Lost?
Blaine simply couldn't believe his eyes. Even if he had underestimated his opponent, losing to a youngster was still something Blaine found hard to accept.
"Come back, Altaria."
After Magmortar lost consciousness in battle, Terrance took out his Poké Ball and recalled Altaria, then looked at Blaine.
According to their agreement, after winning the battle, he could stay at Cinnabar Gym and use the volcano inside the Gym for special training.
After the battle, Terrance's clothes were already soaked with sweat, his face flushed from the heat. Just as he looked toward Blaine, who was also recalling Magmortar, Blaine suddenly laughed and said, "It's been a long time since I've had such an exciting match. I suppose you're not some nobody in Hoenn, right?"
Terrance didn't know how to respond, so he simply waited for the other to continue speaking.
"All right, since you won, you can stay at Cinnabar Gym as a guest. But don't expect me to take care of your room or your meals," Blaine said with a helpless shake of his head.
"Thank you very much." Knowing Blaine wouldn't go back on his word, Terrance responded happily after receiving his permission.
With that, Terrance's goal was achieved. Before the Grand Festival, this place would be a perfect training ground.
…
…
After accidentally losing to Terrance, Blaine ignored him and let him use the volcano as he pleased. Clearly, the old man still held a bit of a grudge about his defeat.
Although he wasn't a petty person, losing to a youngster still left Blaine quite puzzled, a feeling that only faded after he looked into Terrance's background.
Once he checked, Blaine couldn't help but smile wryly. As the Fallarbor Gym Leader, Terrance's status was already on par with his own. Beyond that, Terrance had even defeated Top Trainers before and was one of the leading figures among the younger generation in the Hoenn region.
The clash between the old and new generations was always a hot topic among Trainers. As one rising star after another appeared, these veteran Trainers had no choice but to accept it.
Times were changing, and the new generation of Trainers was growing in ever more unique ways.
But the most frustrating part was, Blaine also discovered that Terrance could use Mega Evolution. Realizing this, Blaine looked up at the sky, feeling helpless that his opponent had defeated his ace Pokémon without even going all out.
"It looks like the flames of the new era have already started burning."
In a room inside Cinnabar Gym, Blaine watched the scene in the Gym through the surveillance camera and shook his head. He had no choice but to accept it; even though he was already at the top among Trainers of his own generation, Terrance's relentless training methods still managed to shock him once again.
On the screen, it was clear that not only Terrance's Pokémon were training hard, but Terrance himself was also barefoot, standing on the scorching battlefield, undergoing physical training.
Terrance's method of training was quite unique. From his movements, it looked like a systematic martial art, but when Terrance performed it, it seemed somewhat clumsy.
This was because he had only just started learning this martial art recently.
"So this is part of Master Bruno's martial arts training…"
Coordinating with special breathing techniques and feeling the flow of heat within his body, Terrance sighed with emotion. He had won this martial art from Master Bruno in a bet on Ash's tournament ranking, and had received it from Bruno several days ago.
However, after obtaining the martial art, he hadn't had a chance to actually practice it until now. Training inside the volcano finally gave Terrance that opportunity.
The high-temperature environment around him created just the right amount of pressure, allowing him to use it to get started in martial arts. Compared to the martial arts originally taught by Teacher Julian, the one Bruno had given him was clearly of a higher level.
This was all thanks to Terrance's solid foundation. He quickly got the hang of this martial art, his movements shifting from clumsy to increasingly proper form. After practicing for several hours, although Terrance didn't feel any noticeable changes, he was already captivated by the intricacy of the technique.
After all, martial arts aren't some kind of mystical secret technique. To see real results, it takes at least several months, if not decades, and even that depends on one's talent.
However, considering that Master Bruno's claim is that he can KO a real Fighting-type Pokémon, even if what he gave Terrance was a "watered-down" version of his martial art, Terrance felt it should still be very powerful.
When he grew tired, Terrance would sit quietly and use a meditation method to relieve his fatigue. Whether it was the meditation method or the martial art, both were things an ordinary person could never attain. Terrance was very fortunate to possess both.
Unfortunately, he was destined never to bring out the full power of either of these techniques. To this day, despite training in the meditation method, he still hadn't managed to generate psychic energy, let alone reach the level of psychic masters like Sabrina or Olympia.
As for the martial art, for Terrance it could only serve to strengthen his body. If he wanted to reach Master Bruno's level of achievement, according to Bruno himself, it wouldn't be possible without laying the foundation from childhood.
Of course, Terrance wasn't greedy. The effects of the martial art and the meditation method were already enough for him. He knew exactly how he wanted to use these skills. From the beginning, he wasn't aiming for psychic energy or to go toe-to-toe with Pokémon as a human. Just like his Fairy Mark, everything was meant to support his strength as a Trainer.
By Terrance's side, Kirlia floated in mid-air, meditating; Ninetales controlled ice energy, constantly contending with the heat rising from the magma, honing its control over the energy.
Pupitar and Carbink, however, were even more intense.
Both of them had entered the magma itself, using its power to temper their bodies!
Carbink was born in the deep underground, in environments of extreme heat and pressure, so now, with the help of magma, it was furiously training its physical toughness.
Pupitar was the same. As a fellow Rock-type Pokémon, it too had decent resistance to magma. Training in such an environment meant its body was constantly being strengthened.
However, the consequences of this kind of training were serious. Carbink was fine, but Pupitar—every time it came out, it was covered in severe burns. If not for Altaria's Heal Bell, plus Kirlia's Heal Pulse, Pupitar would be in real trouble.
Aside from Kirlia, Ninetales, Carbink, and Pupitar, Altaria was undergoing even harsher training.
Pupitar and Carbink only trained on the surface of the magma, advancing and retreating as needed with their moves, but Altaria had fully submerged itself into the magma, staying inside for a long time without coming out.
This crazy act even stunned Blaine whenever he happened to check in on Terrance's training.
His own Magmar and Magmortar dared to train this way because their Flame Body ability, combined with their type and physiology, allowed them to adapt to magma, but Altaria…
Blaine was genuinely worried that the magma would burn all the beautiful feathers off Altaria.
Of course, Terrance had his own plans. Although Altaria was strong, its resistance to fire wasn't necessarily higher than an ordinary Magmar's. Just as even the strongest Golem couldn't outswim a Magikarp.
The reason Altaria dared to so boldly enter the magma was that its body was tightly wrapped in a faint glow. With the move Safeguard, Altaria isolated all the magma's harm from its body, merely using the high-temperature environment to sense the power of fire and train moves like Flamethrower and Fire Blast.
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