Each explosion turned a cluster of souls into bubbles that popped away. Just as everyone started to hope they might clear the obstacle, the black shadow suddenly moved again. It seemed enraged by the assault from Gardevoir and Porygon Z, and even the music that filled the cave shifted, becoming charged with anger.
People say music can express emotions, and today that proved true. The black shadow's fury was channeled through the music, which echoed throughout the entire cave, lingering and hard to shake off. "Is this because they're so angry?" Satotz muttered to himself, sensing that the change in music was more than just a simple shift.
Last time the music changed suddenly, the souls had attacked them. So what did this new change mean?
"Wait, is that?" Larry suddenly looked up toward the cave's ceiling as countless souls swarmed together toward a central point, moving frantically.
Souls of all shapes and sizes twisted and merged together under the influence of the music, as if they were melting and fusing into one. Like a giant robot transforming, these souls combined one after another, quickly forming a massive, unified soul.
The energy radiating from this giant soul kept growing, a clear sign of the immense power gathered within. Not only was its aura terrifying, but its appearance was equally frightening. Calling it a robot transformation would be an understatement.
Instead, it looked more like a stitched-together monster, an abomination, much like those seen in certain games. Its head resembled that of a snake, its body looked like a ground dragon's, and its limbs were formed from unknown creatures.
The rough assembly suggested at least a dozen different beings fused into one. We can only imagine how strong it must be, but even just its presence was enough to intimidate.
But the giant soul's strength didn't stop there. In front of it, a huge green light began to gather, starting as a tiny orb and quickly growing into a massive beam.
"Can it really shoot beams?" Larry wondered, intrigued by this soul's abilities. He hadn't expected it to retain such an attack even after the fusion.
The beam was clearly made of pure soul energy. As it formed, the giant soul itself seemed to shrink slightly. No one dared to get close to that beam, who knew what damage it could cause? Touching it might even mean instant annihilation for a soul.
These attacks were designed specifically to target souls. Even trained bodies couldn't stand up to them, and the mind likely offered little defense. After all, the mind is tied closely to the body, the breath of life itself, so it wouldn't fare well against attacks aimed solely at the soul.
Just as the faint green soul beam was launched, it was suddenly intercepted mid-air by another attack. A dark wave, as deep and endless as a midnight sea, surged forward like thick ink.
This wave was darker than the concept of death itself, the ultimate darkness. It resembled a black hole, swallowing everything without mercy. The moment the soul beam touched this dark wave, it shattered into nothing.
The beam, as bright as green glass, was gradually swallowed bit by bit by the black hole. The massive soul beam soon vanished into the waves without leaving a trace. This is dark move, Dark Pulse.
The wave kept attacking relentlessly from behind, its strength undiminished. When the giant soul was struck by the Evil Wave, it melted away quickly, like snow disappearing under the sun. After a few moments, the huge stitched-together monstrous soul suddenly dissolved, turning into a bubble that drifted and disappeared between heaven and earth.
A terrifying figure then appeared before everyone, radiating an overwhelming aura of darkness. "Roar!!" The Hydreigon let out a sudden, powerful roar, just a casual shout that felt like a skill unleashed with a deafening sound.
The thick smoke and dust ahead immediately rolled back. If the haunting echoes of the Dark Sonata still lingered in the cave, by now only the presence of the Hydreigon remained.
This was the breath of the Lord of Darkness itself. Anyone facing this overwhelming aura would feel their spirit shatter, losing all will to fight and being consumed only by endless fear.
Despite this, the shadow refused to give up, desperately playing the music once more. The remaining souls tried to repeat their earlier attack. But neither the Hydreigon nor Gardevoir or Porygon Z would allow that chance.
The three Pokémon struck simultaneously, with the Hydreigon's roar making the most impact. Every attack shattered countless souls into fragments, which then faded away into thin air.
With this steady wave of attacks, the number of souls kept shrinking, while the Pokémon's experience steadily grew. These two Dark Sonatas brought in a huge amount of experience points. Without them, facing so many powerful enemies at once would probably require a journey all the way to the Dark Continent.
As two notifications sounded one after the other, Gardevoir and Porygon Z were both promoted to S-rank at the same time, leaping from A+ to S-level! Now, there were seven S-level Pokémon in total: Tyrannitar, Hydreigon, Gengar, Dragonite, Lucario, Gardevoir, and Porygon Z.
But even with all these powerful Pokémon, it wasn't enough to venture freely into the Dark Continent. In the past, three S-level fighters, Netero, Zigg, and Linne, had explored the Dark Continent together but were forced to retreat after only a preliminary investigation. Over the years, the V5 has continued attempts to explore this mysterious and dangerous place, but it remains a challenge like no other.
In the end, not only did they fail to gain anything, but they also brought back disasters. The V5 Dark Continent Regulatory Bureau, must have sent out S-level hunter for their missions. Yet, the outcome was often death on the spot, and even surviving to return was a rare luxury.
So far, only two disasters had been encountered. The first was a desire-dependent body-gas lifeform called "Ai," dormant for an unknown period, which was luckily handled thanks to Gengar's unique ability. The second was the plant weapons he fought with Ging.
Though these were top-tier S-level threats, the area was just a small, ancient maze city, almost a rural outpost compared to the vast real ancient maze cities on the Dark Continent, which are many times larger and certainly filled with countless S-level danger.
And than othter known disaster exist the Botanical Weapon Brion, the Twin-tailed Snake Hellbell, the Human-plant Chimera Pap, and the Immortality Disease Zobaex. These five calamities are only those found near the six continents, but deeper into the Dark Continent, countless even more terrifying threats await.
Humans simply don't have the capability to explore far inside; these few disasters just beyond the border have already stopped them at the doorstep. No one knows what kind of treasure or how terrifying the disasters lie ahead.