"So vicious…"
Selene recalled Iron Valiant, her fair little face tightening into a frown.
Judging from Hisuian Arcanine's ferocious combo just now, this Pokémon was overwhelmingly aggressive—completely different from Hisuian Goodra or the illusion-based Hisuian Zoroark.
No wonder Dylan had chosen to Terastallize it.
A Pokémon with such overwhelming frontal combat power was extremely hard to deal with.
"Gengar!"
After a brief moment of thought, Selene decisively threw out Mega Gengar's Poké Ball.
"Heh heh heh~"
Accompanied by an eerie chuckle, Mega Gengar rose from the shadows.
After resting for a while, Mega Gengar's mental state had recovered quite a bit.
"As expected—Gengar. A good choice," Dylan said calmly, unsurprised.
The oppressive pressure of Extreme Speed was obvious, and his Hisuian Arcanine clearly excelled at it.
Mega Gengar's Ghost typing made it immune to Normal-type Extreme Speed, and its proficiency with status moves allowed it to avoid direct confrontation.
Using Mega Gengar to counter Hisuian Arcanine was, objectively speaking, a very smart decision.
"Gengar!"
Selene called out.
Mega Gengar spread a wicked grin as dark light flashed in its eyes. A hazy black shadow covered Hisuian Arcanine's silhouette.
With Shadow Tag active, Hisuian Arcanine could no longer be switched out normally.
"Extreme Speed!"
Dylan launched the attack immediately.
Hisuian Arcanine shot forward in an instant, its fiery red form tearing across the battlefield like lightning.
Even though Extreme Speed was ineffective against Mega Gengar, it was still perfect for closing the distance.
"Gengar! Toxic Spikes!"
Selene gave the order at once.
Mega Gengar floated upward, its claws coming together as a deep-purple energy sphere formed.
Dylan let out a soft chuckle.
"Arcanine!"
Hisuian Arcanine dashed beneath Mega Gengar and leapt high into the air.
"Crunch!"
Boosted by Extreme Speed, its movement was terrifyingly fast. It shot past Mega Gengar, the Extreme Speed fading as it twisted midair and turned back down.
Black light flared from its jaws—Dark-type Crunch!
The Toxic Spikes were hurled skyward, but Mega Gengar itself couldn't evade in time.
Crunch!
Hisuian Arcanine bit down hard on Mega Gengar's head, drawing a shrill cry of pain.
It swung Mega Gengar violently before hurling it straight toward the ground.
Mega Gengar slammed down like a cannonball, baring its teeth in agony—its condition now extremely poor.
"Fire Blast!"
Dylan pressed the attack without mercy. This was the perfect moment—Mega Gengar wouldn't even have time to use Destiny Bond.
Deep-purple droplets rained down, sinking into the battlefield and vanishing. A faint violet gleam flickered, then disappeared.
Toxic Spikes were set.
Mid-fall, Hisuian Arcanine's mouth filled with blazing crimson flames.
A massive Fire Blast crashed down, smashing directly into the Mega Gengar that was trying to sink into the ground.
Boom!
Violent flames erupted, heat waves surging skyward—an overwhelmingly powerful Fire Blast.
"Gengar!" Selene's expression changed slightly—but she didn't panic.
The attack had come far too fast. She hadn't expected Hisuian Arcanine's follow-up to be this brutal.
"That fast-paced offense is insane—Mega Gengar might not hold on," Iris muttered.
"That Fire Blast was extremely powerful. If nothing unexpected happens, Mega Gengar won't survive it," N agreed.
Mega Gengar already had low defenses. It had been hit twice by Hisuian Zoroark's retaliatory attacks earlier, then taken Crunch just now.
Three super-effective hits—and still standing. That alone was impressive.
But surviving Fire Blast? Unlikely.
On the field—
As Hisuian Arcanine landed, deep-purple light suddenly flared across its body.
Toxic Spikes damage triggered.
Many spectators wore strange expressions.
Toxic Spikes was something Dylan himself had popularized.
And now—he was the one being poisoned.
What's more, it was his own student who'd done it.
Dylan glanced at Hisuian Arcanine. One layer of Toxic Spikes was completely manageable.
But Mega Gengar—
"Pain Split!"
Selene suddenly shouted.
"Oh?" Dylan raised an eyebrow.
From the shadows nearby, Mega Gengar's faint red eyes lit up as it slowly rose from underground, barely hanging on.
White light flowed from both Pokémon—Normal-type Pain Split.
The energy merged, split evenly, and returned to both.
In an instant, Hisuian Arcanine's aura weakened noticeably, while Mega Gengar's condition visibly improved.
"So you used Endure," Dylan said calmly.
Otherwise, Mega Gengar couldn't possibly have survived that Fire Blast.
"Hehe~ You're sharp as always, Dylan," Selene laughed.
Endure had let Mega Gengar cling to life.
The situation had been too sudden—Destiny Bond wasn't even an option.
But this Endure into Pain Split combo dragged Hisuian Arcanine's condition down hard.
"Now the advantage is mine! Dylan—no one understands how scary Toxic Spikes are better than you do, right?"
Selene smiled sharply.
With Toxic Spikes on the field, a grounded Pokémon like Arcanine was at a natural disadvantage.
Unless Dylan switched.
"You're confident," Dylan said lightly. "Then let me crush that confidence."
Selene tilted her head.
"Toxic Spikes aren't removed only by clearing moves," Dylan replied, eyes on Mega Gengar.
"Arcanine—Dig."
Hisuian Arcanine plunged underground.
"Flare Blitz!"
Dylan continued.
A low, rumbling roar echoed beneath the battlefield.
"Using Flare Blitz underground?" Selene froze—then her eyes widened.
Was he planning to vaporize the Toxic Spikes with extreme heat?
That sounded impossible…
…Except it actually might work.
Heat began seeping up from the ground. The battlefield grew hotter and hotter beneath Selene's sandals.
Red light glowed faintly under the surface. Cracks spread. Flames leaked out.
The air became scorching.
Something was very wrong.
"Gengar! Get ready—Protect!"
Selene ordered instantly.
Mega Gengar floated up, green light gathering beneath it—but it hesitated, staring at the ground.
Then—
BOOM!
Like a volcanic eruption, massive torrents of fire burst from the entire battlefield.
Mega Gengar instantly used Protect.
Towering flames dyed the sky crimson, reflecting in the stunned eyes of every spectator.
Blazing firestorms surged outward. Selene had to shield her face—the wind itself was burning hot.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three full seconds passed before the flames finally subsided.
The arena's temperature had risen dramatically. The battlefield itself was scorched dry, white steam rising from the ground.
Hisuian Arcanine emerged, landing on the blistering earth, head held high—wild, ferocious, and domineering.
And this time—
No Toxic Spikes damage triggered.
Protect faded. Mega Gengar hovered above, staring down at Hisuian Arcanine.
The two Pokémon faced each other once more.
But the stadium had completely exploded.
"WHAT WAS THAT?!"
"The whole field erupted in flames—are you telling me that was Flare Blitz?!"
"That was insane!"
"This is what Fire-type trainers live for!"
"Using Flare Blitz underground like that—learned something new today!"
The crowd was roaring.
"Did you get it?" Dylan said calmly, smiling at Selene's twitching mouth.
"Even without Defog or Rapid Spin, there are other ways to clear Toxic Spikes."
Selene rolled her eyes.
So that worked too.
Her Incineroar could do something similar—but she'd never even thought of it.
Even after training under Dylan and developing unconventional battle instincts, this kind of tactic…
It was ridiculous.
"Seriously, Dylan… If this keeps up, Toxic Spikes are going to lose value again."
"Not necessarily," Dylan said with a chuckle.
This method, inspired by anime-style tactics, wasn't easy to replicate.
Toxic Spikes couldn't be burned away with ordinary flames—it required sustained, extremely high temperatures.
And that demanded raw power.
Stronger Pokémon created stronger moves.
Likewise, stronger Toxic Spikes were harder to erase.
Mega Gengar's Toxic Spikes, for instance—even a normal Fire-type could burn for an hour and still fail to melt them.
In the end, it all came down to strength.
"Let's continue, Selene."
Dylan cut the conversation short.
"Arcanine—Extreme Speed!"
Hisuian Arcanine burst forward again, energy surging.
"Gengar! Stay sharp!"
Mega Gengar hovered tensely, eyes locked on the red blur.
In an instant, Hisuian Arcanine appeared behind it and leapt.
"Now—Shadow Ball!"
Selene swung her arm.
Mega Gengar retreated while forming a Shadow Ball and firing it—
But Hisuian Arcanine arched backward, dodging cleanly, then flipped and charged again.
It was the motion of Aerial Ace—performed mid–Extreme Speed.
Selene stared in disbelief.
That was even possible?!
But there was no time.
Hisuian Arcanine was already in Mega Gengar's face.
"Crunch!"
Its jaws snapped shut again.
Crunch hit squarely, Mega Gengar shrieking as it clawed desperately at Arcanine's face.
But Arcanine didn't let go—shaking it violently before hurling it down once more.
Mega Gengar smashed into the ground, eyes squeezed shut in pain.
"Fire Blast!"
Dylan gave the finishing order.
He glanced at Selene—by now, she'd probably use that.
Hisuian Arcanine unleashed another Fire Blast from above.
"Gengar! Destiny Bond!"
Selene shouted.
This was the second time—she was ready.
If Mega Gengar was going down, it would take Arcanine with it.
Mega Gengar forced itself to look up, eerie light flaring in its eyes.
"Too predictable, Selene," Dylan said with a smile.
Selene's face changed instantly.
The Fire Blast slammed into the ground—not Mega Gengar.
A feint!
The flames still exploded outward, scorching Mega Gengar painfully—but not enough to knock it out.
Destiny Bond expired.
And it couldn't be used again immediately.
Hisuian Arcanine landed, leapt again—
Another Fire Blast fired point-blank, striking Mega Gengar as it tried to sink into the ground.
Boom!
The explosion engulfed the field.
As the smoke cleared, Mega Gengar had reverted to normal Gengar, eyes spinning as it lay at the bottom of a crater.
"Gengar has lost the ability to battle. Hisuian Arcanine wins."
The referee announced.
Selene recalled Gengar, staring at the Poké Ball with a headache.
Using what Dylan taught her—against Dylan himself—
Really didn't work at all.
He saw through everything.