Chapter 324: The Sandstorm Trial
Basalt looked around. Seeing all five of his Pokémon were safe, he let out a huge sigh of relief.
Sshh-ssh-ssh... Sshh-ssh-ssh...
Sand pelted their bodies relentlessly. Basalt felt a stinging pain on his cheeks. In fact, any part of his skin that was exposed to the sand hurt badly. He felt like if this continued, his skin would be flayed right off.
"Larvitar, block the sandstorm!" Basalt called out to his little sandstorm king.
"Yuji!"
Larvitar understood. Its sand-control ability activated, and a vacuum of calm instantly formed around Basalt.
"What a strong sandstorm!"
With the sand held at bay, Basalt instantly relaxed, but his face was still pale with lingering fear. "Without a sand suit, a normal person would be torn to shreds in this."
"Dro-lisk!"
"Dily-da!"
"Marsh-tomp!"
In complete contrast to Basalt, his Pokémon were basking in the sandstorm, looks of pure bliss on their faces.
"The Rock and Ground-type energy here is incredibly rich," Bronzong noted, its face calm and impassive. Since it was neither Rock nor Ground, this environment held little appeal for it.
"However, the intensity of this sandstorm is high, and its flow is clear and smooth. It's a good place to learn the 'Sandstorm' move. Perhaps this is where I'll finally master it."
Bronzong pondered for a moment, a trace of embarrassment in its thoughts. As the second-in-command of Basalt's Sandstorm team, it had learned every other move quickly, but it still hadn't mastered "Sandstorm." It was ridiculous.
"That's great! Since you and Marshtomp haven't learned Sandstorm yet, taking this opportunity to master it would be a huge win."
Basalt rubbed his hands, his face full of excitement.
The number one weather-setter spot on his team was, without question, reserved for Larvitar. But this was the real world, not a game with a four-move limit. Having all his team members able to start a sandstorm was an excellent option. Just imagining it was spectacular.
"But now is not the time to learn. Let's head that way first."
Looking around, Basalt saw that the sandstorm to the west was significantly more intense.
Advance toward the strongest part of the storm.
Basalt remembered Khara-Khan's words.
As they headed west, he could feel the sandstorm steadily intensifying. The visibility was dropping. When they started, he could see about a hundred meters. After traveling a few kilometers, it was down to just a few dozen.
At the same time, the force of the sand was increasing. For the first time, Basalt's team began to fall behind.
"Marsh-tomp..."
Marshtomp's eyes flashed, but its face was grim.
Even as a Ground-type Pokémon, it was struggling against this sandstorm. It was too intense. It could feel a fine, stinging pain on its skin. This meant the storm was already at the limit of what it could endure.
In the real world, there was no such thing as perfect immunity. If the intensity was too high, even Sandstorm Pokémon would be injured.
"In that case, Marshtomp, you stay here. Focus on sensing the flow of the storm and try to improve your sand control," Basalt said. He finally understood what Khara-Khan had meant.
The trial was for the Pokémon.
"Marsh-tomp."
Marshtomp nodded seriously, then closed its eyes and began to concentrate. I'm still too weak.
"Alright, let's keep going!"
Basalt waved his hand and continued toward the center of the storm. He knew the secret realm was safe, so leaving Marshtomp behind wasn't a problem.
After another few kilometers, the storm's power was still rising. It was now as terrifying as a hurricane. If it weren't for Larvitar and Bronzong protecting him, Basalt would have been dead long ago.
At the same time, he finally ran into another Roba youth.
The youth was short but very stocky. He was being protected by a Golem and a Vibrava, advancing slowly.
When Basalt saw him, the youth also saw Basalt.
The stocky youth was shocked. "I've already had four Pokémon fall back because they couldn't withstand the storm. This Basalt guy still has four left? Terrifying!"
And when he saw Cradily, his eyes went wide with disbelief.
But because they were dozens of meters apart and the wind was too loud, Basalt just gave him a wave. There was no point in trying to talk; they wouldn't be able to hear each other over the roar of the wind and sand.
Continuing forward, with four Pokémon protecting him, Basalt's pace, while not fast, was still noticeably quicker than the stocky youth's. Before long, the youth was out of sight.
"Dily-da!"
And just then, Cradily also decided to stop.
At this point, it could no longer control the sand at all. The grains pelted its body, making it feel numb. It felt it needed to improve its sand-control abilities before advancing further. This was its limit, and therefore the perfect place to train.
And so, Cradily also left the group.
A short while later, the stocky youth caught up to where Cradily was. By the time he passed, he was only accompanied by his Golem; the Vibrava had clearly fallen behind as well.
"Hey, wait a minute."
After walking a bit further, Basalt had a sudden thought. He looked at Bronzong. "Cradily, who has learned Sandstorm, couldn't take it anymore. How are you still here?"
Logically, Bronzong should have tapped out somewhere between Marshtomp and Cradily.
"Err..."
Bronzong gave an awkward chime. "My body is tough. I can still take it," it said via telepathy. "And I've noticed that the closer we get to the center, the richer the elemental energy becomes. Since I can take it, why not go to the place with the richest Rock-type energy to sense and train?"
Bronzong's body was forged from Aegis Ore. Its defense was far superior to Cradily's and Marshtomp's. It was still far from its breaking point.
"Fair point. Let's keep going." Basalt nodded, accepting Bronzong's reasoning.
After another few hundred meters, Basalt suddenly felt the intensity of the sandstorm peak, and then rapidly decrease.
"Looks like we've passed the first trial." Basalt's eyes lit up.
When he stepped out of the sandstorm, a magical sight awaited him.
He was now in what seemed to be the eye of the storm. It was perfectly calm. He could even look up and see the sun, shining brightly.
But behind him was the terrifying sandstorm, a wall of wind and sand so intense that even Sandstorm Pokémon struggled to endure it.
"I wonder what the second trial is."
Basalt looked around. Everything seemed peaceful. But he clearly remembered Khara-Khan's words: Head to the center.
And so, he stepped forward, his feet sinking into the soft sand.
Just then, the sky suddenly changed. The clear blue sky was instantly filled with countless small clumps of sand, materializing out of thin air and beginning to fall.
Aided by gravity, the sand-clumps fell faster and faster.
Countless clumps falling at once... it was like a rainstorm.
But unlike a normal rainstorm, this "sand rain" was far more destructive. When the clumps hit the ground, they left small craters.
And just like the first trial, the closer he got to the center, the more intense the "sand rain" became.
"Is this the second trial? To pass through this sand rain?"
Basalt's eyes narrowed, his face serious. This scene immediately reminded him of Gaara's ninjutsu from Naruto: Sand Drizzle. The appearance was almost identical.
"In that case, the power of this sand rain is not to be underestimated. It's got to be much stronger than the sandstorm."
Basalt pondered for a moment, and an idea came to him. "Could this 'sand rain' be a special application of sand control?"
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