Meanwhile, where Xian and Alied were, they headed straight for the conductor's room. And there, they found a girl.
She had long black hair tied in a ponytail, green eyes behind red-rimmed glasses, and stood around 172 cm tall. She was clearly searching for something.
"Just as I suspected. You're the culprit, aren't you, Fye Ling?"
The girl turned, her expression perfectly neutral. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I just got here."
"Don't lie. Is there anyone else here besides you?"
"I don't know, but there must be someone else."
Xian and Alied stepped closer, closing in on her position.
"I'll give you a choice. Surrender now, or we'll capture you by force."
Fye Ling's lips curled into a thin smile. "Try it, if you can."
In a flash, she released her Chandelure.
"INFERNO!"
Massive purple flames erupted throughout the carriage, filling every corner with searing heat and ghostly light. Fye Ling immediately turned to flee—
But Xian emerged from the flames, completely unharmed.
"You think escaping from us is that easy?"
Behind her, Alied materialized from the shadows. "Gengar—MEAN LOOK!"
Gengar rose from the darkness, its malevolent eyes locking onto Fye Ling and Chandelure. Both froze instantly, paralyzed by the ghost's terrifying gaze. They couldn't move. Couldn't escape.
Just as Alied moved to capture her, Xian's eyes widened.
"Wait—this isn't her real body!"
"What?!"
The Fye Ling clone exploded into a cataclysmic burst of fire, completely erasing them both from existence.
---
**Meanwhile, in Carriage 5**
The real Fye Ling sat calmly, watching CCTV footage streamed directly from her clone's mind before its destruction.
*Just as I thought. You're too naive.*
Then her eyes narrowed. Another feed showed her target—the man with the camera—being chased by what looked like every passenger on the train.
"Damn. This is going to get complicated."
---
**Back in the conductor's room (or where it used to be)**
Xian reformed effortlessly, reconstructing his soul and identity as easily as breathing. Alied also returned, using essence to rebuild himself.
Xian stared at him in surprise. "Wait—since when could YOU come back? I thought you couldn't do that before."
Alied shrugged casually. "Hey, I learned a lot during my vacation. Essence manipulation. Simple stuff."
Xian turned away, muttering under his breath, "Mages really do cheat at everything."
Alied's eyebrow twitched. "If I'm cheating, what exactly are YOU?"
Xian fell silent.
"Anyway," Alied continued, "let's go after Fye Ling. Gengar already found her, didn't you?"
"GENGAR!" The ghost grinned wickedly.
Xian blinked. "Mean Look can be used like THAT? I didn't know."
"Now we need to move fast—she'll run again. Gengar—SHADOW REALM!"
Gengar pulled them both into their own shadows, and moments later, they emerged in the Shadow Realm—a place where physical laws didn't apply.
Xian looked down at himself, disconcerted. "This is strange. I can't feel my physical body here at all."
"Relax. You'll adapt."
Gengar led them through the formless void toward Fye Ling's main soul—the one it had marked earlier.
Xian was shocked. "Seriously? It's THAT easy? I thought we'd have to chase her through the entire Shadow Realm!"
"Who wants to do something that troublesome?" Alied chuckled. "Gengar—destroy it."
"GENGAR!"
A massive Shadow Ball formed before Gengar and shot forward, striking Fye Ling's soul directly. It shattered instantly.
Xian stared. "THAT'S IT?! That's all it took?!"
Alied looked at him curiously. "You really don't know how the Shadow Realm works, do you? Wait—I just remembered. In the Quxian Region, you probably don't use it much."
"Explain! How did that directly attack her soul core?!"
"Simple. In the Shadow Realm, distance doesn't exist. There's no physical separation between you and your target. Even if something isn't physical—even if it's completely abstract—it doesn't matter here. You could transcend space and time itself, and you'd still be hit. Unless you're in the Darkness or something equivalent."
Xian's jaw dropped. "If I'd known it worked like THIS, I would have learned this ages ago!"
---
Gengar suddenly alerted them.
"GENGAR!" It pointed toward a massive figure approaching through the void.
A large man, dark-skinned, wearing a black t-shirt under a black leather jacket with matching black pants. Sunglasses covered his eyes, and a Mega Stone hung from a chain around his neck. Beside him floated a Mega Sableye.
"So. Xian and Alied." The man's voice was calm, almost amused. "Just as I expected. You came."
Xian stepped forward, recognition dawning. "Well, well. Long time no see—since that Dynamite incident on the cruise ship, wasn't it, Borg?"
Alied studied the man carefully. The name clicked. "Borg... Epitaph member. I've seen your file. You're an Esper, aren't you? What's your business here?"
Borg smiled. "You seem to know a lot. My business?" His smile widened. "Killing you, of course."
Both Xian and Alied immediately tensed, ready for battle.
"SABLEYE—KNOCK OFF!"
Mega Sableye leaped high, crystalline shield raised, aiming directly at Metagross.
"Metagross—DODGE!"
Metagross tried to evade, but the attack connected perfectly. Metagross's Tactical Vest went flying.
"How?!"
Alied's warning came too late. "I told you—this is the Shadow Realm! Physical distance doesn't exist here! Attacks always hit their target!"
"Gengar—DAZZLING GLEAM!"
Brilliant multicolored light erupted around Gengar, the blinding flash slamming into Sableye. The crystal shield absorbed much of the damage, but the ghost-type still recoiled.
Alied analyzed quickly. *Not very effective... must have Nocturnal as one of its abilities.*
Borg read Alied's thoughts effortlessly, his psychic abilities letting him hear every word. He telepathically commanded Sableye.
*Sableye. Target Alied with Dark Pulse. He's the troublesome one.*
Xian had his own idea, telepathically instructing Metagross. *Metagross—Meteor Mash on Sableye!*
But Borg intercepted the thought.
Sableye immediately used Double Team, creating multiple copies of itself while flinging its crystal upward to intercept the Meteor Mash. The real Sableye launched Dark Pulse directly at Alied.
Alied, realizing Borg was an Esper, reacted instantly.
"Gengar—SHADOW CASTLE!"
Gengar pulled Alied into the deeper Shadow World, creating illusions to confuse their enemies. The Dark Pulse struck... and passed through empty air. Alied's form dissolved—just an afterimage.
Borg cursed inwardly. *Shadow World. Can't read their thoughts there. Can't predict them.*
Metagross tried again, launching another Meteor Mash at Sableye. It connected—but it was also an illusion. Borg had already scanned Alied's reappearance location, and the real Sableye was waiting.
"DARK PULSE!"
Sableye unleashed waves of dark energy, targeting Alied—
Nothing happened.
Borg's eyes widened. *Disabled?!*
Alied smiled, recalling Gengar to its Pokéball. "Looks like I'm winning this one. Good work, Gengar." He released another Pokéball. "Come on out, Comfey!"
"COMFEY!"
"Comfey—MOONBLAST!"
Lunar energy swirled around Comfey, forming a pink-purple sphere that shot toward Sableye.
"SABLEYE—PROTECT!"
The shield held, but barely.
Borg gritted his teeth. *If I use my second Pokémon, I'll lose here. But if I don't...*
"METAGROSS—FLASH CANNON!"
Borg spun—silver light blazed from Metagross's position, the Flash Cannon slamming into Sableye with devastating force.
Borg realized the truth. This battle, if prolonged, would only get worse. They would adapt to each other, and eventually, he would lose. These two had too many options.
He raised both hands.
"I surrender."
---
Meanwhile, in Carriage 12's bathroom
Fye Ling reformed from her backup soul core—carefully stored in a keychain inside her bag. She reconstructed her body, gasping.
"Damn! HOW did they attack me?! They went straight for my essence!" Her eyes widened. "Wait—don't tell me they used the Shadow Realm?!"
She immediately went on high alert, sensing someone approaching.
"Hey, Gible, this is Carriage 10. I don't think that guy came this way. Or maybe YOU just don't know the train map?"
Another voice, calmer: "There might be someone hiding back here."
The door opened.
Fye Ling came face to face with Zayn and Xavier.
Zayn's eyes widened. "Wait—that's the girl Xian was looking for!"
Xavier grabbed a Pokéball. "Time to try something new. Chatot—let's go!"
"CHATOT!"
"CHATOT —BOOMBURST!"
"CHAAAA!"
The sonic wave was devastating, vibrating through the entire carriage. Zayn covered his ears, watching Fye Ling try to flee.
"Not so fast! GIBLE!"
Gible erupted from beneath Fye Ling, body coated in water, spinning as it slammed into her stomach with Aqua Jet. She flew backward toward Zayn and Xavier.
Fye Ling cursed internally. Damn it—my abilities haven't recovered yet! If they had, these brats wouldn't be a problem. I need to stall until my soul recovers!*
She remembered her Inventory Box was still in Carriage 5. And Chandelure hadn't been recalled.
"CHANDELURE—COME OUT!"
Chandelure emerged from Xavier's own shadow, about to strike—
"GIBLE—INTERCEPT!"
Gible used Shadow Sneak, slamming into Chandelure before it could attack. The ghost-type retreated into shadows, reappearing behind Fye Ling.
Fye Ling calculated frantically. *This carriage is infinite space. I could use Shadow Sneak to reach Carriage 5—but then I'd run into those two agents again. Fighting here... I might actually have a chance.*
A blast of orange-brown energy shot past her head—Meteor Beam. She spun around.
The other passengers had arrived. A Glimmora stood ready beside its trainer.
"So THIS is the girl they mentioned. Alright—let's end this."
Fye Ling realized escape was impossible. She would have to fight seriously.
*No other choice. Fine—come at me!*
She used her cultivation ability, creating dozens of clones.
Zayn released Joltik. "JOLTIK—ELECTRO WEB! WEBWAY!"
"JOLTIK!"
Electric webs spread everywhere, and whenever Fye Ling's clones touched them, they dissolved into energy.
Fye Ling tried to detonate her remaining clones—
Xavier wasn't idle. "CUBBLE—COME OUT! USE BUBBLE!"
"CUBBLE!"
Bubbles surrounded the remaining clones, absorbing their explosions.
"CHANDELURE—INFERNO!" Fye Ling commanded. If this attack landed, they could escape—
"DISABLE!"
Chandelure tried to release Inferno. Nothing happened.
Fye Ling's eyes went wide.
A calm voice spoke from behind her. "Good work, Alakazam."
Zayn noticed the speaker—another agent in the same uniform as Xian, with the same badge.
Fye Ling realized the truth. She had lost. Completely. Outmatched in power, Pokémon, and numbers. Still trapped in Electro Web.
The agent—Devon—pulled handcuffs from his Inventory Box.
"Release her from the web," he told Zayn.
"Joltik—let her go."
The webs dissolved. Devon handcuffed Fye Ling securely.
Xian and Alied emerged from the Shadow Realm, dragging Borg with them.
"Nice work, Devon," Xian said. "One more left. Hopefully, this won't take much longer."
"Relax," Alied replied. "Theo will handle it quickly."
---
Meanwhile, Theo and the passengers were chasing Darian.
They passed Carriage 5—but Darian was hiding inside one of its compartments.
*Phew... they're gone. I'm NEVER showing that camera again. Those people were WAY more skilled than I expected. The boss said only a few would chase me—not the ENTIRE TRAIN!*
He noticed strange items around him. A bag with an Inventory Box. Catalysts. Even makeup.
This must belong to that girl. Definitely a cultivator. Right, Kecleon?*
"KEC!" The Kecleon on his shoulder nodded.
*Oh, right—thanks for pressing the camera button before that Solar Beam hit me.*
"KEC!"
*I only did this because my friend said it would be easy. I didn't even KNOW the camera could do that. They just told me to photograph every carriage. I thought it was a normal premium camera! How was I supposed to know?!*
The door behind him exploded open.
Theo stood there, Dragapult beside him.
"Alright. You're caught. Two choices: fight or surrender. What's your pick?"
Without hesitation, Darian raised his hands. "I surrender. And I'll tell you everything I know."
Theo blinked. Dragapult blinked.
"That easy?" Theo handcuffed him. "What's your name?"
"Darian. And if you're wondering why I surrendered—it's because I can't win, and fighting would be pointless."
"Fair enough. Can you return the train to normal?"
"Of course."
Theo tossed him the camera. Darian deleted the photos of each carriage, and instantly, the train lurched back to normal.
Theo made a mental note. This guy has absolutely no loyalty to his organization.*
Xian, Alied, and Devon arrived, escorting Fye Ling and Borg.
"Mission accomplished," Xian said. "Sorry for interrupting your vacation, Alied."
Alied waved it off. "Don't worry. My vacation wasn't relaxing anyway."
Devon held Fye Ling's cuffs. "So... what do we do with them?"
Xian checked his watch. "Time hasn't moved since the incident started. We've got 30 minutes before we reach Ariestal."
He punched the air in frustration. "DAMN IT! After ALL THAT, time just... stopped?! We still have to guard them for 30 minutes?!"
Alied smiled. "Unfortunately, yes. BUT... we have an alternative route."
"What?"
Alied looked at Theo. "You know the one."
Theo nodded. "Dragapult."
"Gengar."
"SHADOW SNEAK."
Both Ghost-types opened portals beneath the train, and in an instant, they emerged—already at Ariestal City station.
---
Back to Zayn and Xavier
They had returned to their original carriage, ready to finally eat the food they'd ordered, when an announcement blared through the speakers:
"The train has arrived at Ariestal City. Passengers wishing to alight may now do so."
Zayn screamed. "NOOO! WE DIDN'T EVEN GET TO EAT!"
Xavier sighed, equally frustrated. "Okay, we got here faster—but we ORDERED food, and I'm pretty sure they used the Shadow Realm to do it."
They stepped off the train at Ariestal City Station. Waiting on the platform were Xian, Alied, Theo, and Devon—escorting Fye Ling, Borg, and Darian in handcuffs.
All of them looked at each other.
"Yep," someone muttered. "What a terrible morning."