Recaps

Ash awakened his Aura during a battle with Lu Chen's Garchomp, strengthening his bond with Charizard but still losing the match. The Elite Four then decided to send Lorelei and Bruno to investigate Lu Chen, while an egg in Ash's backpack began to crack.

• Ash ordered Charizard to battle Garchomp, but Garchomp blocked Flamethrower and knocked Charizard out of the air.
• Ash's determination awakened his Aura, which linked him to Charizard and increased Charizard's strength.
• Ash and Charizard used Dragon Pulse, but Garchomp pushed through the attack and knocked Charizard unconscious.
• Ash accepted the loss and promised to face Lu Chen again at the Pokémon League Conference, while Professor Oak announced a farewell feast.
• Ash's Pokémon Egg trembled after sensing his Aura, and a small crack appeared in its shell.
• Lance assigned Lorelei and Bruno to investigate Lu Chen, and Lorelei eagerly prepared to return to Pallet Town to see Lu Chen's Ancient Lapras.

Ash's Pokémon Egg hatched into Froakie, surprising Lu Chen with the Pokémon's connection to Ash's Aura. Lorelei visited Lu Chen and coyly asked whether they could try her earlier suggestion, leaving the others stunned.

• Ash rushed to Lu Chen's farm and revealed that his Pokémon Egg had hatched into Froakie.
• Lu Chen recognized Froakie and recalled that it would one day form the Bond Phenomenon with Ash.
• Ash eagerly welcomed Froakie as his new partner and promised they would grow stronger together.
• Aerodactyl initially blocked Lorelei and Professor Oak from entering, but let them pass after Lu Chen gave permission.
• Lorelei asked Lu Chen why he had not replied to her messages, and he said he had accidentally blocked her.
• Lorelei leaned close to Lu Chen and asked whether they could try her earlier suggestion, shocking Ash, Misty, Brock, and Professor Oak.

Lorelei tried to pair her Lapras with Lu Chen’s, but his scarred ancient Lapras rejected it. Bruno arrived at the farm and challenged Lu Chen to a spar, leaving Ash and Misty wondering whether Lu Chen could match him in hand-to-hand combat.

• Lorelei persuaded Lu Chen to let her Lapras meet his, and he agreed on the condition that his Lapras’s wishes came first.
• Lu Chen’s ancient Lapras ignored Lorelei’s Lapras, which retreated sadly while Lorelei comforted it and privately vowed to bring an aphrodisiac next time.
• A giant Onix approached the farm with Bruno riding atop it, but it stopped before reaching the property.
• Bruno introduced his newly caught Onix, sensed that Lu Chen was dangerous, and asked to spar with him.
• Professor Oak and Lorelei objected to Bruno’s challenge, while Ash and Misty recalled Lu Chen’s strength and scars and suspected he could hold his own.

Lu Chen defeated Elite Four member Bruno in a barehanded sparring match, astonishing Professor Oak and Lorelei with his skill and strength. After returning to his tea, Lu Chen asked Bruno and Lorelei why they had come to his farm.

• Bruno challenged Lu Chen to a hand-to-hand sparring match, and Lu Chen accepted.
• Lu Chen matched Bruno's attacks, then used Bruno's momentum to throw him to the ground.
• Bruno admitted defeat and praised Lu Chen's fighting skills, while Professor Oak and Lorelei watched in shock.
• Lorelei stared at Lu Chen's scarred, muscular body before he covered himself with a spare set of clothes.
• Lu Chen returned to his seat and asked Bruno and Lorelei what had brought the two Elite Four members to his farm.

Bruno and Lorelei discovered that Lu Chen was raising the supposedly extinct Kabuto and Kabutops on his farm, deepening their appreciation of his abilities. As they prepared to leave, Lu Chen revealed that he had entered the Pokémon League Conference, leaving them stunned.

• Bruno and Lorelei explained that Lance had sent them to investigate whether Lu Chen was connected to the newly appeared super-giant Pokémon, and Lu Chen calmly denied it.
• Lorelei spotted a newborn Kabuto by her feet and recognized it as a supposedly extinct Fossil Pokémon.
• Kabutops burst from the farm's river, scooped up the mischievous Kabuto, and disappeared back into the water, astonishing the visitors.
• Lorelei realized Lu Chen was breeding Fossil Pokémon, while Bruno recognized that Lu Chen's value extended beyond his strength.
• Bruno and Lorelei prepared to leave for the Pokémon League Conference, and Lorelei gave Lu Chen her private number again.
• Lu Chen told Bruno and Lorelei that he had entered the Pokémon League Conference, shocking them.

Misty traded the Cerulean Gym’s Water-type Pokémon raising program for the chance to raise Kabuto, and Lu Chen also lent her an Omanyte. Misty left with both Pokémon and promised to return them when they could breed.

• Bruno and Lorelei were stunned when Lu Chen said he would enter the Pokémon League Conference, then left to report back to Lance.
• After Bruno and Lorelei left, Misty asked Lu Chen to let her catch Kabuto and offered the Cerulean Gym’s Water-type raising program in exchange.
• Lu Chen accepted Misty’s offer and agreed to lend her both Kabuto and Omanyte, requiring her to return them once they could breed.
• Lu Chen introduced Misty to Kabuto and Omanyte, and she captured both Pokémon with Poké Balls.
• Misty gave Lu Chen the Cerulean Gym’s raising program and asked him to keep it confidential; Lu Chen agreed.

Lu Chen joined the group traveling to the Kanto League Conference, then slipped away from its opening speeches and encountered the young Aura Guardian Aaron. Recognizing Aaron as the son of an old friend, Lu Chen was confronted over his remarks about Aura Guardian clothing.

• Misty celebrated after Lu Chen agreed to let her help raise two Water-type fossil Pokémon, while he refused Ash's offer because Ash had not properly cared for Froakie.
• Professor Oak asked Lu Chen to carry the sacred flame at the League opening ceremony, but Lu Chen declined because it was Moltres's flame rather than Ho-Oh's.
• Lu Chen brought his Pokémon to the Indigo Plateau for the Kanto League Conference and asked a Steelix in Viridian Forest to guard his farm.
• Lu Chen grew bored during the opening speeches, left the venue, and spotted a young Aura Guardian accompanied by Lucario.
• Aaron defended the Aura Guardians' capes and hats after Lu Chen called their outfit dated, and Lu Chen recognized Aaron as the son of an old friend.

Lu Chen met Aaron and unsettled him with questions about the Aura Clan before leaving, while Aaron focused on the Pokémon League qualifiers. Lu Chen then recruited Zorua for a mission involving Garchomp’s Poké Ball, though the details remained unfinished.

• Lu Chen questioned Aaron about his Aura Guardian heritage, leaving Aaron and Lucario wary and confused.
• Lu Chen left, and Lucario sensed that he felt strangely trustworthy because of a deep, inherited connection.
• Aaron received his assignment to Zone D and set off excitedly for the qualifiers with Lucario.
• Lu Chen received his own preliminary qualifier assignment and lamented missing the food street at Indigo Plateau.
• Lu Chen threatened to make Zorua lose weight if he failed a mission, prompting Zorua to eagerly accept.
• Lu Chen began instructing Zorua to take Garchomp’s Poké Ball, but the chapter ended before he explained the full mission.

Ash, Misty, and Brock encountered someone they believed was Lu Chen at the Rocket Fried Noodles stall, then saw a report showing the real Lu Chen battling elsewhere at the same time. Lu Chen revealed that the lookalike was a Zorua, while Aaron watched from hiding and learned the truth.

• Ash led Misty and Brock to the Indigo Plateau food street, where they found Lu Chen eating Rocket Fried Noodles beside Gengar.
• The Team Rocket Trio nervously served Ash, Misty, and Brock, then wondered whether Lu Chen’s praise meant they should change careers.
• Ash and his friends saw a report of Lu Chen’s Garchomp winning three battles in Arena A and realized the Lu Chen at the food stall could not have been real.
• Lu Chen met the lookalike in a grove, where it transformed into Zorua and explained through telepathy that it could not speak human language.
• Lu Chen rewarded Zorua with a spicy giant squid skewer, while Aaron watched from hiding and recognized the transformation.

Aaron grew determined to defeat Lu Chen after condemning him for having Zorua battle in his place, while Lu Chen enjoyed a feast with his Pokémon. The next day, Aaron mistook Gary’s cheerleading entourage and Pallet Town roots for more evidence of the town’s trainers’ behavior, and his match with Gary began.

• Aaron resolved to defeat Lu Chen and gripped the rainbow-colored gemstone his clan elder had given him before leaving into the woods.
• Lu Chen returned to the hotel, brought out Aerodactyl, Lapras, and Gouging Fire, and shared the food he had bought with them.
• Aaron faced Gary in Zone D and bristled when he saw Gary’s matching cheerleaders cheering for him.
• After learning Gary also came from Pallet Town, Aaron blamed him for Lu Chen’s behavior and demanded they battle.
• Gary accepted the challenge and sent out Blastoise.

Aaron defeated Gary in a battle by using Lucario’s Heart of Aura to evade Blastoise’s attacks. Afterward, Aaron revealed he knew Lu Chen and vowed to defeat him and get justice for the Trainers he believed Lu Chen had deceived.

• Aaron sent Lucario against Gary’s Blastoise, and Lucario damaged it with Aura Sphere and a close-range strike.
• Gary switched to Arcanine, which injured Lucario with a feint and a bite, but Lucario blasted Arcanine away with a point-blank Aura Sphere.
• Gary sent Blastoise back into battle, but Lucario entered the Heart of Aura and evaded every Hydro Pump with its eyes closed.
• Lucario defeated Blastoise with a final Aura Sphere, and the referee declared Aaron the winner.
• Aaron told Gary to warn Lu Chen that he would defeat him and seek justice for the Trainers he believed Lu Chen had toyed with.

After losing to Aaron, Gary told Lu Chen that Aaron had vowed to defeat him and claimed to know his secret. Lu Chen realized Aaron had likely witnessed Zorua impersonating him, while Gary quietly struggled with his defeat after Lu Chen left.

• Gary called Professor Oak and asked him to arrange a meeting with Lu Chen so he could relay Aaron's warning.
• Gary told Lu Chen that Aaron accused him of tricking Trainers, said he knew Lu Chen's secret, and promised to defeat him.
• Lu Chen suspected Aaron had seen Zorua take his appearance and compete in his place, and decided to answer Aaron's public challenge.
• Lu Chen encouraged Gary to keep trying for the main tournament, then reassured Professor Oak and accepted pastries from Delia.
• After Lu Chen left, Gary sat in the dark and berated himself for failing to defeat any of Aaron's Pokémon.

After Gary resolved to train harder following his defeat, the Kanto League main tournament began with Aaron swiftly winning his opening match. Aaron then publicly challenged an unnamed competitor, and his gaze made clear that Lu Chen was his target.

• Gary reflected on his loss to Aaron, resolved to grow stronger, and opened the curtains as Professor Oak and Delia listened outside his room.
• Lu Chen told Professor Oak that Gary had finally learned from hardship, then wondered what Aaron was planning as he headed back with Gengar and Aerodactyl.
• The Kanto League main tournament began at Indigo Plateau, where Lu Chen, Aaron, Ash, Gary, and other contenders were introduced among the favorites.
• Aaron defeated Xiao Qin’s Electabuzz, Bellossom, and Fearow with Togekiss and Lucario, becoming the first contestant to advance to the top sixteen.
• Aaron announced that he would defeat a competitor who disrespected the arena and its Trainers, and Ash and Gary looked toward Lu Chen in the competitors’ lounge.

Lu Chen restrained Gengar from attacking Aaron and promised to answer Aaron’s criticism by showing his strength in battle. Facing veteran Trainer Wang Hao in the round of 32, Lu Chen surprised the crowd by sending out Gouging Fire instead of Garchomp, leaving the battle poised to begin.

• Gengar rushed toward Aaron, but Lu Chen called him back and stopped him from attacking.
• Lu Chen told Gengar they would demonstrate their strength in battle, and agreed to let Gengar go first when they faced Aaron.
• Lu Chen entered the tournament arena and met Wang Hao, a veteran Trainer from Saffron City.
• Wang Hao began the match by sending out Bronzong, which he had chosen to counter Garchomp.
• Lu Chen sent out Gouging Fire instead of Garchomp.

Lu Chen sent out the unknown Gouging Fire and defeated Wang Hao’s Bronzong so decisively that Wang Hao forfeited. As the stadium erupted, Professor Oak stepped forward to identify the Pokémon for the audience.

• Lu Chen sent out Gouging Fire, startling the crowd and Wang Hao, who had prepared to battle Garchomp.
• Wang Hao ordered Bronzong to use Flash Cannon, but Gouging Fire blocked it without injury.
• Lu Chen commanded Gouging Fire to use Flamethrower, whose heat scorched Bronzong and cracked the battlefield’s protective barrier.
• Wang Hao forfeited Bronzong’s match, and Lu Chen accepted the victory.
• Bruno, Lance, Agatha, and Lorelei reacted to Gouging Fire, while staff failed to find it in the Pokédex.
• Professor Oak took the microphone and offered to introduce Gouging Fire to the audience.

Professor Oak introduced Lu Chen’s Gouging Fire as a Paradox Pokémon, and Wang Hao sent out his ace Blaziken to continue their battle. As Blaziken attacked with a fused move, Lu Chen ordered Gouging Fire to use Sacred Fire.

• Professor Oak explained that Gouging Fire was a rare Fire- and Dragon-type Pokémon distinct from Entei and named its category Paradox Pokémon.
• Wang Hao realized Lu Chen was the Trainer Aaron had criticized for holding back, but chose to continue battling rather than forfeit.
• Wang Hao sent out his Gym-peak ace Blaziken instead of the Pokémon he had prepared to face Garchomp.
• Wang Hao ordered Blaziken to attack with a flaming combination of High Jump Kick and Blaze Kick.
• Lu Chen recognized Blaziken’s training and ordered Gouging Fire to use Sacred Fire.

Lu Chen’s Gouging Fire used Sacred Fire to help Wang Hao’s Blaziken break through to Elite Four level during their battle. Wang Hao forfeited, and the crowd and Lance praised Lu Chen as a good man, while Aaron grew frightened by Gouging Fire’s strength.

• Gouging Fire’s golden flames appeared, and Entei, Raikou, and Suicune sensed their master’s aura from across Kanto.
• Gouging Fire overwhelmed Blaziken with Sacred Fire, but Lance stopped the referee from intervening and explained that Gouging Fire was helping Blaziken.
• Blaziken endured the flames, broke through to Elite Four level, and gained faint traces of golden fire in his own flames before collapsing.
• Wang Hao cradled Blaziken, forfeited the battle, and thanked Lu Chen, who recalled Gouging Fire and left the arena.
• The audience applauded Lu Chen, Lance agreed that he was an upright, good man, and Aaron felt chilled by Gouging Fire’s power.

After Lu Chen won overwhelmingly, he brushed off Aaron’s criticism and set out with his Pokémon, but Gouging Fire’s Sacred Fire drew Ho-Oh’s three emissaries to him. The chapter ended with Raikou, Suicune, and Entei confronting Lu Chen and Gouging Fire.

• Lu Chen’s victory sent his support above ninety-nine percent, while Ash vowed to keep fighting despite the gap between them.
• Aaron confronted Lu Chen over using Zorua, and Gengar secretly marked Aaron’s forehead with ghostly pigment that would cause nightmares.
• Lu Chen’s Pokémon chose to visit the snack street, but a north wind alerted them to approaching Legendary Pokémon.
• Aerodactyl spotted three unknown Legendary Pokémon closing in from different directions, and Lu Chen realized Gouging Fire’s Sacred Fire had summoned Ho-Oh’s emissaries.
• Raikou, Suicune, and Entei arrived, and Gouging Fire stepped forward to face them.

Lu Chen explained Gouging Fire’s connection to Entei to the Legendary Beasts, who asked him to help find the missing Ho-Oh before disappearing. Lorelei then approached Lu Chen with another request to breed their Lapras, and revealed that she feared Lapras would go extinct in the Kanto Region.

• Entei, Suicune, and Raikou mistook Gouging Fire for a possible relative of Entei before Lu Chen explained its connection to a Ho-Oh from a parallel world.
• The Legendary Beasts asked Lu Chen to help find Ho-Oh, gave him a water droplet as a way to contact them, and departed when footsteps approached.
• Lorelei congratulated Lu Chen on advancing, then offered him fifty million and an aphrodisiac to arrange a Lapras breeding attempt.
• Lapras splashed both Lorelei and Lu Chen with Water Guns, refusing Lorelei’s proposal.
• Lorelei explained that she wanted baby Lapras because she did not want Lapras to go extinct in the Kanto Region, and Gengar placed a towel on her head.

Lorelei told Lu Chen how poachers and changing temperatures had driven the Lapras population near the Seafoam Islands toward extinction. After Lu Chen’s Lapras refused to help breed, he suggested there might be another way to help the Kanto Lapras adapt, and Lorelei eagerly asked him to explain.

• Lorelei recalled growing up alongside the Lapras near the Seafoam Islands and returning to find their numbers greatly reduced.
• Lorelei explained that poachers had hunted the Lapras and that abnormal temperature changes later made their habitat increasingly unlivable.
• Lorelei asked to use Lu Chen’s Lapras’s bloodline to help her Lapras adapt to warmer seas, but Lu Chen’s Lapras firmly refused.
• Lu Chen suggested helping the Kanto Lapras adapt without breeding, and Lorelei asked him to tell her more.

Lorelei asked Lu Chen for help with the Lapras struggling to adapt to the Seafoam Islands’ abnormal climate, and he outlined two risky solutions before agreeing to visit after the Pokémon League Conference. Ash and Gary advanced to the top sixteen and faced each other in a six-on-six match, which was still undecided after each lost five Pokémon.

• Lu Chen told Lorelei he could investigate the climate’s cause or use reformulated ultra-ancient medicines, though both options carried drawbacks, and agreed to visit the Seafoam Islands after the Conference.
• Ash told Lu Chen that he and Gary had made the top sixteen, and Lu Chen learned Ash had defeated Ritchie with Charizard and Pikachu.
• Ash and Gary were paired against each other in the top-sixteen round, a six-on-six battle, and both sent out their first Pokémon.
• Ash’s Pikachu and Gary’s Arcanine traded attacks before Gary’s Blastoise knocked Pikachu out with Hydro Pump.
• The announcer reported that Ash and Gary had each lost five Pokémon, leaving one Pokémon apiece as the match continued.

Ash defeated Gary to advance to the quarterfinals, but later lost to Aaron and refused his invitation to join the Aura Clan. Lu Chen and Aaron advanced to the finals after their opponents conceded or were defeated.

• Ash and Gary sent out Charizard and Blastoise for their final battle, and Ash used their bond to strengthen Charizard’s Flamethrower until it overpowered Blastoise’s Hydro Pump.
• The referee declared Ash the winner, and Gary recalled Blastoise before quietly leaving the battlefield.
• Aaron recognized Ash as an Aura Guardian, while Lu Chen’s young opponent conceded and asked him for an autograph.
• Lu Chen and Aaron defeated their subsequent opponents and advanced to the finals, while Aaron defeated Ash in the quarterfinals with Lucario.
• Aaron invited Ash to train with the Aura Clan, but Ash refused and declared he would remain a trainer from Pallet Town, Gary’s friend, and Lu Chen’s neighbor.

Aaron recognized that Lu Chen’s profile resembled a portrait in the first Aura Guardian’s notebook and feared Lu Chen might be that Guardian’s ancient master. After both Trainers advanced to the tournament final, Aaron sent out Lucario while Lu Chen chose Gengar.

• Ash rejected Aaron’s warning about Lu Chen and left to get Pikachu treated, while Aaron realized he could not expose Lu Chen without looking spiteful.
• Aaron connected Lu Chen’s profile to a chibi portrait in the first Aura Guardian’s notebook and recalled Lu Chen’s unusual questions about the Aura Clan’s ancient history.
• Aaron hurried away from Lu Chen, who watched him leave in confusion as Gengar reacted just as perplexedly.
• Lu Chen and Aaron won their quarterfinal and semifinal matches without meeting and advanced to the final.
• At the final, Aaron sent out Lucario, and Lu Chen called on Gengar to battle.

Aaron’s Lucario underwent an unknown transformation after reacting to the Mega Stone, becoming Mega Lucario Z. Professor Oak admitted he did not recognize the form and suggested Lu Chen might know what it was.

• Lu Chen sent out Gengar, whose appearance and Aura unsettled Aaron and Lucario.
• Aaron used the warm, rainbow-patterned stone given to him by his clan leader, and its light connected him with Lucario.
• Lucario glowed, transformed, and emerged as Mega Lucario Z, a form that strengthened its Aura.
• The audience and Elite Four reacted in shock, while Lu Chen recognized the transformation as Lucario Z.
• Professor Oak told the audience that Lu Chen might be the only person present who recognized Mega Lucario Z.

Lu Chen explained Lucario Z’s form as Aaron prepared to challenge Gengar, believing its new Elite Four-level strength could win the match. Gengar effortlessly avoided and deflected Lucario Z’s Aura Spheres, and Lu Chen told it to end the battle.

• Lu Chen named Lucario’s new form Lucario Z and explained that it came from training Aura and resonating with an Aura Guardian.
• Aaron realized Lucario Z had reached Elite Four-level strength and became hopeful that he could defeat Lu Chen.
• Aaron ordered Lucario Z to use Foresight and Aura Sphere, but Gengar casually stepped aside and let the attack miss.
• Aaron commanded Lucario Z to fire a barrage of Aura Spheres, but Gengar yawned as every attack veered away without touching it.
• Lu Chen told Gengar to stop playing around and finish the match, and Gengar vanished.