Surrounding Yuga and his team was a group of Tympole, Palpitoad, and Seismitoad. Especially the Palpitoad and Seismitoad—neither of them looked pleasant to begin with, and now with a dense swarm of them staring at the group, it made their scalps tingle with unease.
"Gwaa~"
As soon as Yuga and the others made the slightest movement, a chorus of frog croaks erupted one after another, and within the croaking came an embedded attack skill—Round.
Round was a move that required multiple Pokémon to work together to unleash its full power. Although the skill had a power limit, with nearly a hundred Pokémon using it at the same time, the effect was absolutely terrifying.
As the frog-like croaking echoed around them, Yuga and the others were immediately struck with splitting headaches. However, breaking this move was actually simple. Enduring the pain, Yuga commanded Lapras: "Lapras, use Sing!"
Round relied on sound waves and synchronized coordination to work as an attack. So as long as there was an external sound disrupting their harmony, the skill would naturally fall apart.
"Ooooh~"
Amid the thunderous croaking of the frog Pokémon, Lapras's singing voice was nearly drowned out, but that didn't stop Yuga from achieving his goal.
With Sing interfering with the coordination of the Round attack, the attack's damaging effects indeed disappeared. Now, apart from the extreme noise, the unbearable headaches were gone.
Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard immediately commanded their Pokémon to launch a counterattack against the swarm of frogs.
Seeing that their sonic attack was no longer effective, the frogs quickly switched tactics, launching Acid or Mud Shot instead. However, the toxic sprays and blobs of mud were all instantly frozen into chunks of ice by just one use of Icy Wind from Lapras and dropped harmlessly to the ground.
Even though the number of Pokémon in the group was high, their overall levels were not. Leaving aside the powerhouse Yuga, even Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard were all elite League Trainers, among the best of the best. So dealing with this swarm of frogs wasn't particularly difficult for them.
After defeating all the Tympole, Palpitoad, and Seismitoad, Yuga and his team used the Poké Balls that the League had already prepared for them to capture all the wild Pokémon.
These Poké Balls were extremely cheap and low-grade ones that wouldn't last long in normal use. But they were more than enough for capturing these Pokémon.
Among these Pokémon, there weren't any that caught Yuga's eye. Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard also had no intention of keeping any, so after returning, all of them would be handed over to the League in exchange for merit points.
Of course, if Yuga and his team happened to encounter a Pokémon they really liked later on, they were free to keep it. The mission rules had clearly stated that all resources obtained during this mission were under the trainer's own control, and Pokémon counted as resources too.
Other types of resources followed the same principle—if you could use them, keep them. If not, hand them over to the League in exchange for merit points.
It was precisely because of this rule that, although everyone knew this mission was extremely dangerous, they still rushed to sign up for it.
After storing away all the Poké Balls, Yuga and his team continued onward. Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard were all in high spirits—the start of the mission had gone smoothly, and they already earned a wave of merit points.
Yuga, on the other hand, didn't care much for merit points since he wasn't lacking them. He came here purely to catch Pokémon. But for the other three, merit points were even more valuable than money.
However, in this mission, the kind of merit points that trainers could earn were only the ones used as consumables in the League Trainers' Shop in place of currency. They were not the type of merit points that could help improve one's official League rank.
The swamp area Yuga's team was assigned to search was quite large, and afterward, they encountered several more waves of wild Pokémon attacks, all of which they easily handled.
The later waves of Pokémon were much fewer in number than the frog group from the beginning, so they weren't as challenging.
In the blink of an eye, a full day passed. Before it got dark, Yuga and his team made it back to the base camp, and other teams were also returning one after another.
However, some people had smiles on their faces, while others had injuries on their bodies—it was clear that their results had varied.
One team even had a conflict with another team.
Although Yuga and Toyama had assigned each team a specific search area, some of the areas were adjacent to each other, so it wasn't surprising for encounters and conflicts to occur.
In the end, the two teams settled their dispute under Toyama's mediation and with Yuga's intimidation, but Yuga felt that once such a thing happened once, it would likely happen again.
The next day, each squad took their supplies and set out again. Before they left, Yuga and General Toyama once again sternly reminded everyone to take care of their own lives.
After arriving back in the swamp area from the previous day, Yuga decided to search in a different direction. After consulting with the others, everyone agreed with Yuga's suggestion.
Not long into their walk, they discovered a patch of grassland in the middle of the swamp, and grazing there was a group of Bouffalant.
The Pokémon in this region were indeed fierce. As soon as the herd's leader noticed Yuga's team, it bellowed twice and charged toward them with the whole herd following.
The water around the grassland was shallow, only reaching up to the Bouffalant's knees. As the herd charged, water splashed everywhere, and the mud at the bottom released a foul stench.
There were only about a dozen Bouffalant in the group. Though their average level was higher than that of the previous Tympole group, they were fewer in number. Yuga and his team quickly dealt with them.
While the four were happily collecting the fallen Bouffalant from the water, a sudden wail came from above, and a Mandibuzz dropped from the sky into the water, pierced by several black arrows.
It turned out that this Mandibuzz had tried to launch a sneak attack on Allard from above while the team was distracted, but it was discovered by the ever-watchful Decidueye.
But that wasn't the end of it. After the Mandibuzz fell, an unpleasant cacophony of screeches suddenly erupted from the sky. Yuga recognized the sound immediately—he had a Mandibuzz at home. How could he not know?
When they looked up, they saw that the sky had somehow become filled with circling Mandibuzz. Their broad wings blotted out the sun, exuding an overwhelming presence.
Not only did this group of Mandibuzz vastly outnumber the Temple group they had encountered yesterday, but their levels were also higher than the Bouffalant they had just defeated.
"Gaaah~!"
With an ear-piercing bird cry, the Mandibuzz began to dive downward one after another. Even the more experienced Raizo and Allard were badly shaken by the sight.
At that moment, a yellow blur streaked across the sky, and then bolts of golden lightning mixed with booming thunder began flashing rapidly through the bird flock.
It was Dragonite making the move. Just like Decidueye, it was responsible for aerial surveillance today.
After unleashing a barrage of Thunderbolt, one Mandibuzz after another crashed from the sky, their bodies smoking. The previously well-organized flock of birds instantly fell into disarray, flying chaotically in panic. The scene became completely chaotic.
"Gaaah! Gaaah!!"
A sharp and fierce screech suddenly rang out amidst the chaos of bird cries, and the Mandibuzz instantly calmed down. They quickly reformed their formation in the sky, preparing for the next wave of attacks.
Yuga quickly spotted the Mandibuzz leader hidden among the flock—mainly because its aura was too distinctive. It gave off the feeling of a mafia boss.
Yuga waved his hand, and Decidueye descended from the air. Yuga pointed at the Mandibuzz leader and said to it, "Shoot that one down for me!"
The Mandibuzz leader was protected in the center of the formation by many of its kin, so hitting it wouldn't be easy. But Yuga had faith in Decidueye—its archery skills weren't honed for nothing over all this time.
With a single command from the Mandibuzz leader, the numerous Mandibuzz once again launched an assault on Yuga and his team. Those pairs of incredibly sharp, giant talons looked as though they were ready to rip open their skulls.
Dragonite continued to rely on its own strength, suppressing the bird flock with countless bolts of lightning, forcing many of the swooping Mandibuzz to retreat in defeat.
Decidueye drew its bow and nocked an arrow, focusing all its attention on the Mandibuzz leader. However, it didn't rush to release the arrow. Instead, it patiently waited for the right opportunity.
Finally, after one Mandibuzz after another was taken down by Dragonite, the bird flock began changing formation again, and the guards around the Mandibuzz leader started to switch positions.
Seizing the chance, Decidueye released its arrow at the last possible moment.
Whoosh!!!
With a cry of anguish, the Mandibuzz leader plummeted into the swamp. The flock, now without its leader, instantly fell into disarray. Their formation collapsed in an instant.
At this point, Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard finally had the opportunity to act. They quickly commanded their own Pokémon to intercept the Mandibuzz attempting to flee.
After a bitter battle, aside from a few that got away, the majority of the Mandibuzz were captured.
While Yuga was busy packing the Mandibuzz and Bouffalant into Poké Balls, Yoshino, Raizo, and Allard slumped down into the water, panting heavily, completely ignoring the foul stench in the water.
It was… just… too intense!
Especially for Allard, who loved to chase thrills. His face was now flushed bright red, looking almost like a complete maniac.
No wonder people say the wilderness is filled with danger. If Yuga hadn't been here today, the three of them would have long been torn to pieces by those Mandibuzz.
At this moment, all three of them simultaneously felt a deep sense of admiration and respect for the Pioneer Army who had been stationed here for years.
Yuga, seeing the three sitting there in a daze, shouted loudly, "Aren't you coming to help? What are you doing over there!"
"C-Coming!"
The three of them didn't dare waste any more time and quickly got up to assist.
Even though Yuga's team had brought quite a few Poké Balls today, after storing all these Mandibuzz, only a small portion remained.
After finishing up, the group continued on their journey. However, Yoshino and the others still hadn't calmed down emotionally and remained very excited the entire way.
Unknowingly, the four of them arrived at a huge lake deep within the swamp. Looking at the beautiful, jewel-like lake, they all felt a sense of purification in their hearts.
However, beauty often comes with danger. Just as the four of them were admiring the beautiful scenery by the lake, a group of Swanna suddenly appeared in their line of sight.
The Swanna were happily playing in the water, their clear and crisp cries sounding like they were singing. The scene was calm and peaceful, beautiful beyond imagination.
But all of this was before the Swanna noticed Yuga and the others.
As soon as one of the Swanna spotted the four of them on the shore, its previously crisp chirping suddenly turned sharp, and the other Swanna immediately turned their fierce gazes toward them.
What surprised Yuga even more was that this group of Swanna had actually participated in the earlier raid on the Pioneer Army's base. They had simply been left behind when the other Pokémon retreated too quickly after the raid failed.
The League had issued this mission primarily to clean up Pokémon like these Swanna.
Crash!!!
The Swanna took off from the surface of the lake, each one using Water Pulse to launch an attack on the four of them. Their ferocious appearance was completely unlike the elegant Swanna they remembered.
What's more, the Swanna were extremely powerful, because the weaker ones had mostly died during the recent Pokémon disaster. Yoshino and the others found it somewhat difficult to fend them off.
When it came to dealing with Water-type and Flying-type Pokémon, Dragonite was a natural. Its fists clenched tightly, electricity crackled in its hands, and bolts of lightning burst forth, transforming into a thunderstorm. In no time, a large number of Swanna were electrocuted until they were charred on the outside and tender on the inside.
Seeing this, Yuga sent out Lapras. Lapras dove straight into the water, and soon a massive splash erupted under its control right in the midst of the Swanna flock. Dragonite's lightning followed close behind.
The electric currents surged rapidly through the water, quickly eliminating more than half of the Swanna.
With the help of Dragonite and Lapras, the pressure on Yoshino and the others was greatly reduced, and they finally managed to deal with the remaining Swanna.
The leader of the Swanna was a Champion-level Pokémon. It was exceptionally tough, managing to endure several of Dragonite's electric strikes without going down, and even tried to escape—only to be frozen into an ice block by a single Ice Beam from Lapras.
While Yuga and the others were gathering up the Swanna, Lapras dove into the lake once more. When it resurfaced, it surprisingly had an Absorb Bulb in its mouth.
The Absorb Bulb was a kind of item that, when held by a Pokémon, boosts Special Attack upon being hit by a Water-type move—but it only works once.
In addition, Absorb Bulb were also important materials for cultivating Water-type Pokémon and had many uses.
Absorb Bulb grew from the roots of a certain aquatic plant and typically formed in deep-water areas. Because of this, they were hard to cultivate artificially and were therefore quite expensive on the market.
With the Absorb Bulb in its mouth, Lapras swam toward the shore, but behind it chased over a dozen Basculin. Their sharp teeth snapped incessantly—though they didn't manage to land a single bite.
Annoyed, Lapras turned its head and unleashed a blast of icy wind. Instantly, all the Basculin turned into frozen blocks of ice.
Lapras reached the shore and placed the Absorb Bulb into Yuga's hand, then called out twice. Yuga asked in surprise, "Are you saying there are many more at the bottom of the lake?"
Lapras nodded to confirm.
Yuga said excitedly, "That's great! Let's collect as many as we can!"
But according to Lapras, there were a lot of Basculin at the bottom of the lake, and collecting the Absorb Bulb wouldn't be easy.
So Lapras suggested letting Dragonite handle the task. Dragonite was equally adept in water and skilled with Electric-type moves. In the water, Water-type Pokémon wouldn't be able to get close to it.
Yuga immediately agreed, thinking it was a great idea and praised Lapras for being so smart.
After calling over Dragonite, Yuga told it about the Absorb Bulb. Dragonite readily agreed to go collect them.
Yuga handed over his spatial backpack to Dragonite. With the small bag on its back, Dragonite dove straight into the lake.