This was a one-sided crushing!
Their Pokémon hadn't even managed to last a single round against the opponent!
The team member who had been clamoring earlier now had his mouth slightly agape, making a "he-he" sound in his throat, unable to utter a single word.
Fear, like an invisible hand, tightly throttled his throat.
The Squad Leader standing behind them also had the expression on his face completely frozen.
That indifference and cruelty belonging to a predator had long since vanished without a trace.
His pupils shrank to the size of needle points as he stared fixedly at that Weavile, which had retracted its sharp claws and still maintained an elegant posture, and that Krokorok, which flicked its tail and gave a disdainful snort.
Panic surged into his heart like a tide.
How was this possible?
How could this seemingly ordinary young man possess Pokémon with such terrifying strength?
That Weavile's speed and attack power... that Krokorok's skill power... this simply wasn't a level an ordinary Trainer could possess!
He had misjudged him.
Completely and utterly misjudged him!
This guy wasn't some soft persimmon that could be squeezed at will; he was a steel plate wrapped in iron skin!
The kind of steel plate that, if you kicked it, would snap your own leg in half!
Cold sweat, mixed with rain, slid down from his temples. He felt a chill all over his back.
He remembered Lord Tabitha's warning—do not be too flamboyant.
What had he been thinking at the time? He felt Lord Tabitha was being too cautious; in this godforsaken place, what kind of decent experts could there be?
Now, retribution had come.
He had provoked a tough customer he shouldn't have messed with.
"It's all up to you... burn him to ashes for me!"
His last shred of sanity swallowed by despair, the Squad Leader roared and threw out his final trump card.
With a flash of red light, a burly Camerupt, with scorching magma erupting from the humps on its back, landed heavily in the mud, splashing up a large amount of muck.
The appearance of the Camerupt caused the surrounding temperature to rise sharply. As rain fell on its scalding skin, it immediately evaporated into a sizzling Mist, enveloping it.
Ariel looked at the Camerupt emitting white smoke in the rain, his face devoid of any extra expression, merely looking at the opponent with a gaze as if looking at a fool.
"Using a Camerupt on a rainy day?"
He asked airily, his tone carrying a hint of lazy mockery.
"Do you lack common sense?"
"Oh, right."
"It seems your Magma Team either uses Mightyena or Fire-type Pokémon."
"What do you know!"
A team member nearby who was lucky enough not to be caught in the first wave of battle craned his neck to defend his leader.
"Our leader's Camerupt is the elite of the Superior! Its strength is enough to ignore this level of rainfall! Don't look down on people too much!"
This defense was like a resounding slap, fiercely striking the Squad Leader's face.
"Shut up!"
He whipped his head around, his face distorted and flushed a deep red, like pig liver.
He backhanded a heavy slap onto that team member's face, letting out a crisp "Pa!"
"Who told you to talk so much!"
The team member was sent staggering by the blow, clutching his face, his eyes full of grievance and confusion.
He didn't understand; he was stating a fact, so why was he being hit?
The Squad Leader, however, was about to go mad with rage.
Ariel watched this farce, the curve of his lips becoming more pronounced.
He didn't even bother to comment on the other's stupidity; he simply reached out, and a bead emitting a purple glow appeared in his palm.
The bead seemed to have life pulsating inside it, shimmering with colors and exuding a powerful yet dangerous aura.
Life Orb.
"Krokorok, catch."
He casually tossed the Life Orb over.
Krokorok had just defeated three Mightyena in a row and was at the peak of its momentum.
The Moxie ability had already been triggered three times, each victory giving its attack power a leap-forward boost.
At this moment, it exuded a violent and powerful aura all over, its crimson eyes firmly Locked-On to the still-steaming Camerupt, filled with primal predatory desire.
The moment the Life Orb fell into its claws, an even larger torrent of energy flooded into its body.
"Roar—!"
Krokorok let out a roar toward the sky; the sound was no longer the previous hoarseness but a thunderous boom filled with power.
It could feel every one of its cells cheering, all craving destruction.
That power rampaged through its body, giving it the illusion that it was omnipotent.
The Life Orb, at the cost of consuming physical strength, raised the power of skills to a whole new level.
Coupled with the three stacks of "Moxie"...
The power of this strike would be devastating.
The Magma Team Squad Leader also sensed something was wrong.
Seeing the visible energy fluctuations on Krokorok's body that were almost solidifying, his heart sank abruptly.
An unprecedented sense of crisis made his scalp tingle.
"Camerupt! Quick! Maximum power Flamethrower!" he roared at the top of his lungs.
The humps on Camerupt's back throbbed violently, the magma inside churning and boiling, the terrifying high temperature causing the surrounding curtain of rain to distort.
It opened its large mouth, and a highly concentrated orange-red fireball was rapidly taking shape.
However, it was too late.
Krokorok didn't give it any chance to complete its charging.
"Rock Slide."
Ariel's voice was very light, as if merely stating a fact.
Krokorok moved.
Its thick hind legs gave a fierce kick, and its entire body shot out like a cannonball, the muddy ground beneath its feet stomped into a deep crater by the massive force.
It didn't charge directly at the Camerupt, but in the process of charging, its front claws slammed a heavy Pound onto the ground!
"Dong!"
A dull sound rang out, not like an attack, but more like striking a war drum from deep within the earth.
Centering on Krokorok's claws, an invisible wave of earthy yellow energy instantly spread out.
The ground vibrated violently, the mud churning as if something was about to drill out from underground.
The Magma Team Squad Leader's pupils shrank to needle points.
He saw that directly above the Camerupt, within the gloomy curtain of rain, space seemed to be torn apart.
Countless earthy yellow light spots appeared out of thin air, rapidly condensing.
One, two, ten... in the blink of an eye, dozens of giant rocks of varying sizes and jagged edges were generated out of thin air, carrying a piercing whistle as they crashed down toward the Camerupt below like a meteor shower!
The surface of every rock was wreathed in an ominous, magnificent glow belonging to the Life Orb.
"Hou?"
The Camerupt looked up blankly, the fireball that had just condensed in its mouth having no time to be spewed out before it was enveloped by the shadow of death overhead.
Boom! Boom! Rumble—!
There were no screams, no struggling.
The first giant rock smashed onto the Camerupt's back, and the humps it was so proud of instantly collapsed, scalding magma mixed with flesh and blood splashing everywhere.
Following that was the second, the third...
The dense, tooth-aching sounds of impact joined together.
The earth trembled, the heavy rain was scattered by the agitated shockwaves, mud soared into the sky, only to be slapped back to the ground by the falling giant rocks.
The entire process lasted less than three seconds.
When the last rock fell, the world seemed to go quiet.
Only the rain remained, washing over that small grave built of giant rocks, making a "shasha" sound.
The Camerupt was instantly killed.
۞۞۞۞
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