"Kulu… let's head for the Wildspire Waste."
Su Yi finally tore his gaze away from the sky, where wyverns were still clashing above the Ancient Forest.
"…Yeah… this place isn't safe anymore, meow…" Lulu replied, her voice trembling slightly.
Above them, Rathalos ruled the skies in a brutal aerial battle, while below, Anjanath and Fulgur Anjanath roared through the jungle. And deeper still… who knew how many monsters were lurking, waiting for the chaos to settle so they could hunt.
This place was no longer survivable.
"Do you know how to reach the Wildspire Waste?" Su Yi asked.
"The safest route is through Astera…" Lulu hesitated before continuing, "but…"
"…not an option," Su Yi finished calmly, narrowing his eyes.
He was still a blacklisted outsider. Showing up there now would only bring trouble.
"I heard…" Lulu said slowly, trying to recall, "you can go around the eastern side of the forest—through canyons and wasteland—to reach it."
Su Yi nodded immediately. "Then that's our route."
He cast one final glance toward the sky battle near the Ancient Tree before turning away.
"…I'm done staying here."
They began moving.
As they advanced, the environment gradually changed. The trees grew thinner, the soil drier, and the air noticeably hotter. Even before fully leaving the forest, the breath of the desert was already creeping in.
"…Feels like the Waste already," Su Yi muttered, taking a sip of stored water.
Lulu looked up at the towering cliffs surrounding them, her eyes widening. "Look at those… they're huge…"
Hundreds of meters high, forming a massive ring of stone that enclosed the Coral Highlands and Rotten Vale.
"You know," Su Yi said casually, "something like this might have been created by an Elder Dragon."
"…WHAT?!" Lulu froze.
Storms and rain were already terrifying enough—but something that could reshape the land itself?
That was on a completely different level.
Su Yi chuckled. "In the Pokémon world, there are beings that create land, oceans… even space and time."
"…That sounds unreal, meow…"
"Exactly," he replied with a grin. "That's why we explore."
Unknown worlds. Endless mysteries.
That was what made it exciting.
They entered the canyon path.
The space narrowed, stone walls rising on both sides. Despite the harsh terrain, life still existed—scorpions, beetles, ants… all adapting to survive.
Above them, strange wyverns circled lazily.
Then—
"Wait."
Su Yi suddenly stopped.
His scoutflies flared, gathering over a footprint.
Three-toed.
Deep.
His expression darkened.
"…Brute Wyvern."
Not small.
Not harmless.
"Over here, meow!" Lulu called out, pointing at something nearby.
Su Yi turned—and froze.
Metallic dust.
Sharp fragments.
Cold.
His pupils shrank instantly.
"…No way…"
"Run."
No hesitation.
He moved immediately.
This was a choke point. If something blocked the path here, there would be no escape.
They rushed forward as fast as they could. The terrain gradually widened, opening into a vast desert landscape filled with towering ant mounds.
They had entered—
The Wildspire Waste.