"The boy who caused the disturbance in Kanto's ley lines?"
"You've got the wrong person," Lin Hao said casually. "I'm just a rookie who started his journey yesterday. If the ley lines shook, maybe I ate too much breakfast and walked a little too heavily."
Brock kept his eyes closed, his brows drawn tight.
May snorted beside him. "Gym Leader Brock, don't listen to his nonsense. He's hiding plenty of secrets." She folded her arms. "Besides, he only received his Starter Pokémon yesterday."
"Only yesterday?" Brock paused, then turned around. "Since you're here, come into the battle arena. I'll test whether you have what it takes to be a Trainer with a defense as solid as rock."
Lin Hao let his shoulders droop, looking as though he hadn't gotten enough sleep.
The three entered the Gym. The arena was a standard rocky battlefield, dotted with stone pillars as tall as a person. A few Gym apprentices sat in the surrounding stands, whispering among themselves.
"Another one with a death wish."
"This kid looks soft. Bet he won't even last one turn."
"Even that investigator said he only got his Pokémon yesterday. Isn't he just asking for a beating?"
Lin Hao picked at his ear, pretending not to hear.
Brock walked to the other end of the arena and flung out a Poké Ball. "Come out, Onix!"
A deep, heavy thud rang out as a massive serpent made of linked boulders crashed into the center of the arena, shaking the Gym floor.
Onix raised its body more than ten meters high and looked down at Lin Hao, its roar echoing through the Gym. "ROAR!"
A fierce gust struck Lin Hao's face, whipping his bangs into disarray.
"It's huge!" May exclaimed from the sidelines. "It's a whole size bigger than an ordinary wild Onix!"
Lin Hao rubbed his chin. Not bad. It really is pretty big. But inside his mind, the system space had descended into complete chaos.
Groudon growled in a deep voice. "Roar? (That little loach thinks it deserves to make the ley lines tremble?)"
Tyranitar was itching to fight. "Master, let me out. I could crush it with one stomp."
Ho-Oh screeched, "Let me do it! One mouthful of fire and I'll turn it into glass shards!"
"All of you, shut up! Stay put!" Lin Hao snapped inwardly. He reached for the Poké Ball at his waist. "Since I'm a rookie, I'll do this the rookie way." He tossed the ball. "Go, Charmeleon!"
A flash of white light passed, and a dark red Charmeleon landed on a rock. The flame on its tail blazed as it looked up at the Onix dozens of times its size, staring down its opponent without a trace of fear.
Silence fell. Three seconds later, the stands erupted in laughter.
"Am I seeing things? A Fire-type against a Rock-type?"
"It's at a total type disadvantage! Does this kid not even know the basics?"
"And that size difference is ridiculous!"
May stamped her feet. "Lin Hao! Have you lost your mind? Charmeleon's Fire-type moves won't even scratch Onix!"
Lin Hao spread his hands. "Can't help it. This is all I've got. Pikachu used up its Static today, so it's taking the day off."
Pikachu, perched on Lin Hao's shoulder, obligingly yawned. "Pika-"
Eyes closed and face expressionless, Brock said, "Ignoring type disadvantages is foolish. Onix, Rock Throw!" Onix let out a long roar and lashed its tail against the ground. More than a dozen huge rocks gathered in midair, hurtling through the air with a howl and cutting off Charmeleon's escape.
"Dodge," Lin Hao said offhandedly. Charmeleon pushed off with both legs, becoming a blur as it darted nimbly through the gaps between the boulders. Crash! Crash! Crash! The rocks smashed into the ground, sending fragments flying.
"Good speed," Brock said, his voice low as he issued another command. "But you can't break through rock's defenses. Onix, Bind!"
Onix's long body slithered rapidly across the field, then coiled around the stone pillars, forcing Charmeleon into a corner.
"Roar!" With nowhere left to retreat, Charmeleon was caught in Onix's tightly coiled tail. The crushing pressure forced a cry of pain from its throat.
"Lin Hao! Just surrender!" May shouted from outside the arena. "Charmeleon will be crushed!"
Lin Hao watched the center of the arena, his expression calm. "Charmeleon, does it hurt?"
"Roar..." Charmeleon gritted its teeth, growled, and shook its head.
"Then show him who's the real monster." Lin Hao smiled. "Burn through it with the power inside you."
Charmeleon's eyes flew wide. Lin Hao immediately ignited its Hidden Ability, Solar Power. Searing waves of heat surged from Charmeleon's body.
Its dark red skin turned blazing crimson in an instant, and the flame on its tail shot upward, reaching all the way to the Gym ceiling!
"It's scorching!" Brock stumbled back several steps. "Onix, let go, now!" But it was already too late. The rocks on Onix's body began to glow red and melt where it was wrapped around Charmeleon!
"Rooar!" Onix screamed in agony and released its grip.
Charmeleon landed on the ground and threw back its head, unleashing a roar that shook the entire Gym. Then a dazzling light of evolution enveloped it once again!
"What?!" Brock finally opened his eyes wide.
"Evolving... again?" May's voice cracked completely, and the little notebook in her hand dropped straight to the floor.
Every apprentice in the stands rose to their feet, staring fixedly at the arena. Within the white light, Charmeleon's body swelled rapidly. A pair of draconic wings burst through the brilliant glow from its back and snapped open.
"ROAR!" A true dragon's roar rang out, its overwhelming presence pressing outward in every direction. The white light faded, revealing a powerfully built Charizard hovering in midair, beating its wings. It looked down at its opponent, an eerie blue flame burning on its tail.
Lin Hao yawned. "Charizard, Flamethrower."
Charizard opened its jaws without pausing to gather power. A blue-white pillar of fire more than a meter across shot straight ahead, tearing across the entire arena in an instant.
The pillar struck Onix square in its long body, shattering rock! Onix had no chance to resist. Its enormous body was blasted backward and slammed heavily into the Gym's sturdy wall.
The entire Gym shook violently, and the ground trembled beneath them. When the smoke cleared, Onix's eyes had rolled back. It was unable to battle. Where the fire had struck, its rocky body had actually melted into clear, glasslike material!
The Gym was so silent that a pin drop would have been audible. Only the sound of Charizard's beating wings echoed through the room.
Brock swallowed and pointed at Onix, which lay collapsed on the ground. His throat tightened. "That's impossible. What on earth have you been feeding it?"
Before you continue