"Kingdra, Hydro Pump!"
"Tentacruel, Sludge Wave!"
"Cloyster, Ice Beam!"
Deep beneath Water Metropolis, no one knew a hidden ancient structure lay in the darkness.
The entire building was a maze-like underground temple, lit by strange glowstones that shimmered faintly.
But these glowstones pulsed with rich Psychic energy —
they were Class-A or higher Psychic treasures, at the very least.
Even more astonishing:
the floor was inlaid with Water Stones, each radiating Class-A or higher Water energy.
And right in the center of the temple floated a smooth, glowing jewel —
crystal-clear, shrouded in misty light.
The power it held was unimaginable.
This entire treasure hoard
would spark a bloody war if it ever saw the light of day.
But right now,
two jet-like Pokémon were pouring their energy into that central jewel.
The blue one — Latios — was also holding up a protective barrier.
A horde of enemy Pokémon was attacking them.
Nearly all of them were Gym-tier to Lord-tier.
The strongest — Kingdra — was even Master-tier!
Under normal circumstances,
Latios and Latias could have wiped them all out in a single move.
But now, as they poured more and more energy into the Soul Dew,
their own power was fading fast.
Soon they wouldn't be able to hold off the group.
"Mmm!" (What are you humans doing?!)
Legendary telepathy.
Latios glared furiously at the intruders.
Protecting Water Metropolis was their duty… but didn't humans benefit from that too?
"Incredible — legendary telepathy!" The lead Trainer's face lit up with greed.
If he could capture a Legendary, he wouldn't just be a high-ranking Team Rocket agent —
he could stand equal to Giovanni himself!
"Become my Pokémon, Latios! Latias! We will rule Water Metropolis together!"
"Mmm!" (Those with evil hearts will only corrupt the Soul Dew!)
"Mmm!" (Sister, once the charging is done, you flee with the Soul Dew!)
"Mmm…" (But brother, what about you…?)
After recharging the jewel, their power would drop to less than 1% of normal — barely Gym-tier.
They would be no match for these attackers.
She knew exactly what her brother planned:
let her escape with the Soul Dew, recover her strength, then come back for him.
What could she do? What could she do?!
"Almost there, sister… get ready…"
The protective barrier was on the verge of shattering.
Their power had already fallen to Master-tier…
In her panic, Latias thought of the human she'd met in the streets.
She'd left a trace of her psychic energy on him.
Can you come help us?
At the heart of Water Metropolis,
the roaring tournament continued.
Unlike the earlier fast-paced matches, this one had turned into a grueling stalemate.
As promised, Frogadier used no Electric-type moves.
Vaporeon had seized the early advantage with its underwater mobility.
"Huff… guess winning really isn't gonna be easy."
Lin Yu muttered.
But…
did they really think this was Frogadier's full speed?
After a quick thought, Lin Yu lowered the Gravity Sphere's suppression from 1.5x to 1.2x.
The freed Frogadier froze for a moment…
then a proud grin spread across its face.
This was the perfect chance to show off!
The Gravity Sphere didn't just limit speed — it suppressed internal energy too.
It worked just like the massive Black Heavy Scale from Lin Yu's old favorite novel:
worn constantly to temper the body and energy.
Once released…
Frogadier felt like it could fly!
"What?!"
The sudden burst of speed shocked the opposing Trainer.
Frogadier had been hiding its power this entire time?!
Even Vaporeon, hidden underwater, stared in disbelief.
It could still track Frogadier's aura before…
now it couldn't lock on at all.
In that split second of hesitation,
the water surface split open like a silver sword cutting through a river.
Frogadier shot straight toward it.
"Vapore!"
It looked up — a giant Water Shuriken was already overhead.
Vaporeon panicked.
At this distance, escape was impossible.
Without waiting for its Trainer's order, it hastily gathered energy and fired a Water Gun.
But a rushed Water Gun was no match for a fully charged Water Shuriken.
The attack sliced through the water like tofu,
then slammed brutally into Vaporeon.
A sharp cry rang out.
Vaporeon's body floated awkwardly to the surface, unable to move.
Under the crowd's stunned gaze,
Frogadier's body split into three afterimages.
Bright blue Rasengans spun to life in an instant —
three of them!
Stiff and defenseless, Vaporeon could only watch as one Rasengan crashed into it.
"Vaporeon is unable to battle! Li Yue, please send out your next Pokémon!"
Up above, Ye Rong's eyes locked onto Frogadier.
With his Elite Four vision, he could tell this wasn't from any power-up drug.
Frogadier had been wearing a restraining skill or item the whole time.
That was completely within the rules.
But the crowd saw things differently.
They only saw Frogadier's speed jump out of nowhere — and they began to murmur.
"No way! Frogadier's speed just jumped again!"
"So cool! The way it forms that Water Pulse is awesome!"
There was praise…
but also suspicion.
"It didn't even use Agility! Why did it get so much faster? Could it be…"
"Cheating with drugs, is that what you're thinking?!"
Ye Rong frowned.
"Silence! Any violations will be fully inspected after the match.
If any banned substances are found, the competitor will be disqualified and banned from all tournaments for three years!"
The crowd quieted down.
"Go, Leafeon!"
Li Yue pouted.
She at least wanted to take down one of Lin Yu's Pokémon!
A green Pokémon with leaves on its head and tail appeared.
It could perform photosynthesis just like a plant.
Another Eeveelution!
But Lin Yu was no longer paying attention.
A moment ago, his vision blurred —
he'd seen a fleeting vision.
A scene from deep beneath Water Metropolis.
Latias!
"Come back, Frogadier. Charmeleon, you're up!"
"Fairy Wings, Fire Rain plus Flamethrower!"