Several minutes later—
Flight 573 was cruising smoothly through the sky.
"Xiao Cao, how are the stats looking?"
The captain glanced at his co-pilot, routinely checking flight parameters.
Planes, despite being the safest statistically, also had the lowest survival rates when something actually went wrong.
Hence, constant data checks were crucial.
"All clear, Captain."
"As long as we don't bump into a secret realm halfway, there'll be no issues," Xiao Cao joked lightly after glancing at the instruments.
The "secret realm" he mentioned was, of course, the temporary spatial anomalies. Permanent secret realms had long been mapped outside regular flight paths.
Besides, they'd flown this route hundreds of times already.
Not once had anything unusual happened.
Thus, Xiao Cao's tone was relaxed and playful.
Yet, no sooner had his words left his mouth than the plane suddenly jolted violently.
Immediately afterward—
Alarms started blaring throughout the aircraft.
Simultaneously, communications with the control tower abruptly went dead.
---
"What's going on?!"
"Who's flying this plane?"
"Why weren't we warned beforehand?!"
"Is there a malfunction or something?!"
"Stop saying that! You're scaring people!"
Passengers began loudly complaining. The sudden turbulence had unsettled both economy and first-class passengers alike.
Then Xiao Cao's voice crackled over the intercom:
"Attention passengers, please remain calm. We have unexpectedly entered a secret realm, causing temporary turbulence."
"Rest assured, the weather inside is good, and at our current speed, we'll quickly pass through this anomaly."
Since secret realms existed slightly offset from normal space, entering them inevitably caused shaking. However, it typically posed little actual risk.
Hearing this, passengers visibly relaxed.
Thankfully, it was just a secret realm—not a plane malfunction.
Although rare, flights occasionally crossed secret realms, and as long as the plane stayed intact, passengers could accept some discomfort.
However—
Their relief was short-lived. Suddenly, the skies outside darkened ominously.
Passengers looked out through the windows.
The plane was now enveloped in dense thunderclouds.
Their anxiety surged once again.
"Wasn't the sky clear just now? Where did these thunderclouds come from?"
"Damn! Is my luck really this bad? First a secret realm, now a thunderstorm?!"
"Will we even land safely?"
---
The cabin soon filled with escalating tension and panic.
Inside the cockpit—
The captain shot Xiao Cao an annoyed look.
"Did your mouth get blessed today or something?"
"Everything you say keeps coming true!"
First joking about secret realms—then immediately encountering one.
Then claiming clear skies—
Only to plunge into a violent storm moments later.
Even someone as calm as the captain felt exasperated.
Feeling the captain's heated stare, Xiao Cao laughed nervously, deeply embarrassed.
He felt wronged too! Who knew a casual joke could turn prophetic?
But knowing he had to keep passengers calm, Xiao Cao braced himself and announced:
"Passengers, please rest assured. Our aircraft's exterior is specially reinforced, and regular lightning won't affect it."
"Also, because of these storm clouds, there's practically no chance wild Pokémon will attack."
After the merging of the Pokémon world, real-world materials had significantly advanced. For example, aircraft exteriors were now built from insulating composites impervious to ordinary lightning strikes.
As for wild Pokémon, no Flying-type would dare risk darting through these violent thunderclouds.
That would be suicide.
But Xiao Cao overlooked something crucial:
Certain flying Pokémon not only weren't afraid of lightning—they thrived on it.
Right after his reassuring words and before passengers could even begin to relax, a piercing cry echoed through the plane:
"Kreeee!"
The sharp screech effortlessly penetrated the insulated cabin, instantly gripping every passenger's heart with dread.
Within this secret realm, only wild Pokémon could produce such a cry.
At that moment, in the cockpit—
Xiao Cao looked as if he was about to cry.
If looks could kill, he'd already be dead several times over from the captain's glare alone.
Who'd have imagined his jokes today would have such catastrophic accuracy?
Only bad predictions came true!
"Xiao Cao, quickly release the two Pokémon stored in the lower hold," the captain gritted through clenched teeth.
He silently vowed to request a new co-pilot once back on the ground. He couldn't handle Xiao Cao's prophetic tongue any longer!
"Y-yes, Captain!" Xiao Cao stammered, hastily pressing a button.
To safeguard passengers against wild Pokémon attacks, every commercial flight carried two Pokémon as final safety measures.
However, the power of these Pokémon varied greatly.
Stronger Pokémon naturally cost significantly more to maintain. The higher their strength, the pricier the resources needed to train them.
Flight 573's Pokémon were top-tier in terms of strength:
One Elite Four-Tier Pokémon, one Pseudo-Elite Four-Tier.
With such a powerful configuration, ordinary wild Pokémon wouldn't dare approach.
...
The hatch beneath the aircraft slowly opened.
From within, a majestic Pidgeot and a formidable Swellow emerged, swiftly positioning themselves protectively on either side of the plane.
When no battle immediately ensued, passengers mistakenly assumed the wild Pokémon had retreated, breathing collective sighs of relief.
Some passengers even patted their chests gratefully.
"Good thing I didn't cheap out. Choosing the highest safety rating was worth it."
"Indeed! Thunderstorms combined with Pokémon attacks—if the Pokémon guarding the plane were weaker, we'd really be in trouble."
Elite Four-Tier Pokémon represented the absolute pinnacle of strength among those accessible to the public.
Above that were only Champion-Tier Pokémon, typically only seen at international Pokémon competitions.
Seeing no immediate attack, Xiao Cao's anxiety lessened. He reached again for the intercom, intending to reassure passengers further.
Seeing this, the captain's face fell, quickly trying—but failing—to stop him.
"Dear passengers, rest easy. This flight carries an Elite Four-level Pidgeot and a Pseudo-Elite Four Swellow. No wild Pokémon would dare challenge them..."
"Unless it's a Legendary Pokémon!"
Wanting to underscore the plane's defensive capabilities, Xiao Cao boldly invoked the legendary Pokémon.
Yet, barely had his voice faded—
That terrifyingly familiar cry pierced through again, followed swiftly by a colossal bolt of lightning striking down from the heavens.
The [Thunderbolt] smashed directly into Swellow.
Without even a chance to resist, Swellow's charred body plummeted from the sky.
The passengers froze, stupefied by the sudden disaster.
It was only the captain's furious roar through the intercom that snapped them out of it:
"Xiao Cao, shut that cursed mouth of yours!"
Hearing this, the passengers finally understood.
Yes!
Every time the co-pilot spoke, misfortune soon followed.
Immediately, they complained to the cabin crew, pleading that the co-pilot remain silent.
Just as the crew moved to stand, the plane jolted violently again—something had slammed into it.
The aircraft began shaking uncontrollably.
Passengers seated by the windows anxiously peered outside, hoping to identify their attacker.
Yet, upon clearly seeing the Pokémon responsible, their pupils contracted in fear, faces blanching in terror.
"Z-Zapdos!"
Zapdos?!
Disbelief washed over the faces of all who heard the name.
Zapdos was a Legendary Pokémon, a deity of thunder. How could anyone randomly encounter it?
But when passengers looked through the windows and saw that impossible figure clearly, disbelief was no longer an option.
An orange, dagger-like beak.
Golden feathers covering its body, interspersed with sharp, spike-like plumes on wings and tail.
Black feathers accented its wings and tail underside, and atop its head sat a fierce crown of pointed feathers.
Its sharp orange talons gleamed ominously amid flashes of lightning.
What other Pokémon could this be if not Zapdos?!
None of them ever dreamed they'd meet a Pokémon that previously existed only in textbooks—and certainly not under such circumstances.
If given a choice, they'd rather not have had this encounter at all.
Because this meeting might very well mean their end.
"Kreee—!"
Zapdos soared freely among the thunderclouds, eyes blazing with hostility.
He would severely punish these humans and Pokémon who dared invade his territory.
Had the passengers known Zapdos's thoughts, they'd surely scream their innocence—
It wasn't as though they'd chosen to enter this storm. Who could have expected to accidentally fall into a secret realm?
Unfortunately, Zapdos had neither the time nor patience for explanations.
With a powerful flap of his wings, dazzling electric currents surged around him.
Zapdos was a deity bathed in lightning, ready to unleash divine punishment!
Just then, a piercing cry echoed through the storm—
It was Pidgeot!
Enveloped in blinding white light, Pidgeot threw itself forward in a desperate charge against Zapdos.
Its fierce strike managed to push Zapdos back.
But this attack only inflamed Zapdos's fury, immediately redirecting all aggression toward Pidgeot.
BOOM—!
Countless bolts of lightning mercilessly bombarded Pidgeot's body.
In a thunderstorm, few Flying-type Pokémon could withstand a fight against an electric deity.
Yet...
Even amidst relentless lightning strikes, Pidgeot's eyes remained unyielding.
Turning its head, it gazed meaningfully toward the captain, as if bidding a final farewell.
Gathering its remaining strength, it launched another [Brave Bird] attack, determined to buy the aircraft enough time to escape.
"Pidgeot!"
Witnessing this scene, the captain's tears fell freely.
No one had bonded more deeply with Pidgeot than he had.
From the moment he became captain of Flight 573, this Pidgeot had faithfully guarded them, fighting countless battles at his side.
He'd long regarded Pidgeot as his comrade-in-arms.
Yet after today, they might never meet again.
"Xiao Cao, boost the engines to full power!"
"We need to escape as fast as possible—don't let Pidgeot's sacrifice be in vain!"
Wiping away tears, the captain refocused on his duty to ensure passenger safety.
"Yes, Captain!"
Xiao Cao, now fully immersed in crisis mode, swiftly manipulated the instruments before him.
In moments—
The turbines roared with unprecedented speed, propelling the plane desperately forward.
They had just one way to survive now:
Run.
Run like hell.
If they could escape this realm before Zapdos caught up, they could regain communications, contact the tower, and perhaps survive.
Zapdos watched furiously as the plane took advantage of Pidgeot's sacrifice to escape.
Its rage ignited fully.
No longer holding back, Zapdos channeled the full fury of the thunderclouds.
In the next instant, a massive barrage of lightning bolts crashed mercilessly into Pidgeot.
Finally overwhelmed, Pidgeot collapsed helplessly from the sky.
Having dealt with Pidgeot, Zapdos swiftly pursued the fleeing plane.
Escape from his domain? They could dream on.
---
On the ground, Guo Yi once again sensed something falling from the sky.
Looking up, he saw the charred form of a Pidgeot hurtling downward.
"Beedrill!"
Guo Yi urgently signaled to his companion Pokémon, then continued using his [Power of Viridian] to heal the Pokémon before him, Swellow, who had fallen earlier.
Guo Yi had already entered this secret realm, aiming to intercept this crisis before it unfolded.
Unfortunately, Zapdos's location had eluded him until now.
Just as Zapdos finally appeared and Guo Yi prepared to intervene, Swellow had fallen from the sky, forcing him to first have Beedrill rescue it.
"Beedrill, go ahead first," Guo Yi ordered swiftly after Beedrill retrieved the fallen Pidgeot. "You must stop Zapdos at all costs and protect that plane!"
The situation onboard was dire. Without Pidgeot and Swellow, the plane had no defense against Zapdos.
He himself would follow once he had stabilized the two Pokémon enough for them to survive on their own.
"Bzzzt!"
Beedrill nodded firmly, its form turning into a brilliant streak of light as it shot toward the fleeing plane and Zapdos.
---
Shanghai International Airport's Control Tower
"Flight 573, do you read me?"
"Flight 573, please respond!"
"Flight 573, come in!"
...
The tower's operator repeated urgently into the microphone, but only static replied.
The airport manager anxiously paced nearby, asking, "Any contact yet?"
The operator shook his head grimly.
"Still nothing."
The manager paced faster, growing increasingly desperate.
"Have you reached the tower in YN City yet? Any news from them?"
With a helpless shake of his head, the operator answered bitterly, "None yet. Given the sudden total loss of contact, I suspect they've entered a secret realm."
After all, a sudden, unexplained disappearance usually meant only one thing:
They'd become trapped in a secret realm.
Otherwise...
Even in a disaster, at least some message would have made it through.