Larvesta understood the provocation first. The flames on its five antennae surged again, letting out a crisp "humph" at Cyndaquil, as if declaring war.
In Larvesta's perception, the energy intensity within its opponent was utterly insignificant compared to its own.
Lionel came back to his senses, looking at Larvesta's spirited appearance, a smile appeared on his lips: "Then let me show you the power of Larvesta."
Flannery's eyes sharpened, and she gave the first order: "Cyndaquil, strike first, use Fire Wheel!"
Cyndaquil responded, its flames surging, instantly enveloping its body, transformed into a spinning fire wheel, rushing towards Larvesta with a whistling sound, distorting the air in its path.
Lionel's eyes narrowed, and he commanded in a deep voice, "Larvesta, show it what a real Flame Wheel is!"
Upon receiving the command, Larvesta instantly curled up into a sphere.
The flames erupting from its five antennae suddenly became incredibly intense, forming a giant Flame Wheel a size larger than Cyndaquil, carrying even more terrifying heat as it charged forward.
The two Flame Wheels collided violently in the center of the arena, producing a muffled explosion.
The next second, Cyndaquil's Flame Wheel was like a ball struck by a boulder, instantly bounced away, rolling several times on the ground before coming to a stop, its flames dimming considerably.
This was a direct manifestation of the difference in energy levels between the two.
Cyndaquil was now lying on the ground, unable to stand, its limbs trembling, panting heavily, clearly exhausted from the collision.
Larvesta, on the other hand, remained steadily in place, slightly extending its body, a haughty and disdainful expression on its face, as if saying, "That's all?"
Cyndaquil was completely enraged by Larvesta's expression, its Blaze ability instantly activated.
The flames around it suddenly surged, several times stronger than before, almost engulfing its entire body, and the temperature in the air rose sharply.
The live stream chat was flooded with comments:
[Holy crap! This Flamethrower's strength is outrageous!]
[In the last match, Mudkip was completely crushed by Cyndaquil. Now, Both are Fire-type, how can the difference be so huge? Cyndaquil is about to collapse!]
[Is this the legendary Pokémon? It's amazing! I love it!]
Flannery's face darkened, her eyes flashing with unwillingness and stubbornness: "Cyndaquil, use Overheat! Let it know what's what!"
Cyndaquil endured the pain and let out an angry hiss.
The flames around its body expanded rapidly, sweeping towards Flamethrower like an erupting volcano.
It was the same killing move that had suppressed Mudkip earlier, and the scorching air wave made the people in the front row of the audience involuntarily shrink back.
This was its strongest move, and its last struggle.
"Larvesta, let's go too, Flamethrower!"
Lionel decisively ordered.
While Flamethrower's base power wasn't as strong as Overheat, the energy difference between the two Pokémon was simply too vast.
The orange-red flames spewed from Larvesta's mouth, like a condensed pillar of fire, forcefully overwhelmed Cyndaquil's raging Overheat, thrusting straight at Cyndaquil like a flaming spear.
The instant the flames collided, Cyndaquil's energy was completely suppressed.
The scorching pillar of fire instantly engulfed it, and a painful screech echoed through the arena, making everyone's hearts tighten.
A few seconds later, the flames dissipated, and the smoke slowly settled.
Cyndaquil lay on the ground, its eyes spiraling, completely incapacitated.
The entire arena fell into a deathly silence, everyone stunned by the lightning-fast victory, then erupted in thunderous cheers and exclamations, the applause deafening.
[So fast? Cyndaquil was instantly defeated?!]
[Larvesta's Flamethrower was too powerful! Its power is even more terrifying than Cyndaquil's Overheat!]
[I knew Larvesta was strong! It certainly didn't disappoint!]
[Burrito didn't disappoint me, streamer is awesome!]
Flannery stood at the battle station, her arrogance instantly freezing, replaced by utter disbelief.
She stared blankly at the incapacitated Cyndaquil on the ground, lost in thought: "Impossible—how could Cyndaquil—so quickly—"
She simply couldn't accept that her carefully nurtured Pokémon had been defeated in such a short time.
Moore stood at the edge of the field, his fingers, which had been playing with the badge, stopped, and for the first time, genuine surprise appeared in his eyes behind his reading glasses.
He looked at Larvesta with a more scrutinizing gaze: "Truly, the nickname is well-deserved, the incarnation of the sun. Larvesta's fire energy is indeed extraordinary."
Lionel looked at the incapacitated Cyndaquil on the field and smiled gently at Larvesta: "Well done."
Larvesta shook its head, the flames on its antennae dancing merrily, as if seeking praise.
At this moment, Flannery took a deep breath, clenched her fist tightly, and took out a Poké Ball from her waist.
A flash of red light recalled the incapacitated Cyndaquil. She gently stroked the Poké Ball, her voice slightly hoarse, "Thank you for your hard work, Cyndaquil. Get some rest."
Cyndaquil's swift defeat was like a hammer blow, shattering her initial arrogance and pride.
Since entering the Gym Challenge, Cyndaquil had suffered occasional defeats, but never so decisively, without even a proper counterattack.
But Flannery quickly concealed the disappointment in her eyes.
Her duty as Gym Leader wouldn't allow her to wallow in defeat. She gritted her teeth, the surging resentment in her chest transforming into an even stronger fighting spirit.
When Flannery looked up again, the arrogance on her face had faded, and her gaze towards Lionel was now more sincere and honest: "Lionel, you're very strong. I underestimated you before, and I apologize for my rudeness."
Before she finished speaking, she flicked her wrist, and another Poké Ball drew a clean arc in the air: "But the gym battle isn't over yet.
Now, I'm going to send out my starter Pokémon, so watch out!
Torkoal, come out!"
A burst of white light appeared, and a Torkoal covered in a gray-black shell landed steadily in the center of the arena.
Its heavy body slammed into the ground with a dull "thud," causing even the battle arena to tremble slightly.
Although this Torkoal wasn't as large as the giant Torkoal Lionel had seen at Mt. Chimney, it was still a size thicker than the ordinary Torkoal. Flowing, fiery red light could even be seen through the gaps in its shell, as if a miniature volcano was hidden within its body.
What caught Lionel's attention even more was that Flannery's Torkoal not only possessed numerous powerful Fire-type moves, but also a considerable number of Rock-type moves.
This posed a significant threat to the Fire/Bug-type Larvesta.
[Pokémon: Torkoal]
[Type: Fire]
[Category: Coal Pokémon]
[Ability: Sunshine (When it appears in battle, the weather becomes sunny, increasing the power of Fire-type moves and decreasing the power of Water-type moves)]
[Moves: — Ancient Power, Rock Slide, Flamethrower, Flamethrower, Overheat.....]