Within the raging blizzard, the dazzling sphere of fire that Butterfree had become left countless spectators so shocked that they could no longer speak. They could only stare in stunned silence.
The rekindled Sacred Fire gave Butterfree the power to withstand the assault of the snowstorm.
But even in the weakest part of the Blizzard, the attack could still inflict considerable damage on Butterfree in its current state.
And so everyone witnessed it.
The fiery orb that was Butterfree flickered constantly amid the storm, as if it might go out at any moment. Yet whenever it seemed to reach its limit, the flames would suddenly flare back to life, stubbornly resisting the snow and wind as it desperately pushed toward Frosmoth's position.
"Butterfree..."
Sitting among the audience, William felt as though he was seeing that little Pokémon again—the one that had desperately poured its electricity into Zapdos without regard for itself.
Almost unconsciously, he gazed at the burning fireball and murmured,
"Butterfree... go!"
"Go!"
No one knew who shouted first.
But the emotion spread through the stadium like wildfire.
Soon, countless voices joined together, cheering for Butterfree beneath the open sky.
Closer.
A little closer.
And finally—
When Ah Hui caught sight of the white figure hidden behind the blizzard, he did not hesitate for even a moment.
He shouted his final command.
"Let's settle this!"
"Air Slash!!!"
At Ah Hui's roar, Butterfree spun through the air.
Countless streams of Flying-type energy gathered between its wings.
Accompanied by a clear, ringing cry, an enormous slash descended from above.
The pressure generated by the attack sent snowflakes trembling in every direction.
"Frooooth!!!"
Faced with the Air Slash charging toward it with overwhelming determination and pressure, Frosmoth had nowhere to dodge.
All it could do was desperately use Blizzard to resist.
But it was useless.
The Air Slash had already broken through the storm.
Its devastating force seemed to split the entire blizzard in two.
Caught in the empty space at its center, Frosmoth could only watch as the attack grew closer and stronger.
Until all that remained in its ears was the howl of the wind.
"It hit!!!"
"Air Slash lands directly on Frosmoth, dealing massive damage!"
"The snowfall has stopped!"
"Frosmoth is barely hanging on!"
"Can it still endure?!"
At that moment, the commentator suddenly noticed something.
Butterfree was still charging toward Frosmoth.
The strange flames around its body had already vanished.
But dazzling white light continued to shine from it.
"U-turn! It's U-turn!"
"Butterfree is continuing its assault!"
"What incredible determination!!!"
Zhao Xue'er stared blankly at the brilliantly glowing Butterfree.
As the final explosion erupted, the fists she had clenched so tightly slowly loosened.
She had lost.
The moment Frosmoth was knocked from the sky, the outcome had already been decided.
The referee quickly entered the field.
After confirming Frosmoth's condition, he blew his whistle and raised the flag toward Ah Hui.
The match was over.
Instantly, the entire stadium exploded into a sea of cheers.
"I won..."
The snowfall ceased.
Golden sunlight filtered down from the dome above.
Ah Hui slowly extended a hand toward the figure suspended in midair.
His expression still carried a sense of unreality, as though he were trapped inside a dream.
Just then, a cool voice sounded beside him.
"Congratulations."
"And... I'd like to ask something."
"How did you do that?"
Ah Hui turned toward the speaker.
Not far away stood Zhao Xue'er, expressionless as always.
She held Frosmoth's Poké Ball in one hand.
Yet judging by the way her fingers trembled around it, her heart was nowhere near as calm as her face suggested.
"How did I do it...?"
Ah Hui looked equally confused.
Ever since the battle began, he had felt something strange.
It was as though he could see through Butterfree's eyes.
Feel Butterfree's emotions.
Communicate his thoughts with nothing more than a single intention.
But honestly...
He had no idea how it had happened.
Zhao Xue'er frowned.
After a long silence, she asked another question.
"What was that fire on Butterfree?"
To her, the entire match had been filled with inexplicable oddities.
Most of them she could accept.
But that final flame—
That she could not understand.
Without those mysterious flames, the Blizzard would have swallowed Butterfree whole.
Frosmoth would never have lost.
"That?"
Ah Hui wasn't stupid.
He still vividly remembered everything that had happened on Mount Taibai.
Naturally, he hadn't forgotten the special flame that had healed Butterfree—
Sacred Fire.
There was no need to hide it.
Nor was there any way to.
Just as Ah Hui was about to explain—
The world suddenly began spinning.
"Huh...?"
The next second—
Countless spectators watched with wide eyes as Ah Hui collapsed directly onto Zhao Xue'er.
Many of Zhao Xue'er's fans immediately erupted in outrage.
Their furious shouting mixed together with the whistles and cheers of spectators who were simply enjoying the spectacle.
"I'm doomed..."
As consciousness faded and the cheers grew even louder than before, Ah Hui could only close his eyes helplessly through the pain coursing through his body.
...
Among all the competitors in this Pikachu Cup, the most popular contestant was undoubtedly Xiao You.
With her adorable appearance, twin-tail hairstyle, and overwhelming "final boss" level strength, the contrast had earned her an enormous following across the country.
Right behind her in popularity was naturally Zhao Xue'er.
The girl's strength was second only to Xiao You's.
Combined with her elegant beauty, she had quickly become countless people's idealized dream girl.
Someone online had once done the math.
Whether it was Xiao You or Zhao Xue'er, either one of them alone possessed more popularity than all the other human Top 16 contestants combined.
Ah Hui could easily imagine the kind of uproar his accidental tackle of Zhao Xue'er would create.
What a headache.
Every possible kind of headache.
...
"Brother Hui looks like he's having a painful dream."
"Seriously. He got to do something everyone envies, and he's still acting miserable."
"Tsk tsk. As expected of Brother Hui. What a sinful man."
"Maybe he's having a nightmare?"
"Who knows? Hey, Haoran, while Brother Hui's still asleep, tell us more about your trip to Mount Taibai."
"So that's it... I've decided!"
"After the Pikachu Cup ends, I'm going to follow Teacher Mo's example and travel around the entire country—no, the whole world—with Charmeleon! We'll train and become stronger!"
"Hey, Tianming, lower your voice. This is a hospital room. Brother Hui is still sleeping."
"My bad..."
Inside the clean and bright hospital room, the boy wearing the red-and-white cap lowered his head sheepishly.
Everyone around him chuckled helplessly.
Just then, a weak voice came from the bed.
"What are you all talking about?"
"You seem pretty happy."
Hearing the familiar voice, everyone immediately turned around.
"Ah Hui, you're finally awake!"
Chen Haoran exclaimed with delight.
Ah Hui said nothing.
His gaze swept across the room.
Surprise appeared on his face.
Almost every Top 16 contestant from the Pikachu Cup was present.
Even Xiao You and Zhao Xue'er, who rarely spent time with the others, had come.
Well—
Except for a certain purple fat ghost who had somehow fought his way into the Top 16 despite being a Pokémon.
Everyone was here.
His eyes lingered on Zhao Xue'er for a moment.
Just as he was about to speak, a burning sensation rose in his throat and triggered a violent coughing fit.
A helpless voice sounded nearby.
"Don't talk yet."
"Drink some water first."
Turning his head, Ah Hui saw Feng Lan extending a cup toward him.
He accepted it gratefully and immediately drained it.
The water was warm.
After several large gulps, he finally felt human again.
Warmth filled his heart.
Just as he was about to thank her—
A red-and-white cap suddenly shoved itself into his field of vision.
Gao Tianming's eyes were practically glowing.
"Brother Hui!"
"I heard from Haoran that you encountered the Legendary Pokémon Entei on Mount Taibai!"
"He healed Caterpie's congenital defect and even passed that special flame to it!"
"Is that true?!"
Everyone nearby immediately looked exasperated.
Song Qingyun grabbed Gao Tianming by the collar.
"Tianming, do you ever consider the situation before opening your mouth?!"
"Huh?"
"What situation?"
Song Qingyun fell completely silent.
How could a person be this dense?
Just as he was about to drag Tianming away, Ah Hui chuckled softly.
"It's fine, Qingyun."
"Let him go."
With a sigh, Song Qingyun released him and retreated.
Standing too close to idiots might lower his own emotional intelligence.
"Tianming..."
"You really do love Pokémon, don't you?"
Ah Hui said with a smile.
"Of course!"
Tianming answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Meeting every Pokémon in the world is one of my dreams."
"I see..."
Ah Hui nodded.
Looking down at his own hand, he seemed to return to that moment on Mount Taibai when he had desperately thrown himself over Caterpie.
"Looks like Haoran already told you everything."
"Yes."
"We really did encounter Entei—the Legendary Pokémon and one of the Three Legendary Beasts, alongside Suicune."
"According to Brother Mo, Entei used a special flame called Sacred Fire to heal Butterfree."
"But as for whether Butterfree inherited that flame... honestly, I don't know."
"Even now, I still don't understand why that fire suddenly reignited during the battle."
The room fell silent.
Everyone sank into thought.
It was frustrating.
Though they were considered elite trainers by the public, they were all still beginners on the path of Pokémon training.
Most of them couldn't even fully understand ordinary Pokémon yet.
How could they possibly comprehend the powers of Legendary Pokémon?
If only there were an expert here.
Almost everyone thought of the same person.
Right then—
The hospital room door opened.
A familiar voice sounded from outside.
"While it's possible to describe the Sacred Fire as something Butterfree inherited..."
"Personally, I prefer another term."
"Entei's blessing."
"Ah Hui."
"The bond between you and Butterfree earned Entei's recognition back on Mount Taibai."
Seeing the tall figure standing in the doorway, Ah Hui's face lit up with joy.
"Brother Mo!"
"When did you get here?!"
Everyone else turned as well.
Standing in the doorway was Chen Mo, dressed in an ordinary T-shirt.
Beside him were Hu Chengliang and Zhou Yichuan, both wearing white lab coats.
They walked slowly into the room.
After signaling everyone to calm down, Chen Mo continued.
"Do you remember what I talked about in Evergreen Forest regarding the origin of the Three Legendary Beasts?"
"Ho-Oh, who resurrected Suicune, Entei, and Raikou, once shared a deep bond with humanity."
"Although Ho-Oh eventually left Ecruteak City because of human malice, it never truly let go of its feelings for people."
"The Three Legendary Beasts continue to roam the world on Ho-Oh's behalf."
"As Ho-Oh's messengers, they possess many miraculous powers."
"One of those powers is granting blessings to trainers and Pokémon they acknowledge."
Ah Hui froze.
He had been there in Evergreen Forest.
He knew Legendary Pokémon possessed telepathy.
Yet Entei had always seemed proud and aloof.
From beginning to end, it had never communicated with them.
To think such an Entei had acknowledged him...
The idea still felt unbelievable.
Then Chen Mo stepped closer to the bed and spoke again.
"Actually, Ah Hui."
"This isn't the blessing of only one Legendary Pokémon."
"During that match..."
"You received the blessing of another Legendary as well."
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