Lian looked with satisfaction at the orange flame pillar unleashed by Fire Pledge. This move sparked numerous ideas for him; flames didn't necessarily have to be solely projected outward but could undergo various transformations.
Apart from its considerable power, Fire Pledge essentially functioned as a cage, restricting the opponent's movements within the fiery column. To break free, one would inevitably suffer the scorching heat.
This created dual damage potential: the first upon initial impact and ignition when the flame pillar rises, followed by continuous burning as the opponent attempts to escape the confines of the fire.
The first day of specialized training went smoothly. Lian successfully fused moves with Ninetales, resulting in a significantly more potent attack. However, he wasn't sure how the system calculated these enhancements and needed actual combat to validate them further.
In the evening, Lian and Kalia gathered in their room to continue watching demonstration videos from the Move Disk. By now, Lian believed they were ready to learn those three additional moves.
As time passed quickly, it was soon bedtime. Kalia turned off the player and returned her Pokemon to their Poké Balls for sleep.
Recalling the process of executing the new moves, Lian also entered his Poké Ball, preparing to rest.
***
In the Dream World...
"What happened?" Kentra reappeared within the Dream World, only to find himself not in the expected grassy area but instead inside a small cabin—the very starting point he had initially arrived at. He clearly remembered placing a Lunar Feather in that grass region as a location marker.
"Puzzling... Was the Lunar Feather destroyed somehow?" Kentra felt quite perplexed and didn't suspect the Charmeleon's involvement, as it seemed highly unlikely. Although Pokemon possess intelligence, how could they know about the Lunar Feather's purpose and specifically target it for destruction? It must have been an accident.
Most likely, some wild Pokemon inadvertently ruined it—a possibility both significant yet frustrating. To accidentally destroy something like this was truly unfortunate.
The value of Lunar Feathers is immense; obtaining them required considerable effort since they can only be sourced from the Legendary Pokemon Cresselia. Additionally, staying longer in the Dream World increased resource consumption exponentially.
With the Lunar Feather destroyed, Kentra had no choice but to accept his misfortune. The thought of wasting more time just to reach the previous location irritated him greatly.
"Zapdos will be captured sooner or later, along with that Charmeleon," Kentra decided temporarily avoiding confrontation with the Charmeleon due to its eerie behavior. However, soon other Dark Guild members would enter the Dream World, ensuring neither Zapdos nor the Charmeleon could stand against them—they were destined to be defeated.
Kentra left the starting point, focusing on training his Pokemon to rapidly enhance their true combat capabilities. Meanwhile, another Dream Device was en route and would soon be in his possession, marking the moment for a decisive counterattack.
***
Upon entering system space, Lian habitually checked his battle statistics as usual. Everything remained unchanged, including his level at 38.
His efforts during the night were not wasted. As anticipated, the system did not display any new moves primarily because he hadn't watched enough Move Disks yet. This made sense, considering that typical trainers would have their Pokémon view each Move Disk dozens of times. Watching it only ten times is insufficient unless the Pokémon possesses extraordinary aptitude, otherwise, they wouldn't grasp much from it.
Lian acknowledged himself as an ordinary Pokémon, with the system's existence being the key factor behind his current abilities. Without meeting even the basic requirements, how could one instantly master a move?
Therefore, watching twenty times seems to be the minimum requirement, and for more complex moves, even twenty might not suffice; it may require thirty or forty repetitions to truly learn them.
Lian glanced at the move list, and all the moves he viewed earlier in the day now appeared: Assist, Protect, and Tailwind. Although today's battle data didn't include Grovyle and Ninetales, Lian felt confident that they should also be able to unlock these moves soon.
Lian decided to find an opportunity for a Trainer battle soon. At that time, he could assess whether these moves would directly light up. Ideally, Protect and Assist should be released by Grovyle and Ninetales during combat, which would elevate Lian's move potency to a truly terrifying level.
He felt almost guilty competing in double battles with his current strength; his ability stats were already far beyond this tier. Except for Pokemon owned by true prodigy Trainers, it seemed unlikely any others could match him.
Of course, double battles might differ significantly due to various tactical strategies. If Lian solely focused on individual attacks without coordination, he may not fully utilize his capabilities. Conversely, opponents could potentially unleash their Pokemon's power beyond 100%.
Lian wasn't naive; this upcoming double battle presented a significant opportunity to enhance teamwork between himself, Grovyle, and Ninetales. The strength of a single Pokemon is inherently limited, and genuine battles never revolve around just one Pokemon's performance.
In competitive battles, if Lian and his Pokemon could develop better coordination, especially during encounters like the Dark Guild ambush, he would face formidable opponents with greater ease instead of solely relying on individual strength.
Initially, Lian's dream was simply to sleep peacefully. However, as he evolved, although he started striving for more, this dream remained constant. Without immense power, everything else seemed futile.
Take Heatran from Steel Fire Mountain as an example; if not for its status as a Legendary Pokemon and possessing extraordinary strength, it wouldn't have been able to endure near the volcanic crater for so long. Firstly, due to its immense power, despite people knowing about its existence, no one dared to attempt capturing it, given the extreme danger of the volcano. Secondly, as a Legendary Pokemon, it possesses human-like intelligence, making it highly resistant to being tamed.
If someday Lian becomes stronger than even a Legendary Pokemon, perhaps he could nap anywhere without anyone daring to disturb him, fearing his immense power.
Of course, Lian wouldn't actually do that. The Pokemon League exists in this world, wielding authority possibly surpassing even that of Legendary Pokemon.
Otherwise, considering how much stronger Pokemon are compared to humans, why would humanity still dominate this world? It's precisely because the League possesses means to control and restrain Pokemon.
To truly master one's destiny, becoming more powerful is essential. The Dark Guild will not rest; they'll continue emerging and causing trouble for Lian and Kalia.
After all, Lian and Kalia have inflicted significant losses on the Dark Guild, and if they don't seek revenge, it wouldn't be true to their nature.
For now, it seems there might be a temporary period of calm, but no one knows when the guild will strike again.
With his newly acquired wide-range Fire-type moves, Lian is undaunted by large numbers of Pokemon. He can handle as many as come, except for those truly elite ones, which he respects cautiously.
Using Combat Points, he unlocked three additional moves: Tailwind was maxed out, while Protect and Assist only cost him 200 Combat Points each. These two moves didn't require extensive mastery; being able to cast them sufficed.
Having completed what he could, Lian entered the Dream World to resume his exploration and battles within it.