Charizard hovered in mid-air, its chest heaving violently. The scar on its side, left by the Hammer Arm, still throbbed with pain, and every breath felt like flames scorching its insides.
As the Flare Blitz failed to hit the target, the recoil damage could be considered negligible. Even so, Charizard's current injuries were quite severe.
But it stared unwaveringly at Registeel. He would win this battle!
"Impressive, Ash. Both you and your Charizard have truly surprised me, pushing Registeel to this extent. This is the first time I've seen such a thing... but this is as far as you go." Brandon praised Ash and his Charizard from the heart.
But then quickly adopted a battle-ready demeanor: "Registeel, Lock-on!"
The gem on the chest of the Divine Pillar Registeel lit up, an invisible locking wave targeted the airborne Charizard.
For the next attack, Charizard would have no way to dodge!
Brandon was determined to decide the outcome in the next attack!
"Use Hyper Beam." Brandon's calm voice sounded again. This time, he chose to have Registeel use the Normal Type ultimate move, Hyper Beam!
The move was incredibly powerful, but somewhat difficult to hit the target. However, now that Charizard was locked on, Hyper Beam became an unmissable skill.
Registeel spread its arms wide, and golden energy frantically gathered in front of its chest. The massive force of energy caused the air in the entire pyramid to tremble.
"Oh no... if Charizard takes a Hyper Beam in its current condition, it will definitely lose its ability to fight." Brock looked worried.
One of Charizard's big advantages over Registeel was its speed, which could be seen from the two landed Fire Punches.
If Brandon hadn't been experienced enough to seize the moment when Charizard paused and used Hammer Arm to pin it to the ground, Charizard could have continued using its speed to kite Registeel to defeat.
Brandon also understood Registeel's disadvantages, hence he didn't bother with fancy tricks against Charizard, instead opting for sheer force to break all techniques!
Charizard couldn't dodge now, and had no choice but to endure the Hyper Beam!
Either it would take the hit directly, or after a move confrontation it would still take the hit.
In a direct clash, Charizard was absolutely no match for Registeel; this time, Charizard was in real trouble...
"Charizard, Flare Blitz!" Ash's voice boomed through the empty pyramid.
"Roar!!!"
Charizard let out a long howl toward the sky, its wings suddenly spread wide! Crimson flames erupted from its body! If it couldn't evade, it would face it head-on!
A peculiar gleam flashed in Brandon's eyes—he saw that the red flames on Charizard were somewhat different from ordinary flames.
This was why Charizard had managed to burn through the Ancient Power.
However... This time it wouldn't be so simple. The power of Hyper Beam was far stronger than Ancient Power, and Registeel could keep on outputting. If it came to a clash, Charizard wouldn't be as lucky as before.
Yet the next second, Brandon's calm face could no longer hold.
In the crimson flames burning on Charizard, a profound, irresistible black glow suddenly appeared.
Compared to the red flames surrounding Charizard, the black glow appeared so small that it was almost invisible, yet its emergence instantly drew everyone's attention.
Brandon could feel unsurpassed power from those black flames.
"What is that... black flame?" Brandon murmured, perplexed, as the black flame on Charizard began to expand!
This was Charizard's unique power and its strongest trump card—the Celestial Flame!
"Go all out, Charizard, start from this battle and ascend to the world's peak!" Ash swung his arm, his voice echoing throughout the entire pyramid.
Charizard's body was entirely enveloped by the black flames, flames so dark it seemed they could scorch and pierce through space.
The ground's gravel was entirely melted into lava.
If it weren't for Mewtwo's power, the Battle Pyramid would likely have already collapsed before Charizard even made its move.
In the next moment, Charizard turned into a black meteor and dived down from the sky!
The black flames left a long trail of tails behind it as if scorching and distorting the very space it passed through.
Registeel's Hyper Beam was now fully charged—Hyper Beam, fire!
A golden beam shot out from between the Divine Pillar's hands, carrying a force to destroy everything, charging straight to the skies!
Golden and black collided fiercely mid-air, "Boom—!!"
The entire pyramid shook violently at this moment, the battleground floor was lifted by the shockwave, transformed into flying stones scattered in all directions.
But it was all blocked by a transparent shield, and Brandon finally snapped out of his concentration.
He had been somewhat puzzled as to why the force of Champion-level Pokemon colliding was so immense yet had no effect on the surroundings, but it turned out Ash had prepared protective measures in advance.
Without a doubt, this transparent shield was Ash's handiwork.
Though Brandon didn't know how Ash managed it, it was a big help. Without Ash, the expensive Battle Pyramid he had built would have been destroyed today!