"Screee—!"
Watching Thundurus finally collapse, completely unable to battle, Beedrill panted hard and dropped out of Mega Evolution.
After all, Mega Evolution was a trial for Trainers—but for Pokémon, wasn't it just as much of one?
If Beedrill hadn't already been strong in its own right, and if the Template hadn't been feeding it steady support…
It wouldn't have lasted anywhere near this long.
But.
Sweat always earns its reward.
After this battle, Beedrill broke through again—reaching LV93.
Seeing that, Guo Yi couldn't help but sigh.
Just like I thought! Battle really is the fastest, most way to gain strength!
Then he led Beedrill and Mewtwo over to Lie Ke.
"Lie Ke, your trump card doesn't look so hot."
Guo Yi's voice was pure mockery.
Yet faced with it, Lie Ke's expression twisted into a self-deprecating, bitter smile.
"Guo Yi… I never would've imagined it. Every last one of us got played by you."
His eyes locked on Guo Yi as he asked, word by word, "You're the 'Bug Master' all along, aren't you?"
"Oh? So you figured it out."
Even with Lie Ke calling out his true identity, Guo Yi's face stayed calm.
A dead man—"zero two seven"—knowing the truth didn't change anything.
With Guo Yi admitting it, Lie Ke instead seemed to relax, and he actually smiled.
"Hahahaha…"
"I used to think I was a genius. That I only missed reaching the Champion because I got unlucky."
"Now I finally understand—compared to someone like you, I'm nothing."
Maybe because he knew he didn't have long left, Lie Ke felt as if the clouds had finally parted and the light had returned.
He shook his head, helpless.
Then he stared at Guo Yi and said, "We accounted for everything… and still, we never once imagined you were the 'Bug Master' in person."
"If I'd known, I would've had the Leader bring Kyurem and take you down with it!"
If they could capture Guo Yi, then the Seven Sages' plan might truly have had a chance.
But when Guo Yi heard him talk so brazenly, he couldn't but burst his bubble.
"Just that ice dragon, and you think that highly of it?"
"If it were a Kyurem that had absorbed Zekrom's or Reshiram's power, then sure—I'd have to be a little wary. But a Kyurem in its normal form? It's not even enough for my Mewtwo to warm up on."
Kyurem might count as a Major Legendary Pokémon, but without the power of the dragons of truth and ideals, it really was nothing special.
This time, Lie Ke didn't argue back. He only closed his eyes in silence.
As the loser…
Anything he said now would be pointless.
Seeing that, Guo Yi called softly, "Beedrill."
Beedrill understood instantly. The long spear in its hand ended Lie Ke's life in one clean thrust.
Once famed in his era, the Fire-type Elite Four now slept forever in this Secret Realm.
Whether it was because of the grudge between Guo Yi and Lie Ke, or because Lie Ke had learned his true identity…
Guo Yi had no intention of leaving him alive.
As for enemies—if he could cut the weeds out by the root, he would never show mercy.
...
After a quick cleanup of the battlefield, Guo Yi had Mewtwo carry them out of the Secret Realm.
Not long after he left, the Secret Realm vanished completely.
More precisely—it wasn't just this one. Secret Realms all around Yunlong Dam began shrinking away in large numbers.
Because these Secret Realms had been born from Thundurus's power in the first place.
Now that Thundurus was down, they naturally started to dissipate.
Even the cloud cover overhead thinned noticeably.
Within a one-kilometer radius of Yunlong Dam, Torkoal's Drought had forced the area straight into harsh sunlight—and it showed signs of continuing to spread outward.
At that moment, inside the command room, the staff member monitoring water levels shouted in shock.
"Chief Engineer Lin—the water level is dropping!"
That single shout snapped everyone's attention over.
"It is?!"
For the first time in ages, a smile broke across Chief Engineer Lin's face.
A falling water level meant this disaster might finally be ending.
The staffer checked again and again, then nodded firmly.
"It's dropping slowly, but it's definitely dropping!"
The moment that confirmation landed, the entire room erupted in cheers.
"That's great!"
"It's finally going to be over…"
"After all these days… we can finally go home."
For this whole stretch of time, not one person here had been able to relax.
Everyone had been strung tight to the breaking point.
Because Yunlong Dam was simply too important.
Its safety affected the livelihoods of hundreds of millions—there was no room for even the slightest mistake.
And now…
At last, it looked like the dust was settling.
Hah.
Chief Engineer Lin let out a long breath, then forced himself back into work mode.
"Xiao Yu, take a team and check the operating condition of the machinery inside the dam."
"We ran it overloaded for a while. There might be hidden risks—we have to inspect it ourselves."
"Understood, Chief Engineer Lin. I'll go right now!"
"Xiao Wang, check the situation along each river dike. See if the water level's dropping because somewhere gave way."
"This is critical. No sloppiness."
If the drop was caused by a breach…
Then it meant the crisis hadn't actually passed at all.
Of course. That possibility was small.
If a section had collapsed, they would've heard about it immediately.
Still, confirming the river dike situation in advance hurt nothing.
"Got it, Chief Engineer Lin."
Xiao Wang nodded, then started typing rapidly at the keyboard, sending out inquiries about the dikes.
"And also…"
...
Under Chief Engineer Lin's steady direction, the command room snapped back into motion.
Outside Yunlong Dam, at the various camps where students from elite universities were stationed, they noticed the weather shifting too.
"Look—the storm clouds are starting to break up."
"Huh, they really are! Does that mean the disaster's ending?"
"No wonder they didn't let us into the Secret Realm today. Turns out the League was making a big move."
"So unfair… I barely got anything this time!"
"Heh. I made a killing. Getting my whole team up to Gym Leader Tier won't even be a problem."
For a while, the camp buzzed with heated discussion.
However, unlike the celebratory mood around Yunlong Dam, Jin Peng and Lin Feng were still facing a brutal trial.
Even with Ninetales joining the fight, they'd only barely managed to hold Kyurem back—for now.
But it was only for now.
As Kyurem continued to pour out power, even Ninetales was starting to buckle.
As the strongest ice dragon…
For Ninetales to hang on this long against Kyurem was thanks, in large part, to the power of the Rainbow Wing she had unknowingly absorbed over a thousand years.
It left her flames with the faintest trace of Ho-Oh's strength.
Otherwise they would've been defeated long ago.
But even without losing yet—the battle was still unimaginably brutal.
All of Jin Peng's Pokémon, including his mainstay Dragonite, had lost the ability to battle.
Now only a half-crippled Gyarados remained at his side, guarding him.
Lin Feng wasn't in much better shape.
Only Beedrill still had a bit of fight left.
"Brother Lin, what do we do? Should we pull back for now?"
Jin Peng asked, uncertainty in his voice.
Right now, Ninetales could still trade blows with Kyurem. Give it a little longer, and they might not even be able to retreat.
Don't be fooled—Overall, the battlefield looked like the League's forces were holding the advantage.
But the two of them understood perfectly.
The only reason the League had the upper hand was that they had Kyurem pinned down.
If it broke free, the entire situation would collapse into a one-sided rout.
But if they retreated now…
Wouldn't Huilongkou's breach be unavoidable before long?
For a moment—even Lin Feng didn't know what choice to make.
"ROAARRR!"
Then, at the center of the battlefield, Kyurem caught Ninetales in a momentary opening and slammed a Dragon Claw down onto her lower jaw.
The sheer force sent Ninetales flying.
She hit the ground and couldn't get back up for a long time.
After fighting Kyurem for so long, Ninetales's stamina was nearly drained.
Seeing her lose ground, Jin Peng's anxiety spiked.
"Brother Lin, stop hesitating!"
"If we all go down here, the follow-up rescue won't be able to proceed in any orderly way."
Since they couldn't stop Kyurem right now, all they could do was minimize losses.
If they were all defeated… even Yunlong Dam might be in danger!
"…All right!"
Lin Feng was reluctant, but he wasn't the indecisive type.
He agreed to retreat on the spot.
But just as the two were about to give the order, the swaggering Kyurem suddenly went flying backward, as if it had been hit head-on.
BOOM—it crashed heavily to the ground.
Before either of them could understand what had happened—A familiar voice sounded in their ears.
"You two look like you've run into a bit of trouble?"
There was a faint teasing tone in the voice.
They whipped their heads around.
At some point, Guo Yi had appeared behind them, smiling.
And at his side floated a Pokémon neither of them had ever seen before.
"Guo Yi—you're finally here!"
The moment he saw Guo Yi, Jin Peng finally let out the breath he'd been holding.
They'd dragged Kyurem out for this long for exactly one reason: to wait for Guo Yi's support.
And now the support had arrived.
But Lin Feng didn't look nearly as relieved.
Guo Yi might be here, but Ninetales no longer had the strength to fight.
With only a single Beedrill, they probably still weren't Kyurem's match.
I wonder what state Beedrill's in right now…
If it can't do it, we'll have to retreat first.
At this point, all Lin Feng could do was pray Beedrill was still in good condition.
At least then, they'd have a little time to prepare.
With that thought, Lin Feng stepped forward and asked Guo Yi, "How's Lie Ke?"
"And your teacher's Beedrill—can it still battle?"
---
T/N: UMM??? DIDNT YOU JUST SEE KYUREM GET BLASTED BACK?