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Cynthia wasn't present at the match that day, but she had seen Paul's performance on TV. After all, he was a genius Trainer from her own Sinnoh region, so she had to pay some attention to him.
In her opinion, Paul had already gone down the wrong path, and the person who could set him straight appeared at this Indigo Plateau Conference.
But she hadn't expected that these two hadn't even met in a formal battle yet, but had already interacted privately. Otherwise, how would Paul's Chimchar end up with Ash?
With Cynthia's keen eye, she could tell that Chimchar possessed an extremely terrifying potential, but to what extent, she couldn't fully discern.
After all, she didn't have Ash's Eye of Insight, but one thing she knew was that Paul couldn't unleash Chimchar's potential.
It wasn't that Paul was not a powerful Trainer, nor was it that Paul's training methods were problematic; it was simply that he and Chimchar were not compatible.
Paul's personality could be seen through at a glance from his appearance, while Chimchar's personality was the complete opposite of the aloof Paul. The greater the pressure, the less it could unleash its potential.
If Cynthia were to choose, she would think Ash was more suitable for Chimchar. Only Ash's gentle personality could allow Chimchar to unleash its potential without pressure, rather than relying on constant heavy pressure.
However, Chimchar was already Paul's Pokémon, so it was clearly unrealistic for Chimchar to go to Ash.
But reality is always magical. Who would have thought that in just two days, Chimchar would change ownership?
And in just a few days after changing ownership, Ash had already unearthed Chimchar's power, even evolving directly during battle. This was the chemical reaction that could occur between a suitable Trainer and a suitable Pokémon.
Of course, not every suitable Pokémon and Trainer can reach the level of Ash and Chimchar. This is inseparable from Chimchar's own talent and Ash's aptitude as a Trainer.
On the other side, after seeing the evolved Chimchar, a rare unpleasant expression appeared on Paul's usually indifferent face. He had painstakingly trained Chimchar for several months, but Chimchar had been stuck at the Advanced-level, unable to progress.
Yet, just two days after he abandoned Chimchar, not only did Chimchar's level increase, but it also evolved into Monferno right in front of him. What kind of operation was this?!
It's like you get information that a box of gold is buried in a certain ground. You painstakingly dig for several months, but you don't even see a rare ore, let alone gold.
Then you decide to put down your shovel and stop doing such futile work. Then another person comes to take over, and in less than two days, he digs out that box of gold from underground!
This was exactly like his current situation. The hidden power within Chimchar was that gold. He spent so much time, but couldn't get the gold, while Ash unearthed it in just a few days.
Was the difference between Ash and him too great, or was Chimchar acting against him because it was dissatisfied with his usual training?
Paul was not a petty person who would readily blame others for his mistakes. Although he often said his Pokémon were useless, he was actually saying that to himself as a form of self-motivation.
If a Pokémon is useless, the Trainer shares the responsibility. After that, he would train harder with his Pokémon to improve their strength further.
But now, he really couldn't hold back. Could this not be Chimchar acting against him?
Even if Ash had a way to stimulate Chimchar's potential, it shouldn't have caused such a drastic change in Chimchar in just a few days, right?!
This wasn't stimulating Chimchar's potential; it was as if it had become a completely different Pokémon!
Paul didn't feel regret. He only had one thought in his mind: to find out why Chimchar suddenly seemed like a different Pokémon, whether it was its combat power, level increase, or other aspects—all were completely different from when it was with him.
Is it really the difference in Trainers?
..."Unbelievable! Ash's Chimchar actually evolved into Monferno during the battle, and the Flame Wheel just now also defeated Giselle's Marowak in one fell swoop! Is this the strength of the Kanto Supernova? To evolve a Pokémon during battle, what a bold move! But he succeeded!"
"Facing the Monferno whose strength has soared after evolution, what Pokémon will Giselle choose to counter?!"
The host's words made Giselle purse her red lips helplessly. She also hadn't expected that dealing with a Chimchar that was a whole major stage lower than Marowak would result in it being instantly defeated by one move. This evolution was simply outrageous.
After evolving, Monferno's strength was more than just one level stronger than before. The good news, however, was that her Marowak was also her weakest Pokémon.
This time, her lineup consisted of two strongest main Pokémon and one weakest main Pokémon. This weakest one was among the first Pokémon she ever caught. Later, due to its talent and species, it couldn't quite keep up with the pace of her other Pokémon, but Giselle still chose to keep it by her side and diligently train it.
Although Marowak wasn't her strongest Pokémon, it was definitely the one she had nurtured with the most care. So, no matter the situation, Giselle would always bring Marowak into battle; this could be considered her persistence.
However, bringing a Marowak whose strength couldn't keep up would lead to situations like this. The Indigo Plateau Conference was filled with strong Trainers, not to mention she was facing Ash this time. Being instantly defeated by the opponent was actually within her expectations.
But being instantly defeated by a newly evolved Monferno was not in Giselle's plan.
Giselle took a deep breath, put Marowak's Poké Ball back into her pocket, and then took out a new Poké Ball: "I'm counting on you, Gengar!"
A flash of light, and a dark purple Pokémon appeared on the field—the Ghost-type Pokémon, Gengar.
"Is this Gengar... the Gastly from back then?" Ash felt a sense of familiarity when he saw Gengar. Although he couldn't remember all the Pokémon he had encountered and battled.
But Ash still had some impression of the Pokémon Ralts battled in its first fight.
Even though Gastly had now evolved into Gengar, Ash still felt a familiar sensation from it.
"That's right, it's the Gastly from back then. At that time, it was defeated by your Ralts. Now it has undergone a Refresh and is no longer what it once was. Originally, I was planning to use it to battle your Gardevoir, but for now, let's take care of your Monferno first."
Giselle proudly lifted her smooth chin, showing great confidence in her Gengar's strength.
This Gengar was originally the academy's Pokémon, but after that battle, it followed Giselle. The academy also treated Giselle very well, directly giving that Gastly to Giselle.
And so, Gastly became Giselle's.
Subsequently, Gastly also displayed extraordinary potential in Giselle's hands. In just a few months, it evolved continuously, and its strength kept increasing. Just a few days ago, Gastly had already advanced to the Professional Level!
This rate of improvement was truly terrifying, only slightly weaker than Gary and Misty. Of course, compared to Ash, there was no comparison.
Ralts, which was at the same level as Gastly back then, had now reached the Gym Advanced-level, almost at Gym peak, pulling ahead of Gastly by one major level and two minor levels. The difference between them could only be described as vast.
So, Giselle talking about Gengar avenging Gardevoir was completely wishful thinking.
However, with Gengar's strength, dealing with Monferno was indeed effortless... After evolving, Monferno's strength soared, directly reaching the Advanced peak, but it was still far from the Professional Level. Even with Ash's Aura amplification, its strength would at most reach Superior Advanced.
Having just evolved, Monferno, whose level jumped two tiers, couldn't possibly withstand the full infusion of Aura.
Being able to reach Superior Advanced strength was already a great struggle; otherwise, Marowak would have fallen even faster.
But now, facing a Professional Level Gengar, it seemed a bit outmatched.
"Monferno, can you do it?"
"Hoo!" Monferno's fists lit up, and it threw a flurry of punches in the air, a hint of excitement on its face.
This was a new move it had learned after evolving: Mach Punch.
It was clear that this victory greatly boosted Monferno's confidence, and evolution also added to its self-confidence. Its punching movements and posture were completely different from when it was still a Chimchar.
Perhaps constantly battling higher-level opponents while with Paul, but repeatedly losing, had eroded too much of its confidence, which is why the victory in this battle made Monferno so excited.
Monferno also sensed the current gap between itself and Gengar. It was an immeasurable distance. Even with Ash's power amplification, winning would probably be very difficult.
But it still wanted to try. It wanted to challenge its limits, and it wanted to unleash the power within itself!
"In that case, let's go, Monferno, Flamethrower!" Ash dismissed the idea of recalling Monferno into its Poké Ball. He waved his hand, letting Monferno attack first.
"Dodge, then use Shadow Ball." Giselle commanded calmly.
Gengar in the sky instantly disappeared, and Flamethrower missed. Then Gengar appeared at Monferno's side, and the Shadow Ball in its hand instantly formed and was thrown out!
"Flame Wheel!" The Professional Level speed was too fast compared to Monferno's current speed. Monferno, still using Flamethrower, found it almost impossible to dodge, so it could only use a move to block.
"Hoo!" Monferno maintained its Flamethrower output, its body suddenly curled into a ball, and the Flamethrower from its mouth coiled around its body, forming a wheel of fire!
The scorching flames and the dark Energy Ball collided, erupting with a violent roar on the field!
Amidst the smoke, Monferno was directly sent flying backward from the smoke, tumbling over a dozen times on the ground before barely stopping at the edge of the field.
Ash also clutched his shoulder, his body involuntarily retreating a few steps, a look of pain on his face.
"Is the gap really that big...? But an Advanced-level fighting a Professional Level is indeed a bit of a stretch. Monferno isn't very proficient with its own power yet, and the power at this level hasn't been fully unleashed. Otherwise..."
Ash mumbled with some reluctance.
Actually, if Monferno could train all its ability values at its current level to the limit, then an Advanced peak Pokémon challenging a Professional Level beginner would be no problem at all.
But it had just evolved. Not to mention training its ability values to their peak, it could only unleash seventy to eighty percent of its own Advanced peak power, and Ash's use of Aura to boost it couldn't reach one hundred percent either.
In this situation, wanting to fight a Professional Level Pokémon was a bit fanciful.
That collision just now directly depleted seven or eight tenths of Monferno's stamina. One more hit, and it would probably be knocked out until nightfall.
"Monferno, let's change our strat... Hmm?" Just as Ash was about to tell Monferno to change tactics, he suddenly noticed a surge of power rising within Monferno. That power was incredibly violent, almost instantly filling Monferno's entire body!
"Hoo-cha!!!" Monferno, who was lying on the ground, suddenly had its eyes turn crimson, then quickly jumped up from its prone position, its two massive fists fiercely pounding its chest, and the flames on its back transformed into a large character, scattering everywhere!
Blaze Ability activated!
However, this Blaze Ability was unusually fierce. The entire field became scorching hot at this moment, and Ash's eyes were also a bit dazed. He had never seen such a ferocious Blaze Ability before.
Is this the Super Blazefire Ability that the Eye of Insight detected? It's not just a little bit stronger than a normal Blaze Ability.
A normal Blaze Ability can only increase Fire-type damage by fifty percent, but Monferno's Blaze Ability increased it by at least one hundred percent, and it was still rising!
In addition to the increase in fire power, Monferno's overall stats were also continuously increasing. Ash, who was now one with Monferno, could feel that Monferno was greatly improving in both power and speed, but its defense and stamina remained unchanged.
This was a pure increase in offensive power, much more potent than Blaze Ability, but not comprehensive enough.
When this power erupted, it indicated that Monferno's power was almost at its limit. Even if it could unleash power far exceeding its own level, it couldn't last long.
But that wasn't the most crucial thing. The most crucial thing was... Ash was almost unable to feel Monferno anymore!