N had already received the tactical report regarding the fallout. Alder had lost his duel against Feng Che, and after desperately channeling the dark entity, he had been cleanly devoured by his own patron.
A flash of absolute irritation crossed N's eyes.
"Alder, you utter fool. To think you actually possessed the audacity to provoke Feng Che under these conditions. At present, Feng Che commands five separate Legendary Pokémon."
A mocking smile warped N's features.
This was the absolute reason N maintained a hyper-vigilant defensive posture against the Dragon Clan. The clan now held an arsenal of five Legendary deities on their side, while he commanded but a single one.
Naturally, N kept this devastating secret securely buried within his own heart. If he were to speak it aloud to the general assembly, the remaining factions of Team Plasma would be completely scared out of their wits, likely surrendering to Feng Che on the spot.
His fingers tapped against the surface of the grand table in a rhythmic, mindless cadence.
"Colress, what is the current status of your research regarding the cloning of Mythical Pokémon?" N inquired suddenly, breaking the silence.
"We are currently initiating our definitive, final testing phase," Colress reported, adjusting his glasses. "At present, the Zeraora clones I synthesized have achieved stable vitals. However, the operational lifespan of these cloned assets remains exceptionally brief—spanning a mere matter of months. I must request that you grant me a little more time."
"Very well."
N waved his hand dismissively, signaling Colress to exit the chamber.
"Moving forward, we must pour every ounce of our available military assets into locking down our defensive matrices. We must ensure our strongholds are secure against an imminent assault from the Dragon Clan." N turned his sharp gaze toward the remaining five Sages, systematically delegating their security assignments.
Meanwhile, at the Pokémon League Headquarters.
Office of the Supreme Sky Commander.
Julie clutched a encrypted comm-pad, rushing frantically into the private office of the Sky Commander. The supreme director was deep in the middle of handling an immense stack of regional administrative profiles.
"Sky Commander! Emergency intelligence from the Unova region. Champion Alder has perished after violating League protocols to summon an ancient fiend. He was cleanly incinerated by the entity."
"At present, the Unova region stands completely headless," Julie reported in a panic.
"Hmph! Word of that catastrophe reached my desk a few moments ago. What an absolute, unmitigated scandal," the Sky Commander barked, his face darkening into an expression of profound disgust. "For a regional League Champion to prostrate himself and beg a forbidden fiend for strength... disgraceful."
"With Unova currently lacking a central anchor, do we have a viable candidate vetted to inherit the Champion throne?" Sky Commander turned his sharp eyes toward Julie.
"I recall transferring Feng Che to the Unova sector a while back. What are the latest operational metrics concerning his progress?" he pressed.
"Elite Four Feng Che has already successfully climbed to the rank of primary Elite Four member within the Unova League. He stands as the absolute, natural successor to the empty throne," Julie reported. "Furthermore, deep reconnaissance suggests his primary partners have all successfully breached the parameters of the Champion rank."
"However, there is a highly sensitive internal variable detailed within his background check. It has been confirmed that Feng Che's biological grandfather is actually Sage Vio of Team Plasma." Julie hesitated slightly before laying down the stark genealogical fact.
The personal lineage of every prospective regional Champion had to be meticulously scrutinized by the internal affairs bureau.
"I distinctly recall Feng Che's initial profile listing him as a registered orphan. How on earth did his grandfather suddenly materialize as Sage Vio of Team Plasma?" The Sky Commander's eyes narrowed, sensing a potential conspiracy.
"Beyond that layout, Feng Che has additionally assumed the mantle of Clan Leader for the Unova Dragon Clan," Julie explained. "He achieved an absolute victory during the clan's grand Dragon Festival, smoothly inheriting the sovereign seat from Drayden."
"As for Vio, he was originally a direct, high-born descendant of the Dragon Clan's primary lineage before he defected to co-found Team Plasma, which led to his formal banishment from the clan records. At present, Vio has formally broken ties with Team Plasma and has been reintegrated into the Dragon Clan's roster."
"So Vio remained entirely oblivious to the fact that his biological grandson was Feng Che all this time?" the Sky Commander inquired, his curiosity piqued.
"Entirely oblivious. The genetic confirmation was only established right before the absolute conclusion of the Dragon Festival," Julie answered honestly.
"In that case, authorize Feng Che to inherit the empty throne as the next leader of the Unova region. However, issue the decree under the temporary title of Acting Champion," the Sky Commander commanded after a moment of heavy deliberation.
"Should his operational performance meet our standards over the coming months, we shall formally transition him into a permanent Champion status. Our absolute concern right now is preventing the rise of another compromised figure like Alder."
"Understood, Sky Commander. I shall process the administrative mobilization immediately," Julie replied swiftly, executing a formal nod before rushing out of the chamber. Following the supreme director's explicit blueprint, she initiated the official transfer of authority to Feng Che.
Back within the Dragon Clan's territory.
Beep... Beep... Beep...
Having secured a few hours of deep, restorative sleep, Feng Che was pulled from his slumber by the sharp ringing of his comm-pad. Snapping the device open, he found Lance's ID flashing on the display.
"Congratulations, Feng Che. The supreme council has formally processed the decree—you are officially the next Acting Champion of the Unova region," Lance's crisp, celebratory voice echoed from the speaker.
"However, I must additionally convey an exceptionally grim piece of intelligence."
"High Priest Shamyo has completed a deep cosmic calculation. The parameters suggest the Sky Fiend will completely shatter its ancient seals in exactly three months. Our containment matrices can no longer suppress its vessel."
"The entity has already delivered a telepathic decree, boasting that the exact millisecond it is unbound will mark the absolute hour of our destruction."
"Furthermore, through the joint investigations coordinated by Shamyo and myself, we have unmasked a heavily obscured historical record. High Priest Shaka once successfully breached the coordinates of a mysterious burial ground known as the Emperor's Mausoleum. The exact moment he emerged from that mausoleum, he successfully engineered the birth of the Sky Fiend." Lance laid down the absolute, top-secret intelligence.
"Right. I harbored the exact same suspicion—the ancient fiends and the Emperor's Mausoleum share an infinite web of deep connections," Feng Che confirmed gravely.
"My immediate objective is to systematically dismantle Team Plasma. The moment I lock down their network, I intend to coordinate an expedition into the Emperor's Mausoleum to see if we can salvage a definitive blueprint to permanently seal or erase these fiends."
"The shadow of this looming cataclysm is expanding rapidly." Feng Che outlined his strategic vision.
"Superb. I shall await your signal so we can breach the boundaries of the Emperor's Mausoleum together," Lance replied before terminating the encrypted call.
The moment Lance's line cut, a secondary transmission from Clair flashed onto the screen.
"Feng Che, there is a critical layout I must brief you on. The Earth Fiend and the Ocean Fiend have handed down absolute directives, forcing Team Magma and Team Aqua into a state of total, mutual warfare across the Hoenn region."
"Our deep-cover operatives embedded within both syndicates report that both the Earth and Ocean Fiends intend to mobilize elite assassination units to hunt you down the exact millisecond they claim absolute sovereignty over Hoenn," Clair reported, her tone laced with deep anxiety.
"Do not trouble yourself. Let us see if they even possess the capacity to achieve a unification of Hoenn first," Feng Che countered smoothly, a calm smile playing on his lips.
The Hoenn region stood as one of the single most formidable and heavily armed territories in the global League network, housing immense independent factions like the Devon Corporation, Greater Mauville, the Draconids, and the Sootopolis Sovereignty. The notion that a pair of rogue underground syndicates could easily conquer a territory of that caliber was an absolute joke.
"There is zero need for panic. If the Earth and Ocean Fiends attempt to launch a massive campaign across Hoenn, the Devon Corporation will not hesitate to deploy their full military assets to crush them."
"If the heavens collapse, the giants will be the ones to anchor the weight. Keep your composure," Feng Che assured her smoothly.
"Here I was, frantically calling to offer you comfort, only to end up being completely reassured by you instead," Clair laughed, a trace of wry amusement in her voice.
"Alright. Should the Earth or Ocean Fiends manifest any further structural movements, I shall notify you immediately. Staying safe," she added before severing the link.
Feng Che lowered his comm-pad, his eyes fixed on the map of the regions. The waters anchoring the Emperor's Mausoleum run exceptionally deep. Team Magma and Team Aqua serve as the primary mortal extensions of the Earth and Ocean Fiends.
Concurrently, the Cleansing Heaven Sect functioned as the primary vanguard of the Sky Fiend, but that syndicate has already been thoroughly dismantled by my hand.
Now, as long as I sweep through Team Plasma and absorb their structural networks under my control, I will successfully claim absolute, unified sovereignty over the Unova region.
Unlike the Sinnoh region, which he currently anchored from the deep shadows of his hidden networks, the unification of Unova would mark the first time every single political, military, and ancestral faction belonged explicitly to his open name.
Feng Che resolved to solidify his absolute control over these two massive sovereign territories before pausing his expansion, ensuring he left zero administrative leverage for a Master Class mastermind like Giovanni to exploit.
Meanwhile, within the Kanto Region.
Team Rocket Central Stronghold.
Following the definitive deployment of the Genesect project, Giovanni handed down an absolute directive to initiate full-scale genetic resurrection protocols for another cosmic entity—Deoxys.
At this exact millisecond, Dr. Fuji was standing before Giovanni's desk, delivering a highly technical status report detailing their progress in stabilizing Deoxys's celestial DNA.