Seeing the scene unfold before him, Aven's expression changed instantly. His hands slowly clenched into fists. Only now did he truly understand why the Tentacruel and Tentacool earlier had sent out such desperate cries for help.
"Kir…"
Kirlia floated quietly in midair.
Right now, the horn on its head shimmered with light, and waves of despair, helplessness, and suffocating darkness poured into its mind.
This sea… how could it still be called a place full of life? To the Tentacruel and Tentacool, this was nothing short of an ocean of despair—practically a living hell!
Gradually, its own small fists tightened as well. A longing rose in its heart—an intense desire to help the Tentacruel and Tentacool suffering below.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
At that moment, explosions of water pressure suddenly burst upward from below.
The Dragalge lurking beneath the waves had clearly spotted the newcomers in the sky and launched their attacks.
Jets of water shot up from the sea like countless cannons, intertwining with one another to form massive spiraling columns of water.
Froslass reacted quickly. She once again unleashed a blizzard to defend—but this time the water cannons were far stronger, and even the blizzard couldn't fully block them.
When the Hydro Pump collided with the blizzard, a violent burst of energy detonated in midair. Water mixed with ice shards rained down in torrents.
At the same time, one Dragalge after another emerged from the sea among which were also many Skrelp.
"So many Dragalge…" Aven's expression hardened.
His gaze fell on one leading Dragalge among them. The moment he laid eyes on it, an oppressive aura pressed against him like a crushing weight.
"Kir!"
Kirlia's expression shifted. She, too, sensed it. That Dragalge leader… was actually a King-level Pokémon!
And beside the leader stood three other Dragalge, each emitting a powerful aura—every one of them at the Quasi-King level.
A King-tier and three Quasi-Kings, this Dragalge tribe was strong enough to be considered an apex predator group even in the endless sea!
"Lass!"
Froslass floated beside Aven, her expression full of worry.
Even though she and Lilligant were both King-level, this place was still the ocean. Their combat power was greatly reduced here, while the Dragalge's power was amplified. The gap between them had reversed drastically.
Even a single King-level Dragalge, paired with three Quasi-Kings, could stand on equal footing with them—let alone the entire Dragalge tribe surrounding them.
Now, what lay before them was a difficult, almost impossible choice: Should they save the Tentacruel and Tentacool below… or not?
"Kir!"
Kirlia looked at Aven, her face clearly conflicted.
She wanted to save them. But at the same time, she didn't want to drag Aven or her companions into danger.
Aven let silence linger for several seconds before he finally nodded firmly.
"We're saving them. Of course we're saving them."
Whether for Tentacruel's sake, or for his own identity as a Pokémon Breeder, he had no reason to abandon these Tentacruel and Tentacool to die.
Kirlia froze, then looked at Aven. Determination slowly filled her eyes.
Lilligant and Froslass exchanged a glance. Their expressions turned helpless, yet understanding.
Of course, Aven made this choice. This was the Aven they knew—always the one who cared the most about Pokémon.
Since the decision was made, there was no turning back. Their bodies surged with energy.
If battle was inevitable… then they would fight!
"Lilligant, in a moment, you and Mothim will handle the King-level Dragalge," Aven ordered.
"Lilli!"
Lilligant nodded without hesitation.
Mothim fluttered over and positioned itself behind her like a pair of wings.
Natural energy swirled around both of them as they accelerated downward toward the Dragalge.
In midair, Lilligant gathered life energy in her hands. The surrounding vitality flowed to her, forming a massive energy sphere, which she hurled downward toward the Dragalge.
"DRAAA!"
The Dragalge leader's pupils shrank.
Its mouth opened and water-type energy swirled outward, forming a spinning sphere of Water Pulse, which shot upward to intercept.
BOOM!
The attacks collided.
A moment later, the green energy sphere crushed straight through the Water Pulse and continued downward.
The green sphere struck the sea surface with an earth-shattering blast. Waves collapsed downward, the entire sea surface caving in as water exploded outward. Dragalge were forced back, staring at Lilligant with fear.
"DRA!"
After the waters settled, Dragalge resurfaced, looking thoroughly battered.
It had been too confident, thinking it didn't need to dodge. By the time its Water Pulse was broken, it was far too late.
Even though it dove underwater at the last moment and avoided a fatal hit, the explosive energy still badly injured it.
Lilligant floated above, confidence glowing in her eyes.
Not only had she mastered life energy and grass energy more deeply after breaking through, her overall power had skyrocketed.
Green light flickered around her once more. Thick vines burst forth, lashing downward in countless heavy strikes.
Below, the Dragalge slammed its tail against the sea, conjuring a massive waterspout that spiraled upward—a water tornado crashing into the vines.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The vines whipped the tornado apart piece by piece.
Behind Lilligant, Mothim beat its wings, lifting her higher as radiant green light gathered at the flower on her head. Soft white light mixed in, intertwining continuously.
Realizing the incoming threat, the Dragalge leader immediately dove into the depths of the ocean.
Lilligant's Solar Beam finished charging.
Her eyes locked onto Dragalge's presence through life energy perception.
A pillar of light erupted downward like a lance of judgment, tearing the sea apart as it shot straight toward Dragalge. A gigantic hole opened in the sea as the beam pierced through, seawater pouring downward in a massive whirlpool.
"Draaa!"
Seeing their leader under pressure, the three Quasi-King Dragalge panicked and attempted to rush in to help—
Only to freeze instantly.
An overwhelming coldness descended from above, freezing the surrounding water into a sheet of ice.
"Lass~!"
Froslass drifted down, blocking the three Dragalge.
She radiated terrifying frost power—not using ghost-type moves this time. Against dragons, ice-type attacks were naturally super-effective.
"DRAAA!"
The three Dragalge roared, their poisons merging together as one massive toxic blast.
Froslass didn't flinch. She raised her hand, unleashing another blizzard that froze the poison midair and pushed forward into the Dragalge.
"You're doing great, Lilligant, Froslass," Aven said approvingly.
Their strength had long surpassed ordinary King-level Pokémon. Even at sea, they could still suppress these Dragalge.
Of course, Aven knew they couldn't finish the Dragalge off quickly.
The sea environment naturally shielded Dragalge from damage. Even Lilligant's Solar Beam failed to deal heavy damage.
Dragalge's Dragon/Poison typing gave it a four-times resistance to Grass—while the ocean gave it even more protection.
Froslass had the advantage of type, but the three Quasi-Kings refused to fight her head-on, choosing evasive tactics instead.
"Buying time is enough. Now we save the Tentacruel and Tentacool."
Aven turned toward the distant sea.
Because of the ongoing battle among the Kings, most Dragalge had pulled back. The Tentacruel and Tentacool had successfully regrouped in the distance.
Their red gemstones flashed as they communicated via ultrasonic waves. Though confused about what was happening, they could sense faintly… that this might be a chance to escape.
But the Dragalge circling them had clearly anticipated this. They spread out, forming a loose barrier to ensure none of the jellyfish escaped.
After all, they had spent over a month herding this massive group of prey—they would not let their "food supply" slip away.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Guys, starting at this point, chapters are shorter now, I think most of them are just 1000 – 1200 words and I think the story will probably end next month or so.