Chapter 88

Gigantamax Machamp's moves are powerful and heavy, with the force of a thousand pounds, but in front of Dianxi and Suicune, it can't even touch them. It's as if they sensed everything in advance, and they can dodge the attacks perfectly every time, and then launch their own counterattacks.

Their teamwork was absolutely perfect; just how close must their relationship be to achieve such coordination?

"So this is Legendary Pokémon...? It can actually perform such a perfect battle on its own..."

The Green-Hatted Girl felt her worldview was being turned upside down, and Marnie next to her felt almost the same way. If Pokémon were this smart, what would be the point of Trainer?

Are you just being cute on the sidelines?

However, they did not know that Qiao Ran, who was standing silently with his sword in hand, had already taken on the role of the information center.

Everything Dianxi and Suicune sense and perceive will be processed by him. This feeling is completely different from commanding a Pokémon. He needs to have a comprehensive view of the entire battle and then arrange the timing of their dodges and attacks!

At times like these, even the smallest mistake can jeopardize the entire battle, so he cannot afford to make a mistake, absolutely not!

Ordinary Pokémon might get distracted when battling Gigantamax Pokémon, leading to their defeat, but they are different.

The three of them are of one mind!

Water Cannon!

Diamond Storm!

Under Qiao Ran's command, Dianxi and Suicune simultaneously unleashed their strongest moves, a red storm and a raging torrent of water intertwining and crashing down on Machamp's feet.

"Roar roar roar roar roar!!!"

Under this powerful bombardment, the Machamp cried out in pain, and even its huge body began to shake. The rest of its body was not damaged much, but its vulnerable ankles were hit one after another.

--Suicune and Dianxi's attacks all had their own purposes!

Gigantamax is strong, but they won't lose!

"Encore! Water Cannon and Diamond Storm!"

Perhaps because he was too emotional, Qiao Ran couldn't help but shout it out.

Hearing this sudden shout, both the Green-Hatted Girl and Marnie turned around and looked at Qiao Ran with confusion. They didn't understand what had suddenly gotten into him.

Qiao Ran didn't notice any of this—his entire mind was focused on the battle, and he didn't even see the faint light emanating from the Long Sword in his hand.

They may be very small, but it is this very smallness that gives them the courage to challenge Giant. Besides, even Giant have their own weaknesses.

Nothing is perfect; even gods can fall due to negligence. Not to mention this is just an ordinary Machamp.

Another Diamond Storm, another Water Cannon — the Machamp could no longer hold on. Even its muscular body collapsed due to the pain in its feet.

"Roar roar roar roar roar!"

It cried out in resentment, but its body collapsed in one direction like a toppling iron tower.

"BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!"

This was a muscular Monster thirty meters tall. Even as it fell, it made a loud thud on the ground, causing the ground to shake as if it were Earthquake.

Another commotion followed, and no one knew what had happened after the Machamp collapsed. The situation was already hidden by the trees, but Qiao Ran made a sound again.

It's over.

"It's... over?"

Marnie, covering her ears, looked at Qiao Ran, who had said those words, with a strange expression. He couldn't see the current scene of the battlefield, so why could he say such things with such certainty?

Qiao Ran glanced into the distance, his eyes filled with a depth she couldn't fathom, as if he could truly see what was happening over there.

"The Gigantamax Energy on that Machamp has dissipated, and it has returned to its normal size. Shouldn't this be considered the end?"

Qiao Ran withdrew her gaze from the distance and turned to Marnie was still in a daze beside her, with a "

A relaxed smile.

"Don't worry, of course I confirmed it before I said that."

"This..." For a moment, Marnie didn't know what to say.

"Lord Qiao Ran... you..."

She didn't know whether she was "touched" or "excited," but anyway... this man... seemed to be a little different from others.

It claimed to be its first time in Galar, but it charged straight at a Gigantamax Pokémon, saying it was going to Defeat it, and it actually did.

No wonder he was chosen by the Sacred Sword... by the Legendary Pokémon... If only he could use Dark type Pokémon too...

Marnie didn't know what expression she should make, but looking at Qiao Ran's smile, she felt her heart beat a little faster and her cheeks flush slightly.

Perhaps due to her introverted personality, she seems to blush more easily than most people.

"Alright! Alright! What are you two doing?!"

Seeing that things were going badly, the Green-Hatted Girl quickly stepped between the two. She was a member of the fan club who only supported Marnie, but she could smell that little Marnie was about to be kidnapped by that slut.

How can this be?

Marnie is everyone's idol!

"We didn't do anything, did we?"

Qiao Ran scratched his head, indicating that he didn't understand anything. He had just remotely commanded two Pokémon in battle at the same time, and his mind was still in a daze.

However, besides these things, there were some details he hadn't noticed—after the battle, the old Long Sword in his hand seemed to have become cleaner, though... it was only a very minor change...

Section 168, page 165 [Marnie: Gloria]

"That's wonderful... This problem was solved thanks to Qiao Ran's help."

Even after the battle was over, Marnie still held Qiao Ran in high esteem. She was usually a woman of few words, and this was the first time she had so openly praised a particular person.

Every Gigantamax Pokémon could actually cause devastating damage to Spikemuth. Her Older Brother, who was the Gym Leader, had already left, and now only she and that Green-Hatted Girl were capable of protecting the town.

However, with their current strength, it would probably be difficult for them to directly deal with Dynamax Pokémon. Moreover, even if a battle took place around the town, Spikemuth, which was already in dire need of protection, would not be able to withstand it.

After the battle was over and the battlefield was cleaned up, Dianxi and Suicune returned safely from afar. Not only that, they also obediently took the Poké Ball from Qiao Ran, then returned to their original spot and put the unconscious Machamp inside.

After all, they already knew that Qiao Ran was unable to move.

To help Qiao Ran share some of the burden, they could only start with these small details.

"Wow, that's amazing... Is this Legendary Pokémon?"

Watching the interaction between Qiao Ran and Dianxi, Marnie couldn't help but show an envious look. It didn't feel like communicating with Pokémon at all, but rather with human beings like herself, like real partners.

Can the relationship between trainers and Pokémon really reach this point?

"Perhaps they're just special."

Qiao Ran shrugged, not saying much. Dianxi and Suicune were probably the two Pokémon that gave him the least trouble. After all, the obedient Vulpix was still quite young and had room to grow. As for the other Pokémon, they all had their own little problems to some extent.

Moreover, for Qiao Ran now, in addition to the mission of exploring Singularity, he also has the additional mission of catching Pokémon. Although Qiao Ran has been on the move since summoning Yveltal and has not had time to catch anything, he is indeed slowly accumulating a number of Pokémon.

His last mission involved capturing Rock Type Pokémon, and this time, his target is Fighting-type, with an equally terrifying 100 of them.

Catching 100 Fighting-type Pokémon; even he would have to accumulate that number gradually.

This is why he insisted on battling Gigantamax Machamp; not only did he want to test the strength of Gigantamax Pokémon, but he also intended to capture it.

After all, Fighting-type Pokémon are really hard to find.

Grass-type Pokémon in grass, Water-type Pokémon in water, and Rock Type Pokémon in mountains. It's easy to guess where they are found. But Fighting-type are different. They may live anywhere, but there's no way to pinpoint a specific location.

Catching them really depends on luck. You either encounter one or you never see one, no matter how hard you try.

"Qiao Ran, let's head back first. I'd like to continue introducing our Spikemuth."

The black-haired girl looked at Qiao Ran and slightly opened her mouth. Although the emotional fluctuations on her face were still very subtle, Qiao Ran felt that she was much more proactive than at the beginning.

If there was some distance between them before, that sense of estrangement has lessened considerably now, a fact that Qiao Ran finds particularly noticeable.

Okay, let's go back first then.

The Hilbert was over, and the Machamp had been subdued. Staying here wouldn't do Qiao Ran any good. He needed a place to rest and think about his next steps.

He felt that the core of this Singularity was likely related to this inexplicable Gigantamax.

However—just as Qiao Ran took the Poké Ball from Dianxi and was about to get in the car to return home, a scream came from the other side.

The girl in the green hat looked at the Off-road vehicle in front of her and let out a heart-wrenching scream.

"How could this happen...? My car just broke down like this?"

Her car tires seemed to have worn down during the high-speed drive and were now beyond repair. She had no way to fix them and could only stand by the car window in helpless rage.

"Gloria... why don't you come with us? We'll figure out a way to come back and fix it later."

Marnie glanced at her and offered a feasible solution: although there were few people in Spikemuth, they could still find someone who could fix cars if they looked around a bit.

Besides, the entire Galar region is like this now... Even if you just leave your car here, no one will bother to move it. Unless someone is deliberately courting death, no one will have the time to wander into the suburbs.

"All right..."

The girl, whom Marnie called Gloria, walked towards Qiao Ran with slumped shoulders, glaring at him as she passed by.

The look in their eyes was exactly the same as that of the previous Team Yell.

"..."

Qiao Ran could only look away in response. He actually knew this girl named "Gloria," and might even know her better than she knew herself.

Besides being nicknamed "Little Green Hat," she is actually one of the female protagonists in the Pokémon games, just like Mei and Mei. She is also possibly the strongest female protagonist to date, because the Galar Champion is a terrifying figure who has been a Champion since he was ten years old and has maintained a winning streak ever since. A female protagonist who can Defeat him... well, that would be an even more terrifying individual.

Qiao Ran had imagined countless times what this powerful female lead would be like, but he never expected that this girl would actually be an old Team Yell and a fan of Marnie.

If she hadn't become the Champion... would she have gone down an unimaginable path, starting a hair salon and becoming Team Yell?

Seeing Qiao Ran get into the back seat, Marnie also skillfully got into the back seat, Gloria the Old Team Yell immediately got angry.

"What?! How could you do this?!!"

She couldn't let the two of them stay together like that. If she left Marnie isolated and helpless in the back, wouldn't she be watching Marnie fall into hell?

"No, I'll sit in the back!"

Gloria grabbed Marnie's hand and pulled her down, then darted up herself.

Marnie could only stare in disbelief at the scene. She had actually been secretly looking forward to sitting next to Qiao Ran, but she hadn't expected... Gloria was just too amazing.

With no other option, Marnie had to go to the front. Meanwhile, Gloria, standing behind, stared at Qiao Ran as if he were a wolf in sheep's clothing.

"Hey... you're poking me."

"..."

Qiao Ran's lips twitched, and she could only reply irritably.

"Sorry, this sword is only so long, how am I supposed to put it down?"

The previous Marnie would have helped him out, but this current troublemaker is probably just trying to avoid causing him trouble.

Marnie

Marnie 2. jpg

Section 169, Chapter 166 [The Cry: Hesitation]

Qiao Ran's sword was very long, but it was not his intention to stab someone. However, the space inside the car was only so big, and he didn't really have any other choice.

"Gloria, please let Qiao Ran put it down for a moment. This is the legendary Sacred Sword... You should have realized that by now, right?"

In the end, it was Marnie, who was sitting in front, who turned around, and after some persuasion from her, Gloria's attitude improved considerably.

However, she still glanced at Qiao Ran lightly, her words still sharp and unforgiving.

"That's it? The Sacred Sword?"

"..."

Looking at her bewildered expression, Qiao Ran almost stood up to show her just how powerful this Sacred Sword really was.

Where did this "Zu'an Heroine" even come from?

"Gloria, don't say that."

Upon hearing Gloria's words, Marnie, who was sitting in the front row, immediately turned around, her face full of seriousness. Her reaction was even faster than Qiao Ran's.

"That was news announced by Professor Magnolia; it was broadcast on Rollout throughout Galar before the television network was completely cut off."

"If you don't believe me, Gloria, we can watch the video when we get back."