quickly fell into a disadvantage.
Meanwhile, Garchomp's side of the battle was going the smoothest of all.
Even before, it had held the upper hand but now, the fight had turned completely one-sided!
With Petilil's evolution into Lilligant the entire tide of battle had reversed.
The four King-level ghost-type Pokémon that had once dominated the field were now being pushed back again and again!
"Damn it! What in the world is going on with that Petilil!?"
In the distance, the enemy sorcerers stared at the battlefield in disbelief.
That same small Pokémon had evolved right before their eyes and not only that, it had defeated Dusknoir in a direct confrontation and healed its entire team in an instant!
Because of that single evolution, what had seemed like a sure victory for them was now collapsing completely!
"Retreat. We need to retreat first," said Ghostshade in a low, tense voice.
The other two were momentarily stunned. Then, as if realizing something, they turned toward the direction of the Abyssal Cavern.
From there, they could faintly sense a powerful force rapidly approaching.
"The Froslass… she's coming back," they muttered grimly.
If Earl's King-level Froslass returned to the field, their chances of escaping would be close to zero.
"The mission has failed," Ghostflame said darkly.
Frostsnow nodded, glancing toward Aspiration City's direction. "I wonder how the battle is going on that side."
"It doesn't matter anymore," Ghostshade replied, shaking his head. "We need to leave. Now."
Even as he spoke, the four ghost-type Pokémon they had summoned were already returning, flying swiftly back toward them.
Ghostshade pulled out a crystal infused with ghost energy from his pocket. As it floated into the air, a dark rift appeared above them—the entrance to the Ghost World!
The ghost-type Pokémon quickly wrapped their masters in spectral energy and dove into the rift.
In the next instant, the rift snapped shut. The air fell still once again.
By the time Aven and his Pokémon arrived on the scene, it was already too late.
They could only watch helplessly as the enemy vanished right before their eyes.
"Phew… no matter what, this battle is finally over." Aven exhaled slowly, the tension leaving his shoulders.
Then, he looked eastward where a familiar silhouette was descending from the sky.
It was his Froslass, returning at last from her mission to lure away the gray fog and the ghostly beasts.
Apparently, she had successfully drawn those ghosts back into the Abyssal Cavern, then crossed through the Sendoff Spring and returned them to the Ghost World.
"You've done well, Froslass," Aven said with a gentle smile.
Hearing his praise, Froslass's cold expression softened, and then, as if pleased, she floated a little higher, looking almost smug.
But after a few seconds, she suddenly paused, her gaze turning toward the figure standing beside Aven—Lilligant.
There was something oddly familiar about the aura flowing from her. Tilting her head curiously, Froslass let out a puzzled Lass~, as if asking, "Petilil?"
"Lilli~ Lilli~"
Lilligant lifted her head proudly and nodded with satisfaction.
After all this time and effort, she had finally evolved—and she was strong!
"Lass~!"
Froslass nodded with a faint smile, glancing at Lilligant, then at Aven's chest. Covering her mouth, she let out a mischievous giggle.
"Lass~, Lass~?" she teased.
Lilligant blinked, confused until she noticed where Froslass was looking.
Her eyes followed the gaze down to Aven's chest… and then her expression froze completely.
Wait—if she had evolved like this… did that mean Aven could no longer hold her in his arms like before?
(￣﹃￣) "W-wait, what!? How did this happen!?"
"Congratulations, Lilligant," Aven said softly.
At that moment, she felt a warm touch gently patting her head.
She looked up and met Aven's eyes. For a long moment, she just stared then smiled sweetly, her earlier panic fading away.
Yes… as long as she could stay by his side, she was already perfectly happy.
"Kir~ Lia~"
Kirlia looked between Froslass and Lilligant, quietly sensing their rollercoaster of emotions.
In the end, it could feel their joy and relief shining from deep within and that made it smile too, its petite body floating closer.
Soon, Lilligant, Froslass, and Kirlia, three Pokémon of similar size were gathered warmly around Aven, forming a surprisingly harmonious scene.
"Rooaaarrr!"
Rhydon's gaze was complicated. To think that the small Petilil from before was really this same Lilligant now!
Knowing that she had succeeded in evolving filled it with both admiration and envy.
When would it finally evolve?
And when it did, would it become even stronger than her?
With those thoughts burning in its heart, Rhydon clenched its massive fists.
After they returned, it was going to train twice—no, ten times—as hard!
It had decided: its next training phase would be supercharged. It would evolve as quickly as possible, no matter what, so that it could catch up to its companions!
"Let's go back," Aven said at last, glancing around at his Pokémon before turning toward the fortress in the distance.
But just as he took a step forward, his whole body suddenly trembled.
A wave of dizziness swept over him—his consciousness blurred.
Then, in the depths of his mind, an image flashed before his eyes: Azelf, plummeting rapidly from the sky!
"Aven… Aven… Aven…"
A deep, echoing voice called out to him within his mind, reverberating painfully through his consciousness, lingering without end—bringing with it a sharp, throbbing ache that refused to fade.
(End of Chapter)