Tyranitar's sharp teeth clamped down with a sickening crunch. Even Jiang Chen felt a pang of sympathy for Garchomp.
But it didn't end there. After the Crunch, Tyranitar swung its massive fist, slamming it directly into Garchomp's head.
Mega Garchomp was nearly knocked unconscious by the blow. Mega Tyranitar then seized the dazed Garchomp, leaped high into the air, and executed a thunderous Seismic Toss, smashing its opponent into the ground.
Without pausing, Tyranitar followed up with a heavy Body Slam, instantly rendering Garchomp unable to battle.
"I fell for it."
Xiao Luoxue realized too late that the opening Jiang Chen's Tyranitar had shown was a deliberate trap.
By feigning a weakness, he had lured her Garchomp into a fatal mistake. It was simply too inexperienced. If it had been more cautious, it wouldn't have been defeated so quickly. At the very least, it could have worn Tyranitar down to create an opening for her other Pokémon.
"Go, Salamence!"
Upon releasing Salamence, Xiao Luoxue immediately triggered its Mega Evolution.
"A Mega Evolved Salamence should have no problem defeating Tyranitar. That Tyranitar must have exhausted a lot of its vigor defeating Garchomp just now."
Xiao Luoxue felt there was a strong chance her Salamence would emerge victorious. She wasn't greedy; as long as she could defeat two of Jiang Chen's Pokémon, she would be satisfied.
"Mega Salamence, use Dragon Claw!"
The flying Salamence was incredibly fast. It performed a rapid spin in the air before diving toward Tyranitar on the ground, its Dragon Claw striking Tyranitar's back.
Under the force of the attack, Tyranitar stumbled, its heavy footing momentarily unstable.
"Using speed to keep Mega Tyranitar engaged is the right call."
Seeing the attack connect, Xiao Luoxue felt confident in her strategy. Garchomp had failed earlier only because it lacked the necessary strength. Mega Salamence was highly agile and difficult to hit in the air. Furthermore, Tyranitar had used Hyper Beam repeatedly earlier, taking a significant toll on its stamina; it couldn't keep up that pace forever.
"Now you're out of options against my Pokémon, aren't you?" Xiao Luoxue shot a provocative look at Jiang Chen.
"Is that so? I suggest you don't get ahead of yourself, or you might end up shooting yourself in the foot."
Jiang Chen couldn't help but chuckle. It was true that Tyranitar would have a hard time hitting the agile Mega Salamence on its own, but what if Jiang Chen helped?
Lest she forget, Jiang Chen was an Aura User. With his Aura Power and his Psychokinesis, he could accurately calculate the flight trajectory and positioning of Mega Salamence.
Initially, Jiang Chen hadn't intended to use these powers, but since Xiao Luoxue was being so arrogant, he decided to give her a little reality check.
Without saying a word, he communicated directly with Tyranitar through Aura Power.
Tyranitar's eyes lit up. Suddenly, it poured all its strength into a Hyper Beam directed at Mega Salamence.
When Tyranitar first released the beam, Mega Salamence wasn't even in its path. However, as the Hyper Beam streaked through the sky, Xiao Luoxue's Salamence flew straight into it.
To the onlookers, it looked as if Salamence had intentionally collided with Tyranitar's Hyper Beam. Because the move was executed with full force and Mega Salamence was completely unguarded, it was blasted directly out of the sky.
"Heavens! Jiang Chen's Tyranitar actually predicted Salamence's flight path and landed a successful hit!"
The commentator was stunned.
The audience shared the shock. This Tyranitar was incredible to be able to make such a precise prediction.
"You did that, didn't you? You used Psychokinesis."
Xiao Luoxue's expression froze in astonishment. She immediately realized that Jiang Chen must have directed Tyranitar to hit Salamence. Though Jiang Chen hadn't shouted any commands, she knew he possessed Aura Power and could communicate with his Pokémon without speaking.
She regretted showing off in front of Jiang Chen; she had been "disciplined" immediately.
"Salamence, are you okay?" Xiao Luoxue asked urgently.
Being blasted out of the sky while completely defenseless was no minor injury.
Salamence shook its head and took to the air once more. Its defense was formidablebeing a pseudo-legendary meant its stats were top-tier, and Dragon-type Pokémon were notoriously resilient. Since Tyranitar's strength didn't completely overwhelm Salamencein fact, it was arguably slightly weakerit wasn't going to be taken down in a single hit.
"Good."
Xiao Luoxue breathed a sigh of relief as Salamence regained its flight.
"Use Hyper Beam! Attack Tyranitar!"
"Oh? You want to trade beams with me? Let's go then." Jiang Chen commanded Tyranitar to return fire with its own Hyper Beam.
Evading was unnecessary. Tyranitar wasn't as agile as Salamence; trying to dodge would likely result in taking a hit for nothing. It was better to just meet power with power.
"Even if it's a war of attrition, I'll wear your Tyranitar down until it can't fight anymore," Xiao Luoxue declared her intent.
Tyranitar had already consumed a massive amount of physical energy. If the battle continued this way, her Salamence would have the advantage and eventually win.
"It seems you've put quite a bit of thought into defeating just one more of my Pokémon," Jiang Chen noted, though he didn't tell Tyranitar to change its tactics.
After its previous exertions, his Tyranitar really did have a hard time competing with Salamence. Even if it hadn't fought Garchomp, it might not have been able to beat this Salamence in a head-to-head fight.
After five minutes of stalemate, Tyranitar finally hit its limit and collapsed, unable to battle.
However, the cost for Salamence to win was not small. It was now gasping for air, its chest heaving violently.
"Which Pokémon will you use next?" Xiao Luoxue asked curiously.
Jiang Chen had so many Pokémon, and all of them were powerful. She truly wasn't sure what he would bring out next.
"Go, Sylveon."
"So it's Sylveon... Are you trying to counter me on purpose?"
Xiao Luoxue felt a wave of gloom at the sight of Sylveon. The Fairy Type was a massive counter to the Dragon Type. At the very least, Salamence's Dragon-type moves were now useless, as they were ineffective against Fairy-type opponents.
"Actually, using Sylveon is me giving you a fair chance," Jiang Chen said, spreading his hands.
While it had a type advantage over Salamence, Sylveon was only mid-tier among Jiang Chen's Pokémon in terms of raw strength. By using it, Xiao Luoxue still had a chance to fight. If he had sent out Metagross, Dragonite, or Gardevoir, the battle would have been over instantly.
"I suppose so."
Thinking about the strength of Jiang Chen's other Pokémon, Xiao Luoxue knew that facing his Sylveon was actually a lucky break. His other team members would be far more difficult to handle.
"Mega Salamence, use Air Slash!"
"Sylveon, dodge to the right, then use Moonblast toward the ten o'clock position."
Sylveon leaped to the right, narrowly avoiding the incoming Air Slash. Immediately after, the cold, lunar radiance of Moonblast hammered into Mega Salamence.
It was another predicted attack. Mega Salamence was sent tumbling through the air, baring its teeth in pain. Sylveon's strength was not inferior to Mega Salamence's, and with the type advantage, it was only natural for the blow to be devastating.
"He's reading me completely."
Xiao Luoxue could see clearly that her Salamence's movements were being entirely anticipated. Even with the advantage of flight, it had no edge here. The fact that its strongest Dragon-type moves were sealed off was a major handicap.
"Sylveon, use Magical Leaf."
Magical Leaf was a tracking-type attack. There was no room to evade it; no matter how Salamence tried to dodge, the leaves would follow.
"Don't bother dodging, Salamence! Use Giga Impact on Sylveon!"
Xiao Luoxue didn't waste energy trying to avoid the move since it couldn't be dodged anyway. She decided to tank the hit. Grass-type moves did negligible damage to Salamence, so it could easily withstand the blow.
"That is indeed the correct choice," Jiang Chen noted, nodding. If Xiao Luoxue had forced Salamence to try and dodge or waste a move to counter Magical Leaf, she would have fallen right into his trap.
"Sylveon, use Substitute."
A substitute appeared to take the brunt of Salamence's Giga Impact for Sylveon, allowing the Fairy Pokémon to escape unharmed.
With the right timing, Substitute was an incredibly effective move. Xiao Luoxue hadn't even had time to react before her plan failed.
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