Chapter Summaries

Lin Hao avoided Pluto’s mine-trapped Mt. Pyre and challenged Dewford Gym, where Greninja defeated Yue Shan’s Breloom and earned the Fighting Badge. Lin Hao continued toward Violet City, using his Gym challenges to pressure Pluto into making a mistake.

• After Sidney reported that Team Galactic had sealed Mt. Pyre with mines and Aura traps, Lin Hao turned back and chose to challenge Dewford Gym instead of charging in.
• Lin Hao battled Yue Shan with Greninja, which overcame Breloom’s attacks and defeated it with a three-layer compressed Water Pulse.
• Yue Shan awarded Lin Hao the Fighting Badge and compared Greninja’s attack to one Steven had used years earlier.
• Lin Hao told Mewtwo he planned to keep challenging Gyms so Pluto would grow impatient and expose an opening.
• Lin Hao received another message from Pluto, then told Steven to continue toward Violet City’s Water-type Gym.

Lin Hao won the Violet Badge after Charmeleon evolved into a second Charizard and defeated Chuck’s Hariyama. May then received a report that Team Galactic had found ancient Kyogre and Groudon murals beneath Mt. Pyre, and Groudon awoke inside the system space.

• Lin Hao challenged Chuck’s Hariyama with Charmeleon despite the Water-type disadvantage.
• Charmeleon endured Hariyama’s Aqua Jet attacks and evolved into Charizard during the battle.
• Charizard overcame Hariyama’s Water Veil and defeated it with Flamethrower, earning Lin Hao the Violet Badge.
• May received an urgent report that Team Galactic had a facility beneath Mt. Pyre targeting ancient murals of Kyogre and Groudon.
• Groudon opened its golden eyes inside the system space.

Lin Hao, May, and Steven uncovered Team Galactic’s real base beneath Mt. Pyre and learned it was extracting ancient energy imprints from murals to enable a dangerous summoning ritual. As they headed for Slateport to stop the operation, their informant warned that Team Galactic had arrived.

• May confirmed that Team Galactic’s underground facility lay beneath Mt. Pyre and was accessed through an abandoned Slateport warehouse.
• Mewtwo determined that the facility was extracting ancient Pokémon energy from murals to imitate Groudon and Kyogre’s signatures for the ritual at Spear Pillar.
• Lin Hao chose to head for Slateport, and Steven arranged an emergency investigation order to secure the harbor district.
• Sidney reported no people at Mt. Pyre’s summit, leading Lin Hao and May to conclude that Pluto was likely underground.
• Arceus warned Lin Hao that even an unanswered summoning could damage space-time and destroy half of Hoenn.
• May received the informant’s final message: “They are here.”

Lin Hao, May, and Steven infiltrated Pluto’s underground base and discovered a machine designed to extract Kyogre’s power and pull the Legendary Pokémon out of Lin Hao’s System Space. Pluto revealed that the entire operation had been prepared to target Kyogre, and the machine began dragging it into the real world as Lin Hao collapsed.

• Lin Hao, May, and Steven reached an abandoned warehouse in Slateport and descended through a hidden hydraulic lift into an underground tunnel.
• Lin Hao led May and Steven to a chamber where a device was extracting energy from murals of Kyogre and Groudon.
• Arceus warned Lin Hao that the device’s resonance could breach System Space and forcibly pull Kyogre and Groudon into the real world.
• Pluto revealed that his base and its extraction device had been designed to target the Kyogre inside Lin Hao, and said Lord Cyrus already knew about Lin Hao’s system.
• The device surged with blue energy, drained Lin Hao’s power, and began pulling Kyogre out of System Space as May tried to support him.

Kyogre broke free of Lin Hao’s control and attacked Slateport, but Groudon’s appearance calmed the ancient Pokémon and drove it back to the Hoenn Trench. The crisis shifted to Mt. Pyre, where someone was using the Red Orb to open Groudon’s seal.

• Kyogre’s severed system connection left Lin Hao badly weakened as Steven and May escaped the collapsing warehouse with him.
• Lin Hao sent Lugia to lure Kyogre out to sea, while Suicune tried to calm it by telling it the anchor was still there; Kyogre knocked Suicune away.
• Groudon asked Lin Hao to release it, and Lin Hao warned Steven to evacuate before summoning it at the harbor.
• Groudon stood its ground, weakening the storm until Kyogre’s markings went dark and it sank back into the sea.
• May received word from Sidney that thick fog and a red light had appeared at Mt. Pyre, and Groudon revealed that someone was using the Red Orb to force open its seal.

Lin Hao and Groudon raced to Mt. Pyre to stop Cyrus from claiming Groudon's sealed power. They arrived as the seal began returning that power to Groudon, while Cyrus prepared to seize it.

• Groudon revealed that Kyogre's energy had broken the seal on its power inside Mt. Pyre, and Arceus estimated it would fully break in forty minutes.
• Lin Hao decided to go with Groudon, leaving Steven to take control of Slateport harbor and May behind to contact Red if he did not check in within an hour.
• Groudon carried Lin Hao to Mt. Pyre in five minutes, where a Giratina replica guarded the mountain and Cyrus waited at the summit.
• Cyrus explained that Groudon's arrival would draw the sealed power back and give him a chance to seize it.
• Groudon sensed the sealed power returning as the red pillar tilted toward them, while Lin Hao urged it not to fall for Cyrus's provocation.

Cyrus awakened Primal Kyogre and Primal Groudon by feeding them gathered energy, provoking a battle that threatened to destroy Hoenn. As the two forces clashed, Lin Hao agreed to let Arceus descend and sever their resonance, despite Cyrus’s plan to summon it.

• Cyrus revealed that the summit apparatus was his real machine and diverted Groudon’s power into it while the Giratina replica distracted Groudon.
• Cyrus activated thirty-seven receivers around Hoenn, empowering Kyogre and awakening it as Primal Kyogre.
• Groudon’s sealed power surged out of control, transforming it into Primal Groudon as the two ancient Pokémon faced each other.
• Primal Kyogre and Primal Groudon clashed with a tsunami and a wall of lava, threatening to destroy the Hoenn Region.
• Arceus told Lin Hao that it could stop the destruction by descending and severing the resonance, and Lin Hao agreed to release it.

Lin Hao summoned Arceus with the White Ball, ending Cyrus’s attempt to control the legendary forces at Mt. Pyre. Cyrus and his allies fled, while Lin Hao and Arceus remained on the quieting summit.

• Lin Hao activated the White Ball, and Arceus appeared, suppressing the volcanic wave, Groudon, and Cyrus’s Interception Device.
• Arceus cooled the lava and destroyed the Red Chain fragment Cyrus tried to use.
• Cyrus and Pluto retreated with the Giratina replica through teleportation and a spatial rift.
• Primal Kyogre gave a final cry and disappeared into the deep sea, while Groudon returned to its Poké Ball.
• Arceus turned its gaze toward the direction Team Galactic had escaped as Lin Hao recovered on Mt. Pyre.

After the battle at Mt. Pyre, Lin Hao learned that Cyrus had taken ten percent of the ancient energy and still possessed a Giratina clone. As the world discovered Arceus had appeared in Hoenn, Lin Hao chose to reveal himself and confront Team Galactic openly, while Cynthia contacted him.

• Lin Hao reassured Kyogre after its forced Primal Reversion, then sent Kyogre and Groudon back to System Space; Arceus praised him before returning to its Poké Ball.
• Red asked whether the golden light had been Arceus, acknowledged Lin Hao's strength, and left; Sidney and Steven told Lin Hao that satellite data had triggered a global League alert.
• Lin Hao accepted that his identity could no longer stay secret and declared he would fight Cyrus head-on as the Full Pokédex holder.
• May and Lin Hao saw that a blurry image of Groudon and Kyogre had spread widely, while Steven and Sidney warned that the world would investigate the Legendary Pokémon and their trainer.
• Lin Hao headed back to Rustboro City to rest, then received a message from Sinnoh Champion Cynthia asking to talk.

Cynthia questioned Lin Hao about Arceus, his hidden strength, and his plans for the League, then agreed to handle the Survey Corps while he challenged Hoenn’s Gyms. Lin Hao defeated Flannery’s Magmortar with Pikachu, earned the Lavaridge Badge, and headed to Petalburg City to face Norman.

• Cynthia met Lin Hao in Rustboro City and asked why Arceus had acknowledged him, how many trump cards he had, and how he planned to respond to the League’s questioning.
• Lin Hao said he would collect the remaining six Gym badges, and Cynthia offered to handle the Survey Corps while watching him compete without Legendary Pokémon.
• Steven arranged an earlier Lavaridge Gym appointment, and Lin Hao challenged Flannery with Pikachu.
• Pikachu defeated Flannery’s Magmortar in under three minutes, and Lin Hao accepted the Lavaridge Badge.
• Lin Hao left through a crowd of reporters with Steven, who drove him toward Petalburg City to challenge Norman.

Lin Hao challenged six Hoenn Gyms in one day, winning every battle with his overwhelmingly powerful Pokémon and collecting all eight badges. He qualified for the Hoenn League Championships in two weeks, where Steven publicly looked forward to facing him.

• Norman’s Slaking fell to Pikachu, and Norman gave Lin Hao the Petalburg Gym badge as a huge livestream audience watched.
• Lin Hao defeated Koga’s Pokémon with Charizard at Verdanturf and earned the second badge.
• At Slateport, Lin Hao used Pikachu to defeat Kusunoki’s Machop and claimed the third badge.
• Lin Hao beat Qianyi’s three Flying-type Pokémon in eleven seconds at Fortree and received the fourth badge.
• At Mossdeep, Pikachu defeated Tate and Lana’s Espeon and Umbreon in four seconds, earning Lin Hao the final two badges.
• Steven told Lin Hao that he qualified for the Hoenn League Championships in two weeks, then revealed he had publicly challenged him to a future battle.

Lin Hao's astonishing Gym victories sparked worldwide excitement for the Hoenn League, where he was set to face Champion Steven with a powerful team. As the tournament drew near, Steven warned Lin Hao that Cyrus's theft of energy was only the beginning, and Arceus detected faint spatial fluctuations coming from Sinnoh.

• May told Lin Hao that his Gym battles had gone viral, sold-out League tickets had caused a shortage of hotel rooms, and fans around the world were anticipating his showdown with Steven.
• Steven revealed that he planned to use his full team against Lin Hao, who chose Pikachu, Charizard, Suicune, Lucario, Garchomp, and Dragonite for the tournament.
• Steven told Lin Hao that Cyrus's energy theft was only the beginning and proposed a private discussion after the League tournament.
• Cynthia announced that she had booked a flight to Ever Grande City, while Lance called Steven to ask about Lin Hao and admitted he was worried Steven might lose.
• Steven said Hoenn had established three defensive lines around the League tournament, but warned Cyrus might be targeting somewhere other than Ever Grande City.
• Arceus told Lin Hao that it had detected faint spatial fluctuations originating in Sinnoh.

Lin Hao learned that Cyrus was destabilizing a rift near Spear Pillar and chose to remain in Hoenn for the League Tournament, training to prove himself without relying on Legendary Pokémon. The chapter ended with the tournament about to begin, Spear Pillar nearing a critical threshold, and Lin Hao set to face Lance in his first match.

• Arceus detected antimatter energy near Spear Pillar, and Lin Hao warned Cynthia that Cyrus was using anchors and Red Chain fragments to summon Dialga and Palkia.
• Cynthia asked Lin Hao to stay in Hoenn, where he could prevent Cyrus from reactivating energy receivers and earn the Leagues' trust by competing.
• Lin Hao trained with Steven and developed a six-on-six rotation strategy while learning that Team Galactic had recruited three hundred Trainers.
• Cynthia arrived in Ever Grande City and told Lin Hao that the rift would reach its critical threshold forty minutes after the tournament final began.
• Lin Hao agreed to finish the tournament before going to Sinnoh, while Steven declared he would try to win; Lin Hao's first opponent was Lance.

Lin Hao advanced through three Hoenn League rounds with Pikachu and Lucario while Cynthia monitored Cyrus’s plan at Mt. Coronet. The spatial rift began expanding faster than expected, setting Cyrus’s operation to coincide with Lin Hao and Steven’s final the next day.

• Cynthia told Lin Hao that Cyrus planned to act on the day of the League final, and Lin Hao said the tournament would continue while she watched Mt. Coronet.
• Lin Hao defeated Takeda Ryo and Kawachi Shota in three-on-three matches using Pikachu.
• Lin Hao used Lucario to defeat Mikoto and advanced toward a final against Steven.
• Cynthia learned that the spatial rift at Mt. Coronet was expanding twelve hours faster than expected, and Steven chose to compete in the final anyway.
• Cynthia received a message from Sinnoh reporting that a roar had come from inside the rift.

Lin Hao defeated Steven in the Hoenn League Championship final and became the new Champion. As the stadium celebrated, Cynthia received word that Team Galactic's main force was approaching Spear Pillar after breaching Mt. Coronet's third containment perimeter.

• Cynthia told Lin Hao that a roar from the rift had a frequency close to Dialga's, and Lin Hao entered the stadium after she promised to handle any trouble at Mt. Coronet.
• Steven opened the final with Metagross, and Pikachu fought it before Lin Hao sent out Charizard, which defeated Metagross with Fire Blast.
• Steven and Lin Hao exchanged Pokémon through a fierce six-on-six battle until Pikachu and Steven's previously unseen Dragonite were their final Pokémon.
• Pikachu exploited Dragonite's brief dizziness after Outrage and defeated it with a full-power Volt Tackle, winning Lin Hao the championship.
• Steven raised Lin Hao's hand and named him Hoenn's new Champion, while Cynthia received a message that Team Galactic's main force was approaching Spear Pillar.

Lin Hao became the Hoenn League's new Champion but arranged for Steven to serve as Acting Champion so he could leave for Sinnoh. As he headed to Mt. Coronet to confront Team Galactic, Cynthia reported that Lucian had gone missing.

• May and Cynthia learned that Team Galactic had breached Mt. Coronet's third defensive line and were approaching Spear Pillar, but they waited until Lin Hao's award ceremony to tell him.
• Lin Hao accepted the Champion title, refused to reside permanently at Hoenn League headquarters, and signed after Steven invoked the charter rule allowing an Acting Champion.
• Cynthia told Lin Hao that Lucian's fourth line was still holding under heavy attack and that the rift had widened to twenty-one meters.
• Steven arranged a League Jet for Lin Hao and stayed behind to protect Hoenn and dismantle the remaining Energy Receivers on Mt. Pyre.
• Cynthia told May that Lin Hao's Champion status had ended her investigation, and May gave him supplies before he left for Sinnoh.
• As Lin Hao and Cynthia headed to the jet, Cynthia reported that contact with Lucian had been lost five minutes earlier.

Lin Hao and Cynthia reached Mt. Coronet after Team Galactic accelerated its attempt to break Dialga’s seal. They confronted Cyrus as he used super-ancient energy and a Red Chain fragment to widen the fissure, and Dialga began to awaken.

• Lin Hao learned that Lucian was missing and that Dialga’s seal was weakening faster than expected.
• Cynthia reported that Team Galactic had over five hundred Trainers at Mt. Coronet, so Lin Hao ordered Bertha to pull League forces into the Spear Pillar’s narrow passages.
• With too little time to reach Sinnoh by plane, Lin Hao had Arceus open a spatial passage and traveled to Mt. Coronet with Cynthia and Pikachu.
• Lin Hao and Cynthia found Team Galactic divided among the Spear Pillar entrance, the fissure’s equipment, and a force waiting for them.
• Cyrus explained that Lin Hao was to witness his creation plan, then combined super-ancient energy with a repaired Red Chain fragment to widen the fissure.
• Dialga’s dark blue eye opened within the fissure as Lin Hao sent out all six Pokémon to face Cyrus.

Lin Hao gathered Steven, Red, and May on Mt. Coronet as Cyrus used the Red Chain fragments to summon Dialga, and Arceus temporarily blocked the signal. The allies prepared to break Cyrus's Force Field before sunrise, but Cynthia received news that Cyrus also had a Palkia Clone.

• Lin Hao and Cynthia fought Team Galactic's commanders while Charizard battled Cyrus's Rayquaza Clone, and Arceus blocked Dialga's summoning signal for a limited time.
• Lin Hao called Steven, Red, and May, and Arceus opened Spatial Passages to bring them to Mt. Coronet.
• Steven and Red joined the battle, with Red's Charizard gaining the upper hand against the Rayquaza Clone, while May arrived to support Lin Hao and Cynthia.
• Cyrus activated a Force Field around himself and the fissure, and Lin Hao's allies decided to prepare overnight and attack before sunrise.
• Lin Hao told May that the coming battle depended partly on Arceus's condition, and she promised to support him.
• Cynthia received word from Bertha that Cyrus had a second clone, a Palkia Clone.

Lin Hao and the others planned a coordinated assault on Cyrus’s forces at Mt. Coronet, aiming to destroy Palkia’s scale, clear Spear Pillar, and break the barrier before Cyrus could summon the Legendary Pokémon. As they prepared for the final battle, May told Lin Hao she had come because he was there.

• Arceus told Lin Hao that Cyrus was using Palkia’s scale beneath Mt. Coronet’s eastern ridge to imitate Palkia’s signal and potentially summon the real one.
• Lin Hao, Steven, Cynthia, May, and Red agreed to divide into three teams and complete their objectives within ten minutes: Cynthia would clear Spear Pillar, Red would destroy the scale, and Lin Hao and Steven would attack the barrier.
• Lin Hao planned to have Arceus seal the rift after the barrier fell, leaving him to fight Cyrus until Red could join him.
• Steven, Cynthia, and Red left to patrol, coordinate with Bertha, and rest while Lin Hao and May waited by the rock.
• May admitted she was afraid of the coming battle but told Lin Hao she had come because he was there.

Lin Hao and his allies discovered that Team Galactic's headquarters inside Mt. Coronet powered Cyrus's barrier and Palkia's Scale, so they set out to destroy it. After defeating the first checkpoint, they learned that a dangerous Mechanical Lifeform awaited them in the mine.

• Cynthia told Lin Hao that Bertha had found Team Galactic's headquarters in the Old Ruins and that its main control device operated Palkia's Scale.
• Lin Hao chose to attack the headquarters with May, Steven, Red, and the League Elite Squad while Bertha held Spear Pillar.
• May identified a checkpoint guarding the mine entrance, and Lin Hao's group attacked before Team Galactic could raise the alarm.
• Pikachu, Metagross, Charizard, and Lucario defeated the checkpoint's Pokémon and destroyed its Energy Cannons.
• May questioned the captured captain, who warned that three commanders and something Cyrus had left behind defended the headquarters.
• May detected a high-energy reading inside the tunnel and identified it as a Mechanical Lifeform.