Clank—clank—
Heatran moved across the battlefield.
Watching its companions fall one after another, tears had unknowingly filled its eyes.
"HEAAAT!"
Letting out a thunderous roar, it positioned itself in front of the raging sandstorm, energy continuously gathering in its mouth as a Magma Storm surged forth!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The sandstorm and Magma Storm collided repeatedly, unleashing terrifying roars of power!
As the energies clashed, both forces exploded violently, countless crystals scorched into molten lava raining down from the sky!
Hah!
From midair, Landorus suddenly dove downward.
Ground-type energy gathered in its hand as it slammed it directly onto Heatran's body!
BOOM!
In an instant, the ground beneath Heatran shook violently.
The earth then split apart like a spider's web, spreading rapidly in all directions before completely shattering!
Heatran was crushed by the overwhelming force and slammed deep into the ground, its body plunging into a vast chasm amid the collapsing earth!
TN: Bruh? That's it?! Rhyperior got more screentime that Heatran.
"Lord Heatran!"
The Trainers watching from afar cried out in alarm.
Heatran was their side's only Guardian Deity. Now that even Heatran had been defeated, what could possibly stand against the three Forces of Nature?
"It's over… we can't hold them back." The knights of the Aspiration City Order murmured blankly.
They had already experienced defeat once before at Aspiration City. Now, facing another impending loss, the last bit of resolve many of them had been holding onto finally dissipated, leaving only despair on their faces.
Yet at that very moment, Mira suddenly shook her head, a relaxed expression appearing on her face. "No. The battle isn't over—or rather, the real battle is only just beginning."
Hearing their lord's words, everyone froze. Before they could ask anything, they suddenly saw the raging sandstorm in the sky abruptly come to a halt—then shatter completely!
Amid the swirling dust, a figure slowly emerged, floating calmly in midair.
The instant they saw that figure, everyone present froze—then their eyes widened in excitement.
Prince Aven! Prince Aven is back!!!!
"Sorcerer Organization…"
Hovering in midair, Aven gazed coldly at Landorus in the distance.
Beside him, Darkrai also floated silently, its eyes filled with icy hostility, the energy around its body trembling uncontrollably.
Back then, it was these Sorcerers who had captured and controlled it, plunging its consciousness into darkness and turning it into a puppet that obeyed orders. And now—it was finally time to settle everything!
"Lilli…"
"Lass…"
"Voir…"
"Na…"
Lilligant, Froslass, Gardevoir, Naganadel, and the others all turned their gazes toward Fairhaven Town in the distance.
This was their shared home—and now someone had reduced it to this state. Such a thing was absolutely unforgivable!
Almost simultaneously, terrifying energy fluctuations surged from their bodies as their eyes locked onto the three Forces of Nature in the sky.
Since they had come—none of them would be allowed to leave!
"Darkrai, go find the Sorcerers. We'll buy you enough time!" Aven took a deep breath.
Since the three Forces of Nature were here, the Sorcerers had to be nearby as well. The Capture Rings in their hands were the key to everything. As long as the Sorcerers were captured, the battle could even end early!
"Dark—Rai!"
Darkrai paused for a moment, then nodded slightly before its figure vanished into the air.
Although Darkrai was a Dark-type Pokémon rather than a Ghost-type, its control over shadows surpassed that of most Ghost-types.
With its signature move, Dark Void, it could even seal space itself. When the time came, even if the Sorcerers tried to escape using their Mega Rings, Darkrai would absolutely be able to intercept them!
This time, since the enemy had appeared again, Aven would never allow them to escape. The Sorcerers—and their Capture Rings—had to stay!
Watching Darkrai leave, several Poké Balls appeared in Aven's hand as he released all the Pokémon he had brought with him, including the four Lucario that had followed him.
"Naganadel and Lucario, you two handle Tornadus!"
Aven's gaze shifted to Tornadus, which was battling the Poison-type Pokémon in the distance, the area shrouded in thick toxic clouds swept up by raging winds.
Both Naganadel and Lucario possessed Champion-level combat power. Whether Poison-type or Steel-type, neither feared the threat of toxins.
With the addition of the other three King-level Lucario and a large number of Poison-type Pokémon, it would be more than enough to deal with Tornadus, which was already suffering from poison and curses.
"Gardevoir, Froslass, and Garchomp—you three handle Thundurus. Be careful."
The three Pokémon nodded and rushed toward the distant battlefield. Gardevoir and Froslass had already fully mobilized their power—holding back the cursed Thundurus shouldn't be a problem.
"And now… the frontal battlefield." Aven lifted his head, his expression heavy as he looked at Landorus.
"Lilligant~!"
Lilligant stepped forward, grass energy, life energy and natural energy already surging around her.
As the two forces intertwined, she once again entered a state of Natural Reversion, her entire being merging with nature itself!
Driven by these twin energies, Grassy Terrain spread out beneath her feet, rapidly covering the land that had been turned into desert and continuing to extend outward!
At the same time, from beneath the sand-covered ground, bursts of green light emerged. One after another, large numbers of Grass-type Pokémon burst forth from the soil like newly revived sprouts.
After emerging, these Grass-type Pokémon did not hesitate for even a moment. They poured their energy into the land beneath them, causing Grassy Terrain to continue spreading, relentlessly resisting the desertification caused by Landorus!
"Everyone… please lend me your strength!"
Suddenly, all the Pokémon on the battlefield heard this voice within their hearts.
The voice was ethereal, like the whisper of nature itself, yet crystal clear to everyone: "Together… let's protect our home!"
BOOM!
As grass energy, natural energy and life energy surged, a faint glow of life appeared on every Pokémon present.
These glimmers of life continuously gathered, transforming into countless green points of light that drifted through the air like fireflies, swiftly converging toward Lilligant!
"Is that… life energy?"
"All living beings' power is gathering toward Lilligant!"
Watching this scene from afar, Aven's face was filled with astonishment. This was no longer something that could be achieved through mere control over life energy!
At this moment, all life on the battlefield—driven by a shared belief—had triggered a resonance of life itself, merging their very existence into nature!
It could be said that all life present had unconsciously entered a state of Natural Return, becoming part of nature itself—while Lilligant had become the ruler of this natural domain!
"Vile—plume!"
In the distance, the Vileplume leader commanded its tribe, its eyes shining brilliantly.
It could feel itself merging into nature, like flowers, grass, and trees—becoming a part of it.
This feeling was incredibly familiar… It was a ritual! Just like the special rituals it had once presided over to evolve Oddish into Gloom—this, too, was a ritual!
Now, Lilligant was presiding over a grand Natural Ritual, binding all life tightly to nature itself!
"Cheeer—!"
The Cherrim cheered as well.
The solar energy within them also continuously flowed into nature, becoming part of it.
As the solar energy surged, the sandstorm in the sky was swept completely away. Though it was also a form of natural energy, the sandstorm was wiped out without leaving a trace!
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
Other Pokémon cheered as well, feeling the wondrous changes occurring within their bodies.
"Lilli~"
At the center of the battlefield, Lilligant floated gently in midair, her leaf skirt trailing like a flowing gown.
She slowly raised her head to look at Landorus in the sky, then suddenly extended her hand and gently clenched it.
At that instant, the power of all nature surged in response to her motion, transforming into green radiance that enveloped Landorus completely!
Even as the deity of the earth, Landorus felt an overwhelming sense of insignificance in the face of the power of all nature—as if it were standing alone against the entire world!
A profound sense of weakness followed. The energy within its body began to be forcibly drawn out, as if nature itself sought to assimilate it, turning it into just another part of the natural world!
"LAAAAND! DORUUUS!"
Landorus finally reacted, roaring furiously.
At the same time, the power of the earth within it erupted completely, struggling desperately against the encroaching natural energy!
The two forces collided violently—like earth against nature—causing the entire space to resound with a deafening roar, as if the world itself were on the verge of collapse!
"So powerful… has Lilligant stepped into the legendary realm?"
Aven stared at the battle unfolding before him, his face filled with astonishment. The strength Lilligant was displaying at this moment was clearly no longer something an ordinary Pokémon could possess.
Just as Landorus could command the power of the earth, and Azelf could grasp the power of will, the current Lilligant was able to control the power of nature itself!
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!
The battle in the field continued without pause.
Facing Lilligant in this state, even Landorus could only barely hold on, struggling to resist.
Before the vastness of nature itself, even Legendary Pokémon seemed incomparably small. The power of the earth was, after all, merely one part of nature as a whole!
Gradually, Landorus's figure was swallowed by the surging natural energy, and for a brief moment, the entire world fell into silence, as if someone had pressed the pause button on reality itself.
And when the world restarted once more, everything seemed to have been erased—blue skies, white clouds, green grass—calm and serene, as though the battle had never taken place at all.
Yet Landorus lying motionless on the grass quietly proved to everyone that what had just happened was no illusion. A guardian-deity–level battle had indeed taken place here, and now, it had come to an end.
(End of Chapter)