Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 586: Championship!

The light of Mega Evolution faded away, revealing to everyone's sight an even more ferocious and menacing Mega Garchomp!

Crimson scythes, a jet-like head, its body covered with sharp fangs, with wisps of white vapor escaping from between its teeth.

"Shikah!!!"

Its imposing roar stirred up large clouds of sand and dust, along with streams of white energy.

The burn marks and poison traces that had been on its body actually...

"This is cheating," Johan muttered, looking at the disappeared burn and poison traces.

So evolution removes all negative debuffs?

That's excessive.

Originally, just by stacking debuffs on Garchomp, this battle would have been almost certain victory. Who knew it could develop like this.

Johan took a deep breath, feeling the fierce aura of Mega Garchomp washing over him.

If that's how it is...

Johan glanced at Gengar.

"Ka-kaah!! ヾ(▼▼;)"

Gengar stuck out its tongue and put on sunglasses.

Let's go!

Seeing this, Johan smiled slightly and loosened his collar button.

Then let's do this!

Whoosh—

The black suit jacket and top hat were thrown behind him. While rolling up his sleeves, he grabbed the round ball at the end of the monocle's chain, and a Mega Stone emanating a colorful glow appeared on Gengar's tongue.

"Gengar!"

"Ka-kaah! (▼▼)V" Gengar made a "yeah" hand gesture.

The smile on Johan's face grew wider.

Hum—

The Key Stone in his hand suddenly burst forth with colorful red light, and Gengar's Mega Stone on its tongue responded, also radiating brilliant light.

The two streams of light connected like an electric current, quickly and accurately joining together.

"Mega Evolution!"

"Ka-kaah!!"

In an instant.

Brilliant light completely enveloped Gengar, and under the dazzling radiance, Gengar's appearance rapidly changed.

"Here it comes! Teacher Johan's Mega Gengar!"

"Is this... the final battle?"

"Go on, Ghost-Ghost! Kill it for me!!"

Mega Garchomp VS Mega Gengar!

Is the final battle finally here?

"Ka-kaah——!!"

The mega evolution energy completely dissipated as Gengar curled its extended tongue, and the mark of Mega Evolution flashed briefly before it.

"Shikah——"

Mega Garchomp grinned.

You're finally here!

"Gengar, once more, Skill Swap!" Johan made the first move.

After Mega Evolution, Garchomp's original ability that had been swapped by Gengar had changed to Mega Garchomp's ability—Sand Force!

[Sand Force: In a sandstorm, Pokémon with this ability not only aren't affected by the sandstorm, but the power of Rock, Ground, and Steel-type moves are all increased!]

After losing the "Levitate" ability, Gengar became weak to Ground-type moves. Mega Garchomp's Ground-type moves combined with Sand Force... would have too great an impact on Gengar!

"Ka-kaah!"

Mega Gengar's golden eye in the middle of its forehead shot out a strange red beam, accompanied by its eerie smile, rapidly shooting toward Mega Garchomp.

"Shikah!!"

Mega Garchomp suddenly flapped its wings and flew toward the sky.

Still trying the same old trick?

As Garchomp flew, the sandstorm surged, and rocks continuously moved to form a barrier in its path.

But Gengar wouldn't allow Garchomp to avoid it so easily. The Skill Swap beam amazingly made a turn in mid-air, bypassing the rock barriers Mega Garchomp had raised!

"Garchomp!" Cynthia's gaze was sharp as she extended her hand in a claw-like gesture, "Dragon Claw!"

"Shikah!!"

Mega Garchomp immediately stopped its evasive movement. Rich green energy burst from its crimson scythes, forming into claws that slashed at the incoming Skill Swap beam.

Bang!!!

The strange beam shattered into starry points, scattering downward.

"Ohhhh!!!" The announcer shouted, "Mega Garchomp's Dragon Claw actually tore through the Skill Swap beam. This is... truly an astonishing performance!"

The spectators in the stands also expressed their amazement.

"That was Dragon Claw, right?"

"Dragon Claw can cut through Skill Swap? What kind of move usage is this?"

"Wait, it can actually cut through that?"

"It's begun... this is how our Lady Cynthia's Garchomp battles."

Lucian, who pushed his glasses up, felt he had the most right to speak on this matter.

His Bronzong's Trick Room was often mercilessly slashed open by the boss's Garchomp just like what happened earlier.

To be honest.

In Lucian's view, Teacher Johan's Gengar had actually met its match in the boss's Garchomp.

Not just because of Garchomp's type advantage over Gengar, but also because... the boss's Garchomp was simply unreasonable in battle.

You try to use tactics, mechanisms against it, and it can destroy your tactics and mechanisms from start to finish.

Then it forces you into a direct confrontation, a battle of raw power, and finally grinds down the opponent with its rich fighting experience.

On the field.

"Garchomp, Earthquake!" Cynthia called out loud.

"Shikah!!"

Mega Garchomp gave Mega Gengar a "contemptuous" smile, steadied itself, and struck the ground with its tail.

In an instant.

Rumble——

A terrifying earthquake shock, with Mega Garchomp at its center, spread outward in all directions.

"Ka-kaah!"

Mega Gengar pushed hard against the ground with both feet, then, as if swimming, quickly darted into the sky.

Even if I've lost "Levitate," isn't "flying" simple enough?

Cynthia's lips curved slightly upward, and Mega Garchomp's gaze also shifted with Mega Gengar toward the sky.

The next moment.

"Dragon Dive!"

"Shikah!!"

A terrifying and fierce blue-purple giant dragon aura instantly enveloped Mega Garchomp. Though called a "dive," Mega Garchomp now soared skyward, suddenly charging toward the heights.

Earlier, Tinkaton had dared to use Bounce to dodge Garchomp's Earthquake because it wasn't afraid of Dragon Dive, but Mega Gengar...

Johan's expression remained calm as he lightly waved his hand.

"Phantom Force!"

Mega Gengar in midair gave a mischievous grin toward the charging Mega Garchomp, reached out to make a slashing motion in the air, and disappeared from its sight.

But Cynthia seemed to have anticipated this, immediately saying:

"Dive down!"

"Shikah——"

Mega Garchomp, having reached mid-air, didn't disperse its Dragon-type energy but made it even more concentrated, unhesitatingly plummeting toward the center of the field.

"Gengar isn't there..."

"What's it trying to do?"

The audience couldn't understand Cynthia and Mega Garchomp's current behavior.

But soon, they understood.

Boom!!!

As Mega Garchomp crashed into the ground, the entire battlefield once again began to shake violently.

"Earthquake!"

Rumble——

An even more surging and terrifying earthquake than before instantly covered the entire field.

This move... not only was the battlefield barrier in peril, but the spectators even felt as if the entire arena was about to collapse.

"So it's using Dragon Dive's impact force to maximize the power and attack range of Earthquake!!!" the announcer shouted.

And it was at this moment.

Mega Gengar emerged from the dimensional space at just the right time.

"Ka-kaah?"

Feeling such a massive earthquake impact, Gengar was also startled.

You call this an Earthquake?

The Larvitar at Johan's feet watched with burning eyes, its small head seemingly motionless, but internally it was constantly processing.

"Yoji..."

So this is how to enhance Earthquake... I've learned something.

"Gengar!" Johan's smile disappeared as he called out with slightly furrowed brows.

"Ka-kaah!"

Hum——

With Mega Gengar at its center, a mist that resembled both flowing water and sinking incense surged out from its body wave after wave, spreading over the ground.

In almost the blink of an eye, the black mist emanating from Mega Gengar had completely enveloped and covered the battlefield.

And the originally violent earthquake triggered by Mega Garchomp... rapidly lost its movement and reaction under the black mist's cover.

"Shikah?"

Mega Garchomp was slightly shocked, almost instinctively flapping its arms to fly into the air.

It looked somewhat anxiously at the field completely covered by shadows.

How...

It couldn't feel the ground's existence anymore?!

In the battlefield's control room, the person in charge, who had been fretting over the battlefield damage and defensive barrier deterioration, stared blankly at the instrument displaying:

Field damage level: Field disappeared.

Field disappeared?!

What the hell?

Even if the damage level was 100%, the field wouldn't completely vanish—there should always be some debris left!

At the same time.

In the Distortion World, Giratina, who had been intently watching the match on a palm-sized screen, suddenly sensed something and turned its head to look in a certain direction.

And saw...

A battlefield that had already been smashed to pieces... falling out of nowhere.

Giratina tilted its head, lightly scratched its forehead with its claw, then propped up its chin.

Has this really become a dump?

Back to the arena.

Mega Garchomp, Cynthia, and the audience still didn't understand what was happening, but the earthquake had completely stopped.

However, both Mega Garchomp and Cynthia instinctively felt that the black mist field below, centered around Mega Gengar, was dangerous!

And very dangerous at that!

Actually, Mega Garchomp had a bold guess in its heart...

Because it had lost the "Levitate" ability and feared Ground-type moves, it simply... sent the entire ground into the dimensional space.

As soon as this thought arose, Mega Garchomp quickly suppressed it.

But the more it tried to suppress it, the more it felt... the guess was correct.

This is ridiculous!

Can't solve the problem, so solve the one causing the problem?

Gengar's attitude: We're the same.

"Garchomp!" Cynthia pursed her lips, her bright eyes looking at Johan across from her, her gaze serious and focused.

No matter the situation, there was only one path left...

"Dragon Dive!"

Influenced by Cynthia, Mega Garchomp's heart quickly calmed. It nodded firmly, its fighting spirit rising again, even surpassing before!

Victory?

Not important!

What's important is that it's now battling Mega Gengar at its best state!

"Shikah!!!"

Hum——

Terrifying Dragon-type energy surged from Mega Garchomp's body, covering it, apparently transforming into a roaring ancient dragon!

The scales seemed solid and real, with crimson eyes opening from the huge "ancient dragon's" eyes.

The spectators widened their eyes and dropped their jaws one by one.

Because that "dragon"... covered nearly half the battlefield's airspace.

Wings flapping.

Roaring loudly.

"Roar——!!!"

"Ka-kaah..."

Mega Gengar immediately put away its playful expression.

This guy... is playing for real... is it trying to kill me?

Oh... I'm already a ghost, so that's fine.

But undoubtedly, both Mega Gengar and Johan felt an enormous threat from Mega Garchomp at this moment.

"Gengar." Johan's voice echoed in Gengar's mind, "Bring out all your skills, maximum power, Shadow Ball!"

"Ka-kaah!"

Black mist surged around Mega Gengar.

Its body seemed to expand slightly after two "bang bang" sounds bursting from within.

There's no time for fancy tricks now.

Only direct confrontation!

Hum——

A huge Shadow Ball formed between Mega Gengar's hands.

Then, a second identical one appeared, followed by a third, a fourth...

"What is Gengar trying to do? Create seven balls to summon the dragon?"

"In this situation... having more might not help, right?"

"Eh? They're merging together?"

"Merging?"

"..."

"Who will emerge victorious..." Even the professional announcer swallowed hard, somewhat shaken.

The referee floating in the corner holding Aegislash: I shouldn't be here, I should be under a car... if heaven gave me another chance, no matter how generous the bonus... I would definitely refuse to referee this battle.

"Shikah!!"

Mega Garchomp dove down!

"Ka-kaah!"

Mega Gengar hurled its [Merged] Shadow Ball.

The two forces...

Boom!!!

Silence fell over everything.

The world before their eyes seemed to contain only brilliant white and boundless black, pulling back and forth in the center of the field.

The audience finally understood this battle.

It was actually just a fight... that didn't follow reason or the "basic laws of the Pokémon world."

It emphasized one thing: whoever was more unreasonable would win!

But one thing was certain—

The value of this "Youth Master World Championship," the caliber of the contestants, the strength of the participants, was absolutely the strongest and most prestigious in the history of this event!

Perhaps those who reached the top eight in this "Youth Master World Championship" would have had a good chance of becoming champions in previous years!

What did this signify?

It meant that this "Youth Master World Championship" could even be called the "Battle of the Eight Young Masters"!

And the trainer who could win the championship in this tournament would undoubtedly become the "First Among Young Masters"!

The true leader of the younger generation in the Pokémon world!

Such a person would be determined right before their eyes, in these short minutes or even seconds.

All spectators watching and following this event were anxiously waiting for the result.

"Who won? Will there be a winner?"

"So... the final path of all battles is... beam collision?"

"Can't see clearly, really can't see clearly..."

Before the audience could learn the result on the field, they heard...

Crash!!!

The struggling battlefield barrier finally completely shattered, and an incredibly terrifying impact swept toward the spectator stands.

Fortunately, the event staff had vaguely "predicted" the outcome during the previous battles, so the scattered staff members immediately raised backup barriers.

"The enhanced version of the battlefield barrier ex-exploded?"

"Even with backup barriers, they won't hold for long, gulp—"

"Too terrifying, these two..."

Finally.

The light and darkness in the field completely faded, revealing the figures of the two Pokémon.

Hovering in mid-air, chest heaving violently, gasping for breath was Mega Garchomp.

The white light on its body peeled away like unwinding silk, ending its Mega Evolution, making it look even more exhausted.

And opposite it, half-crouching in the black mist was Mega Gengar with its tongue out, face pale, looking like it was about to "shine" (faint).

The mega evolution energy also faded away, ending its Mega Evolution.

At the same time.

Gengar's black mist that covered the entire field also gradually retracted back into its body, which slightly eased Gengar's condition.

[Merge] was used too few times, still not proficient enough... the consumption was a bit too great.

And Garchomp's Dragon Dive really was... like cheating.

However, the battlefield revealed after the black mist receded made all the spectators gasp.

The field had disappeared!

Only the metal framework that maintained the field remained!

No wonder Garchomp wouldn't land or use Ground-type moves... the field had vanished!

Did Gengar dissolve the entire field?

"Ka-kaah!" Gengar looked up at Garchomp in the sky.

And Garchomp, not to be outdone, bared its teeth at Gengar.

"Garr... garr..."

The next second.

Garchomp, as if struck hard, lost control of its body and began falling downward.

"Gengar!" Johan quickly called out.

Gengar immediately floated toward the falling Garchomp.

"We..."

Hum——

A beam of red light shot out, and the falling Garchomp was immediately recalled into its Poké Ball.

Gengar, gasping heavily after just a couple of movements, hung limply in mid-air with its tongue out, wearing an expression that said "old man's about to die."

"You—" Johan looked at Cynthia across from him.

But he found Cynthia lightly brushing back her hair, revealing her slightly flushed face, possibly from excitement or from Mega Evolution.

"We lost," Cynthia said softly.

Garchomp's condition... was indeed worse than Gengar's. Although Gengar's moves were clearly not used skillfully, Garchomp and Cynthia still couldn't seize the opportunity.

Besides, even if Garchomp had managed to trade knockouts with Gengar, Johan still had a Ninetales in relatively good condition.

Actually, considering Gengar's abilities... it still had Destiny Bond and Shadow Tag unused.

Johan was basically fighting in a style that he and Gengar were least proficient at.

So...

A loss was a loss, and the spirited Cynthia was always frank about this.

We lost?

Hearing Cynthia's words, the entire field once again fell into an eerie silence.

"Did I hear wrong? Miss Cynthia admitted defeat?"

"Doesn't that mean..."

"Teacher Johan has won the championship?!"

"We... are the champions!!!"

Boom!!

In an instant, the entire venue erupted with intense cheers.

Everyone, whether they supported Johan or not, offered their cheers at this moment.

If nothing else, this final battle was truly spectacular!

Each displayed their tactics, each showed their unreasonable moves, and finally they cast everything aside for an all-out confrontation.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Fireworks rose into the sky above the stadium, countless camera flashes flickered inside.

This battle would definitely be recorded in the annals.

Johan and Cynthia walked to the relatively intact edge of the battlefield.

They looked at each other.

And extended their hands.

"Congratulations," Cynthia said softly.

"Thank you," Johan felt the softness in his palm and suddenly asked, "So... what was the secret you mentioned before the match?"

Before his battle with Cynthia, she had said she would tell him a secret if he won.

Now that the battle was over, and Johan had claimed victory, what would the secret be?

Intense curiosity rose in Johan's heart.

Under his expectant gaze, Cynthia tilted her head slightly, a mischievous smile appearing on her face.

"Guess?"

Johan: "..."

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Powerstones?

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