area51novel Chapter 253 Piercing the Incense Stick - On the Barrier Called the World
Chapter 253 Piercing the Incense Stick - On the Barrier Called the World
In fact, if Volcarona weren't in its current state, Garchomp's Rock Smash hidden within Rock Slide would have been enough to end the match.
Despite its volatile temper and fierce competitiveness far exceeding that of its kind, this Garchomp, which became the new ace for Sinnoh Champion Cynthia, was certainly no simple-minded creature.
Its experience and skills accumulated in countless battles are far richer than those of Hugo, who is currently commanding it.
When on the battlefield, Garchomp knows perfectly well when to obey orders and when to take the initiative and launch a surprise attack.
Garchomp skillfully conceals its intentions, anticipates the opponent's movement, and precisely adjusts the speed and power of its moves; it even meticulously designs the opponent's forced landing point after being hit—this vicious "Stone Attack" hidden among the falling rocks is the best proof of its champion-level strength.
Logically, a Volcano moth that falls into a wetland would be slowed down by the murky mud. With its wing injured, it would be almost impossible for it to continue using its original swiftness to evade the overwhelming attacks.
At this point, there was no doubt that Hugo and Garchomp had gained the upper hand.
The former, with its willingness to destroy historical sites, put Alder in a strategic dilemma of being hesitant to act, allowing its own Pokémon, which was clearly lacking in speed, to unleash its move first. The latter, however, was tactically ingenious, seizing the brilliant opportunity created by the trainer and hitting the exceptionally powerful Volcarona with a Rock-type move for the first time.
In addition, Hugo's side now completely dominates the field—
Leaving aside the second wetland terrain created by Turtwig and Piplup, Garchomp became the biggest beneficiary of this terrain. Although they didn't completely tear down the ceiling, the damaged parts alone were enough to form a small mountain on the field. For Garchomp, all these pebbles could be used as disposable materials for casting Rock and Ground-type moves, making it an inexhaustible arsenal.
However, when Hugo turned his gaze to his opponent, he saw the Ardek champion stroking his stubble-covered chin with a nonchalant expression.
Especially after noticing that Yueju and the others had arrived at the scene and realizing that the Tower of Heaven would not be destroyed in this battle, the expression under her fiery red hair became increasingly relieved, and what appeared in turn was an almost fanatical focus.
His expression was like that of an old craftsman whose nose had been grabbed by a little fire monkey—appreciation mixed with a hint of expectation, without a trace of fear, only high fighting spirit.
This is the composure of a strong person who will not change course no matter what disadvantage they are in, without any worry about the future outcome.
As a detective, Hugo could not possibly be unaware of his opponent's strengths.
The championship selection battle atop the Tower of Heaven was prepared from beginning to end for just one Pokémon.
This means that until the Pokémon is completely exhausted, until its flames are extinguished and its soul is completely dissipated, the Unova Champion and his Volcarona are unbeatable.
Unlike its opponents, who are burning with fighting spirit and physical strength, the volcano is igniting its own life at this moment.
For Ardek's Volcano, a life that fails to burn completely is worthless, even if it is elevated to a divine status.
These powers were supposed to be gradually exhausted over hundreds of consecutive battles, but because of the Plasma Sage who broke in midway, Hugo, who challenged the champion in the dead of night, became the first test of these powers.
As expected, the fire moths that fell into the wetlands did not get stuck in the mud as best anticipated.
What we are seeing now is the worst-case scenario.
The instant the flame touched the ground, the water-based energy in the wetlands vanished without a trace, like dew evaporating in the sun. The remaining vines, nurtured by the "Grass Pact," withered and dried as the Volcarona floated up again, then burst into flames with a "poof" sound once the temperature reached a certain critical point.
Within seconds, the burning vines resembled countless tentacles trying to touch the sky, and flames surged forth.
The wetlands did not become an obstacle for the fire moth; instead, they instantly transformed into a vast "sea of fire," like a fiery altar calling upon the sun.
In the center of the altar, the fire moth, its wing slightly injured, miraculously floated back to life, aided by the rising hot air. Its speed not only didn't decrease, but it became even lighter.
Even more terrifying things were yet to come—
As the crimson lava flowing over its body brushed against the wound, the Volcano Moth emitted an even more dazzling light. In that instant, the wound inflicted by the "Stone Attack" spike vanished like insignificant dust amidst the Volcano Moth's trembling wings.
"I see. So your Volcano has finally finished warming up?"
Hugo shook his jet-black collar and asked Adek.
The raging inferno generated a heat wave, and the heat it produced flowed into the fourth floor through a large hole in the ceiling, freeing many Ghost-type Pokémon that had been frozen into ice sculptures by "absolute zero".
The wild Pokémon, having barely regained their freedom, immediately felt an extremely dangerous, scorching pressure beneath the swaying ground. Before the Elite Four members, who were maintaining order, could intervene to drive them away, the Pokémon had already made their escape.
The detective's black trench coat fluttered in the wind whipped by the flames, the black suit originally intended for a funeral appearing solemn and dignified in the firelight.
"Mr. Alder, you specially organized this championship challenge for all Unova trainers here to witness your old friend Volcarona at its strongest, right? Unlike other Pokémon that grow weaker with each battle, your Volcarona, due to its special state, neither gets injured nor feels tired. It will only slowly transform into an increasingly blazing flame during the continuous battle, and then meet its final end in a dazzling light, leaving not a trace of dust..."
"I'm not qualified to judge whether this method of dying is good or bad. Whether human or elf, all living beings have the right to choose their own way of leaving this world. However..."
Rotating his slightly heavy wrist, the detective squinted, looking at Adek through the firelight—
"Are you really going to use this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity on someone like me?"
Unlike in the past, this time the elderly champion did not respond to the detective with a hearty laugh, nor did he expound any grand principles with great momentum. He simply stared silently at the fire moth in front of him, which was so bright it almost hurt his eyes.
"Alright."
Adek said this, his voice tinged with loneliness.
"Because that's what Volcano said."
A whistling sound, like insects chirping in the wind, rang in his ears—the call to charge from his old partner. The Unova Champion waved his arm forward—
"Knight Snail, 'High Speed,' Agile Bug, 'Lightning Flash,' launch a pincer attack against our challengers."
"Vulcano... use 'Dance of Fire' on Garchomp!"
.
"Wanlong, do you know what Mr. Alder's most prized Bug-type technique is?"
The battle on the field reignited, but the Dark-type Elite Four member, watching from the sidelines, wore a cunning smile and brought up a completely unrelated topic in the spectator area.
"He mentioned it to me, saying that it wasn't an ordinary case of the weak defeating the strong, but he didn't tell me the final answer."
Wanlong seemed quite interested in this. While watching Garchomp retreat to defend under Hugo's command and use "Quicksand Hell" to block the attacking Sneasel, she answered absentmindedly without turning her head.
"Really? I do know a little about that final answer."
"I'll say it in a flippant tone," said Cranberry.
Before his eyes, the agile insect that attacked Hugo from the other side appeared like a ghost in front of the detective in black.
The grass-sprout turtle immediately jumped out from beside Hugo, attempting to block its opponent's preemptive attack with a "Protect" move, but was forcefully knocked away into the distance. If it hadn't previously recovered sufficient, even excessive, stamina from the Knight Snail using "Leech Seed," this simple probing attack would have been enough to bring it to the brink of death.
"I once asked Mr. Alderk—why is it that Bug-type attacks only cause minimal damage to Poison, Fire, Steel, Flying, Fighting, and Fairy types, yet inflict almost double the damage against Psychic and Dark types, which seem completely unrelated?"
“I remember the common saying that ‘a Bug-type Pokémon that suddenly appears will interrupt the meditation of cultivators and evil wizards’, right?” Wanlong said after thinking for a moment.
Boom! Boom boom!
Another huge ball of fire exploded in front of the stands, as Volcarona's "Dance of Fire" landed on the ground. Garchomp, which had just used "Quicksand Hell," immediately used "Stomp" to try to gather the rubble on the ground with a shockwave to block the attack.
The blue earth dragon's response was somewhat effective, but at a cost: the small mountain of rubble that had been piled up was now a large pool of dark red lava emitting white smoke.
"Legends are just legends, at least Mr. Alder doesn't believe in such things. In his opinion, the reason why Bug-type can not only counter Grass-type but also deal outstanding damage to Dark and Psychic-type is actually due to a kind of aura."
"Momentum?" the novelist asked, puzzled. "Is this the same thing as the 'awareness' that Mr. Champion always talks about?"
Cranberry shook her head: "Rather than the same thing, it's more like the complete opposite of enlightenment. 'Enlightenment' is the courage to become firm by understanding everything you have in this moment and place; while the 'aura' of Bug-type Pokémon comes from utter ignorance, a kind of ignorant enlightenment."
On the battlefield, a neat and sharp chorus of insect sounds suddenly rang out.
As if they had agreed beforehand, the Vulcan Moth, the Knight Snail, and the Agile Bug launched a sonic attack on the detective from three different directions with their "insect chirps".
On the detective's side, a thin purple light screen was erected, which was the "light wall" that the grass turtle that had been knocked away could barely release.
Having likely learned from its experience using "Wide Area Defense" at the start, this time Turtwig twisted "Light Screen" into an arch shape that would facilitate echoes, attempting to reduce the power of "Insect Chirp".
However, the combined sound wave was still too powerful, and it pierced through the thin light barrier in an instant without mercy.
The "Insect Chirp" sound, like green waves, swept across the field. Garchomp groaned from the impact, but thankfully was unharmed. Piplup shielded Hugo, using its Focus Sash to block the attack's power for its trainer. The Turtwig, who had done the crucial work, collapsed and was completely unable to battle.
"Bug-type Pokémon are known for their simple-mindedness. Therefore, many of the world's conventional wisdom simply doesn't apply to insects. What is superpower? It's nothing more than the incredible beyond human capabilities. What is ferocity? It's nothing more than a negative example of public order and good morals. Among the eighteen types, only Dark and Psychic are purely conceptual derivatives, concepts above concepts, rules outside of rules."
"Such things are far too profound for Bug-type Pokémon, who are unwilling to even think about them. So profound that there is no room for fear to exist, so profound that it doesn't matter if they simply ignore them... Such ignoring them does not reduce the damage caused by psychic and ferocious abilities, but when Bug-type Pokémon attack these inexplicable concepts, their unperceptible aura will reveal its true power."
The cranberry raised its arm, as if to show everyone a magical creation—
"So, the so-called essence of the Zerg system is nothing more than this—ignoring common sense, ignoring rules, ignoring all conventions, and sometimes even ignoring one's own life."
On the stage, the Vulcan moth displayed a divine presence, as if it had descended to earth.
Behind Volcarona, as if trying to gnaw an unreasonable hole in this cruel world of birth, aging, sickness, and death, the aged champion controlling the Bug-type roared—
""Big characters Explosion"! "