Because She Was Too Afraid of Pain, She Put All Her Points into Defense

It was not until the two antennae, like giant vines, loomed larger and larger in his vision that Swampert realized he had fallen into habitual thinking—or rather, a trap deliberately laid by Xia Chen and Goodra.

Both he and Wallace had assumed that the Goodra in plain sight was merely an illusion, while her real body was hidden somewhere to one side. They did not know whether it was left or right, but it had to be there.

Swampert chose the right side. He had gambled wrong.

More accurately, choosing either left or right would have been wrong, because Goodra's thinking operated on an entirely higher plane—she had not hidden at all!

What he saw was her real body.

That was why Mega Swampert's highly developed fins had failed to sense any changes in the airflow that might reveal Goodra's "real body."

How could he sense something that did not exist?

Hammer Arm missed, while Power Whip struck with precision. In the second exchange between the two Pokémon, Swampert suffered a complete defeat!

For Xia Chen and Goodra, the more significant thing was not the damage dealt by that quadruple-effective Power Whip, but the reversal in momentum.

The first burst of spirit was strongest, the second weaker, and the third exhausted.

After being frustrated by Shelter and evasions, Mega Swampert's overwhelming momentum had already been cut down by more than half.

Wallace understood this perfectly. Without the slightest hesitation or adjustment, he decisively commanded, "Swampert, Earthquake!"

Being too familiar with each other, Wallace had not ordered Swampert to use that equally effective Ground-type move from the very beginning.

The reason was simple. Though it sounded unbelievable, this Goodra could fly.

However, Power Whip had bound Goodra and Swampert tightly together. Energy surged through Swampert's body, while his thick arms clamped