Recaps

Qiao Ran agreed to take Mei to the Pokémon World and brought her with Lillie to a clearing to prepare her for the journey. As Nihilego gathered for Mei’s fusion, Lillie explained what she would face while Phoebe investigated a mysterious gem and wondered about Qiao Ran.

• Mei feared Qiao Ran had rejected her, but he agreed to find a way to take her to the Pokémon World, and she hugged him.
• Qiao Ran, Mei, and Lillie left the Western-style Mansion to prepare in a nearby clearing while Phoebe watched them depart.
• Phoebe examined an old pink gem that showed her an image of a strange batlike creature, then grew frustrated when thoughts of Qiao Ran interrupted her research.
• Qiao Ran released Nihilego and asked Mei to prepare for the next step, leaving her confused about what the creatures had to do with traveling worlds.
• Qiao Ran asked Lillie to explain her past experience to Mei while he chose a gentler Nihilego for the fusion and promised another Pokémon a reward.

After Mei completed her fusion with Nihilego, Qiao Ran and Lillie returned to the Aether Foundation, where Mei was confronted by an angry Phoebe and challenged her to a battle. Lillie then reunited with her mother, Lusamine, who found Qiao Ran resting in Lillie's lap and asked if he was an alien.

• Mei excitedly described being caught in a Poké Ball and sensed her new connection with Qiao Ran before they left with Lillie.
• Phoebe scolded Qiao Ran for keeping her waiting, while her Poison-type Pokémon joined in and one Toxapex poisoned him.
• Phoebe questioned Mei, and the two recognized each other's eagerness to battle before starting a Pokémon match.
• Lillie noticed an Ultra Beast presence and saw her mother, Lusamine, appear at the Aether Foundation.
• Lusamine greeted Lillie, then asked about the purple-skinned Qiao Ran resting in Lillie's lap, leaving Lillie flustered.

Lillie reunited with Lusamine at the Aether Foundation and told her how Qiao Ran had helped them, while Mei and her counterpart quickly became close. Lusamine’s questions about traveling between worlds reopened painful family wounds, and Lillie found comfort with Qiao Ran as the two Meis left the room, jealous.

• Lillie told Lusamine about Qiao Ran and their recent experiences as Lusamine listened and asked about Lillie's friends.
• Mei and the other Mei explained that they had bonded through their battle and found their personalities and judgment remarkably alike.
• Qiao Ran woke and learned that Mei had released Lusamine from her container while he and the others were away.
• Lusamine praised Lillie's work and asked Qiao Ran how he traveled between worlds, but Lillie reminded her that Gladion and their father were already lost.
• Lusamine left the room, and Lillie admitted she still could not forgive her for what had happened to the Aether Foundation and its people.
• Mei urged Qiao Ran to comfort Lillie, and the two Meis left after watching him hold her and feeling jealous.

Qiao Ran left the Aether Foundation after asking Mei to consider joining him, then prepared to resume his Gym journey and took Mei and Lillie to Galar. The chapter ended as a girl emerged from a dark alley in Spikemuth and challenged Qiao Ran’s description of the town’s residents.

• Qiao Ran urged Mei to consider leaving the Aether Foundation with him, and Mei wondered whether she could accept becoming his Pokémon before postponing her decision.
• Phoebe let Qiao Ran take Zacian’s sword and asked him to report important information, then watched him leave while reflecting on how time outlasted everyone around her.
• Mei said she needed to return to Dr. Lilia before traveling with Qiao Ran, and Qiao Ran invited her and Lillie to visit another world with him.
• Qiao Ran took Mei and Lillie to Galar to see Marnie and the others and discuss the other world, Chairman Rose, and Celesteela.
• In Spikemuth, Lillie and Mei were unsettled by the gloomy town and its eccentric residents, and a girl stepped out of an alley to ask who looked strange.

Qiao Ran told Marnie, Gloria, Lillie, and Mei about the disasters affecting other regions and his battle with another Chairman Rose, then discussed the dangers facing Galar. The group left the whereabouts of Marnie’s brother unresolved and agreed to create a code phrase to verify one another’s identities.

• Marnie and Gloria brought Qiao Ran, Lillie, and Mei to Marnie’s home, where everyone introduced themselves.
• Qiao Ran explained that Ultra Beasts had devastated Alola and that Mei had lost her memories after a catastrophic battle in Unova.
• Qiao Ran recounted fighting another Chairman Rose in a shattered version of Galar and said he could not be sure Rose had died.
• Lillie asked whether the other world was Nihilego’s home, but Qiao Ran and Nihilego could not confirm it.
• Marnie learned that her brother was missing and feared his disappearance was connected to the fake Rose.
• Qiao Ran and the others discussed their next steps and decided Marnie and Gloria needed a code phrase to confirm their identities.

Gloria challenged Qiao Ran to a public battle after he revealed Zacian, and the match drew a crowd in Spikemuth. Zacian transformed into her king of swords form and met Cinderace’s opening Pyro Ball with Behemoth Blade.

• Qiao Ran summoned Zacian to prove that Galar’s Legendary Pokémon had recognized him, and Gloria immediately asked to battle her.
• Marnie arranged for the fight to take place before Spikemuth’s townspeople, and Gloria sent out her starter Cinderace.
• Qiao Ran threw his sword into the air, and Zacian caught it in her mouth and transformed into her king of swords form.
• Gloria ordered Cinderace to attack first with Pyro Ball, sending a huge fireball at Zacian.
• Qiao Ran and Zacian charged forward with Behemoth Blade, and Zacian struck at Cinderace’s fireball.

Qiao Ran and Zacian faced Gloria and Cinderace in a public battle in Spikemuth, where Zacian’s overwhelming swordsmanship convinced the residents that the Hero could save Galar. Zacian defeated Cinderace, leaving the townspeople hopeful and Gloria determined to grow stronger.

• Zacian sliced apart Cinderace’s fireball and its hidden pebble, convincing Spikemuth’s residents that she wielded the legendary Sacred Sword.
• Qiao Ran recognized Zacian’s vast advantage over Gloria’s Cinderace and ordered Zacian to use Swords Dance.
• Gloria had Cinderace boost its strength with Bulk Up, then attack Zacian with three powerful Pyro Balls delivered by Bicycle Kick.
• Zacian used Sacred Sword to cut all three fireballs into fragments, stunning Gloria and stirring the residents to loudly acclaim Qiao Ran as their Hero.
• Qiao Ran explained that Zacian had struck repeatedly at tremendous speed, then ordered Behemoth Blade against Cinderace’s Flare Blitz.
• Zacian and Cinderace collided, and Cinderace fell; the residents continued to respect Gloria for fighting the Hero.

After leaving the Western-style Mansion, Qiao Ran and Lillie began traveling toward Hangcheng, while Qiao Ran reflected on the people who cared about him and Lillie asked about meeting his parents. That night, Qiao Ran secretly visited Dianxi and Vulpix, who confronted him about hiding them from Lillie and asked whether he was afraid to introduce them.

• Qiao Ran and Lillie said goodbye to Mei and left the Western-style Mansion, with Hangcheng as their next destination.
• Qiao Ran spoke with Iron Maiden and replied to messages from Eve, Long Jiangxue, and his family to reassure them he was safe.
• While camping, Lillie asked whether she could visit Qiao Ran's parents, and Qiao Ran became uneasy when he remembered his promise to Dianxi and Vulpix.
• After Lillie fell asleep, Qiao Ran opened a passage to Pokémon Pioneer Land and visited Dianxi and Vulpix.
• Dianxi asked why Qiao Ran would not introduce her and Vulpix to Lillie, then asked whether he was afraid to do so.

Qiao Ran escaped Pokémon Pioneer Land and returned to find Lillie waiting by the river, only for a mysterious attacker to strike. He recognized the attacker as Genesect as more appeared, and he sent Lillie away while Yi Ruoyun prepared to fight them.

• Qiao Ran woke beside Dianxi and Vulpix, left the cave, and hurried back to the real world after Suicune hinted at what had happened overnight.
• Qiao Ran found Lillie waiting by the river and watched a black-mist-shrouded shadow attack her with a powerful beam.
• Qiao Ran blocked the beam with Zacian's Long Sword, then released Yveltal and Altaria as the attacker returned.
• Yi Ruoyun arrived with her Pokémon and warned Qiao Ran that Hangcheng had been attacked and he should flee.
• Qiao Ran and Lillie identified the attacker as Genesect, and several more Genesect surrounded Yi Ruoyun.
• Qiao Ran pulled Lillie toward the woods and told Rotom to take her away.

Qiao Ran joined Yi Ruoyun’s battle against the Genesect attacking near Hangcheng, and his powerful Pokémon turned the fight in their favor. After they brought down one of the attackers, Yi Ruoyun and Qiao Ran went to capture it and found its purple steel-insect body exposed beneath the vanished black mist.

• Qiao Ran left Lillie with Rotom, which opened a portal to the Wild Area, and hurried toward the battlefield.
• Yi Ruoyun objected to Qiao Ran returning, but he sent out Zacian, Yveltal, and Nihilego to fight the Genesect.
• Yi Ruoyun questioned how Qiao Ran could be so strong with only a few Badges, then asked him to help her in Hangcheng.
• Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun agreed to try capturing a fallen Genesect as their Pokémon brought the battle under control.
• Yi Ruoyun and Qiao Ran rode Skarmory to the fallen attacker and found its black mist gone, revealing a purple steel-insect body.

Qiao Ran recognized that Hoopa’s rings were transporting the defeated Genesect away, while Lillie explored the Wild Area and met a maid who revealed herself to be a transformed Pokémon. As Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun reached Hangcheng, they learned the attacks were more complicated than they seemed, and Mei’s reaction suggested the Genesect were tied to a past catastrophe.

• Qiao Ran realized that the rings appearing beneath the defeated Genesect were likely connected to Hoopa, while Yi Ruoyun could not explain the creatures’ disappearance.
• Lillie explored the Wild Area with Rotom, where a blue-purple-haired maid greeted her and transformed to reveal she was a Pokémon.
• Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun flew toward Hangcheng, and Qiao Ran began considering a risky way to stop the other side from using the rings to retrieve the Genesect.
• Yi Ruoyun learned from her Pokémon League contact that the Genesect in Hangcheng had mostly attacked buildings, though Qiao Ran remembered that they had targeted Lillie earlier.
• Qiao Ran called Mei and told her he had seen Genesect shrouded in black mist and Hoopa’s rings; Mei reacted with fear and asked where he was so she could come to Hangcheng.

Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun reached Hangcheng’s besieged Water-type Gym, where Qiao Ran’s Pokémon struck the Genesect from above and turned the battle around. He then Mega Evolved Dianxi, leaving the Trainers and their enemies stunned as the remaining Genesect regrouped.

• Yi Ruoyun told Qiao Ran they were heading to Hangcheng’s Pokémon Gym because the Trainers there were close to being overwhelmed.
• Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun entered the open-roof stadium, where a Gym Leader and his exhausted Trainers were surrounded by more than ten Genesect.
• Qiao Ran sent Yveltal, Zacian, Suicune, and Dianxi diving into the stadium, heavily damaging several Genesect with their attacks.
• Yi Ruoyun feared Qiao Ran would crash during his dive, but he recalled Altaria and reappeared safely in its cloudlike wings near the ground.
• Qiao Ran used his Key Stone to Mega Evolve Dianxi, while the remaining Genesect gathered together and identified him as a threat.

Qiao Ran, Yi Ruoyun, and the Hangcheng Trainers defeated the Genesect attacking the stadium, with Qiao Ran’s Pokémon protecting him and fighting as a close-knit team. After the battle, Gym Leader Jiang Yuanhao asked them to help defend the rest of Hangcheng, and Yi Ruoyun agreed while telling Qiao Ran to stay with her.

• Qiao Ran and Mega-Evolved Dianxi fought off a Genesect with Diamond Storm and a diamond sword while Yi Ruoyun sent Talonflame and Noivern into battle.
• Mimikyu and Vulpix protected Qiao Ran from a Genesect’s sneak attack, and Zacian struck the Genesect down before it could fire its cannon.
• The Trainers rallied as Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun turned the battle around, and together they wiped out the last of the Genesect.
• Jiang Yuanhao introduced himself as Hangcheng’s Gym Leader and learned that Qiao Ran had only three Badges.
• Jiang Yuanhao asked Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun to help the people fighting monsters elsewhere in the city, and Yi Ruoyun agreed while warning Qiao Ran to stay beside her.

Qiao Ran suspected that the timid, amnesiac Trainer Qiao Yi was connected to the Genesect attacks, but before he could call Mei to investigate, portals opened and a vast swarm of Genesect poured out. As the swarm devastated the Stadium and attacked fleeing Trainers, Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun prepared to fight back, while the Genesect strangely ignored them.

• Qiao Ran recognized Qiao Yi’s resemblance to Nurse Joy and suspected she was connected to the Genesect attacking people.
• Gym Leader Jiang Yuanhao explained that Qiao Yi was an amnesiac newcomer who had joined the Hangcheng Gym.
• Six rings opened in the air, releasing a swarm of more than a hundred Genesect.
• Yi Ruoyun and Jiang Yuanhao urged everyone to flee as the Genesect wrecked the Stadium and pursued the escaping Trainers.
• Qiao Ran released his Pokémon and quietly asked Yi Ruoyun to help him bring down some Genesect.
• The Genesect spread out in formation, attacked buildings and fleeing Trainers, but left Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun untouched.

Qiao Ran entered the Genesect’s Portal to stop the invasion at its source and found himself in a bleak, gray world. With Vulpix and Mimikyu beside him, he began secretly following a Genesect to learn where it was going.

• Qiao Ran and Yi Ruoyun fought the Genesect swarm while Jiang Yuanhao evacuated the Gym’s Trainers and requested help from the Pokémon League.
• Qiao Ran coordinated attacks to knock several Genesect down at the same spot, then leaped into the Portal as they disappeared.
• Yi Ruoyun realized Qiao Ran had planned their battle to create a chance for him to enter the enemy’s Portal.
• Qiao Ran regained consciousness in a gray, mist-filled world, where Mimikyu and Vulpix hid him from a passing Genesect.
• Qiao Ran noticed the Genesect carried an unconscious member of its kind and decided to follow it quietly with Vulpix and Mimikyu.

Qiao Ran followed the Genesect to the Unova Pokémon League, where he discovered the ruined region and the hidden Team Plasma castle. With Vulpix and Mimikyu assisting him, he entered the castle to investigate what was controlling the Genesect.

• Rotom identified the area as an unknown Singularity, and Qiao Ran concluded that it was part of the Pokémon World.
• Vulpix warned Qiao Ran that the Genesect had flown toward the distant castle, where he saw many more carrying their companions.
• Qiao Ran read a noticeboard and recognized the ruined location as Victory Road and the Unova Pokémon League.
• Qiao Ran realized the castle belonged to Team Plasma and wondered how the organization was involved in the disaster.
• Qiao Ran rested with Vulpix and Mimikyu, learned that Lillie was worried about him, then slipped through the castle entrance.

Qiao Ran and his Pokémon fought their way through the castle’s Genesect encirclement toward a growing white substance, but Qiao Ran was badly injured and his team neared exhaustion. He activated Mega Evolution for Dianxi again and used his Tokiwa Power to rally the group as the castle began to collapse.

• Qiao Ran and his Pokémon broke through walls to evade the Genesect, which coordinated ambushes and surrounded them inside the castle.
• Qiao Ran released Suicune, Zacian, and Nihilego to lead a charge through the Genesect toward the next room.
• Dianxi shielded Qiao Ran from the Genesect’s Energy Beams, but the impact knocked her into him, injured him, and ended her Mega Evolution.
• Suicune wrapped Qiao Ran in her feelers while Zacian blocked further attacks, and Qiao Ran urged his Pokémon to keep moving toward the room ahead.
• Qiao Ran activated Mega Evolution for Dianxi a third time and used his Tokiwa Power to strengthen and heal his Pokémon.
• The Pokémon resumed their attack, and their clashes with the Genesect shook the room until its walls cracked and its floor began to cave in.

Qiao Ran crossed into the Castle’s white Throne Room, touched a pearl, and encountered the concept of truth in an illusory vision. The pearl transformed into Reshiram, who appeared before him as a special containment reward.

• Qiao Ran escaped the Genesect by reaching the Throne Room, where the bugs stopped pursuing him.
• Qiao Ran climbed the marble stairs and found a white pearl in a container on the platform.
• Qiao Ran touched the pearl and heard an illusory figure explain the conflict between truth and ideals and the world's wish to destroy itself.
• Qiao Ran woke with the pearl in his hand, and flames appeared without harming him.
• Rotom displayed a conversion message as the pearl transformed into Reshiram, identified as the truth special containment reward.

Qiao Ran welcomed Reshiram to his team, but discovered that her level was only 20 and that she had just ten minutes of remaining power. Hoopa then led a swarm of Genesect into the Throne Hall, where Reshiram stayed to weaken their black ideals as Qiao Ran prepared for battle.

• Qiao Ran formed a bond with Reshiram and learned that she represented truth, but Rotom showed that she was only level 20.
• Reshiram told Qiao Ran that she had enough residual power to fight for about ten minutes and that freeing Zekrom could help resolve the crisis.
• Hoopa emerged through a ring alongside countless Genesect, surrounding Qiao Ran and his companions in the Throne Hall.
• Qiao Ran prepared for battle despite his exhaustion, while Reshiram refused to leave and explained that her presence weakened the ideals controlling the enemy Pokémon.

Qiao Ran poured his last Tokiwa Power into Reshiram, expanding the white area and weakening the Shadow Pokémon, while his team fought to hold the collapsing platform. As the battle continued, Qiao Ran entered a vision of a safer life without his companions and questioned whether he would still be himself without them.

• Reshiram asked Qiao Ran to give her Tokiwa Power, explaining that it might strengthen her presence in the world as the Shadow Pokémon attacked.
• Qiao Ran realized Reshiram's presence weakened the attackers within the white area, then trusted her and poured his remaining power into her.
• Reshiram's white area expanded and pushed back the Shadow Pokémon, so Qiao Ran left the battle to Vulpix and his team while he continued empowering her.
• Vulpix directed the battle as Dianxi weakened and Suicune took her place, while the platform continued to collapse under the endless assault.
• Qiao Ran entered a strange vision of an ordinary Trainer life without his current companions and wondered whether he would still be himself without them.

Reshiram awakened and saved Qiao Ran’s team by unleashing Fusion Flare, but she revealed that the borrowed power sustaining her was limited. Qiao Ran planned their next moves around the fifteen minutes she had left, while Hoopa noticed her strength beginning to fade.

• Reshiram appeared to Qiao Ran in a vision and promised to take over the battle while he rested.
• Qiao Ran collapsed as Hoopa and the Genesect overwhelmed his exhausted Pokémon and threatened to destroy their platform.
• Reshiram awakened and blasted through the Genesect’s attacks with Fusion Flare, knocking many of them from the air and forcing Hoopa to defend itself.
• Reshiram apologized for using her remaining power early, explaining that Qiao Ran’s treatment had given her fifteen minutes of strength before she would weaken.
• Qiao Ran coordinated a plan with Reshiram to make the most of her remaining time, while Hoopa noticed that her attacks and body were weakening.

Qiao Ran and Reshiram defeated Hoopa in the Throne Room, causing Hoopa and the remaining Genesect to disappear as creations of another space-time. Qiao Ran’s mission completed and opened a Portal, while Hangcheng’s defenders struggled against the Genesect until he prepared to return and help.

• Hoopa fell for Qiao Ran’s trap, and Reshiram’s fireball engulfed it before it could escape.
• Reshiram explained that Hoopa and the Genesect disappeared because they did not truly belong to that space-time, and the surviving Genesect fled.
• Qiao Ran thanked his Pokémon, learned that his Singularity mission was complete, and saw its rewards begin distributing extremely slowly.
• Reshiram said she could last only three minutes in the world, so Qiao Ran opened a Portal to return to Hangcheng and deal with the crisis.
• Yi Ruoyun watched Hangcheng’s defenses falter, learned that help from the League and its veteran Elite Four member would arrive too late, and worried about Qiao Ran.

Qiao Ran used Lillie as bait to gather the Genesect around Hangcheng Gym, then had Reshiram destroy the swarm with Fusion Flare. Yi Ruoyun and Jiang Yuanhao witnessed the attack and struggled to believe what they had seen, while Qiao Ran nearly fell from Yveltal in his excitement.

• Yi Ruoyun and Jiang Yuanhao helped evacuate residents and watched a defeated Genesect dissolve into black gas.
• Qiao Ran brought Lillie out of the Wild Area and had Yveltal fly around Hangcheng to attract Genesect to her.
• Qiao Ran led the gathered Genesect to the ruined Hangcheng Gym and sent out Reshiram.
• Reshiram unleashed Fusion Flare, killing the Genesect in a fiery rain witnessed by nearby Trainers and residents.
• Yi Ruoyun and Jiang Yuanhao reacted in disbelief, and Yi Ruoyun made Jiang Yuanhao promise not to mention her startled reaction.
• Qiao Ran nearly fell off Yveltal after the attack.

Qiao Ran’s Genesect operation succeeded, but he collapsed from exhaustion and was taken to a Pokémon Center, where Lillie stayed with him. Mei learned that Hangcheng’s crisis had largely been resolved and that Qiao Ran had caught Reshiram, leaving her stunned as she flew toward the city.

• Qiao Ran thanked Lillie and recalled the weakened Reshiram after their attack eliminated most of the Genesect.
• Qiao Ran collapsed, and Lillie asked Yveltal to rush him to a Pokémon Center.
• Lillie registered herself as Qiao Ran’s companion and chose to stay with him while he recovered.
• Yi Ruoyun and Jiang Yuanhao guarded Hangcheng overnight after the remaining Genesect went into hiding.
• Mei called and learned from Lillie that Qiao Ran had caught Reshiram and that Hangcheng’s crisis was mostly over.

After Qiao Ran and Reshiram nearly eliminated the Genesect threat in Hangcheng, Qiao Ran woke at a Pokémon Center and told Mei that the Unova League headquarters lay in ruins. The chapter ended with Mei and Lillie silently absorbing his account of the devastation.

• Mei learned from Lillie that Qiao Ran and Reshiram had mostly resolved the Hangcheng crisis, while remaining Genesect hid from the League's cleanup teams and vanished when defeated.
• Yi Ruoyun complained that Qiao Ran had entered the Ring without telling her, then ordered the staff to give him the best treatment.
• Qiao Ran woke at the Pokémon Center, heard what had happened while he was unconscious, and worried that another false Hoopa might exist.
• Qiao Ran told Mei he had reached the Unova League headquarters and found it in ruins, with only Reshiram there to help him return.
• Qiao Ran described the destruction he had witnessed, and Mei and Lillie listened in silence as he suggested there might still be surviving humans elsewhere in Unova.