Chapter 126: What a Vicious Dragon!
This Paras wasn't large, and its expression wasn't a warlike one. It even seemed very shy, retreating a few steps when it saw the crowd gather around.
"It looks so weak..."
Ash couldn't help but complain.
Qingmei nodded, embarrassed.
It was indeed very weak, so weak that it couldn't even defeat a wild Rattata or Caterpie.
Otherwise, she would have already built up its experience by beating up Rattata.
"So, does this mean we have to go easy?"
Ash scratched his head, his morale plummeting.
He knew how to battle, but this was his first time throwing a fixed match.
"It's fine, Ash."
"Your Pikachu is a veteran actor."
Brock and Misty patted Ash's shoulder. His eyes instantly lit up, and he tossed out Pikachu, who had been enjoying the show.
"Pikachu, it seems your 'Actor's Path' title hasn't been upgraded in a while. This is the perfect chance to rack up some experience."
Ash encouraged him.
"Pika!"
Hearing this, Pikachu stopped playing hard to get and walked with heavy steps until it was in front of Paras.
"Jiji..."
Paras couldn't help but retreat several steps, cautiously sizing up the plump electric mouse before it.
"Pikachu, use your specialty, Ten-Volt!"
Ash commanded with a grand sweep of his hand.
"Pika!"
A powerful electric current erupted around Pikachu's body. From it, the tiniest current split off and shot feebly toward Paras, looking as if it might extinguish at any moment.
Though he called it ten volts, it was probably less than even one volt.
The pain it caused was many levels weaker than the spark from a lighter.
"Zzz..."
The ten-volt electric current landed on Paras's red shell. Its body immediately began to tremble violently, letting out a terrifying puff of black smoke. Then its eyes spun, and after rolling on the ground a few times, it completely lost its combat capability, letting out a wail of pain.
Pikachu: "?"
It scratched its head, thinking to itself, *It can faint from that?*
*A classic Faked Accident.*
To be honest, when it came to acting skills, Pikachu felt it had been outmatched today.
Even Ash and the others felt their scalps tingle as they stared at the Paras that was unable to battle. Was it really this weak?
If it just stepped on the grass, it would probably get cut to death, right?
Qingmei rubbed her head, embarrassed. Her Paras was just that weak...
She quickly rushed over and fed it a Revival Herb, and Paras was instantly revived on the spot.
But because the taste was too bitter, its affection for its Trainer dropped by 1.
"Pikachu, can you use 0.1 volts this time?"
Ash asked tentatively.
Pikachu shook its head. "You're making things difficult for me, Pikachu!"
"It seems your training is still insufficient, Pikachu."
Ash shook his head and switched to another one of his great generals.
"I choose you, Wartortle!"
Wartortle appeared. This was its debut after its Evolution. Wartortle puffed out its chest, its majestic and powerful expression fiercely surveying its surroundings.
Let this turtle see who its opponent is this time!
Afraid that Wartortle would knock Paras out with a direct blast of water, Ash quickly reminded it:
"Wartortle, you have to go easy this time and let the opponent win!"
"Wartor?"
Wartortle scratched its head. This was the first time it had ever heard such a request.
This was truly troublesome for a turtle.
It glanced at the Paras before it and tentatively shot out a small spout of water, its diameter not even two centimeters, the kind that would be too little even for watering flowers.
"Zzz..."
The small stream of water landed on Paras's back. Its body immediately began to tremble, and it rolled over onto its side.
"Wartor?"
Wartortle scratched its head again. "That wasn't even a Water Gun, it had just spit a mouthful of saliva!"
"Hey, are you sure it's not doing this on purpose??"
Ash was also dumbfounded. "This should be a double resistance, right? It fainted again?"
"Hehe..."
Qingmei gave a hollow laugh and fed it another Revival Herb, reviving Paras on the spot.
The taste was too bitter, and its affection dropped by 1 again.
This whole ordeal also fired Ash up. He was always the one throwing matches; when was it someone else's turn to throw a fixed match in front of him!
He immediately threw out his third great general.
Bulbasaur!!
"Bulbasaur is a Grass Type, which Paras has a quadruple resistance to."
"It won't be a one-move knockout this time, right?"
The two had high hopes for Bulbasaur.
"Bulbasaur, lower the Move's Power to its minimum and use Razor Leaf!"
Ash commanded.
"Saur."
Although it didn't understand what was happening, the lone wanderer Bulbasaur still gave a calm nod. This time, it only shook out a single green leaf, which floated lightly toward its target.
In terms of power, it was roughly equivalent to a withered leaf falling from a tree.
"Smack!"
Paras took the Razor Leaf head-on and was knocked back several meters. This time, it finally managed to hang on, but its body was grievously wounded. It trembled, clearly already in a flickering state.
Qingmei's eyes lit up, her heart set. She shouted:
"Good chance, Paras, use Tackle!"
"Jiji!!"
Surviving a hit gave Paras a huge boost of courage. Its small claws began to scuttle, and it charged toward Bulbasaur, putting all its strength into the attack!
"Clang!!"
As if it had run head-first into steel, Paras was instantly thrown back several meters, its eyes spinning. It had directly lost its combat capability.
Bulbasaur: "?"
Ash was also stunned. He never expected there to be a god-like move like Faked Accident!?
"Hehe..."
Qingmei repeated the process, feeding it a Revival Herb. Paras's affection once again dropped by 1, and its expression when looking at Qingmei now carried a hint of disdain.
But this time, it had made great progress. It showed great future potential!
"Speaking of which, aren't things like Revival Herbs really rare? A single stalk costs several thousand, right...?"
Brock said, feeling a bit of heartache.
"It's nothing. They're just weeds where we come from."
Qingmei said with a smile, then she and Paras once again faced Ash, their battle intent blazing.
This whole display thoroughly ignited Ash's temper. Getting worked up, he recalled Bulbasaur and violently threw out his fourth great general.
Who fakes an accident to this degree!?
"ROAR!!"
Before the red light from the Poké Ball had even vanished, a powerful roar was heard. A dark red, Dragon-like Pokémon appeared before Paras. Its expression was terrifying, and the temperature suddenly spiked, accompanied by flashes of red light, like an Inferno Demon God.
It was Charmeleon!!
Paras: "?"
Just from this aura alone, it was about to faint!?
Brock and Misty: "?"
What kind of demonic skill was this?
Ash's plan was to fight poison with poison. If Type Resistance wasn't working, then he would use Type Effectiveness!
And it had to be a Quadruple Weakness!!
"Charmeleon, remember to go easy," Ash quickly reminded it.
Hearing this, Charmeleon's powerful body trembled, and it looked at Ash with a face full of rage.
It was a Fire-type Pokémon, yet he wanted it to spray water?
"You want me to use Water Gun?"
"What an insult to a Dragon!!"
At this, Charmeleon flew into a rage. It opened its dragon's mouth and spat a ball of incredibly scorching flame that blasted toward Paras!
"WHOOSH!!"
The terrifying flame instantly charred Paras's entire body black, causing it to lose its combat capability.
Paras: "Wuwu..."
There was even a faint scent of mushroom crab wafting through the air.
"ROAR!!"
Charmeleon strode forward, let out another great roar, and followed up with a tail sweep, sending the already incapacitated Paras flying. It only stopped after crashing heavily into a tree.
Even the tree trunk was dented with a small hole!
Everyone: "..."
What a vicious Dragon!
(end of chapter)