A cold wind whipped up out of nowhere. In front of the area where Larvitar and Krookodile were working hard, a pitch-black energy sphere condensed in the darkness and came whistling through the air with a piercing shriek!
"Aggron!"
Steven's eyelids lifted, and his hand moved so fast it left an afterimage as he threw a Poké Ball.
A flash of red light followed, and a heavy steel body slammed into the ground, kicking up a circle of dust.
Aggron didn't even need a command; it crossed its thick steel arms in front of its chest and forcibly withstood the incoming Shadow Sneak.
Boom!
The energy exploded, and a shockwave mixed with resentful ghostly energy scattered in all directions, yet it failed to shake the steel fortress in the slightest.
"Weavile!"
"Gua!"
Ariel's movements were equally swift. Two Poké Balls popped open, and Weavile and Greninja appeared on the left and right, guarding everyone.
The former's crimson eyes scanned the darkness, its sharp claws scratching the stone wall with a piercing sound.
The latter lowered its stance, its water-blue body almost merging with the surrounding shadows.
As for Krookodile, Ariel gave only one command—keep an eye on Larvitar.
With such a good opportunity to eat, even the King of Heaven himself wouldn't be allowed to interrupt.
Watching the defensive line form instantly, Masaki and Tome's hearts, which had just leapt into their throats, settled back into their stomachs.
The fear of that moment just now was real, but the sense of security they felt now was also real.
They finally truly understood what Ariel meant by "experience."
This wasn't a battle they needed to worry about; this was a textbook-level crisis management demonstration.
"Jie jie jie jie—"
Accompanied by a tooth-aching weird laugh, a purple figure slowly "seeped" out from the shadows of the mountain wall.
It wasn't moving so much as it was emerging from a two-dimensional shadow into three-dimensional space, like a drop of ink falling into clear water.
The signature large blood-red eyes and a bizarre grin that stretched to its ears.
It was a Gengar.
Behind it, the ghostly wind blew in gusts as one Ghost-type Pokémon after another flashed into existence.
A Mismagius wearing a wizard's hat, a Sableye with gems embedded in its eye sockets, and several flickering Haunters...
In total, seven Pokémon blocked the path ahead completely.
The leading Gengar had a cold and powerful aura, its level reaching a staggering 53.
The Mismagius beside it followed closely behind at level 52.
Two Gym Leader Level Pokémon!
The remaining five were all Elite Level experts.
This lineup was enough to make any adventure team flee at the first sight.
Masaki and Tome's hearts, which had just calmed down, hung in suspense again, and cold sweat broke out on their palms unconsciously.
They could feel that the gazes of these Pokémon were full of malice, locked firmly onto the still-feasting Larvitar.
"Mr. Ariel..."
Tome instinctively shrank behind Ariel, her voice trembling slightly.
"So many... Are, aren't you afraid?"
Ariel glanced at her but didn't speak.
Afraid?
Only two words were in his mind: That's it?
These were experience points delivered to his doorstep; it would be a waste not to take them.
He even felt the other party wasn't enthusiastic enough. If there were ten or twenty more, Greninja and Weavile might both break through tonight.
"Have you ever seen anyone who uses Dark-types be afraid of ghosts?"
Ariel's voice was very flat, yet it carried a matter-of-fact composure.
"If anyone should be afraid, it should be them."
The moment his voice fell, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
"Greninja, Weavile, move out!"
With a single command, two figures shot out like arrows from a bow!
"Aggron, guard the flanks. Don't let anything else come over and disturb them."
Steven folded his arms and gave instructions to his ace.
He was more like a competent bodyguard, precisely sealing off the battlefield to ensure no extra wild Pokémon could interfere with Ariel.
The battle was triggered instantly!
Greninja's goal was clear, going straight for the Gym Leader Level Gengar and Mismagius.
Its figure turned into an ink-like shadow during its charge, and its hands quickly condensed two Water Shuriken, which it hurled at the two strongest enemies.
Gengar chuckled strangely, its body merging directly into the ground shadows, easily dodging the attack.
Mismagius, on the other hand, began chanting a bizarre incantation, and several ripples of black energy spread out, attempting to inflict a Curse on Greninja.
Weavile's side was even more direct.
Its opponents were five Elite Level ghosts.
These Pokémon relied on their ability to phase through solid objects to hide and seek, occasionally harassing with Will-O-Wisp and Confuse Ray.
But Weavile's speed was far superior to theirs.
Every time it flickered, it was accompanied by the sharp sound of claws slicing through the air.
A Sableye had just poked its head out from behind a rock when a black shadow swept past. Three deep claw marks instantly appeared on its gem-like eyes, and it shrieked in pain as it shrank back.
On the other side, Greninja's battle had fallen into a stalemate.
Gengar and Mismagius's coordination was quite seamless.
Gengar used the shadows to continuously perform teleporting ambushes, firing Shadow Sneaks from tricky angles that were impossible to guard against.
Mismagius provided fire support and mental interference from the rear, with Confuse Ray and Psybeam weaving into a large net, constantly compressing Greninja's room for maneuver.
"Gua!"
Failing to dodge in time, Greninja's back was struck hard by a Shadow Claw emerging from the shadows by Gengar, drawing a trail of blood droplets.
Immediately after, Mismagius's Hex hit with precision, and the pain at the wound was instantly magnified several times!
Greninja stumbled, half-kneeling on the ground, its breathing becoming somewhat erratic.
Seeing this, Gengar and Mismagius let out triumphant, eerie laughs, condensing even stronger energy to prepare for the final blow.
Masaki and Tome's hearts were in their throats.
However, Ariel's expression didn't change in the slightest.
He just watched quietly, watching Greninja as it struggled in pain.
Now was the time!
Under the stimulation of immense pressure and pain, Greninja's gaze didn't falter; instead, it became increasingly sharp.
A deep surge of Dark-type energy erupted from its body, washing over its wounds. That energy was domineering and pure, even causing the surrounding air to distort!
The shackles of its level were broken at this moment!
Gym Leader Level! Level 50!
Almost at the same time as the breakthrough, a new stream of combat data flowed through Greninja's mind.
Its body reacted instinctively, and a brand-new move was understood on its own.
Night Slash!
Facing the Shadow Sneak and Psychic fired by Gengar and Mismagius in a joint attack, Greninja did not dodge.
It suddenly rose, its entire body spinning, arms outstretched, as if transforming into a dark top that devoured light.
The newly understood move bloomed in actual combat for the first time!
Its spinning body, wrapped in dense Dark-type energy, collided head-on with the two Pokémon's combined attack.
There was no earth-shattering explosion; the Dark-type energy acted like thick ink, easily devouring and neutralizing the Shadow Sneak and Psychic.
For the first time, horror appeared in Gengar and Mismagius's eyes.
But it was already too late.
Greninja, having broken through the energy blockade, did not slow down and arrived in a flash.
While spinning at high speed, it used the side blades of its arms to accurately strike Gengar with a hand-chop, then followed with a rotation to land a heavy blow on Mismagius's head.
Bang! Bang!
Two muffled sounds rang out as Gengar and Mismagius were sent flying back as if hit by a high-speed train, screaming as they smashed into the mountain wall and slid to the ground, completely losing their ability to battle.
One move, an instant kill!
On the other side, seeing that the main battlefield was already over, Weavile also lost its patience for playing hide-and-seek with these small fries.
It let out a piercing shriek, and an abyss-like aura condensed on its claws.
Throat Chop!
Weavile's figure instantly vanished from its spot. In the next second, five intersecting black trails appeared on the battlefield.
At the end of each trail, a Ghost-type Pokémon froze in mid-air before falling powerlessly.
The battle was over.
The entire process, from the Pokémon appearing to all of them falling, took only a few short minutes.
Silence returned to the cave once more, leaving only the "crunch-crunch" sound of Larvitar gnawing on rocks and the "rustle-rustle" of Krookodile working hard to Dig nearby.
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