At this moment, Mega Evolution for Tyranitar and Gengar had already become routine; the time required to complete it was no more than the blink of an eye.
The energy of Mega Evolution enveloped them and, in an instant, disappeared without a trace, but the appearance of both Pokémon underwent a drastic change.
"TTYYRRAAANN!!!"
"KEKEKEKE!!!"
Mega Tyranitar and Mega Gengar, present!
Along with the roars of both Pokémon, a terrifying surge of energy burst from their bodies.
The surrounding Pokémon retreated one after another under the impact of that energy fluctuation.
Whether on the side of the Sacred Church or the League, everyone present showed expressions of astonishment upon seeing Mega Tyranitar and Mega Gengar before them.
The members of the Sacred Church immediately recognized that this was very similar to their "infusion of divine power." However, after comparing them, it was clear that theirs seemed like an incomplete imitation in contrast to Cain's Mega Evolution.
Whether in the increase in power, the smoothness of the process, or the damage caused to the Pokémon, everything fell clearly behind.
As for the League, after so many confrontations with the Sacred Church, they were also very familiar with that transformation.
And more than once, the Sacred Church had gained advantages thanks to it.
But Cain's Mega Evolution was clearly different: more authentic, as if that were the true form that this type of special evolution should take, while that of the Sacred Church was a defective product.
However, soon the focus of their astonishment changed: it was no longer the Mega Evolution itself, but the level of power of both Pokémon.
"Impossible!! Completely impossible!!" shouted the Sacred Church's leader in this operation, Cain's old acquaintance: Marcus.
He clearly recognized that energy fluctuation: it was the aura of having surpassed the second threshold of Champion level!
And it was not one... but two!
Cain, with two Pokémon of that level, added to the rest of his team, already surpassed the current Dragon-type Champion, Drake, in both strength and threat.
Drake, Steven, Phoebe, and Wallace took a moment to react to what Cain was displaying.
Cain had already surpassed Drake.
In the eyes of Steven, Phoebe, and Wallace there was surprise, but deep down, what predominated was excitement.
If Cain had reached that level, they could not fall too far behind.
In contrast, in Drake's eyes, besides astonishment, what stood out most was satisfaction.
For a master, there is no greater pride than seeing his student surpass him.
After the shock, the League members were filled with enthusiasm. But for the Sacred Church, astonishment turned into fear.
Two Pokémon that had surpassed the second threshold of Champion level at once! How were they supposed to face that?
The three high-ranking Sacred Church members before Cain barely had one or two Pokémon that had surpassed the first threshold of Champion level... and those were their strongest cards.
The pressure Cain already exerted was enormous; now it simply exceeded everything they could endure.
"Go on, have some fun," Cain said to Tyranitar and Gengar.
Both Pokémon understood instantly. In a display of power like this, there was no need to use large-scale moves such as sandstorm domain; the enemy did not deserve it.
"TTYYRAANN!!"
Tyranitar roared once again.
As the energy in its body surged, beneath the ground, a sea of magma began to gather frantically. With its roar, pillars of rock infused with blazing magma erupted violently toward the sky.
Precipice Blades!
Tyranitar's level of mastery over that move had already reached seventy percent of Groudon's, so both its form and essence were nearly indistinguishable.
The only difference was the source of energy, which implied a slight disadvantage in power.
In other words, even if other Pokémon learned that exclusive move, they would never be able to surpass that limit.
But with Tyranitar's current strength, even that seventy percent was more than enough for its opponents to "enjoy."
Boom, boom, boom!!!
The effect of the move Precipice Blades triggered a chain reaction. The enemy Pokémon that had not even surpassed the first threshold of Champion level could not withstand more than one impact.
Meanwhile, after seeing Tyranitar attack, Mega Gengar sank into the ground, then appeared from an impossible angle, unleashing moves such as Hypnosis, Confuse Ray, Shadow Ball, and others without hesitation.
From the moment Tyranitar's attack began, all of Cain's Pokémon threw themselves into battle without holding back.
"Hydro Pump! Extinguish that magma!" ordered the high-ranking members of the Sacred Church.
They had noticed that half of that unknown move's power lay in the explosion of the magma. If they could cool it before it erupted, they would be able to endure longer.
Their Water-type Pokémon fired Hydro Pump... but before the attacks could advance, a pink Pokémon appeared in front of them.
It looked clumsy, but its eyes shone with wisdom.
Slowking extended its hands and raised a psychic barrier that completely blocked the attacks.
At the same time, from behind it, a Pokémon wrapped in flames leapt forward. With a kick wrapped in golden fire, it struck the strongest of the Water-type Pokémon.
Not even its natural endurance was enough to withstand it.
Blaziken charged directly into the center of the enemy group.
Meanwhile, after his round of attacks, Mega Gengar returned to its normal form.
Cain raised another Key Stone.
"Blaziken, Mega Evolve!"
Energy enveloped it... and Mega Blaziken appeared.
"BLLAAAZZKKK!!!"
An explosion of heat caused all nearby Pokémon to stagger, leaving them with burns.
With a spinning kick, it sent them all flying.
Slowking did not join the direct battle, instead using the move Teleport to bring Aggron to the center of the field.
In a chaotic battle like this, Aggron was ideal.
But that was not all.
"Mega Evolve, Aggron!"
This time, Cain executed a triple Mega Evolution.
Although it was still a burden, he could now maintain it for about five minutes.
Mega Aggron appeared with an imposing presence, its enormous metallic body dominating the battlefield.
Its defense was absolute.
No Pokémon could escape its grasp nor damage it.
This was absolute defense.
If combined with Tyranitar's sandstorm domain, it would form the perfect defensive core of Cain's team.
But it was not even necessary to go that far.
(End of Chapter)