On the screen…
Birdsong filled the air, flowers bloomed, and along a shaded woodland path—
Ash and Pikachu appeared.
The moment everyone saw them again, they were stunned.
A huge wave surged through their hearts.
Ash was actually in Arceus's ranking video too?!
After watching so many ranking videos, the audiences across the multiverse had already figured something out—
as long as Ash appeared in the video,
then…
he would definitely play an extremely important role in it.
He was never just there for a brief cameo.
His screen time was practically greater than that of the divine beast being ranked.
Numb.
They had gone completely numb.
This was the final video in the Top Ten Strongest Divine Beasts series.
TOP 1.
The being that created the world.
The Creator God, Arceus.
And yet Ash had appeared in Arceus's video too—
and he clearly had a very important part in it as well.
The audiences across the anime multiverse sighed in amazement.
Ash.
Father Ash.
And Pikachu…
As expected of you two.
The divine beasts may come and go—
but Ash endures forever.
Pokémon World
Kanto Region, Pallet Town, Professor Oak's Laboratory…
"Oh, got it."
Professor Oak and Gary responded without any emotion at all.
"Professor Oak, Gary, I showed up again."
It wasn't that they didn't want to be shocked.
It was just that they had already been shocked too many times.
They were numb.
They felt nothing anymore.
Looking at that fool Ash, they genuinely wanted to know—
what exactly did Ash become in the future?
How could he run into divine beasts as easily as drinking water?
In the Pokémon chat area, Ash's appearance immediately stirred up another wave of excitement.
[Bug Catcher]: Holy crap? Father Ash and Lord Pika? They even show up in Arceus's ranking video too? Amazing!!! (voice cracking)
[Lance]: They even appear in the TOP 1 ranking video!!
[Cynthia]: Th… this is unbelievable.
[Diantha]: Seriously. This is TOP 1's video. Arceus, the Creator God!
[Leon]: I'm convinced. I hereby acknowledge Ash as the strongest!
[Professor Kukui]: Ahhhhhhh! I'm so jealous of Ash! He gets to interact with so many divine beasts, and this time he can even get close to the Creator God!!!
The Champions, Elite Four Trainers, and Pokémon researchers were genuinely convinced by now.
Faced with Ash, they could not even summon up jealousy.
His performance in the previous ranking videos had already won everyone over.
Perhaps it was precisely because of his personality, and his boundless love for Pokémon, that he encountered so many divine beasts.
"Ash, Dawn, Brock, hurry up! Let's camp ahead and eat, I'm hungry!"
"Pika-pi~!"
Ash turned around and urged the people behind him onward. At that moment, two more figures appeared.
[Brock]: Hah, hahaha, sorry, looks like I'm in this video too. So this is a scene from the future where I'm traveling with God Ash?
[Dawn]: Hehe, I'm so excited! So in the future, I'm actually one of Ash's traveling companions!
In the Kanto region, Brock, currently acting as a temporary Gym Leader, and Dawn from the Sinnoh region were both so excited that their hearts nearly exploded.
To appear in the Creator God's ranking video—
what an incredible honor.
Of course, they also knew that this was probably thanks to Ash.
Brock and Dawn's appearance only made countless Trainers feel sour inside.
Why wasn't it them traveling with Ash instead?
[Goh]: I'm back again, hehe. Mad? Mad? I've got lots of dimensional coins. I really didn't expect Ash to appear in Arceus's ranking video too.
The moment Goh showed up, everyone frowned.
They felt a wave of disgust.
This guy really had no shame at all.
It was sickening.
And just then—
his words made everyone's hearts tremble.
[Goh]: Seeing Ash suddenly made me think of something. Ordinary humans have trouble finding even third-tier divine beasts, so how could they possibly anger Arceus… Tell me, among all of humanity, who has the best chance of meeting Arceus?
The moment he said this—
the entire chat fell silent.
Among all of humanity, who had the best chance of meeting Arceus?
Was that even a question?
Ordinary humans could go their whole lives without ever meeting a third-tier divine beast, much less a first-tier one.
As for encountering Arceus, the being who created the world—
that was pure fantasy. How could an ordinary human possibly meet it?
Among all humans…
if you asked who had met the most divine beasts…
then the answer was obvious—
Ash.
Meeting first-tier divine beasts was as easy for him as eating and drinking.
He had appeared in almost every single ranking video.
The divine beasts may change—
but Ash remained constant.
At the very beginning of the previous scene—
Arceus's appearance when it flew into a rage had clearly gone far beyond simply having its reverse scale touched.
Something a hundred times worse must have happened to make it furious to that degree.
So furious that it was willing to interfere with the world's development itself, just to destroy humanity as a species.
Arceus hated humans so much—
that could only mean one thing:
some human had offended it.
Then the question became—
if ordinary people couldn't even meet divine beasts, how could they possibly anger Arceus to the point that it wanted to wipe out humanity?
Among all of humanity…
the only person who could possibly meet Arceus—
was Ash.
And besides…
the current scene itself was hard evidence.
If Arceus had nothing to do with Ash—
then why would Ash appear in the TOP 1 ranking video at all?
In an instant—
all the humans in the Pokémon world felt their scalps go numb.
Could it be…
that Arceus wanted to destroy humanity because Ash had angered it!?
Many people wanted to refute Goh's stupid claim.
But they couldn't find a single point to argue against.
Other than Ash, who else could possibly have crossed paths with Arceus?
Brock and Dawn had just been full of excitement moments ago.
Now their scalps went numb all at once.
No way…
Could it really be that in the future, the three of them had somehow enraged Arceus?
Pallet Town…
"What did you do? Did you anger Arceus?"
Professor Oak turned and asked Ash directly.
Ash looked blank.
He was only six years old right now, for heaven's sake.
How could he possibly know what his future self had done?
Even Ash, who was usually carefree to the extreme, couldn't stay calm anymore.
Could it really be that in the future, he would become humanity's greatest sinner?
Palkia, Dialga, Giratina, Ho-Oh, and one first-tier divine beast after another all fixed their eyes on Ash.
Because of Ash's repeated performances in the ranking videos, they all had a fairly good impression of him.
Could it really be him who had angered Arceus?
They shook their heads.
It didn't feel likely.
Everyone turned their attention back to the video.
At this point, speculation was useless.
Who had enraged Arceus—
the answer should be revealed very soon.
And if Arceus really was going to destroy humanity because Ash had angered it—
then that would actually be a good thing.
Because—
the Trainers all stared hard at the screen, not even daring to blink.
The events in the video were set in the future.
And by watching the ranking videos, they were learning the future in advance.
If Ash really did enrage Arceus because of some specific action—
then all they had to do was make sure Ash didn't do that thing.
If that happened, Arceus would never lose its temper.
The scene continued.
Ash and his two companions arrived beside a beautiful lake and set up camp.
They enjoyed lunch by the water.
Everything was peaceful and serene.
Then suddenly—
the lake began to tremble violently.
The space above it shattered open, revealing a dark hole that emitted a terrifying suction force.
Waterspouts were drawn into the void as though being swallowed by a giant whale.
In an instant, the entire lake was sucked dry.
The terrible suction continued.
Earth was torn loose.
Ancient trees were uprooted.
The hole was like a gigantic maw, devouring everything on the ground.
This all happened far too quickly.
By the time Ash and the others reacted—
it was already too late.
"Dialga, save them!!"
A voice rang out.
Ripple-like distortions spread through the air beside Ash and the others.
Then—
a mountain-like blue creature burst out from within.
It was none other than the divine beast that governed the authority of time—
Dialga.
The Origin Orb on Dialga's body shone brilliantly.
It activated the power of time, concentrating that force in its mouth—
then unleashed it in a beam.
Its signature move—
Roar of Time.
The attack blasted into the hole.
In an instant, the terrifying suction from the hole disappeared—
though the shattered space itself still remained.
The power of time surged.
It was as though time itself had been rewound.
The ravaged land began to restore itself.
The ruined lake returned to normal.
Under the effect of Dialga's authority over time—
everything that had just happened felt like nothing more than a dream.
This—
was the power of time.
A gleam flashed through everyone's eyes.
No matter how many times they witnessed this supreme power, it was still deeply shocking.
At the same time, though, countless viewers were confused.
Why had space suddenly shattered?
What exactly was going on?
Space…
Palkia?
Could it have been done by Palkia, the divine beast that governed the authority of space?
Then a voice came from the screen.
"Are you all okay?"
A graceful girl walked over.
Her clothes had something of an old-fashioned style.
What shocked everyone was that Dialga had landed quietly by her side.
Its demeanor was calm and obedient.
Everyone's pupils widened.
Was Dialga summoned by this girl!?
What the hell was going on!?
Looking at the girl on the screen, everyone was filled with utter disbelief.
This was a first-tier divine beast.
And not just any first-tier divine beast—
this was Dialga, the one who governed time itself!
In subspace, Dialga looked at its future self on the screen with equal confusion.
It did not know this girl.
Clearly, they would only meet in the future.
Why was it listening to her?
After a brief exchange of introductions between Ash and the girl—
everyone learned her name.
Sheena.
"Dialga, thank you for your hard work. You can go back now," Sheena said.
Dialga rose into the air.
Ripple-like distortions spread through the air before it, and it was just about to pass through them—
when suddenly—
CRACK—BOOM!!
The sky split open again.
Space shattered, revealing a black fissure.
Endless black-red energy poured out, forming a tornado that enveloped Dialga.
Dialga struggled desperately.
Its body lit up as it tried to use the power of time to escape—
but it was completely useless.
It couldn't use any of its abilities.
It couldn't break free from the raging storm of energy.
Buzz—
Space trembled.
A silver-white figure emerged.
The divine beast that governed space—
Palkia.
Professor Oak and the others' eyes sharpened.
So this tear in space really had been caused by Palkia!?
But hadn't the misunderstanding between Palkia and Dialga already been resolved?
The Origin Orb on Palkia's arm shone brilliantly.
The power of space gathered—
then it swung its arm down hard, tearing through space.
Its signature move—
Spacial Rend.
That slash of space was not aimed at Dialga.
Instead, it severed the raging storm of energy, splitting it apart and freeing Dialga.
"ROOOAR—!"
The two divine beasts roared in unison, then used their powers to suppress the spatial fissure.
The sky returned to calm.
"What… what is going on?"
Countless people were baffled.
Palkia had saved Dialga.
That meant it was not Palkia's doing…
If it wasn't Palkia, then what was causing these repeated spatial fractures!?
Before one wave of confusion had even settled, another one rose.
"ROAR!!"
A roar rang out.
The calm lake water trembled violently.
A black opening appeared.
A ferocious figure leapt out from it.
It had bat-like black wings, and its whole body was wrapped in a thick, godlike-and-demonic aura.
Its eyes were blood-red.
It was staring fixedly at Palkia and Dialga.
Even through the screen, one could feel its brutality—
and the fury in its heart.
The god of the Reverse World,
the being who governed dark matter—
Giratina.
"ROAR!!"
Giratina attacked Palkia and Dialga.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
Hadn't Giratina already taught them a lesson before?
Back in Giratina's own ranking video, wasn't it because the Reverse World had been filled with black mist that it went berserk?
Back then, enraged Giratina had refused to listen to reason.
Sheena drew in a deep breath, clasped her hands, and closed her eyes.
"Constant of time and space, in my name, transcend here!"
Golden light spread from her body.
"Giratina, you've misunderstood Palkia and Dialga. They are preserving the stability of the world. The shaking of the world's framework isn't because of them."
The golden light spread outward.
Giratina gradually calmed down.
It released Palkia and Dialga, who had nearly been dragged into the Reverse World.
It gave Sheena a look—
then returned alone to the Reverse World.
Palkia and Dialga followed suit, returning to their own subspaces.
"Holy crap, what is going on!? What is that golden light on her body? How did it calm Giratina down?"
"What is that golden light!?"
"Psychic power?"
The people of the Pokémon world were all stunned.
Just who was this Sheena?
And what was that power?
Why could it actually calm Giratina!?
"Viridian Power, Aura, psychic power, Dragon Force… a fifth type of supernatural power humans can possess?"
Professor Oak murmured to himself.
With his knowledge, he could naturally tell that this power had the ability to soothe the heart and communicate with Pokémon.
In subspace—
Palkia, Dialga, and Giratina all narrowed their eyes.
When Sheena had just used her power, the golden light radiating from her body had felt very familiar.
Arceus's power!!
It was faint—
but there was no mistake.
It felt extremely similar to Arceus's power.
This girl…
was connected to Arceus!?
Valley of Creation…
The place where Hoopa lived.
The brother and sister felt it too.
Sheena's power was very similar to their own.
When they used their power, their bodies also emitted golden light.
The siblings were confused.
What exactly was going on?
Their family had supposedly guarded the Valley of Creation for generations.
As far as they knew, only the two of them should possess this connection.
So what was the deal with Sheena?
"The powers of you two are similar to hers, though not quite the same. But I can tell that, just like yours, her power also comes from Arceus," Hoopa said as it looked at the siblings beside it.
That was indeed Arceus's power.
Like the brother and sister, Sheena also had a connection to Arceus.
As Professor Oak and the others marveled at Sheena's power, they also figured out the timeline.
Sheena had just mentioned Alamos Town, and the battle between Palkia and Dialga causing instability in the world's framework.
That meant the timeline in the current scene should be after the battle between time and space, after the Reverse World had been filled with black mist—
and after Giratina had dragged the two of them into the Reverse World and beaten them up.
Giratina's reappearance just now had been because it had mistaken these new space fissures for the aftermath of another battle between Palkia and Dialga.
Now everyone knew—
these repeated spatial fractures had nothing to do with them.
And that only made everyone even more curious.
Then what exactly was causing them!?
Back in the video—
"Th-that was amazing, Sheena! What just happened!?" Ash asked.
"Transcending Power. It's the ability of my family," Sheena replied.
"Amazing!"
"By the way… Sheena, what's with these sudden spatial cracks?"
Sheena's expression turned serious.
"The Creator God."
"These spatial disturbances are connected to the Creator God Arceus!"
Hisss!!
Everyone sucked in a cold breath.
Connected to Arceus!?
And Sheena knew about Arceus!?
The Trainers all found it unbelievable.
If not for the ranking videos, they would not even know that Arceus existed.
And from Ash's confused expression just now, it was clear that at this point in time, even Ash had never met Arceus and didn't know who Arceus was.
Even Ash didn't know—
yet this Sheena did.
Who exactly was she?
Whether it was summoning Dialga,
using the so-called Transcending Power,
or knowing of Arceus's existence—
none of that was something an ordinary human could do.
For a moment, everyone felt that Sheena was wrapped in layers upon layers of mystery.
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