"They're here." Nianjing's eyes narrowed. As the one with the highest psychic talent and strongest psychic abilities among the four present, she was the first to detect Aokis' presence.
However, her brows quickly furrowed. "There are others!"
Hearing her words, Huokui and the others also extended their psychic abilities in the direction Nianjing indicated, sensing the presence of Aokis and the two others.
"Number Three and two people we've never seen before. One has a faint psychic fluctuation, as if their psychic abilities awakened not long ago. So, these two aren't from the Divine Cult.
Why do I feel a hint of familiarity from these two people?" Huokui also frowned.
Aokis, walking from not far away, naturally sensed the four different psychic abilities sweeping over them, and a smile couldn't help but appear on his lips.
"Your four old friends are all here. I wonder if they'll recognize you two when they sense your presence?" Aokis said to Brad and Catherine.
"They probably won't remember. To survive here, we didn't dare appear under their noses back then," Brad said calmly, but a chilling coldness filled his eyes hidden beneath his black robe.
It wasn't just him; Catherine's animosity never disappeared once she knew who Aokis was bringing them to meet.
People who hadn't lived here wouldn't know how much psychological pressure those six people had put on them, nor would they know what kind of mental fortitude was needed to endure such humiliation and survive.
It could be said that these six people were an inescapable nightmare for them every night when they slept.
But to be honest, they were only afraid of these people back then because their overall strength was greater. Now that they both had completed their six Pokémon, possessing a certain basic combat power, they no longer felt such great fear towards them. Perhaps today, they would shatter this nightmare of theirs.
Aokis smiled again and remained silent. He could feel Brad and Catherine's resentment very clearly, being so close to them.
"Let's go, meet them."
The two groups truly met face-to-face in a relatively flat area within this shattered rock forest.
This place was chosen by Aokis himself. Before he left Time-Space Mountain last time, he did send a message to Huokui, the leader of the four.
Now, Wallace and the others no longer had enough prestige to suppress the four of them, so before returning to the Pokémon world, whatever they did and whatever they wanted to do was no longer constrained by Wallace.
Having stayed here for so long, their purpose was to unravel the secret of the Time-Space Mountain peak. Aokis didn't believe they had no curiosity about what was inside.
Even if it was an attempt, even if it was a gamble, Aokis felt they would be willing to try.
Furthermore, he, as the seemingly inconspicuous Number Three, posed no threat to them.
"Four of you, it seems you still trust me quite a bit. However, if you could remove all those little tricks around us, I think my trust in you would be even higher." Aokis said calmly, with a hint of sarcasm in his words.
These people were really taking things for granted, thinking that setting up some small traps nearby would make him hesitant?
Aokis originally had a much better impression of this person than the two who died by his hand, but now it seemed that these people were basically still the same, living purely in their ideal world. Some things that seemed ridiculous to others were, to them, as if they were something extraordinary.
It wasn't that these people were truly stupid; anyone capable of reaching their current strength wouldn't be truly stupid. What they lacked was merely experience and insight.
It is said that a person's growth is accompanied by an increase in experience and knowledge. The more one experiences, the more one learns. And they had been stuck here for twenty-five, even fifty years, their limited horizons causing them to sometimes appear incredibly foolish.
They didn't even prepare for Aokis's sneak attack last time, which shows how unprepared they were.
However, since they had set up traps this time, at least they had used some brains, even if these traps, in Aokis's eyes, were no different from a three-year-old's actions.
But this time, it was probably impossible to resolve them through a sneak attack.
Hearing Aokis's words, Huokui and the others' expressions were slightly awkward. Their traps being seen through by Aokis made them lose face a bit.
"Ahem, may I ask who these two behind you are, Number Three…?" Huokui asked, changing the subject to ease the awkwardness.
Huokui didn't know where Number Three had found these two people, which made him abandon his original idea of being able to control Aokis.
The identities and strengths of these two people were unclear, making them somewhat unpredictable.
Huokui's question made the coldness in Brad and Catherine's eyes, hidden beneath their black robes, even more intense. If they weren't afraid of disrupting Aokis's plan, they probably would have charged forward already.
"Just two friends.
Let's talk about how to break the space barrier on Time-Space Mountain, shall we?" Aokis smiled, glossing over Brad and Catherine's identities.
Upon hearing this, Huokui's eyes lit up. Compared to the identities of the two, the four of them were more interested in how to break the space barrier.
"Yes, yes, Number Three, do you have any way to break the space barrier?"
Aokis easily took the initiative in the conversation, but when Huokui lowered his head, an uncontrollable desire surfaced in his eyes.
He had been here for fifty years. Even if he had originally chosen to enter and stay here because of the Divine Cult, deep down, he wasn't as loyal to the Divine Cult as he seemed. In fact, if not for the Divine Cult's deterrence, he felt he could have achieved great success.
"I don't have any special methods. Only the Divine Cult's method, which is to gather six Pokémon that can completely fuse their attributes and break through the barrier," Aokis said.
Huokui frowned, "Are you kidding us? There are only four Eevee here now; the other two have been gone for who knows how long."
"You don't need to worry about those two Eevee. I just want to borrow your four Eevee. If we can really break through the barrier, I can give you many benefits." Aokis raised an eyebrow, extending a hand directly towards Huokui, as if saying, "Give them to me now."
Seeing Aokis's actions, Huokui and the others were stunned, not expecting things to turn out this way.
Are we that familiar with Number Three?
Akumatsu, standing behind Huokui, looked at Nianjing, with an expression that seemed to ask, "Are we really that familiar with him? I don't recall."
Nianjing just rolled her eyes at Akumatsu. Couldn't he see that the other party was messing with them? It was just that the other party was acting very seriously.
Huokui forcibly suppressed the urge to attack Number Three and said in a deep voice, "The joke ends here. You should know the consequences of continuing to joke. Don't think that what you did on Time-Space Mountain that day went unnoticed. If I tell Wallace and the other two, you know what the consequences will be, right?"
Hearing Huokui's words, Aokis was stunned.
He knew that his actions on top of Time-Space Mountain at that time couldn't withstand scrutiny. As long as someone with a keen eye thought about it, they would eventually notice his abnormality as Number Three.
But… what did that have to do with him now? He didn't really care about the opinions of the Divine Cult members. If he were truly Number Three, it would be a different story, but he was a fake Number Three, so there was no need to worry about it. Moreover, his current strength meant he no longer needed to worry about Wallace and the others.
Therefore, Huokui's threat to Aokis could be completely ignored by him.
"Oh dear, that's really a bit upsetting, but… if you truly want to tell Lord Wallace about this, why don't I give you a chance to tell him yourself?"
After speaking, Aokis pointed to a rock behind the four of them and then shouted loudly, "Lord Wallace, I shouldn't have to personally invite you out, should I?"
Hearing this, the expressions of Huokui and the other three changed drastically. They simultaneously turned to look at the rock behind them.
If Wallace was really here, plus Aokis, who was already his subordinate, Number Three, and two people they had never heard of or seen before, their safety would truly not be guaranteed.
And in the hearts of the four, Wallace really might be behind them.
After all, with Wallace's powerful psychic abilities, it wasn't impossible for him to conceal himself and come here. Plus, they already felt that Number Three approaching them like this meant there must be something fishy going on.
They had been guessing the purpose of Number Three's actions this time, and now it seemed highly likely that it was orchestrated by Wallace. Although they didn't know the true reason behind his plan, it must be closely related to the Eevee they held.
But they forgot one thing: if even they didn't know if Wallace was there, how would Aokis know that specific location?
Aokis had arrived much later than them, and they had all thoroughly scouted the area beforehand to prevent falling into Aokis's traps.
The four of them turned simultaneously, their hands tightly gripping their Poké Balls, poised for action.
This stunned Aokis and his two companions behind them.
These four people… do they have brains, or not?
Even Brad and Catherine, who didn't possess powerful psychic abilities, knew that Wallace absolutely couldn't be there. Aokis had merely pointed randomly, intending to play another joke on the four opposite, his intention simple: to let them know that he wasn't at all worried about them tattling.
Since he dared to do this, he naturally had his own confidence.
However, the synchronized actions of these four people told Aokis that they all believed him.
In fact, this could be considered being too clever by half; it was precisely because they had too many thoughts in their minds that it interfered with their most basic judgment.
The idea that Wallace might be there was deeply hidden in their minds, as it was their greatest fear.
Although Wallace's strength was not as good as before, he was still stronger than any of the four of them. Coupled with Aokis and his two companions, they truly felt like they had fallen into a trap.
But their act of turning their backs to Aokis, exposing themselves, instantly made the originally joking Aokis's heart stir.
These were four plump buttocks… er, bah! These were four completely defenseless people.
Aokis admitted that when he first arrived, he had considered whether to take out all four of them at once and directly obtain the Eevee-type Pokémon in their hands, which would be a permanent solution.
However, this thought lasted less than a minute in his mind before he immediately dismissed it.
Putting everything else aside, he had already defeated one in direct combat and another in a sneak attack. Even if they didn't have much actual combat experience, they should have made some progress, at least to avoid following in their predecessors' footsteps.
When Aokis first arrived, he found their traps and ambushes a bit amusing, even ridiculous, but he also felt that they had made some preparations and should not be susceptible to sneak attacks again.
But people, ah, people often do one or two surprising things.
Now, those four backs made Aokis's eyes burn, so much so that… he felt an urge to act.
All this talk was actually just a split second. Aokis's thoughts raced, and he made a decision in 0.1 seconds!
As the King of Sneak Attacks, such a good opportunity was laid out before him. If he didn't seize it, it would truly be a disservice to his reputation!
Go for it!
A fool doesn't take advantage of a good deal!
In that instant, Aokis immediately changed his plan.
Plans, plans, the purpose of plans is to be changed, otherwise, how can one adapt freely?
"Darkrai!" Aokis's low voice reached Darkrai's ears from his shadow, and he immediately understood Aokis's meaning.
A dark shadow emerged from Aokis's shadow, splitting into two. A slightly smaller one immediately rushed from Aokis's position to the backs of Huokui and the other three with lightning speed.
With Darkrai's current strength, his speed was undoubtedly extremely fast, and as an experienced Dark-type Pokémon, he naturally knew how to evade the perception of psychic users.
Without any hesitation, for Darkrai, wherever Aokis's blade pointed, there were his enemies, and as an enemy, he wouldn't care whether the opponent was a human or a Pokémon.
His dark and sharp claws were even more terrifying than the Grim Reaper's scythe, capable of harvesting life in an instant.
"No!!" Huokui roared internally. When he detected the anomaly in a matter of seconds and instinctively used his psychic abilities to protect himself, he found that his psychic abilities had no obstructive effect against the opponent's attack.
No, not even obstruction. His psychic abilities, before even touching the opponent, simply melted away like winter snow.
In that instant, he understood: this attacking Pokémon was a Dark-type, and one whose strength was excessively powerful.
They prided themselves on their powerful psychic abilities. Although they were always on guard, they were still ambushed in the end.
It was also because their vigilance was too high, and Wallace's reputation had too much of a deterrent effect on them, so they instinctively turned around, allowing Aokis to seize the opportunity.
And this fleeting opportunity was perfectly seized by Aokis!
It must be said that achieving this step was also due to Darkrai's current immense power, as well as the natural type advantage of Dark-type Pokémon against Psychic-types.
Whoosh—
The three of them struggled to turn around, their eyes filled with disbelief as they looked at Aoki. The only one not instantly killed by Darkrai was Nianjing, who appeared to be the frailest and was the sole female, a user of Psychic-type Pokémon.
The sound of Darkrai's claws earlier was due to them hitting Nianjing's protective barrier. As a Psychic-type Pokémon trainer and a powerful psychic herself, her defenses against Dark-type Pokémon and their attacks were the most robust.
Thus, Darkrai's attack was blocked by a special item on her, preventing immediate death. However, it was still Darkrai's attack, which even a Pokémon might not be able to withstand, let alone a human. So, even though she didn't die, she was severely injured.
Aoki helplessly spread his hands towards the four who hadn't breathed their last, his voice filled with resignation, "Sorry, sorry, I didn't want to do this, but... but your four backs were just too beautiful, I couldn't resist... I couldn't resist. This is a one-time thing, absolutely won't happen again, I swear!"
They're already dead, and you're talking about next time?
Pfft—
Upon hearing Aoki's words, Huokui, who was still in disbelief, couldn't help but spit out a mouthful. He truly hadn't expected such an outcome. They had taken every precaution, even preparing for the arrival of Number Three to attract other cult members to besiege them.
The Eevee-type Pokémon in their hands were crucial. As long as Wallace and the others didn't give up on this mission, their troubles wouldn't be small.
But precisely because of this, they subconsciously fell for Aoki's trick. Perhaps it was a case of 'concern leads to confusion,' or rather... a momentary oversight?
Actually, in Aoki's plan, he truly only intended to negotiate cooperation with the four of them. He had two Eevees, and they had four, but they lacked another crucial item. If their two sides united to find Wallace, there was a high chance they could negotiate cooperation with Wallace.
To open the barrier of Space-Time Mountain!
Although Wallace's power had been greatly diminished, he certainly wouldn't easily give up on what was inside the Space-Time Mountain barrier. At that time, the three parties would cooperate to open the barrier.
As for how to divide the contents after the barrier was opened, that would depend on each party's strength and methods.
Aoki had indeed planned it this way, but now he felt a bit fortunate in his heart that he hadn't cooperated with the four of them. These four looked fierce and aggressive, and in terms of appearance and strength, there wasn't much to fault, but their minds...
There's a common saying, but it's very practical here: don't fear a god-like opponent, only a pig-like teammate.
If he had truly cooperated with them and then fell into Wallace's trap, who knows what would have happened.
Now it's perfect. Instead of expecting others to play a certain role, it's better to hold all the cards in your own hands first.
Originally, after the barrier was broken, they were bound to have a battle, which would undoubtedly be a tough fight. Resolving it here in advance was also a good thing.
Brad and Katherine were also somewhat slow to react to the scene before them. Before they arrived, Aoki had already told them the plan, so even though they felt an urge to kill when they saw Huokui and the others, they both forcibly suppressed it for Aoki's plan.
But what was this rhythm now?
The plan was clear, and suddenly three were dead? The remaining one was also severely injured, and it wasn't hard to hear the mockery in Aoki's words towards them.
Brad and Katherine admitted that the four turning around just now was indeed an excellent opportunity, but they both questioned whether they could have seized such an opportunity.
First, it required a Pokémon capable of evading their four psychic perceptions, and it needed to be fast enough to deliver an attack of sufficient power within a few tenths of a second.
From Nianjing's self-protection, it could be seen that the other three must have had some form of self-protection, they just couldn't block Darkrai's attack.
However, wasn't it agreed at the beginning that these enemies would be dealt with by them personally?
Brad and Katherine looked at Aoki simultaneously.
Noticing their gaze shift, Aoki irritably said, "What are you looking at?! Didn't you see there's still one left?"
After Aoki's reminder, Brad and Katherine finally reacted.
There's one left!
This was their last chance for revenge, they absolutely couldn't lose it again! They couldn't let them die so simply, so easily. Otherwise, all the oppression they had endured over the years would have been for nothing?!
The combination of new and old grudges caused Brad and Katherine to immediately unleash their strongest attacks.
Poké Balls were thrown out one after another, and in an instant, twelve Pokémon surrounded the severely injured Nianjing.
Nianjing, still not recovered from her shock, stared blankly at the scene, somewhat at a loss. She pressed on her wound, but a special energy seemed to be attached to it, and no matter how she used her psychic powers, she couldn't stop the bleeding.
When she finally reacted, she saw Brad and Katherine, along with dozens of Pokémon, surrounding her.
She swallowed lightly, "Are we... is there... some misunderstanding?"
Aoki shook his head helplessly, ignoring Brad and Katherine's actions and some suggestive, R-rated sounds that echoed in his ears.
He instantly teleported to the three people, Huokui, who lay on the ground, eyes wide and unseeing.
He immediately removed all the Poké Balls from their bodies, picking out the Eevee Poké Balls and setting them aside, while collecting all the other Poké Balls into his bag.
Just by instinctively scanning the data of these Pokémon, Aoki felt a sense of astonishment.
Surprisingly, these three, who seemed smart but were actually prone to foolishness, had quite a substantial collection of gains. At least, if they had truly summoned all their Pokémon, Aoki felt that his group of three might not have been able to handle them.
Of course, this was under the condition that they could perfectly cooperate and not make mistakes.
But even so, it showed that their Pokémon's strength was truly good.
It was understandable that a group of people willing to stay in a rarely visited place for twenty-five or even fifty years, without lacking resources, could achieve this level.
It's just that all of this ended up benefiting others, benefiting Aoki... his dowry... uh...
They worked hard, that's true. The only problem was that their lives were too comfortable, without the pressure of competition or external threats.
It's like a certain game where you diligently dive into the jungle, furiously farming monsters, hoping to carve out a name for yourself. Did you work hard? Yes, you did! But when you emerge from the jungle, you find that your teammates have already fed the enemy a mountain, an insurmountable peak, turning all your efforts into nothing.
So, in the current version, jungling isn't about just farming. If you don't gank, all your farming will be in vain.
How can jungle farming experience be higher than ganking experience?
Ahem, this is just an analogy. The four of Huokui were like people who dove into the jungle, while Aoki, by gaining sufficient experience and economy on the lane, was no longer their opponent even if they remained holed up in the jungle.
That's the gist of it. Out of the six of them, five died by Aoki's hand.
At the same time, the fact also proved that blindly focusing on growth doesn't necessarily lead to greater gains than someone who has experienced hardships.
However, it must be said that Huokui and these people, having stayed here for so long, had an incredible amount of resources and good stuff in their spatial equipment, so much that Aoki couldn't help but drool.
The value of the items on them was probably more than all the supplies on all the cult members in Space-Time Continent combined.
Aoki didn't know how Nianjing died, but all her valuable possessions ended up in Aoki's hands.
He lightly clapped his hands. Although it wasn't exactly according to his plan, having six Eevees in his possession was much better than cooperating with them.
"Alright, the matter here is settled. Although there were some unexpected developments, I must say this unexpected turn isn't bad, isn't it?
Next, we'll go meet the main person." Aoki's eyes narrowed slightly. The rest still had to follow the plan... hopefully.
Actually, Aoki had not only scheduled a meeting with Huokui and the other four today, but also with someone more crucial than them. He was not only key to breaking the Space-Time Mountain barrier but also to Brad and Katherine's return to the Pokémon world.
Aoki waved his arm again, and the three of them vanished from their spot.
However, after Aoki and the others left, a figure slowly emerged from behind the stone where Aoki had pointed, located behind Huokui and the others.
It must be said that sometimes luck and coincidence strike so unexpectedly.
This person glanced at the spot where Aoki's trio had disappeared, then looked at the pile of stones burying Huokui and the others. Not knowing what he was thinking, after a brief pause, he too vanished from the spot.
As he left, this person, who prided himself on his composure, had a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. He had almost... almost been tricked out by Aoki just now. Fortunately, he had been a step slower.
Actually, Aoki's claim that Wallace was there wasn't entirely baseless, as he had indeed scheduled a meeting with Wallace today, though not in the same location.
Why meet Wallace, the former head of the Space-Time Continent cult?
The truth was, some things simply couldn't be done without him; his absence would make things very difficult.
Whether it was the detailed method for opening the Space-Time Mountain barrier or the way for non-cult members to leave, Aoki felt he could only learn about them from Wallace.
As for how he contacted him, it wasn't difficult. Although Wallace's power was greatly diminished, Aoki and the other former cult members could still reach him. The difference was that previously, contacting him meant obeying his commands, while now they could directly ignore them.
Coupled with Wallace's curiosity about Aoki's role as Number Three in the great chaos of the cult on Space-Time Mountain, Aoki successfully arranged a meeting with him.
Not far from Space-Time Mountain, Aoki met the former proud and spirited cult leader. He now looked somewhat dejected. The loss of his two main Pokémon had been a huge blow to him, especially his ace, Houndoom, which could even break through the second barrier of the Champion level after Mega Evolving.
But a lean camel is still bigger than a horse. No matter how great Wallace's losses were, his strength still surpassed most of the cult members.
Moreover, for Wallace to recover his former strength now, it would certainly be impossible through conventional means. So, what was the quickest way to recover his strength?
It might only be by obtaining the items within the barrier, then completing the mission, and with the help of the cult's true behind-the-scenes bishop, rapidly raising a Pokémon to the level Houndoom once was.
Putting aside other things, the cult's strange methods might very well include such a way.
So, when Aoki told Wallace that he had a way to break the barrier, even the once-dejected Wallace agreed to Aoki's meeting without hesitation.
Seeing that Aoki wasn't alone, Wallace instinctively frowned. At this moment, he was a lone commander, and a greatly weakened one at that. Now, any of his former subordinates could ignore his orders.
"Number Three... no, it should be Bartram, or perhaps you have another identity, but that's not important. What is this method you speak of to break open the Space-Time Mountain barrier?" Wallace went straight to the point. After learning that Brad and Katherine were not cult members, he had many fantasies about Aoki's identity.
The most prevalent among them, just like Huokui and his group, was that Aoki was a member of another faction who had intentionally infiltrated the cult. Although he didn't know what faction it was, it must have been quite powerful.
Besides their cult and the Alliance, there were actually other people within the Space-Time Continent, which slightly surprised Wallace.
However, he was still the proud and arrogant Wallace. Even if his strength was greatly diminished, he believed he should still have no problem dealing with Aoki, Number Three.
The three people opposite clearly centered around Aoki. If the other two were stronger than him, they wouldn't be centered around him.
So, while Wallace couldn't ignore the strength of Aoki's trio, he didn't particularly value it.
Upon hearing this, Aoki smiled, his palm open, six miniaturized Poké Balls resting quietly in his hand. "Since Lord Wallace is getting straight to the point, then I, your subordinate, won't hide anything.
My method is actually your method, but you haven't collected the Pokémon, while I have gathered them all."
Seeing the six Poké Balls in Aoki's hand and hearing his words, Wallace's eyes narrowed, his pupils subtly contracting, and an undeniable fervor appeared in his eyes.