Third underground floor.
Baimu saw numerous Capture Balls neatly arranged here, and several people in white coats carrying more Capture Balls back and forth.
Flop was among them, too.
"You finally made it, come over here quickly."
The other person pulled his arm and led him inside, soon arriving at a place resembling a laboratory. Several scientists in white coats were nervously staring at a thick, huge floor-to-ceiling window.
"Look inside."
Following Flop's hint, Baimu looked inside and immediately saw a Pokémon with crimson eyes causing havoc in a sealed room. However, each time it crashed into the wall, a violet honeycomb-like barrier lit up to fend off its charge and attacks.
The next moment.
A large amount of smoke was sprayed out from all directions, swiftly engulfing the Pokémon.
In merely a few seconds after the smoke gradually dispersed, the once-agitated Pokémon lay on the ground. Then, in a blink, it woke up again, showing a confused expression, looking around full of panic and unease.
"Success! Another case succeeded!"
"Dr. Mu Yin, you truly are a genius! With this, we no longer have to fear!"
The surrounding white coats shouted excitedly.
A young man in a white coat with brown hair said shyly, "No, no, it's thanks to everyone's help."
"This is..."
Baimu looked at Flop.
"Do you still remember the drug you destroyed?" Flop laughed, "That thing was the Shadow Team's weakened pill that turned ordinary Pokémon into Shadow Pokémon. Combined with that sample and Dr. Mu Yin's previously created Purification Room, the second-generation Purification Spray was newly constructed."
Ah!
Baimu realized, genuinely surprised that the pill was related to Shadow Pokémon.
"Wait, the spray means—"
"No need for surgery or any other means. Just spray these all over Pyrite Town, and the Shadow Team's Shadow Pokémon will break free from their dark state, and there will be no more Shadow Pokémon from then on!"
Flop laughed heartily and pulled Baimu over to look at a screen.
On the screen.
Under the pitch-black night sky.
Countless drones sprayed a white mist resembling pesticide over all of Pyrite Town and Silicon City. Regular Pokémon and humans were unaffected by this gas, but Shadow Pokémon fell immediately upon inhaling or getting stained, reverting back in no time.
Evidently, once the experiment succeeded here, they immediately deployed these sprays.
Baimu turned his head and asked, "Even the side effect of intelligence deterioration can be avoided?"
"Of course!"
Dr. Mu Yin cut in and said, "It absolutely won't affect the Pokémon's physical or mental health. Whatever state they were in before the Shadow Team performed surgeries, that's the state they'll return to once this Purification Spray is dispersed!"
"Remarkable!"
Baimu couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
In the games, initially, the Shadow Pokémon had to rely on battles and companionship to break free, and later with Dr. Mu Yin's Purification Room, but it wasn't very efficient due to the added challenge for fun.
Now with the development of the Purification Spray, no matter how many Shadow Pokémon there are, they're no longer a threat.
"It's all thanks to everyone!"
Dr. Mu Yin laughed heartily, then showed a regretful expression and said, "If only it had been developed a bit sooner, perhaps not so many would have been injured."
Baimu realized upon hearing this that the spray was fully developed only half an hour ago.
Reminiscent of a critical moment in some movie plot.
The development cycle was originally supposed to last nearly six more months, but many places in Pyrite Town couldn't be held down, so the group of researchers worked tirelessly, racing against time, and ultimately succeeded under pressure.
Many hadn't had a good night's sleep in over a month.
They are indeed... great people.
Baimu looked at the faces filled with joy yet hidden fatigue and felt an incredible calm and tranquility within, as well as immense respect for them.
——
The battle at Pyrite Town lasted for thirteen hours.
In fact.
From the moment Da Wu and others joined the fight and once the Shadow Team's commander was taken down, the scattered Shadow Team members were stuck on the defensive.
The overwhelming power of the visiting Trainers forced both underground and above-ground Shadow Team members to flee, continuously abandoning Shadow Pokémon as rear guards while running. Yet, while they dodged Da Wu, N, and others' pursuit, they couldn't evade the eyes of the civilians.
Eventually, driven to desperation under pursuit, the deranged Shadow Team members even considered taking civilians as hostages.
Unfortunately, under the desperate resistance of numerous civilians, not only did they fail, but they were defeated by the enraged populace.
The prolonged chaos made people's emotions very easy to inflame.
At this time, a simple shout of "Drive them out of our home" was all it took, paired with rushing to the frontline. The long-enduring civilians swarmed up en masse.
But what truly made the Shadow Team members give up resistance was the emergence of Purification Spray.
The mass of Shadow Pokémon they wielded was their only power.
Once the Purification Spray was in play, they were completely dazed.
On the other hand.
Members of the original forces in Pyrite Town also suffered heavy blows from the Rescue Organization; most leaders were captured, and N took away the remaining members' Pokémon.
With the final explosion extinguished, Pyrite Town fell into silence.
Signifying the end of a fortnight of chaos.
The people living tenaciously on this barren land finally welcomed a brand new day.
But for the Rescue Organization, the real challenge was just beginning.
Liu Ge and others were still awaiting news from Silicon City.
If Silicon City couldn't be seized, the war would still be far from over, and Da Wu and others would again have to support in Silicon City.
Fortunately.
A decade of accumulation hadn't gone to waste.
As the first light of dawn rose on the horizon, word came that the dust had settled in Silicon City.
Ergin's Shadow Pokémon Research Institute, along with the manufacturing plants and a series of key locations, were destroyed. Led by him, all the interest group members, both within and outside the Shadow Team, were executed.
The most critical location—
Nickel Dark Island.
Once transformed by the Shadow Team into their base, this isolated island was also completely destroyed by international police with personnel.
Ergin's ambition of establishing the Ore Alliance was completely quashed on the verge of success.
Interestingly, during his confrontation with his adoptive son Dennis, Shanren's father, Ergin experienced a sudden spike in blood pressure, collapsing directly into the ICU. Doctors stated he was too old, and even if he regained consciousness, it would be difficult for him to speak, walk, or eat normally again.
An era of scheming ending like this.
Leaving one to wonder whether it was good or bad for him.
But for the entire population of the Ore Region, the departure of such a villain is undoubtedly fantastic news.
The Rescue Organization, painstakingly managed for over a decade, has finally seen the light of day.
"We've won!"
The exhilarating news spread throughout the Ore Region and across the world.
This battle of theirs also drew increasingly more external attention to this hitherto obscure corner, letting countless people realize that such a peculiar region existed in the world.