"The whole field has turned to ice!" A hint of a smile crossed Brandon's face as he shouted, "Go, Regice! Use Focus Punch!"
"That Regice should be much faster on the ice!" Officer Jenny said at once.
"Lucario is still falling. Whether it's in midair or the instant it lands on the ice, Regice has the advantage. Liu Qing is in a bad position either way!" Professor Oak analyzed.
At Brandon's command, Regice's right arm shone with white light. It slid swiftly across the ice, charging toward Lucario as it fell with its body curled up.
There's no dodging this! Liu Qing thought. If Lucario landed on the ice, it would need time to regain its balance, and taking a hit then would certainly hurt more than taking one in midair. Yet even an airborne hit would still deal serious damage. Liu Qing raced to find an answer, then immediately gave his command as Regice charged in. "Lucario, Aura Sphere!"
At Liu Qing's command, Lucario immediately uncurled its body, rapidly gathering the power of an Aura Sphere between its hands before thrusting it into the incoming Focus Punch. An enormous explosion erupted between them in an instant. Amid the violent surge of energy, the remaining force of Regice's Focus Punch struck Lucario, sending it onto the ice and sliding rapidly backward.
"Brilliant! That reduced the damage from Focus Punch to the bare minimum!" Scott immediately praised.
"What happened?" May asked, still not understanding.
"Lucario first weakened Regice's Focus Punch with Aura Sphere, then used the shock wave from the explosion to push itself as far from Regice as possible. Regice was affected too and forced backward. With the two moving in opposite directions, even if Focus Punch landed, its power would be greatly reduced!" Liu Yuan explained.
"Wonderful, wonderful! I