"Cough, cough, cough..."
The commotion was quite noticeable.
Baimu stood on the ninth-floor slab, coughing, surrounded by a cloud of smoke, unable to see anything. Beside him was Aggron exhaling white smoke, and Mawile sitting on its shoulder with a weary expression.
Without a doubt.
They were affected by the blast wave, forced to fall from the eleventh floor.
Fortunately, Mawile had not yet deactivated its Super Evolution and used Electromagnetic Levitation along with energy streams emitted from its large jaws to forcibly drag Aggron to the ninth floor.
Baimu, who was on its back, was thus spared.
Honestly, who would have thought Dusclops's Black Hole, which doesn't even count as a move that can manipulate energy, would coincidentally fuse the combined skill of Double-bladed Head Hammer and Iron Head, twisting and detonating them?
The two moves that symbolized his current strongest power directly shook the Pillar of the Sky's column, causing a severe tremor...
Will he be beaten by Rayquaza when he goes up later?
He's a bit worried.
Just hoping Rayquaza is magnanimous and won't mind this small tremor.
"You've worked hard, rest well."
Baimu patted Aggron's thick arm, and also patted Mawile's head, withdrawing them into their Poké Balls, and released Hydreigon and Dragapult instead.
Once again, he went to the eleventh floor.
The smoke here lingered for long, and Dusclops was nowhere to be seen.
It must have been blown away by the explosion wave as well, he didn't believe a wave that could blow away Aggron could do nothing to that guy. It's not just a General Attribute energy shock.
"Fan them away with your wings."
Baimu stood still and cautiously chose to let the Hydreigon beside him clear the view.
Unexpectedly, as it flapped quickly, the wings suddenly stirred up a cyan-blue whirlwind, agitating the air inside the Pillar of the Sky and rapidly dispersing all the smoke in front of him.
Sure enough, Dusclops was nowhere to be seen, but it was no longer a concern.
"This is!"
He turned around in surprise, exchanging a glance with Hydreigon, "Clear Dense Fog? Learned it just like that?"
They say that Pokémon automatically grasp new moves purely based on opportunities; you never know when this opportunity will come or what kind of surprise it will bring...
It certainly is a surprise. Even though in the animation world, not many people like laying traps or blocking walls, the move can still be useful in many situations.
"Sharza!"
The Hydreigon raised its three heads proudly. Recently, its progress in learning new moves wasn't going well, but unexpectedly, it picked up Clear Dense Fog by chance, so it's something it can report to its Trainer.
No matter what move, as long as there are results, it's fine.
Baimu saw its attitude, and wasn't stingy with his praise. Even though he always worries about Hydreigon getting carried away, praise should be given when due.
Otherwise, it might dampen his Pokémon's enthusiasm.
"Extra treats tonight!" He pinched Hydreigon's cheek, shaking it side to side.
Whenever a Pokémon learns a new move, there's an extra Blissey egg in their dinner plate. Although they can usually eat them, this acts as a reward for their effort.
The significance outweighs the taste itself.
Dragapult, invisible, looked at Baimu and Hydreigon full of smiles, somehow feeling a bit envious. As for whether it's envying the extra treats or the praise, or perhaps the atmosphere of the two,
it wasn't clear to itself.
In comparison, the Dreepy siblings were much more straightforward. Not only did they fly over from the launch tube to join the cheerfulness, but they also eagerly looked at Baimu.
These two were simply craving Blissey eggs, as the taste of the egg is influenced by Blissey's mood; the more positive the mood, the better the egg's taste.
Lately, Blissey has been striving to develop into a mainstay and just won the Shuijing Conference, making the egg's taste reach a superb level.
It's not an exaggeration to call it top-tier ingredient.
"You two haven't learned any new moves, so keep working at it." Baimu poked their noses.
Pokémon want to become stronger, no matter the reason; as long as it's rightful, a Trainer should provide support. Besides, who said the Dreepy siblings must be "missiles" for life?
It's normal for them to occasionally want to be a launcher.
Setting out again.
Baimu proceeded to the twelfth floor.
That is the final floor, where there should appear something even more startling than Dusclops... What could it be? A horde of Dusknoir opening doors to the Spirit Realm, tempting him to walk in?
Or perhaps a Gengar capable of pulling one's soul out of the body? Just like the three Ash Ketchum encountered in Lavender Town's Pokémon Tower?
He's a bit nervous and inexplicably excited.
Through the cracks in the rocks, it wasn't hard to see that it was already completely dark outside, but that couldn't be helped. No matter how much he hurried, it was still night by the time he arrived; what can he do?
The twelfth floor was right in front of him.
But the walls of the Pillar of the Sky seemed to stop glowing, leaving him in complete darkness ahead, where nothing could be seen.
Baimu had no choice but to take out his flashlight.
The next moment.
He turned off the flashlight and, after a few seconds, turned it on again.
Almost filling the twelfth floor, various Ghost-type Pokémon showed either sinister or cunning smiles to him and Hydreigon again; the scene was quiet yet eerie.
"Hiss—"
Baimu gasped, pondering whether his method of going upstairs was incorrect as he retreated downstairs.
The Hydreigon beside him also remained silent, very quietly.