In the distant sky, Mega Salamence, with the terrifying power of the move Hyper Voice, transformed the soundwave into a devastating sweep. Wherever it passed, the pavement bricks of Ever Grande City shattered into pieces, reduced to dust.
Under the ability Aerilate, Normal-type moves became Flying-type moves, and their destructive power multiplied. Combined with the Fragments of the Sky Plate carried by Mega Salamence, the penetrating force of those soundwaves was enough to sweep away everything, as if it could tear apart heaven and earth.
Fortunately, under Cain's command, Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice was deliberately directed at the members of the Sacred Church. Although the League's trainers were also affected to varying degrees, compared to the damage suffered by the enemy, it could be completely ignored.
That earth-shaking attack even caused the dark clouds covering the sky to tear apart under the soundwave, allowing a ray of midday sunlight to pass through and illuminate everyone's faces.
A gigantic winged dragon, stained blood-red, tore through the air and charged directly toward the Sacred Church members who were fighting against Vivian and the others.
"ROOOAAARR!!!"
The imposing roar of Mega Salamence forced the enemy to retreat. Cain stood calmly on its back, looking down from above at the Sacred Church members before him, his gaze completely devoid of emotion.
He immediately recognized them: they were precisely the same Sacred Church members he had encountered in the Space-Time Continent, among them Marcus, with whom he had cooperated in the past.
"Since when do rats hiding in the shadows dare to sow chaos in my territory?"
Cain, the Sandstorm Elite Four of Hoenn!
With a calm voice yet an oppressive presence, he delivered the fiercest accusation against all the members of the Sacred Church.
At once, Mega Salamence released the most intense surge of energy from its entire body, roaring outward.
Hyper Voice, once again!
The Sacred Church members, who had already witnessed the power of that attack once before, did not dare underestimate it in the slightest; all of their Pokémon adopted defensive stances.
Cain's Mega Salamence was now, without a doubt, at the peak of the first threshold of Champion-level power. Among those present, the only ones confident in their ability to contain it were Marcus and Drake.
"Cain!" The League trainers who knew him could not hide their excitement and shouted his name with joy.
After separating following a direct clash, Drake and Marcus looked at Cain at the same time as he stood atop the imposing Mega Salamence, each with a different expression.
Drake, like Steven and the others, was filled with surprise and joy. Marcus, on the other hand, showed shock... and a gaze filled with hatred.
If not for Cain, none of what had happened in the Space-Time Continent would have occurred. If not for Cain, even if he had ultimately been unable to take anything from within the barrier of the continent's central mountain, he would never have lost Giratina's Reverse Scale.
If it were not because he had demonstrated absolute loyalty, Marcus knew that even dying dozens of times would not have been enough to atone for such a mistake.
Everything had begun because of that man named Cain.
Although Marcus could not be one hundred percent certain that the current Cain was exactly the same as before —the fluctuations of psychic power were different— he was eighty to ninety percent convinced that it was him.
"Master! Steven! And everyone! Sorry, it seems I arrived a little late," Cain said with a smile, scratching his head as he jumped from Mega Salamence's back and landed beside Vivian.
Instinctively, he gave her a few pats on the head. "You did more than well. From here on, leave it to me."
Vivian looked at Cain's confident face, pressed her lips together, and nodded.
"Yes!"
Cain swept his gaze across the scene and instantly understood the situation.
Although he very much wanted to catch up with his companions, the current circumstances clearly did not allow it.
For Steven and the others, perhaps it had only been a little over a month without seeing him, but for Cain... it had been almost half a year since he had reunited with them.
That's right, half a year!
After leaving the mountain, Cain had remained almost another half year in the Space-Time Continent, taking advantage of the difference in time flow to accelerate the growth of his strength.
At that time, Cain truly believed he would have to spend twenty-five years there before being able to return to the Pokémon world.
However, that special Unown shaped like a question mark revealed to him that the Space-Time Continent actually had an extremely well-hidden secret passage, so well concealed that even Dialga and Palkia were unaware of it. It was an escape route left behind by the Unown.
After learning this, Cain stopped feeling anxious. He had more than enough resources, and his Pokémon still had enormous room for growth. Why rush?
Remaining there for twenty-five years would have been an enormous waste, but staying for one or two months was undoubtedly far more beneficial than harmful.
In fact, even staying for one or two years would have been advantageous, as long as the consumption and recovery of resources remained balanced.
Even so, Cain considered that half a year was sufficient. Among his Pokémon, Darkrai, Gengar, and Tyranitar were already very close to the limit of the first threshold of Champion level; advancing further might attract the attention of Dialga and Palkia.
That half year was perfect for them to fully assimilate the increase in power they had obtained.
As for the other Pokémon, while digesting their growth, they also improved to varying degrees. For example, Mega Salamence itself: even without mega evolving, it had already surpassed the first threshold of Champion level, and after mega evolving, it directly approached the peak.
The combination of the ability Aerilate with the Fragments of the Sky Plate had unleashed a power that left no room for doubt: it was the best possible demonstration of strength.
Cain no longer intended to hide Mega Evolution. In his plan, his return to the Pokémon world specifically included revealing it to the League and to the entire world.
The only thing he did not know was whether Steven and the others had already made that information public.
Although they had once promised to keep it secret, Cain had disappeared for more than a month; if they had chosen to reveal Mega Evolution, it would also be understandable.
In any case, Mega Salamence had already intimidated the vast majority of the Sacred Church members.
(End of Chapter)