In the Black World —
The Dark Lugia released by Vicious spread its wings, preparing to violently assault Ash and the others!
Just as Ash was about to summon the Dark Lugia from within himself, the attacking Dark Lugia seemed to be restrained by something, instantly freezing in place.
Simultaneously, motes of starlight gathered before Ash.
This made Ash halt his summoning.
The starlight before him was composed of an unknown energy, but one thing was unmistakable: this was not Aura. Even so, he felt a breath of life within it…
The sudden change also stunned Vicious.
What was this thing that could stop his Dark Lugia? He sensed a loathsome, luminous scent from those light particles. Their appearance involuntarily halted everyone present.
Even Vicious had to stop.
He was desperately trying to control Dark Lugia, but it still couldn't break free from the invisible force. As the light particles fully coalesced, a young man in a red jacket, black jeans, and a red-and-white cap appeared before everyone. With his back to Ash and the others, they couldn't clearly see his face, but just looking at his silhouette gave Ash an intensely familiar feeling.
Brock, Misty, and Sabrina beside Ash instinctively looked at him the moment they saw the figure.
This silhouette looked so much like Ash!
Almost like an adult version!
Of course, Ash couldn't see his own back. The reason Brock and the others recognized the resemblance was because they'd been watching "Little Ash's" back for so long.
The red figure grew more solid, yet even at the end, it seemed insubstantial. The entire form appeared translucent, and its feet weren't on the ground but floating in mid-air.
Vicious, opposite the red figure, looked as if he'd seen a ghost.
His jaw dropped, his finger pointed shakily at the figure, and his voice trembled uncontrollably.
"How… how… how did you find this place?"
"And… aren't you already dead, body and soul, Red?!"
The figure—Red—spoke lightly.
His voice was like millennia-old ice, devoid of warmth.
"How could I die without stopping your plan?"
"Even if I'm reincarnated in hell a thousand times, I'll return to drag you down with me!"
…
[Lance]: What's happening? What's going on? Why don't I understand suddenly?
[Volkner]: My take is… I stopped understanding a long time ago!
[Lugia]: Impossible… How can there be two Dark Lugias? The legends clearly state only one Lugia can appear in a clan. So… why does that man named Vicious have another?
[Lugia]: And I'm certain that Dark Lugia is definitely not one of my kin!
As the Sea Guardian and patriarch of the Lugia clan, Lugia knew its family intimately.
To others, Lugia might look similar, but as clan leader, it couldn't possibly fail to recognize its own. So… the Dark Lugia in Vicious's possession was definitely not a transformed member of their clan!
How was that Dark Lugia created?
Could Team Universe already create Legendary-tier Pokémon?
Well, without battling, its tier was undetermined, but it was at least Sub-Legendary.
[Cynthia]: Not a Lugia clan member… Could Team Universe have used genetics to create a Legendary?
Like Lugia, Cynthia's first thought was that Team Universe had created a Mythical Pokémon from scratch, just as Mewtwo was created from Mew's genes.
[Professor Oak]: That's not the case. Having seen this, I already have some answers.
[Professor Oak]: In the Black World, neither Vicious nor the one named Red are from that world! Have you heard of… parallel worlds?
[Cynthia]: Parallel worlds? I know of them. Besides our world, there are many others like ours. Like the Black and White Worlds in the livestream, they can be considered parallel worlds.
[Professor Oak]: Exactly. Just as there are Black and White Worlds, in each world, a person's small actions may lead to completely different futures.
[Professor Oak]: But most people in parallel worlds are roughly the same. Look at the Black and White Worlds—if someone exists in the White World, they basically exist in the Black World too.
[Professor Oak]: And that Vicious… is likely someone who crossed from another parallel world into the Black World! This also explains why he's so different from the Vicious in the White World!
[Lugia]: Wait… So the Dark Lugia Vicious has actually comes from another world?
[Professor Oak]: Yes. This explains why Vicious possesses a Lugia individual even the Sea Guardian doesn't recognize.
[Lance]: But… if this Vicious is from another world, then where's the original Vicious from the Black World?
[Giovanni]: Hah. After being a prosecutor so long, you're still naive, Lance. The best way to hide in that world is to replace the person already in it. In that case… just kill them.
[Lance]: …
Giovanni was right.
To quickly integrate into a strange world where a version of yourself already exists, simply kill that person and take their place.
Of course, only supremely evil villains would use this method—and Vicious was undoubtedly such a villain.
[Gary]: That Red guy… is he Ash from another world?
When Gary saw the red silhouette, his first thought was Ash. But seeing the face, he was confused.
This… couldn't be said to look very similar. In fact… he looked completely different from Ash!
[Lance]: Huh? Another world's Ash? No, they don't look alike…
[Lance]: Though I think their temperaments are quite similar, their appearances are completely different.
[Professor Oak]: Trivia: In a parallel world, your counterpart may not look identical, but spiritual and energetic similarities cannot be erased.
[Professor Oak]: Such existences are generally called parallel counterparts. Red is likely Black Ash's parallel counterpart—and White Ash's as well.
[Lance]: I see… My knowledge is lacking.
Lance admitted he'd never studied such advanced topics.
[Cynthia]: So, Red is Ash's parallel counterpart? But… what is his current form? A… soul?
[Professor Oak]: I don't know about that either… but I think the next scenes may give us answers.
Judging by Red's words, he wasn't just an old acquaintance of Vicious—he also seemed to have… lost?
Now, his words made it sound like he'd crawled back from hell.
Whether that was true… they'd find out.
…
In the Black World —
Red, in his soul-like form, stood opposite Vicious.
His expressionless face simply watched Vicious quietly.
Vicious also looked at Red, his expression ugly.
Ash and the others behind Red wondered about the current situation.
Should they… fight or not?
Dark Lugia remained fixed in the air, unable to move.
"Don't waste your effort. You cannot break my Bind."
Red's cold voice rang out again, causing Vicious to lose composure.
"Bind? You madman, have you truly integrated the power of those Mythical Pokémon into your body? Aren't you afraid your soul will dissipate?"
Facing Vicious's outburst, Red laughed for the first time.
His laughter held a carefree firmness.
"Hah, so what if my soul dissipates? If I can't stop you, what use is my life?"
"On the contrary, if I can stop you, even death doesn't matter—because the world will reset, and everything will return to how it was before, including my death."
Hearing this, the visible half of Vicious's face grew even uglier.
He knew Red was right.
If their organization was truly defeated, everything would indeed reset.
This madman… transforming himself into this half-human, half-ghost state, had obtained key information to resolve the current crisis.
If he couldn't defeat Red, Vicious had to at least keep him here.
What Red knew was enough to blow a massive hole in their plans!
But fortunately… only Red and those brats were here. As long as he found a chance to escape, he could kill those kids when Red wasn't around.
He didn't believe Red could appear in this world without restrictions. Besides, Red was just a soul. Even if he had world-spanning power in life, he'd be rejected by this world!
Vicious himself had only come to this world because his organization paid a huge price—delaying their invasion by several years.
But as long as he dismantled the world's defenses from within, the organization's efforts would be worth it!
Now… he needed a chance to escape!
"You may be stronger now, Red… but don't think you've won!"
"Though you say it easily, just controlling Dark Lugia has consumed most of your energy, right? Otherwise, why not just crush me to death?"
Red: …
He saw through me… Troublesome.
Just as Vicious said, he'd spent most of his energy just controlling Dark Lugia.
Even dealing with Vicious directly wasn't feasible now!
Moreover, he was currently a soul, sustained by the power given by the Mythical Pokémon he once held in another world.
Once that power was exhausted, his soul would disperse.
Though the reason differed from Vicious's assumption, he truly couldn't stay in this world long. So… he had to kill Vicious!
This would buy the Chosen One of this world more time to grow.
As long as he matured… there was still hope!
As Red pondered, Vicious suddenly leaped away.
He actually abandoned Dark Lugia, preparing to flee!
By the time Red reacted, Vicious was about to vanish into the forest.
He subconsciously loosened the restraint on Dark Lugia, but instantly realized and reinforced his Psychic power. However, it was too late—the evil power within Dark Lugia erupted, violently breaking Red's Bind!
Red's impassive face shifted slightly; a closer look revealed discomfort.
He'd fallen for a trap…
Vicious had deliberately fled to make him loosen Dark Lugia's bonds.
The reason he could restrain Dark Lugia was that, besides Psychic power, he'd used Fairy-type energy to lock down Dark Lugia's evil origin. Otherwise, a Psychic-based Bind alone couldn't immobilize it.
Red had also caught the opponent off guard—his strength didn't crush the other side.
Now he'd fallen for a simple diversion.
Was he too anxious…?
As Red thought, the energy within him surged, contesting Dark Lugia's power. Though stronger, he couldn't quickly subdue it in battle, giving Vicious a chance to escape. Troublesome…
BOOM!
A tremendous roar sounded behind Red.
Even in his current state, he only felt a gust of wind.
Then, from his peripheral vision, he saw a figure.
The next instant, Ash stood before Vicious, a seemingly delicate fist aimed directly at Vicious's head.
In that moment, Vicious felt as if he'd seen the King of Hell himself!
He never thought death could feel so close…
The fist struck with overwhelming force. Ash held nothing back, as if intending to beat Vicious to death!
BOOM!!
The Aura-covered fist slammed hard into a black shield!
The shield rippled, seeming on the verge of shattering, but ultimately held against Ash's punch.
However, Vicious's escape was also blocked.
Ash maintained his punching posture. Vicious's face was blank. Red, about to engage Dark Lugia, also froze.
This… who was this person? So fierce!
The force of that punch—even he'd only manage half as much!
Wait… this Aura… this energy… So it's him!
For the first time, Red's expressionless face showed violent emotional swings.
Even when Dark Lugia broke free earlier, his expression hadn't changed so drastically.
And unlike before, the look on Red's face now was… joy!
Was this the unstoppable path?
Originally, he'd appeared this time to use his current disposable, broken body to destroy Vicious. Whether he succeeded or not, he might not last long. But no matter what, he had to create a sliver of hope for this world—for their world!
Now it seemed… the thread of hope had multiplied from one to ten, even a hundred!
As Red's face showed joy, Ash looked at the black shield blocking his punch with surprise.
When he threw that punch, he'd known the opponent had a shield. But… he hadn't expected his full-force punch to only slightly crack it. After all, even Mewtwo might not block his punch.
So… where did this guy get so many tricks?
Dark Lugia, and a shield that could resist a Sub-Legendary-tier attack?
And… Ash remembered now!
He retracted his fist, looked at Red, and blurted out:
"Brother Red, long time no see!"
Ash… knew Red??
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