Chapter 327: The Hippowdon Ancestor
In the center of the Ancestral Secret Realm.
This was a flat dune area, but it was surrounded by all kinds of Pokémon sand sculptures. Some were dozens of meters high, others as small as the palm of a hand. There were countless of them, filling the entire dune, a spectacular sight from a distance.
In the center of the dune, Bator and his Hippowdon stood quietly. Opposite them was an incomparably massive Hippowdon, its aura terrifying.
A normal Hippowdon is at most five meters long and just over two meters tall.
But this giant Hippowdon was a shocking three meters tall and over eight meters long. Its limbs were thick and powerful, like a prehistoric beast.
"Sand-heck... Sand-heck..."
This giant Hippowdon was currently teaching its junior how to improve its sand-control power. Bator's Hippowdon was listening with rapt attention, afraid to miss a single detail.
Bator looked at the giant Hippowdon, his eyes shining, lost in thought.
"Sand... heck..."
Suddenly, the giant Hippowdon seemed to sense something and turned its gaze toward the rain of sand in the distance.
"Ancestor, what is it?" Bator raised an eyebrow.
The Hippowdon before him was the Pokémon of their Roba Tribe's previous Chieftain, and also the most powerful being in the entire tribe—the Hippowdon Ancestor.
As the ruler of the Ancestral Secret Realm, the Hippowdon Ancestor had taken on the duty of guiding and teaching the tribe's elite descendants after the old Chieftain passed away, cultivating talent for the Roba Tribe.
Of course, the prerequisite was that the descendant must have a Sand Stream Hippopotas or Hippowdon.
The Hippowdon Ancestor couldn't be bothered to personally teach Pokémon of other species.
And the two trials they had just passed were set up by the Hippowdon Ancestor specifically to filter out the most outstanding descendants.
Non-Sandstorm Pokémon were destined to fail the first trial.
Non-Sand Stream Pokémon were destined to fail the second trial.
Only those who passed both trials had the chance to meet the Hippowdon Ancestor and listen to its teachings.
"It took me three days, but I finally passed the second trial!"
A voice of pleasant surprise rang out, and three figures—a mole, a monster, and a human—emerged from the sand rain.
"Basalt!" Bator recognized the newcomer.
"What a huge Hippowdon! The ruler of the secret realm?"
Basalt saw the Hippowdon Ancestor, and his gaze was instantly captivated.
That size... it had to be.
At that moment, the Hippowdon Ancestor also turned its gaze toward Basalt and his team. But after a moment of thought, the Ancestor shook its head and let out a few calls to Bator.
"Ancestor?"
Bator was stunned. The Hippowdon Ancestor's meaning was clear: Please ask Basalt and his team to leave.
As someone who had spent a long time with Hippowdon, although Bator couldn't understand its every nuance, he could get the general meaning.
"Sand-heck."
The Hippowdon Ancestor nodded. Bator had no choice but to relay the message.
"What? The Hippowdon is asking me to leave?"
Basalt's eyes went wide. "Brother Bator, why?"
He was completely baffled. I've come all this way, and now the Hippowdon Ancestor is telling me it doesn't welcome me? What's the meaning of this?
"Basalt, the inheritance of the first and second trials can be open to all. But the core inheritance of the third trial can only be learned by a Sand Stream Hippopotas or Hippowdon. This is the Ancestor's will. I can't do anything about it."
Bator threw up his hands, a helpless look on his face. He hadn't expected this either.
But deep down, he agreed with the Hippowdon Ancestor's actions. This was, after all, the Roba Tribe's ancestral inheritance. Basalt was an outsider; of course, he couldn't be allowed to obtain their core secrets. Otherwise, if the inheritance was leaked, it would be a huge disaster for the Roba Tribe.
"Alright... I understand."
Basalt nodded, his face full of bitterness.
Thinking about it, although it was unexpected, it was also reasonable.
Excadrill's face was also full of disappointment. It had been hoping to learn even more powerful techniques to quickly increase its strength.
"Yuji!" o(▼皿▼メ;)o
As for Larvitar, it was so angry its blood was boiling. It wanted to go right up to the Hippowdon Ancestor and "debate" the issue. It was a true case of a newborn calf not fearing a tiger. But it was ultimately held back by Excadrill.
"Brother Bator, I won't disturb your training, then. Please thank the Ancestor for me. Although I can't receive the core inheritance, I've still benefited greatly from the trials of the first two stages."
Basalt cupped his hands to Bator, then bowed to the Hippowdon Ancestor in thanks. He then pulled the struggling Larvitar and turned to walk back into the sand rain, his figure gradually disappearing.
Watching Larvitar's departing figure, the Hippowdon Ancestor let out a sigh.
The super-sandstorm of the first trial, the sand rain of the second... it was all controlled by the Hippowdon Ancestor, so it knew exactly how each Pokémon had performed.
This Larvitar's sand-control talent was, without a doubt, the strongest of the group. Even Bator's Hippowdon couldn't compare.
But alas... it was not of their tribe.
And Larvitar's appearance couldn't help but remind the Hippowdon Ancestor of a terrifying green figure—a figure that was its own personal nightmare.
All those years ago, the Hippowdon Ancestor had been utterly defeated.
"Sand-heck! Sand-heck!"
Shaking its head to clear its thoughts, the Hippowdon Ancestor turned its gaze to Bator and his Hippowdon, its expression serious.
"Ancestor, don't worry. My Hippowdon and I will work hard and surpass Basalt."
Bator clenched his fists, his face filled with the determination of a schoolboy. But in the next second, his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Once I've mastered the higher-level techniques from the Ancestor, and my Hippowdon is proficient, won't beating Basalt be a piece of cake?"
A smile appeared on Bator's face as he thought to himself, "Basalt must be so disappointed right now. But what's the use of being disappointed? It's your own fault for not being one of the Roba Tribe."
At this moment, a cunning glint flashed in Bator's eyes, a complete change from his usual self. "Basalt, just you wait. I will surpass you."
But then, thinking of Amuyar, Bator's brow furrowed again.
In previous years, it wasn't a guarantee that a "warrior" would appear, sometimes they'd go several years without one. But this year, two had appeared at once. This was not a good omen. More people meant the resources would be split, and each person would receive less.
...
"Huh? Basalt, why are you back?"
In the sand rain, Amuyar saw Basalt returning, his face full of confusion.
"Ran into a bit of a situation. I need to continue training in the sand rain," Basalt said with a smile, showing no sign of dejection. He then said with concern, "Amuyar, you'd better hurry up. Bator has already passed the second trial. He's a big step ahead of you."
"He has? Then I really need to work harder!"
Amuyar clenched his fists, his motivation instantly multiplying, completely missing the strangeness of Basalt's situation. But Amuyar had always been a simple-minded person; it would be a miracle if he had noticed.
Saying goodbye to Amuyar, Basalt returned to the buffer zone between the first and second trials and looked at his surroundings.
He let out a long breath, then immediately clenched his fists, his determination returning.
"You think I can't make it without your inheritance? You're thinking too highly of yourself!"
Basalt spat out his frustration. "I have plenty of my own ideas and directions for developing moves. So what if I have to develop them from scratch? So what if it takes more time? It's no big deal. One day, I will surpass all of you!"
"Dro-lisk!"
"Yuji!"
Hearing this, Excadrill and Larvitar also voiced their agreement.
Thirty years east, thirty years west. Don't look down on a young man's potential!
"Alright, that's enough complaining. Let's get back to work!"
Basalt patted Excadrill's and Larvitar's heads to comfort them. Both nodded and immediately re-entered their training state.
Although they had learned how to use "Sand Drizzle" and "Sand Shield" to pass the storm, they had only just grasped the basics. There was still a lot of room for improvement.
And because of the Hippowdon Ancestor, Larvitar was also holding in a belly full of anger. It no longer slacked off during training, and for the first time, it began to take it seriously from the bottom of its heart.
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