Pokémon: I have no choice but to do this old thing?

Chapter 129 Audacious

Daigo was completely oblivious to the complex, tearful expression on Zhang Jianying's face; his entire attention was completely drawn to the small pink figure.

He strode up to Diancie, who was being led by the hands of Cynthia and Karune on either side of her, his eyes shining with an astonishing light, as if he had seen the most precious treasure in the world.

Diancie looked at the excited human male in front of her with some doubt. Her big eyes, which seemed to be made of pink diamonds, blinked. Then, she instinctively felt a little uneasy and timidly hid behind the two women.

Karini stepped forward, shielding Diancie behind her, and said to Daigo, who was staring intently at her, "Long time no see, Mr. Daigo. Please don't get so excited, you'll frighten the child."

Daigo then suddenly came to his senses.

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, he had regained his usual elegant and composed demeanor. He straightened his suit jacket and tie, which had become slightly disheveled from his hurried journey.

Then he bowed slightly to Diancie, performing an impeccable noble gesture.

"Please forgive my lapse in composure just now, Your Highness."

Daigo's voice was gentle and polite. "I am Steven Shivucci, from the Hoenn region. As a mineral researcher and collector, it is an honor to meet someone like you."

His posture was impeccable, and his tone was sincere yet respectful, completely unlike the fervent pilgrimage he had just displayed.

Diancie was slightly relieved and cautiously peeked out from behind Karuni, her pink diamond body shimmering softly in the sunlight.

A crisp, melodious telepathic message rang in everyone's minds simultaneously: "Daigo-san? Hello, I'm Diancie. It's nice to meet you too."

Upon hearing the voice and seeing the dreamlike pink figure before him, Daigo's breath caught in his throat again. He felt his heart almost stop beating, and only one thought remained in his mind.

"Father, I saw an angel."

But he suppressed the urge to lose his composure again, only his smile deepened, and his eyes were as gentle as if he were looking at a rare treasure.

Standing to the side, Zhang Jianying looked at Xiao Zhi and the other two in front of him and felt a wave of exhaustion.

He spoke with mixed feelings: "By the way, what brings you guys to Carlos? And with Mr. Daigo—"

rise?"

Ash scratched his head, calmly freeing Pikachu from Zhang Jianying's grasp on the scruff of Fate's neck, and replied, "When we were training on Iron Island, we ran into Mr. Steven, who was mining there. He told us he'd discovered some Pokémon he'd never seen before in Kalos, so we came along."

As he spoke, he looked at Diancie, his eyes sparkling: "So this is the Pokémon! It's so beautiful!"

Pikachu jumped onto Ash's shoulder, curiously looking at Diancie: "Pikachu?"

Zhang Jianying sighed inwardly, feeling like crying but having no tears.

But since Ash is already here, and it's fate, it's too late to run away now.

Zhang Jianying could only hope that Yveltal was still asleep, or that Xerneas was strong enough to keep the guy under control.

He rubbed his face, stepped aside, and introduced Diancie to Ash and the other two, whose eyes were unconsciously glancing towards her: "This is Princess Diancie of the Diamond Kingdom. We will be escorting her back to the kingdom in a little while."

He paused, then stared intently at Ash: "Ash, you absolutely mustn't cause any trouble this time. Let's quietly return it, okay?"

Xiao Zhi scratched his head in confusion: "Brother Jian, I won't cause any trouble, why do you say that?"

His expression was sincere and bewildered, clearly unaware of his unique constitution that "brings trouble wherever he goes."

Xiao Guang and Xiao Gang exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly. They were already used to Xiao Zhi's "talent," and now, suppressing their laughter, they looked at Zhang Jianying, whose expression was complicated, with sympathy.

Upon hearing Zhang Jianying's words, Cynthia stepped forward and confidently said, "It's alright. With so many of us escorting Her Highness back together, there won't be any trouble."

Her voice was calm and resolute, with the composure unique to champions. Zhang Jianying looked at Cynthia and suddenly felt at ease.

Yeah, what's there to worry about?

So what if the "plot trigger" is there? So what if Yveltal really wakes up?

There are three champions here, plus Pikachu if he didn't act —

Zhang Jianying silently calculated their combat strength in his mind and suddenly felt incredibly confident. That's right, no matter what happens, clinging to Zhu Lan's coattails is definitely the way to go!

He nodded, putting his worries to rest.

Ash truly lives up to his reputation as a man who puts all his emotional intelligence into interacting with Pokémon.

In just a few words, he had already become familiar with Diancie. Diancie was a little timid at first, but with Ash's sincere and enthusiastic interaction, she quickly relaxed and even jumped out from behind Cynthia to chat with Ash.

"Pikachu! Pikachu!"

Pikachu also came over and gently touched Diancie's diamond hand with its little paw.

"Your partner is so cute~" Diancie replied happily.

Steven and Brock watched from the sidelines, unable to help but smile. Ash's amazing talent for quickly building rapport with Pokémon is astonishing no matter how many times you see it.

Cynthia watched Ash happily interacting with Diancie, lost in thought. She leaned close to Zhang Jianying's ear and whispered, "Indeed, when I first met Ash in Sinnoh, I felt he was special. Especially his interactions with Pokémon—"

Ke Meng's pure passion will lead him all the way to the top.

Her voice was very soft, only Zhang Jianying could hear it. The warm breath brushed against his ear, making Zhang Jianying's ear itch slightly.

He nodded in agreement: "Although this kid is always getting into trouble, his talent for quickly building up friendship with Pokémon is undeniable."

That's the truth. In this world that's so close to utopia, sometimes sincerity is more important than any skill.

Daigo, who had finally regained his usual composure, was about to exchange pleasantries with Zhang Jianying, since the two hadn't seen each other for quite some time since their parting at the underground cave in Baidai City.

He had just taken a step when he saw Champion Zhu Lan whispering in Zhang Jianying's ear, the atmosphere between them...

Daigo understood, smiled slightly, and wisely refrained from disturbing him.

He simply stood there quietly, gazing tenderly at Diancie who was interacting with Ash, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

"Hmm—this trip to Carlos was truly worthwhile."

As the group composed themselves and prepared to escort Diancie back to the Diamond Kingdom, the Poké Ball on Zhang Jianying's waist suddenly opened automatically.

"Shana!"

Gardevoir leaped out on its own, its long, sky-blue hair fluttering in the wind. It raised its head, its crimson eyes flashing with blue psychic light, staring intently in a certain direction in the sky.

Everyone was taken aback.

Just as Zhang Jianying was about to ask a question, a malicious spying suddenly came from the power of waveguide.

He subconsciously looked up at the sky.

Blue sky, white clouds, sunshine—everything looks normal.

But the warnings grew stronger, and the feeling of being watched made him extremely uncomfortable.

Cynthia and the others looked up at the sky in confusion, following Gardevoir's gaze.

Suddenly, a strange purple mist began to rise in mid-air.

The smoke appeared without warning, as if it had materialized out of thin air. At first, it was just a few wisps, but in the blink of an eye, it spread out, forming a thick purple fog that hovered above the town.

Inside an invisible aircraft above the town.

The notorious thief Milis and her father, Argais, had been observing the group below for quite some time.

At first, they were a little wary, after all, the two champions, Cynthia and Karune, were present. Although the two women looked like ordinary close friends, eating and drinking with the diamond Pokémon, they did not have the kind of pressure that champions should have.

But after observing for a while, Argais concluded that the two champions seemed completely unguarded and were fully immersed in "taking their daughters shopping".

The real threat came after Daigo arrived.

"The former champion of Hoenn, Steven Shifuji —"

Arges stared at Daigo on the screen, his brows furrowed slightly.

As internationally wanted criminals, they have knowledge of champion-level trainers from various regions. Although Steven has stepped down, no one dares to underestimate his strength.

"Father, should we continue waiting?"

Milis was getting impatient. "The Diamond Pokémon is down there, and those people don't seem to be on guard at all."

Argais glanced at Diancie on the screen, then at the group below who seemed to be preparing to leave, and finally made a decision.

"The longer we wait, the more things might go wrong. We need to make our move before they leave town."

He brought up the control panel and activated a special device: "This is a highly effective anesthetic gas from the Ore region; it's said to be able to knock out even the legendary Lugia. It's a bit expensive, but now is the perfect time to use it."

Milis rubbed her hands together excitedly and turned on the loudspeaker.

In the town below.

The purple mist spread rapidly, almost enveloping half the town. The residents began to notice the unusual phenomenon in the sky, looking up and discussing, "What's that?"

"Purple fog? The weather forecast didn't say there would be fog today—"

"Wait, I smell something strange—"

Some residents with weaker constitutions and wild Pokémon collapsed to the ground with a thud and fell into a coma after inhaling just a little bit of the mist.

"Oh no! There's something wrong with this fog!" Xiao Gang was the first to react. He covered his mouth and nose and shouted a warning, "Everyone, hold your breath!"

The faces of the three champions simultaneously darkened.

Cynthia narrowed her eyes, a hint of coldness flashing in her shimmering gray pupils. Karune's expression also shifted from gentle to serious. Daigo even frowned deeply.

They really didn't expect that, with them present, there would be any foolish villains who would dare to mess with them.

This world is truly incomprehensible.

Zhang Jianying ignored the complex emotions of the three champions. He reacted swiftly: "Salamander, clear the fog!"

The Poké Ball was thrown, and Salamence's massive body appeared on the street. It raised its head and let out a deafening roar, its blood-red wings suddenly unleashing its full-power [Clear Fog]!

A fierce wind swept outwards from the wyvern, forming a visible vortex of air. The purple mist was forcibly lifted by this violent airflow and blown back into the sky.

At the same time, Gardevoir and Gardevoir exchanged a glance and simultaneously raised their hands in perfect unison.

Two powerful superpowers intertwined, forming an invisible psychic cage in mid-air, firmly binding the swirling purple mist within a small area, preventing even a trace from leaking below.

All of this happened in just a few seconds.

Inside the aircraft, Arges was stunned; he hadn't expected the other party to react so quickly.

He turned on the loudspeaker, and Argais's voice, altered by a voice changer, echoed over the town from the aircraft: "Trains below, we have no intention of harming innocents. As long as you hand over that Diamond Pokémon, we promise to leave immediately and will not cause any further impact on the town."

"Otherwise, we cannot guarantee what will happen next."

The group realized what had happened when they heard that the other party's target was Diancie.

Daigo's face turned completely cold.

I've only just seen the treasure I've been dreaming of, and I haven't even had a chance to properly get to know it, and someone's already trying to interfere?

"The target is Diancie?"

Daigo's voice was calm, but everyone could hear the suppressed anger beneath that calm.

Without further ado, he threw out a Poké Ball: "Metamorphose, find him."

"Mehta—!"

A strange, silvery-white giant metal monster appeared in mid-air, its four enormous metal arms outstretched, and its core at the center of its body emitting a blinding red light. It didn't even need Daigo's further commands; its supercomputer-like brain had already locked onto the invisible target in the air.

Cynthia also released Garchomp.

"Garuda, finish this quickly."

"Choo-hoo—!"

Garchomp roared to the sky, its sharp dragon eyes flashing with a warlike light. It and Metagross exchanged a glance in the air, and the two pseudo-legendary Pokémon simultaneously revealed a sinister grin.

Demolition plan, begin!

Metagross's four metal arms simultaneously glowed with a silvery-white light, its Comet Punch poised to strike. Garchomp charged straight up, its claws gleaming with the purple light of Dragon-type energy, its Dragon Claw tearing through the air.

"Father! They're coming!" Milis screamed.

Argais's expression changed drastically. He tried to maneuver the aircraft to take an emergency evasive maneuver, but it was too late.

Metagross's Comet Punch struck the aircraft's cloaking coating with pinpoint accuracy, producing a deafening metallic clang. Garchomp's Dragon Claw followed immediately, tearing a massive gash through the aircraft's hull!

The stealth device failed, and the outline of the aircraft appeared in mid-air. It was a streamlined black aircraft with a logo composed of a skull and gemstones on its side.

"boom--!"

The aircraft, billowing black smoke, wobbled and plummeted toward the ground.

The Metagross's massive body hovered in the air, its brain, comparable to a supercomputer, unleashing immense superpowers, easily locking onto two life signals inside the wrecked spacecraft.

It used its telekinesis to gently place the wreckage of the aircraft on an open ground, then its metal arm extended and precisely "pushed" two people out of the cockpit.

It was the notorious thief Milis and her father, Argais.

The two were held in mid-air by Metagross's telekinesis and were struggling in vain.

"Let us go! Do you know who we are?!" Milis screamed, trying to pull out a Poké Ball.

Argais, however, was more composed. He stared at the three champions below, his face grim: "Damn those Ore gangs, selling counterfeit goods!"

But he didn't just sit and wait to die. He suddenly threw two Poké Balls: "Double Sheaths! Aegislash!"

"Still trying to resist?" Cynthia raised an eyebrow.

Garchomp didn't even need its trainer to give a command; it grinned and charged straight at the two Steel/Ghost-type Pokémon.

Dual Scabbards attempted to attack with Shadow Sneak, but Garchomp was faster! It slapped out with its claw, sending Dual Scabbards flying and crashing into a nearby aircraft, spinning around in circles.

The Shielded Sword Monster immediately switched to its King's Shield form, raising its heavy shield in an attempt to defend itself.

But Garchomp doesn't care at all!

It didn't even use any skills; it just used the simplest, most brutal, and most direct claw strike.

"Bang!!!"

The loud clang of metal colliding was so loud it hurt people's eardrums.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the onlookers, Garchomp's fins, covered in hard scales, smashed through the King's Shield's energy shield and slammed solidly into Aegislash's shield itself!

"Creak—"

A tooth-grinding metallic distorted sound.

The Shielded Sword Monster's entire body was deformed by this claw strike, its once perfectly straight shield being smashed into an oval shape. Before it could even let out a scream, its eyes rolled back and it lost consciousness.

The entire process, from the moment the shot was taken to the moment it was finished, took less than five seconds.

Below, Zhang Jianying shaded his eyes with his hand, staring at Garchomp's ferocious and unreasonable attack power, and secretly marveled.

Is this reasonable?

Although he had a match with Cynthia when he first embarked on his trainer journey, his Pokémon was still very weak at that time, and Garchomp's true strength could not be fully demonstrated.

Now that he has seen it with his own eyes, he truly understands what "the champion's ace" means.

This isn't even a matter of type advantage or disadvantage anymore; this Pokémon, relying solely on its strength and power, could easily crush 99% of Pokémon!

Cynthia even had the leisure to lean close to his ear and chuckle softly: "See? This is the first lesson I'm going to teach you in your special training. Sometimes, enough firepower can ignore a lot of scheming."

Her voice carried a hint of pride, as if she were showing off her most prized work.

Gardevoir listened intently from the side, its eyes filled with adoration as it looked at Cynthia.

So that's how it can be done!

So this is what combat can be—simple, brutal, and effective!

Zhang Jianying turned his head with a complicated expression, glancing at his Gardevoir, who seemed to have misunderstood something, and then at the smiling Cynthia, unsure of what to say.

Sure enough, I thought your special training was illegitimate from the beginning, and now that I see it, I was right!

He grabbed Gardevoir and began to patiently nag, "Idiot, don't try to fight like her. That method isn't suitable for you right now. You can consider it after your energy levels are higher."

As he spoke, he patted Gardevoir's head.

Seriously, why are all my Pokémon so troublesome?

Cynthia nodded approvingly: "Not bad, you have some understanding and didn't get stuck on a single point. Knowing when to use which method is an important quality for a trainer."

Karune, unable to contain her laughter any longer, asked, "Little Jian, do you know why the Sinnoh Elite Four don't really want to challenge her?"

She paused, suppressing a laugh, and continued, "It's because I'm so worried about her reckless Garchomp fighting style—tactics? strategy? type advantage? In the face of absolute power, all of those are meaningless."

She gave Zhang Jianying a mischievous look: "If you two ever argue in the future, you'd better pray for good luck~"

Zhang Jianying:

Cynthia nudged her unscrupulous best friend with her elbow, annoyed: "You talk too much."

Then, she turned her gaze to the two master thieves who were being questioned by Daigo.

Daigo's expression was stern as he looked at Milis and Argas, who were being controlled by Metagross's psychic powers and unable to move.

He didn't get angry; he simply asked them in a calm tone about their purpose, plans, and whether there were other people behind them.

Argas initially wanted to be tougher, but under Steven's seemingly gentle but actually cold gaze, and the threatening, almost benevolent, eyes of Garchomp and Metagross beside him, he finally chose to follow his heart.

They were a father-daughter thief who specialized in stealing rare gems and Pokémon, and had been on Interpol's wanted list for a long time. This time, they stumbled upon Diancie's trail in the Oriannes Forest, and their greed took hold.

—That anesthetic gas was indeed bought from the black market in the Orei region; it was said to be able to take down legendary Pokémon, but it seems its effect is just so-so.—

They had no other accomplices; it was just the two of them on this mission.

After clarifying the situation, Daigo instructed Karen to contact Carlos's police.

Karuni nodded and took out her communicator to contact Officer Jenny, who was nearby, and Interpol.

Throughout the entire process, Ash and his two friends were completely bewildered.

Before they could figure out what had happened, or even see what the villain looked like, the battle was already over.

Zhang Jianying looked at Milis and Arges, who were being led into the police car, with a wry smile, and shook his head.

I thought they were some kind of earth-shattering villain, but it turned out they were just two comedians.

After finishing her handover duties, Karene, along with Cynthia, accompanied the medical staff to treat the residents and Pokémon affected by the anesthetic gas. Fortunately, the gas was dissipated in time, and most people were only mildly unconscious and would wake up soon.

Daigo resumed his gentle and refined demeanor, draped his suit jacket over his arm, and walked up to Diancie.

He knelt down and gently stroked Diancie's little crown.

"I'm sorry, I startled you." Daigo's voice was very soft.

Diancie shook her head and replied telepathically, "It's alright, Daigo-san. I trust you'll protect me~"

Daigo looked at Diancie's innocent smiling face, his heart skipped a beat, and he almost lost his composure again.

Nearby, Xiao Guang was having Xiao Gang take photos of her and Diancie. Xiao Gang's professional skills were on full display once again; he found the perfect angles, adjusted the lighting, and every single photo he took was worthy of an art exhibition.

But Ash didn't join them.

He walked up to Zhang Jianying and asked earnestly, "Brother Jianying, did you sense something before Gardevoir discovered the flying vehicle?"

Zhang Jianying nodded: "My waveguide power has an early warning function; it can sense malice and danger."

Xiao Zhi suddenly realized: "So this is how waveguides are used! No wonder I seemed to vaguely sense something just now, but it was very blurry and only flashed by."

This time, it was Zhang Jianying's turn to be surprised: "You've awakened waveguide abilities too?"

Xiao Zhi shook his head: "Under Mr. Ya Xuan's guidance, I've only just scratched the surface."

He scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed: "Brother Jian, you're quite skilled with waveguides, can you sense what type of waveguide I am? Mr. Ya Xuan said that everyone's waveguide has different characteristics—"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jianying became interested. He reached out and gently placed his hand on Xiaozhi's shoulder, closed his eyes, and used his aura to sense him.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, his expression somewhat strange.

Aside from sensing that Ash's aura foundation was exceptionally strong and had enormous potential, he didn't discover any obvious trait types, which were completely different from his perception-type and recovery-type auras.

He shook his head: "Not sure. But it's probably not my type."

Seeing Xiaozhi's somewhat disappointed expression, Zhang Jianying suppressed a laugh and added seriously, "However, the feeling I get from your waveguides is that there are a lot of them, a great many."

Xiao Zhi was completely confused: "A lot?"

"Yes." Zhang Jianying suppressed a laugh. "I reckon you might be able to conjure [wave missiles] with your bare hands someday."

'

O

Ash: "???"

He paused for two seconds, then his eyes lit up.

Seeing his excited expression, Zhang Jianying finally couldn't help but laugh out loud.

As everyone finished dealing with all the trivial matters, it was getting late.

The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the town, turning the streets into a warm golden-red hue.

The group finally embarked on their journey to escort Diancie home, forming a rather impressive team.

They followed the path they had taken, heading deeper into the Oruans Forest.

Diancie skipped and hopped ahead, followed by three little diamond servants. The little guys seemed to have completely forgotten their earlier fright and were excitedly buzzing about their day's experiences.

Cynthia and Karune walked behind Diancie, the two best friends talking in hushed tones and occasionally letting out soft laughter.

Daigo walked beside Zhang Jianying, and the two chatted about their experiences since they parted ways. Daigo was very happy to hear that Zhang Jianying had collected all eight badges and was preparing to participate in the Sinnoh League Conference.

-

Ash and his friends followed at the very back. Ash was still debating the possibility of "creating a Wave Missile with bare hands," while Dawn and Brock shook their heads helplessly.

Everything seemed peaceful and warm.

But in the central part of the Oruans Forest.

The seven-colored giant tree that Xerneas transformed into stood silently in the deepest part of the forest, while the black cocoon that was entangled and suppressed by ancient tree roots was now shaking violently.

"Click—click—"

A faint cracking sound came from inside the cocoon.

The eerie patterns on the cocoon's surface were now shimmering with an increasingly bright, dark red light. Wisps of black energy seeped from the cracks, spreading through the air like living things, causing vegetation to wither and life to fade wherever they passed.