The Twilight King

Sato issued commands as he fled in disarray. The burrow was Sandslash's home ground. His left hand had already been deformed, blood streaming down his arm and dripping onto the ground.

The charging Arbok was blocked by Gastly once again. The successive Shadow Balls had barely done any damage, but the Curse effect triggered once more! In that brief moment, Zorua, which had been hiding in the darkness all along, finally moved. A Dark Pulse far more powerful than before slammed fiercely into the Green Rank Killer, blasting it straight away!

"Chitter!"

Sandslash anxiously tried to rush back and provide support, but Sato closed in at that moment. Dark Power wrapped around his dagger as he viciously plunged it into the soft flesh of its abdomen, flooding it with Dark Power!

"Chii!!"

Sandslash used its last strength to send Sato flying, but it clearly would not survive either. It twitched as it fell to the ground.

"Cough, cough! Gastly, Sucker Punch! Zorua, Dark Pulse!"

Facing the Arbok that was hanging on by its last sliver of strength, Sato covered his chest without the slightest panic. After leveling up, Gastly had learned Sucker Punch precisely to block its opponent's final strike!

"Jiejie!"

Under the effect of Sucker Punch, Gastly got ahead of Arbok. With almost no Physical Attack, it only managed to block it slightly, but that was enough. Curse activated, and Dark Pulse attacked! "Cough, cough, Gastly, kill it!"

"Jiejie!"

Gastly had completely forgotten the terror of the "Demonic Palm" and happily went to absorb the soul.

"Kuso~"

Zorua looked at Sato worriedly, its little tongue gently licking the wound on his arm.

His chest was sunken in and his left arm was fractured. Sato's injuries were undeniably severe, but with all the enemies eliminated, he had enough time to recover. It was not a major problem.

Sato treated his own wounds exactly as he had treated Zorua's back then. Dark Power surged madly as his cells began to expand and divide at an incredible rate.

Before long, his arm had returned to normal. The wound left behind only a faint red mark, while the depression in his chest gradually faded until there was no trace of anything abnormal.

But the price was the severe pain brought by the rapid division of his cells. Even after professional training, the pain made his face turn pale and his entire body tremble.

Healing wounds required a large amount of energy. The moment he stopped the Dark Power, an intense hunger made even Arbok's corpse before him seem delicious.

Relying on his last shred of rationality, Sato pulled out all sorts of high-energy food from his backpack and crammed it into his mouth until Gastly came before him, its eyes red with excitement mixed with a hint of ferocity.

The dense Ghost-type energy caused Dark Power to stir. Sato regained his senses, wiped the remnants of his binge from his face, stretched out his right hand, and grabbed Gastly without hesitation as Dark Power erupted once again.

"Jiejie!"

This time, Gastly had devoured four souls in total: the Green Rank Killer, Misdreavus, Sandslash, and Arbok. Every one of them was stronger than the previous Houndoom.

Misdreavus in particular, being of the same type, was practically a perfect tonic for Gastly. After recklessly devouring it, Gastly could no longer control itself.

Sato watched the shrieking Gastly without saying a word. It had been too greedy. Did it think that having Dark Power meant it could act without restraint?

So Sato showed no mercy at all. He needed Gastly to remember this lesson. Any unstable energy that had not been absorbed, along with all the turbulent stray thoughts, were eradicated by him at the fastest speed possible.

"Bzz!"

The light of evolution enveloped Gastly. Having absorbed a large amount of soul energy, it directly reached the level required for evolution. Fortunately, all those side effects had been eliminated, or Gastly might very well have become a true evil ghost.

"Jiejie!"

Gastly disappeared, replaced by a Haunter with its head and hands separated. There was no longer any gas surrounding it. Toxic could no longer be used through poisonous mist, but its two Shadow Claws could leave its body. With one gain and one loss, many training methods would need to be adjusted accordingly.

"Jie~"

Haunter gave a timid cry. Though it had evolved, its attitude toward Sato had become increasingly fearful. Dark Power was, after all, energy that restrained Ghost-type Pokemon, and undergoing that cleansing was no less painful than Sato healing his own injuries.

Sato sighed inwardly. He had been the one who allowed Haunter to devour souls. Facts proved that this method of growth was indeed extremely fast.

But because of that, it would be even harder to cultivate intimacy between him and Haunter. Haunter feared the Dark Power within him, while Sato likewise worried that Haunter would lose control and go on a killing spree without distinguishing friend from foe.

I'll have to strictly control Haunter's soul-devouring from now on. Unless absolutely necessary, I should let it grow slowly.

With that thought, Sato stood up, preparing to clean up the battlefield. But at the corner, Tyranitar, three meters tall, stood there in silence, coldly watching Sato rise.

"When did it get here?" Sato's mind froze for a moment. In his previous life, he had come here not for the beginner trial, but after becoming a Red Card Killer and serving as a trial recordkeeper.

At that time, Tyranitar had already been on its last breath—not because of battle, but because its life was nearing its end and it was dying naturally.

But now, one year before that in his previous life, Tyranitar was still perfectly fine? No!

If Tyranitar had died naturally, its body should not have undergone such earth-shaking changes within a year. Not to mention that Tyranitar's lifespan was not at all shorter than that of Dragon-type Pokemon.

Sato quietly mobilized Dark Power. In the face of Tyranitar, it fed back a feeling of excitement, yet there also seemed to be deep sorrow within it.

It was like a king at the end of days, looking down upon his territory beneath the twilight. Though it knew ruin was imminent, it still intended to remain with it until the final moment.

No wonder it had not become enraged. Tyranitar's territorial instincts were exceptionally strong. Sato had made such a huge commotion in its burrow, yet it had merely chosen to watch?

The End of the Strong Bow!

Sato confirmed his suspicion. He waved for Haunter and Zorua to wait where they were, then slowly walked forward, each step firm and resolute.

Larvitar lay on Tyranitar's shoulder. The young Pokemon opened its blood-red eyes and silently watched Sato approach.

Its enormous body brought terrifying pressure. Even though the Tyranitar before him was all bark and no bite, at the End of the Strong Bow, it was still once a king.

Only two meters separated Sato and Tyranitar. He could even see the countless large and small scars covering its armor—medals of a king's glory.

"Roar!"

A deafening roar erupted as the aura of a prehistoric beast attacked Sato. Accompanied by a fierce wind of sand and stone, it lashed against his body. Behind him, Zorua was full of anxiety, yet could not step forward because of its orders.

Sato did not advance any further. He lifted his right hand, palm open toward Tyranitar, and pure Dark Power surged forth.

At the same time, Tyranitar's body was slowly covered in black energy. One Person One Pet stood facing each other from afar.

The third extended ability of Dark Power: Soul Communication!