The entrance leading to the fifth floor was pitch black, like a silent giant mouth devouring light and sound.
From the depths of that hole, wisps of chilly aura seeped out, carrying a heart-palpitating sense of oppression, as if something invisible was lurking in the darkness, quietly watching.
Listening to Steven's words, Ariel also cast his gaze toward that hole.
His heart sank slightly.
Still short of one Gym Leader Level Pokémon...
As soon as this thought popped into his head, he couldn't help but frown.
To gather ten Pokémon just to challenge an unknown area where a Quasi-Elite Four Level Pokémon might exist, no matter how he calculated it, it wasn't a good deal.
Reason told him that the wisest choice was to turn back and search the previous floors again.
But just then, a fragment of a forgotten memory suddenly flashed.
Wait...
Ariel's thoughts paused for a moment.
He remembered; he seemed to have one more... Poliwrath.
This Pokémon had quite a background; not only did it come from Team Aqua, but he had also used it as bait to lure Team Aqua Executive Shelly's Sharpedo.
Calculating it like this...
Counting that Poliwrath, it was exactly ten, no more, no less!
Enough!
A weight was lifted from Ariel's heart, and he felt much more relaxed.
He had almost taken unnecessary risks for a goal that was already completed; he had truly been muddled.
He looked up at Steven and responded decisively:
"You're right, Steven. Safety first, let's head back."
Just as the four of them were about to turn and leave, a flurry of footsteps and heavy breathing suddenly came from the dark entrance ahead.
The sounds drew closer, interspersed with a few suppressed cries of pain.
Soon, several disheveled figures came scrambling out of the hole—five people in total, three men and two women. Their exploration gear was tattered, and their faces were covered in soot and expressions of lingering fear.
Behind them followed a thin, weak-looking boy who appeared to be only in his teens. He wore an ill-fitting logistics uniform, was covered in bloodstains, and one arm hung limply. His face was devoid of color, and every step he took seemed like he was about to fall apart.
Ariel's gaze swept over those familiar faces, and his eyes instantly turned cold.
Black Fire Exploration Team.
It really is a small world.
"Damn it, what bad luck!"
A man with a fleshy face sat on the ground and spat hard,
"How did that small path leading straight to the summit get blocked last time? It made us waste a trip and nearly cost us our lives inside!"
Another woman, Layla, was hurriedly tidying her messy hair. When she looked up, she also saw Ariel's group not far away.
A flash of surprise crossed her face, which was quickly replaced by deep disdain and mockery.
"Oh, look who it is? Isn't this the big expert who rejected our Black Fire Exploration Team's invitation?"
She spoke sarcastically, her voice sharp and ear-piercing,
"What, too scared to come in alone, so you found some helpers?"
As her voice trailed off, the captain of the Black Fire Exploration Team, Alex, also stood up.
His gaze moved past Ariel and landed on Masaki and Tome behind him, a hint of complexity in his eyes.
In the outside world, they feared a behemoth like Devon Corporation.
But inside Mt. Pyre, was there still a need to be afraid?
With so many Ghost-type Pokémon entrenched here, if someone died, there would be no way to investigate it!
Thinking of this,
Alex took a few steps forward and looked at Ariel with a condescending posture, his lips curling into a malicious smile.
"Kid, I don't care what your status is outside. Even if you have Devon Corporation backing you, once you're in Mt. Pyre, you'd better stay in line!"
His voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in this empty cave, carrying an undisguised threat.
"After all, in a place like this, it's perfectly normal for a few explorers to go missing or die every year. Do you think anyone would turn Mt. Pyre upside down to investigate for a dead person?"
The implication was self-evident.
In the wild, strength is the only rule. If you're killed, no one will ever know.
Hearing this naked threat, Masaki and Tome's expressions changed.
However, Ariel laughed.
It wasn't a cold laugh, nor an angry one, but a laugh filled with a sense of absurdity and humor, as if he were watching a clown's performance.
He didn't even bother wasting words on them.
Beside him, Tome was about to shout a reprimand, but she was stopped by a look from Steven.
Steven calmly stepped out from behind the two of them and stood side-by-side with Ariel.
Their movements were almost synchronized; without any communication, they were in perfect tacit understanding.
The next second, four Poké Balls were thrown simultaneously.
A red light flashed!
"Roar!"
A violent Sandstorm aura instantly swept through the area as the massive Krookodile crashed onto the ground. Its dark red body was filled with explosive power, and its crimson eyes were locked onto Alex.
Following that, Malamar hovered in mid-air, its deep blue eyes flashing with a hypnotic glow. Invisible psychic fluctuations made the surrounding air feel thick.
Meanwhile, on the other side, an even more startling scene occurred.
"Clang!"
With a loud metallic crash, a silver-white behemoth slammed heavily onto the ground, causing the hard rocky floor to instantly crack like a spiderweb.
Shinny Metagross!
At the same time, another massive Pokémon over two meters tall appeared.
Its entire body was covered in heavy steel armor, and the savage steel horns on its head glinted coldly. It was Aggron!
The four Pokémon with terrifying auras lined up, their powerful presence instantly enveloping the Black Fire Exploration Team.
The aura emitted by the four Gym Leader Level Pokémon even made the air stagnate.
Alex's gaze was completely transfixed by that silver-white Metagross.
His pupils instantly shrank to the size of pinheads.
As a veteran Trainer who had been active in the Hoenn region for many years, it was impossible for him not to recognize this Pokémon.
This unique, one-of-a-kind Shinny Metagross!
It was the hallmark of a certain person in the Hoenn region!
A thought struck Alex's mind like a bolt of lightning, causing the blood in his entire body to freeze instantly.
Shinny Metagross... Devon Corporation...
That man who had been protecting those two Devon Corporation employees behind him...
Alex's gaze snapped toward Steven. The color drained from his face at a visible rate, and his lips began to tremble uncontrollably.
It's him!
It's actually him!
The scion of Devon Corporation!
Steven Stone!
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