Watching the sun slowly set, Saya could not help but feel a bit anxious.
Gu Yuan, where exactly are you hiding?
A soft murmur escaped his lips. It had been five days since Gu Yuan last struck. During these five days, there had been no movement from him at all. Most importantly, even under the meticulous search conducted by Saya and his team, no clues had been found.
Once Saya reported this information, the families also exerted their full effort to search. Before Gu Yuan's location could be confirmed, it was up to Saya to decide whether to continue staying in the forest to hunt him down.
Regarding this, Saya carefully recalled the process of Gu Yuan's previous raid and decided to continue lying in wait within the forest. However, as time passed, even Saya grew uncertain if his decision was correct. Perhaps Gu Yuan had long since departed and was now hidden away, silently mocking this group of fools.
Thinking of this, Saya could not help but hesitate.
"Captain, dinner is ready."
A voice rang out, pulling Saya's thoughts back. To avoid exposing their position, Saya and the others could only eat dry rations, though they would have Fire-type Pokémon help heat them up.
Eating the warm rations and drinking cold water, Saya chose to trust his intuition; Gu Yuan must still be in this forest, simply waiting for the moment they revealed a flaw. Now that five days had passed, Gu Yuan would likely strike soon.
With that thought, Saya finished his rations in a few bites and notified the other squads to pay extra attention to their surroundings in the coming days!
Night fell.
Within the tree canopy, Gu Yuan slowly opened his eyes, revealing his bright gaze. Just as Saya suspected, Gu Yuan had indeed stayed in the forest without leaving, using his mobility to bypass their search parties.
As the five days passed, Gu Yuan knew his opportunity to strike had arrived. No matter how high their vigilance was, five days of achieving nothing would make anyone doubt if the target was still in the forest. Even with Saya's reminder, they could not remain as alert as they were at the start.
Three o'clock in the morning was the time Gu Yuan decided to act. After several days of observation, he had already figured out their shift rotations.
Looking at the two people on night watch and their Pokémon ahead, Gu Yuan had Annihilape and the others slip into the dimensional space. Psychic energy surged as Alakazam prepared to use Teleport.
"Now, strike!"
Suddenly, Gu Yuan's voice rang out. Alakazam and Charizard were the first to vanish. When Alakazam reappeared, Charizard immediately launched a Blast Burn to attack the sleeping people and Pokémon.
The two on watch reacted instantly and commanded their Pokémon to counter-attack. Despite the gap in strength, even with Charizard's preparation, it could not break through their defenses immediately. However, just like before, Charizard was only responsible for drawing attention; the real killing blow came from Annihilape and the others.
Rushing out from the dimensional space before the rest of the team was fully awake, Annihilape and the others struck quickly. At this moment, human fragility was on full display as they were easily eliminated.
With the hit successful, Annihilape and the others returned to the dimensional space. The only difference this time was that Gu Yuan did not choose to leave immediately; instead, he chose to fight to the end.
Once the others were dealt with, this squad targeted by Gu Yuan was left with only one Lower-tier Elite and one Middle-tier Elite trainer. Furthermore, not everyone was like Gu Yuan, possessing a full team of Elite Rank Pokémon.
The light of Mega Evolution surged. Mega Charizard Y, possessing Middle-tier Elite strength through Mega Evolution, directly targeted the opponent's Middle-tier Elite Pokémon.
And this was only the beginning. The Drought Ability changed the weather to harsh sunlight, boosting the power of Moltres and Roaring Moon. The special aura of the Legendary Pokémon spread, preventing the remaining two trainers' Pokémon from exerting their full strength.
Using Scale Shot, Roaring Moon began to increase its speed. The light of Mega Evolution flared again as Mega Alakazam and Mega Gengar made their appearances. The current Gengar, after Mega Evolution, could now barely hold Lower-tier Elite strength.
As the battle began, the opponents' Pokémon were instantly suppressed by the offensive of Mega Charizard Y and the others. Most importantly, the two had no spare Pokémon left to stop Annihilape.
Emerging from the dimensional space with Phantom Force, Annihilape aimed its spearhead at the nearest Houndoom. A Rage Fist slammed out; the Houndoom, having just traded blows with Sylveon, had no time to react before being sent flying by the heavy punch.
Immediately after, Sylveon used Hyper Beam, accurately hitting the airborne Houndoom. In coordination with Annihilape's second attack, they quickly defeated it.
Seizing this chance, the two trainers released their Leader Rank or Ace Rank Pokémon in an attempt to halt Annihilape's advance. Haxorus, who had already used Dragon Dance to push its speed and attack stages to the limit, entered the fray like a sharp blade, tearing through the defensive line formed by those Ace Rank Pokémon.
Hatterene used Telepathy to share the command pressure for Gu Yuan and Mega Alakazam. Drakloak remained invisible beside Haxorus, assisting in the assault.
Coalossal's massive body emitted a dazzling light as Tar Shot rushed out relentlessly. Many Pokémon unable to dodge were hit, and their movement speed began to slow down.
As the battle continued, with Haxorus and Drakloak sharing the pressure, it became even easier for Annihilape to deal with the Leader Rank Pokémon—truly a one-punch knockout for each one.
By the time the last Leader Rank Pokémon fell under Annihilape's fist, Haxorus, Drakloak, and Coalossal had also gained the upper hand under Hatterene's command. Sylveon further cooperated with Mega Alakazam to defeat another Lower-tier Elite Pokémon.
As Annihilape vanished using Phantom Force, the two trainers knew they were destined not to leave this place alive. Before being crushed by Annihilape, they gave their Pokémon one final order: do everything possible to entangle Gu Yuan and his Pokémon while waiting for backup.
Though the thought was noble, in the face of the strength gap, it was not something that could be easily overturned by anger or willpower. As Mega Charizard Y released Blast Burn once more, the brilliant sparks drew a perfect conclusion to this battle.
After sweeping up the resources from the bodies, Gu Yuan had Alakazam use Teleport to take him away. A moment later, Saya was the first to arrive with his men, but he was still one step too late.