Chapter 14: Explosive Evolution
Garchomp's Draco Meteor descended, and just as the meteors were about to hit him, a black figure stood in front of Lin Jiu, smashing the meteors to pieces.
"Darkrai..."
Lin Jiu glanced at Darkrai, who had shielded him from the meteors, thinking, You've broadened your path, you don't have to die this time.
At this moment, a time rift suddenly appeared, and the surroundings of the pitch-black Town turned gray. The ground stopped shaking, and the sky still fluttered with white ash like snowflakes. The world became so quiet at this moment as if it had returned to its most primitive state, perhaps the last bit of peace before the end.
After a moment of silence, the ground began to tremble again, and the thunderous rumbling gradually filled the space.
Lin Jiu followed the main group, avoiding the aftereffects. This way, even if there was danger, Ash's character would undoubtedly intervene to help. At the same time, he looked at the jewel on his chest, the orb was shining!
A crystal-clear, brilliant silver-blue beast roared out from the rift, knocking Palkia away. It was Dialga, the god of time corresponding to the Adamant Orb!
Both beasts fell from the sky together. Buildings collapsed, and several kilometers were leveled, leaving only the craters from the meteor impacts and the ground depressions. The terrifying shockwaves affected the Pokémon Center in the town center. Everyone looked in fear at the debris falling from the roof.
Lin Jiu took advantage of this moment to catch his breath and looked into the distance. At the edge of the Town, everything began to crumble. Surrounding buildings continued to collapse amid the destruction, and the ground kept cracking amid the tremors.
"Don't worry, with me here..."
Lickitung was patting its chest when it suddenly stopped, and Baron Albert reverted to his original form.
The Pokémon, who had been asleep in the Pokémon Center, also woke up and returned to their trainers.
"What's going on?"
Everyone was bewildered.
Tonio fiddled with his laptop in front of him, explaining, "Originally, those nightmares materialized because of intense spatial fluctuations. Now that Palkia has completely pulled Poplar Town into a different dimension, the space has stabilized, and the nightmare materialization phenomenon has reverted.
Everyone waking up is because, facing Palkia, and now also Dialga, Darkrai no longer has the strength to maintain the nightmares!"
"Darkrai is protecting Poplar Town... Can't we do something for it?" Alice asked.
"You can! The library holds the disc with the song 'Oración'. Find the disc and play 'Oración' from the Space-Time Tower," Lin Jiu appeared silently near them and said.
"Yes! Oración, Grandma said this song can calm Pokémon's emotions... We must calm down Palkia and Dialga," Alice remembered her grandmother's words, and hope rose in her heart.
"No time to lose! Let's go!"
Ash was full of fighting spirit.
"Wait, someone stays to protect me," Lin Jiu said to the group.
"But you're a wanted criminal!"
A trainer remembered the scene of Lin Jiu taking a hostage earlier and instinctively refused, feeling it was dangerous.
Ash and the others looked at the wanted criminal opposite; blood soaked through the bandages on his hands from his arm, dripping slowly to the ground.
"I'll stay to protect you!"
Brock stood up and walked to Lin Jiu's side.
"Mr. Brock..."
"Darkrai just saved you, right? I believe in Darkrai!" Brock said.
"Let's go!"
Lin Jiu didn't say much; he needed someone to shield him from the flying building debris. Darkrai and Cynthia had to hold off Palkia and Dialga. He didn't want to be killed by flying debris while unleashing Red Chain!
If no one had stepped up, he would have had to let Darkrai come back to protect him, leaving the Temporal Duo to Cynthia. That would greatly reduce the mission's success rate!
Explaining to these people was just a waste of time, as it was now. Those who didn't believe still wouldn't believe, and those willing to believe him naturally would.
Above the town, the mist rolled like stormy waves, interspersed with lightning and thunder. In the central square, the Temporal Duo faced off, their eyes blazing with anger, bodies colliding thunderously.
Lin Jiu touched the red chain hanging around his neck. As the Temporal Duo gathered, the two orbs reacted, and two forces merged into the red chain. He needed to wait until the two forces intertwined, forming the power of time and space, to activate the power contained within the red chain.
"What should we do now?"
Brock asked, seeing Ash and the others running towards the library.
Lin Jiu looked up at the situation above. The Temporal Duo faced off, Cynthia and Darkrai ready to intervene at any moment. He said, "Let's get closer and prepare to clean up for Cynthia!"
"Okay... huh?"
Brock's usually squinted eyes almost opened wide in surprise.
Lin Jiu just felt the pressure and tried to relieve himself a bit. But his tone was too calm, and combined with the oppressive presence of the Temporal Duo above, Brock couldn't help but feel he was telling the truth.
Dialga raised its forelimbs high, its pupils shining, and its diamonds and patterns simultaneously sparkled brilliantly.
Roar of Time!
Eerie ripples covered the entire Town, the clock hands of the Space-Time Tower spun rapidly, and buildings rapidly weathered and decayed.
Palkia's shoulder pearls, along with the purple patterns, gleamed as it slashed out a circular blade of light.
Spatial Rend!
The collision between the dimensions accelerated the already crumbling Poplar Town's destruction.
In the sky, Darkrai reappeared, sternly warning:
"You two, get out of here!!"
In an instant, Darkrai's blue eyes lit up with dazzling brilliance, and with a "bang," a white wave exploded, shooting straight ahead. A giant dark vortex formed between its hands and was hurled at the two dragons.
"Dragon Pulse!"
Cynthia commanded her Garchomp to attack following Darkrai.
Darkrai continuously clashed with Palkia, while Cynthia and her Garchomp faced off against Dialga. What should have been a three-way battle among three Pokémon had now turned into a 2v2 battle.
Lin Jiu wasn't sure if this situation was better or worse. Originally, it was a three-way clash with Darkrai intervening and Dialga and Palkia fighting each other.
Now, it had turned into a situation where the two legendary Pokémon no longer had internal conflict, each facing one opponent. However, Cynthia's involvement significantly relieved the pressure on Darkrai, allowing it to hold its own against Palkia, thanks to Lin Jiu's efforts to conserve its strength.
On the other hand, Cynthia was under more pressure, facing Dialga alone. Even Cynthia's Garchomp was struggling to hold its own against Dialga. Garchomp was covered in wounds but its eyes still burned with fierce determination.
"This is bad! Miss Cynthia!" Brock shouted.
Dialga roared, launching a Flash Cannon from its mouth. Cynthia commanded her Garchomp to dodge, but due to its injuries and fatigue, it reacted a bit too slowly and was about to be hit by the Flash Cannon.
Darkrai exerted itself to repel Palkia, then dashed in front of Garchomp, taking the Flash Cannon hit.
"Protect me!"
Seeing Darkrai being knocked to the ground, kicking up flying debris, Lin Jiu urgently called out.
"..."
Brock commanded his Croagunk to break apart the falling debris. He had followed Lin Jiu, thinking they were just waiting to die. But as the battle continued above, Brock noticed the glowing light from Lin Jiu's chest.
"Garchomp, hang in there, use Draco Meteor again!"
Cynthia's voice revealed a hint of weakness. Commanding a battle under such intense pressure was far more exhausting than normal.
But as the Champion of Sinnoh, it was her duty to protect the people of Sinnoh. The overwhelming pressure only served to ignite an even stronger fighting spirit in her and her Garchomp!
The massive meteor storm fell, momentarily suppressing the two gods of time and space.
"What do we do?"
Brock could see that Garchomp's burst of energy wouldn't last long. Once it faded, they would all be done for.
Lin Jiu glanced at Darkrai, who had been knocked into the Pokémon Garden, and Alice ran towards it, knowing Darkrai was probably having a flashback. He calmly said, "Don't worry! That guy is about to go all out!"
Darkrai opened its bright blue eyes. With a 'bang,' a shockwave erupted. Water splashed from the lake behind, creating a water curtain, and leaves rustled.
Alice's eyes filled with concern as she softly called out, "Darkrai..."
In Darkrai's pupils, the reflections of the two warring gods were clear. The white mist around it billowed in the wind as it flew into the sky without hesitation, the black shadow fluttering against the wind.
"Leave this place!!!"
Weekly Power Status
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