Chapter 796: Chapter 519: Dragon Flame, Inverted Scale (Part 2)
That doesn’t mean she made the wrong choice.
Baimu himself has used similar tactics.
The key opponent’s defense is impenetrable, and Wula La is not like him, able to seize even the slightest opportunity and expand it in an instant.
It’s just a pure frenzy of attacks.
This was a major reason why she eventually lost to Xiaoguang in the Sinnoh Gorgeous Festival, as Xiaoguang’s Pokémon were too resilient, and she always monotonously repeated the same attack technique.
The judges couldn’t deduct points from Xiaoguang even if they wanted to.
Originally, it was thought that Wula La’s mentality had grown, and her style of commanding Garchomp had changed somewhat. But now it appears...
Huh?
Baimu furrowed his brow slightly, because when the camera shifted to Mikoli, the latter had a hint of "anticipation" on his face.
Was Mikoli anticipating Glaceon?
No.
His intuition told him that the master of the Gorgeous Competition was actually anticipating Garchomp.
At this moment, the lens returned to the field, and the situation there shocked Baimu. Wula La’s Garchomp was enveloped in a layer of deep blue flames at some point, its fins overlapping to block Glaceon’s Frozen Beam.
Then.
With a booming explosion, the Frozen Beam shattered into crystalline fragments that filled the sky, yet Garchomp seemed unharmed!
"Kaboom!"
The roar was loud.
Its exceptionally handsome performance immediately deducted more than an eighth of Xiaoyao’s score.
"Is this... Inverted Scale!?"
Baimu’s eyes widened slightly. It’s a well-known fact that different Pokémon using the same move can produce different manifestations, and even Pokémon from different regions demonstrate variations.
Take Destructive Beam for example, its variations in color due to regional differences amount to four or five kinds.
But a manifestation like Garchomp’s Inverted Scale was something he was seeing for the first time. The azure flame... could it be the result of the high concentration of Dragon Attribute Energy?
When observed closely, indeed it was different from the azure energy wave of the Dragon God’s dive.
The flames didn’t completely cover its body, merely adhering to parts of its skin, such as the pairs of fin blades, the top of its head, and several spots on its knees and back.
It looked as if someone had cast them over, embers yet to extinguish.
But as Garchomp blocked the move, these flames flowed along its surface, enhancing the defense of the area in contact.
As if they were alive.
Watching it easily shatter the Ice Shard launched by Glaceon, the effortlessly confident manner resembled the state of a Super Saiyan.
Baimu suddenly felt that perhaps Hydreigon could learn this too?
This creature also knows Inverted Scale.
But Wula La might not be willing to teach such a signature skill, right?
On TV, Garchomp’s wild yet handsome stance undoubtedly kept causing Xiaoyao’s score to continue dropping.
Glaceon seemed quite helpless against the latter?
Relying on a single technique to control the situation.
Wula La and Garchomp’s overall style hadn’t changed, but it had evidently shifted from reckless aggression to subtle yet strategic advancement.
Not only was Xiaoyao’s score deducted, but Glaceon was also forced into an unavoidable position by Garchomp.
"Go, sister!" Xiaosheng looked at the TV screen with worry.
Baimu also felt that Xiaoyao was in danger.
Wula La clearly uncovered this trump card only after probing Glaceon’s output; otherwise, she would’ve used it from the start, right?
However.
He ultimately underestimated the prowess of those who mingled with Ash in terms of "mischief."
Seeing there was no escape, Xiaoyao actually let Glaceon dive straight into the adjacent pool.
Do you think you’re Vaporeon?
Wula La didn’t intend to let her off so easily, hastily ordering Garchomp to chase into the water. Even if Glaceon were agile in the water, it could only dog paddle.
Can it compete with the land-sea-air trifecta of Garchomp?
But just as it dove into the water, Wula La’s expression changed.
"Come out quickly!"
Her voice resonated clearly through the TV speakers.
Still puzzled, Xiaosheng soon realized, as longtime Hall Master Xiaogang immediately understood, "I see! Xiaoyao deliberately lured Garchomp into a trap!"
As soon as he spoke.
Glaceon spun underwater to spray out countless snowflakes, instantly freezing the entire pool, and Garchomp was naturally caught in it too.
"But doesn’t this freeze itself too?" Xiaosheng spoke involuntarily, just as the ice surface suddenly shatters, and Glaceon burrows out of the fully frozen pool using Digging.
Clearly, during freezing, it had managed to leave some room for maneuver, cleverly escaping through Digging.
Xiaosheng watched as Wula La’s score was deducted on the big screen, excitedly shouting, "It’s reversed!"
"No, it’s not over yet."
Baimu shook his head, the frozen pool water on the TV screen started shaking violently.
Bang!
With a loud explosion, the blue-flamed Garchomp broke through the ice, revealing a hint of fury in its eyes.
Xiaosheng’s smile froze on his face, "Ah..."
"It’s over now."
Baimu chuckled, making the former sulk.
"Brother Baimu, you can’t just do that~"
"Look closely, whose points are being deducted now?" He held Xiaosheng’s head, making him carefully watch the live screen on the TV.
It turned out that although Garchomp broke free, Wula La’s score was still deducted.
"Confusion state."
Without waiting for Xiaosheng to ask, Xiaogang directly said, "After the Inverted Scale move ends, it confuses the user. Xiaoyao let Glaceon freeze the pool mainly to buy more time."
Abnormal status is undoubtedly a point deduction factor in a Gorgeous Competition battle.
On TV, Wula La tried to wake Garchomp, but sadly, time was up.
Beep—
The whistle blew.
"Time’s up!" Vivian’s shout caused Xiaoyao and Wula La to first be stunned, then their expressions quickly turned from tense to relaxed.
And on the big screen, the one with more remaining points...
It was Xiaoyao.
Wula La’s initial probing cost her too many points, even though she almost caught up and surpassed in counterattack. Carelessly falling into Xiaoyao’s "trap" for more chances led to further deductions due to being trapped and the end of Inverted Scale.
"It’s a bit of a shame."
Baimu shook his head regretfully; Garchomp’s Inverted Scale was indeed stylish and powerful, as evidenced by the audience’s feedback.
Unfortunately.
She lacked the ’spark of inspiration’ and luck.
Xiaoyao’s luck has always been exceptionally good, for example, she doesn’t know how many times Skitty has helped her, enabling her to beat opponents deemed unbeatable by others.
As for this special Inverted Scale... Baimu decided to find a way to study it first.
"Time to go on stage."
He rubbed his neck, looking back at Xiaoshun, and found that the latter had already headed towards the contestant aisle, hands in pockets.
"Ha."
Baimu grinned, asked Xiaosheng to congratulate Xiaoyao on his behalf, then interacted briefly with Liuqia and Xiaoguang, who silently clenched their fists in a cheering pose, before heading to the competition venue.
——
Venue.
The exciting performance in the first battle of the second round satisfied a few viewers.
But a large portion of the audience was looking forward to the battle between Baimu and Xiaoshun.
After all, both have high looks; strong and excellent male Coordinator Trainers are rare, and those good-looking ones are even rarer.
No wonder they have more female fans.
Of course.
On Baimu’s side, many are led by Bei Lingyin, who primarily likes the Gorgeous Competition combination of Mawile and him.
It’s apparent from their tendency to cosplay as Mawile, nurture Mawile, or wear clothes with Mawile’s print.
In other words, they idolize both the person and the Pokémon, sometimes the Pokémon a bit more.
Baimu didn’t mind.
He and Mawile are an inseparable entity, partners through thick and thin; whoever they admire, it’s all the same.
Moreover, he personally pursues battles and participates in Gorgeous Competitions purely out of interest, aspiring to perform on stage, thus gaining the admiration of many.
Bei Lingyin’s liking for Mawile ironically aligned with his intentions.
And changing performance selections, without always going with Mawile as the main focus, was seriously considering winning as the priority.
Mawile itself has long accepted this and actively engages in training with teammates.
In summary.
It’s just pointing out Mawile’s unwavering intent to claim the Mikoli Club.
So...
"Chido!"
Spinning cherry blossoms composed the adorable Mawile, gracefully landing on the field, gazing at the Flygon made of countless green leaves in the distance, and then at the big screen.
Five minutes?
No need, three minutes are enough.
It slightly clenched its tiny fists, its smile blossoming like flowers, "Chido~"
’Begin’.
