The Treasure Hoarders and Giant Onix's Strength

Some people waved dismissively. "Here they come again. They show up every so often. What a pain."

"Enough. The Lighthouse Guardians will handle it. Why should we worry?"

As for newcomers like Liu Xin, they had no idea what was happening.

He looked at Ito Hei beside him, who shook his head. "Don't look at me. I only know about the lighthouse and Giant Dragonite. I don't know anything else."

"But I can ask around. Let's go take a look first."

"Get on your Giant Onix. Once it raises you up, you'll be able to see what's happening at the lighthouse."

Giant Onix was so enormous that even from down on the beach, they could clearly see what was happening at the lighthouse.

A group of Pokémon Trainers dressed in yellow were attacking the lighthouse, while its guardians fought back.

The battle between the two sides was astonishing. A single fireball from Charizard's mouth could engulf an entire area, its heat terrifying.

This was a battle between high-level Pokémon in their final evolved forms. Still, the combatants varied in strength; where there were strong fighters, there were weak ones too.

Liu Xin took a closer look and spotted quite a few people whose strength was roughly on par with his own.

"I'm getting a little bored of always battling Pokémon. I'll battle some people for a change."

Still, they didn't act rashly. They hadn't figured out the situation yet.

It wasn't until five minutes later that Ito Hei returned.

"I... I've found out what's going on. These guys are rotten to the core. They're even worse than Team Rocket."

"They're an organization called the Treasure Hoarders. They specialize in stealing treasure, and whenever Giant Dragonite's treasure appears, they always come to fight for it."

"And their methods are extreme. They seize the lighthouse so they can pocket every last treasure."

Ito Hei finished his explanation, panting, leaving Liu Xin deep in thought.

A gang that specializes in stealing treasure?

"Then why do you say they're so vile?"

Sen Anxiang pointed, shocked. "Look! They've got a bunch of imprisoned Pokémon with them!"

"They're covered in wounds!"

They looked in the direction she indicated, and sure enough, there was a cage among the group holding quite a few wild Pokémon. Their bodies were covered in wounds, and they looked battered and pitiful.

What was going on?

Ito Hei gritted his teeth. "That's what makes them so despicable. Look at the robot leading the charge. See that pipe connecting it to the cage?"

The robot was enormous, its two fists shaped into meteor hammers. It was built from the toughest metal from top to bottom and looked indestructible.

Its combat power was certainly not to be underestimated. Even a level 60 Charizard had to steer clear of a casual punch from it.

Its combat power approached that of a level 70 Pokémon. It was formidable.

"That robot runs on the Pokémon's suffering. Look inside the cage. They're constantly being attacked and abused, getting hurt over and over."

"The negative energy released by those injured Pokémon is what powers that robot!"

Liu Xin clenched his fists and stared coldly at the Treasure Hoarders. "What a cruel thing to do! I will never accept this!"

Sen Anxiang stepped forward and nodded. "Liu Xin, are you going in? If you are, so am I. I can't stand watching this either."

Ito Hei felt the same way, and quite a few Trainers around them couldn't bear it any longer and joined the fight.

Of course, the Lighthouse Guardians were left to hold off the powerful enemies at the front.

The other Trainers sought opponents suited to their own strength. As long as they could handle their targets, that was enough. After all, the Treasure Hoarders had plenty of people.

Liu Xin didn't let Sen Anxiang fight. She was still too weak, and her combat skills weren't up to scratch. She only needed to stay with him.

"Stay out of my way, brat, or don't blame my Vanillish for freezing you solid!"

Liu Xin studied the Pokémon before him, which resembled ice cream from the real world. Its head was covered in snow, with a chunk of ice on either cheek and a mouth shaped like an upside-down semicircle.

The lower half of its body was blue, with two small icicles at its sides. Below that was what looked like an ice cream cone, and cold air lingered around Vanillish.

This was his first encounter with an Ice-type Pokémon, but would his Giant Onix be afraid?

After a day and a half of intensive training, Giant Onix had reached level 17 and was in no way inferior to the level 20 Vanillish.

Vanillish:

Level: 20

Attack: 180

Special Attack: 200

Neither of those stats came close to his Giant Onix's, so levels weren't always everything.

His opponent clearly didn't understand that, however. He declared smugly, "Then don't blame me for showing no mercy! Vanillish, use Blizzard!"

The powerful move unleashed snowflakes in every direction.

The cold air around Vanillish turned into a piercing wind, gathering terrifying wind and snow into a mighty tornado that hurtled toward Giant Onix.

Sen Anxiang shivered all over. "Isn't this way too cold?"

"Can Onix withstand it?"

Liu Xin said confidently, "Giant Onix, they're doubting you. What should you do?"

Harden!

Its entire body took on a metallic sheen, looking indestructible and incredibly tough.

In this state, both of Giant Onix's defenses rose a stage.

The terrifying Blizzard was only about as large as Giant Onix itself, and disdain filled its eyes.

The wind and snow within the Blizzard struck Giant Onix's skin, barely giving it a scratch. It was far too weak.

In just three seconds, an enormous tail swept across the area, dispersed the Blizzard, and slammed into Vanillish.

Thud!

A terrifying crash rang out, and the ground cracked in the shape of the tail.

Vanillish was crushed in a single blow. It was no match at all.

"Damn it! Wait till you see my next—"

Would Liu Xin give his opponent a chance to send out another Pokémon?

Of course not. He had Giant Onix sweep its tail again, knocking the Trainer unconscious.

"Anxiang, go tie that guy up. Let Clefairy out to help."

"Giant Onix, let's find our next target."

"Onix!"

With its first victory secured, Giant Onix grew eager for battle and tore through its opponents.

Naturally, Liu Xin soon drew attention as he roamed the middle of the battlefield, showing off his strength.

"That's the Onix! It's freaking huge!"

"If we could catch it and put it in the supply cage, wouldn't it provide the robot with a massive amount of power?"

"But it won't be easy to deal with. Get a few more people over here. We'll surround him and take him down together."

The tallest tree caught the most wind. Even without considering its strength, Giant Onix's sheer size was enough to draw people to it.

Now that Giant Onix was sweeping through their forces, the Treasure Hoarders' mid-tier members surrounded it.

The first group alone consisted of five people, and their strength was not to be underestimated.

But Giant Onix had never been afraid.

Liu Xin sneered. "Ganging up on me? Don't think I've only got one Pokémon. The rest of you, come out and have some fun!"