Half a month had passed in a flash.
Snowflakes were falling outside, but Ace, deep within the Dragon's Den, was oblivious.
Five hundred meters from where the Kommo-o was, Ace finally encountered the four Pokémon that the elder had spoken of – the previous generation's inheritors.
It was a Dragonite.
In the short five-hundred-meter journey from the Kommo-o to the Dragonite, Ace had battled a total of twenty-eight Dragon-type Pokémon.
Moreover, in the latter half of the Dragon's Den, the Dragon-type Pokémon's strength and combat experience had improved by more than just one level. Ace had to give his all in almost every fight against these Dragon-type Pokémon. A slight lapse in attention could easily lead to defeat.
The progress in Ace's trainer level over the past half-month was a testament to how quickly his strength had grown!
Ace: Trainer Level 43!
From Level 30 to Level 43, a thirteen-level increase – the hardships involved were known only to Ace himself.
So, when Ace stood in the open basin within the Dragon's Den, even facing a Dragonite whose strength clearly surpassed his own Pokémon, Ace showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he threw a Poké Ball, directly engaging the Dragonite.
"Crobat, Aerial Ace!"
Crobat's wings flapped alternately, its body twisted, and it rapidly closed in on the Dragonite.
The Dragonite looked at Crobat and smiled faintly. Its slender antennae on its head pointed at Crobat, and a Thunderbolt shot towards Crobat.
Crobat closed its eyes, Supersonic spreading out. It powerfully flapped its wings, rising half a meter with an odd posture, dodging the Thunderbolt. At the same time, it opened its mouth and spat a Toxic at the Dragonite.
"Whoosh!"
The Dragonite opened its mouth, and amidst the scattered snowflakes falling from the sky, a Blizzard roared, instantly freezing the toxic fluid into ice lumps. It then continued its trajectory, sweeping towards Crobat.
Crobat kept its eyes tightly shut. Its four wings turned metallic, and it exerted all its strength to block in front of itself, minimizing the damage it would take.
Seeing Crobat withstand the Blizzard, the Dragonite closed its mouth. When it opened it again, a Flamethrower rapidly shot towards the still-defending Crobat!
The heat wave struck before Crobat could react. Flamethrower hit Crobat's wings, which were still using Steel Wing.
"Bang!"
With a muffled thud, Crobat was sent flying backward. The Dragonite pressed its advantage, opening its mouth again. The flames extinguished, and a Hydro Pump went straight for Crobat!
"This guy knows too many moves!"
Ace had a headache. Electric, Ice, Fire, Water, plus Dragonite's own Dragon and Flying types – this Dragonite's coverage was incredibly comprehensive!
"Crobat!"
Crobat's two smaller, lower wings flapped alternately, stabilizing its body. Then, its front wings flapped vigorously, narrowly dodging the Hydro Pump.
The Dragonite showed a hint of surprise, not expecting Crobat to dodge its Hydro Pump.
Crobat quickly ascended, using this opportune moment to recover some stamina under Ace's healing aura.
"Supersonic!"
Crobat opened its mouth, and an Supersonic that was difficult for human ears to distinguish quickly spread out from Crobat as its center!
"Woo..."
The Dragonite clutched its head in pain, hitting it forcefully, clearly in confusion.
"This guy..."
Looking at the confused Dragonite, Ace was a little disbelieving. He then observed the Dragonite and understood.
"Toxic!"
While the Dragonite was confused and unable to distinguish friend from foe, Crobat swooped down, opening its mouth and drenching the Dragonite's head with poison.
The Dragonite instantly broke free from its confusion, but the damage from Toxic hit, and a painful expression appeared on its face.
"Absorb!"
Crobat lunged at the Dragonite, its body pressed tightly against the Dragonite's back, biting down on its nape.
A sharp pain struck, and the Dragonite let out a pained cry. At the same time, electric sparks began to appear on its body. Crobat immediately disengaged, dodging the incoming Thunderbolt.
"Sure enough, this Dragonite is a bit old..."
Ace sighed, noting that even when bitten on the nape by Crobat, this Dragonite still showed no intention of taking flight.
Through observation, Ace had confirmed that this Dragonite was indeed very old and frail.
Although it currently had a comprehensive set of moves, it was like Ace's Victreebel – just a turret. Once engaged in close combat, it would essentially be finished.
No, it was even worse than Victreebel. Victreebel could at least still hop around a bit, while this Dragonite tried to remain as still as possible to conserve energy.
It knew well that if it started moving intensely, its stamina would rapidly deplete, and it might lose even faster than if it just stood there attacking!
"Get close! Crobat, Cross Poison!"
After absorbing the Dragonite's blood, Crobat also confirmed its state.
With its eyes tightly shut, Crobat, just like when it was a Zubat, relied entirely on Supersonic for targeting, diving down towards the Dragonite!
The Dragonite had lost a significant amount of blood, and coupled with the Toxic invading its body, its stamina was rapidly depleting.
Although it continuously attacked Crobat with Thunderbolt and Blizzard, not just Ace but even Crobat could feel the Dragonite's attacks gradually weakening.
Time was everyone's biggest enemy.
If the Dragonite had this strength when it was young and vigorous, then without a doubt, Ace would be no match for it.
But... there were no ifs!
Enduring the Blizzard with Steel Wing, Crobat breathlessly approached the Dragonite again, its wings crossing to strike. Cross Poison harshly cut into the Dragonite's abdomen.
The Dragonite grunted. The pain from the Toxic struck again, and the Dragonite could no longer bear it, kneeling on one knee, its exhaustion clearly visible.
Ultimately, it had lost to time.
"Boom!"
With a heavy thud, the Dragonite collapsed to the ground, losing its ability to battle.
Ace recalled Crobat and walked over to the Dragonite.
Looking closely at this Dragonite, one could see its aged skin and dull dragon scales.
Ace directly exchanged a Full Heal with gold coins and poured it directly into the Dragonite's mouth.
Being old, it no longer had enough stamina to slowly break down the toxins. If Ace hadn't given it the Full Heal, it probably wouldn't have lived much longer.
"Sigh, well, I'm in someone else's territory, so I'd better behave."
Ace chuckled bitterly as he patted the Dragonite's body, then stood up and continued deeper into the Dragon's Den.
The Full Heal quickly took effect. The toxins disappeared, and the Dragonite regained some stamina, slowly getting up from the ground.
It looked at Ace's retreating figure, nodded, then stood straight and walked step by step towards the outside of the Dragon's Den.
Old and frail, it was no longer suited for the intense battles within the Dragon's Den.
It was time to give up its territory and let the younger ones manage it.
And for it, it was time to go to the outer areas and live out its twilight years...