The Conkeldurr clearly recognized the Annihilape that had caused him so much trouble, and raised the stone pillar in his hand, pointing it at the Annihilape.
Seeing that both players had released their Pokémon, the referee in the Gym blew his whistle and announced the start of the match.
The moment the referee shouted "start, "the Conkeldurr activated the Flame Orb within his body. The searing pain of the flames burning his body instantly ignited his Conkeldurr spirit.
At the very beginning of the game, neither player initiated an attack.
The Annihilape looked at the Conkeldurr in front of him. He had fought against the old construction craftsman once before after learning that Chuck's Conkeldurr was the same Conkeldurr in the promotional picture of the Martial Arts Tournament.
However, he lost to the Conkeldurr that time because of the huge difference in their levels.
But now that he has reached the Intermediate King level, this time he will defeat the Conkeldurr along with the one from last time.
"The Conkeldurr has Foresight!"
The Conkeldurr's eyes cleared, and the Annihilape before him became crystal clear. He could even see the faint Ghost-type energy attached to the Annihilape.
"Annihilape, using Bulk Up."
The Annihilape bent its arms, brought its fists inward to its chest, tensed every muscle in its body, and brown Fighting type energy seeped out from the gaps in its skin, slowly flowing down its arms, chest, and leg bones.
During the flow of Fighting type energy, the body of the Annihilape visibly became firmer and heavier.
His scarlet eyes suddenly narrowed, the veins on his forehead and under his eyes bulged, and his messy, grayish-white hair stood on end and floated upwards, giving him an overall intimidating appearance.
After using Bulk Up, the Annihilape's physical attack and defense are increased.
Chuck was helpless as he watched the Annihilape being strengthened. If he wanted to use Normal type and Fighting type moves to defeat the Annihilape, the Conkeldurr would have to use Foresight.
Otherwise, most of the Conkeldurr's skills would be ineffective against the Annihilape. The more Chuck thought about it, the more troublesome it became. The Annihilape's attributes were just too abnormal.
Unless Fighting type Pokémon has the Scrappy Ability, you'll need to give Annihilape a boost once.
Seeing that the Conkeldurr already used his Foresight, Chuck immediately gave him instructions:
"The Conkeldurr Brutal Swing!"
The Conkeldurr swung two large stone pillars in his hands, the pillars also wrapped in black Dark type energy, and smashed them towards the Annihilape.
The seemingly heavy, grayish-white stone pillars were handled with ease by the Conkeldurr, just like ordinary sticks.
The Annihilape didn't try to take the Conkeldurr's skills head-on. It dodged left and right, avoiding all the stone pillars that the Conkeldurr down. It even took advantage of the gap when the Conkeldurr missed while swinging the stone pillar to kick him.
Seeing the Annihilape's kick coming, the Conkeldurr held up two stone pillars in front of him, blocking the Annihilape's attack.
But at the same time, he was kicked back about ten steps by the Annihilape.
The Conkeldurr looked at the Annihilape with a solemn expression. The Annihilape's power was much greater than in the last battle. It seemed that the Annihilape's strength had indeed increased a lot in the past year.
However, this does not mean he will admit defeat to the Annihilape. The Conkeldurr swung his arm in a wide arc, and the stone pillar swept across with a whistling sound, using the Brick Break skill.
Faced with the spinning Conkeldurr, the Annihilape Conkeldurr at a loss for what to do and could only be forced to retreat continuously.
They retreated until they reached a corner of the directional Arena.
The Annihilape tried to retreat further, but its back was already pressed against the Arena's fence.
Seeing that there was no way to retreat, the Annihilape's eyes sharpened, and it let out a piercing roar.
The Conkeldurr, who was spinning around, was affected by the Screech of the Annihilape, which lowered his defenses and made him irritable.
Similarly, the referee, Chuck, and several apprentices who came to watch were also affected by the ear- Growl and found it extremely Uproar.
The referee quickly activated the energy shield in the Arena, isolating the Screech within the Arena, and only then did everyone feel...
The Conkeldurr, who was spinning around, swung a stone pillar that smashed into the Annihilape.
The immense force slammed the Annihilape's body against the fence, simultaneously silencing its piercing roar.
However, due to the Bulk Up he had just done, the Annihilape's defenses were enhanced, and he did not suffer much damage from this attack.
Furthermore, exchanging a single attack for a significant reduction in the Conkeldurr's defense makes this exchange absolutely worthwhile.
Taking advantage of the Conkeldurr's continued exposure to the Screech, the Annihilape quickly escaped and reappeared in a blind spot.
Seeing that the Conkeldurr was still affected by the Screech, the Annihilape knew that the time to retaliate had come. He once again imbued his fist with Ghost-type energy and blasted it towards the Conkeldurr.
Before he could react, the Conkeldurr was hit by another Rage Fist from the Annihilape. Coupled with the Screech lowering his defenses, the Conkeldurr staggered backward, almost falling to the ground.
Seeing that the first attack had worked, the Annihilape quickly followed up with another Rage Fist.
However, the Conkeldurr, now much more lucid due to the pain in his body, swung the stone pillar in his hand to deflect the Rage Fist of the Annihilape that attacked again.
Faced with the attacks of the Annihilape, the Conkeldurr adopted a defensive stance.
Chuck, who was on the command seat, could also see the growth of Roy and the Annihilape from the few moves they had just made.
Bruno's strength is almost fixed, but Roy is still very young. Given Roy's current age and strength, he might be able to compete for that position in the future.
If a Ghost type - Pokémon Fighting type Pokémon Trainer from either the Kanto or Johto region becomes the champion...
Chuck fell into thought, but he quickly realized that he was still in battle.
At this moment, the Annihilape and the Conkeldurr on the field were still exchanging skills, with both sides going back and forth.
The Conkeldurr wondered if it was just his imagination, but every time Annihilape was attacked, the force of its Ghost type punch seemed to increase.
Chuck directed the Conkeldurr:
"The Conkeldurr used Facade!"
The Conkeldurr swung the stone pillars at the Annihilape. With the help of his Guts Ability, he used his Facade, and the two stone pillars, imbued with white Normal type energy, crashed down on the Annihilape.
The skill's power is doubled when the Burn status is Facade, and with the added boost of Guts increasing the skill's power by 50%, the stone pillars Conkeldurr seem to have grown considerably larger.
Faced with the enormous stone pillar smashed by the Conkeldurr, the Annihilape clearly felt its immense power and dared not try to take it head-on.
He created an energy shield directly in front of himself, blocking the stone pillar that the Conkeldurr had thrown at him.
The immense force struck the energy shield, and almost instantly, cracks appeared on it.
The next moment, the energy shield shattered under the force of the stone pillar, and the pillar fell down after the shield broke, crashing into the Annihilape.
The Annihilape used both hands to support the stone pillar, preventing the Conkeldurr from smashing it down; it was another battle of strength between the two.