The mutant Ariados used its massive stinger to greedily suck the marrow from the fainted Seviper before unhinging its dual, hideous maws. In mere moments, it devoured the snake whole, leaving behind nothing but a pile of picked-clean white bones.
Having sated its hunger, the Two-Headed Ariados's abdomen swelled significantly. Both heads let out synchronized yawns before it curled up and drifted into a deep sleep, its thunderous snoring echoing through the tunnels.
"It seems this creature is only interested in eating other Poison-type Pokémon," Mewtwo remarked dryly. "But it's at the peak of the Elite level; no wonder the Seviper leader was terrified."
"Mewtwo, skip the small talk. Use your power to teleport me directly to Hanzo Shura," Feng Che said. "I'm going to take down the final boss myself."
"As you wish. Leave it to me."
Mewtwo nodded, its psychic senses instantly pinpointing Hanzo Shura's signature deep within the earth. "Be careful—Hanzo has a Naganadel at the peak of the Elite rank by his side. Be ready for a fight the second you materialize."
Mewtwo treated Feng Che as a partner, not a tool; unless Feng Che faced an opponent he truly couldn't handle, Mewtwo would remain a silent guardian, allowing Feng Che to hone his own strength.
The Heart of the Miasma
Feng Che materialized in the Poison Sanctuary, a massive underground chamber centered around a lake of bubbling, violet-red liquid. Thick purple miasma rose from bursting bubbles, and the walls were encrusted with jagged, violet crystals. In the center of the lake, a transparent fountain sprayed toxic fluid that crystallized upon touching the floor.
Resting atop a massive crystal spire was the Naganadel.
The beast resembled a giant, winged hornet with a massive abdomen that housed its brain and hundreds of liters of glowing, highly adhesive venom. The stingers on its shoulders and lower body glinted dangerously—the venom it fired from its primary needle could travel up to 10,000 meters.
This Naganadel was covered in violet-red crystalline growths, making it look like a miniature version of Eternatus. Clustered around it were a dozen Poipole that used its abdomen as a hive.
"Excellent... the Poipole are nearly ready to evolve," Hanzo Shura laughed coldly from the shadows. "Once they reach their final form, I can take the Poison Dragon's Scale and vanish from this island."
The Scale was the core engine of this Sanctuary, buried at the very bottom of the toxic pool. Hanzo stood enveloped in the purple mist, his aura reeking of blood and decay.
"Who's there?!"
Hanzo reacted instantly, releasing a Crobat. The bat's razor-sharp wings sliced toward Feng Che's shoulder—but no blood followed. Instead, Feng Che's shoulder rippled into pink slime, and the Ditto masquerading as his cloak lunged forward, engulfing the Crobat in an instant.
A moment later, the slime parted, spitting out a withered, desiccated husk of a Crobat.
"So it's you, Gym Leader Feng Che. Or should I call you 'Officer Feng' of the Rocket Trio?" Hanzo said, his voice dripping with ice. "I didn't expect you to be the deep-cover mole. You killed my best scout with that Ditto... I was going to settle things with my pathetic senior brother, Koga, but you'll do for a warm-up."
Hanzo (Thinking): Dammit, the Poipole still need time. If the World League breaches this room now, I'm trapped. How did this brat find this place?
In his wolf-like focus on Feng Che, Hanzo failed to notice a second Ditto slipping away into the shadows, nor did he see Feng Che's own Poipole float toward the sleeping Naganadel. Sensing a familiar, ancestral energy, Feng Che's Poipole felt a surge of cooling power enter its body and drifted into an evolutionary trance.
"Feng Che, your Poipole is beginning its evolution," Mewtwo whispered.
"Good. Saves me a trip to Alola," Feng Che replied calmly.
Hanzo Shura blew a high-pitched whistle. The tunnels vibrated as the Two-Headed Ariados scuttled into the chamber.
"This is my primary guardian. Let it play with you while I prepare." Hanzo vanished into the darkness of the crystals, his voice echoing. "Ariados, Spider Dance!"
Feng Che released his Ninetales to meet the beast. The Ariados's eight legs clicked against the stone like steel pipes, its mandibles snapping with a rhythmic clack-clack. It fired two strands of metallic silk from its dual maws—silk harder than tempered steel.
"Ninetales, Ember."
Ninetales lazily fanned its tails, manifesting several Will-O-Wisps. The moment the metallic silk touched the ghostly flames, it was incinerated into ash. Had the Ariados not severed the strands instantly, the fire would have traveled back to its own body.
"A capable Ninetales. Ariados, Toxic Thread!"
Ariados began to spin a massive web from its abdomen, filling the air with sticky traps before spraying a high-pressure stream of venom-soaked silk. As the poison met the heat of the Will-O-Wisps, the chamber began to fill with a thick, acrid toxic smoke.