Gallade's blade continued to glide along Medicham's body, creating a gentle breeze.
The audience below held their breath, afraid to miss a single detail.
Suddenly, Medicham took a half-step back, its eyes shining with a pale blue light, and its psychic power erupted!
The ice and fire energy on its fists suddenly dispersed, condensing in the air into two slender...
A long, energy-infused blade.
Red on the left, blue on the right, flames and ice flowed slowly along its surface, as if alive.
Medicham gripped these unique "double blades," assuming the same starting stance as Gallade.
A gasp erupted from the crowd, many instinctively leaning forward.
A knowing glint flashed in Gallade's eyes.
The output of its Water Blade and Leaf Blade skills increased instantly, the blades on its arms gleaming even brighter, echoing Medicham's ice and fire blades.
The two Pokémon seemed to transform into medieval knights, engaging in a magnificent "sword duel" in the center of the stage.
Blue ice blades clashed with blue water blades, creating a spray of water mist and ice shards; green and red leaf blades intertwined, weaving a sea of fire and a forest of leaves.
Elegance and beauty coexisted in this moment, a beauty that was breathtaking.
Lionel's eyes lit up in the waiting room. This was the advanced version of the "Ice and Fire Psychic Blade Dance" that Grace had demonstrated before, even more stunning than what he had seen two days ago!
A chorus of gasps rose and fell from the audience, many pulling out their phones to record this spectacular moment.
"Now!"
Grace's voice rang out at the opportune moment.
Medicham crossed its arms, its ice and fire blades slamming together! In an instant, a raging torrent of ice and fire erupted behind it.
Red flames and blue ice intertwined in mid-air, forming a spiraling energy storm, yet it remained firmly contained within the stage area, without escaping unscathed.
Gallade crossed its blades in front of its chest, a dazzling white light erupting from its body, and a massive phantom of a light blade rose from the ground.
Holy Sword skill activated!
Gallade's giant sword phantom clashed violently with Elim's ice and fire storm.
"Boom!"
A blinding white light instantly filled the entire stage, causing the audience to instinctively squint.
As the light faded, the ice and fire blade in Medicham's hand slowly dissipated. It clasped its hands in a gesture of respect towards Gallade, its movement swift and decisive.
Gallade nodded slightly and returned a standard knightly salute, its posture elegant.
A "duel" that ended in a draw came to a perfect close.
"Fantastic!"
The audience rose to their feet in excitement, erupting in thunderous applause, the cheers nearly lifting the roof off the venue.
On the judges' panel, Ms. Joy's gentle smile was full of admiration:
"The two Pokémon's teamwork was seamless, like an elegant duel between noble knights, absolutely brilliant!"
Mr. Sukizo nodded repeatedly, his voice filled with excitement:
"I loved it! I loved it so much! A perfect combination of fighting power and the beauty of skill, truly spectacular!"
Yumiko also adjusted her glasses, a slight smile playing on her lips:
"The Pokémon's skill control was extremely precise, demonstrating the solid foundation of her training; a rare performance."
All three judges gave Grace extremely high scores. Even as Grace bowed and left the stage with her Pokémon, the applause from the audience continued unabated.
The competition continued amidst the frenzy stirred up by Grace.
Next, a trainer using a Beautifly and a Poison Powder team entered the arena.
Two spirits danced gracefully in the air, the Hunting Butterfly releasing morning light, golden specks falling like shattered sunbeams; the Poison Powder unfolding moonlight, a silvery glow enveloping the entire arena.
Combined with their silver wind skills, created by their flapping wings, countless shimmering scales intertwined in the air, creating a dreamlike starry sea.
This performance, beautiful and romantic, won unanimous praise from the judges.
Time slipped away with each performance, the contestants displaying their unique talents; some combined Ice and Electric-type Pokémon, using ice crystal pillars to refract electricity, weaving a dazzling electric net; others deployed Ground and Rock-type Pokémon, creating surging waves of sand…
The excitement on stage never ceased, and the audience's enthusiasm remained high, applause and cheers almost never stopping. Finally, Vivian's voice rang out again, carrying a hint of barely concealed anticipation:
"Next, please welcome contestant number 66, Lionel!"
The spotlight instantly shone on the contestant's entrance. Lionel straightened his clothes and stepped onto the stage.
"It's Lionel!"
"We've finally waited for him!"
Fans below the stage immediately raised up light boards that read "Go Lionel!", the glowing lights creating a small sea of light in the audience.
Many people were still shouting "Milotic!"
The live stream chat was instantly flooded with comments:
[Here it comes! The streamer is finally on stage!]
[Ahhh! I've been waiting so long! So exciting!]
[I bet a Deluxe Ball, it's definitely Milotic + a Gold Pokémon!]
[I guess Milotic and Larvesta, a Water/Fire combo! Yeah, right!]
Lionel stood in the center of the stage, giving the audience and the camera a calm smile:
"It's decided, you two are the ones!"
A flash of red light, and two Pokémon appeared on the stage.
It was Larvesta and Tyrantrum!
The shouts of "Milotic!" from the audience instantly stopped. A moment of silence fell over the air; the live stream chat also paused briefly,
before erupting into more discussion:
[It's not Milotic?!]
[Tyrantrum+ Larvesta? I didn't expect this combination…]
[Is there some hidden trump card? Streamer, don't let us down!]
[This combination is hardcore! I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes!]
On the judges' panel, Yumiko adjusted her glasses, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes behind the lenses.
Mr. Sukizo leaned forward with great interest, placing his hands clasped on the table;
Joey's team maintained their gentle smiles, their eyes filled with anticipation, waiting for the performance to begin. On stage, Lionel gave the Larvesta and the Tyrantrum an encouraging smile:
"Ready? Let everyone see your house!"
The Larvesta excitedly shook its antennae, spewing out a burst of flames that resembled leaping bears.
The Tyrantrum growled, its amber eyes gleaming with confidence, as if saying, "Leave it to us."
Lionel waved his hand:
"Let's begin!"
Following his command, the Tyrantrum acted first, suddenly raising its head and letting out a deafening roar towards the sky. Sandstorm skill activated!
Countless fine sand grains surged from the stage floor,
as if drawn by an invisible force,
rapidly converging above the stage into a swirling sand column, its momentum overwhelming.
The Larvesta followed closely behind, its mouth glowing with an orange-red light, activating its Flame Breath skill!
Thin streams of flame, like nimble fire snakes, precisely burrowed into the sand column.
At first, only scattered sparks danced among the sand grainsbut as the Larvesta gradually increased the power of its skill, the flames suddenly expanded dramatically.