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Although Lionel had used over twenty high-level Pokémon energy orbs from his system space to defeat Kyogre, the reward far outweighed the cost.
Just those few minutes after Kyogre appeared, the livestream's popularity skyrocketed.
Lionel glanced at the backend data; even a fraction of the popularity points was enough for him to perform numerous high-level ten-pulls, completely recouping the energy orb consumption.
At this moment, Wallace and Juan had already walked through the crowd.
"Lionel," Juan spoke first, his voice gentle, "There's one last closing ceremony for the festival. Come up on stage with us."
Under countless envious, awe-inspiring, and curious gazes, Lionel followed Juan and Wallace, step by step, onto the massive sacrificial platform.
On the platform, the Citizens of the Glass who had participated in the sacrificial dance had already lined up again.
Juan stood in the center of the platform, raising once more the scepter inlaid with a blue gem:
"Thank you, Kyogre! Thank you, Water God, for your blessing upon the land of Hoenn! This year's Water Festival has come to a perfect end!"
A thunderous cheer erupted from below, and the boats on the lake sounded their horns in response to the announcement from the platform.
Sunlight pierced through the clouds, spilling across the shimmering lake, and the enormous rainbow still hung in the sky, bathing Sootopolis City in a fairytale-like glow.
The hustle and bustle of the Water Festival gradually subsided in the afternoon sun, but a unique tranquility prevailed within the Sootopolis City Gym.
The interior of the Sootopolis Gym was far more spacious than it appeared from the outside.
Led by Juan, they passed through a corridor engraved with wave patterns, arriving at an elegant tea room.
In the center of the tea room stood a rustic wooden table, upon which lay teaware. Beside it, on a shelf, were several water stones shimmering with a blue light. A faint, fragrant aroma of steam filled the air.
Juan gestured for Lionel to sit down. Wallace stepped forward to brew tea. The moment boiling water was poured into the teacup, the aroma of tea mingled with the steam, creating a sense of tranquility.
"Lionel,"
Wallace pushed the teacup towards Lionel, her gaze falling on his hand, and asked curiously, "That green light you just handed to Kyogre…what was that? I could feel it contained very pure life energy."
Lionel picked up the teacup, feeling the warmth on his fingertips. He hesitated for a moment, then answered with the explanation he had prepared:
"That's an innate ability of mine, a kind of ability similar to the Viridian Power of the Kanto region. It allows me to communicate with Pokémon and also to gather some gentle life energy. It's not anything special."
This explanation wasn't a lie. The energy pool in the system space already contained life energy, so explaining it as "Viridian Power" was both reasonable and avoided unnecessary trouble.
Wallace suddenly understood:
"No wonder you get along so well with the Pokémon. I've heard of the power of Viridian. It's said to heal Pokémon's injuries and even allow you to communicate with them. It's truly amazing."
Juan nodded, not delving further, and turned to look at the teardrop necklace around Lionel's neck:
"Let me tell you about the necklace. This necklace you're wearing is a gift from Kyogre, and it holds great significance."
Lionel subconsciously touched the necklace; the cool touch invigorated him, and he waited for further explanation.
"This necklace contains Kyogre's attack, 'Root Pulse.'"
Juan's voice carried a hint of solemnity:
"That's one of its most powerful moves, enough to shake mountains and create giant waves. It should never be used lightly unless absolutely necessary." "
Lionel was startled. A Root Pulse?
That's one of Kyogre's signature moves! Just thinking about its devastating power sends chills down your spine.
This is practically a life-saving trump card!
"Besides that," Juan's tone shifted, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes, "it has another use: summoning Kyogre."
"Summoning?" Lionel was even more surprised. "Anytime?"
"Theoretically, yes, but don't try it recklessly."
Juan chuckled, his tone tinged with helplessness:
"Kyogre is usually asleep. If you wake it up for no reason, it'll think a festival has begun, and there will be offerings to eat, but when there's nothing... it'll get angry."
Lionel instantly grasped the key point:
"You mean... as long as there's an offering, even without a ritual, it can be summoned?"
Juan paused for a moment, then nodded:
"Theoretically, yes, but this is different from a ritual.
You should have seen it absorb the blue beam of light from the Wallace Necklace, right? That's what it cares about most.
It contains special energy, formed from the worship of the Glass People over the past year. The offerings are merely to satisfy its appetite.
A long time ago, when I was exploring the ruins with Zivqi, we encountered danger, and I summoned Kyogre once for help.
If We hadn't later offered all the energy cubes stored in his company's warehouse to Kyogre as compensation, the consequences would have been unimaginable."
So don't get any funny ideas. Kyogre's temper is hard to fathom.
This call means that Kyogre sometimes has a particular craving for something and will call us to collect it and offer it to it at festivals. Lionel nodded, but inwardly he was thinking that Juan's words, to him, carried a different meaning.
As long as he could quell Kyogre's anger at being awakened, he could disturb Kyogre at will?
Could his high-level Pokémon energy balls do that?
Twenty certainly wouldn't be enough, but what about 100, 200?
If he encountered some legendary Pokémon or danger on his journey, and could summon Kyogre for help using this method, the thought was awe-inspiring!
Lionel shook his head, banishing these thoughts from his mind. With so many high-level Pokémon energy balls, he'd rather use them to enhance the strength of his own Pokémon.
He'd keep this to himself, considering it a trump card for survival.
"I understand," Lionel quickly composed himself and replied to Juan, "I won't disturb Kyogre's slumber."
"Okay."
Juan nodded in satisfaction and began to instruct Lionel on how to use the necklace:
"Try to concentrate your mind, imagine Kyogre's appearance, feel the fluctuations within... Yes, like this,
Imagine establishing a connection with Kyogre..."
Lionel focused intently and did as instructed, slowly channeling his mental energy into the necklace.
Instantly, a vast and boundless water-based energy surged from the necklace, as if he were in an endless deep sea, hearing the roar of waves crashing against the rocks, and the deep, majestic breathing of Kyogre.
He quickly followed Juan's instructions, carefully withdrawing his mental energy, a fine layer of sweat already forming on his forehead.
"This is just a preliminary sensing," Juan said, "As for activating the root fluctuations and the ritual for summoning Kyogre, I will teach you in the next couple of days after you are familiar with the basic sensing." "
Lionel nodded solemnly and thanked Juan.