The Dragonite neither dodged nor evaded, but charged straight ahead with Dragon Rush to collide with the opponent's Hyper Beam, splitting it like a forked stream of urine...
Salamence: Σ(°Д°;
It instinctively took a step back, and the split Hyper Beam struck the surrounding rocky walls.
A series of cracking sounds spread densely along the walls from top to bottom. Spiderweb-like fissures once again emerged on the ground.
This ancient temple which has long fallen into disrepair simply couldn't withstand such tremendous force. The earlier Flamethrower combined with this Dragon Rush was already extraordinary in power.
Add to that the Dragon Fang carried by Dragonite, which boosted its attack power by another 20%... together, the combined force sent Hunter J's Salamence crashing into the ground.
The already cracked floor suffered yet another severe impact, and the spiderweb-like fissures instantly spread beneath the feet of every human and Pokémon present.
The next second, the ground collapsed, and everyone plummeted downward, landing on the underground second level.
Caleb was protected by Lucario, with Terrence acting as a cushion, so he emerged completely unharmed.
In contrast, Hunter J on the opposite side was struck by a sharp rock, leaving her head bloodied and her face flushed red. Her Salamence had also fallen from above, landing right in front of her in a pitiful state.
Dragonite flapped its wings, slowly descending from the air and landing in front of Caleb, then cast a disdainful glance at the opposing Salamence.
Though it had withstood the Hyper Beam head-on, Dragonite wasn't as unscathed as it appeared. Its cheek had been scorched by the attack and was slightly swollen.
Caleb placed his hand over Dragonite's cheek and used his Viridian Power to heal its injuries.
This time, Hunter J finally panicked. Staring at the green glow in Caleb's hand, she shrieked, "The Viridian Power?! Just who are you?!"
A mere three-year-old, accompanied by a group of rare Pokémon, and wielding the Viridian Power…
No matter how slow Hunter J was, she now realized this child before her was far from the innocent and simple figure he appeared to be. Or, to put it another way… he wasn't a child at all!
Caleb grinned and proudly declared, "My name is Edogawa Conan!"
Hunter J had never heard of this name, but that didn't stop her from sensing a deathly aura that seemed to pierce through dimensions from that name.
Frowning, she asked, "What do you want?"
Caleb dropped the act, then shrugged as he replied bluntly, "Simple. Hand over the Pokémon you stole in Snowpoint City."
"Fine, take them." Hunter J agreed without hesitation.
She stood up, wiped the blood from her face, reached into her pocket, and pulled out an exquisitely crafted small orb, then hurled it toward Caleb.
*Boom!*
The next moment, the orb exploded mid-air, releasing a thick white smoke that instantly enveloped Caleb and the others.
Terrence covered his mouth and nose, and shouted incoherently, "It's a smoke bomb!"
"Dragonite, use Hurricane." Caleb ordered calmly.
"Wuuu!"
Dragonite flapped its wings, stirring up a gust of wind that dispersed the thick smoke obscuring their vision.
By the time their sight cleared, Hunter J had already vanished...
This time, before Caleb could speak, Terrence proactively pointed downward and said with practiced ease, "She went down. Should we follow?"
"Of course," Caleb nodded.
If they gave up now, catching Hunter J later would be far more difficult. Not to mention, the random event he had accepted only gave him two days. After that, Hunter J would leave Snowpoint City.
As they spoke, a series of explosions suddenly erupted from below. The sounds grew increasingly distant, as though moving deeper into the temple.
"No way…" Terrence widened his eyes in disbelief, "With just that Salamence, does she really think she can capture Regigigas?"
Caleb wasn't sure...
So far, he hadn't encountered any native legendary Pokémon in this Instance, the Articuno created by the Infinite World didn't count... Nor did he know just how powerful the long-slumbering Regigigas truly was.
But at this point, he wasn't about to abandon his side quest.
"Let's go down." As long as they didn't wake Regigigas, everything would be fine.
Caleb climbed onto Dragonite's back and flew downward through the holes blasted open by Hunter J.
Third underground level…
Fourth underground level…
Fifth underground level…
Beyond that lay the deepest part of Snowpoint Temple... the resting place of Regigigas.
"Salamence, use Hyper Beam!" Hunter J commanded her exhausted Salamence to attack the ground once more.
"Roar!"
Salamence opened its maw, gathering a white beam of energy before firing it straight at the floor.
Dragonite landed quietly behind Salamence.
Caleb stared at Hunter J and said, "Last chance. Hand over the stolen Pokémon."
"Never!" Hunter J clenched her teeth as she pulled out two more Poké Balls.
A Drapion and an Ariados materialized before her...
Seeing her expression, Caleb suddenly felt as though he were the villain, forcing an unreasonable demand.
Just then, Salamence broke through to the sixth underground level.
"Ariados, Drapion, hold them off!" Hunter J leaped onto Salamence's back and jumped into the hole.
Caleb frowned. Lucario and Mimikyu stepped forward, engaging Ariados and Drapion.
"Bro, leave these two to us! You go after that evil woman!" Terrence also dismounted from Dragonite, stepping between Lucario and Mimikyu.
Caleb nodded, then charged into the hole with Dragonite...
...
~Sixth Underground Level~
Compared to the upper levels, the space here was noticeably smaller.
The walls were covered in ancient murals depicting Regigigas creating its giant brethren from icebergs, magma, and boulders.
At the center, atop what resembled an altar, stood a towering humanoid figure over four meters tall.
Its massive white torso bore a yellow stripe-like structure down the center, dotted with seven holes arranged in the shape of the Big Dipper.
Lush green vegetation covered the top of its head and its feet, while three pairs of dim eye-like dots adorned the sides of its torso.
Hunter J stood between Regigigas's legs, turning back to glance at Caleb with a triumphant smirk, "Too late!"
As soon as she spoke, the six 'eyes' of Regigigas buzzed to life, their previously dull glow now shining in red, blue, and gray.
Regigigas had awakened...