svetikya Chapter 529 The Battle of Fate Begins: The First Round of Clashes!
Chapter 529 The Battle of Fate Begins: The First Round of Clashes!
The following day, the semi-finals of the Lily of the Valley Tournament proceeded smoothly amidst great anticipation.
Sunlight streamed onto the enormous Lily of the Valley Arena, bathing every inch of the ground in a golden glow.
The stands were already packed, with countless eyes focused on the center of the venue, and the air was filled with an indescribable mix of excitement and tension.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Lily of the Valley Conference semifinals! Today, we will be welcoming the semifinals of this year's Lily of the Valley Conference! First up are two highly anticipated dark horse trainers! One is Ash from Pallet Town! And the other is Paul from Veilstone City!"
The commentator's voice resounded throughout the stadium through the loudspeaker, each word carrying an exciting power that instantly ignited the enthusiasm of all the spectators, and cheers swept across the entire arena like a tidal wave.
Amidst the intense anticipation of the crowd, Ash and Shinji emerged from opposite sides of the player tunnel and stepped onto the familiar battlefield.
The two stood facing each other in the center of the field, their eyes meeting in the air.
The faintly rising intense fighting spirit seemed to raise the surrounding temperature by several degrees.
The referee walked to the side of the field, glanced at both competitors, and after confirming that there was no mistake, raised his flag high and spoke loudly:
"Lily of the Valley Conference Semifinals, Match 1! Officially begins! Now, both sides, please send out your first Pokémon!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shinji took the initiative and did not intend to send out his Pokémon at the same time as Ash.
With a swift and decisive swing of his arm, he tossed the baby ball into the air.
"Dragon King Scorpion! Enter the battle!"
A flash of red light appeared, and a Pokémon covered in a hard purple shell, exuding a dangerous aura, appeared in the center of the arena.
It landed with a heavy thud, its eight thick limbs supporting its body firmly. It let out a low growl, and its sharp compound eyes scanned its opponent, exuding a sense of oppression.
It was one of Shinji's main forces, Ryuo Sasori.
Ash's eyes narrowed slightly when he saw the first Pokémon Shinji sent out. Shinji had also sent out Drapion the first Pokémon when he battled other trainers yesterday.
Are we going to use the same tactics again?
He took a deep breath, gripped a baby ball tightly in his hand, and threw it forcefully.
"I choose you, Night Demon!"
As the red light faded, the ghostly figure of the Night Demon quietly appeared on the competition field and floated in mid-air.
Seeing that both Pokémon were in position, the referee raised the flag again and swung it down sharply!
"Game start!"
Almost the instant the referee finished speaking, Shinji's icy voice resounded throughout the stadium:
"Dragon King Scorpion, Poison Spikes!"
The Dragon King Scorpion received the order and was preparing to swing its tail to deploy its own poison shards on the field.
Shinji's intentions seem very clear: he wants to use Toxic Spikes from the start to limit Ash's subsequent Pokémon, so that he can gain a stamina advantage in later battles. If Shinji's Toxic Spikes tactic is successful, Ash will face much more trouble than he did in his battle against Ash yesterday.
If Ash were to combine that with moves like Stealth Rock and Roar, he would really be in for a rough time.
However, Ash was prepared for this.
Just as Shinji thoroughly studied him, Ash naturally wouldn't miss any of Shinji's publicly available recordings, especially the tactics he used just yesterday.
"Night Demon, you're provoking me!"
Xiao Zhi's voice was steady and quick.
"Dus!"
A purple light flashed in the Night Demon's single eye, and it leaned forward slightly, beckoning to the Dragon King Scorpion with its finger.
Instantly, an invisible wave spread out and enveloped the Dragon King Scorpion.
The Dragon King Scorpion's movements suddenly froze, its preparation to unleash the energy of the Poison Spikes interrupted, and a look of anger appeared on its face.
The provocation was successful; Night Demon successfully blocked all of Dragon Scorpion's transformation skills for a short period of time.
It can be said that Ash gained the upper hand right from the start of this round.
However, Shinji's expression remained calm, as if he himself did not think that Ryūō Sasori would be able to successfully release Poison Spikes when facing Night Demon.
After the poison spikes were blocked at the start, Shinji immediately launched a direct offensive.
"Pin Missile!"
The Dragon King Scorpion immediately adjusted its posture, and the spikes on its tail lit up again. This time, they were no longer sharp spikes, but dense white energy needles like a rainstorm, which, under the Dragon King Scorpion's control, rained down on the Night Demon in mid-air.
Despite the relentless onslaught from Graptopetalum, Ash remained calm.
"Hold on!"
"Dus!"
A pale green energy barrier instantly appeared in front of the Night Demon, blocking all the missiles. The missiles landed on the barrier, making a series of crisp sounds, but failed to break through the barrier even slightly.
Shinji's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly when he saw that even the Pin missile had been easily blocked.
Letting the Dragon King Scorpion continue to fight the Night Demon Spirit doesn't seem like a good option right now.
After this thought came to mind, Shinji made a very decisive decision. He took out the Poké Ball without any hesitation.
"Come back, Dragon King Scorpion."
With a flash of red light, the Dragon King Scorpion was retrieved.
The audience, who had wanted to continue watching the battle between Ryuo Scorpion and Night Demon, let out a series of disappointed murmurs, but Shinji on the field didn't care about them.
He simply threw out the second baby ball at the same time.
"They're about to go, Crow Chief!"
A crimson light descended, and a large raven leader appeared on the field, its feathers as black as ink, its head adorned with a crest like a top hat, and its eyes sharp and piercing.
It spread its wings, let out a loud cry, and exuded a leader-like aura.
A Dark-type and Flying-type crow-headed creature.
It wasn't surprising that Shinji would send the leader of the crows to fight.
Shinji's consistent fighting style is to maintain an advantage in attributes as much as possible during battles.
Shinji wouldn't want to waste his time on some reverse attribute challenge.
Meanwhile, Ash on the other side of the field made no move when facing Crow's Head, whose type was disadvantageous against Dusknoir, clearly indicating that Ash did not intend to switch Pokémon.
"Night Demon, Lightning Fist!"
Ash's voice rang out.
"Dus!"
The Night Demon obeyed the order, and crackling golden electricity suddenly condensed on its solid right fist. Its massive body, exuding a strong sense of oppression, charged towards the crow's head.
"Get out of the way!" Shinji's command was concise and clear.
A hint of disdain flashed in the crow's eyes. Facing the Night Demon charging towards it, it flapped its wings violently, displaying an astonishing speed far exceeding that of the Night Demon.
A dark shadow flashed by, and Raven Head easily and comfortably dodged the Night Demon's attack with an extremely nimble side-flying maneuver.
The difference in speed is obvious.
------
P.S.: Thanks to user Crab0 for the inspiration capsule! Thanks to Assassin Sword, Morning Sun, Sunset, user, LLL-Lucy, Danzhou's Erteng Hongsong, and Ms. He who loves trombones for the bubble tea! Thank you for your support!