Pokémon: I picked up a reborn Eevee at the start of the game.

The unsuspecting Dragonite was completely overwhelmed by this gold rush, which truly exemplified "offense as defense"—

Although the damage from this gold rush was actually less than that of the freezing beam, its humiliation was certainly more intense.

Looking down at that shrunken but still sunny and cheerful golden face, Dragonite felt increasingly annoyed.

Aren't you bullying an honest dragon?

The series of setbacks since the start of the game caused his anger level to soar.

He really wanted to hurl insults at Sai Fuhao, like "What the hell are you laughing at?", but this was a battlefield, and there was a more direct solution.

Before Ryūno could give any command, Dragonite suddenly unleashed a Flame Punch at the small Cyborg on the ground, the blazing flames on its claws a manifestation of the raging anger burning in its heart.

The scattered gold coins instantly coalesced into a shield to protect the dragon, barely managing to withstand its fierce attack in its rage.

Although these gold coins were part of Sai Fuhao's body, they did not share the damage. The gold coins were scalding hot from the fire punch, but the main body remained unharmed.

These gold coins won't return to his body for a while, though it's not impossible if Sai Fuhao isn't afraid of getting burned.

…………

"Dragonite, calm down, don't get provoked!"

Seeing that the battle was starting to get out of control, Ryūno quickly woke up Tatsuya.

He was also a little annoyed by Xia Chen's frustrating playing style since the start of the game, but it was precisely at times like this that he needed to keep his composure.

Longye understood that once he fell into his opponent's rhythm, even with an absolute advantage in strength, he would find it increasingly difficult to continue fighting.

However, before Dragonite could regain his senses, Xia Chen suddenly shouted, "Trick!"

Before he could finish speaking, a cloud of gray energy, like a mist, enveloped Sai Fuhao's head. It was none other than Nasty Plot, a Dark-type status move that could greatly boost Special Attack.

Longye had no choice but to give in. Although he knew that this was Xia Chen's trick to drag Dragonite into a quagmire, he could only helplessly command, "Dragonite, use Fire Punch on it."

The trainer's command was exactly what Dragonite wanted, and its still-uncooled mind went wild again, unleashing another Flame Punch.

This time, the gold coin shield, which was already almost completely burned, was extremely difficult to defend against. The gold coin shield crumbled at the slightest touch and scattered all over the ground, making a crisp clanging sound.

Sai Fuhao, who was under the shield, was also hit directly by the Flame Fist, and his body was shrunk by the powerful punch from above!

However, compared to pure power, the burning and corrosive effects of fire energy are a more fatal blow to the steel-type Saifuhao.

It's only because it's tough and resilient that it could withstand that punch from a Mega Gardevoir.

Even so, Sai Fuhao could not withstand a second such move.

Seizing the opportunity, Longye calmly commanded, "One more time, Flame Fist!"

Knowing that Xia Chen was currently in a vacuum period where he couldn't switch Pokémon, he decided to seize the opportunity and take the first blood for his team.

"Woo!"

The fire-type energy within his body condensed once more, and Dragonite roared with joy, sweeping away all the unhappiness in his heart.

However, just as he was preparing to unleash this fatal punch with great force, an unexpected change occurred.

Dragonite felt as if the energy drive within its body had crashed, the energy flow was blocked, and the crimson fire energy in its palm naturally dissipated.

Paralysis status activated!

Xia Chen, who was keeping a close eye on the Dragonite's power exertion, saw this scene and breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, he withstood the pressure. If he didn't regain his composure under the influence of numbness, Xia Chen would have no choice but to defend himself.

What if the next offensive still fails to trigger paralysis?

Xia Chen had no choice but to accept his bad luck and give up his first blood.

When the weak face a strong opponent, without betting on the low probability of such an event, there's really no way to win.

…………

Before Longye could react, Xia Chen immediately shouted, "Sai Fuhao, Freeze Beam!"

The small treasure chest at Cypher's waist emitted a chilling, icy light, just like the sharp horn on Gardevoir's chest. That was Cypher's "engine" for moves, responsible for condensing the energy flowing through his body there into moves.

Previously, the small treasure chest had been in a state of full energy, but whether the condensed move would be Protect or Ice Beam depended on whether Dragonite could use Fire Punch.

And now, the result is obvious.

A beam of icy blue light shot out in an instant, hurtling towards Dragonite's massive body. The latter tried to escape, but without the power to propel it, it couldn't fly very fast. The two were also too close, and the combined effect caused the icy beam to strike Dragonite squarely in the face, a second strike.

The move, with its aggression boost, four times the element of advantage, and a critical hit, covered Dragonite's face with a layer of white frost, and it let out another painful hiss.

"Sai Fuhao, metallic voice!"

Before the storm had even passed, taking advantage of the moment when Dragonite was somewhat dazed by the Ice Beam, Xia Chen pressed on relentlessly once again.

Immediately, a strange sound wave with an unusual frequency emanated from Sai Fuhao's mouth.

Metallic Sound – A Steel-type status move that significantly lowers the target's Special Defense.

Dragonite was helpless against this.

The energy stagnation caused by the paralysis was actually short-lived, and it resumed flowing immediately after the freezing beam ended.

But Dragonite didn't know this. By the time it tried to circulate its energy again, the metallic sound had already hit its target.

"Come back, Dragonite!"

Seeing this, Ryuno did not hesitate to pick up the Poké Ball and recall the Dragonite, which was under the effects of paralysis and metallic sound.

Although it seemed that just one more Flame Fist would be enough to bring Sai Fuhao down, Long Ye knew very well that Sai Fuhao still had the [Guard] move saved up to save his life.

While Dragonite could use Protect to block the almost inevitable Ice Beam, his condition was extremely poor—not only physically, but also mentally.

Simply put, it means "getting anxious".

If he continued fighting like this, there was no guarantee that he wouldn't fall before Saifu, so Longye decided to send Dragonite back into its Poké Ball to calm down.

Then, he threw out a second Poké Ball.

A flash of white light appeared, and a steel sprite shaped like a building, reflecting a dazzling light under the lamplight, made its appearance.

The second Pokémon that Ryūno sent out was surprisingly Duraludon.

…………

In fact, Xia Chen has quite a history with this aluminum-steel dragon.

Two years ago, when he first visited the Hidden Dragon Dojo in the capital, Ryūno, who was not at the dojo, was searching for Dalmata in the Galar region.

His reason for wanting to capture Duraludon was rather bizarre—he was annoyed by trainers who brought Fairy-type Pokémon to challenge gyms all the time, so he thought of capturing a Steel-type Pokémon.

So they set their sights on the only Duraludon in the world with both Steel and Dragon attributes. Of course, this "only" does not include the legendary Pokémon Dialga.

In short, when Duraludon was first captured two years ago, it was already at the Gym Leader level, and I estimate that it has now grown to at least the Elite Four level.

Most importantly, Alumina Steel Dragon's attributes are not afraid of any of the Pokémon in Xia Chen's team.

Currently, although Sai Fuhao is under the enhanced state of Deception, his health and durability are extremely poor.

After a moment's thought, Xia Chen clarified his strategy for the upcoming battle.

"Sai Fuhao, metallic voice!"

Before the aluminum-steel dragon could establish a firm foothold, Xia Chen made the first move.

Longye had just finished switching Pokémon and was in a five-minute vacuum period, which meant that Xia Chen had the opportunity to take down this Duraludon, which could be considered the opponent's weak point, in one fell swoop within five minutes.

That's right. Despite its excellent stats, Duraludon still has obvious weaknesses – extremely poor Special Defense and less-than-top-tier overall strength.

This means that once Xia Chen has taken a metallic sound, all of his subsequent special attack moves, even without any type advantage, will be able to deliver a "hard-hitting" effect.

Ryūno understood this as well, but he was helpless against Saifūhō's self-sacrificing metallic voice, so he resolutely commanded: "Ignore it, Dragon Pulse!"

Since the release of metallic sounds cannot be changed, let's take this opportunity to get rid of Sai Fuhao to avoid any unforeseen complications.

The piercing, sharp sound waves and the powerful, deep purple dragon-type energy waves converged in the air, each passing through and striking their opponent.

Through careful planning and scheming, both sides achieved their objectives: the Special Defense of the Aluminum Steel Dragon was significantly reduced, and Sai Fuhao also fell victim to this attack.

Wait, Sai Fuhao hasn't fallen!

…………

At the critical moment, the scattered gold coins suddenly coalesced into a shield, barely mitigating some of the damage from the Dragon's Pulse before dissipating again.

But it was precisely this slight reduction in damage that allowed Sai Fuhao, who had been seriously injured and collapsed, to survive in a state of utter disability!

Longye's heart skipped a beat, sensing something was wrong, and he hurriedly shouted, "Aluminum Steel Dragon, quick, Rockfall!"

He didn't know what Xia Chen's intentions were in keeping Sai Fuhao alive, but his intuition told him that it was definitely not a good thing!

The reaction speed of a Champion-level Pokémon is beyond doubt. The moment Longye shouted, several huge rocks formed from energy were suspended above Saifuhao.

Even if it were in good condition, let alone now that it is seriously injured and lying on the ground unable to dodge, it would still be unable to escape this rock formation that blocks all routes like a net.

However, the rockfall was too late. Just as several rocks collapsed and fell from mid-air, a black smoke emanated from Saifuhao's body and drifted into the body of the Aluminum Steel Dragon.

Subsequently, he fell into a coma, completely incapacitated.

A parting gift!

—A Dark-type status move that greatly reduces the opponent's Attack and Special Attack at the cost of the user losing the ability to battle!

This is the final ripple of Sai Fuhao!

Long Ye's face was extremely grim; only now did he understand Xia Chen's fighting style—

At the cost of sacrificing Sai Fuhao, who was already in poor condition, we crippled the Aluminum Steel Dragon that had just been substituted in!

With special defense, attack, and special attack all significantly reduced, isn't that practically useless?

Longye felt both annoyed and relieved.

The frustration lies in why, driven by the desire for a guaranteed hit, I subconsciously chose Dragon Pulse, which is subject to double resistance. I could have easily taken it down with any move that isn't resisted, even with the Gold Shield blocking the way.

Fortunately, the second Pokémon I sent out was Duraludon, which wasn't a major part of my lineup. If I had switched to Goodra and it had taken that triple hit, it would have been torture to have it on the field for five minutes in that condition.

Now, the only option is to strategically abandon aluminum-steel dragon.

…………

Longye has already made his decision, and over there, Xia Chen has also entered the arena to replace Sai Fuhao's Pokémon.

It was none other than the Mega Gardevoir that had appeared earlier.