Divine Domain Level.
He quietly pushed this information deep into his heart, not showing a hint of unusual expression on his face.
Mewtwo chose to tell only him, the meaning was clear—the fewer people knew about this, the better. Otherwise, let alone Delia, Misty and Brock would be the first to stand in front of him.
"Just a Champion Peak Entei." Ash raised his hand, casually flexing his wrist, speaking lightly, "I've even defeated Mr. Brandon's Three Divine Pillars, why would I be afraid of an Entei?"
"Be it Entei, or any Crystal Tower." Ash's face lit up with a bright smile, filled with confidence, "I've already battled Raikou and Suicune in Ecruteak City, challenging Entei isn't an overstep. Rest assured, I'll be back soon."
Misty's grip on Togepi tightened slightly. She opened her mouth to say something but ultimately swallowed her words.
She knew that Ash had Mewtwo, which was an Advanced Divine Realm existence; taking MEGA Evolution into account, even at the Divine Domain Peak, Mewtwo wouldn't be manageable at once.
Even if there was something in the tower that was too much to handle, with Mewtwo's Teleport, retreating wouldn't be an issue.
"Be careful." She only said these four words.
Delia stood among the crowd, her gaze on her son, her lips moved, but she said nothing. Brock moved beside her and nodded, "Don't worry, Auntie. Ash going alone is more agile, having more people would just be cumbersome."
Serena didn't say much either, just pumped her little fist to cheer Ash on.
She was no longer the naive girl she once was and naturally understood the nuances between Champion Peak and Divine Domain Level.
The scenes of Ash's great battle on Asia Island were still vividly clear!
Danger of that level hadn't caused Ash any harm, a crisis like this naturally wouldn't affect Ash... would it?
In any case, she was at least more relieved than Misty and Brock. Even if there was some concern in her heart, it was merely instinctive.
Subjectively, she still believed Ash could resolve things and return safely.
Professor Oak turned and took a small, silvery-gray device from the console, handing it to Ash. It was smaller than the one used at Viridian Gym, barely noticeable when attached to a collar.
"The Crystal Tower is mystical but hasn't blocked electronic signals. Bring this camera with you so we can see what happens inside the tower."
Ash took the small object, examined it, and then affixed it to his collar.
The silvery-gray device flashed, blending seamlessly with the fabric.
"I'm off then."
With those words, lavender-colored light enveloped Ash and Pikachu. In the next instant, the duo vanished into thin air in the laboratory hall.
Misty instinctively took a step forward but stopped herself. Delia turned her face aside, hiding her expression.
Come back safely!
...
The lavender light dispersed within the Crystal Tower.
The moment Ash's feet touched the ground, he first felt a bone-chilling cold.
It wasn't a cold of temperature but a deeper kind, like it could seep through the skin into the bones, a feeling... it wasn't so much the icy cold caused by frost but rather the chill brought by death.
The floor beneath his feet, the surrounding walls, the ceiling overhead, all were composed of that same lavender crystalline material. Its facets reflected the images of him and Pikachu, layering deeper like countless warped mirrors.
Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder, and as soon as his paws touched the ground, a streak of gold sparked from his cheeks' electric sacs.
He didn't like this place; there was something indescribable wafting in the air, making him feel uneasy, even prompting him to unconsciously summon energy to resist the feeling.
Ash's gaze landed directly on the high crystal chair in front of him.
The chair was nearly two meters off the ground, entirely sculpted from a darker crystal, its back covered in intricate patterns that, at a glance, seemed like ancient script, but on closer inspection looked like half-open, half-closed eyes.
A little girl, not yet ten years old, sat quietly on it, holding a palm-sized tablet in her arms, it was Mitsumi.
However, Ash's gaze paused on her only for a moment before shifting sharply to the two figures standing on either side of the chair.
One was an elderly man wearing a gray beret, with white hair and a balding head. He had a slightly plump build, wore a white lab coat, and had small spectacles perched on his nose.
When Mewtwo teleported Ash in, it must have startled him, as his spectacles slid halfway down his nose and his murky eyes widened in surprise at the sudden appearance of someone before him.
"Pluto!!"
Ash's voice suddenly turned cold.
The Team Galactic officer he'd personally captured on the Orange Archipelago and handed over to the League for detention was now standing nonchalantly in front of him.
What are those people in the League doing? If they underestimated Team Rocket's trio allowing them to frequently escape or even be bailed out, it's one thing.
Pluto, however, was one of the four major officers in Team Galactic, not to mention a researcher possessing countless core technologies and secrets of Team Galactic. Such a person should have been detained in the most heavily guarded prison once captured.
How could he have a chance to come out?! And now he's appearing at the Crystal Tower, next to Mitsumi!
The other person was a tall and thin blue-haired man, his hair styled into two horns, with a face showing little panic. Compared to Pluton's ghostly expression, he merely squinted slightly, as if only a little surprised by the sudden appearance of another person at the door.
Saturn, one of the four commanders of Team Galactic.
He had never met Ash before, so seeing Ash show up, he was only somewhat puzzled about how this person got inside the Prism Tower, as it should have been guarded by 'Entei' outside.
Ash's gaze swept over the two people, then landed on the slowly forming shadow behind the seat.
It was a large bird, pitch-black in its entirety, with a vague outline, as if not yet free from something, its whole body wrapped in layers of faint purple crystals, which surged from all directions like vines, clinging to and solidifying around its body.
Ash recognized the essence of that power, one he had felt on both Lugia and Little Lugia. It was the power unique to the God of Death, Yveltal.
What are these guys plotting again?!
Pluton finally snapped out of the shock of seeing a ghost, his voice trembling: "You... how can you be here!"
He took a step back, his back hitting the armrest of the crystal chair, almost losing his balance.
The humiliating defeat on Asia Island was still the stuff of his nightmares; the scene of that boy commanding the Pokémon called Mewtwo to punch the Divine Domain Peak's Lugia into oblivion was etched deeply in his mind.
How could he forget this person!
"How did you escape from the League's hands?" Ash did not answer Pluton's question but instead asked in a low voice.
Saturn didn't answer; he simply raised his right hand slowly, drawing out a scarlet Pokeball from the sleeve of his silver-grey uniform.
His demeanor was starkly different from Pluton's. Even when faced with someone who had previously obliterated their entire Orange Archipelago division, his expression remained calm.
"Pluton," Saturn's voice was very calm, "continue talking to that kid, I'll handle this."
Pluton gritted his teeth, turned around, and squatted back down next to Mitsumi's chair.
Saturn's gaze fell on Ash; he had recognized Ash.
How could he not know the person who thwarted their Team Galactic's plan on the Orange Archipelago?
It was just that, since it was the first meeting, he didn't react immediately.
However, even now that he had recognized Ash, he didn't feel any fear, nor did he show any great emotional upheaval.
No matter who came today, they could not stop Team Galactic from achieving their goal.
Mitsumi sat there, still with a dazed expression, the slate in her arms glimmering faintly. She looked up and glanced at Pluton, her eyes unfocused, as if looking at something through a mist.
"Mitsumi, listen to me, the power in this place is not stable enough yet. You need to channel more power over here—yes, that's it, let those Unown obey your command, tell them your wish, tell them you want your dad back, tell them you want your dad revived—"
Pluton's voice was soft and gentle, as if coaxing a child who had just had a nightmare.
With Pluton's guidance, the growth rate of the surrounding crystals also began to accelerate; the crystallization covering the shadow of Yveltal was almost completely encasing it!
Ash didn't know what would happen if Yveltal's shadow got encased, but he knew that the actions of these guys had already ignited a fury within him!
The juxtaposition of such a kindly expression with Pluton's words fueled an inextinguishable fire of anger in Ash's heart.
"Shut up!" Ash took a step forward, with Pikachu's body taut, unleashing a brilliant burst of electricity!
Thunderbolt!!
"Boom!!" A crystal wall appeared in front of Pluton and Saturn, blocking Pikachu's Thunderbolt.
This was the power of the Unown. Inside the Crystal Tower, the power of the Unown was even more terrifying, to the point where even Pikachu's Elite Peak attack strength couldn't shatter the crystal.
Of course, Pikachu hadn't gone all out just now, given that Mitsumi was still next to Pluton, but he responded to Ash's fury, hence the sudden attack.
And Ash now was glaring angrily at Pluton and Saturn. He had figured out the causes and effects of the situation.
Including the existence of Yveltal's shadow in the back, and what these two Team Galactic members were up to.
Team Galactic had Yveltal's power at their disposal. Though perhaps they hadn't acquired Yveltal itself, they were able to use the original power of Yveltal to indulge in wanton chaos.
The prior Lugia had been the same, and now this.
Professor Oak had said that Unown are Pokémon that are of little use individually, yet when gathered in groups, they can produce miraculous reactions. They even have the capability to fulfill human inner wishes!
Like the legendary wish machine.
But such wishing naturally can't come without cost or factor. The current situation seemed to be that the Unown had become bound to Mitsumi; they would grant Mitsumi's wish.
And Mitsumi's wish was to have her father come back.
These two Team Galactic commanders somehow learned of this matter, hence they came to Mitsumi, guiding her to unleash the power of the Unown!
Using this unleashed power to manufacture a pseudo-Yveltal!
'That's the Divine Domain level power I sensed, no wonder it felt both familiar and unsettling—the power of that fellow again,' Mewtwo's voice echoed in Ash's mind.
She also figured it out; the power she had previously sensed within the Crystal Tower was Yveltal's power.
A while back, they had a battle with Lugia, possessed by Yveltal's power, and had it not been for the mysterious power used by Ash, she estimated there wouldn't even have been a ten percent chance of winning.
So the power of Death had left a deep impression on her.
Though that power was merely attached to Lugia, compared to it manifesting now, it was somewhat different, which is why she hadn't recognized it immediately.
"It's really unimaginable that a brat your age could possess Divine Domain level combat power... this world really is unfair, that's why that gentleman wants to create a new world." Saturn's face was expressionless, looking like he was stating nothing more than a plain fact.
Yet these words, in Ash's ears, only made him feel that this person was nuts.
A new world, unfairness—is that their excuse for targeting innocent girls and Pokémon?
"Mewtwo, I leave it to you," Ash took out the black and gold Pokeball and released Mewtwo directly.
Enough comparing—deploy top combat power!
In such a situation, dueling back and forth evenly matched was just madness.
Now, the most important thing was to stop Mitsumi from further inciting the Unown's power, and then catch these two guys first!
He didn't know how Pluton had managed to escape from the League, but he knew that this time, if he caught him again, he wouldn't let him get away!
Mewtwo appeared on the field, and a strong sense of pressure made both Saturn and Pluton's expressions change.
This was the power of Divine Domain, and this power was far from ordinary.
"Thankfully, that gentleman anticipated this kind of contingency and left me a means of dealing with it," Saturn said as he tossed his scarlet Pokeball.
"Bang!"
The Pokeball exploded! It really exploded!
The entire Pokeball turned into fragments, scattering on the ground, and with its shattering, a giant creature appeared before them.
This was a Pokémon as black as the abyss.
Six sturdy legs held up a metallic, hard body, two pairs of broad heavy wings on its back edged with dark red phosphorescence, a half-ring of golden bone spikes around its neck, and atop its head, thorn-like golden horns slanted backwards, resembling a broken crown.
This Pokémon is...
"Netherworld Dragon?!"
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