Quasi-King-level Zoroark, Krookodile, and Houndoom versus Shiny Scizor, Blaziken, and two Volcarona.

Judging from the situation, Rory and his son had a slight numerical advantage, but in reality, this meant little. Dante still had a King-level Tyranitar that he hadn’t yet deployed. If he summoned it, the battle would become completely one-sided.

A Tyranitar above Quasi-King level, at King level, would face virtually no challenge dealing with several Gym Leader level (Quasi-King) Pokémon.

Dante frowned as he examined the Pokémon summoned by Rory and his son. He didn’t have much time left. Any further delay would risk King-level Trainers from other cities arriving, significantly reducing his chances of escape.

So Dante removed a Luxury Ball from his belt, looked at Rory and his son, and said deliberately: “Time is limited. To save us all some trouble, let’s end this quickly.”

“Come out, Tyranitar!”

Tyranitar emerged, its green armor-like shell gleaming. Several spikes of varying sizes extended from its head, neck, and shoulder blades, with a ring of smaller spikes adorning the end of its tail. It had pairs of sharp teeth in both its upper and lower jaws, and three claws on each hand and foot.

Tyranitar’s shell featured two triangular holes on each side of its chest, at the center of its back, and on its knees. The inside of these holes was pitch black. A diamond-shaped gap marked its abdomen and lower back, revealing a shell of the same color as a Pupitar’s.

As a second-generation pseudo-legendary, Tyranitar was one of only two non-Dragon pseudo-legendaries, the other being Metagross, and was incredibly powerful. Although its Rock/Dark typing wasn’t flawless, Tyranitar’s Sand Stream ability and exceptional durability had established it as the absolute cornerstone of any Sandstorm team.

The moment Tyranitar appeared on the battlefield, it immediately whipped up a sandstorm and glared at all the opposing Pokémon with fierce eyes. By its presence alone, Tyranitar dominated the entire field, like a monarch asserting authority over its domain.

Rory and his son Asher looked at the Tyranitar with expressions of dismay. This Tyranitar had been bred exceptionally well; Dante must have invested tremendous effort and resources into it. The Tyranitar’s strength was clearly at King level, at minimum.

“Tyranitar, Stone Edge!” Dante commanded.

The ground around them cracked open, and countless rocks levitated into the air, enveloped in Rock-type energy, before hurtling toward Rory and Asher’s Pokémon.

…

Jacob naturally couldn’t witness the battle at this time. After bidding farewell to the Sceptile clan, he hesitated for a long while before finally deciding to head to the Ancient Tree. He still harbored a glimmer of hope that the Grass Z-Crystal hadn’t been taken by Dante, and that he might get lucky.

The territory of the Sceptile clan wasn’t far from the Ancient Tree, only about ten minutes away. As Jacob was walking, a massive explosion suddenly erupted from the direction of the Ancient Tree.

Flames shot skyward and sand swirled violently.

The sandstorm obscured Jacob’s vision, and flying particles struck his body, causing mild pain.

“This is bad.” Jacob’s heart sank. The sandstorm immediately reminded him of Dante and his Tyranitar. If Dante had deployed Tyranitar, who was fighting against it?

There was no doubt that the flames rising into the sky belonged to his brother Asher and father Rory!

Jacob couldn’t hesitate any longer. He quickened his pace and sprinted toward the Wansen Ancient Tree.

Battling against the wind and sand, when Jacob finally reached the Wansen Ancient Tree, he saw the cloaked man, Dante—whom he had encountered that night—about to mount Mandibuzz and prepare for departure.

The battlefield was littered with fallen Pokémon. Only Rory’s Shiny Scizor remained, barely supporting itself as it stood protectively in front of Rory and Asher. Asher’s Blaziken, Volcarona, and his father’s Volcarona all lay on the ground, blood pooling beneath them.

The stark crimson color made Jacob’s heart constrict. He had no time to check on the fallen Pokémon and could only rush to assist his father and brother.

“Escavalier, Scizor, Charizard, protect them!” Jacob released three Pokémon without hesitation and faced Dante directly.

These three Gym Leader-level Pokémon would certainly be formidable in most circumstances, but against Dante, they seemed woefully inadequate.

“Oh? After defeating the old, here comes the young?” Dante glanced at Jacob dismissively. “Is this your youngest son?”

“Jacob, stay back.” Asher was injured. He pressed his hands against the wounds on his waist and abdomen, reached out to grab Jacob, signaling him not to interfere with Dante’s departure.

Dante, seated on Mandibuzz’s back, looked at Asher with a smirk: “You should be grateful that my time is limited today, so I’ll spare you for now. Asher, I’m curious—what will you do having lost your two strongest Pokémon? How will you manage in this year’s Gym Leader ranking competition?”

Dante wore a mocking smile. After killing Asher’s two ace Pokémon, Volcarona and Blaziken, he was in particularly high spirits. The satisfaction of crushing a prodigy made him want to laugh aloud.

He had always been uncomfortable with Asher, who seemed blessed by fate and was being nurtured by the entire Pokémon Association. He was deeply curious about what would happen to Asher after losing his two ace Pokémon—when he couldn’t even maintain his position as a Gym Leader. How would the Pokémon Association treat Asher then?

Dante could already envision Asher being abandoned by the Pokémon Association, unable to recover from this setback. Just imagining such a scene brought immense satisfaction to his twisted mind.

“Let’s go, Mandibuzz.” Dante patted the bird beneath him, signaling it to depart.

“Caw!”

Mandibuzz flapped its wings and took flight, carrying Dante toward the silver vortex in the sky, vanishing from the secret realm in an instant.

The sandstorm gradually subsided, and silence fell over the scene. Jacob applied medicine to his father and brother, as well as to the Shiny Scizor.

As for the two Volcarona and the Blaziken, they were already dead, their bodies covered in horrific wounds—a testament to the ferocity of the battle they had endured.

Asher sat on the ground, his back against a large tree, staring blankly ahead with hollow eyes.

“Brother.” Jacob felt a pang in his heart seeing Asher in such a state. Asher had always given the impression of being cheerful and optimistic. This was the first time Jacob had seen his brother so devastated.

Jacob wanted to comfort him but couldn’t find the right words. The death of two ace Pokémon that had been Asher’s constant companions had clearly shattered his mental state.

Especially his Volcarona, the Pokémon that had grown up alongside him, now dead at Dante’s hands.

“I’m fine.” Asher snapped back to awareness, turned to look at Jacob, and forced a smile on his pale face.

Rory reached out and patted Asher’s shoulder. Looking at his eldest son who had always made him proud, he was at a loss for words. This blow was too severe for Asher.

Although Rory had also lost a Pokémon, he was more mature and emotionally stable. At his age, he had witnessed life and death many times, so he naturally handled the situation better than Asher.

Just then, the silver vortex in the sky began to fluctuate again. A massive fossil pterosaur descended from above, flying rapidly toward the three people.

“Thud!”

The Aerodactyl landed on the ground, and a man about thirty-five years old jumped off its back.

It was Sylas, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Southwest region, the Flying-type specialist, known as the Flying King.

“Flying King Sylas.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep