At this moment, Rayquaza slowly opened its eyes.
Those were vertical pupils like molten gold, ancient and imposing.
The instant those eyes locked onto her, Cynthia felt like she could no longer breathe.
Her soul trembled deep within, not from fear, but from an indescribable, almost instinctive awe, and even more so from the excitement of finally seeing this legendary being she had dreamed of for so long!
She had finally seen it. The real Rayquaza! Not an image, not a written record, but a living, breathing existence!
But right now, she knew Sootopolis City was facing destruction. This wasn't the time to dwell on such thoughts.
Cynthia immediately took a deep breath and pressed the interact button, speaking to the dark green figure before her, "Rayquaza! Although we've never met, I know of your existence.
The Hoenn region needs your power right now! Groudon and Kyogre are battling in Sootopolis City, and if this continues, the entire region will be destroyed! Please help us! I'm begging you!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, Cynthia suddenly felt nervous.
She didn't know if the Rayquaza in the game would be willing to help humanity and save the world from disaster, just like the one in her memories.
She unconsciously held her breath again.
However, Rayquaza's gaze fell upon Cynthia's character. In those golden pupils, faint light seemed to flow, as if sensing something.
A moment later, it raised its head and let out a long, piercing dragon roar that penetrated the clouds!
The roar was like an invisible ripple, dispersing the cloud layer at the top of the Sky Pillar.
Even the chaotic weather phenomena in the distance seemed to pause for a moment.
When the dragon's cry ceased, Rayquaza lowered its head.
Its massive body bent slightly forward, bringing its green-scaled head close to Cynthia's character, and let out another low but unquestionable roar.
Cynthia froze.
What... did that mean?
She stared at the emerald head so close on the screen, and an incredible thought emerged.
Could it be... it wanted her to... get on?
Cynthia was completely stunned.
As a Champion, she often stood on Garchomp's back while traveling, and had ridden various Flying-type Pokémon across the sky or Water-types across the ocean.
But now, she was facing a legendary dragon of the sky, the Rayquaza she had pursued her entire life, a symbol of power and salvation!
Even though this was just a game, the moment of being acknowledged by the legend itself still made Cynthia's mind go blank for an instant.
Her heart pounded so fast it felt like it would leap out of her chest.
Just then, Rayquaza let out another urging, low growl.
Its head lowered even further, almost touching the platform's ground, as if afraid Cynthia wouldn't understand its intent.
There was no time to hesitate!
Cynthia took a deep breath and pressed the keys, making her character leap forward and land steadily on Rayquaza's broad neck.
The spot seemed more stable than it looked, with smooth scales.
Even through the screen, Cynthia could almost feel the terrifying power contained beneath, power capable of tearing through the sky itself.
The moment she settled, Rayquaza's long body suddenly tensed!
BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!
The sound of sonic booms erupted!
A green meteor shot skyward from the top of the Sky Pillar, charging straight toward the chaotic heavens!
The speed had reached its peak. The intense sense of acceleration made even Cynthia, sitting in front of her screen, instinctively lean back in her chair.
The wind in her ears transformed into a sharp whistle. Below, Pacifidlog Town and the vast ocean were instantly left far behind, becoming blurred patches of color.
That speed… it's unbelievable!!
The game screen then switched to an incredibly stunning first-person POV cutscene.
Cynthia's viewpoint merged with her character's, firmly fixed on Rayquaza's back, as if she truly was soaring through the sky on Rayquaza's back.
The scenery before her eyes flowed past at fast-forward speed.
She could even see the fierce wind tearing at her character's long hair, and then Rayquaza's body became surrounded by a pale green barrier that blocked out the violent airflow.
They charged straight into that bizarre sky region, half violent storm, half scorching sun.
Lightning exploded around them, thunder deafening.
Fat raindrops hammered against the barrier with crackling sounds, while on the other side blazed sunlight that could penetrate anything.
This apocalyptic scene, presented in such a direct and immersive perspective, had ten times the impact on Cynthia compared to watching from afar!
Rayquaza navigated through this chaos as if through empty air. No harsh weather could slow it down in the slightest.
Its speed didn't decrease at all, its target clear: Sootopolis City!
In just a few breaths, that hellish sea region appeared on the horizon.
Even from this great distance, she could see explosive bursts of light from the violent collision of blue and red energy.
Rayquaza let out another earth-shattering roar, filled with an authority that tolerated no challenge, as if announcing the return of the Sky King!
It dove sharply downward. As it approached Sootopolis City, its speed suddenly decreased.
A gentle force lifted Cynthia's character and smoothly set her down on a relatively intact high ground near the shore.
The viewpoint instantly switched to a grand, frontal perspective cutscene covering the entire battlefield.
Sootopolis City at this moment was a tragic sight. More than half the city's buildings had turned to ruins, either swallowed by tsunamis or melted by lava.
The island trembled violently, covered in massive cracks, as if it would completely disintegrate at any moment.
At the center of the battlefield, the battle between Groudon and Kyogre had indeed reached its white-hot final stage!
Groudon stood upon the continuously expanding newborn landmass.
The fire on its back blazed brilliantly, condensing into a massive lava sphere that blotted out the sky.
Across from it, Kyogre floated atop towering waves.
The blue markings on its chest bloomed with profound light as endless seawater compressed before it into a high-pressure energy water cannon capable of piercing through anything!
Both ancient Pokémon had gathered their most powerful forces, preparing for a final clash!
If this strike connected, the resulting energy storm would absolutely erase the weakened Sootopolis City, and even the surrounding sea region, from the map entirely!
Even Steven, watching from afar, showed despair on his face.
At this critical moment!
Not far away, Rayquaza moved!
Its green form transformed into a straight beam of light.
At a speed beyond visual tracking, it boldly charged into the core area where the two legendary Pokémon's powers intertwined!
It didn't use any fancy techniques. Green light simply erupted brilliantly around its body, forming a massive dragon-shaped energy phantom!
"BOOM!!!!"
The lava and water cannon erupted almost simultaneously, but their targets were no longer each other.
Instead, they struck the suddenly intervening Rayquaza in unison!
However, the two forces capable of destroying the world collided with the green energy field around Rayquaza and seemed to hit an iron wall.
What followed was not a destructive shockwave, but the violent obliteration of turbulent energy itself.
Rayquaza raised its head and roared at the center of the explosion, its voice carrying a trace of provoked fury.
It spiraled upward, its golden pupils coldly looking down at Groudon and Kyogre below.
In that moment, its long body suddenly twisted in the air, transforming into a brilliant beam of light shooting skyward, then came crashing down!!
Its speed had reached a level almost impossible for the naked eye to track.
Its entire body became a green flash that tore through space itself, like divine punishment, slamming viciously into Groudon!
Groudon's hard shell, capable of withstanding lava's burning heat, shattered like fragile glass under Rayquaza's impact.
It let out a pained wail, and its massive body was directly knocked flying, crashing heavily into the distant sea and raising towering waves!
Immediately after, Rayquaza didn't pause. Drawing a beautiful arc in the air, it accelerated again, charging toward Kyogre!
Kyogre tried to gather intense water streams to counterattack, but its energy beam seemed impossibly slow before Rayquaza's absolute speed and power.
Before it could even prepare, green light flashed past. Kyogre was also struck hard, letting out a mournful cry before falling from the air and crashing into the waves.
Rayquaza hovered in midair, looking down at the two legendary Pokémon struggling to rise below.
It didn't continue attacking, but the authority that stood above all else had already begun suppressing Groudon and Kyogre's ferocity.
It let out another long, intimidating dragon roar, as if announcing the end of their conflict.
However, Groudon and Kyogre's fury didn't seem to cease. They once again mustered all their strength, launching a new round of attacks at Rayquaza.
The battle began anew. Only this time, it had transformed into the powers of land and sea jointly confronting the sky!
But Rayquaza's power seemed far beyond that of the other two legendary Pokémon.
While dodging or tanking the attacks of both legendary Pokémon with agile movements, it struck again and again, severely wounding them both!
As time passed second by second through the intense battle, Groudon and Kyogre, fighting two against one, were the first to reach their limit! Covered in wounds, they exchanged glances.
In their eyes, that primal rage was finally replaced by fear. They let out low growls, seemingly reaching some kind of understanding.
Groudon slowly sank into the seabed, while Kyogre turned and began swimming toward the ocean depths.
The terrifying pressure that had filled heaven and earth rapidly dissipated with their departure.
The dark clouds in the sky began to scatter. The rainstorm ceased, and the scorching sun returned to gentle warmth.
Sunlight, like a golden curtain, pierced through the gradually thinning clouds and fell upon the gradually calming sea surface, reflecting glittering traces of light.
It also fell upon Rayquaza's imposing green body, gilding it with a sacred halo.
Between heaven and earth, tranquility was finally restored.
Cynthia stared blankly at this scene on the screen, the tremendous waves in her heart unable to settle for a long time.
Was this Rayquaza's power?
With its own strength alone, it had easily crushed two ancient Pokémon capable of world destruction!
This kind of power had already transcended the realm of ordinary legendary Pokémon. This belonged to the domain of "gods"!
Was this the pinnacle of power she had always pursued?
Power that could turn the tide, quell disasters, and protect everything...
Cynthia's eyes suddenly grew moist, both for the peace after this disaster and for the childhood aspiration planted within her that she had now witnessed with her own eyes.
But Cynthia was still Cynthia. Even facing such intense emotional impact, she quickly reached out and gently wiped away the not-yet-formed tears at the corners of her eyes.
Her gaze became incredibly determined and burning.
I... must possess power as strong as his!
It doesn't need to be exactly the same, but it must be strong enough!
Strong enough to face any challenge, strong enough to crush any conspiracy, strong enough to protect everyone and everything I want to protect!
However, just as her emotions surged and she thought everything would end here, that the game would display a prompt indicating this storyline segment had concluded, a sudden change occurred!
On the screen, the background music that had just become grand and peaceful suddenly shifted, becoming urgent, sinister, filled with an ominous premonition!
In the sky that had just cleared, without any warning, a massive cavity tore open!
The edges of the cavity flickered with twisted, irregular light, while its interior was unfathomably dark.
Cynthia's gaze sharpened!
This hole... was an Ultra Wormhole!
She had already seen it twice before in the game's storyline, but the one before her eyes was more than ten times larger!!
Moreover, the aura emanating from this Ultra Wormhole was no longer mysterious and profound, but pure, heart-palpitating malice and destructive intent!
Even through the screen, watching the deep black light beginning to gather, churn, and about to erupt from the center of that Ultra Wormhole, Cynthia once again felt a sense of suffocation.
An ominous premonition suddenly gripped her heart.
Why would an Ultra Wormhole appear at this critical juncture?
Rayquaza clearly noticed this sudden anomaly as well. It immediately turned, facing the massive hole in the sky, and let out a warning growl. I
ts body re-entered combat stance, green light blazing around it.
The next moment, the black light from the Ultra Wormhole reached its peak and suddenly exploded!
In this darkness that devoured everything, an incomparably massive, menacing shadow slowly emerged partway from the hole!
Was it an Ultra Beast?
Or another legendary Pokémon?!
Cynthia held her breath, her heart in her throat, her fingers pressed tightly on the keyboard, wanting to see the shadow's full form clearly, wanting to know what this thing actually was!
But just at this most tense, most suffocating moment...
The screen suddenly went black!
Immediately after, a line of white system notification text abruptly popped up:
[Game Notice: Dear player, the current version's content update has concluded. Please stay tuned for future updates. Thank you for your support!]
The game screen also came to an abrupt halt, switching back to the initial standby animation at the game's start: the Emerald logo.
Cynthia sat frozen in front of her computer, eyes still staring fixedly at the now-black screen, her brain momentarily unable to process what had happened.
The overwhelming tension and oppressive feeling were instantly drained away, replaced only by immediate bewilderment.
That's... it?
No way???
Are you kidding me???
Fine, stopping the update is one thing, but don't stop at the most critical moment!!
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