Xian stepped into the training zone. Aron immediately activated the simulator on his computer, and they were instantly transported into the simulation area.
"We're inside the simulation now, so you don't have to worry about time. I've already adjusted the settings," Aron said, taking a leisurely sip of his coffee.
Alied then pulled out a Great Ball. "We'll start with the basics. Are you ready, Xian?" he asked, gripping the Great Ball firmly.
"Of course," Xian replied, giving him a thumbs-up.
"Then let's begin," Alied declared, releasing his Poké Ball. In a flash of light, a Scizor emerged, its crimson armor gleaming under the simulator's artificial sky.
The two opponents took their positions, the air growing tense with anticipation.
"Use Bullet Punch!"
Scizor shot forward like a bullet. Its normally red pincers turned a gleaming silver as it closed the distance in an instant. The first punch was aimed directly at Xian.
Xian crossed his arms to block, managing to stop the initial blow—but that was just the opening. Scizor unleashed a hailstorm of rapid-fire punches, each one striking with pinpoint accuracy. Xian was sent flying backward, skidding across the ground before coming to a rough stop. As he pushed himself up, he noticed something alarming: several parts of his body where Scizor had landed hits were now bruised and swollen.
"Damn… looks like my automatic regeneration ability is gone," Xian muttered, staring at his injuries.
From the monitoring station, Aron observed everything. He quickly added this new information to a fresh database entry.
"So it disables your abilities as well," Alied noted, watching Xian struggle to his feet. "It seems we'll need to find a different way to compensate for that."
Xian stood up fully, wiping the dust from his clothes. "Are you serious? This is just training! Why did you use *that* Bullet Punch?" he shouted, pointing accusingly at Alied.
Alied glanced at his Scizor, then back at Xian. "It seems that was just its battle instinct."
Xian took a deep breath and decided to test one of his new abilities. *If this works similarly, I should still be able to create a storm,* he thought.
Above them, dark clouds began to form. They swirled together, and sparks of lightning crackled between the growing mass.
"Fine then. I'll get serious."
Xian summoned a massive thunderstorm around them. The tempest tore through everything in the vicinity—rocks shattered, the ground split, and the wind howled like a living beast.
Just as the storm was about to consume Alied and Scizor, Gengar burst out of its Poké Ball on its own. It grabbed both of them and vanished into the Shadow Realm, escaping just in time.
When the destruction finally subsided, Xian stood alone in a blank white void—a sign that the simulation was about to reset.
Aron, still watching from the monitors, finally had the crucial data he needed. "I've got it. Xian's Path operates at the same level as his previous cultivation core, but it's much more focused. Because of that, his power in this specific type will be stronger than when he was still a cultivator."
Meanwhile, Xian himself was stunned. *This is far more powerful than I expected. But losing automatic physical regeneration is a serious drawback. I'm going to have to learn how to control this carefully.*
He looked ahead and suddenly realized something was wrong. His eyes went wide.
"Wait… where is he?"
Xian turned sharply toward Aron. "Aron, do you know where Alied is?"
"The Shadow Realm," Aron replied flatly.
Xian's expression soured. "That damned Alied."
An instant later, Xian's entire being was shattered and erased from the simulation's reality.
---
Back in the real world, Alied, Gengar, and Scizor reappeared safely. Aron looked at him and asked, "You knew his abilities had changed, didn't you?"
"Yeah, I knew," Alied replied casually, returning Gible and Scizor to their Poké Balls.
Aron frowned. "Then why did you destroy his essence from within the Shadow Realm? You do realize that if his soul regeneration ability was gone, he would have died permanently, right?"
Alied shrugged. "If he dies, he dies. You know what made him useful was his total regeneration from erasure. If he lost that, we could just recruit someone new."
---
Meanwhile, Xian—who had just been completely erased—found himself in a strange place.
*That bastard Alied. I didn't even know if my total regeneration still worked,* he thought.
*Wait… if I were truly dead, shouldn't I be unable to think like this?*
Then he felt something—wind. It was moving around him.
*How can there be wind here?*
The wind grew faster and faster, sweeping him up into its current. As he was carried along, he heard the deafening roar of thunder and the sharp crackle of lightning. When he opened his eyes, he realized he was almost at the center of a colossal storm.
*Wait, how did I end up here? Why am I here? What* is *this?*
He tried to move or speak, but he couldn't. He could only follow the storm's current, helplessly drawn inward.
As he entered the eye of the storm, his consciousness suddenly snapped back into focus. In the next instant, he materialized behind Alied in the real world.
"I'm still alive!" he declared.
Alied and Aron both spun around to face him. Alied smirked. "Good. You're still useful, then."
Aron immediately logged the event into his database, then tilted his head in confusion. "Wait… how are you still here? Wasn't your regeneration ability gone?"
Xian explained, "I just found this out myself. The regeneration mechanism is different now, but it serves the same function."
Alied raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Back when I was a cultivator, my regeneration came from my core. But just now, I felt like I was swept up inside a thunderstorm. I think that's the effect of this Path," Xian said.
Aron asked, "How do you know that? Were you conscious while you were there?"
Xian replied, "Only partially. I was just following the current."
Alied crossed his arms. "If you came back normally, then the mechanism must be connected to your core or essence, just like before."
Xian nodded. "Seems that way. If the system didn't work like that, there's no way I'd still have my body, memories, information, data, or my past aspects."
Alied's eyes gleamed with interest. "So in theory, as long as you're connected to your Path, you can't die?"
Xian answered confidently, "In theory, yes."
Alied smirked. "Just as I suspected. There's no way that symbol would store your data, information, and soul without a reason."
"Alright then," Alied said immediately. "Let's train again. There's plenty more data to collect."
Xian agreed. "Fine by me. I need to find out just how far I can go with these new abilities."
They prepared for the second round of simulations. Xian needed to fully understand what his new Path allowed him to do.
Aron reactivated the simulator, and they resumed their training.
While they fought, Aron continued gathering and analyzing the data. *A Path… a troublesome new ability, but I admit, this might prove more useful than I thought.* He took another sip of his coffee and returned to work.
---
Meanwhile, Azure was deep in conversation with Devon and Ren. They were laying out a new plan when Azure's Pokédex began ringing.
"Ahem… hello?" Azure answered.
The voice on the other end replied, "Senior Azure, we've arrived in front of the museum. When will you be coming?"
Ren used telepathy: *Who is that?*
Azure responded similarly: *He's my junior from Brighton Academy. His name is Ao.* Then, back into the phone: "I'll be there in about three or four hours."
"Understood. We'll wait for you," Ao said before hanging up.
Ren raised an eyebrow. "It's unusual for Brighton Academy students to come here. Did you invite them?"
"Just a few of them. Not everyone. You know how far the academy is from here," Azure replied.
Devon stretched lazily. "If they're here, we can probably afford to relax a little more."
---
At the museum, Vera was observing the crowd from a distance. She quickly noted that only four Brighton Academy students were present.
*Only four, just as I suspected. Brighton wouldn't send a large group for something this specific.*
She decided to approach one of them—a student with long, dark blue hair and sharp green eyes. Like all Brighton students, he wore a black blazer and was holding a Rotom Phone, clearly in the middle of a call.
Using her psychic abilities, Vera eavesdropped on the conversation. *So they have connections to that Gym Leader. No wonder they came here.*
Before she could glean more, Ao suddenly turned his head and locked eyes with her.
Vera froze for a split second, then melted back into the crowd.
"Hey, Ao. Did you sense something?" asked one of his companions—a student with medium-length white hair and orange-yellow eyes, wearing the same uniform.
Ao nodded slowly. "I think an Esper was eavesdropping just now."
Another teammate who had been watching the crowd chimed in, "It's got to be from Estria. That's the most likely answer. Should we go after them?"
Ao's gaze lingered on the crowd for a moment before he shook his head. "Not yet. But I'm certain we'll run into them again soon."