The commentator was just as fired up, shouting, "Steelix! Contestant Baimu's second Pokémon is Steelix! This is a Metal Giant Beast rarely seen in history, with an estimated body length of over twenty meters!"
It stood tall in the middle of the field, its line of sight perfectly level with the airborne Dragonite.
"Wu-roar."
Locked onto by the Giant Steelix's eyes, which looked as if they'd been cast from red copper, even the Little Overlord Dragonite couldn't help showing a wary expression.
In the world of Wild Pokémon, being big doesn't necessarily mean being the strongest, but it absolutely never means being weak!
Alice's expression turned solemn. "Steelix..."
This Pokémon, which had only appeared in the preliminary championship, had left a deep impression on everyone back then.
The destructive power it displayed might not have been as utterly unstoppable as Mega Mawile's, but thanks to its massive size, its presence was absolutely breathtaking.
That was exactly why the audience was this excited.
"Jet Flame!"
She swung her hand down, decisively giving up the Physical Attack boost she'd just gained from Dragon Dance.
If you want to hit a snake, you go for the Seven Inches; if you want to fight Pokémon, you aim at the weak point. Steelix's Special Defense was undoubtedly a direction that could be broken through.
"Hiss——"
The Little Overlord Dragonite didn't dare hesitate; it took a deep breath, chest swelling high, and a terrifying red flame burst from its mouth.
The next second, a blaze brimming with the aura of destruction rolled out like a burning sea of clouds, surging toward Steelix with a terrifying rumble!
Baimu was utterly calm. "Gyro Ball."
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh——
A razor-sharp wind howled from Steelix's horizontally spinning steel segments. Under everyone's shocked gaze, the raging flames were shredded by three light-blue rings, upper, middle, and lower.
A Technique with Attribute advantage got broken that easily?
Alice's eyes went wide.
"No effect! Jet Flame just can't break through the Defense Power field Steelix formed with Gyro Ball!" The commentator's voice climbed higher.
Xiaogang showed a slightly proud smile.
Xiaoguang cried out, "Counterattack Shield? That's Ash Ketchum's Counterattack Shield, isn't it?"
Before she could get an answer.
Steelix kept its thick steel body spinning, driving the three light-blue rings as it lunged toward Dragonite; under Magic Space, its speed had been massively boosted, turning it into a silver Tornado!
Thoom!
Alice shouted, "Divine Speed!"
"Wu-roar!"
Dragonite's body flickered, turning into a white streak and vanishing from where it had been. The ferocious Steelix slammed into empty ground with a thunderous crash, blasting up countless rocks and sand.
[Divine Speed], as a Technique with Priority effects, can ignore the effects of Magic Space to raise its own speed, allowing it to perform Evasion or launch an attack.
Bang!
Dragonite, having flown behind Steelix, smashed a heavy punch into its head.
But...
Aside from the rebound force numbing its fist and Steelix slightly lowering its head with the blow, the attack basically had no effect at all.
Even if a General Attribute Technique doesn't work well on Steel Attribute Steelix, this kind of feedback still made Dragonite start doubting its own ATK.
The commentator couldn't help shouting, "What a pity! Dragonite successfully dodged Steelix's Gyro Ball, but its Divine Speed attack still didn't do much! Steelix's Defense Power is terrifying!"
"Sandstorm!"
Baimu swung his hand.
Steelix tilted its head back and roared; its three horizontal steel segments spun up to high speed again, summoning a raging wind and sand that instantly spread outward in all directions!
Boom!
A terrifying Sandstorm Tornado, completely different from the earlier Sandstorm, ravaged the entire field!
Dragonite had nowhere to dodge; it could only be forced to raise both claws in front of itself, enduring the baptism of sand and gale, driven to the point of being blown backward.
"Wu..."
"Dragonite!"
Alice called out that this was bad.
Dragonite's Trait is [Multi-Scale], which reduces damage taken when its stamina is full.
The Sandstorm was enough to nullify that Trait.
"Dragonite, charge in and use Flame Fist!"
She decided to make one last attempt.
If that didn't work, she'd switch.
Being unable to do anything to Steelix of all things was giving her a headache.
And at her words, Dragonite's small wings on its back flapped wildly, both fists igniting scarlet flames as it charged forward against the raging Sandstorm Tornado.
Steelix neither dodged nor flinched, eyes locked on the incoming Dragonite as its horizontal steel segments spun even faster.
"Haa-ro——"
Whoosh!
The Sandstorm's power ramped up again!
As a type of Weather Skill fairly common in the anime, it isn't just a pure percentage-based, continuous damage like in the games; its power can fluctuate with the Pokémon's subtle control.
Many Trainers even treat it as an independent damage Technique rather than simply a Weather Skill.
And Steelix just happens to be a top-tier master at manipulating Sandstorm.
Back in Pyrite Town, it once used Sandstorm to pin down dozens of Shadow Pokémon; dealing with a mere Little Overlord Dragonite was nothing at all!
It just doesn't stay by Baimu's side very often.
That doesn't mean it's weak!
"Wu——"
Dragonite strained its wings to the point its face twisted grimly, yet the sandstorm acted like a shield, holding it firmly outside. Let alone throwing a punch, it couldn't even get close.
The audience was stunned; blocking the opponent outside with Sandstorm and simply not allowing them to approach like this was practically unheard of and unseen.
Maybe only a Pokémon the size of Steelix could pull this off?
Most of the dust swirling in the sky was pouring out from its body!
Seeing the fight deadlocked.
Knowing full well that Dragonite never backs down in a confrontation, Alice clenched her fist and shouted, "Come on, Dragonite! You can do it!"
After the sharpening in the Dragon Nest, the two of them already understood each other completely.
Dragonite would willingly follow Alice's advice, and Alice would also respect Dragonite's resolve.
The Dragon's Heart faintly resonated.
In that instant.
The Trainer's call made Dragonite let out a hiss; like a cosmos erupting inside it, the flames on its fists suddenly swelled, turning into something like flame thrusters.