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If there was anything Corviknight had developed over the past six months besides its level and training, it would have to be its special skill of land travel.
It was hard to imagine that a Pokémon known in Western Europe as the Wings of Freedom and the Wings of the Conqueror would love the ground so much.
Li Xiang recalled that when this guy was still a Corvisquire, it used to hop around when walking. But now, it could move its legs faster and more nimbly than a Dodrio.
Thanks to its excellent body control, it could move freely not only on flat ground but also on slopes, rocky beaches, and even deserts. Li Xiang had once seen it running through a forest, pushing off tree trunks with its feet to cross a marsh.
If he didn't ride it flying every day, he'd be worried that this guy might forget how to fly altogether, completely turning into a plump, landborne iron hen.
Not impossible.
Of course, being amphibious would definitely help improve its combat ability. Otherwise, once its wings were damaged or affected by a Gravity state, a bird Pokémon's combat effectiveness would be cut in half.
Its limitations were too strong.
In internal battles, there wasn't much to say when facing the Big Three.
Against Incineroar, it had enough defense but lacked offensive power. Against Lucario, it got kited by its high speed and ranged attacks. Against Greninja, it couldn't even see its shadow.
Its win rate was around forty to sixty, leaning more towards thirty to seventy.
Everyone knew each other's strengths and weaknesses, making it a difficult fight. The fact that it was agile but had to get close to its opponent was a disadvantage in internal battles, even if it was fine against outsiders.
Against Rotom, Corviknight could only say it couldn't handle it.
What good was Taunt?
That electric current, as a Flying type, it couldn't withstand it, and it couldn't Roost every moment.
Moreover, Rotom was so bulky that Corviknight couldn't take it down in one hit. If it dared to get close, Rotom would just use Overheat point-blank, and Roost wouldn't help.
Its win rate wasn't very high.
Against Metagross, it did have moves, and it wasn't afraid of its Thunder Punch or Gravity.
The latter would be blocked by Taunt, the former by Roost.
Although its Psychic Shield was troublesome, Corviknight also had high durability and endurance.
The only thing to watch out for was not giving it a chance to use Agility or lock on with its psychic powers.
The farther apart they fought, the more exhausting it was. The best approach was to attack from behind, close up.
Metagross's physical structure made the back of its head relatively weak, requiring psychic powers for defense.
While its hind legs were agile and could strike backward, they also had blind spots.
This was undoubtedly great for Corviknight, which excelled at close-quarters combat, so it would often peck the back of Metagross's head to secure the win.
This infuriated Metagross to no end.
When it used Thunder Punch from its hind legs, Corviknight used Roost. When it switched to Hammer Arm, Corviknight stopped. When it tried to push with Extrasensory, Corviknight used Protect.
It would even occasionally stand on Metagross's head, unafraid of Rock Slide.
In short, like a mangy dog, it would just circle around Metagross, incredibly annoying. And yet, this guy was extremely tough and hard for Metagross to damage.
'Damn it, bullying me for joining the team late!'
Metagross was furious but truly had no way to deal with the scoundrel that was Corviknight.
It had to temporarily yield. It would win back one day!
Determined to eliminate its attack blind spots, Metagross thought.
Finally, Aegislash… this sword was very easy to beat.
Just use Taunt to block its defensive moves, and when it attacks, it can't change back. After using Taunt, as long as you avoid its big moves, you're basically safe.
A fragile guy dependent on its moves and abilities—what else was there to say?
Of course, if Corviknight didn't use Taunt and accidentally ran into its shield... the situation might get a bit funny. But the probability of that happening was low because it couldn't get past Aegislash's Shield Forme.
Corviknight's win rate generally came from battling Aegislash.
Li Xiang kneaded the dough. In the distance, the group of Pokémon were fooling around with Mewtwo.
Among them, Corviknight opened its mouth several times, but after glancing at Li Xiang not far away, it didn't dare speak.
After the meal, Li Xiang scrolled through his phone, which had no signal.
Rotom was in the corner of the screen, doing who knows what. Being far from the internet was perhaps most harmful to this plasma specter.
For Metagross, it was just about playing games; being away from the computer was like quitting an internet addiction. But for Rotom, it was seriously involved in designing software.
Fortunately, before coming, it had downloaded many professional books onto Li Xiang's phone, so it had a way to pass the time.
But after six months, it had almost finished reading them.
Recently, it had become interested in protective suits and started researching the material. Unfortunately, this wasn't an Iron Man suit, let alone powered exoskeleton armor.
Rotom lacked the relevant knowledge and couldn't figure much out.
Li Xiang quietly opened his records.
Pokemon: Rotom
Gender: Genderless
Level: 57
Ability: Levitate
Type: Electric / Ghost
Height: 30cm
Moves: Overheat, Blizzard, Leaf Storm, Air Slash, Hydro Pump, Nasty Plot, Charge, Discharge, Foul Play, Thunder Wave, Confuse Ray, Double Team, Will-O-Wisp, Hex, Defog, Electroweb, Volt Switch, Ally Switch, Rest, Thunderbolt, Trick, Substitute, Reflect, Light Screen, Electric Terrain, Thunder, Dark Pulse, Pain Split, Shadow Ball
...
It had many moves because some of them always came in handy.
This guy wasn't really good at battling; you could tell from the fact that its moves were generally straightforward without much variety.
However, with its excellent and versatile forms, decent durability, and wide coverage, it could perform extremely well without needing much change.
To be honest, its talent with computers was far greater than its talent for fighting. The Snow Cultist who bought it back then had probably taken a liking to its information-gathering abilities.
The candies it ate were of the Electric type with a bit of Ghost, further enhancing its endurance.
Many Ghost-type Pokémon truly had poor durability, being exceptionally weak and fragile. Rotom was a bit better, with decent defenses and a perfect ability for its type.
It could honestly take quite a few hits.
Even now, Li Xiang's Rotom was quite capable in terms of durability. Its level increase wasn't particularly outstanding, just average.
In terms of moves, mobile casting had long been mastered. Not many Pokémon could withstand its Discharge; they mostly either changed to the Ground type or ran far away.
Other than that, there wasn't much else.
Li Xiang was tempted to create a new form, but he was probably overthinking it.
Speaking of which, this guy was also quite reliant on status moves. Once Taunted, many of its strategies couldn't be executed. Fortunately, Li Xiang generally used it as a pivot Pokémon, rarely letting it stay on the field the whole time.
In internal battles for Rotom, Wash Rotom could handle Incineroar quite well. Just use Nasty Plot then Hydro Pump; no complicated changes were needed. Incineroar could take hits, but not too many.
Against Lucario, it was a fifty-fifty match. The key against fast Pokémon was speed control. Rotom happened to have many control moves and could use Discharge to keep Lucario at bay.
Against Greninja, it was mainly about who could Taunt the other first.
Against Corviknight, it was like battling Incineroar—basically a parent beating a child, relatively easy.
But against Metagross, things started going wrong. Gravity combined with Earthquake would force it to change into Mow Form.
But Mow Form's moves lacked power, couldn't break Metagross's Psychic shield, and was easily approached, then its head would be smashed by Ice Punch.
None of its forms handled Metagross well, mainly because Gravity was too deadly.
Heat Rotom definitely had enough power; landing a hit would likely take out Metagross.
But being four times weak to Ground and affected by Gravity... As soon as Metagross entered battle, it would set up Gravity, faster than Rotom could use Taunt.
If Incineroar had Gravity, it would probably be in the same situation.
Finally, Aegislash:
It was also very dependent on Taunt. If Taunt was successful, it was easy; if not, it was difficult.
It wasn't afraid of Aerial Ace, but rather moves like Head Smash, Solar Blade, and Sacred Sword.
The high damage output of Blade Forme plus Swords Dance was more than its durability could handle.
It wasn't Incineroar or Corviknight. Moreover, contact moves could become non-contact, so it didn't matter whether the opponent got close or not.
Therefore, Rotom's win rate wasn't high, being quite reliant on Taunt.
Over six months, Rotom had changed the least, but it had a steady, unhurried momentum. Li Xiang knew that this guy cared more about the Iron Man suit he had once mentioned than about battling.
He was a little worried that this guy might turn into Ultron in the future.
That probably wouldn't happen; this world didn't have the Mind Stone. At worst, this guy would become a Kugimiya version of Jarvis.
Speaking of which, Mewtwo had once been very curious about why Rotom's voice sounded the way it did when talking in the phone.
It had even researched voice actors out of curiosity.
It was inexplicably embarrassing, but Rotom had long since gotten used to this voice pack and didn't want to change it, even refusing when the trainer suggested a switch.
The next day, after morning training, Li Xiang took the group of Pokémon to the river to bathe and wash clothes.
He also needed to apply essential oils to Corviknight and the others.
Li Xiang had only heard about metal fatigue in Steel-type Pokémon after coming to this world.
Applying specially blended essential oils to their joints seemed to bring them great pleasure. Especially Metagross. Its four arms were like toys embedded in its body, constantly rubbing against the surrounding metal.
Without regular oiling to maintain its joints, while they wouldn't rust, the speed of its punches would slow down and its flexibility would worsen.
Metagross often lost due to its lack of flexibility.
"How does it feel?" Li Xiang asked, holding a large brush and sweeping it back and forth in what might be considered Metagross's armpit.
The honey-golden liquid adhered to it.
"Meta..." Metagross responded in a low voice, its eyes comfortably narrowing into slits.
Besides Synchro, this was the happiest time for it.
It felt absolutely wonderful.
"Brush your teeth too." Li Xiang patted the golden cross on its face.
"Ah—" Metagross obediently opened its mouth.
This guy actually didn't have teeth. If you could call something teeth, it would be the lip-like parts.
Those were sharp enough to cut through steel easily.
Every time this guy ate a steel ingot, it would cut it apart with a squeaking sound, like a lathe tool.
Besides being a bit noisy, watching it eat was actually quite exciting. There generally weren't any leftovers.
"Close it." After brushing its teeth, Li Xiang patted its head with satisfaction.
Metagross obediently closed its mouth while using its hind legs to reject Incineroar's request to help.
This big tiger had no sense; it would try to smear mud all over Metagross's body.