"Who is it?!!!" In a distant, separate space, a certain Pokémon lived alone.
He sensed that the mark he had left in the Pokémon world was being attacked, but at this moment, he was temporarily unable to leave this space, or rather, temporarily unable to enter the Pokémon world.
For a moment, all around him, numerous inverted, island-like landmasses floated in the air, with faintly visible, shattered buildings and waterfalls flowing upwards.
It felt as if the rules of the entire world had completely fallen into chaos.
Six ghostly, ribbon-like wings, interspersed with golden patterns and a massive tail, swept past these shattered islets.
However, it was merely a fleeting glimpse, and his full form could not be clearly seen.
"Arceus!!! I will return sooner or later!!"
...Under the relentless attacks of Honchkrow and Slowking, the wall grew thinner and thinner. Later, Gengar and Mismagius also joined the assault.
With the combined attacks of the four Pokémon, accompanied by roars and the sound of crumbling stone, the wall was finally breached.
Boom!!!
But the commotion this time was not so small; it was as if a fierce hurricane lay behind the wall, and a large amount of visible Ghost-type energy surged out from the broken hole in the wall.
For a moment, Honchkrow and Slowking, caught off guard, were blown back a distance, and the Psychic membrane surrounding Aokiji almost shattered.
Fortunately, Gengar, reacting quickly, flashed in front of Aoki, and a large amount of Ghost-type energy spontaneously entered Gengar's body.
Jie jie!!
Gengar let out a loud cry.
Mismagius also appeared beside Gengar, helping him share the pressure from the energy impact.
Slowking instantly teleported to Aoki's side, and the Psychic barrier was reinforced. The blown-away Honchkrow also appeared beside Aoki, adopting a defensive stance.
Aoki himself didn't show panic, only slight surprise. He hadn't expected that the Ghost-type energy in the cave they were currently in was not the most concentrated; it was merely diluted energy. The energy behind the now-breached wall, however, was truly concentrated to the extreme.
In that instant, even the light shining into the cave entrance was pitch black; light simply couldn't penetrate inside.
Aoki came to Gengar and Mismagius's side.
"Gengar, how do you feel?" According to the data scanned by the chip, Gengar's previously stagnant stats were continuously rising.
This was a sign that he was about to break through a limit, meaning Gengar was using the energy surging out from within to challenge the Champion barrier.
"Jie jie!!"
Gengar, eyes tightly closed, cried out.
"As expected! This place really has a strong connection to Giratina!" Aoki murmured after hearing Gengar's words.
When Gengar first said he felt the energy was somewhat familiar upon entering, Aoki had vaguely suspected Giratina.
After all, in this world, Giratina was the first Pokémon Aoki could think of that could produce such a high concentration of Ghost-type energy.
Of course, it wasn't the only Pokémon; no one could calculate the lifespan of Ghost-type Pokémon, and it was possible there was an old monster living for thousands of years. Moreover, Aoki knew that more than one Ghost-type legendary Pokémon could achieve this level, such as Marshadow, or the Moon Pokémon, Lunala.
However, Lunala was a bit unrealistic, though Marshadow was still a possibility.
But when Gengar mentioned the familiar energy, it was almost certainly Giratina.
Just now, after Gengar confirmed some of the Ghost-type energy mixed within, it was almost 100% certain.
It was just unknown what Giratina had done here; it felt like this stone wall concealed many things.
Judging from the current situation, to enter, they would at least need to wait until the energy inside was no longer so concentrated, or until Gengar and Mismagius had absorbed enough and completed their breakthroughs.
The energy required for this breakthrough was still immense, and it just so happened that there seemed to be a continuous supply of energy.
Fortunately, it had been more than half a year since Gengar's last surge in power, and his body was now capable of accommodating a large amount of energy.
Suddenly, in one fell swoop, Gengar completed his breakthrough, successfully reaching level 80, officially entering the Champion rank!
Immediately, Gengar's absorption rate significantly increased, and the amount of energy he could contain also grew considerably.
"Gengar, that's enough. This energy is sufficient for you to consolidate yourself; there's no need to continue leveling up.
Mismagius, you're also almost there." After some time, Aoki stopped Gengar and Mismagius, who were still absorbing.
Mismagius's level had also risen to 74.
She had reached the limit she could currently withstand.
However, after their absorption, coupled with the energy that inadvertently dispersed, the interior was no longer as concentrated.
The situation inside was finally becoming somewhat visible.
After Gengar and Mismagius had consolidated themselves slightly, with Gengar leading the way, Aoki led his Pokémon inside.
It was a seemingly long passage, with all sides constructed from the previously broken Dark Stone crystal walls. The overall appearance was like a… prison?
Or perhaps a cage?
But for what purpose would such a place be constructed?
As they approached the interior, they found that the Ghost-type energy was gradually becoming more concentrated.
They soon reached the end of the tunnel, which was a pond-like area. The Ghost-type energy in the tunnel flowed out from this pond.
"This… is probably the springhead of all the Ghost-type energy." Aoki looked at the black spring water in the pond below, wondering if this black spring water was condensed Ghost-type energy, or if it was truly water, merely saturated with Ghost-type energy.
Whoosh—
Just as Aoki approached, the previously calm water surface rippled.
It was as if something was about to emerge from the spring water.
Sensing the movement, Honchkrow and the others immediately positioned themselves in front of Aoki, warily watching the situation in the lake.
Aoki's brows also furrowed. He had a feeling that Giratina had gone to such great lengths precisely for the Pokémon beneath the surface.
Cling, cling, cling—
With a clear metallic clinking sound, a Pokémon's figure slowly floated up from under the water to the surface.
However, its hands were bound by four black metal chains; the earlier clear sounds were emitted by them.
Seeing this slowly emerging Pokémon, Aoki's pupils suddenly contracted, and a name surfaced in his mind.
Darkrai!