The battle of Seafoam Islands (2)

Sand and dust billowed as the battle between Gongping and the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak reached its fiercest stage. Scizor and Lucario served as the assault force, locked in combat with Pangoro and Drapion.

Turning both pincers into blades, Scizor seized a lull in the fighting to strengthen itself with Swords Dance. Amid the surging currents of sand and air, its Bullet Punch shot out even faster, slashing across Drapion's cheek in an instant.

Drapion spat out a beam of light. Although Scizor did not know its type or effects, it still chose to dodge immediately. But Pangoro, lying in ambush to one side, threw a punch, its fierce flames carrying waves of heat. Lucario swiftly hurled countless Shadow Balls, blasting an opening in midair and saving Scizor from the surprise Fire Punch.

Compared to the chaotic battle below, Mega Salamence hovered in the air as Gongping's massive artillery platform. With a mighty roar, another overwhelmingly powerful Hyper Voice swept forth.

Faced with the sound waves that tore through everything, the Muk from the Alola Region quickly rolled in front of Mega Gardevoir. It endured Mega Salamence's explosive sonic attack, its entire body beginning to shake violently.

The energy of Heal Pulse shone onto Muk, healing it while it blocked Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice.

Muk looked pale after enduring the blow head-on. Following the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak's instructions, it looked up at Mega Salamence high above and waved one hand. A multicolored, venomous hand floated high in the air.

The enormous palm swung down, showering venom everywhere. Seeing this, Mega Salamence whipped up countless storms around itself. As they scattered the venom, the true killing move hidden within the giant hand abruptly emerged!

An uncanny Disable swiftly enveloped Mega Salamence. The powerful sealing move forcefully locked away its Hyper Voice.

Under Disable's effects, Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice was temporarily sealed and unusable. Seeing that it had succeeded, Muk swiftly sent countless streams of venom dancing upward to stab at Mega Salamence.

Realizing its move had been sealed, Mega Salamence narrowed its eyes, a chillingly vicious gleam appearing in them.

Once a proud and noble dragon's forbidden scale was touched, it would repay its enemy with the utmost fury.

Golden light radiated from Mega Salamence's entire body, gathering into a dazzling golden mass in its mouth. Compared to its earlier Hyper Voice sound waves, this light held even more terrifying power. The entire mountain peak of Seafoam Islands trembled under its force.

With a boom, an enormous pillar of light burst from Mega Salamence's mouth and swept across the entire battlefield.

Enhanced by Aerilate, this Hyper Beam far surpassed an ordinary Hyper Beam in power, even rivaling the Z-Moves unique to the Alola Region. Before this vast energy, everything became insignificant.

As the light of destruction swept toward them, Mega Gardevoir swiftly manipulated Drapion, with its quadruple resistance, into position. The enormous pillar of light instantly engulfed Drapion's entire body. Even with ample resistance prepared, any Pokémon was utterly insignificant before this pure destructive energy.

Drapion was unable to battle!

With yet another Pokémon lost, the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak's situation grew even worse. Yet at the final critical moment, Mega Salamence high above fell victim to Drapion's parting trick. A Confuse Ray struck it, leaving Mega Salamence confused and temporarily unable to move.

On the other side of the battlefield, the fight between Greninja and Swampert finally erupted in full.

At this moment, facing a Swampert that had used Curse twice, Greninja finally abandoned its earlier strategy and went all out. It pressed its palms together, and violent silver currents raged around it, transforming Water Shuriken into a distinctive blade of water.

As though sensing something, Swampert rapidly swelled the muscles of its arms, its muscles and fascia twisting. Its center of gravity abruptly shifted, and it suddenly charged toward Greninja at high speed!

Swampert produced an explosive bang, like something sweeping low overhead or a train hurtling past at full speed just dozens of centimeters away. This manner of movement had already surpassed the unbelievable. A storm arrived as it changed direction.

Greninja swung its water blade and blasted it forward, only for Swampert to catch it in one hand, which froze instantly. Violent waves surged and roared around them. Yet a moment later, the water blade's high-pressure destructive force sliced along Swampert's original path, striking the ground and leaving a scorch mark.

Swampert abruptly lowered its shoulder and flicked its wrist backward, churning its force into a rapidly spinning wind blade. Its knife-hand drove toward Greninja's throat with tremendous weight, while two rapidly spinning Ice Balls hung behind it.

Compared to the Alolan Sandslash's control over Ice Ball, Swampert wielded the move with greater ease. As the Ice Balls circled, they swept out an intimidating chill.

Greninja jerked its right arm upward, its fist wrapped in powerful force. From below, amid a sharp scraping sound and a sudden rise in sizzling noise, it broke the attack apart into wisps of wind that collided with the two Ice Balls.

As the cold raged, the surrounding environment changed in an instant. Swampert seized the opportunity to begin its third round of strengthening with Curse.

The moisture in the air grew increasingly scarce. The Yin-Yang-Faced Freak raised an eyebrow and quickly reviewed the Pokémon he possessed, soon finding the key to breaking Gongping's strategy.

I have to dismantle the sandstorm battlefield!

With that thought, the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak took out a Poké Ball and released a delicate little Ice-type Vulpix from the Alola Region.

After Vulpix, with its Snow Warning Ability, appeared, a cold current formed around it. But against the terrifying, enormous desert battlefield before it, this snowfall was clearly nowhere near enough to compete. Even the cold air was absorbed by Lileep's Water Absorb, making the ground even drier.

The Vulpix, born only a few days ago, looked at its Trainer affectionately and naturally nestled against the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak.

"What a good little Vulpix."

Seeing the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak pick up Vulpix, Gongping instinctively felt something was wrong. Then he looked at the greedy gaze of the Alolan Muk nearby and immediately understood what was about to happen. "Scizor, stop it!"

As he spoke, Tyranitar drove countless clouds of sand and dust around the central area, then sent them surging toward the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak's position.

Countless red flashes of Bullet Punch shot out, only for the Alolan Muk to surge forward, manipulating countless streams of venom into a barrier that blocked them. Grinning, the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak crushed Vulpix's neck with all his strength!

Unable to believe what was happening, Vulpix widened its eyes and struggled desperately, whimpering without pause. The Yin-Yang-Faced Freak tightened his grip until the Vulpix before him finally stopped breathing.

"I spent all that money setting up a private breeding farm precisely so you could sacrifice yourselves when needed, didn't I? Muk, activate Power of Alchemy!"

The Yin-Yang-Faced Freak tossed Vulpix's corpse into the sludge Muk had become. As its body was slowly devoured, an eerie, cold light flashed in Muk's eyes as it absorbed the Ability within Vulpix!

The Ability Power of Alchemy allowed a Pokémon to inherit a defeated ally's Ability, changing its own Ability to match.

Compared to an ordinary Ability exchange, the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak had concluded through countless tests at his own breeding farm that once an allied Pokémon died completely, the Ability absorbed and converted by a Muk with Power of Alchemy would be even stronger. To break the Sandstorm Purgatory before him, he had to use the strongest possible Snow Warning.

Purple crystalline snowflakes descended over Seafoam Islands. Muk transformed into a gigantic mass of poisonous sludge and merged with the snowflakes in midair. In an instant, part of the sand-covered area became a region of toxic ice and snow.

Misty Terrain drifted in gently, covering part of the area to ensure that the Pokémon on the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak's side would not be affected by the poison.

The sand and dust on the outskirts seemed to freeze. The sight of such a bizarre disaster across Seafoam Islands made its residents increasingly uneasy.

At this moment, Tyranitar and Lileep finally began to act. Their powerful sand force formed a round sand shield that rushed toward the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak.

Also inside the sand shield, Gongping controlled the levitation device he carried, appearing before the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak at incredible speed. A short blade sprang from his hand and stabbed toward him.

Gongping's assault was ferocious, his blade work wild. The Yin-Yang-Faced Freak sneered several times, deftly using the folding fan in his hand to deflect his attacks.

Whether back in the Hoenn Region or here on Seafoam Islands, you bastards still use such cruel methods. Absolutely despicable!

The brutal killing of Vulpix had touched the deepest taboo in Gongping's heart. Instantly enraged, he personally launched an attack against the Yin-Yang-Faced Freak.

Vulpix's death caused Greninja's previously furious assault in the distance to falter. Swampert seized the opening and drove a powerful punch forward, sending Greninja flying several meters on the spot.