Seeing the Pokémon that appeared, Li Qingfeng murmured, "Kadabra…"
In less than a moment, Kadabra's body glowed with a dazzling white light. Within the light, Kadabra's body continued to change.
When the light dissipated, Kadabra evolved into an Alakazam. Its mustache grew longer, its height increased, and the spoons in its hands also increased to two.
Its chest and shoulders looked as if they were wrapped in brown armor, and its wrists had two brown objects resembling wristguards.
Xiao Zhi had never seen the Pokémon in front of him, so he took out his pokémon index and scanned it: "Alakazam, the Psychic Pokémon. It never forgets anything it has experienced; its brain is very intelligent."
Clearly, this Alakazam in front of them was particularly powerful, and Pikachu could probably only last a few rounds against it.
"Your strength… is very strong. However, I always feel… your behavior in battle… is a bit strange. Is it because… you have a friend?"
Sabrina's words reached the ears of the two "coaches" outside the arena. They exchanged glances, full of confusion.
What friend? Wasn't his friend still outside the arena?
Xiao Zhi's expression was slightly odd. He hadn't expected Sabrina, a Superpower user, to be able to sense Li Dage's presence. She wouldn't do anything to him, would she?
"It's nothing, let's continue the battle." Sabrina shook her head, which made Xiao Zhi nervous.
This was his first time battling a Superpower user. In this situation, he felt as if his every secret had been seen through.
"Pika…" (A bit strong…)
Pikachu looked at the Alakazam in front of it, feeling the burst of psychic power emanating from it, and couldn't help but swallow.
Xiao Zhi took the initiative: "Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"
Pikachu nodded, then erupted with a powerful force. It was as fast as lightning, instantly arriving in front of Alakazam.
Just as it was about to ram into Alakazam's abdomen, the opponent quickly used psychic power to control Pikachu, then pinned it to the ground.
The ground instantly collapsed in one spot, and Alakazam quickly released its hold. To keep Xiao Zhi from worrying, Pikachu struggled to stand up, its body covered in wounds, which made Xiao Zhi feel a pang of heartache.
'The strength difference is too great.' Li Qingfeng shook his head. In this situation, it was not something Pikachu could resolve.
Even in the original work, Xiao Zhi only managed to pass by relying on Gastly's comedic antics.
Xiao Zhi called out to Pikachu: "Pikachu, come back."
"Pika… Pi!" (I can still… continue!)
Pikachu was unwilling to give up. This Gym badge was particularly important to Xiao Zhi. It had to at least injure the opponent, otherwise the next battle would be even more difficult.
"Pikachu… thank you!"
Xiao Zhi was deeply moved to see Pikachu wanting to fight even while injured. The next moment, he commanded again: "Then, use Thunderbolt!"
Although Pikachu felt physically exhausted, it still gritted its teeth and gathered the electric energy within its body. Its small paws were clenched tightly, and dazzling electric light burst forth around its body.
"Now!"
Following Xiao Zhi's command, Pikachu concentrated all its energy within its body, and suddenly a lightning-like beam of light erupted from it.
The speed of Thunderbolt was astonishingly fast, so much so that even Alakazam couldn't use Teleport to dodge it immediately.
Alakazam tightly gripped the spoons in its hands, concentrating its psychic power there.
Just as Thunderbolt was about to arrive, it suddenly swung the two spoons in its hands, emitting a pinkish-white beam of light that canceled out Thunderbolt.
The beam of light and Thunderbolt collided, producing intense sparks and deafening roars. The smoke and dust from the explosion spread out, instantly obscuring both sides' vision.
In this situation, a single-target move like Thunderbolt couldn't lock onto a target. Xiao Zhi recalled that past scene and shouted: "Pikachu, use Discharge!"
Pikachu immediately sensed Xiao Zhi's determination and released a powerful force. Lightning gathered from its body, forming a dazzling electric arc. With Xiao Zhi's call, Pikachu unleashed Discharge to its limit.
Instantly, Thunder Shock filled the entire battlefield. Lightning formed a dazzling curtain of light in the air, accompanied by the hum of electric currents. The violent Thunder Shock was like an invisible giant wave, sweeping towards Alakazam.
"Alakazam." (Indeed, not bad.)
Alakazam nodded slightly, then with a wave of its hand, a massive Light Screen instantly appeared in front of it. This Light Screen shone with a mysterious purple light, and it clearly wasn't a cheap item.
With the appearance of the Light Screen, the power of Pikachu's Discharge was reduced by more than half, and the electric current was no longer as violent as before. The powerful Thunder Shock was absorbed and dispersed by the purple light, its effect far less than before.
Immediately after, Alakazam raised its hand and used psychic power to lift Pikachu.
Pikachu, having continuously released two powerful moves, had nowhere to hide and could only be manipulated by Alakazam. As Alakazam lowered its hand, Pikachu fell weakly to the ground, its eyes swirling.
Xiao Zhi ran forward, picked up Pikachu, and while stroking its fur, said: "Pikachu, you worked hard, go get some rest."
After entrusting Pikachu to Brock and the others, Xiao Zhi returned to his command position and looked at his shadow.
"Gengar, I'm counting on you! This battle is really important!"
Xiao Zhi's words made Gengar, who was in the shadow, poke its head out, then look towards the Alakazam on the field.
"Gengar." (Strange, didn't the Gym Leader say they would choose Pokémon according to the challenger's number of badges? Why send out such a powerful Pokémon?)
Gengar could sense that the opponent's strength was on par with its own, which left it a bit puzzled. It looked at Xiao Zhi and called out again.
"Gengar." (I'll do it myself, you just watch me.)
'Gengar said it wants to do it itself.'
Hearing Li Qingfeng's translation, Xiao Zhi looked at Gengar and still nodded: "Alright, then you must do your best!"
He had never commanded Gengar before; when it saved him previously, he always let it act on its own. Moreover, his current opponent was Sabrina. How could he, a Trainer who hadn't even memorized all of Gengar's moves, command it well?
"Gengar." (Don't worry, with me here, it'll be fine.)
Gengar floated onto the field, giving Alakazam an evil, charming smile.
Looking at Gengar in the distance, Xiao Zhi suddenly asked Li Qingfeng in his mind: 'Li Dage, do you think Gengar can defeat Alakazam right now?'
Li Qingfeng rubbed his forehead, recalling Gengar's Ice Punch when it first appeared: 'I think, with proper command, Gengar can definitely defeat Alakazam. But right now, Gengar is fighting alone, and I'm afraid it might pull some tricks.'