Chapter 178: The Treasures of the Clamperl Colony
Ryan released Milotic and activated his
treasure-hunting device. Numerous points of light
immediately appeared on the screen, confirming that this sea area truly did contain a large number of treasures, just as Steven had mentioned, though he didn't know what those treasures were yet.
Ryan waited underwater for a while, then Ruby and the others followed suit. Ryan pointed to himself and Lillie, and Ruby nodded, sending Swampert to lead him and Sapphire to the left, while Milotic led Ryan and Lillie to the right.
Wallace, riding on Latios, looked around, then decided to catch up with Ryan and the others.
Milotic was quite fast in the water, and through their psychic bond, they arrived at the location of the first treasure—a coral reef.
Ryan checked the treasure-hunting device; this was it. However, there was a group of Remoraid here, presumably their home. Milotic went to negotiate, and the Remoraid were quite understanding, quickly producing a somewhat damaged Poké Ball.
Ryan took the Poké Ball with a wry smile; it was empty, just a broken Poké Ball. Although disappointed, the Remoraid didn't understand such things, and they meant well, so Ryan left them some Pokéblocks as a token of gratitude. Lillie smiled and pointed to another point of light. Ryan nodded, gesturing for Milotic to swim over.
Wallace followed, his eyes filled with interest as he looked at the treasure finder in Ryan's hand. Ryan smiled and gestured, "If you want one, I'll give you one later."
Wallace was delighted, giving a thumbs up to show he would help out. Upon reaching the next treasure location, there was nothing conspicuous. Remembering his previous experience, Ryan swam over and began searching through the seabed sand and rocks. Soon, he found a bell. After washing it in the seawater, he discovered it was a Soothe Bell. Ryan shook his head with a smile: Lillie's luck was indeed much better than his.
After handing the Soothe Bell to Lillie, Ryan and his companions continued their journey underwater, determined to retrieve all the treasures found there, and also to find the deep-sea jewel.
They searched many places and found various miscellaneous items, but the item Ryan had been hoping for remained elusive.
Half an hour later, as they passed a relatively calm area, Ryan spotted something among a large colony of Clamperl. Just as he had suspected, it was the item.
Amidst the swarm of Clamperl, a glimmer of light flashed on a rock. The rock had likely been broken, with numerous cracks and dents, which exposed part of the item within, reflecting light under the filtered sunlight.
However, while they had found it, this colony of Clamperl posed a significant challenge.
Clamperl had pink bodies surrounded by blue protective shells. Despite their cute appearance, they're carnivorous. They clamp their prey tightly between their two shells until it stops moving completely before releasing it.
Moreover, their evolved forms, whether Huntail or Gorebyss, are both carnivorous Pokémon, none of them easy to deal with. On land, Ryan wouldn't be afraid, but with so many Clamperl capable of creating whirlpools on the seabed, it could easily prove fatal!
Ryan looked at Milotic, who nodded and used Hypnosis. Psychic ripples followed the ocean currents, sweeping across the rocky area and hypnotizing the Clamperl there.
Milotic then used Iron Tail to strike the rock, intending to knock the item free. However, before Milotic could hit the rock, two figures, one blue and one pink, shot out from the sand. The blue figure bit Milotic's tail, while the pink figure spun and stabbed at Milotic's body with its horn, causing Milotic to cry out in pain.
But Latios was still there; a beam of Luster Purge forced both attackers back. Ryan squinted at the two Pokémon: Why are these two here?
These two Pokémon were the evolved forms of Clamperl: Huntail and Gorebyss. Ryan remembered that Dawn had caught a Gorebyss before; he hadn't expected to be ambushed here by these two Pokémon.
However, Ryan was also puzzled, since these two Pokémon typically inhabit the deep sea, where even light cannot reach; how could they appear in this relatively shallow seabed?
But these two Pokémon wouldn't give Ryan and his companions time to think. Instantly, they unleashed Whirlpool, creating a massive underwater vortex. The powerful suction threatened to pull them all in and tear them apart.
However, Ryan wasn't going to stand idly by. Milotic fired a Hydro Pump at the vortex without hesitation, hoping to shatter it. Latios, not to be outdone, launched Dragon Pulse into the vortex, detonating it and successfully breaking it apart.
Although he didn't want to disturb their habitat, Ryan wasn't going to back down now that the battle had begun. But the next second, Ryan's expression twitched. The Clamperl had been disturbed and were all unleashing their own Whirlpool attacks.
Watching the gradually forming super-sized vortex, Ryan decisively changed tactics. He told Milotic to quickly cut through the rock with Iron Tail and take it, then they should immediately retreat.
After all, the sheer size of this combined whirlpool was not something to challenge lightly. Latios, still eager to fight, launched Dragon Pulse twice more, but the attacks didn't even make a splash against the massive whirlpool.
These Clamperl, harnessing the power of the ocean together, had created a powerful whirlpool that already possessed primal force. Latios, still young, was better off retreating than facing such an attack!
Milotic and Latios also exerted all their strength, trying to escape before the whirlpool's suction became too strong, otherwise they wouldn't be able to escape later.
Once they were clear of the area, Ryan immediately released Altaria and Metagross, while Wallace also had Latios fly away from the water's surface. When Ryan and the others looked back at the massive whirlpool, they couldn't help but shudder: if they had been caught in that, their chances of survival would have been slim.
Lillie, riding on Altaria, asked, "Ryan, what exactly is that thing? Is it worth taking such a big risk?"
Ryan handed the rock to Metagross, whose claws easily peeled away the outer surface, revealing a smooth pearl inside.
The pearl contained air bubbles that connected to form a heart shape, quite beautiful. Ryan examined the pearl against the sunlight and said, "A Heart Drop, an item that can summon Latios or Latias. I figured you meant your Latios when you mentioned needing a connection to a legendary Pokémon, since the two species have a bond and can be summoned through the Heart Drop."
Wallace's eyes lit up with excitement as he gazed at the Heart Drop, already imagining the possibilities.
(End of Chapter)
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