Eternal Gardevoir looked at the Honchkrow kneeling before her and fell into deep thought.
Are city Pokémon this shameless?
Or... are they just brainless?
While she pondered, a gleam of cunning flashed in the prostrate Honchkrow's eyes.
The next second, taking advantage of Gardevoir's distraction, it exploded into action, shooting toward her like an arrow.
Brave Bird: 120 Power!
Knowing Dark moves were ineffective against Fairy, it opened with its strongest Flying-type move.
A sudden attack from such close range would be hard for even a speedster to dodge.
And Gardevoir wasn't fast; she just knew how to teleport.
The giant bird, wrapped in sky-blue energy, pierced through Gardevoir with a whoosh. Her frail body couldn't withstand the impact and was torn to shreds instantly.
"I lost..." But Ariana shook her head in regret.
Pokémon had a built-in "faint protection mechanism." Unless the power gap was immense, they wouldn't be torn apart.
This meant Honchkrow hadn't hit the real Gardevoir—it hit a Substitute or an afterimage.
As for the real Gardevoir? She had teleported high into the sky. With a flip of her hand, she slammed the ball of light down.
Initially palm-sized, the ball expanded rapidly once released, becoming larger than several people combined.
The massive sphere crashed down, hitting Honchkrow squarely. The terrifying energy carried the weight of mountains, sealing Honchkrow's movement and pinning it to the ground.
The sphere didn't explode; it spun wildly like a Rasengan, releasing high-energy pulses.
A moment later, Gardevoir snapped her fingers. The energy dissipated, revealing the unconscious, ragged bird.
Its feathers were corroded, its energy depleted. If Gardevoir hadn't withdrawn the attack, its faint protection would have been exhausted, leading to death.
"Nice acting. Wrong audience," Li Yuan commented.
Honchkrow tried the "cry and sneak attack" routine. A kind-hearted Pokémon might have hesitated.
But it faced Li Yuan and Gardevoir.
Li Yuan had nothing to do with the word "kind."
And Gardevoir could read emotions. She saw through the act instantly.
Besides, Honchkrow was a Dark-type. Li Yuan raised Huanhuan; he knew Dark types were drama queens.
"100 pounds of weight, 99 pounds of treachery." Unless you were close, trusting a Dark type was like trusting Qin Shi Huang to pay you back.
So Gardevoir was ready to teleport, waiting for the trap.
Ariana knew Dark types lacked direct offensive power and relied on tricks. Once the tricks failed, defeat was certain.
Not every Dark type was like Huanhuan, mastering every move and charging faster than an Electric type. Learning off-type moves was hard.
"As expected of Young Master Li. You give no chances."
Ariana sighed, recalling Honchkrow. She then pulled out another Poké Ball seriously. "In that case, let this one decide the match."
"No more testing?" Li Yuan was surprised.
"No need. Testing is just feeding you. The gap is too big," Ariana shook her head.
He beat a Gym Leader+ Pokémon with a Veteran-rank one. That wasn't just "tier-skipping"; it was cheating.
She still didn't understand the mid-battle evolution. It shattered her worldview. But she didn't ask; he wouldn't tell.
She considered surrendering. If she surrendered, she would become his woman, and maybe he would tell her the secret?
But thinking about being fucked daily by a boy much younger than her... she hesitated. Chastity was important...
Finally, Ariana sighed. Since Li Yuan conquered Sham, he could probably conquer her. She would just try her best. Even if she lost, she could console herself that she tried.
Ariana threw out her Ace: Arbok. A giant purple cobra with a terrifying face pattern on its hood, said to make children cry.
Arbok's base stats were only 448, with no stat above 100. It was considered weak by traditional standards, even weaker than Honchkrow.
But this Arbok was Ariana's Ace, with strength reaching the Elite Four level. This showed her bias; it was her starter, accompanying her since she was a nobody. Even if she got a Pseudo-Legendary later, Arbok's place in her heart was irreplaceable.
"In that case, I have to get serious. Gardevoir, come back," Li Yuan recalled Gardevoir.
Eternal Gardevoir was strong, but facing a true Elite Four Pokémon was tough, especially since Poison countered Fairy.
Better to bring her back into his arms for some petting and kissing~.
He summoned his main force's "big sister"—Tsareena.
Originally borrowed from Erika to deal with Hunter J, she was now useful here.
As an Elite Four-level Pokémon herself, Tsareena was more than enough to handle a snake.