I caught a Pokémon

A sharp cry rang out from its mouth, as if proclaiming its victory!

Zapdos lost!!

Xia You shook his head, but he had already prepared himself mentally beforehand, so he wasn't too surprised by the result.

After all, there's nothing that can be done about it; there is indeed a certain gap in strength between the two Pokémon.

Xia You recalled it with a Poké Ball, then released Jolteon. She then said to the four Pokémon beside her, "Alright, even though Zapdos has been defeated, our goal hasn't been achieved yet, so let's change our strategy. Now, everyone, let's attack together!"

Chapter 83 Taming Articuno

Charmeleon and Jolteon nodded in unison, while Kirlia and Gastly stared at him with worried eyes.

"Then you'd better be careful," Gastly cautioned. "Don't get involved in the battle!"

"Don't worry, I'll be careful." Xia You patted Kirlia on the shoulder and then released Gyarados and Wartortle. "I've put these two as guards and also as reserve forces, ready to attack at any time. With them around, they can completely protect my safety, so from now on, go all out and fight!"

"Kami! Kami!"

Squirtle nodded to Gastly, its face showing a resolute expression that said, "Leave this to me!"

"That's good, let's go!"

Gastly grinned excitedly and, with the rest of its Pokémon, charged toward Articuno.

High in the sky, Articuno shrugged off these ill-intentioned creatures, flapping its wings and sending a strong gust of wind through the air. It seemed to be trying to intimidate these Pokémon that had not yet fully evolved and back down!

"This aura is truly oppressive!" Seeing this, Xia You shouted loudly to them, "Everyone, don't back down! Kirlia, use Psychic! Jolteon, use Electrify! Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!"

Three different moves were launched at Articuno at the same time. Faced with such an attack, Articuno naturally did not dare to be careless and hurriedly created a whirlwind to neutralize all the moves.

Just then, a Shadow Ball struck it unexpectedly on the back!

Articuno let out a mournful cry and turned around to see that Gastly had quietly appeared behind it and ambushed it!

It hurriedly launched ice spikes at Gastly, only to see Gastly vanish completely amidst a burst of wild laughter!

The icicle pierced the air and struck the wall behind it.

"Hehehehe..."

A sinister laugh echoed in Articuno's ears. Before it could figure out the direction of the sound, another Shadow Ball hit it!

This completely enraged Articuno, which unleashed a move that simultaneously scattered layers of fine snow in all directions!

This is an attempt to force Gastly out by using indiscriminate attacks!

However, right beneath it, a scorching flame suddenly attacked, and Articuno couldn't dodge in time, burning most of its body!

Ouch!

After all, with the number of enemies increasing, it simply couldn't keep up. If it wasn't careful, it would be hit by attacks that came from nowhere!

After suffering a series of injuries, Articuno's already meager strength was almost gone. It narrowed its eyes, spread its wings, and flew directly to the bottom of the stone dome!

"Huh? Is it going to run away?" Gastly looked up, surprised.

"No!" Xia You stared intently at Articuno's every move, seemingly having discerned something, and shouted, "It looks like it's about to use some powerful attack again! Everyone, be on guard!"

If you look closely at the attack animation, the move Articuno is about to use this time is definitely not the Blizzard from before!

"Don't let it succeed, attack now!"

The three Pokémon on the ground hurriedly launched their moves, but unfortunately, the distance was too far, and their attack range was completely insufficient!

Just as Gastly was about to charge at Articuno, Articuno's move was already complete!

A cloud of azure cold air, resembling mist, gathered together and pressed down towards the ground!

Xia You's expression immediately changed: "Oh no, it's absolute zero! Everyone, get out of the way!!"

Just like the Earth Shattering Technique we encountered before, Absolute Zero is also a one-hit kill move! As long as the target is not of the Ice attribute and is not immune to Ice attribute attacks, the damage inflicted is enough to render the opponent unable to fight!

In the blink of an eye, absolute zero was within reach!

Faced with such terrifying power, Xia You's Pokémon each displayed their unique abilities. First, Gastly disappeared, completely disappearing into the shadows. Kirlia used Teleport to hide in a safe place. Even Jolteon used its super-fast movement speed to dodge the attack range!

Only Charmeleon couldn't dodge in time and was hit by Absolute Zero!

The misty cold air, the moment it touched Charizard's body, suddenly turned into countless huge, sharp ice blocks, completely enveloping Charizard!

Before the Charmeleon could even scream, it was frozen to death by the extremely low temperature and lost consciousness. When the ice shattered, it lay hard on the ground.

Xia You took out a Poké Ball and recalled Charizard from a distance, shouting, "Ghost! We can't let it use that a second time! Think of something quick!"

"I understand!"

Gastly agreed and finally got serious.

Its eyes shone brightly, and under its influence, rows of ice spikes inside the cave seemed to be grasped by an invisible hand, flying one after another towards Articuno!

Meanwhile, the lake water outside the island began to swirl, forming waterspouts that flew toward the articulated birds!

Its attacks were relentless. Although the water tornadoes were too slow to hit, a few ice spikes did manage to strike Articuno.

However, the results were rather disappointing!

"Hey!" Xia You reminded, "Don't use ice-attribute attacks! They won't have any effect on it!"

“I know!” Gastly said helplessly, “But there’s nothing I can do about it. There’s only ice and water here. Although I can influence and change the world, I can’t create things out of thin air!”

"Then let's use that trick!" Xia You shouted, "Use hypnosis!"

Gastly nodded, and then ripples emanated from its body, piercing through Articuno!

Articuno's eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and its thoughts gradually became scattered. In just a few breaths, it became delirious and actually fell headfirst from the sky!

Just before Articuno landed, Gastly used its last resort.

Dream Eater, activate!

Bang!

The Articuno, still in a deep sleep, not only suffered damage from Dream Eater, but also crashed heavily to the ground. The double blow had already caused it to lose consciousness completely!

Like telekinesis, hypnosis is an incredibly useful ability!

Or rather, it's because his Haunter is just too powerful!

After confirming that it was safe, Xia You quietly stepped out and came to the front of the Articuno.

Its condition at this moment was quite pitiful; its once beautiful feathers had become disheveled.

Without time to hesitate, Xia You took a Super Ball out of her backpack and threw it at Articuno.

A flash of red light, and Articuno was captured into a Great Ball.

The Super Ball wobbled slightly, then, with a soft click from the switch, it became completely still!

Seeing this, Xia You's anxious heart finally settled down.

Great, I've got my second legendary Pokémon!

Chapter 84 Crimson Lotus Island

Xia You's Pokémon slowly gathered around him, carefully surrounding him.

Picking up the Mega Ball containing Articuno, Xia You looked at the Ice Temple again. Due to the fierce battle just now, the temple was no longer beautiful, but only a devastated and ravaged place.

He remarked with emotion, "It's a pity that it has become like this, but perhaps after a while, other arthropods will come here to roost, and I believe that in a few years, it will return to its former state."

Composing herself, Xia You decided not to linger any longer since she had achieved her goal and turned to leave.

When Kirlia used Teleport to take him to the island in the middle of the lake, Xia You did not return the way he came. Instead, he waited for Gastly to find the way out, then climbed up the steep rock wall for a while and flew for a long time. Finally, the view became brighter and brighter, and he left the underground world through another narrow crack.

A refreshing sea breeze caressed his body. When Xia You, weary from his journey, saw the blue sky and the sea again, he was already standing on the hillside of the Twin Islands!

The Twin Islands, though appearing to be two islands surrounded by the sea, are connected by a passageway beneath the surface, just as their names suggest, twins, inseparable.

……

After leaving Twin Islands, Xia You traveled westward along the waterway and, after several hours, crossed the sea to Red Lotus Island.

Red lotus is the color of fiery red.

It is located at the southernmost tip of the Kanto region and is the largest island in the southern sea. The island is covered with forests and has a huge active volcano. However, due to tectonic movements in recent years, no one knows when this volcano will erupt.

Xia You came here to challenge the Crimson Lotus Gym and obtain the Crimson Badge!

Beside the golden, fine sandy beach, there lies Honglian Town, a seaside resort town also famous for tourism.

As night fell, when Xia You entered the town, the first thing she did was head straight to the Pokémon Center to restore the strength of several injured Pokémon.

Inside the Pokémon Center, after receiving the Poké Ball and seeing the two legendary Pokémon inside, the slightly dark-skinned Nurse Joy covered her mouth in slight surprise.

"This is……"

But her impeccable professional ethics prevented her from losing her composure for even a moment. She then smiled at Xia You and turned to walk into the consultation room.

Not long after the brief treatment, Xia You requested a room and took a comfortable hot shower in the bathroom to expel the cold from her body. Only then did she have time to deal with Zapdos and Articuno.

After thinking for a moment, he released Zapdos first.

A flash of blue light appeared, and Zapdos appeared in the room. However, having lost the battle, it was no longer proud and looked somewhat dejected.

Seeing this, Xia You patted its shoulder and offered a few words of comfort.

"Actually, winning or losing is normal. In my opinion, you are still very strong. It's just that Articuno is stronger. Don't take a temporary setback to heart."

"And let's think about it from a different perspective. It's precisely because there's such a powerful opponent that you have a goal to strive for, forcing yourself to become stronger. When you have enough strength, you can challenge it again, fight with all your might, and crush it under your feet!"

After a few doses of inspirational advice, Zapdos's mood finally improved.

Seeing that this one was almost done, Xia You put away Zapdos and released Articuno.

When the Articuno, with its beautiful blue feathers, appeared, the temperature in the room dropped several degrees simply by gently spreading its feathers!

This cool feeling is just like having the air conditioning on in the sweltering summer!

"Articuno, welcome to this big family! My name is Xia You, let's get along well from now on!"

Articuno had no complaints about Xia You being able to subdue it.

Although it was fighting against many opponents, it had a thoroughly enjoyable battle. It first defeated Zapdos, and then lost to a powerful Gastly. It was completely convinced of its defeat.

After introducing her other Pokémon to Articuno, Xia You changed into clean clothes, left her room, and went to the hall.

Just as he was about to go eat, a clear, girlish voice suddenly rang out behind him.

"Brother Xia You!"

He turned around and saw that it was Xiaoxia, Xiaozhi, and Xiaogang.

only……

The long-forgotten title "Xia You Ge" made him feel a little dazed, reminding him of the beautiful girl who always liked to stick by his side back in Carlos Chaoxiang Town.

Shaking her head, Xia You smiled and said, "What a coincidence! I didn't expect you to be here too."

“Yes, that’s right.” Xiaoxia smiled brightly. “We just arrived on this island and were planning to get a good night’s rest before going to challenge the Cinnabar Gym with Xiaozhi tomorrow!”

At this moment, Ash and Brock greeted Xia You, and even Pikachu happily called out to her.

"It seems our goals are the same again."

Xia You nodded to them, then her gaze fell on a Pokémon in Xiaoxia's arms.

This Pokémon is small in size, with its lower body surrounded by a patterned egg, revealing only its upper body, which is a yellow, starfish-like color.

"Huh? You got Togepi?"

“That’s right, that’s right.” Misty lifted Togepi high and spun it around happily. “We hatched this from an egg when we passed through Big Fool Valley!”

Seeing Xiaoxia so happy, Xia You was genuinely happy for her: "This is a very rare Pokémon, so you should raise it well!"

As they talked, the four of them went to the restaurant and had dinner together.

Amidst laughter and cheerful conversation, they recounted their travel experiences, sharing some interesting stories with Xia You.

"Hmph." Xiao Zhi opened his shirt, revealing six badges inside. "Xia You, we have the same number of badges now. How about we have a contest to see who gets the next badge first!"

Seeing his smug look, Xia You couldn't help but laugh and said, "What's the point of comparing this? Besides, Uncle Xia, the master of the Crimson Lotus Dojo, is an extremely formidable opponent. Don't underestimate him."

When the topic of competition comes up, Ash seems to transform: "My Pokémon are all very strong, so it doesn't matter who my opponent is!"