Lugia!

Chapter 356 Lugia!

Buzz—

On the broken stone pillar, the previously dim and blurry unknown totem carvings lit up one after another!

Connecting and spreading along a specific trajectory, it eventually outlined a complete and strange phantom stone array in the air!

Its shape bears a striking resemblance to the Spear Pillar of the Sinnoh region!

Click—click click click—

A muffled sound of machinery operating came from deep underground.

The huge central stone slab beneath everyone's feet slowly and smoothly parted to both sides, revealing a deep passage extending downwards!

The Rockets trio stared in disbelief at this miraculous scene, swallowing hard in unison.

"It's open, it's open?! It just opened like that?!"

Meow Meow's jaw almost dropped to the ground.

"Boss—"

Kojiro murmured to himself, feeling a slight shock to his worldview.

"The boss can even glow? It feels so warm and comforting—"

"I know! The Boss must be the agent of the gods!"

Musashi's eyes were fixed, and he spoke with unwavering conviction.

"I sensed a sacred and inviolable majesty emanating from the Boss!"

As Bai Zhou heard increasingly strange adjectives, he felt his cheeks burning.

He coughed awkwardly, quickly withdrew his super-power, and took the lead in walking down the passage.

"Keep up."

"yes!"

Kojiro and Meowth suddenly realized what was happening and quickly gave chase.

Musashi, who was a step behind, was left to guard the entrance. Although she was unwilling, she knew the task was important, and stood guard with her Wobbuffet in a huff.

The passageway was wider than I had imagined, and the walls were inlaid with fluorescent stone slabs that emitted a faint white light at intervals.

Although the light was dim and hazy, it was enough to see the steps underfoot and the outline of the surroundings.

After spiraling downwards for about two or three minutes, the view suddenly opened up ahead.

A spacious, square stone chamber came into view.

In the center of the stone chamber is a simple and rustic stone display stand.

But at this moment, the display stand is completely empty.

"The stone slab—is it not here?"

Bai Zhou frowned slightly, stepped forward, and carefully touched the top of the display stand. It was indeed empty.

However, his superhuman strength was telling him something.

The stone slab is right here!

A faint, resonant energy of supernatural power was filling the entire stone chamber, though it was invisible to the naked eye and intangible to the physical body.

"Boss! Leave it to us, meow!"

Upon seeing this, Meow Meow immediately demonstrated the professionalism of the trio.

It leaped to the side of the stone platform in a flash and pulled out a palm-sized, square, precision instrument from somewhere.

With a "snap," it was stuck to the surface of the stone platform, and the instrument screen immediately lit up, with countless data streams beginning to flow.

Kojiro quickly opened his portable miniature computer, his fingers flying across the virtual keyboard as he wirelessly connected to Meow Meow's detector.

In less than ten minutes, the preliminary analysis results came out.

"Reporting to Boss! An abnormally high concentration of supernatural energy has been detected in this space, and it continues to rise!"

Kojiro stared at the screen, his voice filled with shock.

"The energy reading has exceeded the upper limit of conventional detection! However—the scan shows that there is no physical energy source!"

"Psychic energy?"

Bai Zhou's heart stirred.

He closed his eyes, no longer relying on sight and superhuman strength, but instead trying to use his not-so-powerful superpowers to perceive his surroundings.

The next moment, something amazing happened!

He discovered that his originally unremarkable superpowers were now thriving in this space, becoming exceptionally active and sharp!

Even if he closes his eyes and doesn't move.

The 360-degree "God's-eye view" of the entire stone chamber was still clearly reflected in his mind!

The texture of each stone brick, every tiny crack, even the flow of energy in the air—

Everything is meticulous and clear to the core!

An invisible energy flowed into his body, nourishing his spirit.

In just a short while, he felt that the strength of his superpowers had increased significantly!

If his superpowers used to only allow him to barely lift some lighter objects, now he feels he can shatter hard rocks with his telekinesis!

He even has an additional, vague, passive perception ability.

It can vaguely sense the emotional fluctuations emanating from other life forms around it.

As for how he verified it—

Yes, the almost tangible adoration beside them shone like the sun in this space against a backdrop of "nihilistic" emotions.

At this point, he had completely determined the properties of the stone slab.

Without a doubt, this is the Superpower Attribute Tablet!

"Boss meow!"

Meow Meow stared at the detector, raising its voice.

"Based on the existing data model, at this rate of increase, the super-energy here will reach a critical peak in three days at most!"

Kojiro immediately understood and rushed to state the conclusion.

"In other words, the stone slab most likely re-condensed and reappeared in the world at that time from a pure energy form!"

"That's right! Meow!"

Meow Meow nodded vigorously.

Three days later————

Bai Zhou repeated the time in a low voice.

"It just so happens to be the day of the annual grand celebration in Wind City."

He turned around, his expression turned serious, and gave the order.

"First, designate this area as the highest alert zone. No one is allowed to approach it for three days. Take all necessary measures to ensure isolation."

"Report any unusual activity immediately."

"Second, mobilize all our intelligence networks in Wind City to focus on investigating recent outsiders entering the city, especially trainers with abnormal behavior or unknown identities. Compile a detailed report and submit it to me as soon as possible."

He paused, his tone filled with trust.

"As for this place—I'll leave it to the three of you to guard personally. The restoration of the stone slab is of utmost importance; I don't trust anyone else with it. Do you understand?"

"We guarantee to complete the mission! We swear to protect the stone tablet to the death!"

Kojiro and Meowth straightened up instantly, responding excitedly with loud shouts, their eyes burning with the fervor of being entrusted with an important task.

Bai Zhou nodded, said no more, and turned to leave the stone chamber along the way he had come.

He still has too many things to deal with.

Contingency plans for various disasters that may occur during the Wind City Festival, possible whereabouts of Team Rainbow Rocket, and how to ensure their safety when the stone slabs appear —

A myriad of things were waiting for him.

Inside the stone chamber, only Kojiro and Nyanko remained.

They looked at each other, and their eyes welled up with tears again.

"Ugh—the Boss actually entrusted us with such an important task—"

Kojiro's voice choked with emotion.

"Yes, meow! That's right, meow! That's exactly it, meow!"

Meow Meow wiped away her tears with her paws.

"We must repay Boss's trust, meow! We won't let anyone disturb Stone Slab, meow!"

at the same time.

The Johto region, an uninhabited deep-sea area.

The once relatively calm sea was suddenly torn apart!

A massive vortex-like hole, over a hundred meters in diameter, exploded open with a deafening roar, sending seawater scattering in all directions and revealing the bottomless darkness below!

-

唳—

A dazzling, silvery-white giant shadow burst through the sea, bringing with it towering waves, and stood tall between heaven and earth!

Lugia!

God of ocean currents and monsoons!

Almost at the moment it appeared, the originally clear and cloudless sky began to distort and change color wildly!

In just a few breaths, dark clouds that blotted out the sky gathered from all directions, layer upon layer, pressing down as if the heavens were about to collapse with a rumbling roar—

The thunderclouds roared, emitting a deafening boom.

However, right there between the raging sea and sky...

hum!hum!hum!

In mid-air, dozens of ultimate voids with eerie rainbow glows flowing around their edges suddenly tore through space!

The next moment, countless strangely shaped black speedboats sped out from these strange caves, crashing heavily onto the surging waves and splashing up a white curtain of water!

On each speedboat stood several people dressed in black uniforms with identical rainbow patterns.

Far from being intimidated by the terrifying sea conditions, they instead faced the giant waves and burst into excited, maniacal laughter.

His gaze was fixed on the giant silver bird in the sky, his eyes filled with greed!

At the center of the largest ultimate grotto, the space rippled slightly.

A man with a slender build and neat short blue hair, wearing a well-tailored dark gray slim-fit suit.

Like stepping on an invisible staircase, one step at a time, one calmly and unhurriedly walks out.

His face was stern and his features were sharply defined.

His face was almost expressionless, and his eyes were so empty that they showed no emotion.

It was Akatsuki, one of the Rainbow Rocket Team's patrol officers.

"Lugia————"

His voice was unusually calm, even carrying a hint of cold magnetism.

Yet, strangely, it pierced through the wind and thunder, reaching the ears of the giant silver bird glaring angrily at him not far ahead.

"—They are supposedly gods who control ocean currents and monsoons, maintaining the balance of the ocean, yet they can't even control their own emotions?"

The blazing sun stood tall, its gaze filled with undisguised mockery.

"Then, on what basis are you revered as—'God'?"

"roar--!!!"

Lugia was utterly enraged by these blasphemous words!

It roared even more furiously to the sky, the sound waves exploding with immense divine power!

The heavens and earth responded instantly!

Countless pale lightning bolts, as thick as buckets, struck down wildly from the churning thunderclouds!

Their target wasn't the Japanese, but rather the Rainbow Rocket Team speedboats on the sea!

In the blink of an eye, bursts of fire and electric lightning flashed across the sea!

The fleet of speedboats, which originally numbered over a hundred, was wiped out by this precise "divine punishment"!

The ear-piercing sounds of metal tearing, explosions, and short screams were quickly swallowed up by the even more violent wind and thunder!

On the sea, only a few dozen lucky or specially equipped speedboats struggled in the raging waves, along with a large amount of burning wreckage and floating debris.

The blazing sun, suspended in the sky, didn't even blink at the horrific scene.

"Deterrence? Intimidation? Or—the last struggle of impotent rage?"

He casually put his hands behind his back, and his voice was devoid of any emotion.

"Let's face reality."

Before our will to pursue a perfect new world—you, and all you so-called gods of the old world.

.

"They are nothing more than stubborn rocks abandoned by the times, destined to be swept away—"

"The inferior one."

Lugia's anger finally reached a breaking point!

It stopped trying to clear the area with lightning and suddenly flapped its wings forward!

Two highly compressed, deep blue tornadoes suddenly appeared in front of him!

The tornado stretched from the sky to the sea, its diameter constantly expanding.

With overwhelming force, it fiercely attacked the blazing sun.

Wherever it passed, even the space itself hummed under its strain!

Faced with the divine wrath that could tear mountains apart, Chi Ri didn't even bother to dodge.

Swish!

A tiny, almost imperceptible silver-white thread flashed through the air.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no roaring energy collision.

Those two terrifying tornadoes were neatly split in two from the middle!

The raging wind and thunder energy that had been gathered within instantly dissipated, turning into a chaotic stream of air that vanished into the storm.

Beside Chi Ri, a strange white figure had quietly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

It is shaped like a stretched "大" character, less than one meter tall, and its body is made of countless pieces of white cardboard or thin metal sheets that are ingeniously spliced ​​and folded together.

As the sea breeze gently sways, it makes a soft "rustling" sound.

It has no obvious facial features, only a pair of "eyes" that look like dots on red origami paper, radiating a cold, inorganic luster.

Code name UB-05: Cleave.

Ultimate Beast - Paper Sword.

"This venting of boredom ends here."

Akari's gaze passed over the paper sword and landed back on Lugia, whose aura seemed slightly unstable.

"I'll do it."

"Just to make a deal with you."

"With that child's life—"

He turned slightly to the side.

The ultimate void behind them rippled once more, and a powerful binding force emanated from it.

"Waaah"

A pained, slightly immature cry rang out!

A small silver bird, several sizes smaller than Lugia in the air, was forcibly dragged out of the strange cave by an invisible force of telekinesis—it was Lugia Baby!

It had a restraint collar around its neck!

Fine arcs of electricity pulsed across the surface of the collar, each flash causing Lugia's body to tremble violently, making even her struggles seem incredibly weak.

Until they were fixed in mid-air by an invisible force of thought, unable to move.

Meanwhile, the Paper Sword, which had been hovering beside the Crimson Sun, had instantly appeared next to Little Lugia.

Its paper-made "arms" gently rose and rested firmly on little Lugia's neck.

"—In exchange for your loyalty."

Chi Ri then finished speaking the second half of his sentence.

He even slowly pulled out a specially made, jet-black Poké Ball from the inside pocket of his suit, casually tossing and catching it in his hand.

"roar--!!!"

This scene plunged Lugia into unprecedented rage and struggle!

Its eyes instantly filled with ferocious blood vessels, and its divine power went out of control and went berserk!

The long-awaited downpour poured down, stirring up countless boiling water droplets!

The entire vast sea area was instantly transformed into a raging inferno of energy!

Giant waves, thousands of meters high, surged, crashed, and collided erratically, and the thunderstorms in the sky were so dense they resembled a white electric grid!

It actually turned several nearby rocky islets that were exposed above the sea into dust!

As far as the eye could see, there was a terrifying scene reminiscent of the apocalypse!

Lugia wanted to launch an attack at all costs and tear the tiny human and the bizarre paper monster to shreds!

But when its gaze fell upon the cold paper blade on Lugia's neck, its overwhelming killing intent and divine power were forcibly suppressed at the edge of eruption.

Time slipped away second by second amidst the storm, each second feeling like an unbearable ordeal.

"Now----"

The blazing sun watched all of this with indifference.

The downpour soaked his suit jacket, but he was completely unaware.

"—Submit to me."