Chapter Summaries

Yan Yang left the Eternal Flower with Champion Lucario and searched the abandoned warehouses north of town, where he reunited with Master Hu. Master Hu revealed that the Ultimate Weapon had been moved, the Dark Hunters were waiting for Yan Yang as their final key, and Yan Yang chose to confront them despite the danger.

• Yan Yang left the Eternal Flower in Champion Lucario’s protection and headed north to investigate the abandoned industrial district.
• Yan Yang encountered Master Hu, who appeared through Psychic Power and teased him about their long-awaited meeting.
• Master Hu refused to explain everything, saying Yan Yang needed to discover some answers through his coming actions.
• Master Hu revealed that the Dark Hunters had gathered nearly everything needed to restart the Ultimate Weapon and were waiting for Yan Yang as the final key.
• Master Hu confirmed that the Ultimate Weapon was no longer underground and warned Yan Yang that staying away would not prevent disaster.
• Yan Yang resolved to stop the weapon’s activation and rescue Master Hu.

Master Hu warned Yan Yang about the forces pursuing a forbidden object and urged him to trust his instincts, then disappeared before Yan Yang could learn his motives. Yan Yang reached the supposed enemy base, where an anesthetic-gas ambush knocked Turtwig unconscious and left him questioning whether Master Hu had betrayed him.

• Master Hu told Yan Yang that the Dark Hunters, the Kingdom of Azoth, and a mole in the League sought the same forbidden object, and urged him to follow his instincts and join forces with the bad-tempered Mythical Pokémon.
• Yan Yang tried to recall Master Hu with his Premier Ball, but the beam passed through him; Master Hu vanished after directing Yan Yang toward the base and telling him to meet again on the stage.
• Yan Yang resolved to rescue Volcanion and Master Hu and stop the Ultimate Weapon, then informed Lucario about the League mole and the Kingdom of Azoth's involvement.
• The Champion ordered an investigation of suspicious League officials and sent an elite squad to pressure the Kingdom of Azoth.
• Yan Yang arrived at the indicated area, where anesthetic gas made Turtwig collapse and quickly began to overwhelm him, prompting him to wonder whether Master Hu had set him up.

Yan Yang woke in captivity beside Volcanion, who blamed him for being captured and endangering the plateau. Yan Yang tried to calm Volcanion and prepare to discuss an escape plan, but Volcanion remained furious.

• Yan Yang woke in a mechanical cell and realized he had been imprisoned with Volcanion.
• Volcanion berated Yan Yang for sleeping and unleashed his anger at their captors.
• Yan Yang explained that he had followed clues to rescue Volcanion, but Volcanion insisted his arrival had put the plateau at greater risk.
• Yan Yang asked Volcanion to speak more politely, then emphasized that he was only nine years old.
• Volcanion's tirade gradually weakened, and Yan Yang prepared to discuss their next move with him.

Yan Yang and Volcanion were captured and forced together by linked restraints that kept them within a short distance of each other. After their initial clash, Volcanion reluctantly accepted that he would have to stay bound to Yan Yang for now.

• Yan Yang proposed exchanging information, and Volcanion agreed after asking about the Pokémon on his plateau.
• Yan Yang’s waist restraint and a matching ring on Volcanion’s leg activated, making Volcanion suspect Yan Yang had betrayed him and pin him down.
• Volcanion repeatedly threw Yan Yang away, but the linked restraints pulled him back until Yan Yang clung to Volcanion’s leg.
• Yan Yang tested the restraint’s range and found that stepping too far away caused it to drag him back toward Volcanion.
• Volcanion failed to remove the ring and reluctantly accepted that he would have to remain bound to Yan Yang.

Yan Yang and Volcanion exchanged information in the prison, uncovering that Master Hu had a partnership with Volcanion and was connected to a plan involving the Ultimate Weapon. Yan Yang learned he was meant to serve as a container for the weapon’s energy and resolved to destroy the weapon as footsteps approached their cell.

• Yan Yang told Volcanion how he had treated and protected the injured Pokémon on the plateau, and Volcanion grudgingly approved.
• Yan Yang explained how he had come from Johto to Saffron City and been captured while searching for an entrance.
• Volcanion asked about Master Hu, then reluctantly revealed that it had some kind of partnership with him and that his plans involved the Ultimate Weapon.
• Yan Yang pieced together that the Y bird had likely been controlled or imprisoned and that the villains intended to use him as a container for energy from the Ultimate Weapon.
• Yan Yang rejected the idea of escaping after the energy transfer and decided the Ultimate Weapon itself had to be destroyed.
• Footsteps and voices approached the prison cell while Yan Yang was thinking through the plan.

Cheng Yu introduced himself as the Dark Hunters’ second-in-command and tried to recruit Yan Yang into his plan to overthrow the League using the Ultimate Weapon. Yan Yang refused, and Cheng Yu threatened his Pokémon to force him to cooperate with the energy-bearing process.

• Cheng Yu entered Yan Yang’s cell with Doctor Poppy and revealed that he had investigated Yan Yang’s past actions and abilities.
• Cheng Yu declared that the League’s corrupt order should be destroyed and offered Yan Yang a place among the founders of a new order.
• Yan Yang refused to join, citing the Dark Hunters’ abuse of Pokémon and their plans to use the Ultimate Weapon.
• Cheng Yu accepted Yan Yang’s refusal but warned him not to interfere with the Dark Hunters’ plans.
• Doctor Poppy showed Yan Yang that his Poké Balls were held inside an energy suppression device, and Cheng Yu threatened their safety if Yan Yang did not cooperate.

Cheng Yu told Yan Yang that the Ultimate Weapon would begin activating in three days and revealed that he had once been a Kalos League trainer who turned against the League. Yan Yang refused to help the Dark Hunters prepare Pokémon for sacrifice, leaving Cheng Yu’s plan facing resistance as its deadline approached.

• Cheng Yu said the League had tracked the secret base, delaying the trip to Mount Coronet, but the Ultimate Weapon would begin its activation sequence in seventy-two hours.
• Volcanion threatened to destroy the base if Cheng Yu’s group harmed the Pokémon on its mountain, while Yan Yang hoped Entei and other allies might come to his rescue.
• Yan Yang recognized Cheng Yu’s care for his Pokémon, and Cheng Yu admitted that he had once been a trainer directly affiliated with the Kalos League.
• Cheng Yu said he no longer cared about Pokémon beyond his own partners and planned to use expendable Pokémon within the organization as the Ultimate Weapon’s energy source.
• Doctor Poppy asked Yan Yang to use his Evergreen Power to purify those Pokémon, and Yan Yang refused, determined not to help them carry out the sacrifice.

Yan Yang and Volcanion waited in the hidden base while Eternal Flower followed Yan Yang’s trail and found Za imprisoned there. The old friends reunited, but neither could explain the unfamiliar immortal aura or the events surrounding the Ultimate Weapon.

• Yan Yang told Volcanion to wait for rescue, though he did not know who would come.
• Eternal Flower tracked Yan Yang’s lingering aura to the hidden base and discovered Za imprisoned in a cell.
• Eternal Flower accused Za of restarting the Ultimate Weapon, but Za said he had been captured and had used its key as bait to find his old friend.
• Za insisted the key alone could not activate the weapon without the other required conditions.
• Eternal Flower asked Za about a third immortal aura, and Za said he knew nothing about it.

League Champion Lucario investigated the Kingdom of Azoth after Yan Yang's clue led her to suspect it was connected to the missing Ultimate Weapon. She defeated Priest Ex and forced him to admit the kingdom was seeking the lost Soul Heart, but he concealed what it had to do with the Ultimate Weapon.

• Lucario arrived in the Kingdom of Azoth and found its aerial fortress missing, confirming something was seriously wrong.
• Priest Ex blocked Lucario from approaching the palace, and his Snorunt attacked her.
• Ex used his staff to force several Pokémon into Mega Evolution, prompting Lucario to fight with her team.
• Lucario and Shedinja Mega Evolved naturally and defeated Ex's Pokémon, leaving him restrained.
• Lucario pressed Ex about the Ultimate Weapon, and he admitted the kingdom wanted to recover the lost Soul Heart to restore its former prosperity.

Lucario received a League order to end the search but secretly kept an elite squad to continue investigating, while Cheng Yu used the reprieve to accelerate his plan to activate the Ultimate Weapon. Mewtwo learned that Yan Yang had been captured and assigned to it as a vessel, though Cheng Yu did not know Mewtwo and Yan Yang had already met.

• Lucario detained Priest Ex, found that he knew nothing useful about the enemy’s plans, and contacted the Saffron City investigation team for updates.
• League headquarters ordered Lucario to halt the investigation and withdraw her personnel, leading her to suspect a mole and secretly retain an elite squad.
• Cheng Yu welcomed the order as a chance to prepare the Ultimate Weapon and planned to move everything to Mount Coronet the next morning.
• Cheng Yu questioned Mewtwo about Xiao Ai, the cloned children, and Master Hu, but Mewtwo kept its knowledge about Master Hu and Xiao Ai to itself.
• Cheng Yu told Mewtwo that Yan Yang had been captured as a vessel for the Ultimate Weapon and asked it to guard him, surprising Mewtwo.

The Eternal Flower learned that the Dark Hunters had gathered the requirements to activate the Ultimate Weapon and rushed to alert Za, while Entei and Silvally tried to locate Yan Yang. Doctor Poppy confronted Silvally and stalled him with threats, unaware Entei was hidden in a Poké Ball; Yan Yang was actually trapped with Volcanion in a Psychic space created by Mewtwo.

• The Eternal Flower left Za in prison to investigate the base, but it could not sense the Ultimate Weapon or find the mysterious immortal aura.
• The Eternal Flower met Entei and Silvally after they broke free, learned the Dark Hunters might activate the Ultimate Weapon early, and hurried back to warn Za.
• Entei and Silvally failed to contact Yan Yang and agreed to find his location before attempting an escape; Entei hid in his Poké Ball when Doctor Poppy entered.
• Silvally pinned Doctor Poppy down, but stopped short of attacking when Poppy threatened Yan Yang and offered to spare him if Silvally returned to the Dark Hunters.
• Doctor Poppy stalled Silvally while relying on hidden contingencies, unaware that Entei was nearby; Yan Yang and Volcanion were inside a Psychic space created by Mewtwo.

Mewtwo visited Yan Yang and Volcanion to thank Yan Yang for rescuing the cloned children and warn that the Ultimate Weapon’s activation had been moved up. He unlocked their cell before leaving, and Yan Yang and Volcanion realized they were being transported toward Mount Coronet as the final operation approached.

• Mewtwo told Yan Yang that the rescued cloned children were in his care and that Xiao Ai was safe from harassment.
• Yan Yang asked Mewtwo to help them escape, and Mewtwo agreed to temporarily disable their cell lock while warning that Pokémon-suppressing devices would remain active.
• Mewtwo warned that the Ultimate Weapon could be activated as soon as that night or the next morning, and cautioned Yan Yang that his body was central to the plan and Master Hu’s motives might not align with theirs.
• Mewtwo refused to interfere beyond opening the cell door, then returned Yan Yang and Volcanion from his psychic space to the prison.
• Yan Yang and Volcanion felt the prison moving toward Mount Coronet and heard the cell door unlock.

Yan Yang and Volcanion searched the airship for his companions while Silvally fought Doctor Poppy’s attempt to take control of him. Yan Yang’s live singing helped Silvally destroy the control chip, and Poppy then found Entei standing outside Yan Yang’s opened Luxury Ball.

• Volcanion drank from a water supply point, regained strength, and reluctantly agreed to help Yan Yang find his companions.
• Doctor Poppy attached an Azoth control chip to Silvally, but Silvally triggered a recording of Yan Yang’s song to resist its intrusion.
• Yan Yang realized Silvally was under attack and sang live through their communication link, strengthening Silvally’s resistance.
• Silvally blasted the control chip away and struck Poppy’s emergency shield.
• Poppy noticed Entei standing beside Yan Yang’s open Luxury Ball and feared for his life.

After Poppy’s death, Yan Yang and Volcanion encountered Za and the Eternal Flower, then faced Minister Rick of the Kingdom of Azoth. Rick used their restraint rings to shock them and control their movements, forcing them to follow him as Za and the Eternal Flower escaped.

• Silvally told Yan Yang that it was destroying the control terminal before coming to join him.
• Volcanion attacked Za when he appeared, then recognized the immortal king and formed a temporary alliance with him and Yan Yang.
• Minister Rick arrived with guards, and Volcanion charged at him in fury over his betrayal.
• Rick activated the restraint rings, shocking Yan Yang and Volcanion and disrupting Volcanion’s steam attacks.
• Rick used a bracelet-like device to make Volcanion and Yan Yang imitate his movements, then forced them to follow him as Za and the Eternal Flower slipped away.

Armorouge trained the plateau Pokémon as an enemy airship returned, while Entei and the others discovered they had been left behind and Cosmog was missing. Yan Yang and Volcanion were taken to the airship’s Ultimate Weapon, where Master Hu secretly held Cosmog’s Poké Ball and waited for the weapon to activate.

• Armorouge continued drilling the plateau Pokémon, while Houndoom patrolled and Larvitar endured especially harsh training.
• Armorouge spotted the enemy airship approaching Mount Coronet and signaled the Pokémon to hide and prepare.
• Entei, Silvally, Turtwig, and Curse Flame escaped their holding cell at the Secret Base and realized Cosmog’s Poké Ball was gone and the base had never moved.
• Entei encountered Champion Lucario outside the base, scratched “Mount... Coronet?” into the ground, and rushed toward the plateau; Lucario ordered her team to follow.
• Yan Yang and Volcanion found themselves restrained on the airship beside the Ultimate Weapon.
• Master Hu watched Yan Yang from concealment with Cosmog’s Poké Ball, saying he would wait for the Ultimate Weapon to activate before resolving everything and promising to fix Cosmog’s energy conflict.

Cheng Yu and Maria's Aegislash fought Lucario's Shedinja while Minister Rick prepared Volcanion and Yan Yang for the Ultimate Weapon. Yan Yang learned the extraction would not kill Volcanion and tried to use Rick's obsession with Magearna to bargain for their release.

• Lucario's Shedinja clashed with Maria's Aegislash as Yan Yang identified Maria and examined both Pokémon with the God's Eye.
• Rick intensified the restraint rings and forced Volcanion onto the Ultimate Weapon's power platform while technicians connected energy-extraction devices.
• Yan Yang warned Rick about the Ultimate Weapon and the Kingdom of Azoth's treatment of Volcanion, but Rick continued the preparations.
• Yan Yang mentioned Magearna to provoke Rick, then claimed he had seen it in Alola.
• Rick demanded to know where Magearna was and refused Yan Yang's offer to trade its location for their freedom, insisting the Ultimate Weapon would be activated.

Yan Yang tried to stop the Ultimate Weapon from draining Volcanion while Lucario battled Cheng Yu, but Mewtwo incapacitated Lucario and Shedinja. Eternal Flower and Za rescued Yan Yang, only for the fog to be cleared and Cheng Yu’s forces to confront them on the deck.

• Yan Yang burned conduits beneath Volcanion, slowing the Ultimate Weapon’s energy extraction before Rick had him restrained again.
• Lucario and Cheng Yu fought one-on-one, with Lucario’s Mega Shedinja gaining the advantage over Aegislash.
• Mewtwo struck Lucario and Shedinja with psychic attacks, knocking them unconscious to prevent interference.
• Eternal Flower and Za used thick fog to free Yan Yang and tried to remove Volcanion’s conduits, while Yan Yang proposed taking out everyone on the deck.
• A Noivern cleared the fog, revealing Yan Yang, Za, and Eternal Flower facing Cheng Yu, Mewtwo, and their regrouped subordinates.

Yan Yang tried to escape the airship and warn the Pokémon on Mount Coronet, but the restraint ring dragged him back to Volcanion as Cheng Yu activated the Ultimate Weapon. The weapon began draining life from the plateau, leaving Volcanion helpless as Mount Coronet’s Pokémon and vegetation withered.

• Yan Yang teleported to Mount Coronet and urged Armorouge and Houndoom to evacuate the Pokémon, but the restraint ring forcibly pulled him back to Volcanion.
• Cheng Yu kept Za under his control and threatened the Eternal Flower while Mewtwo prevented resistance.
• The Ultimate Weapon reached activation, and Cheng Yu triggered it as its core blazed blood red.
• Dark red energy threads spread across Mount Coronet and drained life from Pokémon and the land, while Yan Yang’s Pokémon were spared.
• Volcanion struggled against Mewtwo but could only watch as the plateau’s life energy flowed into the Ultimate Weapon.

The chapter recounted how Kyle, a gifted League agent, fell in love with Maria and lost her when the League’s operatives killed her and covered up the truth. After the League hunted him and his Pokémon died protecting him, he became Cheng Yu, joined the Dark Hunters, and pursued power to overturn the League and bring Maria and his fallen partners back.

• Kyle, an elite agent in the League’s Legacy Recovery and Antiquities Control Department, was assigned to investigate the Ancient Soul Device in the Kingdom of Azoth.
• Kyle rescued Maria from an ancient mechanism, fell in love with her, and concealed what she knew about the Soul Heart and Soul Device from the League.
• The League’s operations squad attacked Maria’s clock tower, and Maria died shielding her Aegislash from a capture beam.
• The League falsified its report about Maria’s death, while her grieving Aegislash chose Kyle and passed its hatred of the League to him.
• After Kyle tried to leave the League, its leaders pursued him; Chesnaught and Diglett died protecting his escape, and Bronze Bell sacrificed its strength to help him disappear.
• Kyle took the name Cheng Yu, joined the Dark Hunters, and sought power to overthrow the League and restore Maria and his dead Pokémon.

Yan Yang and Volcanion disrupted the Ultimate Weapon’s core, freeing the trapped Pokémon souls before Master Hu rescued them. Maria’s resurrection failed, but her soul briefly returned as Aegislash dispersed, leaving her to face the broken Cheng Yu.

• Yan Yang and Volcanion poured their remaining strength into the core, freeing motes of trapped life energy before both collapsed and the core tried to devour them.
• Master Hu pulled Yan Yang and Volcanion away from the core, restored their failing forms, and sent them outside.
• Entei hesitated to interrupt Maria’s resurrection as Cheng Yu watched the figure of light take shape, but the weapon’s energy faltered and Maria’s form vanished.
• Yan Yang and Volcanion emerged unconscious from the Ultimate Weapon, and Entei used Sacred Fire to keep them alive.
• The Ultimate Weapon released countless souls and life energies, and Entei realized Yan Yang and Volcanion had freed them.
• Maria’s faint soul appeared beside the exhausted Aegislash, which dispersed into ghostly light, before she turned toward the collapsed Cheng Yu.