Under the mobilization of all the families, a large number of trainers formed squads and began to strike. While it is true that there is strength in numbers, such a large-scale operation would be truly absurd if the League failed to receive word of it. Consequently, these people had not been active for long before Gu Yuan learned that the operation targeting him had already commenced.
Simultaneously, the League made preparations. They intended to exploit the families' pursuit of Gu Yuan to identify more vulnerabilities and expand their own tactical gains. Naturally, the families were aware of this risk and took precautions. As for who would have the last laugh, it would depend on whose methods were superior.
The only point of unspoken agreement between the two sides was the immediate cessation of conflict within the cities, creating a sudden, eerie sense of peace. For the urban citizens, the most significant change was the feeling that the vague, lingering pressure had abruptly vanished.
Conversely, the wilderness was completely transformed into a battleground for the two sides. The most common occurrence was a squad targeting Gu Yuan being ambushed and routed by League forces who had arrived ahead of time. In other instances, when the League attempted to strike a family squad, they discovered it was a trap; the family's hidden reinforcements would then coordinate with the bait to annihilate them.
Overall, in these final confrontations, the League held the upper hand. After all, the family members were ultimately focused on Gu Yuan as their target and could not commit their full strength to the clash with the League.
The families had long anticipated this situation. The people currently clashing with the League were actually all just bait. The real killing move lay with the elite squads hidden in the shadows.
However, what they did not know was that a hidden force was quietly approaching. Long before the war began, Team Rocket had taken action at Gu Yuan's reminder, targeting the underground forces cultivated by those families. Part of the reason the families were failing in the frontal war was due to Team Rocket.
As opponents, the families might not have sensed this, simply assuming these were elites secretly trained by the League. However, the Four Elites quickly noticed this and guessed their true identity. This time, the attitude of the Four Elites was surprisingly consistent: they pretended not to know and secretly coordinated their actions with Team Rocket.
After all, compared to Team Rocket, the families were the primary threat affecting the League's development. As long as the families were dealt with, the League could coordinate all overt powers to gradually compress Team Rocket's living space. Especially through League propaganda, Team Rocket's image as an evil organization was already deeply ingrained in the public mind. When necessary, the League could mobilize all the forces of the Kanto region to strike Team Rocket.
Due to these considerations, the Four Elites turned a blind eye to Team Rocket's actions. At the same time, after absorbing the underground forces of these families, Team Rocket experienced a period of growth. Their pervasive intelligence network allowed them to easily locate the families' elite units.
If the families wanted to avoid being discovered by the League in plain sight, they inevitably had to contact certain underground forces to hide their tracks. Naturally, they could not hide this from Team Rocket. This was the one thing the families least expected: that Team Rocket, a longtime enemy of the League, would actually step up to help the League.
Consequently, many elite units had not been on their way for long before they were marked by Team Rocket. Later, in some remote or hidden location, Team Rocket's prepared ambush would launch, annihilating them at the lowest possible cost. Although these people carried no resources to perform this mission, their Pokémon were the most valuable assets, enough for Team Rocket to make a tidy profit.
To make the situation appear more logical, Team Rocket did not wipe out all the elite units, as that would make the families appear too incompetent. Under Shadow's control, a few elite squads "silently" approached the area where Gu Yuan was located, preparing to launch the final blow.
"I've waited so long. I hope the families can give me a satisfying surprise. Otherwise, it would really be a waste of my preparations this time," Gu Yuan murmured softly while leaning against a tree trunk. His gaze remained fixed on the system's detection function, waiting for the targets to appear.
"Get ready. Gu Yuan should be within this area."
"Although we are carrying devices that can block psychic powers, according to the intel, Gu Yuan has a special reconnaissance method that can discover our location faster."
"Also, please remember our mission: to flush out Gu Yuan so he cannot maintain his advantage of operating from the shadows, and then coordinate with the other squads to take him down."
As the first squad to arrive was about to enter the forest, their captain, Nishizawa, could not help but give instructions again. Like Saya and the others before them, this group consisted of extremely elite trainers. Even when performing a mission that felt beneath their status, they had no complaints.
After completing their preparations, the squad stepped into the forest. To expand their search area, Nishizawa had his teammates spread out, though the gap between each person was not far. Even if Gu Yuan appeared to launch a single attack before leaving, it would be enough for them to arrive in time.
"I understand. Leave it to me."
Speaking silently, a man slowly stood up. Behind him was a group of trainers ready for battle.
While Nishizawa and the others were still searching, the second squad was also nearing arrival. Thus, they had to complete their task as quickly as possible to force Gu Yuan out of the shadows. Thinking of this, Nishizawa and his men silently quickened their pace, unaware that death had already quietly arrived at their side.
A signal-blocking device was activated. Soon, within a ten-mile radius, no information could be transmitted out.
Almost at the instant the signal was blocked, the man led his people to launch an attack on Nishizawa and the others. With the advantage of a planned strike against the unaware, coupled with the gap in strength, the man's side immediately took the upper hand.
To protect Gu Yuan's safety, the League had really spent a fortune this time. They had gone so far as to second three squads from the three combat departments—the Investigators, the Police, and the Forest Rangers—to protect him. At the same time, by utilizing his ability to detect enemies in advance, Gu Yuan had gained command over the general direction of these three squads.
The squad currently in action had been seconded from the Police department. Among the crowd was an acquaintance of Gu Yuan—Mason, whom he had met before. What Mason hadn't expected was that the youth he once admired had now grown to such a level that he could trigger such a massive commotion. This also made Mason more determined to protect Gu Yuan. For no other reason than that he saw in Gu Yuan the hope of a unified League!
After the first squad lost contact, the second squad was visibly flustered. Unfortunately, they did not have time for careful reflection, as the squad seconded from the Forest Ranger department had already set their sights on them.