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Scorching flames erupted, directly engulfing Venusaur.
Erika's beautiful eyes constricted, and a look of disbelief appeared on her face, as if she had not expected such a situation.
As Venusaur was engulfed by the flames, Charizard also pushed aside Venusaur's two front limbs, retreating two steps, with an expression of extreme fatigue.
But he still stared at Venusaur with fierce eyes, as if he would continue to unleash endless fierce attacks if the opponent had not lost its ability to battle.
However, as the flames slowly dissipated, Venusaur inside was completely motionless, with several charred marks on its light blue skin, and several petals on its back were missing, all burned away by the flames. It would probably take a while to recover even at an Pokémon Center.
In this state, Venusaur could be confirmed to have lost its ability to battle, so… "Venu… Venusaur is unable to battle, Charizard wins!"
"Roar!!!" With the announcement of his victory, Charizard roared towards the sky, but did not breathe any flames.
And after the roar, Charizard held his head high, his entire body frozen in place, motionless.
The blue light on Ash dissipated, and he stumbled in place but did not fall, though his face was not looking good at all.
In fact, a battle of this level was not even a warm-up for Ash, but the Aura fusion brought some of the damage Charizard sustained, which was damage that directly depleted Ash's spirit.
Now Ash was suffering greatly from spiritual depletion; as for physical injuries, they were not absent, but negligible.
That was why Ash's face looked so bad now, because his spirit was truly not in a good state!
However, compared to Ash, Charizard was the one who truly pushed beyond his limits.
The barrier on the field automatically retracted after the battle ended. Ash endured the slight pain in his head and walked step by step to Charizard's side.
At this moment, Charizard was still motionless.
Ash smiled with relief and patted Charizard's shoulder: "You worked hard, Charizard, you did very well, we won."
Charizard remained motionless because he had already lost his ability to battle, he just lost it while standing.
He truly achieved that, even if it was a defeat, he lost while standing!
Ash poured some Viridian Power into Charizard's body, and then took out a Poké Ball to recall him.
In this battle, Charizard could be said to have surpassed his limits. Evolution brings an increase in power, but not an increase in stamina.
On the contrary, due to just evolving, Charizard's stamina had not improved, and each time he used a move, the consumption of stamina was even more exaggerated than before.
From the moment Charizard used Fire Punch to block Stomp, he relied entirely on sheer will to keep himself from falling.
Normally, Charizard would have been done for at that point, but he relied on his unyielding will to take two more steps: one Fire Blast, one to create distance.
It was precisely because of his strong will that they were ultimately able to achieve victory.
On the other side, Erika sighed softly and recalled Venusaur.
To be honest, if she hadn't given those three moves, Ash and his Pokémon would have had no chance of winning.
Sunny Day aside, that move also boosted Venusaur, and even if Gardevoir didn't use it, Venusaur could.
But the dual screens truly saved Charmeleon's life.
Otherwise, even if those two Solar Beams hadn't knocked out Charmeleon, he would still have been taken out by the recoil damage from using Flare Blitz with his remaining stamina.
However, on the other hand, if she had used an Elite Level Pokémon, Charmeleon would have been taken out long ago, and the opponent wouldn't even need to set up the field.
With Charmeleon's strength, wouldn't anything below Professional Level be easily defeated?
So even if she gave a handicap, compared to the difficulty she presented, this handicap was better left ungiven.
Ash using Charmeleon to battle an Elite Level Pokémon would be too easy.
"Congratulations on your victory, Ash, here's the Celadon City Badge for you." Erika walked up to Ash, extending her fair hand, on which a colorful badge lay quietly.
"Thanks, Erika." Ash took the Celadon City Badge, his expression a little excited, not only because he had already obtained his fifth badge, but also because this time he had genuinely defeated a Professional Level Pokémon with his own strength!
This was not some weakling like Lt Surge's Raichu, but an Elite among Professional Level Pokémon!
Whether it was its abilities, form, move set, or Trainer, it was impeccable, truly an Elite among Elites.
Being able to defeat such an opponent also proved that he had taken a solid step on his path as a Trainer!
He now had at least three Pokémon that could pose a threat to Professional Level Pokémon: Charizard, Gardevoir, and Pikachu.
From now on, they would be called the Three Great Generals!
Ash thought happily, holding up the Celadon City Badge and smiling: "I got the Celadon City Badge!"
"Pika Pikachu!"
"Congratulations, Ash! Not only did you get the Celadon City Badge, but you also defeated a Professional Level Pokémon, and Charmeleon and Kirlia both evolved. You've gained a lot from this battle!" Misty also came forward to congratulate Ash.
She also marveled at Ash's gains this time.
Getting the Celadon City Badge was one thing; having two Pokémon evolve into their final forms was Ash's biggest gain this time.
Before evolving, Charmeleon could already initially contend with Professional Level Venusaur. Now that he had evolved, once he fully recovered and combined with Ash's power, he might easily defeat ordinary Professional Level Pokémon.
Kirlia was even more impressive; after evolving into Gardevoir, she could defeat an Elite Superior Bellossom head-on even without Ash's assistance.
After a period of training, facing Professional Level Pokémon head-on would probably not be an issue.
Plus, the always-hidden Pikachu… If someone were to say this setup belonged to a Trainer who debuted two months ago, they would probably be spat at by everyone outside.
Whose debut in two months could achieve this level of improvement? Even Leon couldn't do it!
"Getting the Celadon City Badge is good, but Ash, don't do that to beautiful ladies in the future. Look at a lady like Miss Erika, you made her furious. That kind of battle style is fine for Team Rockets or gentlemen, but don't use it on ladies anymore."
Brock instantly appeared by Erika's side, speaking earnestly on her behalf.
During the battle, he naturally supported Ash, but after the battle… beauty is justice!
Brock had some brotherly affection, but not much.
Hearing this, Ash rolled his eyes. This statement was a bit too demeaning to men. When would men ever stand up? He was so angry he shivered!
"I'm sorry, Erika, the battle… it was out of necessity. Actually, I'm quite upright."
Erika was amused by Ash's words. Upright? Do you have anything to do with those two words?
Look at the tactics you used, each one dirtier than the last. Other people's battles get more and more enjoyable, but your battles… only bring a smile to your own face!
"Alright, alright, anyway, I probably won't fight you a second time. And in battle, any means are acceptable as long as they are within the rules. I was just a little physically uncomfortable earlier."
Erika waved her hand, indicating she was fine. Battle is battle, life is life; she could distinguish between the two, otherwise, why would she be a Gym Leader?
But honestly, since becoming a Gym Leader, this was the most frustrating battle she had ever fought, otherwise, she wouldn't have broken her initial promise and sent out a Professional Level Pokémon to battle Ash.
"Also, it was my fault for sending out Venusaur to battle. I said before that I would give you the badge even if you lost, which was meant to be compensation from me. But I didn't expect you to refuse so decisively, and you even defeated me. In that case… I'll give you a different reward."
Erika said, looking at a woman nearby and instructing: "Go get me the Grassy Glide TM."
The woman paused, then nodded and turned to jog out the door.
And when Ash and the others heard the words Grassy Glide, their expressions also clearly froze, then Ash's face showed surprise: "Erika, this should be the move Bellossom used just now, right?"
"That's right, Grassy Glide. When there's Grassy Terrain, it makes the move's execution speed faster. You saw the speed boost just now; it's no worse than Quick Attack's speed boost. Plus, Grassy Terrain itself boosts Grass-type moves by thirty percent, so once it hits the opponent, it can cause quite good damage."
With the battle over, Erika no longer needed to hide the effects of Grassy Glide from Ash. Moreover, she intended to give this move to Ash to learn.
"Grassy Terrain increases speed, huh… I see." Ash's face showed a look of realization. He wondered why Venusaur's move list included Grassy Glide but he hadn't used it.
If Venusaur used Grassy Glide with the speed boost from Chlorophyll, that speed would be even faster than Bellossom's!
A large body doesn't necessarily mean low speed; it just might mean slightly poorer agility.
If Venusaur used Grassy Glide with its body size, the damage would definitely be stronger than what Bellossom used, after all, the inertia impact caused by body size at that speed is also real damage.
But when Charmeleon entered the field, there was no Grassy Terrain, so Venusaur's Grassy Glide couldn't be used.
"This Grassy Glide is a move sold in Galar, and it's very rare. Even with money, you can't buy it. Using it as compensation this time, you won't be at a disadvantage, right?" Erika said with a smile.
This made Ash a little embarrassed. How was this not a disadvantage? He was practically making a huge profit!
A TM that couldn't be bought with money, how rare was that? Even if it could be bought with money, it would probably be an astronomical figure, at least not something Ash could afford right now.
But more importantly, the victim of this battle was actually Erika. The psychological trauma he inflicted on her was immense, yet she was the one offering him compensation. How could Ash possibly… "Then thank you, Erika. When I become a Pokémon Master in the future, you'll have one-third of the credit!" Ash said with a serious expression.
"Pfft, one-third of the credit, indeed. Where do you learn all these strange things? And at such a young age, how do you know so many disgusting tactics?"
Ash's words made Erika burst out laughing. This was the first time she had heard such a way of speaking, and she also became a little curious about who taught Ash those disgusting tactics.
Even if Psychic-type Pokémon themselves are mysterious and unpredictable, not only did that Kirlia know a variety of moves, but Ash's ability to perfectly apply those moves was the most astonishing.
Pokémon are not stronger just because they know more moves. Sometimes, specializing in a few moves and mastering them completely is much more effective than knowing a wide variety of moves.
However, that Kirlia was different; she not only knew many moves but was also proficient in all of them. Ash, as her Trainer, also perfectly knew the proficiency of all her moves.
If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, Erika would never have believed that a Trainer with such commanding ability would be a rookie who debuted less than two months ago.
"Uh, this was all taught by Professor Oak! You know, Professor Oak was the Kanto Champion back then, and he knew a lot of tactics. I used to be diligent and eager to learn, and I learned a lot of tactics from Professor Oak!"
Ash thought for a moment and immediately pushed Professor Oak out as a shield.
Brock and Misty next to him both showed strange expressions.
You, diligent and eager to learn? You're just taking advantage of Erika not knowing your past, aren't you!
Not to mention that they had been with Ash since the beginning and knew what he was like, Professor Oak had already exposed Ash's past at Lampuruge Resort.
When he was little, this guy only wanted to play with Pokémon and interact with real Pokémon, so he never listened in class. His test scores were always single digits or in the low teens. You call that diligent and eager to learn?
Then there would probably be no one who Slacked Off in the world.
However, neither of them exposed Ash's past here. Pushing the blame onto Professor Oak was fine; Professor Oak's reputation could certainly handle it.
Erika, who was none the wiser, also showed a look of realization. So it was Professor Oak's teaching; that made sense. But Professor Oak was supposedly a very upright Trainer back then; she hadn't heard of him being known for disgusting battle styles?
After the group chatted for a while, the woman returned to the Gym arena, holding a green disc in her hand. This was the Grassy Glide TM.
"Take it." Erika took the disc from the woman's hand and handed it to Ash.
Ash thanked her while taking it, his eyes showing curiosity.
Is this a TM? Come to think of it, this was the first time he had seen one.