Flames continued to burn fiercely across the battlefield.
The two Infernapes were still locked in combat, completely ignoring the sudden arrival of the uninvited guests nearby.
"RHYYY!"
Rhydon watching from the side had its eyes shining with excitement, itching to join the fight.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Both Infernapes were unleashing blazing Fire Punches.
Their fists collided again and again, causing sparks of fire to burst outward. Low, muffled explosions echoed repeatedly in the area.
Punch after punch flew without pause. Before long, both Infernapes were wreathed in flames from head to toe—the manifestation of their Blaze ability!
At this stage, their stamina had clearly reached the limit. With a resounding explosion, both figures were blasted backward at the same time.
They struggled to rise, but in the end, both collapsed back onto the ground, completely losing their ability to battle.
"FEEER~!"
Seeing the battle come to an end, the Infernape leader stepped forward and announced the final outcome of the duel.
Then its gaze shifted toward Aven standing among the watchers. Its fists ignited with fire as a powerful aura erupted from its body, pressing down fiercely on Aven.
Now that its clan's internal battle had concluded, it intended to drive away Aven and his group of Pokémon.
"Lilli~!"
Sensing the threatening aura bursting from the Infernape, Lilligant immediately stepped forward.
In an instant, a King-level pressure spread from her body, effortlessly dispelling the Infernape's own oppressive aura.
At the same time, Froslass and Gardevoir also stepped forward, and the three King-level presences merged into one overwhelming force, pressing down upon every Pokémon present!
"Feerr!"
The Infernape's face showed clear surprise—it had not expected the visitors to possess such overwhelming strength.
Yet even so, it showed no sign of backing down. Energy surged wildly through its body as it prepared to burst into action at any moment.
"A surprisingly battle-hungry one…" Aven narrowed his eyes, immediately understanding why this particular Infernape tribe had grown so strong. For Pokémon, battles were the best way to raise their level and hone their strength.
"RHYYY!"
Seeing the Infernape's movement, Rhydon immediately stepped forward.
Its battle intent had already been ignited to the peak. There was no way it would miss this opportunity—it charged straight ahead.
Flames blazed across Rhydon's body, and faint streams of magma began to flow across its rocky skin.
"FEEER!"
When the Infernape first saw Rhydon step out, it had looked down on it.
But upon noticing the molten lava flowing across Rhydon's body, its expression changed—it could clearly feel the intense heat radiating from Rhydon!
As the fight began, Rhydon wasted no time unleashing Flamethrower—a thick column of fire surged directly toward Infernape.
Seeing this, Infernape also launched a Flamethrower. The two streams of fire collided midair!
After a brief struggle, the flames were pushed back toward Rhydon—when it came to pure Fire-type power, Rhydon naturally could not match the Fire-type Infernape.
"RHYYY!"
Realizing this, Rhydon ceased its Flamethrower and charged forward.
Energy condensed around its fist, and as it delivered a punch, a shockwave formed at its knuckles, dispersing Infernape's flames instantly!
Rhydon continued rushing forward, its speed unrelenting. The very air distorted around its fist—this was the Heat Crash, where Rhydon condensed extreme heat and crushing force into a single blow.
"FEEEEER!"
Seeing Rhydon charge straight at it, the Infernape's eyes lit up with excitement.
Compared to long-range fire exchanges, it preferred close-range, hand-to-hand combat.
Flames erupted around its fists as it welcomed the challenge head-on.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The two Pokémon collided fiercely, fist against fist, flames exploding around them.
Watching this, Lilligant and the others clenched their fists slightly, concern in their eyes. After all, Rhydon's current strength was only at the quasi-King level.
But the very next moment, their expressions shifted to shock.
In direct combat, Rhydon was not falling behind at all—in fact, it faintly seemed to be suppressing Infernape!
"Feerr?!"
Infernape was just as shocked.
It could clearly feel that the opponent's strength was no weaker than its own.
Moreover, when its fists clashed with Rhydon's, it felt an invisible pressure weighing down on it, subtly slowing its punches!
"As expected… Rhydon is already capable of contending with King-level opponents." Aven narrowed his eyes slightly.
After countless rounds of training under extreme heat and extreme pressure, Rhydon's physique was strong enough to rival King-class Pokémon.
With the addition of its highly developed Heat Crash move, Rhydon now had the qualifications to stand against a King-class foe.
However, this could only last for a short time—Rhydon was currently burning all its strength at once, and as the battle continued, its power began to decline.
It still lacked full mastery over high temperature and crushing force; the move Heat Crash consumed too much stamina and energy.
As their clash dragged on, the magma flowing from Rhydon dripped heavily onto the ground. Its fire and ground-type energies rapidly weakened… until they finally shattered.
(TN: If you guys are confused about the talk about Heat this and pressure this, it's because the move Heat Crash when translated to Chinese means High temperature and heavy pressure.)
"It still isn't enough. Heat Crash have already touched the level of elemental rules." Aven shook his head slightly.
Heat Crash was a deep application of fire energy, while crushing force was an advanced usage of ground energy. Rhydon's control over them remained too shallow.
BOOM!
With a tremendous crash, Rhydon was struck and sent flying backward.
On the opposite side, Infernape was gasping heavily, clearly exhausted as well. Yet there was a satisfied smile on its face—this battle had thrilled it. It had not encountered such an enjoyable opponent in a long time.
"Lilligant, please treat them," Aven said.
"Lilli~"
Lilligant nodded. With a wave of her hand, she gathered the natural life force of the environment.
The life energy wrapped around both Rhydon and the Infernapes, healing their injuries.
"Feerr…"
Feeling the sudden energy around its body, the Infernape tensed up.
Instinctively, it wanted to resist, but the healing energy sank into its body before it could react.
A soothing warmth spread through it—injuries that normally required a long time to heal recovered instantly.
"Feerr!"
The Infernape stood up, stunned as it inspected its fully healed body.
It clenched its fists—other than the energy it had burned during battle, its condition was practically perfect again. It could even fight another full battle immediately!
Realizing this, its gaze locked straight onto Lilligant, who radiated with life energy, an unusual gleam flashing in its eyes.
If she stayed by its side and healed it constantly… wouldn't that mean it could battle endlessly without any fear of injury?
Its expression brightened—should it try? With itself and its tribe, there was a real chance they could succeed!
"Garde~ voir!"
Just as the Infernape's thoughts drifted in a dangerous direction, Gardevoir stepped forward protectively in front of Lilligant.
She raised her hand and pressed downward lightly in the air—an overwhelming psychic pressure slammed onto Infernape.
Its whole body trembled. It felt as if a massive boulder had dropped onto its back, making movement difficult.
Shocked, it looked up—how could this Gardevoir be so strong? A mere gesture had suppressed it completely.
"Garde~ voir~"
Gardevoir turned back and calmly explained to Lilligant and Froslass what she sensed.
"Lass…"
Froslass's face immediately turned cold, ghostly energy leaking from her body.
This Infernape dared to think about Lilligant? Unforgivable.
She raised her hand, forming a ghostly energy sphere, ready to teach Infernape a lesson.
"Feerr…"
Cold sweat dripped down the Infernape's face.
Meeting Lilligant's gaze, it suddenly felt weak all over—its stamina was dropping rapidly!
What was going on?!
Aside from Rhydon, why did it feel as though everyone here was stronger than it?
"All right, everyone, relax." Aven finally spoke.
He stepped forward slowly, looking the Infernape leader in the eyes.
"As you've seen, Lilligant can rapidly heal injuries."
"So—how about coming with me? That way, you can enjoy endless battles without worry… and I can help you grow even stronger."
As a trained Pokémon Breeder, he could clearly read the thoughts that had flashed through Infernape's mind. He was extremely familiar with these battle-loving species.
Sure enough, Infernape's expression wavered. Its gaze swept through the group before stopping on Lilligant.
"Lilli~"
Lilligant let out a relieved sigh—it turned out this monkey simply loved fighting.
"Garde~ voir~"
Gardevoir blinked, then observed Infernape's emotions again and nodded gently—it was indeed the case.
"Lass…"
Froslass shrugged. She had seen many battle-crazy Pokémon before—Rhydon, Luxray, and now this one.
All of them turned their attention to Infernape, waiting for its decision.
"Feerr…"
Infernape looked back at its companions, hesitation in its eyes.
Meteor City had long wanted to recruit the Infernape tribe, promising them many benefits, yet they had always refused.
But now… thinking back to the man's words, the idea of battling without fear, without restraint… it was too tempting!
"It seems my earlier words worked." Aven smiled.
As a breeder, he knew exactly how to speak to a Pokémon like Infernape.
Then he brought out his second trump card—he had brought a large supply of high-quality Pokémon food to Meteor City.
The moment he opened the container, a rich aroma wafted through the air, immediately capturing the Infernapes' attention.
Aside from battling, food was the only other thing that could draw their interest—especially food specifically formulated for Fire-type Pokémon.
"Don't worry. Even if you choose to follow me, you'll still have complete freedom," Aven continued.
"You and your tribe can migrate to my Safari Zone or any Pokémon Breeding Grounds in my domain. I will provide a safe home and abundant food."
"All I ask is that when the time comes, you fight for me and help defend against our enemies."
Once the moment felt right, Aven took a deep breath and spoke to the food-eating Infernapes. Gardevoir supported him by activating Telepathy.
With telepathy, she projected Aven's true emotions and memories directly into Infernape's heart.
Infernape's mind was suddenly filled with the scenes of the battles at the front-line fortress—the image of Aven standing alone against the Abyssal Beast Horde.
Before it could recover, the vision shifted—it saw various battlefields where Lilligant, Froslass, Rhydon, and Gardevoir fought with overwhelming strength.
Then—another figure appeared.
Darkrai.
Its sinister aura made the Infernape's entire body tremble—it felt no courage whatsoever before that terrifying being. They were on completely different levels.
But then Aven appeared again, and beside him stood Azelf, calmly obeying his commands in a fierce battle.
Gardevoir projected the full memory of Aven commanding Azelf and confronting Darkrai—completely stunning Infernape.
Slowly, Infernape opened its eyes again. The way it looked at Aven had completely changed—full of admiration.
After seeing battle after battle, especially the final scene of Aven sealing Darkrai, the Infernape had been utterly convinced.
(End of Chapter)