"How is that possible?"
"Swampert has the Ground type—there's no way it should be taking damage from Electric moves!"
A squad member behind Gan Yun blurted it out in disbelief.
Ground-types being immune to Electric moves was basic knowledge—something you learned the moment you started battling with Pokémon.
And yet—that "common sense" had just been shattered right in front of them.
Unlike the others, Gan Yun stared at Swampert's condition and more or less understood why.
"Heat."
"Swampert isn't hurt by electricity—it's burned by the heat."
His expression sank.
Because—ultra-high voltage often came with extreme temperatures.
Normally, compared to the voltage itself, that heat was negligible; for Pokémon, it was the electricity that did the real damage.
But this lightning bolt… its power was so far beyond expectation that it flipped the rules.
"Gan Yun—long time no see."
Right then, amid the constant thunder, a voice Gan Yun knew all too well drifted down from above.
He looked up, pupils tightening, and recognized the speaker at once.
"Lie Ke… it's you?"
Lie Ke had been waiting for them all along.
He sat astride a Charizard, confidence written plainly across his face.
And the source of that confidence hovered above his head.
Thundurus stood with arms crossed, looking down on everyone present with arrogant contempt.
For some reason, Thundurus was temporarily under Lie Ke's control—but its personality was still as smug and unrestrained as ever.
Even when it "stood," it insisted on floating above Lie Ke.
And to keep Thundurus from resisting too hard, Lie Ke hadn't pressed him on little things.
Seeing Gan Yun answer, Lie Ke smiled. "Gan Yun. It's been a while."
"How's your teacher doing?"
Lie Ke had once been an Elite Four of the Pokémon League.
Plenty of Dragon Country's Gym Leaders and juniors knew him.
But faced with Lie Ke's almost-elderly tone, Gan Yun didn't relax for a second. If anything, his expression grew even tighter.
Lie Ke's entire roster is Fire-type. Where did this Electric-type come from?
With Lie Ke's strength… this is bad. Really bad.
Staring at the unknown Pokémon radiating pressure like a mountain, Gan Yun's mind raced.
The next second—
"Flygon—[DRAGON RUSH]!"
"Everyone, retreat! Now!"
Without hesitation, Gan Yun ordered Flygon to attack—and shouted for the team to withdraw.
They weren't far from the Secret Realm exit.
If he could hold Lie Ke for just a few seconds, Gan Yun believed at least one or two people would make it out.
The others didn't hesitate. They spun around and sprinted for the boundary.
Because they understood their mission: get the information out.
However—watching Gan Yun's attempt, Lie Ke's eyes held only contempt.
He didn't even need to speak.
Thundurus casually raised its right hand and flicked it downward.
Whoosh.
A pitch-black Dark Pulse surged through the air, sending ripples of distortion across the space it passed.
The moment the two attacks collided, Dark Pulse tore apart the dragon-shaped armor forming over Flygon's body as if it were paper.
Against Thundurus's strike, Flygon had no chance at all.
One hit—instant drop.
And the fleeing squad—just as they were about to cross the boundary—a figure arrived ahead of them and cut them off.
It was Lie Ke's Blaziken.
Before anyone could react, Blaziken moved like a blur, knocking everyone present unconscious.
All but one.
That lone remaining team member stayed upright, staring at Lie Ke with full-body wariness.
But beneath the vigilance, there was confusion—confusion over why Blaziken hadn't taken him down too.
Whoosh—whoosh.
Charizard beat its wings and descended, landing slowly.
Lie Ke vaulted down and walked straight up to the one conscious man.
"Go tell Guo Yi—if he wants these people alive…"
"Tomorrow, he comes to this Secret Realm alone."
Lie Ke waved his hand dismissively.
"Now get out."
The team member didn't know what Lie Ke was planning.
But if there was a chance to carry what happened here back outside—he wasn't about to waste it.
He scrambled up and ran.
When his figure vanished beyond the Secret Realm boundary, Lie Ke's eyes burned with hatred.
"Guo Yi… tomorrow will be your day to die."
The humiliation he'd suffered—he would repay a hundredfold—no—thousandfold.
...
The team member who escaped sprinted toward Yunlong Dam without stopping.
Thud—thud—thud!
Heavy, frantic footsteps splashed through puddles.
Snap!
In a moment of carelessness, he tripped over a stone and went down hard.
Filthy mud splattered across his face and into his hair.
But—he didn't have time to care.
He forced himself back up immediately.
He had to report what happened in the Secret Realm to the two Elite Four—and to Guo Yi.
As he got closer to Yunlong Dam, people became more and more numerous.
And his battered, wretched appearance naturally drew attention.
"What happened? How did you end up like that?"
"That uniform—he's from the League's Secret Realm exploration teams. If he's in this state, something big happened inside."
"No way. There are two Elite Four stationed here, and Teacher Guo too. Who'd dare mess around?"
"Heh. That just means you're still green. Ever wonder why Yunlong Dam pulled in so many heavy hitters?"
"You mean…"
"Exactly. This flood probably isn't as simple as we thought."
"Then the Secret Realms are dangerous!"
"So what? Wealth is found in danger. I've already made a fortune off Secret Realms these past few days."
"With those resources, my main Pokémon might be able to push into Gym Leader Tier."
...
In an instant, all kinds of rumors rippled through the crowd.
Every theory under the sun.
But one point became clear to everyone: this flooding was definitely not as simple as they'd imagined.
...
Yunlong Dam Command Post.
Lin Feng and Jin Peng listened with grave expressions as the team member Lie Ke had released recounted what happened.
"Elite Four, that's the situation."
"That Pokémon we've never seen before… its strength is terrifying."
"Even with type advantage, it one-shot Gym Leader Gan's Swampert. And when Gym Leader Gan tried to buy us time with Flygon, it still got one-shot."
At that, Jin Peng suddenly asked, "Then how did you get out?"
By the account given, there shouldn't have been any chance to escape.
"Because Lie Ke let me go—so I could bring Teacher Guo a message."
In an instant, everyone's gaze snapped to Guo Yi.
"A message for me?" Guo Yi let out a soft laugh.
Even if the team member didn't say, Guo Yi could already guess what it was.
An invitation to battle. Nothing more.
Lie Ke had released someone specifically to deliver a message—obviously he was trying to reclaim face.
The team member nodded and continued. "Lie Ke said that if Teacher Guo wants my comrades and Gym Leader Gan to be safe—"
"Teacher Guo must go to the Secret Realm alone."
Hearing that, the smile on Guo Yi's face only deepened.
"Interesting."
So he's trying to use Thundurus's power to reclaim his pride?
Guo Yi couldn't help thinking.
From the team member's description, he already knew what Lie Ke was relying on.
Thundurus.
Still—Guo Yi was curious how Lie Ke had managed to control it.
Because if he wasn't mistaken, this Thundurus was likely in Therian Forme.
And getting Thundurus to shift into Therian Forme required specific conditions.
After hearing the message, Lin Feng refused immediately.
"No."
"Letting Teacher Guo go alone is far too dangerous."
"Teacher Guo, I'll go with you."
Lie Ke had fought Guo Yi before, so Lin Feng knew how terrifying that Beedrill was.
And yet—Lie Ke still dared to challenge Guo Yi alone.
That meant Lie Ke had real confidence he could win.
So Lin Feng couldn't let Guo Yi take that risk by himself.
Jin Peng nodded as well and looked at Guo Yi. "Guo Yi, you absolutely can't go alone."
"It's too dangerous."
However—faced with the two Elite Four's concern, Guo Yi shook his head.
"No."
"I have to go."
When they tried to speak again, Guo Yi lifted a hand to stop them.
"You two don't need to say more. For the sake of these team members—and Gym Leader Gan—I have to go."
"I can't let others die because of my personal reasons."
Then he looked at Lin Feng. "Elite Four Lin, thank you."
"But with Lie Ke's caution, he'll definitely have lookouts at the Secret Realm entrance."
"If we go together, we'll tip them off."
Hearing Guo Yi's words, everyone present felt genuine respect rise in their hearts.
After all—Guo Yi wasn't even official League personnel.
If he wanted to refuse a dangerous task, he had every reason to.
"Th…" Lin Feng started, at a loss.
Guo Yi was right, but Lin Feng still couldn't accept him going alone.
Seeing the worry in Lin Feng's eyes, Guo Yi decisively shifted the conversation.
"Elite Four Lin, don't worry about me. Teacher's Pokémon is with me."
"Even if I lose to Lie Ke, my life won't be in danger."
"Instead, we should be more concerned about what Lie Ke's real purpose is."
"His purpose?" That pulled both Elite Four into thought.
"Yes," Guo Yi said. "The purpose behind this."
"Don't forget—Lie Ke's status within the Seven Sages is not low. For him to suddenly jump out now, it's probably not just revenge."
Guo Yi didn't believe the Seven Sages' leader would allow Lie Ke to use a Legendary Pokémon on Thundurus's level purely for personal revenge.
Their real intent was likely to use Lie Ke to draw their attention—to cover their operation elsewhere.
Lin Feng and Jin Peng were veterans. They caught the implication immediately.
After a long moment, Lin Feng spoke slowly. "Teacher Guo… how confident are you, facing Lie Ke alone?"
As Lin Feng finally relented, a bright smile spread across Guo Yi's face.
---
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