The so-called Six Divine Pillars are indeed not something Brandon made up to fool Ash. According to the information he's gathered, there are two other Divine Pillars in the Galar Region: the Dragon Divine Pillar—Regidrago, and the Thunder Divine Pillar—Regieleki.
These two Divine Pillars have an even older history than the Three Divine Pillars. If one can gather all five Divine Pillars, they might find a clue to the legendary Divine Pillar, the Holy Pillar King Regigigas!
As long as the Holy Pillar King is captured along with them, then indeed one will have the Six Divine Pillars!
At that time, a rematch with Ash would certainly lead to a spectacular six-on-six battle!
...
After leaving the Battle Pyramid, Ash and the others found a Pokemon Center and handed Charizard, Gardevoir, and Pikachu to Miss Joy for treatment.
Charizard and Gardevoir are fine; they mainly have exhausted physical strength and will recover after a night's rest.
But Pikachu's situation is a bit more complicated.
"This Pikachu's body has no major issues, but the strength of his body... it's absurdly strong, far surpassing the body strength of Pokemon of the same level." Miss Joy frowned while looking at the examination report.
"That's normal, Miss Joy. Just like my heart being much hotter than my outward expression of affection, we are naturally... ahhh!!" Before Brock could finish his words, Misty grabbed him by the ear and dragged him away.
"Miss Joy is discussing important matters; why would you butt in now? Get back here!!" Although she usually did pull Brock's ear, this time it was far more violent.
Now that Miss Joy is treating Ash's Pokemon, if this guy causes an interruption, and Miss Joy forgets what she was about to tell Ash, what then?
"Uh... cough, cough, Miss Joy, you go on." Ash watched Brock being dragged away violently, unconsciously rubbed his cheek, and some sweat appeared on his forehead.
Since becoming boyfriend and girlfriend with Misty, she had always been quite gentle in front of him, making him almost forget, this is Misty's true nature!
He must be careful not to get too carried away in front of Misty, or else, even if he's a human-shaped Pokemon, he probably can't escape Misty's ear-pulling outburst.
"Overall, Pikachu is fine, but I need to inform you as a trainer about this extraordinary body strength; you should know what's happened, right?"
Ash nodded, about to say something, but Miss Joy interrupted, "As long as you know, you don't need to tell me the specifics; it's your secret. As long as there's no harm to the Pokemon's body, it's fine."
After speaking, Miss Joy winked at Ash and entered the treatment room inside the Pokemon Center.
Leaving Ash and Pikachu staring at each other blankly.
"Sorry, I almost forgot you." Miss Joy returned to the treatment room, picked up Pikachu, and jogged back.
Before leaving, Pikachu and Ash exchanged looks of helplessness.
After the little episode, Ash's expression calmed down as he recalled the data sheet that appeared in his mind when he brought Pikachu to the Pokemon Center.
[Type: Pikachu (Third Transformation) Partner Form]
[Gender: Male]
[Attribute: Electric Type]
[Level: Junior Elite Four Level]
[Ability: Static]
[Held Item: Light Ball]
[Skills: Thunderbolt, Volt Tackle, Thunder, Electric Terrain…]
[Six-dimensional Ability: Physical Attack S+ (S+) Special Attack S+ (S+) Defense A+ (A+) Special Defense A+ (A+) Physical Strength S (S) Speed S+ (S+)]
At some point, Pikachu had undergone his Third Transformation. After this transformation, his level fell back to Junior Elite Four Level.
Why use the word "only"? Because Pikachu's level before the Third Transformation was merely Elite Four Peak.
Relying on Partner Form to temporarily reach Champion Level doesn't mean Pikachu truly reached Champion Level.
Normally, after a rebirth, Pikachu's strength would drop directly from Elite Four Peak to Gym Level, and overall six-dimensional abilities would not be elevated to the current level's limit.
Moreover... surpassing extreme limits in Double Attack is impossible for a Pokemon!
S+ in Double Attack is an ability value that only appears in Partner Form, far beyond a Pokemon's current level limit, a power theoretically nonexistent in the world.
That's something even Tier One Gods can't achieve. Mewtwo, Ho-Oh, Lugia—none have surpassed the S-Class ability limit, but Pikachu did!
With continuing rebirth, Pikachu can even elevate his ability value to SS, SS+, etc.
Although this was anticipated, Ash was still amazed to see Pikachu truly surpass ability value limits.
Moreover, now Ash couldn't understand how Pikachu managed to achieve a Third Transformation.
He hadn't set foot in other regions, nor had he drawn Power of Rebirth... drawn?
Sitting in the Pokemon Center seat, Ash suddenly raised his head, a flash of insight in his mind, he seemed to understand something!
"What's the matter, Ash?" Serena noticed Ash's appearance while ordering food and inquired worriedly.
After all, Ash suddenly looked up without warning, displaying a somewhat enlightened yet shocked expression, hard not to worry!
"N-nothing, just suddenly thought I haven't had a Coke in a long time, could you order me a bottle?" Ash casually made an excuse.
Hearing that, Serena didn't doubt him either. "Anything else you want to eat?"
"Another curry pork cutlet rice, please. Sorry, I'm still a bit tired, I'll rest for a bit first. Call me when the food comes." As he spoke, Ash yawned, leaned back on the seat, closed his eyes and tilted his head, looking like he'd fallen asleep in an instant.
Misty and Serena exchanged a helpless look, then chose not to bother Ash and continued ordering.
The food options at the Pokemon Center were actually quite varied, with both free and paid choices. The paid dishes were definitely much better than the free ones, but compared to what Ash and Brock could cook, they were still way behind.
Ash, with his eyes closed, wasn't just resting; he had dived into the group chat.
He needed to go into the group chat to figure out what was causing Pikachu's condition.
...
[Ascender Ash: Guys, today my Pikachu, it…]
In the group, Ash carefully went over Pikachu's performance today. He'd actually already more or less guessed the reason for Pikachu's changes, but he still chose to come to the group to confirm it.
[Ascender Ash: Could this situation with Pikachu have something to do with that S-Class reward I drew back then, the Light of Hope?]
This time, none of the big shots replied instantly, but after Ash patiently waited for half a minute, Champion Ash appeared.
[Champion Ash: We don't actually know exactly what that Light of Hope is; none of us have drawn it. But the rewards in the group are actually things that all of us in the Parallel Worlds possess in some form—like S-Class Aura Power, like S-Class adventures, etc.]
[Champion Ash: It's just that the chat group can convert those abstract things into tangible items. The so‑called Light of Hope is the Miracle Power that appears when we are on the brink of despair.]
[Champion Ash: And the Light of Hope you drew infinitely amplified that Miracle Power, which is why Pikachu was able to erupt with a strength that was almost impossible, and even achieve that unbelievable Third Transformation.]
Ash's guess was indeed correct. The reason Pikachu could unleash that Level of power was because of the Light of Hope.
After all, as an S-Class ability, there's no way it only sounded good on paper. Just look at the S-Class abilities Ash had drawn before—was any of them easy to handle?
This time, the S-Class ability didn't just let Pikachu burst out with enough power to instantly kill Regice, it also allowed Pikachu to successfully reach the Third Transformation.
If not for this eruption of the Light of Hope, who knew how long it would've taken Pikachu to reach the Third Transformation.
On one hand, they needed to reach Champion Level; on the other, Ash had to draw that S-Class Break the Limit. The conditions to achieve it were insanely harsh!
Yet now, all it took was a single battle, and all the conditions were fulfilled. Their obsession with victory played no small part in this.
It was precisely because of this obsession, and the bond between the two, that this miracle‑like power was triggered.
Otherwise, even if Pikachu went berserk, at most it could only barely defeat Regice. To beat Regice into that near‑death state? That would've been impossible no matter how hard they fought.
[Breeder Ash: Tsk tsk, gotta say, newbie, your Pikachu's reincarnation speed is crazy fast! You haven't even walked out of the Johto Region and it's already at the Third Transformation. Don't tell me you're going to hit the Fourth Transformation before you even leave Johto?]
[Friend of the Divine Beasts Ash: If it really reaches the Fourth Transformation, that would be insane. A maxed‑out Fourth Transformation Pikachu can arm‑wrestle with gods.]
[Unlucky Ash: So nice So nice]
[Ash the Aura Guardian: At this growth speed, newbie is probably among the very top of the entire group, right?]
[Champion Ash: Not just the top—he's one of a kind. Newbie will probably be the youngest Super Trainer in the group to command a full team of Divine Domain-level Pokemon. We'll be waiting for your good news when you become Eight Great Masters Champion.]
[Ascender Ash: Hehe, I'm really not that amazing. It's all thanks to your guidance and the help from this group.]
Ash wasn't being modest; that was what he truly believed in his heart.
In fact, his starting point was probably the lowest among all the Ashes in the group. Among them, there probably wasn't another Ash who, when setting out on his journey, hadn't even memorized the type matchup chart, and didn't even recognize a Pikachu—the Pokemon that's as common as stray dogs along the roadside, right?
That was the level he started from.
If not for the guidance from the veterans in the group and the prizes from the group's lottery, don't even mention becoming an Elite Champion—he might not even have a single Gym Level Pokemon right now.
Even if he did have Gym Level Pokemon, it would at most be one or two. How could he possibly have a full team of Elite Four Level and above Pokemon like he did now?
[Champion Ash: Whether it's the chat group or our help, all of that is part of your own destiny. There's no need to overthink it—just charge forward with everything you've got. But remember one thing: becoming Eight Great Masters Champion… is only the beginning.]
[Ascender Ash: Only the beginning?]
[Champion Ash: Once you've become Eight Great Masters Champion, you'll understand what I mean.]
[Ascender Ash: Got it, big bro. If there's nothing else, I'll head out first!]
...
Back in reality, Ash slowly opened his eyes, just as the staff brought over the set meals they had ordered.
"Ash, your timing is impeccable. Don't tell me you woke up from the smell of food?" Misty teased with a smile.
"Hehe, maybe." Ash didn't deny it. He sat up straight and looked at the steaming curry pork cutlet rice in front of him, and his stomach immediately growled in protest.
That fierce battle just now had drained not only his Physical Strength and Spiritual Power, but also emptied his energy reserves.
"Dig in!"
...
After the meal, everyone went back to their rooms. Ash took a hot shower, feeling his whole body loosen up considerably, then lay on the bed and scrolled through information about the Goldenrod Gym on his phone.
Goldenrod Gym, Gym Leader Whitney, specializes in Normal Type Pokemon; her ace is that famously troublesome Miltank…
Pikachu and Charizard would both need treatment until tomorrow to fully recover. But Ash actually didn't plan on sending Charizard and the others out tomorrow anyway—that would really be bullying.
Whitney was strong, but compared to Brandon, she was nowhere near his level, just around a normal Gym Leader's strength.
Come to think of it, it had been a while since he'd had a normal Gym battle. The only relatively standard Gym match he'd had lately was with Korrina.
And he'd even fought Korrina's grandpa right after that.
Both of those battles were one‑on‑one.
This time against the Goldenrod Gym, it would be a solid three‑on‑three. He had to think carefully about which Pokemon to use…
...
The night passed without incident.
The next morning, sunlight slipped through the gap in the Pokemon Center's curtains and spilled into the room. Ash was woken up by Pikachu's growl.
"Pika pika!"
Ash opened his eyes and saw that Pikachu had somehow already returned from the treatment room and was squatting by his pillow, lightly brushing his face with its fluffy tail.
"Pikachu! You're okay?" Ash sprang up, scooping Pikachu into his hands and looking it over from head to toe.
"Pika pi!" Pikachu punched the air energetically with its little fists, its cheek pouches crackling with electricity. It looked completely recovered.
"That's awesome! Brock, let's go challenge the Goldenrod Gym!!" Lying in bed, Brock squinted at his phone to check the time—8:05.
"The Gym doesn't even open until nine. After being that exhausted yesterday, you can still get up this early? Are you even human?" Brock's phone slipped onto the pillow as his head flopped to the side, and he was about to go back to sleep.
But Ash was already up washing and getting ready. The clanging sounds kept Brock from falling back asleep, so he could only jerk himself upright.
"I really should let Ash and Misty room together and just get a single with Serena. If I keep getting woken up this early by Ash every day, I'm going to end up with a nervous breakdown."
*******************************
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