Lance's movements faltered for a moment at Ye Li's words.
As the Pokémon League Champion, protecting the ecological balance of the Pokémon world was a duty etched into his bones. He truly did not want his pursuit to cause an island's ecosystem to collapse completely.
He looked at Ye Li. There was no panic of flight on the young man's face, but rather an almost mad resolve. He seemed to be preparing something.
Lance's gaze flickered. In the end, he made a decision.
He ordered the Dragonite beside him to stand by. Though puzzled, Dragonite faithfully obeyed, keeping its sharp eyes fixed on Ye Li and Umbreon as it remained on high alert nearby.
Seeing that Lance had no intention of attacking for now, Ye Li felt the weight lift from his heart. But he knew he had very little time left.
Without another word, he sat cross-legged, placed the brilliantly shining raw Thunder Stone before him, and pressed both hands firmly against it.
He closed his eyes.
He was going to do something utterly insane and incredibly dangerous-guide the dark energy inside Umbreon to merge with the purest lightning energy contained within this Thunder Stone.
Humm-
Concentrating his mental power intensely, Ye Li began this dangerous attempt through the invisible bond between himself and Umbreon.
"Woo-!"
Umbreon let out a low cry of pain, its body trembling violently. Its ruby-like eyes were filled with pain and struggle.
A mass of ink-black Dark-type energy and a mass of Electric-type energy as brilliant as the blazing sun began the most primal, violent clash within its tiny body, like two prehistoric beasts locked in the same cage.
Dazzling arcs of electricity and ominous black mist intertwined, collided, and annihilated one another across Umbreon's skin. Patches of charred black marks even began appearing