Recaps

Xiaoyun won the Pokémon World Championships after defeating Alder and Reshiram, then traveled with Dawn to the Tree of Beginning to seek guardianship. Mew set him a trial against Regirock, Regice, and Registeel, and Xiaoyun prepared to battle them.

• Xiaoyun received the championship trophy from Alder as friends and viewers across the regions celebrated his victory.
• A week later, Xiaoyun and Dawn entered the Tree of Beginning’s secret realm with Mew and Mewtwo and saw thriving Fossil Pokémon.
• Xiaoyun carefully gave Dawn a crystal from the realm after Mewtwo warned them not to take things casually.
• Mew revealed that Regirock, Regice, and Registeel guarded the Tree of Beginning and that Xiaoyun had to defeat all three to become a guardian.
• Xiaoyun accepted the trial and sent out Sceptile, Suicune, and Darkrai to face the Legendary Titans.

Xiaoyun and his companions defeated the three divine-office Regi Titans, then entered the Tree of Beginning and established a connection that let him summon Deoxys through its power. The Tree’s life force also triggered Dewott’s evolution into a unique Water-type Samurott, leaving Xiaoyun wondering what other changes it might bring to his Pokémon.

• Sceptile, Darkrai, and Suicune battled Regirock, Registeel, and Regice until Sceptile and Darkrai activated their special forms and defeated their opponents.
• Suicune froze Regice with Absolute Freezing Air, and Sceptile and Darkrai joined forces to finish the last Regi Titan.
• Mew brought Xiaoyun and Dawn inside the Tree of Beginning, where Xiaoyun connected with its energy and felt its peaceful emotions.
• Xiaoyun used Deoxys’s psychic crystal as a token and successfully summoned Deoxys through the Tree of Beginning.
• The Tree’s life force caused Dewott to evolve into a special, pure Water-type Samurott with the Sharpness ability.

Xiaoyun left Twinleaf Town with Dawn to begin his League assignment in Kalos, where he was to investigate Team Flare and evaluate Gyms. They arrived in Lumiose City and reached Professor Sycamore’s lab, where Sycamore was giving Starter Pokémon to new Trainers.

• Xiaoyun said goodbye to Lina and Qing'an and left home with Eevee.
• Dawn joined Xiaoyun for the journey to Kalos, bringing Shaymin along while the invisible Victini followed.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn arrived in Lumiose City and paid an unexpectedly steep taxi fare to reach the Sycamore Pokémon Lab.
• Sophie greeted Xiaoyun and Dawn and led them through the lab’s public museum.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn entered a room where Professor Sycamore was handing Starter Pokémon to new Trainers.

Xiaoyun visited Professor Sycamore’s lab, explained the Power of Overcoming, and agreed to demonstrate it in a battle against Alain. Their one-on-one match began with Xiaoyun’s Sceptile gaining the upper hand against Alain’s Charizard.

• Professor Sycamore gave Sawyer a Pokédex, and Sawyer recognized Xiaoyun as his idol and vowed to become stronger.
• Xiaoyun told Professor Sycamore about the Power of Overcoming, and the professor asked to observe it firsthand in a battle.
• Professor Sycamore introduced Xiaoyun to his former assistant Alain, and they agreed to a friendly match.
• Alain sent out Charizard while Xiaoyun chose Sceptile, prompting Sawyer to eagerly record the battle.
• Charizard’s Flamethrower was split by Sceptile’s Leaf Blade, and Sceptile dodged Dragon Claw before blasting Charizard away with Leaf Storm.

Xiaoyun defeated Alain’s Mega Charizard with Sceptile’s Bond Form, and Professor Sycamore recorded the new energy while Team Flare learned of it. The next day, Xiaoyun and Dawn went shopping in Lumiose City, where they encountered Team Rocket capturing Ash’s Pikachu and Froakie.

• Alain Mega Evolved Charizard, but Xiaoyun’s Bond Sceptile overwhelmed him and won the battle with Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki.
• Professor Sycamore recorded Sceptile’s Bond Phenomenon, while Aliana learned that Alain had gathered data on the unfamiliar power.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn stayed in Lumiose City, then Xiaoyun defeated a taxi driver’s Binacle after the driver tried to extort them.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn went shopping on Spring Avenue and changed into new clothes.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn found Team Rocket holding Ash’s Pikachu and Froakie in a Meowth balloon, while Clemont’s Bunnelby’s Mud Shot was reflected by Wobbuffet’s Counter.

Xiaoyun rescued Ash and his Pokémon from Team Rocket, then identified Clemont as Lumiose City's Gym Leader and began an on-site assessment. Clembot admitted Xiaoyun into the Gym, leaving Clemont's predicament and evaluation unresolved.

• Xiaoyun and Dawn cut through Team Rocket's mechanical arms, and Blaziken Mask destroyed the balloon to free Pikachu and Froakie.
• Bonnie asked Dawn to be her brother Clemont's girlfriend, then learned Dawn and Xiaoyun were childhood sweethearts.
• Xiaoyun identified Clemont as Lumiose City's Gym Leader and announced that he was a Pokémon League inspector.
• Clemont confessed that Clembot had locked him out of the Gym, and Xiaoyun offered to assess him on-site if he proved he was the legitimate Gym Leader.
• Clembot questioned the group at Prism Tower, then opened the door after Xiaoyun identified himself as the inspector.

Clemont stopped Clembot’s takeover of the Lumiose Gym, repaired its programming, and prepared for Xiaoyun’s assessment battle. Clemont sent out Magneton against Xiaoyun’s newly caught Deino, whose first official battle began as Clemont underestimated it.

• Xiaoyun entered the Lumiose Gym, and Clembot agreed to let Clemont challenge it under the Gym’s rules.
• Clemont’s Bunnelby battled Clembot’s Heliolisk, while Clemont distracted Clembot with Mud Shot and used his backpack’s shutdown button to disable it.
• Clemont revised Clembot’s programming, and the restored robot apologized before Clemont accepted its work and faced Xiaoyun’s assessment.
• Clembot announced a three-on-three battle, and Clemont sent out Magneton while Xiaoyun chose Deino for its first official battle.

Xiaoyun assessed Clemont’s Lumiose City Gym, defeating his Pokémon with Deino and Zeraora before approving the Gym and awarding Clemont a Plain Badge. Dawn then challenged Clemont to a two-on-two Gym battle, which began with Magnemite facing Piplup.

• Deino defeated Clemont’s Magneton, but Electrode’s powered-up Rollout and Discharge knocked Deino out.
• Xiaoyun sent out Zeraora, which caught Electrode’s Rollout and defeated it with Thunder Punch; Clemont then sent out Heliolisk, which lost to Plasma Fists.
• Meyer encouraged Bonnie and reminded Ash that courage mattered more than winning; Clemont renewed his resolve and continued battling.
• Xiaoyun praised Clemont’s tactics and resilience, declared that the Lumiose Gym had passed its assessment, and gave him a Plain Badge.
• Dawn challenged Clemont to a two-on-two Gym battle, and the match began with Clemont’s Magnemite facing Dawn’s Piplup.

Dawn defeated Clemont and earned the Voltage Badge, then she and Xiaoyun decided to visit Santalune City. Clemont warned the Kalos Gym Leaders that Xiaoyun, the Pokémon World Championships champion, was conducting League assessments, leaving them anxious about facing him.

• Dawn defeated Clemont’s Magnemite with Piplup’s Secret Sword and revealed that she had reached the semifinals at the Vertress Conference and the top thirty-two in the championship tournament.
• Dawn defeated Clemont’s Magnezone with Piplup’s Ice Storm and Secret Sword, earning the Voltage Badge.
• Ash asked Clemont for a battle, but Clemont postponed it until the next day and recommended that Dawn and Xiaoyun visit Santalune City and its Battle Chateau.
• After Xiaoyun and Dawn left, Clemont told the Kalos Gym Leaders in their group chat that Xiaoyun was the new inspector, prompting them to worry about their assessments.

Serena reunited with Xiaoyun and Dawn in Vaniville Town, then saw Ash on the news and decided to leave to find him. The chapter ended with Serena planning to set out the next day.

• Serena practiced riding Rhyhorn before nearly colliding with Xiaoyun and Dawn on a country path.
• Serena recognized Xiaoyun from summer camp, and he introduced Dawn as his girlfriend.
• Serena invited the travelers to her home, where she talked with them about their Kalos journey and her uncertainty about her own goals.
• A news report showed Ash calming an out-of-control Garchomp in Lumiose City, and Serena recognized him immediately.
• Serena explained that she wanted to thank Ash for helping her as a child, and Xiaoyun and Dawn encouraged her to follow her heart.
• After Xiaoyun suggested Ash might soon travel with another girl, Serena decided to leave the next day.

Serena received Saki’s permission to travel and joined Dawn and Xiaoyun on their way to Lumiose City. In a flower field, Shaymin and Victini discovered a weakened Floette carrying a black flower; after Floette drove off a Beedrill swarm with Light of Ruin, Xiaoyun recognized it as an Eternal Flower Floette.

• Serena told Saki she wanted to travel and find a dream of her own, and Saki agreed to let her go.
• Serena said goodbye to Saki and temporarily joined Dawn and Xiaoyun as they headed toward Lumiose City to get her a Starter Pokémon.
• The group stopped in a flower field, where Shaymin and Victini followed a strange scent and found a weakened Floette holding a black flower.
• Shaymin purified the strange aura and healed Floette, but a Beedrill swarm attacked them in its nectar-gathering area.
• Floette used Petal Dance and then Light of Ruin to defeat the Beedrill, collapsing from exhaustion afterward.
• Xiaoyun, Dawn, and Serena reached Shaymin and Floette, and Xiaoyun identified Floette as one in its Eternal Flower Form.

Xiaoyun and his companions reached Santalune Forest, where they met Gym Leader Viola and joined her search for a rare Fancy Pattern Vivillon. As they investigated the forest’s unusual silence, they found signs of a battle and an injured Spewpa, which Shaymin healed.

• Shaymin discovered an Eternal Flower Floette, which quietly followed the group after Xiaoyun offered it Pokéblocks.
• Xiaoyun, Dawn, and Serena reached Santalune Forest, where Rotom explained that Vivillon patterns varied according to their birthplace’s climate and environment.
• Viola introduced herself as a photographer, then panicked when she learned Xiaoyun was a Gym inspector before he reassured her that he was there to evaluate Gym strength.
• Viola invited the group to search for a rare Fancy Pattern Vivillon, and they agreed to explore the forest with her.
• Viola and Xiaoyun noticed that the forest had grown unusually quiet, and Viola found signs of a battle in a secluded clearing.
• Serena found an injured Spewpa, and Shaymin healed it while Floette watched from hiding.

Xiaoyun, Viola, Dawn, and Serena rescued Spewpa from hunters, and the freed Pokémon evolved, including Serena’s rare Fancy Pattern Vivillon. The next day, Xiaoyun and Dawn challenged Viola to a Double Battle at the Santalune Gym, and Xiaoyun sent out Eevee.

• Viola and the others found hunters keeping Vivillon and Spewpa in cages, and Xiaoyun attacked them with Bisharp and Tyrunt.
• Dawn and Serena freed the Spewpa while Viola’s Vivillon protected the group from the hunters’ Golem using Explosion.
• Bisharp knocked out the hunters, and Viola called Officer Jenny to arrest them.
• The freed Spewpa evolved into Vivillon, and Serena caught the Fancy Pattern Vivillon that had been with her.
• The group visited the Santalune Café, then Xiaoyun and Dawn challenged Viola to a Double Battle at the Gym the next day.
• Xiaoyun sent out Eevee as the Gym battle began.

Xiaoyun and Dawn defeated Viola in a Double Battle, and Xiaoyun passed the Santalune Gym’s inspection. After learning Ash had gone on to Laverre City, Serena imagined partnering with him and decided to challenge Viola’s Gym.

• Viola sent out Masquerain and Vivillon against Xiaoyun’s Eevee and Dawn’s Samurott.
• Eevee disrupted Viola’s Pokémon while Samurott broke through their Blizzard and knocked them both out.
• Xiaoyun judged Viola’s Gym to have passed its inspection.
• Serena learned Ash had probably gone to Laverre City and declined Viola’s initial offer to battle.
• After imagining herself battling alongside Ash, Serena changed her mind and asked Viola for a Gym challenge.

Serena challenged Viola at Santalune Gym, winning the first round with Froakie before Viola’s Vivillon defeated it. Serena’s own Vivillon struggled against Viola’s, but Rotom’s advice helped Serena regain her resolve as the battle continued.

• Serena used Froakie to defeat Viola’s Surskit after slowing it with Bubble and paralyzing it with Lick.
• Viola sent out her Vivillon, which quickly knocked out Froakie with Psybeam and Energy Ball.
• Serena sent out her Fancy Pattern Vivillon, but Viola’s Vivillon gained the advantage with Gust, Psybeam, and Energy Ball.
• Serena apologized to her Vivillon, then took heart from Rotom’s advice and commanded it to use Gust.

Serena battled Viola, lost, but earned the Bug Badge and a Cut TM after impressing the Gym Leader with her fierce counterattack. The group returned to Lumiose City, where Serena chose Fennekin as her starter at Professor Sycamore’s lab, and Sycamore recommended that she challenge Santalune Gym.

• Serena guided Vivillon through a Gust-powered charge, but Viola’s Vivillon defeated it with Struggle Bug’s close-range burst.
• Viola awarded Serena the Bug Badge and a Cut TM, praising her battle performance despite her loss.
• Xiaoyun, Dawn, and Serena returned to Lumiose City, visited the Furfrou Café, and later took a taxi to Professor Sycamore’s lab.
• Xiaoyun introduced Serena to Professor Sycamore, who showed her the starter Pokémon available at his lab.
• Serena chose Fennekin, explaining that she had already befriended a Froakie that followed her home for her soufflé.
• Professor Sycamore gave Serena Fennekin and a Pokédex and recommended that she challenge Santalune Gym.

Professor Sycamore’s first attempt at Mega Evolving Garchomp ended with Garchomp losing control, while Dawn’s Altaria calmed it with Sing. After exploring Lumiose City, Xiaoyun, Dawn, and Serena encountered Team Rocket attacking Ash and his friends, with Pikachu trapped in their robot.

• Serena showed Professor Sycamore the Beetle Badge she had earned after rescuing an injured Vivillon, then chose her starter Pokémon.
• Professor Sycamore Mega Evolved Garchomp, which lost control and attacked the observation area; Xiaoyun’s Bisharp fought it until Dawn’s Altaria used Sing to calm it.
• Professor Sycamore concluded that his bond with Garchomp needed work after the Pokémon returned to normal and collapsed from exhaustion.
• James revealed that he had stolen Mega Evolution research data and proposed using it to make Meowth Mega Evolve so Team Rocket could catch Pikachu.
• Xiaoyun, Dawn, and Serena explored Lumiose City and got new hairstyles at Friseur Furfrou.
• An explosion led the group to Ash, Clemont, and Bonnie facing Team Rocket’s cat-shaped robot, where Pikachu was trapped in a cage.

Ash and his friends rescued Pikachu from Team Rocket with Serena's help, and Ash revealed that he remembered Serena from Professor Oak's summer camp. The group was introduced, but Team Rocket emerged from the wreckage and announced an apparent Mega Evolution for Meowth.

• Ash, Clemont, and Serena fought the Meowth-shaped robot, and Ash's Pokémon broke Pikachu's cage so Pikachu could destroy the robot with Thunderbolt.
• Serena told Ash she knew him from Professor Oak's summer camp, and Ash first claimed he did not remember her before admitting he had been joking.
• Ash introduced Serena to Clemont and Bonnie, while Bonnie teased Clemont about her interest in Ash.
• Jessie, James, and Meowth climbed out of the wreckage and declared that Meowth would Mega Evolve, surprising everyone.
• Clemont explained that fully evolved Pokémon were the only known Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution.

James’s makeshift Mega Evolution device triggered a powerful Bond Phenomenon in Meowth, but Dedenne chewed through the cables and ended the transformation. After Team Rocket blasted off, Dawn said goodbye to Serena at the Sycamore Pokémon Lab, where Serena resolved to continue traveling with Ash before confessing her feelings.

• Jessie and James activated their modified computer, and Meowth transformed through the Bond Phenomenon, gaining strength and learning Pay Day.
• Bond Meowth fought Pikachu evenly, then faced Pikachu and Xiaoyun’s Infernape before overwhelming their combined attacks with a Metal Storm.
• Meowth reverted to normal when Dedenne chewed through James’s data cables, and Bonnie carried Dedenne away.
• Ash and Xiaoyun defeated Team Rocket with Pikachu’s Thunderbolt and Infernape’s Fire Blast, sending the trio blasting off as Meyer watched.
• At the Sycamore Pokémon Lab, Dawn said goodbye to Serena, who decided to finish her journey with Ash before possibly confessing her feelings.

Xiaoyun and Dawn took shelter from the rain in an abandoned house, where strange disturbances and a swordless scabbard led them to a diary about a young man and his sword, Blue-Gray. The diary ended with the wounded soldier wondering whether he and Blue-Gray would make it home, leaving the sword’s fate unclear.

• Rotom directed Xiaoyun and Dawn to a derelict house, where the door shut behind them and Xiaoyun spotted a strange reflection in a mirror shard.
• Dawn cleaned a study with Altaria’s Defog and found a diary beside an empty scabbard, while Rotom detected recent energy fluctuations.
• Xiaoyun found a fallen candlestick and a suit of armor holding another empty scabbard, and Infernape saw a swordlike shadow in a mirror.
• Xiaoyun joined Dawn as she read the diary, which described how a young man found, named, and bonded with the ancient sword Blue-Gray.
• The diary recounted the young man’s wartime service with Blue-Gray and ended with him wounded on a battlefield, asking whether they would return home safely.

Dawn and Xiaoyun discovered that the diary’s Blue-Gray was a Shiny Doublade and fought it as it attacked them. After Gengar helped Dawn reach the lonely Pokémon, Blue-Gray chose to join her, leaving the old Poké Ball and its memories behind.

• Dawn and Xiaoyun identified the hovering sword as a Shiny Doublade, and Xiaoyun recognized the scratch on its scabbard as belonging to Blue-Gray.
• Blue-Gray attacked Xiaoyun and Dawn, but Infernape and Gengar fought it off.
• Dawn took over the battle and Gengar defeated Blue-Gray with a combination of Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse.
• Dawn and Gengar urged Blue-Gray to move beyond its grief for its former Trainer.
• Blue-Gray brought Dawn an old Poké Ball and allowed her to catch it.

After catching Doublade, Dawn and Xiaoyun left the abandoned courtyard and met Penelope, who challenged Xiaoyun and said she would take him with her if she won. Dawn stepped in to battle Penelope instead, and the chapter ended as Sylveon attacked Doublade with Swift.

• Dawn caught Doublade, and Xiaoyun praised its loyalty and potential as her partner.
• That night, Doublade and the diary revealed images of its past as Blue-Gray, its lifelong bond with an old soldier, and its evolution into Doublade after his death.
• The next morning, Dawn and Xiaoyun left the courtyard, then released their Pokémon at a riverside campsite a few days later.
• Penelope appeared with Sylveon, challenged Xiaoyun, and said she would take him with her if she won.
• Dawn objected and chose Doublade to battle Penelope, while Piplup joined Shaymin and Victini to watch.
• Penelope sent Sylveon to use Swift against Doublade.

Dawn lost a battle to Penelope’s Sylveon after Doublade broke through Attract and won with a powerful strike, then she and Xiaoyun visited Penelope’s kindergarten. Their Pokémon met the children, and a playful battle began with Doublade and Eevee; Tyrunt and Piplup were next.

• Dawn battled Penelope’s Sylveon, and Doublade overcame Attract to defeat it with a powerful spectral blade attack.
• Penelope revealed she was a kindergarten teacher and invited Dawn and Xiaoyun to meet her students; they accepted and brought out several Pokémon.
• Xiaoyun suggested letting the children try commanding Pokémon in friendly battles, and Eevee, Tyrunt, Piplup, and Doublade agreed to participate.
• Lily commanded Eevee against Randy’s Doublade, while Doublade carefully dodged and restrained its attacks so the children could battle safely.
• Dawn and Xiaoyun praised Doublade’s rapport with Randy, and Tyrunt versus Piplup was set to follow.

Xiaoyun and Dawn watched Piplup and Tyrunt entertain the children before setting out again, where they encountered the injured ninja Sanpei. After learning that Sanpei’s friend Barry had been captured by a powerful Malamar, Xiaoyun agreed to help rescue him and healed Sanpei’s battered Frogadier for the journey into the valley.

• Piplup and Tyrunt staged a battle that turned serious when Tyrunt used Draco Meteor, but Piplup endured the attack with Iron Head and won the children’s admiration.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn left Penelope and the children the next day and soon found Sanpei unconscious on the road.
• Shaymin healed Sanpei, who explained that a wild Malamar had trapped his friend Barry while he escaped to seek help.
• Xiaoyun recognized Barry from Sanpei’s description and agreed to lead the rescue, despite Sanpei warning that Malamar had quickly defeated his Frogadier.
• At the valley entrance, Xiaoyun had Shaymin heal Sanpei’s injured Frogadier before they proceeded to face Malamar.

Xiaoyun and his companions followed an Inkay toward Malamar’s hideout, where they encountered a hypnotized Barry and fought his Pokémon. Shaymin and Floette knocked Barry unconscious, leaving the group to continue toward Malamar.

• Shaymin healed Sanpei, while Malamar watched the group from its cave and ordered Barry to deal with the intruders.
• Xiaoyun and his companions found a Shiny Froakie escaping several Inkay, and Xiaoyun defeated the Inkay before forcing one to lead them to Malamar.
• The Shiny Froakie secretly followed the group, while hypnotized Barry blocked their way and attacked with Empoleon, Floatzel, and Golisopod.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn battled Barry’s Pokémon, with Deino and Tyrunt defeating Floatzel and badly injuring Empoleon as Dawn fought Golisopod.
• Shaymin and Floette struck Barry from behind, knocking him unconscious before he could continue the battle.