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Wataru interjected, "It's probably because Sylveon doesn't know Blizzard or other Ice-type moves."

Adek turned and gave him a strange look. "You think this guy, who can even control the earth, can't handle blizzards?"

Watari: "......"

Unable to refute, Watari could only silently continue watching the game.

The metallic sheen flashed once more, and Garchomp, closing in, was about to launch another Iron Head attack when Sylveon just completed Ground Pulse.

A deep green light burst forth in an instant, and the ground, which had been reduced to ruins by the fierce battle, began to slowly recover, transforming into a lush green lawn.

The miraculous scene elicited gasps of amazement from the audience.

Keep in mind that this is only the effect of the earth's control energy overflowing; Xerneas, the god of life, truly lives up to his name with his signature move.

At the same time, the greatly increased speed from Ground Control allowed Sylveon to unleash its second move, Hydro Pump, before Garchomp's Iron Head could hit it.

This is almost the best option right now, as it can resist the Steel-type Iron Head while also dealing decent damage to the Garchomp-type Garchomp.

Unlike Milotic, which shoots water cannons from its mouth, Mega Sylveon's water cannons are formed by condensing water elements from the environment.

The battlefield, which had just been in the rain, was naturally rich in water-attribute energy. In an instant, the azure energy particles transformed into a substantial stream of water, and the crystal on Super Fairy's head also changed color.

This means that her attribute is now water-based—an attribute that can withstand [Iron Head]!

The difference between being restrained and resisting is a full fourfold.

Furthermore, since Steel-type moves are not Garchomp's STAB moves, Mega Sylveon Water-type moves easily caught Garchomp's pursuit.

Just then, the water cannon finished charging and unleashed a terrifying torrent of water, no less powerful than that controlled by Milotic, which hurtled straight toward Garchomp's body.

The powerful recoil sent Sylveon flying backward, allowing her to create a safe distance between herself and Garchomp.

At this moment, the decision to insist on using the Earth's control immediately yielded results.

The significantly boosted Special Attack stat caused massive damage to this non-STAB type Hydro Pump. If it weren't for Cynthia's ace Garchomp, any Champion-level Pokémon in that state would likely have been unable to withstand the hit.

Even so, Garchomp's condition was already like a candle flickering in the wind.

There may be a few more swift and decisive attacks in the final moments, but defeat is almost certain.

No one knew this better than Cynthia, so under her command, Mega Garchomp launched an attack that was more ferocious than usual, giving Sylveon no chance to use recovery moves like Recover or Aqua Ring.

She can't let Shambro go into the next game in good form, otherwise there will be no chance at all.

Xia Chen was equally clear about the current situation on the field, and tried his best to maintain Sylveon's status while continuing to deal damage to Garchomp.

The two elves teamed up to present the audience with a high-quality battle of tug-of-war.

The final result was acceptable to both sides—Garuda fell, and although Sylveon was still in good condition, his Ground Spell boost was completely wasted.

…………

"Phew—Giant Garchomp has finally fallen. No one expected Cynthia's ace Pokémon to have such a difficult performance in this match. Apart from finishing off the already out-of-form Zoroark, it couldn't gain any advantage over Sylveon."

Adek wiped the cold sweat from his brow, as if he had just finished giving instructions.

A-Du chimed in, "The main reason is that Zoroark played too well, providing Sylveon with a perfect stage. On the other hand, with Garchomp gone and Cynthia trailing in the score... has she lost the ability to turn the tide?"

"Not necessarily."

Cattleya casually interjected, "Don't forget, Sidson hasn't even appeared yet."

Heatran!

The legendary Pokémon that Cynthia captured more than a year ago also performed exceptionally well in the previous battle against the dark matter invasion.

Only after being reminded by Gadriya did everyone realize the importance of this spirit that they had somewhat overlooked.

Undoubtedly, if Mega Garchomp reaches the level of a Legendary Pokémon in terms of attack power, then Heatran is a fully evolved Legendary Pokémon without any compromise.

While not as formidable as the legendary figures from that epic battle, it is virtually unmatched in battles between human trainers' Pokémon.

However, the fact that there is a "almost" means that there will definitely be exceptions.

“Sidron is indeed a strong opponent, but don’t forget that Xia Chen’s reported lineup also includes a Pokémon like Zeraora. It’s just unknown whether it’s among the six Pokémon chosen for the finals.”

Several Elite Four champions were excitedly discussing whether a legendary Pokémon battle would take place soon when a roar came from the battlefield.

"Oh, the terrain has changed. According to the rules, the terrain type will be changed every time three Pokémon are unable to battle. Let's see what the first terrain change is... Oh, it's a hill terrain!"

With the roar of mechanical transmission, the chaotic battlefield was transformed, revealing a brand-new battlefield with a small artificial mountain several tens of meters high in the center.

Then, Cynthia threw out her next Poké Ball.

A flash of white light appeared, followed by a burst of fiery orange-red from the ball. The heavy Pokémon landed with a devastating force, causing an earthquake-like tremor.

Even before it made its debut, it displayed its extraordinary weight—

After Garchomp lost its ability to battle, Cynthia chose Heatran to send out her Pokémon.

"This is a do-or-die situation. If Heatran can't defeat Sylvanas, or if he can't do enough after defeating Sylvanas, then this match won't be good for Cynthia!"

Adek calmly pointed out Cynthia's current difficult situation.

This was a situation that most people could foresee before the competition. Today, no one would regard Xia Chen as a rising star, but as a legend who could be compared with or even surpass any great trainer in history.

And they are the witnesses to the young man who repeatedly created miracles as he reached the pinnacle.

…………

The perspective shifts back to the battlefield.

As the challenger, Xianbu, who was in good condition, quickly established himself on the "summit" and occupied a favorable position.

However, neither the terrain nor the distance between the two elves was a problem for Heatran.

As a legendary elf born from the magma deep within Mount Celestial Crown, the rocks are no different from the plains in the eyes of Heatran, and he might even be more accustomed to them.

However, Cynthia did not choose to send Heatran forward, but instead directly commanded, "Lava Storm!"

Xia Chen raised an eyebrow slightly. Sure enough, after spending so much time together, Cynthia understood Heatran.

Legend has it that a large part of the reason why elves are so powerful is that they can mobilize the power of the natural environment to form something like an aura.

It sounds mysterious, but in essence, it's just an advanced version of location or weather.

Examples include Darkrai's Nightmare Realm and Xerneas's Life Realm.

Undoubtedly, Cynthia is now using the [Lava Storm] move to create a "Lava Terrain" that is more suitable for Heatran to perform well.

boom--

No sooner had Cynthia finished speaking than orange-red, scorching lava erupted from the small hill in the center of the arena.

God knows why lava would gush out of an artificially created battlefield, but it just happened naturally.

The erupting lava instantly transformed the mountain into a small volcano, and the intense heat caused every rock on the mountain to become incredibly hot.

"Buyi—"

The sudden, scalding sensation under his feet made Xianbu gasp involuntarily, forcing him to leave the mountaintop and instead float in the air.

However, the effect of Heatran's "Lava Field" is not limited to that. The gushing hot lava rapidly heats up the entire battlefield, quickly turning it into a giant oven.

The protective barrier serves to isolate all energy; otherwise, the tens of thousands of spectators who came to watch the game would have been roasted like red-skinned ducks.

However, the two trainers were in a bad situation. Their two Pokémon were powerful enough to withstand the high temperatures, but since they were inside the arena, they couldn't enjoy the protection of the energy barrier and could only give commands while sweating profusely.

With a flourish, Cynthia removed her signature long black coat, which had become almost her trademark, raised her head, and shouted, "Shutterland, smoke!"

Xia Chen was speechless. Lava storms and smoke? What's wrong? Did they think the battle environment was too comfortable?

"Eevee, Earth Power!"

After confirming that this guy was still using fire-type moves, Xia Chen felt relieved and instructed Xianbu to use earth-based attacks.

The Fire Steel type combination, unique to Heatran, is extremely powerful. Apart from being four times weak to Ground, it has no other weaknesses. Coincidentally, Sylvanas learned Earth Power very early on and has a very high level of proficiency with it.

This move will be key to defeating Heatran in a normal match.

…………

Ultimately, the legendary Pokémon's skill release speed is still superior.

The lava was still spreading across the land when a huge cloud of choking smoke, accompanied by flames, spewed out from the holes in Heatran's body, like a gray dragon ready to devour its prey, heading straight for Super Sylvanas in the sky.

Before the attribute conversion effect took effect, and before the power of the earth was released, the ground-type energy flowing continuously within her body allowed Sylveon to complete the attribute conversion.

With a light step, Sylvanas nimbly closed the distance between herself and Heatran while minimizing the damage from the smoke.

At the same time, the yellowish-brown gem on the top of its forehead suddenly shone, and a ray containing pure ground-type energy burst forth, precisely targeting Heatran's face like a laser.

boom--

Dust billowed, accompanied by the clanging sound of metal clashing, before a deep, furious roar came from within the smoke.

"Om—"

Its iron hooves slammed into the ground, and the bubbling magma on them suddenly erupted and leaped up, transforming into a magma cannon that blasted towards Xianbu's location.

This is not a regular move that ordinary Pokémon can master; if you had to name one, it would be a variant of Lava Storm.

At the level of legendary Pokémon like Heatran, their moves no longer need to be confined to ordinary forms.

However, the most fundamental rules of elemental advantage in the Pokémon world must still be followed, and this "magma cannon" is essentially still a fire-type attack.

This is a safe choice; the Mega Sylveon, with its Ground type, is only weak to Grass, Ice, and Water types.

Unfortunately, Heatran is basically unsuitable for these attributes, and its best attribute is undoubtedly Fire-type moves with STAB (Same Type Attack Bonus).

However, although the magma cannon was fast, it lacked any skill and was easily dodged by Xianbu.

Xia Chen, standing outside the thick fog, pondered for a moment.

Heatran's straightforward move just now was completely unlike Cynthia's usual command style. Could it be that the terrible battlefield environment caused her to lose contact with Heatran's command?

That's quite a possibility, after all, Cynthia doesn't have superpowers like him.

Could it be that she deliberately created a chaotic battlefield to interfere with the commands of both trainers, hoping that the two Pokémon would resolve the situation on their own?

It's unlikely, given Cynthia's understanding of herself; she knows perfectly well that this obstacle cannot affect her command at all.

Or is it a trap?

Xia Chen carefully considered Heatran's skill pool but couldn't figure out Cynthia's thoughts. He could only temporarily shout to Eevee, "Keep your distance and continue using Earth Power!"

Xia Chen wasn't the kind of trainer who would gamble with his own guesses. Since he couldn't guess, he would just fight as usual. In any case, Sylveon was definitely not at a disadvantage in the current situation.