Chapter Summaries

Xiaoyun and Dawn faced Zoey and Conway in a double battle, but both sides initially waited for the other to attack. After the referee warned them, the fight began, and it ended with Slowking immobilizing Ursaring just as it prepared to fire Hyper Beam.

• Zoey sent out Glameow and Conway sent out Slowking, while Xiaoyun and Dawn chose Ursaring and Pachirisu.
• After both teams stalled for five minutes, the referee warned them to start battling or face penalties.
• Xiaoyun ordered Ursaring to use Brick Break on Glameow, while Dawn sent Pachirisu’s Discharge toward Slowking.
• Conway used Slowking’s Psychic to redirect Discharge into Ursaring, and Zoey followed with Glameow’s Fury Swipes.
• Ursaring endured the attacks and nearly struck Glameow with Brick Break, but Conway pulled it clear with Confusion.
• Zoey and Conway switched to ranged attacks, then Slowking used Psychic to hold Ursaring still and stop its Hyper Beam.

Xiaoyun and Dawn used Pachirisu’s Follow Me and Volt Absorb to disrupt Conway and Zoey’s tactics, while Ursaring’s Guts and Belly Drum turned it into a berserk powerhouse. Ursaring broke through Slowking’s Protect and knocked out both opponents, giving Xiaoyun and Dawn the victory.

• Dawn redirected Glameow’s Thunderbolt into Pachirisu with Follow Me, letting Volt Absorb restore Pachirisu’s stamina.
• Pachirisu paralyzed Ursaring with Thunder Wave, activating Ursaring’s Guts and increasing its attack power.
• Xiaoyun had Ursaring use Belly Drum, further boosting its strength as it charged at Slowking and Glameow.
• Pachirisu interrupted Slowking’s attempt to use Teleport and redirected Glameow’s Thunderbolt away from Ursaring.
• Slowking’s Protect briefly blocked Ursaring’s Lariat, but Ursaring shattered the barrier and knocked out Slowking and Glameow.
• The referee declared Xiaoyun and Dawn the winners.

Xiaoyun and Dawn defeated Conway in a hard-hitting battle, and the semifinals moved into their second half. Ash and Paul's match against Kenny and Barry began with their opponents combining two Hydro Pumps against Pikachu and Chimchar.

• The referee declared Xiaoyun and Dawn the winners after Ursaring overwhelmed Conway's team, drawing cheers from the crowd.
• Meowth and James sold snacks in the stands while Jessie warned them that they needed to catch Pikachu to earn promotions.
• Xiaoyun praised Dawn's support, and they shared a high five as they left the battlefield.
• The host announced that Kenny and Barry would face Ash and Paul in the second half of the semifinals.
• Ash sent out Pikachu, Paul sent out Chimchar, and Kenny and Barry chose Prinplup and Empoleon.
• Kenny and Barry combined their Pokémon's Hydro Pumps, while Pikachu dodged and Chimchar began using Dig.

Kenny and Barry coordinated their attacks to put Ash and Paul under pressure, but Chimchar rescued Pikachu and the Double Battle split into two fights. As Chimchar repeatedly fell under Empoleon’s attacks, Paul demanded that he keep fighting, leaving Ash to challenge Paul’s treatment of him.

• Pika dodged Hydro Pump while Chimchar used Dig, and Xiaoyun praised their coordination.
• Kenny and Barry focused their attacks on Pikachu, but Chimchar burst from underground and knocked Prinplup away before he could strike Pikachu.
• Paul and Kenny argued over the two-on-one attack, then Paul sent Chimchar against Empoleon while Ash and Kenny’s Pokémon fought separately.
• Empoleon’s Hydro Pump overwhelmed Chimchar’s Flamethrower, leaving Chimchar badly injured and struggling to stand.
• Paul ordered Chimchar to get up and keep using Flamethrower, and Ash protested that Chimchar had reached his limit.
• Paul asked Chimchar whether he was still unwilling to use the power inside him.

Chimchar failed to unleash its Blaze power and collapsed, while Ash’s Pikachu defeated Kenny’s Prinplup and Barry’s Empoleon with overwhelming attacks. Paul and Ash won the match, leaving Paul’s disappointment with Chimchar unmistakable.

• Paul watched Chimchar try to unleash its power, but its injuries overwhelmed it and the referee declared it unable to battle.
• Ash sent Pikachu against Barry and Kenny’s Pokémon, and Pikachu bypassed Empoleon to knock out Kenny’s injured Prinplup.
• Ash ordered Pikachu to attack Empoleon, and Pikachu broke through its Hyper Beam with High-Voltage Thunder Shock.
• The referee declared Paul and Ash the winners of the match.

After Ash and Paul defeated Barry, Paul released Chimchar and handed it over to Xiaoyun, who challenged Paul's belief that bonds were useless. Paul demanded that Xiaoyun prove bonds could turn Chimchar's talent into strength.

• Ash and Paul won after Pikachu defeated Barry's Empoleon, while Barry protested Pikachu's sudden strength.
• Paul released Chimchar in a grove outside Hearthome City, saying Chimchar had failed to master its power and no longer needed to follow him.
• Paul revealed that Xiaoyun had been listening and tossed him Chimchar's Poké Ball, keeping his promise to hand Chimchar over.
• Xiaoyun asked whether he could make Chimchar's talent real and whether Paul would regret giving it up.
• Paul challenged Xiaoyun to prove that bonds could build strength, arguing that bonds clouded judgment and strict training mattered more.

Xiaoyun convinced Paul’s injured Chimchar to join him, giving the Pokémon a new beginning. The next morning, Xiaoyun and Dawn faced Ash and Paul in the Hearthome Double Battle Competition finals as Ash and Paul sent out their first Pokémon.

• After Paul left Chimchar behind, Xiaoyun offered him a place on his team and promised to help him prove his strength.
• Chimchar accepted Xiaoyun as his new Trainer, and Xiaoyun took him to the Pokémon Center for Nurse Joy to examine.
• Dawn learned that Xiaoyun had taken in Paul’s Chimchar and angrily criticized Paul for abandoning him.
• At the Hearthome Double Battle Competition finals, Xiaoyun and Dawn entered the field to face Ash and Paul.
• Ash sent out Turtwig, and Paul sent out Electabuzz to begin the battle.

Xiaoyun sent Chimchar, Paul’s former Pokémon, into battle against Paul’s Electabuzz in the finals, while Dawn and Ash’s Pokémon fought on the other side of the field. Chimchar held his own against Electabuzz, but Paul’s command to use Thunder left Xiaoyun worried about what would happen next.

• Paul sent out Electabuzz, and Dawn sent out Piplup before Xiaoyun revealed that he would battle with Chimchar.
• Paul reacted with anger and humiliation at seeing his former Pokémon on Xiaoyun’s team, while Team Rocket approved of Chimchar’s new home.
• Xiaoyun encouraged Chimchar, who overcame his fear of Paul and stepped forward to battle.
• Paul ordered Electabuzz to use Thunderbolt, and Xiaoyun countered with Chimchar’s Flamethrower as Ash and Dawn began their own Pokémon battle.
• Electabuzz’s Wild Charge and Chimchar’s Flame Wheel collided in a stalemate, until Paul ordered Thunder and Xiaoyun realized Chimchar was in danger.

Chimchar awakened its mutated Blaze during its battle with Electabuzz, but the power overwhelmed its consciousness. Xiaoyun entered Chimchar’s inner world, comforted it as it relived its painful past, and helped it begin to reclaim control.

• Electabuzz struck the injured Chimchar with Thunder, and Paul called it useless.
• Chimchar forced open its sealed power and unleashed a towering Blaze, then attacked Electabuzz with a powerful stream of flames.
• Xiaoyun used the Power of Overcoming to enter Chimchar’s dark inner world and found it cowering beside unconscious Zangoose.
• Xiaoyun held Chimchar and reassured it, and Chimchar cried as it remembered its hardship and abandonment by Paul.
• Xiaoyun asked Chimchar to face its power with him, and Chimchar agreed as light began to fill its inner world.

Xiaoyun and Dawn won the Double Battle tournament after Chimchar mastered its Mutated Blaze and defeated Ash and Paul’s Pokémon. The chapter ended with Paul silently leaving as the crowd reacted to Chimchar’s strength.

• Chimchar regained control of its power, and Xiaoyun ordered it to use Flamethrower against Electabuzz and Turtwig.
• Chimchar’s Flamethrower shattered Electabuzz’s Protect, knocked out Turtwig, and eliminated Ash.
• Chimchar defeated Electabuzz with Flame Wheel after overpowering its Wild Charge, and the referee declared Xiaoyun and Dawn the winners.
• Chimchar stared at Paul after the battle, but Paul recalled Electabuzz and walked away without speaking.
• Rhonda announced Xiaoyun and Dawn as the tournament champions, while the spectators and contestants reacted to Chimchar’s overwhelming strength.

Xiaoyun and Dawn accepted their prizes after winning the Hearthome City Double Battle tournament, and Xiaoyun sent Chimchar to Professor Rowan for an examination of its mutated Blaze. Paul left to continue his journey after telling Xiaoyun to take over caring for one Pokémon, completing their handover.

• Rhonda presented Xiaoyun and Dawn with the tournament prizes, including collector's edition stickers, a Spell Tag, and two Soothe Bells.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn divided the prizes and celebrated their tournament victory as the event officially ended.
• Xiaoyun called Professor Rowan, sent Chimchar to him for examination, and asked him to investigate the mutated Blaze and possible side effects.
• Xiaoyun asked Paul whether he regretted his choice, and Paul told him he was leaving one Pokémon in Xiaoyun's care before walking away.

In Tajixi Town, Xiaoyun and Dawn ran into a dejected James while strolling among the food stalls. James revealed that his mood was troubled by something involving his Cacnea, and he began to explain as Xiaoyun and Dawn listened.

• Xiaoyun and Dawn explored Tajixi Town’s food stalls, and Xiaoyun reluctantly bought a large amount of durian cake after Dawn eyed it.
• Dawn spotted James sitting alone, and Xiaoyun and Dawn went over to ask what was wrong.
• James nervously greeted Xiaoyun, who teased him about his supposed troubles before James clarified that his current problem involved Cacnea.
• James released Cacnea, pulled it off his face after it jabbed him, and began telling Xiaoyun and Dawn what had happened.

Xiaoyun taught James's Cacnea to use Drain Punch, giving James the confidence to keep raising it himself. Gardenia later came looking for James, who thanked her but chose to leave with Cacnea, while Xiaoyun teased her about wanting the Pokémon.

• James told Xiaoyun he planned to give Cacnea to Gardenia because he could not help it reach its potential, and Xiaoyun offered to teach it Drain Punch.
• James gave Xiaoyun all his saved bottle caps in exchange for the lesson, but Xiaoyun refused them and agreed to teach Cacnea.
• Xiaoyun and Sceptile trained Cacnea until it mastered Drain Punch and shattered a rock.
• James embraced Cacnea and decided to keep raising it instead of giving it to Gardenia.
• James thanked Gardenia and left with Cacnea, while Xiaoyun teased Gardenia about coveting the Pokémon.

After leaving Gardenia, Xiaoyun and Dawn camped in a dilapidated village, where an old woman told them a legend about a ghost sealed in the Spirit Tower. She recognized Xiaoyun as a psychic and pointed out the nearby tower, which turned out to be a tiny, crude hut.

• Xiaoyun and Dawn left Tajixi Town and camped in a run-down village as night fell.
• An old woman approached them, accepted their dinner invitation, and told them about an evil ghost sealed inside the Tower of Imprison by an Aura Guardian and his Pikachu.
• The old woman told Xiaoyun that he was a psychic with a special ability and could carry on the guardian's convictions.
• Xiaoyun asked where the Spirit Tower was, and the old woman pointed to a small hut nearby.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn compared the crude Spirit Tower to a miniature building-block house.

The Spirit Tower collapsed when Team Rocket crashed into it, releasing a powerful Spiritomb that attacked Xiaoyun and Dawn. Xiaoyun sent Mismagius to fight it, while Darkrai waited in the shadows in case Mismagius was overwhelmed.

• An unidentified object struck the Spirit Tower and reduced it to rubble, prompting the old woman to warn that the sealed ghost would emerge.
• The old woman urged Xiaoyun and Dawn to investigate, then vanished and left them to handle the danger.
• Team Rocket climbed out of the crater, but Spiritomb appeared and blasted them away with a phantom attack.
• Xiaoyun recognized Spiritomb as the Pokémon sealed at the tower and learned from Dawn's Pokédex that it was unusually powerful.
• Spiritomb mistook Xiaoyun for an Aura Guardian before attacking him and Dawn with Night Shade.
• Xiaoyun sent out Mismagius to counter Spiritomb's attack and told Dawn he would handle the battle while Darkrai watched for signs that Mismagius was losing.

Xiaoyun and Mismagius battled Spiritomb, whose doubles and shadow movement let it evade attacks and overwhelm Mismagius. When Mismagius learned Destiny Bond and chased Spiritomb, Xiaoyun called on Darkrai to stop them both.

• Xiaoyun stepped in front of Dawn and sent Mismagius to attack Spiritomb with Will-O-Wisp.
• Spiritomb used Double Team and Shadow Sneak together to evade Mismagius’s attacks and knock it back.
• Xiaoyun figured out Spiritomb’s trick and told Mismagius to locate it with psychic power and hit it with Shadow Ball.
• Mismagius’s Shadow Ball struck Spiritomb, but Spiritomb countered with Dark Pulse and nearly defeated Mismagius.
• Mismagius rose and charged Spiritomb with Destiny Bond, prompting Xiaoyun to summon Darkrai.
• Darkrai bound Mismagius with shadow ropes and interrupted Destiny Bond.

Xiaoyun defeated and caught the ancient Spiritomb after Darkrai threatened it into submission. The village elder returned with helpers and the prophecy book, only to discover the battle was already over.

• Darkrai defeated Spiritomb with a powerful Shadow Ball, and Xiaoyun comforted Mismagius before approaching the injured Spiritomb.
• Xiaoyun offered Spiritomb a chance to become his Pokémon, but Darkrai threatened it until it obediently entered the Poké Ball.
• Xiaoyun checked Spiritomb’s Pokédex information and reassured Dawn that Darkrai would keep the unruly Pokémon in line.
• The old woman returned with several villagers and an ancient book, but Xiaoyun told her he had already caught Spiritomb.
• The old woman reassured Xiaoyun that his actions caused no trouble, then made an outrageous move that stunned him and Dawn.

After leaving the village, Xiaoyun and Dawn traveled through the forest toward Solaceon Town and found a castle where they hoped to stay for the night. They were mistaken for the Three Phantom Thief Beauties but were allowed inside after Massif recognized them as Double Battle competitors he admired.

• The old granny added a new ending to the book of prophecy, then watched Xiaoyun and Dawn leave and reflected on his future as a temple guardian.
• Xiaoyun and Dawn walked through the forest at night, and Xiaoyun assured the exhausted Dawn that a castle marked on his map was nearby.
• They reached a brightly lit castle, where Marble and her Luxray confronted them as the Three Phantom Thief Beauties.
• Xiaoyun pointed out that it was only eight in the evening, not midnight, and Marble realized she had mistaken them for the thieves.
• Massif confirmed that Xiaoyun and Dawn were not the thieves, let them into the castle, and told them he was a fan of their Double Battle matches.

Xiaoyun and Dawn agreed to help Massif protect the Ancient Amulet from the Three Phantom Thief Beauties. By midnight, Marble’s simple plan to guard the treasure had left her asleep, while Xiaoyun and Dawn waited uncertainly for the thieves.

• Massif told Xiaoyun and Dawn that the Three Phantom Thief Beauties had sent a calling card announcing they would steal the Ancient Amulet at midnight.
• Dawn volunteered to help protect the treasure, and Massif introduced Marble, an inexperienced detective apprenticed to Mahogany Town’s Officer Jenny.
• After dinner, Marble announced that they would simply wait in the treasure room and guard the amulet.
• Near midnight, Dawn grew sleepy as Xiaoyun doubted the thieves would face much resistance.
• Xiaoyun discovered that Marble had fallen asleep against Luxray, drooling as she dreamed about being a great detective.

The Rocket Trio disguised themselves as castle staff and took the treasure, but Xiaoyun exposed them and battled them alongside Dawn. The trio escaped in a hot-air balloon, and James asked Jessie to return the treasure.

• The Rocket Trio tricked Marble into handing over the combination case by claiming they had orders from Mr. Massif.
• Xiaoyun exposed the trio as the Three Phantom Thief Beauties, and they dropped their disguises.
• Jessie sent Seviper and Dustox to attack, but Chimchar countered their Poison Sting with Flamethrower.
• James joined the fight with Carnivine and Cacnea, while Dawn ordered Piplup and Swablu to stop their attacks.
• Jessie and Meowth used smoke bombs to escape with the treasure in their hot-air balloon.
• Jessie asked James what was wrong, and James urged her to return the treasure.