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Professor Sycamore's coffee sprayed directly onto his computer, but he didn't care at all. Instead, he stared intently at the screen through the fine coffee droplets.
That MEGA Evolved Blastoise was the result of the research he had been pursuing for a long time. However, his research had been completely stuck, as he didn't know how to proceed.
He knew that some Pokémon had a higher stage of Evolution, but he couldn't find a way to make them reach that evolutionary state. It was as if something was missing.
Ash's MEGA Evolution today was like a flash of lightning through Professor Sycamore's mind. He instantly understood what was missing: the connection between a Pokémon and its Trainer.
The relationship between the two was the key to unlocking a Pokémon's next level of power!
"MEGA Evolution... MEGA Evolution... Super Evolution? This description is good, very good!! I can't believe a problem I've been tackling for so long has been solved by someone else!!"
"How did he do it? How did he overcome a problem that researchers all over the world couldn't solve? Could it be Professor Oak? No, if it were Professor Oak, he would never hide it from us."
"This Evolution must have been researched by Ash alone, which is why Professor Oak hasn't told us about it. But how is that possible..."
The problem of a Pokémon's next stage of Evolution wasn't just something he was researching. He had already shared his theories on this with countless other professors. As a research professor, his top priority was to complete his research.
For research problems that were difficult to Tackle or even had no clues, he would naturally seek help from other professors, including Professor Oak. That's how Professor Oak knew some information about a Pokémon's next stage of Evolution.
However, even after sharing it with many professors, the problem of a Pokémon's next stage of Evolution, or Super Evolution, had never been solved, nor were there any clues.
Yet today, right there in the battle arena, the research result he had been pursuing appeared without any warning!
Professor Sycamore had always been a very calm person, but the scene on the computer screen made him even spray coffee. One can imagine the shock he suffered, and that moment also plunged him into a serious stage of self-doubt.
Because if Professor Oak had been involved in this MEGA Evolution, he wouldn't have kept it from him.
This was their understanding of Professor Oak's character and integrity. Professor Oak was someone who, after inventing or researching something new, would share it with them immediately and ask them to test it.
Not to mention that the origin of MEGA Evolution was actually initiated by him. With Professor Oak's character, how could he not tell him after getting results? Even if Professor Oak was only partially involved in this MEGA Evolution, he would definitely reveal some information to him.
The fact that Professor Oak didn't reveal any information means that this Evolution was entirely developed by Ash! If Ash wasn't willing, given Professor Oak's character, it would be impossible for him to announce it publicly or say a single word to them!
MEGA Evolution appearing first in the hands of a professor and appearing in the hands of a Trainer are completely different situations. If the former had invented it first, they would certainly announce this research result immediately and apply for a patent, allowing them to access all research data related to MEGA Evolution as soon as possible.
That would be a greater benefit for future research on MEGA Evolution.
However, if this research appeared in the hands of a Trainer, it would be a different story. For a Trainer, the improvement of their Pokémon's strength is more important than the research results.
When Ash first displayed MEGA Evolution, Professor Sycamore had already discovered the mysteries contained within the Evolution, and Steven also saw it. Even if Ash didn't announce any information, it would only be a matter of time before the data on MEGA Evolution was uncovered.
For Trainers, that would mean losing the first-mover advantage of occupying the resources of the MEGA Evolution system.
Currently, there are two major systems on the market: Gigantamax and Z-Move.
Gigantamax is controlled by Professor Magnolia. Although she doesn't deliberately collect or control resources, as the first person to invent the Dynamax Band, she is widely known to have many of them.
However, she only gives her Dynamax Bands to those she approves of.
As for the Z-Move, its origin in the Alola region means it's completely exclusive. It's almost impossible for outsiders to obtain Z-Crystals and Z-Rings unless they can reach the core of Alola and participate in their Island Challenge, only then might they have a chance to obtain them.
Professor Magnolia is a professor, the Z-Move belongs to the entire Alola region, and it's even rumored to be related to the legendary Pokémon of the Alola region. As for Ash, the discoverer of MEGA Evolution... currently, he only has Professor Oak as his backing.
Furthermore, his relationship with Professor Oak is merely that of a Pokémon distributor, at least outwardly.
Without backing, after mastering a cutting-edge system like MEGA Evolution, he would certainly need to first collect materials for MEGA Evolution until he had enough for his own use before making it public.
Now that Ash has used it in public, on one hand, he encountered a strong opponent, and on the other hand, he felt it was time to announce MEGA Evolution.
"This little guy really kept me in the dark, he should have at least secretly told me. I can keep a secret just like anyone else... Wait, haven't I seen those two stones somewhere before?"
Professor Sycamore wiped his computer screen while trying to recall when he had seen Ash display those two stones. Finally, he clapped his hands, a look of sudden understanding on his face.
He remembered. Not long ago, one of the Kanto Elite Four, Lance, came to him, asking where in the Kalos region was rich in gemstones, or where gemstones could be bought. The photo Lance showed him was of the gemstone Ash was holding.
Because of Blastoise's MEGA Evolution, the footage in the video even had a close-up, so Professor Sycamore saw it very clearly and would absolutely not mistake it.
Besides that, Lance also had another photo, which was of the gemstone appearing on Blastoise's surface. However, that second photo showed a gemstone slightly different from the one appearing on Blastoise's surface.
Regarding this, Professor Sycamore already had a general guess. After thinking about it, his expression changed from sudden understanding to a wry smile.
It turned out that the essence of MEGA Evolution had appeared before him long ago, but he just hadn't recognized it.
The feeling of a research breakthrough appearing right before him, yet he remained completely oblivious, truly filled Professor Sycamore with regret.
If he had paid more attention to the gemstone Lance mentioned back then, he might have found the key information for MEGA Evolution.
However, that was just hindsight. In reality, without seeing the gemstones displayed by Ash and Blastoise's MEGA Evolution, Professor Sycamore couldn't have thought of it.
He had wondered why Lance would suddenly come to the Kalos region and ask him about gemstones. Shouldn't gemstones be sought from experts who specialize in collecting them?
It turned out that gemstone was related to MEGA Evolution... Soon, Professor Sycamore put away his bitterness and sat back in his original seat, looking at the Mega Blastoise on the screen with anticipation. Although this wasn't his own research result, he was still very much looking forward to the effects displayed by MEGA Evolution.
Since it's an Evolution, there should be an all-around improvement. Besides the change in appearance, its strength should also change, and even its Ability might change. Also, whether MEGA Evolution has a duration and how long it lasts is also a key focus.
After the battle, he would contact Professor Oak's connections, and he should be able to get a lot of information about MEGA Evolution from Ash. For now, he would just consider it an early viewing and recording of research results... Kanto, Indigo Plateau Conference Arena —
As Blastoise MEGA Evolved, the shocked cheers in the arena surged wave after wave. Conway, across from Ash, was completely dumbfounded.
No, what the heck is this?! There was nothing like this in his data intelligence!
He knew Ash had been holding back before, but he absolutely didn't expect Ash to have been holding back something this huge!!
This was beyond just holding back, wasn't it? This was like hiding an entire world!
To evolve once more after a final Evolution, even an idiot would know what that meant. And for him, a data-oriented Trainer, Blastoise's data was already unknown; even in Ash's historical battle records, Blastoise was rarely seen in action.
Not to mention that Blastoise had now undergone an unknown Evolution. Who could even compete with that!
"How about it, Conway? This is my secret technique, MEGA Evolution. Surprised?" Amidst the shocked shouts from the surroundings, Ash's face also showed excitement and joy.
Even after the guidance and refinement from the big shots in the group, he was still just a teenager at heart. Teenagers loved cheers, and he had imagined such a moment in the spotlight more than once. But when it actually happened, it was truly a hundred times more exhilarating than he had imagined!
"Surprised...? How could you even ask such a ridiculous question?" Conway's mouth twitched, and he said testily.
Surprised? This was a fright!
Damn it, Blastoise suddenly undergoing a higher stage of Evolution was something worth gasping and marveling at for the surrounding spectators, but for him, it was just a fright!
Wasn't this just making it even harder to win?!
"Hehe, then I won't hold back. Blastoise, Water Pulse!" Ash chuckled, then launched an attack without hesitation.
Trick Room has a time limit. He could have actually dragged out the time a bit longer by having Blastoise shock Conway, but he always battled fair and square and wouldn't resort to such underhanded tricks.
Moreover, Ash felt there was no need to delay. It was just that their speeds were swapped, not their strengths. Would he lose just because he was slow? That would only happen if the opponent had overwhelming strength.
Conway's Shuckle was at the same level as Blastoise, reaching professional peak, but in terms of speed, it should absolutely overwhelm Blastoise—under this Trick Room.
However, if the Rock-type Shuckle was hit once by Blastoise, the battle could basically be declared over, even with Shuckle's extremely high Special Defense.
"Kame!" Blastoise assumed an attacking stance, aiming the two cannons on its arms at Shuckle. Immediately, two streams of water, combined with the powerful stream erupting from the huge cannon on its back, surged forth!
The three streams of water spun and combined in the air, eventually forming an incredibly thick stream of water, with ripple-like patterns coiling around its exterior.
"Dodge, Shuckle!!" Conway commanded Shuckle, breaking into a cold sweat.
Hearing this, Shuckle also crawled on its tiny limbs, dodging around. Its normally slow speed became incredibly fast under the spatial rule reversal!
Blastoise didn't even see how Shuckle moved before it had already appeared dozens of meters away. At this point, the Water Pulse finally arrived, slamming into the ground where Shuckle had been, blasting a large hole straight through the thick floor!
Dirt and water splashed everywhere, and the violent stream of water rolled across the ground. However, by the time it reached Shuckle, it had lost much of its power. Even if Shuckle was a Rock-type Pokémon, it wouldn't be afraid of ordinary water streams.
"Now, use Gyro Ball!" Seeing Blastoise's Water Pulse miss, Conway quickly had his Shuckle launch an attack.
Gyro Ball is a move whose power increases the greater the speed difference between the user and the opponent. Although Shuckle's speed was faster than Blastoise's under Trick Room, its base speed was far inferior to Blastoise's.
In terms of speed, Shuckle's speed is basically in the lowest tier, and Conway had even specifically trained Shuckle to have even lower speed. However, Ash's Blastoise isn't particularly fast either, being in the lowest speed tier among his Pokémon.
Therefore, the power of Gyro Ball wouldn't be too high, but Shuckle had gained two stages of Attack, so if it hit Blastoise, it would still be quite painful.
"Use Protect!" Ash naturally wouldn't let Blastoise take a hit. As the spinning Shuckle was about to hit Blastoise, he decisively had Blastoise use Protect.
A verdant barrier unfolded around Blastoise. The spinning Shuckle crashed into the barrier and was immediately bounced away.
At the same level, Protect is an absolute defense!
"Now, use Aura Sphere!"
Conway: ???
Are you kidding me?! Blastoise can use Aura Sphere? Are you saying your Blastoise is Lucario or something?
However, when spherical azure energy orbs appeared on Blastoise's two small cannon barrels, Conway's entire demeanor changed for the worse.
No way, buddy, you actually can!