"It actually resisted…?"
"Double-type resistance, plus Spiritomb's natural defenses… This is going to be troublesome!"
Aven frowned as his gaze settled on the peculiar stone beneath the Spiritomb.
This was a mysterious stone known as an Odd Keystone, a vessel capable of serving as the container for souls.
Spiritomb was precisely such a Pokémon—an existence born from the fusion of ghost energy and the Odd Keystone. Its soul could withdraw into the stone itself, allowing it to withstand or dodge the majority of incoming attacks.
Therefore, in books and records that described the species of Spiritomb, its race was always noted for having exceptionally powerful Attack, Defense, Special Attack, and Special Defense. Among these, its astonishing defensive ability came directly from the Keystone.
In truth, Spiritomb's stamina was not especially abundant. Without the protection of the Odd Keystone, if it were to rely solely on its incorporeal spirit body, it would be extremely difficult for it to endure powerful assaults.
At the same time, because of the binding constraints of the Odd Keystone, Spiritomb's speed was extremely slow. In battle, it could hardly move freely, almost forced to hover in place while fighting. Although its firepower was overwhelming, it was nonetheless a living target.
"SOULLLL!"
The moment Spiritomb emerged, an ear-piercing roar of fury echoed forth.
Immediately afterward, the sinister energy surrounding Spiritomb's body suddenly condensed, coalescing into a massive, ominous Shadow Ball.
The Shadow Ball greedily absorbed Spiritomb's own sinister energy, the fusion of Ghost-type and Dark-type powers continuously being poured into it, swelling its destructive force.
With a whistling roar, Spiritomb hurled the Shadow Ball forward. The tremendous power compressed the air itself, causing it to vibrate with violent shockwaves. The entire battlefield quaked, and even the surrounding grass was flattened by the surging waves of energy.
This time, Spiritomb had clearly unleashed all the strength it had been storing up, firing a move that surpassed its own limits.
"Ralts, Ralts~"
Ralts, standing at a distance, gazed tensely at the energy raging around Spiritomb's body, its tiny frame stiff with tension.
That aura of hatred, the malignant wave of ghost energy, was simply overwhelming. After all, Spiritomb itself was nothing less than a conglomeration of countless grudges and resentments!
"Nido!"
Facing such a fearsome move, the Nidoking leader's eyes glimmered with unshakable confidence.
He gathered the entirety of his strength into the poisonous horn on his head. Faintly, a horn of condensed toxic energy appeared, and then, without hesitation, Nidoking charged straight toward the Shadow Ball!
Boom!
The violent shockwave of energy erupted in a deafening roar.
In the next instant, the Nidoking leader's body was blasted backward, flung into the air and crashing hard onto the ground.
Groaning as he struggled up, Nidoking lifted his head—only to see that Spiritomb had already begun condensing another Shadow Ball.
"Nidoking, use Hyper Beam!" Aven's voice rang out sharply.
The Nidoking leader did not dare to hesitate for even an instant. He opened his massive maw wide, gathering an orange-yellow energy at his throat before unleashing it in a blazing beam!
The radiant beam of destruction tore through the air, filled with the power of annihilation, and struck the Shadow Ball mid-air. The clash resulted in a violent explosion, light and force colliding in a burst that shook the battlefield.
Hyper Beam was a Normal-type ultimate move, one of overwhelming destructive capability. Infused with destructive essence, it was the sort of strike that, if it hit an ordinary Pokémon, would cause catastrophic damage.
But the side effects were equally severe. After releasing an attack that exceeded its own natural limits, the user would be left completely immobile for a short period.
Sure enough, Nidoking now felt the violent surge of energy churning inside his body, leaving him unable to move even a fraction. But thanks to his extraordinary physical constitution, he could faintly feel his strength slowly returning, bit by bit, to his limbs.
The smoke from the explosion gradually dispersed. Having launched two consecutive Shadow Balls, Spiritomb's form now wavered unsteadily, its power clearly drained—it could no longer muster a third one.
"Nido Nido!"
Seizing this opportunity, Nidoking quickly hauled himself back up.
A faint green glow enveloped his body—life energy flowing continuously into him under the control of Petilil.
As his stamina steadily recovered, Nidoking clenched his fists. A helpless expression briefly flickered across his face.
He remembered vividly how Torterra, back then, had shamelessly used this exact same tactic to drag him into exhaustion step by step, until he was completely spent. At that time, he had nearly jumped in frustration.
And yet, now that this soothing life energy, capable of healing any injury, was coursing through his body, he couldn't help but admit—this felt too comfortable. All he could think was: Yes, more of this, please. As much as you like.
"Nidoking, charge in again—this time, use Thrash!"
Hearing Aven's command, the Nidoking leader glanced back at him and gave a firm thumbs-up.
Then, a violent wave of energy suddenly burst out from Nidoking's body. His eyes gradually turned blood-red.
"NIDOOO!"
As the energy surged within him, Nidoking let out a series of guttural roars, his scarlet eyes scanning the battlefield with feral intensity.
"This… this is just like what happened in Keystone Town!" one of the assassins muttered, pupils contracting in shock.
Back then, he had been hiding in Keystone Town disguised as a civilian, and had personally witnessed Aven destroying the Eastern Branch of Gilded Fang Merchant Guild there.
Now, seeing Nidoking in this state once again instantly triggered those memories, filling him with bitter resentment.
But he also remembered: when Nidoking had gone berserk back then, though its power had skyrocketed, its consciousness had fallen into complete chaos. In the end, it had nearly been killed on the spot.
So, what was the lord planning this time? Was he really going to push Nidoking into such a desperate frenzy again? But wasn't Nidoking already holding the upper hand?
"Petilil, use Aromatherapy!" Aven's calm voice rang out once more.
A faint fragrance drifted across the battlefield, wrapping everything in its gentle aroma.
Nidoking's crimson eyes gradually softened. Though his body was still brimming with manic energy and his gaze remained red, his consciousness had returned—his reason was intact.
"Good. Go on then—Thrash!"
With a thunderous roar, Nidoking charged forward again, his body like a crimson storm.
Thrash was a Normal-type move that could drastically amplify a Pokémon's fighting capacity.
In this state, a Pokémon could even push its body past its natural limits, chaining devastating Hyper Beams one after another, elevating its combat strength to the very peak.
But the cost was dire. In Keystone Town, Nidoking had almost died from exhaustion under this move's backlash—he was only saved thanks to Petilil's healing.
This time, however, with Petilil's continuous flow of life energy and the cleansing fragrance of Aromatherapy, the drawbacks of Thrash were suppressed to the absolute minimum.
Aromatherapy was capable of removing all negative statuses—including the side effects of Thrash. Thus, even while rampaging, Nidoking could maintain his reason.
Facing this terrifying foe radiating oppressive energy, Spiritomb tried again to unleash a Shadow Ball—only for Nidoking to smash it apart with a single punch!
The explosion blossomed, but within moments, Nidoking's massive form tore out of the smoke, poison energy swirling around his fists as he hurled another strike!
Even though Poison-type attacks only dealt half damage to Spiritomb, Nidoking's raw power was enough to deliver tremendous devastation.
"Souuul… souuul!"
Spiritomb was once again forced to retreat into the safety of its Keystone.
At the same time, a strange spectral glow emerged from the stone, wrapping it in layers of eerie light.
Boom!
Nidoking's fist slammed against the Odd Keystone.
The poison energy collided with the spectral glow, and the light visibly dimmed.
Boom, boom, boom!
Nidoking hammered at it again and again, each blow further weakening the glow.
At last, when the glow was about to shatter entirely, Spiritomb could no longer endure and was forced to emerge from the stone.
It instantly unleashed a flash of green light that shot toward Nidoking.
The strange glow enveloped Nidoking's body, halting him briefly. Seeing this, Spiritomb sighed in relief—it had used Confuse Ray, meant to force its foe into disarray.
But before Spiritomb could retreat, it suddenly realized with horror that Nidoking's body had only frozen for the briefest instant. In the very next heartbeat, his fist continued its merciless strike without pause.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The protective glow around the Keystone shattered completely.
The stone itself was flung away, crashing heavily into the ground.
The mysterious substance that made up Spiritomb's body was violently expelled, the faint glow that had connected it to the Keystone ripped apart.
"Soooul… soooul… sooul!"
Floating weakly in the air, Spiritomb's eyes widened in disbelief.
It had used its ghost energy to confuse Nidoking's consciousness, yet the creature was acting as though completely unaffected!
The assassins watching wore the same expression of shock—they could not comprehend why Nidoking had suddenly become so impossibly strong.
"This… this has to be fake! Impossible! That thing was the Gilded Fang Merchant Guild's greatest creation, nurtured with countless vengeful souls!" Shaco shook his head wildly, refusing to accept what his eyes saw.
The other assassins looked equally grim. Their gazes turned toward Aven in the distance, who wore only a mocking smile, and a chill crept into their hearts.
"Finish it. Nidoking, use Poison Jab!"
Upon hearing Aven's command, the spikes along Nidoking's back shimmered with violet light.
His poisonous energy surged into his fist, which he hurled with full might straight into the Spiritomb floating in midair.
Boom!
The strike landed with devastating force.
Without its Odd Keystone, Spiritomb was like armor stripped away. Under Nidoking's blow, its body exploded apart instantly.
The mysterious matter that composed Spiritomb's form burst like scattered cotton, countless green lights flickering across the sky like stars scattered in the night.
"Did… did it lose?" The assassins' eyes widened, staring blankly at the shattered Spiritomb.
They had believed victory was certain as long as Spiritomb stood. Now, faced with this result, they were utterly unwilling to accept it. Their faces twisted in disbelief.
"Impossible! Impossible—it cannot have been defeated!" Shaco's scream was hysterical, as though his mind were shattering.
"The battle is over."
Aven finally let out a slow breath.
But just as his words fell, Ralts suddenly cried out in alarm.
The fragments of green light drifting in the sky suddenly froze, and then vast amounts of Spiritomb's substance rushed toward them, swirling together.
The green lights condensed, forming a twisting, shifting silhouette in the air, ever-changing in shape.
The pink mist that made up Spiritomb's body rolled and surged, enfolding the green lights. Within, vague struggling shadows could be seen.
"What is this…?"
"Could those green lights… be individual souls?"
"Or perhaps… vengeful spirits? All the souls Spiritomb had absorbed into its body?"
Aven's expression turned grave. According to legend, Spiritomb was formed from the gathering of 108 souls.
Now, it seemed that the spirits bound within its body were in chaos, each one struggling to break free!
The pink mist writhed more violently, surging toward Nidoking like a tidal wave.
But Nidoking, having spent all his strength, was left in a state of exhaustion. Just as the attack was about to strike—
A beam of red light shot forth.
It wrapped around Nidoking's body, instantly turning him into red energy before pulling him back into the Poké Ball on Aven's belt.
"Nidoking, you've done well. Rest now." Aven whispered gently to the Poké Ball before clipping it back onto his belt.
Then, his eyes turned toward the raging cluster of vengeful spirits. With all restraints shattered, Spiritomb was now radiating an even more overwhelming power.
The pink mist expanded outward in all directions. From it, countless massive spectral hands emerged, clawing toward every living being nearby.
"Caaww! Caawww! Caawww!"
Shaco's Murkrow, alarmed, immediately flew in front of its master.
It beat its wings furiously, releasing a storm of razor-sharp wind blades that sliced into the mist.
Boom!
The gusts tore apart the pink fog, scattering it into pieces.
But the fragments only reformed instantly, surging forward again with relentless force.
Give me… your souls…
A dreadful wailing voice echoed out from within the mist, accompanied by the faint sound of wrathful howling.
The assassins shuddered, fear making them retreat involuntarily.
But Shaco, regaining his senses, revealed a look of twisted joy.
Even if Spiritomb looked unstable, as long as it was still alive, their assassination plan had not failed.
'Yes, kill them all! Destroy everything!'
"Spiritomb's souls… they've gone out of control?"
"No one can even tell what state it's in now…"
Aven's face hardened. A vacant Poké Ball appeared in his hand. After a moment's hesitation, he hurled it toward Spiritomb.
The ball traced a curve through the air before striking the raging Spiritomb. Red light burst forth, engulfing its enormous form.
Despite its now-massive size, once wrapped in the light, Spiritomb's body rapidly shrank until it was completely absorbed into the Poké Ball.
Thud, thud, thud~
The Poké Ball landed on the ground, rocking gently.
Under the disbelieving stares of everyone present, it finally stilled. The red glow on its button faded, leaving it lying quietly on the grass.
(End of Chapter)