The vast yellow sands rolled, and the dull sound of a collision suddenly cut through the sky, mixed with the roars of Pokémon and the boom of skills, shattering the desert's silence.
"Sandslash, Earthquake!"
A loud shout came from behind a sand dune, carrying the steadiness of a battle-hardened veteran.
"Tyrantrum, we use Earthquake too!"
Lionel's response followed immediately, his voice wrapped in a fighting spirit that refused to back down.
In the center of the field, two Pokémon were locked in a confrontation.
The first thing that caught the eye was a Pokémon nearly three meters tall, looking like an ancient Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Bright red hexagonal rock-like dragon scales were tightly joined across its body, greatly enhancing its defense.
The most striking feature was the decoration on its head, which looked like a king's crown carefully forged by a craftsman, glinting with a deep yellow metallic light under the sun.
At first glance, it felt as if a monarch had descended.
Beneath the crown, its head was massive and heavy, its amber pupils filled with ferocity, and two rows of sharp teeth were exposed in its large mouth, their cold glint making one shudder.
This was the Tyrant Pokémon evolved from Tyrunt—Tyrantrum.
[Pokémon: Tyrantrum]
[Type: Rock, Dragon]
[Category: Tyrant Pokémon]
[Ability: Strong Jaw (Because of its Strong Jaws, the power of biting moves is increased)]
[Skills: Rock Slide (Proficient), Dragon Claw (Proficient), Iron Tail (Proficient), Sandstorm (Mastered), Stealth Rock (Mastered), Earthquake (Proficient)]
Compared to it, the Sandslash opposite looked exceptionally small.
However, its limbs were tense, and the spikes on its back emitted a cold, stern light under the sun; it was clearly no pushover.
As the two commands were given, both Pokémon simultaneously raised their hind legs and slammed them onto the ground!
"Boom—!"
Two bursts of violent ground energy exploded from beneath their feet, like a sleeping behemoth waking up, spreading wildly across the sandy ground in all directions.
The desert floor instantly split into countless spiderweb-like cracks, and grains of sand were shaken into the air, forming two visible energy waves that collided fiercely in the center of the field.
"Crack!"
The shockwave from the energy collision made the surrounding small stones hop about.
The two Earthquake waves canceled each other out, kicking up a wave of sand like a boiling yellow ocean, temporarily swallowing the figures of both Pokémon.
When the sand settled, the once-level ground had become pitted and uneven, yet neither side had gained an advantage.
"Sandslash, Gyro Ball!"
The Hiker, Muneharu, gave the order.
He carried a bulging hiking pack, its canvas stained with sand and dust, and there were several streaks of dirt on his face, but his eyes remained as sharp as a hawk's, fixed on the situation in the field.
Sandslash moved in response.
Its body suddenly curled into a ball, covered in silver light, like a high-speed spinning top, shooting toward Tyrantrum with a sharp whistling sound.
The centrifugal force from the rotation made it faster and faster, carving a straight line into the sand as if it were trying to slice through the entire desert.
Lionel's eyes narrowed, and he shouted in a low voice: "Tyrantrum, Iron Tail!"
Tyrantrum let out a low growl, and its thick tail instantly took on a cold metallic luster, like a tempered steel whip carrying immense force.
It accurately locked onto the Gyro Ball's trajectory and swung its tail fiercely, sweeping out with the sound of howling wind.
"Clang!"
The crisp sound of metal colliding was deafening, nearly piercing the eardrums.
The Gyro Ball was struck squarely by the Iron Tail, and Sandslash was sent flying like a cannonball hit by a massive force.
"Bang!"
After a loud crash, Sandslash flew backward and slid a long way across the sand, leaving a long trail before finally stopping when it hit a rock.
The size difference between the two Pokémon was far too vast, and Tyrantrum's strength advantage was fully displayed at this moment.
It didn't give Sandslash a chance to breathe; its massive body lunged forward, its incredibly powerful and thick hind legs pushing off the ground with force, leaving deep footprints in the sand as it reached Sandslash in an instant.
A trace of frost rippled in its mouth, and blue energy waves quickly condensed between its fangs—it was Ice Fang!
"Roar!"
Tyrantrum's massive maw, with teeth carrying a biting chill, bit down hard on Sandslash.
Ice instantly spread from the point of contact, freezing Sandslash's movements, and fine ice crystals condensed on its body.
Sandslash let out a painful muffled groan, its limbs struggling futilely a few times before it completely lost its strength.
Stars swirled in its eyes; it had clearly lost the ability to battle.
"Alright, Tyrantrum, you've already won, stop the attack!"
Tyrantrum opened its mouth and let out a low roar toward the sky, the loud sound echoing through the desert as if announcing its victory.
It then walked over to Lionel's side, lowering its body to gently rub its head against Lionel's, the ferocity in its amber eyes fading away to be replaced by closeness.
"Lionel, your Tyrunt is really something else after evolving!"
Muneharu recalled Sandslash into its Poké Ball and walked over with a smile, his tone full of praise: "Before, Tyrunt had to rely on Dragon Dance to beat my Sandslash.
After evolving, it won so easily. Young trainers nowadays are truly getting more and more incredible."
Lionel shook his head with a smile: "Mr. Muneharu, you're overpraising me. You haven't even sent out your Golem yet."
After a pause, he added sincerely: "And I'm especially grateful to you for teaching Tyrantrum the trick to the Earthquake skill; otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to master Earthquake so quickly."
"Hahaha, don't mention it!"
Muneharu waved his hand and laughed heartily, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes crinkling together.
"I should be the one thanking you! When I escaped from the central area of the desert a few days ago, I lost all my water and luggage. If I hadn't run into you, my old life might have been forfeit here."
This Mr. Muneharu was a wilderness explorer Lionel had encountered by chance three days ago.
He had come specifically to explore the legendary 'Mirage Tower,' but just a few days ago, Muneharu heard a strange sound in the desert at night.
The sound was indescribably strange, like wind passing through rock hollows, yet also like the low growl of some Pokémon.
Thinking it was the movement of the Mirage Tower appearing, he followed the sound toward the central area, only to end up getting lost.
"Coincidentally, I wandered in a daze to the base of a giant rock and actually ran into a Larvitar!"
Muneharu smacked his lips, his face still showing a bit of lingering fear and some excitement. "At the time, I thought my luck had turned and wanted to try and catch it. I never expected that...
The Larvitar's mother—a massive, terrifying Tyranitar—was guarding it nearby!"
He gestured with his hands, his tone changing pitch: "That was the legendary Desert King! Its whole body was covered in thick rock armor, like a small mountain, and its eyes were cold as ice. Just standing there, the surrounding air felt like it had frozen!"
Muneharu remembered the scene at the time, still feeling a chill in his heart: "Tyranitar let out a roar and directly kicked up a Sandstorm that was over a thousand times more powerful than your Tyrantrum's!
If my Graveler and Sandslash hadn't used Dig to desperately tunnel underground, and if Tyranitar hadn't been too worried about Larvitar to chase too hard, my life would have been left there!"
Muneharu paused and then added: "And at that time, I also heard a strange giant roar, the same sound I heard at night.
It was also thanks to that roar attracting Tyranitar's attention that I took the chance to escape through the ground. This desert has far too many secrets!"
He patted the Poké Ball at his waist, his voice full of relief: "I was in such a panic when I escaped that I lost my water, food, and maps. I wandered blindly in the desert for three days, my throat nearly parched, so I'm glad I met you!"
Lionel smiled: "It's fate. After my Tyrunt finished its training, I happened to want to head deeper into the desert to find some powerful Pokémon for battles. By the way, you said that strange sound attracted Tyranitar; did you see what made it?"
At the mention of that strange roar, Muneharu's eyes instantly lit up as if a torch had been lit: "Hard to say! But I'm certain that sound wasn't the movement of the Mirage Tower.
The sound was very rhythmic; it didn't seem natural. It felt like a Pokémon, but I can't imagine what kind of Pokémon could attract the attention of that Tyranitar.
Oh, right, I also saw the outline of a stone tower half-buried in the sand near there. It was carved with strange symbols, but unfortunately, I was too panicked at the time to look closely."
After speaking, Muneharu hurriedly fished a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket.
On it, a spire shape was simply drawn with charcoal, the lines wobbly, yet one could see an ancient style.
Beside the spire were a few strange symbols, looking as if they had been carved into stone with a knife, the strokes sharp and carrying a mysterious rhythm.
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