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Inside Oak's Laboratory, Ash thoroughly explained everything about MEGA Evolution to Professor Oak.
"So, to achieve MEGA Evolution, you need a MEGA Evolution it and a key stone—the two things you asked me to collect—plus a strong bond with your Pokémon. Is that right?" Professor Oak summarized Ash's explanation.
Ash nodded, giving Professor Oak a thumbs-up, indicating that his analysis was spot-on.
"Furthermore, this evolution reverts to its original form when a battle ends, energy is depleted, or the Pokémon loses its ability to fight. It's a system for temporary combat power boosts, but it's more lasting than Gigantamaxing," Professor Oak said, his surprise growing even deeper.
This new system Ash discovered was truly extraordinary!
Aside from boosting a Pokémon's strength and overall base stats during battle, this system could also provide incredibly significant support outside of combat.
For example, if a Pokémon was stuck at a bottleneck, simply using MEGA Evolution to experience a higher realm would make breaking through much easier for that Pokémon.
This was practically a walking cheat code!
For Pokémon capable of MEGA Evolution, the concept of bottlenecks wouldn't completely disappear, but compared to before, talent wouldn't be as crucial, unless the level reached an extremely high realm, such as the Elite level, where the effectiveness of MEGA Evolution for breaking through bottlenecks would slightly decrease.
Before reaching the Elite level, this method was like an external cheat, having an incredible effect on a Pokémon's strength improvement.
This single effect alone was enough for the MEGA Evolution system to completely overshadow the Gigantamaxing system.
Ash and Professor Oak discussed MEGA Evolution for almost an hour, as Professor Oak wanted to know how many types of Pokémon MEGA Evolution Ash already knew about, as well as methods for distinguishing the Stones.
However, Ash wasn't very knowledgeable about this. He might know some evolution types, but for distinguishing Stones, he could only rely on a Pokémon's sensitivity to them. The reason he was able to identify the type of it Professor Oak held from a distance before was entirely because he asked the experts in a group chat.
He couldn't recognize them himself.
Afterward, Ash also demonstrated Gardevoir's MEGA Evolution, but when he tried to perform Venusaur's MEGA Evolution, he was unsuccessful.
This wasn't because Ash and Venusaur's bond wasn't strong enough, but because the key stone Ash held had run out of energy!
Before confirming the key stone's true function, Professor Oak had mentioned that the key stone contained a considerable amount of life force, and this life force was capable of regeneration. The problem, however, was that ordinary methods couldn't extract this life force from the key stone.
So, the key stone was casually set aside, becoming a gem with only collection value.
Now, MEGA Evolution could unleash the key stone's full power, but the problem was that after one activation, the life force within the key stone was depleted.
To use it again, one would have to wait for the key stone to accumulate life force. Only when the life force reached a level suitable for a second activation could MEGA Evolution be performed again.
According to estimates, this recovery time would take about two hours, meaning it would certainly be impossible to perform a second MEGA Evolution in a single battle.
The principle of the Gigantamaxing Band was actually similar; Gigantamaxing could only be used once per battle, not due to a rule restriction, but because the energy within the Gigantamaxing Band would be completely consumed after one Gigantamaxing activation.
It typically required half a day to recover, or one could directly go to a charging station in the Galar Region for recharging.
The key stone was now the same. If it couldn't recover in a short amount of time, then unless you had two key stone, it would certainly be impossible to perform two MEGA Evolutions in one battle.
Since Ash had never tried consecutive MEGA Evolutions before, this was the first time even he discovered this.
"It seems MEGA Evolution can only be performed once per battle, but no matter what, MEGA Evolution combined with Gigantamaxing would definitely provide terrifying boosts in battle. This isn't as simple as one plus one equals two."
Even with some flaws, Blaine still affirmed the terror of MEGA Evolution, and when combined with Gigantamaxing, it could allow two Pokémon to gain system-enhanced power in a single battle.
Actually, these minor flaws weren't really significant.
"That's right, this small flaw cannot conceal the terrifying boost MEGA Evolution brings to Trainers. If this system truly becomes widespread, there will be a huge gap between Trainers with MEGA Evolution and those without!"
Professor Oak also predicted that in the future, when MEGA Evolution becomes widely known, the entire world's landscape would likely change.
Currently, the Galar Region, with its Gigantamaxing, holds a dominant position. Meanwhile, the Alola Region, possessing another miraculous system that can unleash incredibly powerful one-time moves, is less known due to its lagging educational progress and remote location, so the power they possess is only known to Alola locals.
People outside are actually very, very rarely aware of the existence of Z-Moves, and even if they are, obtaining Z-Moves is not easy; it requires completing the Island Challenge of the Alola Region, which is much more difficult to obtain compared to the Gigantamaxing Band.
Therefore, the Galar Region, with its Gigantamaxing, has developed rapidly in recent years, even producing a Champion Trainer like Dande who dominates all others. This has led to the Galar Region subtly trending towards becoming the number one region.
Now, the emergence of MEGA Evolution will definitely challenge the Galar Region's dominant position, and the number of Trainers possessing MEGA Evolution will also determine the rise and fall of an entire region.
Currently, only a small number of people in their Kanto Region know about MEGA Evolution. By utilizing this information gap, they have an opportunity to overtake others!
Escaping the shameful title of the last-place region depends on this MEGA Evolution!
"Alright, Ash, you go check on your Pokémon in the backyard. Gardevoir, stay here; I want to see just how much of a boost MEGA Evolution brings to a Pokémon." Professor Oak waved Ash away as if shooing flies. His eyes were now solely focused on Gardevoir after her MEGA Evolution.
Ash rolled his eyes helplessly, then turned to head for the backyard. Halfway there, he suddenly stopped, then looked left and right and asked, "Strange, where's Gary? Didn't he also come back to Pallet Town?"
"Oh, he went on dates with his girlfriends early this morning," Professor Oak said without turning his head. "He said today was the last day of vacation, and after today, he's going to start training his Pokémon diligently to prepare for the Indigo Plateau Conference."
Hearing that Gary wasn't there, Ash didn't linger in the laboratory. After instructing Gardevoir to come over once the data collection was complete, he headed towards the backyard... The backyard of Oak's Laboratory was less of a backyard and more of an entire open-air grassy wilderness.
Various flowers, grasses, and trees were planted here, and there were also many unique environments, all constructed by Professor Oak for the Pokémon to live in.
Without interacting with or feeding the Pokémon, simply walking through this entire plain would probably take more than two hours.
Ash unleashed his Aura, searching for his Pokémon.
There were Tauros running on the plain, Butterfree affectionately following his wife, Pidgeot soaring in the sky, Gengar teaching Primeape, Aerodactyl following behind Ash, and Krabby playing in the water.
These were all the Pokémon Ash had entrusted to Oak's Laboratory.
'Everyone, I'm back!!'
Ash's Aura transmitted into the hearts of all his Pokémon. Upon hearing that familiar voice in their minds, the Pokémon in the backyard instantly dropped what they were doing and rushed towards Ash's direction en masse.
"Pidgeot!!" The first to arrive was Pidgeot. His claw tips still carried a blue berry. After landing in front of Ash, Pidgeot raised his claw and offered the berry to Ash.
"You even brought me fruit, thanks, Pidgeot." Ash casually plucked the fruit from Pidgeot's claw and unceremoniously popped it into his mouth.
It was sweet and sour, quite delicious. This must be one of the fruit trees Professor Oak planted in this backyard, and it was quite well-maintained. Venusaur probably contributed a lot.
"Hehehe, why are you back? Have you collected all eight badges?" Gengar's eerie voice echoed behind Ash. If it were anyone else, they might have jumped three feet high in fright, but Ash had no fear of ghosts. Besides, he already knew Gengar had approached.
"Yeah, I've collected all the badges. You wouldn't believe how thrilling the battles were this time! Luckily, your Trainer's skills are superb, and I narrowly won in the end! Otherwise, your Trainer probably wouldn't be back now~" Ash said with exaggerated embellishment, leaving Gengar momentarily stunned.
"Is it that exaggerated? What could push you to the brink? Not even a Champion-level Pokémon could do that. Even if your Pokémon couldn't win, you yourself could definitely handle it." Gengar didn't entirely agree with Ash's Pokémon's strength, but he highly respected Ash's own power.
Ash's Pokémon were indeed not weak, and their talent was among the best in the world, but they hadn't fully matured yet. To put it bluntly, without Ash's assistance, all his Pokémon combined wouldn't be his match.
But Ash was different. Now that Gengar had come to Oak's Laboratory, his strength had actually increased faster than when he was outside, reaching the peak Elite level in just over two months.
Even so, when he looked at Ash's level, it was like looking at a vast ocean, completely unfathomable.
As a being who had lived for over a thousand years, let alone humans, even among the countless Pokémon he had seen, none had reached Ash's level.
According to Gengar's estimation, Ash's level was at least above high-level Champion. So, how powerful would an enemy be that even Ash couldn't handle?
"Well, it's a bit stronger than Champion-level, but also a bit weaker than God-tier." Ash made a 'tiny bit' gesture with his fingers, which in reality referred to the universe at his fingertips.
Because Mewtwo was more than just a little stronger than a peak Champion, but also more than just a little weaker than God-tier.
Upon hearing Ash's analogy, Gengar's ghostly face also shifted, revealing an expression of extreme shock.
What kind of monster had his Trainer provoked out there? Something above Champion had appeared, and from Ash's words, he seemed to have successfully navigated that crisis, otherwise he wouldn't be here now.
He just didn't know if it was a direct confrontation or if he had narrowly escaped by hiding.
Following Gengar's arrival, Muk, Krabby, and other Pokémon also came to Ash's side one after another.
Whether unfamiliar or familiar, everyone's faces were beaming with happy smiles upon seeing Ash.
For Pokémon like Tauros and Muk, even though Ash had caught them, he hadn't used them in battle, but he occasionally rotated them out for training.
So, they weren't particularly unfamiliar with Ash; they just hadn't built rapport through shared battles.
But that was okay; once the Indigo Plateau Conference began, there would be plenty of opportunities for everyone to show what they could do.
Misty and Brock watched this scene, a knowing smile gracing their faces. Even separated by thousands of miles, even with short periods of interaction, as long as a bond was established between a Trainer and their Pokémon, it would only grow stronger with the passage of time.
Ash was the best example.
After a brief reunion, Ash also released all the Pokémon he was carrying. All of Ash's Pokémon were finally gathered together at this moment!
"Everyone, there are just over two months left until the Indigo Plateau Conference. Let's get stronger and win the Indigo Plateau Conference Champion!" Ash shouted, raising his arm.
Cheers echoed throughout the backyard, and the two-month special training officially began!
...Time flew by, seven days later.
Over the course of seven days, Ash's training and exercise schedule was packed every day, and all his Pokémon were steadily improving. However, something significant happened during these seven days.
Mewtwo was missing.
Ash received this news three days ago. Lorelei was the one who called, and her first question to Ash was whether he felt anything strange around him, or if he felt like he was being watched.
Mewtwo was missing, and Lorelei wondered if she would look for Ash. In this world, the person Mewtwo cared about the most, besides Mewtwo's creator and the elusive Giovanni, was only Ash, who had defeated Mewtwo.
Blaine had no abnormalities around him, Giovanni couldn't be found, and there were only continuous reports of Team Rockets being disbanded. The only remaining lead was Ash.
Unfortunately, Ash didn't sense anything unusual around him. With his strength, if a powerful being like Mewtwo was constantly watching him, he would definitely have noticed. Having no feeling now meant Mewtwo wasn't around him.
So where could Mewtwo have gone?