"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"
"Pika!"
Pikachu leaped off Ash's shoulder, using the protruding rocks beside him to gain momentum. Its body instantly transformed into a golden streak, charging toward Arcanine!
The distance between them disappeared in the blink of an eye.
In mid-air, Pikachu suddenly spun around, and its tail, glowing with a metallic sheen, swung out with the power generated by the entire body's rotation!
Boom—!!!
Iron Tail hit Arcanine's forehead head-on, two vastly different-sized bodies collided forcefully, with a huge sound mixed with a violent airwave exploding around them instantly!
Arcanine's forward-charging body paused for the first time.
All four paws firmly pressed against the ground, the black rock layers beneath unable to withstand the force from the collision, cracks rapidly spread outward, and the nearby bubbling lava shook incessantly.
But what truly startled Palina and Iscan was that the much smaller Pikachu wasn't knocked back; instead, it was slowly pushing the rampaging New King backward!
"Pika—Ka!"
The metallic sheen on Pikachu's tail lit up again, suddenly intensifying its power!
Arcanine's front paws slid backward, the rock beneath them ground out two clear marks.
Seeing Pikachu successfully halt Arcanine, Ash immediately turned to Palina and Iscan.
"Let's move now, take the other Growlithe to safety!"
"But what about Arcanine?"
The blue light in Ash's eyes hadn't dissipated; the Divine Domain Level Aura was firmly locking onto the unusual golden power within Arcanine's body.
"Leave it to us, this state can't be resolved with ordinary remedies, just like Kleavor and Lilligant before."
"We'll first make Arcanine lose his ability to continue attacking. Once he calms down, I'll use the Power of Viridian to clear away the abnormal energy."
Hearing this, Palina finally nodded, biting her lip.
Staying here wouldn't help, and it might distract Ash and Cynthia during the battle.
"I understand, I'll leave Arcanine to you!"
After speaking, Palina hugged the Growlithe tightly in her arms and looked at Iscan.
"Iscan, let's go!"
"Alright!"
Iscan quickly followed Palina, and the two of them, carrying the rescued Growlithe, swiftly retreated from the volcano's center.
Cynthia didn't leave but instead stood beside Ash, her eyes quickly scanning the golden light on Arcanine's body surface and Pikachu standing in front of him.
"Just finished evolving, and suddenly bearing the King's Power far beyond his original level, now stimulated by this abnormal golden energy. His control over his own power is probably more chaotic than Lilligant's earlier."
Ash nodded lightly, the blue light in his eyes growing brighter, looking at the rampaging Arcanine in front of Pikachu with complete seriousness.
"Yeah, so first we need to knock him down until he's calm, and then I'll clear away the golden energy."
Cynthia, watching Arcanine in a struggle with Pikachu, moved a bit closer to Ash and lowered her voice to ask, "Do you need my help?"
"No need, this time it's up to me and Pikachu. Last time, he barely got to start fighting with Lilligant before it ended, so he's probably still unsatisfied with it, right, Pikachu!"
"Pika!"
Pikachu responded loudly, and as it resisted against Arcanine's forehead with Iron Tail, it once again unleashed a tremendous force!
Boom!
Arcanine's massive body slid backward, leaving deep marks on the black rock ground with its four paws, and was ultimately forced several meters back by Pikachu's intensified power!
Pikachu, using the resulting force from the collision, leaped into the air, flipped several times, and steadily landed on a slightly protruding black rock nearby.
Before truly engaging in battle, Pikachu naturally wouldn't foolishly stand on the hot ground and suffer.
But now that its body is thoroughly warmed up, and constantly moving fast in battle, the volcano's surface temperature isn't quite worth worrying about.
All Teacher Dapi wants now is to fight!
"Let's go, Pikachu, Quick Attack!"
"Pika!"
As the words fell, Pikachu, standing on the black rock, transformed into a golden afterimage and charged out!
The golden light on Arcanine's body had just started to fluctuate, when Pikachu was already in front.
The small body carried immense power, disproportionate to its size, and collided head-on with Arcanine's chest!
Boom!!
The dull roar instantly spread throughout the volcano's center, and Arcanine's massive body was once again knocked back, its paws skidding across the ground until it barely stopped at the edge of this natural plain.
The excitement on Ash's face immediately subsided a bit.
Less than two meters back was the rolling crimson lava.
If Pikachu had used a little more power just now, Arcanine might have fallen straight in.
They're here to subdue the newly emerged New King, not to make the Cobalt Coastlands lose a new ruler right after it was crowned.
"This terrain is really troublesome."
Ash quickly assessed both sides' positions and immediately adjusted the next attack strategy.
"Pikachu, use Quick Attack to get behind Arcanine again, then use Iron Tail to knock him back, don't let him continue retreating towards the lava!"
"Pika!"
Fighting while worrying about the opponent's direction, honestly, Ash hasn't had many battles this odd over the years.