"Elite Four Peak." Ash narrowed his eyes slightly, taking in Gengar's information. This Gengar's strength was even half a step above Banette, only one step away from Champion level.
Moreover, Gengar's speed and special attack were extremely outstanding, making it a classic speed-attacker Pokémon, completely different from a staller like Venusaur.
"I didn't expect Gym Leader Morty to bring out his ace Pokémon so quickly. Was he pushed to a corner by Venusaur?" a student watching nearby whispered.
"Not at all! Gym Leader Morty definitely wants a quick battle. I think that Venusaur must be that guy Ash's ace. As long as he takes care of that Pokémon, the rest of his team won't be a threat!" another student named Marcus said discontentedly. He seemed to have a blind admiration for Morty, much like Max had for his father Norman.
On the field, after seeing Gengar, a hint of nostalgia flashed in Ash's eyes. "Gengar, huh. It's been a long time since I fought alongside him."
Hearing Ash's words, Morty instantly realized that Ash definitely had a Gengar of his own, though he didn't know if Ash had brought it along for this battle.
"Return, Venusaur." Ash recalled Venusaur. "Thanks for your hard work. Now let's let your senior show off a bit."
"Gengar, I choose you!" Ash threw a new Poké Ball, and an identical Gengar appeared on the field. In terms of size, Ash's Gengar was noticeably larger than the opponent's, and the aura emanating from its body was entirely different.
"So you really have a Gengar. It seems you planned to use your Gengar against mine all along." Seeing Gengar, although Morty was slightly surprised, his tone conveyed a sense of expectation.
Ghost-type Pokémon were extremely troublesome for normal Pokémon to deal with, but if both sides were Ghost-type, that was a completely different story. Ghost-types naturally countered Ghost-types, and both shared unpredictable traits. A duel between Ghost-type Pokémon relied even more on the Trainer's commands.
"Hoho, it's finally time for yours truly to take the stage." Gengar floated in mid-air, arms crossed over its chest, a wicked grin on its lips. Its crimson eyes looked down at the smaller counterpart opposite it.
"Interesting, truly interesting." Gengar licked his lips. "Haven't fought one of my own kind in a while. Try not to bore me, little guy."
His tone was casual, as if he didn't care about this Elite Four Peak Gengar at all.
"It spoke?" Morty's pupils shrank suddenly, and he subconsciously took a step back, his face filled with disbelief.
Ghost-type Pokémon indeed possessed extremely high intelligence and incredible abilities, but this was the first time he had met one that could speak human language so fluently. Even for a Ghost-type Pokémon, it shouldn't be able to talk. Where on earth did this Gengar come from?
"It's been a long time since I saw Gengar come out." In the stands, Brock folded his arms with a nostalgic look on his face. "The last time he fought was back at the Indigo Conference, right? He spent the whole time fooling around back then and didn't fight seriously at all."
"Has Ash's Gengar been traveling with him from the very beginning?" Serena blinked with curiosity, her eyes landing on the extraordinary purple figure. "And he can actually talk. That's so cool."
"It's way more than cool." Misty shook her head. "When Ash caught him, he was already able to freely evolve and devolve. Plus, he's lived for over a thousand years. If not for Ash, he'd probably still be scaring people at Maiden's Peak."
"A. Over a thousand years?" Serena covered her mouth, her eyes widening. A Gengar that had lived for over a thousand years? Just how strong must he be?
"However, Ash rarely sends him into battle." Brock added. "Because this guy is too strong. Ash felt that before he trained a sufficiently powerful team, he didn't have the qualification to command him."
"Ash has always been like that." The corners of Misty's mouth curled up slightly, her eyes holding a bit of helplessness, but even more pride. "He always sets a bunch of bizarre standards for his Pokémon."
Serena didn't speak, simply shifting her gaze back to the field.
Floating in mid-air, Gengar tilted his head, sizing up his counterpart with great interest, the wicked grin on his face impossible to suppress.
"Little guy, don't disappoint me."
"Little guy?" Veins bulged on Morty's forehead. Even though this Gengar looked formidable, his own Gengar was at the Elite Four Peak level. When it came to Ghost-type Pokémon, he refused to believe he would lose to anyone.
They were both Ghost-type Pokémon, and his Gengar hadn't lived a short life either. It had been around for several decades. On what grounds did the opponent call his Gengar "little guy"? Could it be that Ash's Gengar had lived for hundreds of years?
"Gengar, Shadow Ball!" Morty commanded coldly, deciding to answer the opponent's contempt with raw strength.
Morty's Gengar thrust both hands forward. A pitch-black Shadow Ball instantly condensed in front of him, trailing a long black flame tail as it tore through the air with a piercing screech, blasting toward Ash's Gengar. A full-power blow from an Elite Four Peak Pokémon possessed terrifying power.
"We'll use Shadow Ball too." Ash's voice was as calm as water.
"Heh."
Ash's Gengar didn't even make any charging gesture. He merely raised one hand lazily, and an equally pitch-black Shadow Ball instantly took shape in his palm, then unhurriedly flew out to meet the attack.
The two Shadow Balls collided violently in mid-air.
There was no expected stalemate, nor the roar of opposing energy. The moment of collision, Morty's Gengar's Shadow Ball was easily shattered like an egg hitting a rock, failing to hold out for even a single second. Pitch-black energy fragments scattered in all directions, flickering with dark light in mid-air.
Without stopping for a moment, Ash's Gengar's Shadow Ball carried devastating momentum through the energy fragments, striking Morty's Gengar squarely on the body.
A dull impact exploded in the Gym. Morty's Gengar let out a shrill cry, its whole body sent flying backward. It tumbled several times in the air before crashing heavily onto the ground, sliding several meters before barely coming to a stop. Severe wounds were clearly visible on its ghost-purple body.
Dead silence filled the venue.
Morty stood frozen on the spot, his mouth slightly open, his mind a complete blank. He knew Ash's Gengar was strong, but he had never imagined it would be this strong. Using the same move, Shadow Ball, his Gengar's full-power strike was as fragile as paper in front of the opponent.
"Champion Mid." Morty uttered those two words with difficulty, his voice trembling in a way even he hadn't noticed.
He finally saw it clearly. The true rank of Ash's Gengar.
Champion Mid. A full two ranks higher than his Gengar. And one of those was a major boundary.
Such a gap was no longer something that type advantage or tactics could overcome. The fact that his Gengar hadn't lost its ability to battle after that single hit was purely because the opponent held back. Otherwise, an Elite Four Peak Gengar taking a super-effective STAB move from a Champion Mid opponent would lose its ability to battle one hundred percent of the time.
"So that's how it is. Is this why Ho-Oh chose you?" Morty took a deep breath and slowly raised his head, the shock in his eyes gradually replaced by a sense of relief.
Before this, he had always felt that Ho-Oh choosing Ash was perhaps just a coincidence, or that Ash had gotten lucky and obtained the Rainbow Wing. Even though Ash had many outstanding battle records before, Morty still didn't think he deserved the title of Rainbow Hero.
After all, that was the obsession of their family for a thousand years. They had guarded Bell Tower for a thousand years just to wait for Ho-Oh's return, only for Ho-Oh to choose a fifteen-year-old boy who had debuted less than a year ago.
How could he accept that?
So at the very beginning, he had been full of anticipation for Ash's arrival, wanting to defeat Ash head-on to indirectly tell Ho-Oh that their thousand-year family guarding Bell Tower was Ho-Oh's best choice.
But now he understood.
A fifteen-year-old youth, debuting less than a year ago, possessed a Champion Mid Pokémon, and that wasn't even his full strength. The Charizard that fought Lorelei and Pikachu hadn't even made a move yet. Moreover, he might have other hidden powers.
For instance, the barrier set up around the arena wasn't something ordinary Pokémon could erect. This kind of talent, this kind of capability, in the entire history of the Pokémon world, one probably couldn't find a second person like him.
Ho-Oh didn't choose some lucky kid. It chose a once-in-a-millennium prodigy.
"Gengar, can you still stand up?" Morty's voice calmed down.
Morty's Gengar struggled to float up from the ground, still carrying the marks left by Shadow Ball. Yet those crimson eyes remained fixed on its counterpart, without a trace of retreat.
"Good." Morty nodded, a flash of decisiveness in his eyes. "Since I can't win in a frontal clash, I'll use that." He paused, his voice suddenly rising. "Gengar, Destiny Bond!"
Destiny Bond. One of the ultimate Ghost-type moves. After use, if the user entered a fainted state, the opponent would fall along with it. This was a desperate one-for-one move, and Morty's only hope for a comeback. As long as Destiny Bond connected, whether the opponent was Champion Mid or Champion High, it would fall together with his Gengar.
Now, as long as Destiny Bond could hit, and then follow up with Mean Look, he would be completely locked in. Even if his own Gengar was defeated, he could drag one of the opponent's Champion-level Pokémon down with it.
If he couldn't eliminate this Gengar, his last remaining Pokémon, although strong, might not be able to sweep three of the opponent's Pokémon in a row.
Unlike other moves, Destiny Bond was not an energy attack, but a lock at the level of causality. Once locked on successfully, unless the opponent avoided knocking out the user, the effect of Destiny Bond would persist. Now his Gengar had locked onto the opponent. Dodging it was simply impossible.
"Confuse Ray." Ash's voice remained cool, not panicking in the slightest because of the opponent's Destiny Bond.
"Take this!" Ash's Gengar made a comical sound as an eerie, rainbow-colored light flashed in his eyes. The light turned into a tangible beam, instantly sinking into Morty's Gengar's eyes.
Morty's Gengar's body suddenly stiffened. Those crimson eyes began to grow hazy and unfocused, its body swaying uncontrollably. The lock of Destiny Bond was forcibly interrupted at this moment.
"What?" Morty's pupils shrank violently.
A Pokémon in a state of confusion couldn't use any move requiring mental focus, and Destiny Bond was precisely one of those. Ash had actually used this method to break a Gengar that had already locked on with Destiny Bond.
"Gengar, Hypnosis."
"Hehehe." Another light flashed in Ash's Gengar's eyes, this time a soft purple. The light spread silently, enveloping Morty's Gengar, which was still struggling in confusion.
Morty's Gengar swayed, its crimson eyes slowly closing, its body falling from mid-air to slump on the ground as if deeply asleep.
Hypnosis connected.
"Final blow. Dream Eater." Ash waved his hand, delivering the judgment.
"Sweet dreams, junior." The corners of Ash's Gengar's mouth curled into a wicked smile as a deep purple light flashed in his eyes. Formless psychic power turned into tentacles, sinking into Morty's Gengar's body and madly devouring its energy.
The sleeping Gengar let out a shrill scream, its body convulsing violently as its aura rapidly weakened at a speed visible to the naked eye. In just a few breaths, it completely lost consciousness, lying motionless on the ground.
Morty's Gengar was unable to battle.
Both sides had only exchanged moves for three short rounds, and Morty's Gengar was already defeated. This was the absolute crushing power brought by level advantage. Faced with an absolute level gap, reality was just this helpless. Although Ash had fought countless battles against higher-level opponents, not everyone was Ash. Normally, encountering a Pokémon that completely outranked yours left only one path: swift defeat. Those who successfully turned the tables were very, very few.
Silence fell over the whole venue. Morty's students opened their mouths wide, disbelief written all over their faces. Gym Leader Morty had sent out his ace Gengar, but far from gaining the upper hand, it was defeated in a completely overwhelming fashion. Throughout the whole process, Morty's Gengar didn't even manage to land a single effective attack before falling.
This was just too strong. The Gengar they had pinned all their hopes on lost just like that. With the ace down, Gym Leader Morty's hope of winning was now extremely slim.