In the attendants' understanding, everything here was fake, yet the problem was that two ghostly handprints had truly been left on their ankles.
The surroundings suddenly fell silent as well. Aside from the occasional water dripping sound, the world seemed to sink into stillness; they could even clearly hear their own heartbeats and the flow of blood in their veins.
Then the fog around them abruptly grew thicker, so dense that they could no longer see the path ahead, and in the end they accidentally crashed into something solid.
"What is this? Ice?"
The attendant who had fallen rubbed his forehead and looked at the object blocking the way. Judging by the sensation, it seemed to be something like ice.
"Is this the end already? It wasn't much after all."
The two of them relaxed at this point, planning to look for an exit and leave, when one person suddenly noticed something wrong with the reflection on the ice. He seemed to see his own shadow smiling.
He rubbed his eyes, and the reflection in the ice made the same motion. Just as he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, the reflection's mouth suddenly split open, letting out a piercing, eerie laugh, and then swallowed the companion beside him in a single bite.
The severed limbs on the ground and the warm blood splashed across his face reminded him that this was no illusion.
The surrounding fog slowly dispersed, and countless ghosts seemed to lock onto him at that very moment. He tried to move his legs to run, but his own shadow grabbed them, leaving him only able to watch as those ghosts drew closer.
When his nerves were stretched to the breaking point, it felt as if his mind had been struck by a heavy hammer, and he instantly lost consciousness.
At that moment, the remaining foot of his swallowed companion gradually melted away, turning into a puddle of pink sludge.
This was a coordinated act between Gengar's curse-induced illusion and Ditto. From the moment the fog filled the air, the two of them had already been separated, with Ditto transforming into his companion.
Being swallowed was naturally an illusion as well. Ditto had merely turned into severed limbs at that instant.
Afterward, the two attendants who had fainted from fright were carried out. Watching all this, Sancho instead grew excited. The fact that it could scare his subordinates unconscious was proof enough that it was thrilling inside; after all, his men were professionally trained.
Because of their long-term interactions, the Celestial Dragon did not believe Tesoro would harm them, so he walked in without any guard. Here, he experienced the "greetings" of underworld ghosts, and one of the men at his side was also replaced by Ditto in the process.
In the end, when they left, Gengar slipped into Ditto's shadow and followed them onward to Mariejois.
While Ditto was about to infiltrate Mariejois, a creation myth-like event was quietly unfolding within Wano Country.
Inside the Reverse World, Giratina had already completed inspection of its territory and then vanished soundlessly from the Reverse World.
It seemed to have disappeared, but in reality it was everywhere, merely observing everything in the Reverse World from within its special dimension.
Most areas here were utterly silent. Vast amounts of rock and stone pillars were monotonous beyond measure; even the ocean was like a pool of stagnant water, devoid of life.
The Reverse World created by Arceus was merely an empty prototype, nothing more than a bare shell. Only as residents increased did decoration truly begin.
Several members of the Lunarian tribe had already settled here, and in their spare time they even helped Queen look after his botanical garden. This gave Queen the feeling that Shayna and King's relatives were far more friendly than the two of them.
But today, as several clouds were sent into the Reverse World by Arceus, this world began to show activity on a global scale.
"Heya!"
"Cha-ha!"
In the sky, two robust figures were colliding fiercely.
They possessed burly, muscular physiques. The one on the left was entirely green, adorned with purple raindrop-shaped and magatama-like patterns.
Its hair and beard resembled white clouds, and two long, sharp purple horns grew from its forehead. Its yellow eyes brimmed with fighting spirit, and blades formed of several whirlwinds had already gathered in its hands.
However, it had no legs. Its lower body was instead a vast expanse of pure white clouds, from within which extended a long purple tail.
The Cyclone Pokémon - Tornadus, one of the Forces of Nature from the Unova Region. Opposite it stood a similar blue, burly figure.
It shared an almost identical appearance to Tornadus, except its skin was sky blue instead of deep green, and its hair was not smooth and wavy but bent like lightning.
Its tail was covered in black spiked orbs, resembling a flail. At this moment, a pillar of lightning had already gathered in its hand and blasted toward Tornadus.
The Bolt Strike Pokémon - Thundurus, also one of the Forces of Nature from the Unova Region. It and Tornadus could be said to be natural rivals, so fighting was a common occurrence.
And this is also a common trait among Tier-Two Legendaries: either they are all subordinates of a more powerful Legendary Pokémon, or two of them are at odds with each other, with the remaining one typically taking on the crucial role of mediator.
But now, that mediator had not appeared. As Thundurus flew and roared, lightning struck the rocks below, leaving scorched marks unique to it upon the barren stone.
Tornadus was much the same. The traces left by its tail triggered powerful storms, placing parts of the Reverse World in a state of howling winds and torrential rain.
And as the battle intensified, Tornadus and Thundurus continued to exert similar effects on the uninhabited regions of the Reverse World.
Ordinarily, such destructive behavior would be stopped by Giratina, but this time it was not. Giratina had already tacitly approved it.
Because this was not mere destruction. The battle between Thundurus and Tornadus stirred the atmosphere, allowing the seasons to cycle endlessly. The unchanging Reverse World was gaining its own four seasons precisely because of their fight.
Seemingly finding the battle still not intense enough, Thundurus was the first to change form. The single horn on its head elongated, and the clouds of its lower body gathered into its arms, revealing two short legs. A blue, dragon-like creature appeared in the sky.
Seeing Thundurus's move, Tornadus was unwilling to be outdone. The clouds shifted to the base of its tail, and it transformed into a great bird.
This was the form change of Tornadus and Thundurus. Their humanoid appearances were merely disguises; this Therian Forme was their true combat form.
Just as the battle was growing ever fiercer and Giratina still had not appeared, a yellow figure descended first instead.
The same burly, muscular build, but with orange-yellow skin, and three horns atop its head.
The Abundance Pokémon - Landorus.
Watching Tornadus and Thundurus battle, Landorus directly inserted itself into the clash, spreading its arms and absorbing both of their attacks into its body.
Seeing that the two still had no intention of stopping, Landorus transformed into the shape of a tiger, clouds coiling around its feet as it soared through the air with the bearing of a flying tiger.
Under its roar, Thundurus and Tornadus finally came to a halt, but not because they feared Landorus. Unlike Rayquaza, Landorus did not possess the overwhelming strength to fight two at once.
Rather, they were giving face to Arceus. After all, Arceus's original command had been that in critical moments, they were to listen to Landorus and stop in time.
Although it is a Ground-type among the Forces of Nature, Landorus also possesses the Flying type.
It can even absorb wind and lightning and convert them into energy, transforming that energy into nourishment for the soil and thereby making the land fertile.
As the energy of Thundurus and Tornadus was gathered by Landorus into its tail, it began to rain down onto the land below.
Landorus was practically a symbol of abundance. Unlike the destruction caused by Tornadus and Thundurus, Landorus brought plentiful harvests to the land, and so was far more popular.
As the battle of the three Forces of Nature concluded, a new and unfamiliar figure appeared on the ground.
Different from Landorus and the others, this was a much smaller pink figure, with heart-shaped cloud hair atop its head, two strands of white hair by its ears, and a serpent-like tail coiled around its body.
The exception among the Forces of Nature—Enamorus, and also the only female.
Moreover, she was the counterpart exclusive to Landorus. This was why Landorus differed from the entirely male group of Thundurus and Tornadus. According to gossip, this was also an important reason why they refused to submit to Landorus.
At this moment, the land of the Reverse World had been blasted by Thundurus and swept by Tornadus, then sown with energy by Landorus, becoming a brand-new stretch of newborn soil.
Meanwhile, Enamorus was hovering above, sowing seeds to rejuvenate the land. The power within it transformed into various kinds of seeds, bringing vibrant life to the earth. As the god of spring, this was Enamorus's unique mission.
When the mission of the four Forces of Nature was complete, part of the Reverse World had already become lush and green, with countless plants beginning to multiply.
They did not stop there. Instead, they continued to cultivate the Reverse World, bringing even more vitality to it. After they departed, several Lunarians emerged once more.
Holding the newly reborn soil in their hands, they could faintly see the legends once passed down within their tribe coming true one by one.
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