Silas's expression changed instantly. Without hesitation, he released Crawdaunt.
"Crawwdaunt!!"
Even though the distance between himself and Whiscash should technically place him outside the range of Earthquake…Silas never liked gambling with safety.
Crawdaunt swung one massive pincer downward.
BOOM!!
The moment the seismic shock reached them, Crawdaunt smashed the ground using nothing but raw physical strength.
No energy enhancement.
No move.
Pure brute force.
The tremors were forcefully dispersed. Whiscash's whiskers twitched violently. Its expression visibly changed.
It could clearly sense the terrifying energy fluctuations emanating from Crawdaunt's body.
This was a Pokémon extremely skilled at seeking advantages and avoiding danger And now It felt threatened.
Silas narrowed his eyes slightly.
"So it really is Oblivious? No…"
Then realization struck him.
"Anticipation."
A rare Ability capable of instinctively sensing danger levels from opponents.
Pokémon with Anticipation were notoriously difficult to capture in the wild because they often fled long before danger truly arrived.
Normally, this personality trait didn't fit territorial Pokémon like Whiscash at all But apparently This one was an exception.
Whiscash thrashed around within the muddy shoreline. Its fins slapped against the wet earth repeatedly, spraying mud everywhere.
Clearly, due to its body structure, it couldn't remain on land comfortably for long periods. Which meant…It was deliberately luring Silas closer to the lake.
Trying to drag his Pokémon underwater again. Silas instantly saw through the trick.
"You think the same tactic will work twice?"
"You think Sandile only knows close-range attacks?"
Leaving everything else aside With both Crawdaunt and Sharpedo on his team, Silas had absolutely no fear of water combat.
Still, this battle was meant to train Sandile. So he intentionally prevented Crawdaunt from interfering further.
"Sandile!"
"Use Hidden Power!"
"Graaaah!!"
Sandile opened its jaws wide. A violent wave of energy erupted from its body. Purple draconic energy twisted the surrounding air slightly before blasting toward Whiscash.
This was Dragon-type Hidden Power.
"Graaaah!"
Whiscash reacted immediately. Its massive tail swept through the air like a tidal wave.
AQUA TAIL!!
BOOM!!
The Water Tail collided directly against Hidden Power, dispersing the dragon energy instantly.
Seeing its lure fail, Whiscash abandoned subtlety altogether. A massive sphere of water rapidly condensed before being launched straight toward Sandile.
Water Pulse.
Silas's eyes sharpened. Sandile was already lower leveled than Whiscash. On top of that, Water-type attacks dealt double damage against Ground-types. One mistake here could end the fight instantly.
"Focus!"
"Use Crunch!"
"Graaaah!!"
Unlike Bite, Crunch was a move naturally inherited through Sandile's bloodline once it reached a certain level.
As the upgraded form of Bite, Sandile had mastered it quickly.
After all Dark-type biting techniques were practically engraved into its instincts.
Sandile leapt forward. Dark energy coated its sharp jaws as it lunged directly toward the incoming Water Pulse.
CHOMP!!
The water sphere exploded apart midair.
Water scattered everywhere But Silas didn't stop there.
"Sharpen your claws!"
"Then use Stomping Tantrum again!"
The reason Silas never allowed his Pokémon to abandon weaker moves became obvious at this moment.
Why continue training Bite after learning Crunch?
Why continue refining Stomping Tantrum after eventually gaining access to Earthquake?
Because powerful moves consumed enormous stamina and often couldn't be spammed repeatedly in high-pressure combat.
If a Pokémon relied only on ultimate moves, then failed to execute them continuously ,They would immediately expose fatal openings. Especially while pressing an advantage.
That was why Silas valued fundamental moves so heavily. At this moment, Sandile could chain Stomping Tantrum repeatedly But Whiscash couldn't unleash Earthquake multiple times within such a short span.
BOOM!!
Sandile stomped the earth violently again.
Invisible shockwaves surged through the ground toward Whiscash.
At that exact moment Whiscash's Anticipation Ability screamed warnings inside its mind.
Danger.
Extreme danger.
This feeling had only appeared twice before in its entire life.
The first time When it was born.
The second When it fought the former ruler of this lake for territory control.
Back then, it had battled a high-level Quagsire above Level 30. Both Pokémon had nearly died But in the end, Whiscash survived And now That same terrifying instinct returned once more.
For the first time in years, Whiscash considered abandoning the lake entirely. At worst, it could retreat underground, dig new swamp tunnels, and search for another water source.
Territorial instincts meant nothing compared to survival. Whiscash had survived this long precisely because it knew when to flee.
From weak fry…To a high-level Pokémon exceeding Level 30…It had escaped countless times before reaching this point.
The instinct to seek survival was carved into its very genes. So it chose to run.
Whiscash desperately wriggled toward the lake But Silas merely sneered coldly.
"Sandile."
"Trap it with Sand Tomb!"
"GRAAAAH!!"
A violent sandstorm instantly erupted around Sandile. Countless grains of yellow sand spiraled outward into a swirling vortex before crashing toward Whiscash.
Sand Tomb.
One of Sandile's primary training techniques. Not only did it restrain opponents ,It also laid the foundation for eventually mastering Sandstorm in the future.
"Now rush in!"
"Use Crunch again!"
Sandile sprinted across the ground on its short limbs at astonishing speed. At the same time, it maintained control over the Sand Tomb continuously.
This precise energy manipulation was only possible because of the Earth Essence medicine Silas had invested in long ago. All those expensive resources were finally beginning to show results.
Meanwhile Whiscash was completely panicking. Its Anticipation Ability screamed louder and louder.
The feeling of danger surpassed anything it had ever experienced before. It desperately unleashed attacks to break apart the sandstorm. But every time it carved out an escape path, The terrifying suction force of Sand Tomb dragged it right back into the center.
Whiscash was losing its mind. Its fear amplified endlessly. All it wanted now was to return to the lake.
Its originally calm expression twisted violently.
Its eyes turned blood-red. Reason vanished completely.
"GRAAAAAAAAH!!"
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(End of chapter)