Crushed: A Brutal Battle

Hippowdon's body was light brown, but the areas around its nose, eyelids, feet, and back were black.

Six small holes protruded from its back, spilling sand, and it had a short black tail.

It looked terrifying. Most of all, its baleful red eyes blazed with fighting spirit.

Its level was far too high. Rapidash, their strongest fighter, was only level thirty.

And with such a severe type disadvantage, Rapidash was no match for it.

Why had they run into something so terrifying here?

Liu Xin didn't have a single Pokémon that could beat a level-forty Hippowdon.

Worse, Hippowdon's trainer wasn't alone.

Including those two familiar old friends from Team Rocket, there were five of them.

"Well, brat. We meet again."

"Let's see how you run this time. Hand over your Pokémon!"

After a closer look, Sen Anxiang exclaimed in shock, "Those three are Treasure Hoarders!"

"And the other two are from Team Rocket."

She only noticed now? That took her long enough.

Their chances of winning were almost zero.

Victory was impossible. The two sides were on entirely different levels.

Ito Hei said quietly, "What do we do? They don't look like they'll let us go."

Forget letting them go. They might even kill them.

After all, they had ruined the Treasure Hoarders' plan. Otherwise, the group might really have seized all of Bill's Lighthouse.

One of the Treasure Hoarders said coldly, "You ruined our plan back then. You're dead!"

"None of you are leaving here alive. You're all staying."

Liu Xin's face darkened. "I'll find a way to hold them off. You two go back and get help."

"The guardian of Bill's Lighthouse should come help us! That's our only hope."

"Rapidash is fast, so Xiao Hei, take Anxiang back. I'll stall them however I can!"

Ito Hei was about to say something, but Hippowdon launched its attack.

The ground split open, the force of the attack terrifying.

Dust billowed into the air. Liu Xin roared, "Quick! Run!"

Ito Hei gritted his teeth, pulled Sen Anxiang up, and climbed onto Rapidash with her.

"Don't you dare die, kid!" he shouted.

"Hold on! You have to hold on!"

Sen Anxiang wanted to stay, but another attack cut them off from Liu Xin.

Rapidash beat its wings. They might have been small, but they were remarkably fast.

Even at that speed, though, the round trip would take five or six minutes.

How was Liu Xin supposed to last that long?

Hippowdon emerged through the dust and stared coldly at Liu Xin.

"Hippowdon!"

At its roar, fragments of rock began gathering from every direction.

Rock Slide!

Onix threw its massive body in front of Liu Xin, while a Boomerang flew out.

Dragon Breath!

Flame Burst!

Boom!

Rocks filled the sky. Even with every Pokémon attacking together, they barely held off Hippowdon's ferocious strike.

"The brat's brought out all his Pokémon. Let's join in."

The Team Rocket members and the other Treasure Hoarders attacked.

Liu Xin's Pokémon might be powerful, but they couldn't take on so many opponents at once.

Several attacks struck together, leaving Onix covered in wounds.

Liu Xin stared coldly at Hippowdon and the other Pokémon attacking alongside it.

"System, I need something to boost defense. Right now!"

"I have to hold out until they get back."

Absolute Defense.

Five hundred Points. It could withstand any attack for three minutes, but took one minute to charge.

That's it.

Three minutes would be enough for help to arrive. The problem was surviving that first minute.

Given its size, Giant Onix was the obvious choice. That meant the other three had to protect it while the move charged.

There was no time to hesitate. Every extra second put him in more danger.

Buy it.

The Points he had worked so hard to save vanished in an instant.

Ding! Giant Onix is using Absolute Defense. Charge countdown: 60s, 59s, 58s...

One minute. Just hold on for one minute, and nothing will be able to break through.

"What's wrong with your Onix? It's not moving. Did we beat it stupid?"

Their opponent sneered, then ordered Hippowdon to attack.

Its target was obvious: the motionless Onix.

"Damn it. Of course they're going after the biggest one."

"Block it! You have to hold!"

Sandstorm!

Streaming sand erupted from every opening on Hippowdon's body, and a storm swept outward.

Terrifying pressure bore down on Liu Xin. Fear gripped him.

Yellow sand swallowed everything in sight, turning the world around them sandy gold. Who wouldn't be afraid?

He had watched high-level Pokémon battle before, but he had never faced one himself. The fear had never felt this real.

This attack was different. It came straight at his face. He could feel sand scraping his skin, and every breath came hard.

Shiny Cubone smacked Liu Xin with its bone club. He yelped and cursed, "What are you doing!? You hit me again!"

"Cuba, cuba!"

"You're our trainer! Why are you standing there scared instead of giving us orders?"

"Give us our orders already!"

The scolding—and the bone club—steadied him.

He drew a deep breath. "Right. If none of you are scared, why should I be?"

"It's just a level-forty Hippowdon. Let's take it down!"

With his resolve restored, Liu Xin brimmed with confidence.

Flames surged around Phanpy. Armor-Breaking Fire coated Cubone's bone club, making it look fierce and imposing.

Gabite's eyes grew solemn as Dragon Claw and Violet Aurora flashed together.

They attacked with everything they had.

The billowing sandstorm blotted out the sky as it swept toward them, ready to swallow everything in its path.

Their frightened allies immediately called their Pokémon back.

But Liu Xin and his Pokémon couldn't retreat. They had to give everything they had to protect Onix!

Absolute Defense had to finish charging.

"Go!"

Boomerang!

Flamethrower!

Dragon Claw!

Their combined attacks plunged into the seemingly endless sandstorm.

The collision was deafening. Gusts tore outward, scattering grit in every direction.

A grain of sand slashed Liu Xin's cheek, and blood whipped away on the wind.

He paid it no mind. His eyes stayed fixed on his three Pokémon.

Thud!

A terrible impact rang out. Three figures flew backward and rolled several meters across the ground before coming to a stop.

Liu Xin tumbled several times himself before the sandstorm's assault finally ended.

It was a brutal sight.

When the dust cleared, Liu Xin and his three Pokémon lay on the ground, covered in wounds and in a sorry state.

Hippowdon paid them no attention. It lumbered toward Onix, ready to attack.

Dadi and Chuan Yamei cried out excitedly, "They're ours! All those powerful Pokémon!"

"Don't... don't go near Onix!"

Liu Xin rose to his feet. Despite the wounds covering his body, he stood.

He spread his arms and faced the five of them with unwavering eyes.

"Over my dead body!" he roared. "You're not hurting Onix unless you kill me first!"