Gallade's blade like arms continued to glide close around Medicham's body, stirring gentle gusts of wind.
The audience below held their breath, afraid of missing even the slightest detail.
Suddenly, Medicham stepped back half a pace, its eyes glowing with a pale blue light as its psychic power burst forth.
The ice and fire energy around its fists instantly dispersed, then rapidly condensed in midair into two slender energy blades.
One red and one blue, flames and frost flowed slowly along the blades as if they were alive.
Holding these unique twin blades, Medicham assumed a stance identical to Gallade's.
A wave of astonished exclamations erupted from the audience, many people leaning forward instinctively.
A glimmer of understanding flashed in Gallade's eyes.
The power of Aqua Cutter and Leaf Blade surged instantly, the glow on its arm blades growing even more radiant, echoing Medicham's icy and fiery twin blades from afar.
The two Pokémon seemed to transform into medieval knights, engaging in a magnificent duel of blades at the center of the stage.
Blue ice blades clashed with blue water blades, sending sprays of mist and ice shards into the air.
Green leaf blades crossed with red fire swords, weaving a dazzling scene of flames and foliage.
Elegance and beauty coexisted perfectly in that moment, captivating everyone's gaze.
In the waiting room, Theo's eyes lit up. This was the advanced version of the Ice Fire Psychic Blade Dance that Grace had demonstrated before, even more stunning than what he had seen two days ago.
The audience's admiration rose wave after wave, many people pulling out their phones to capture the breathtaking scene.
"Now!" Grace's voice rang out at the perfect moment.
Medicham crossed its arms, merging the ice and fire blades together. In an instant, a surging storm of ice and flames erupted behind it.
Red fire and blue frost intertwined into a spiraling energy vortex in midair, yet remained perfectly contained within the stage without spilling out even the slightest bit.
Gallade crossed its blades before its chest as a dazzling white light burst from its body, forming the phantom of a massive glowing sword rising into the air.
Sacred Sword was unleashed.
Gallade's enormous blade of light collided with Medicham's swirling storm of ice and fire.
A thunderous explosion resounded as blinding white light flooded the entire stage, forcing the audience to squint.
When the light faded, the ice and fire blades in Medicham's hands gradually dissipated. It cupped its fists toward Gallade in a crisp and respectful gesture.
Gallade gave a slight nod and returned a standard knightly bow with graceful poise.
A perfect duel without a victor came to an elegant conclusion.
"That was incredible!"
The audience leapt to their feet, applause thundering as cheers nearly lifted the roof of the venue.
At the judges' panel, Nurse Joy's gentle smile was filled with admiration.
"The coordination between the two Pokémon was flawless, like a duel between elegant and noble knights. Truly wonderful."
Mr. Sukizo nodded repeatedly, his voice full of excitement.
"Remarkable! I absolutely love it! The perfect fusion of combat power and artistic beauty, truly outstanding."
Yumiko adjusted her glasses slightly, a faint smile appearing on her lips.
"The control over their moves was extremely precise. It is clear they have trained very thoroughly. A rare and excellent performance."
All three judges awarded Grace very high scores. Even as she bowed and left the stage with her Pokémon, the applause from the audience continued without pause.
The competition carried on amid the wave of excitement created by Grace.
Next, a trainer using Beautifly and Dustox took the stage.
The two Pokémon danced gracefully in the air. Beautifly released Morning Sun, scattering golden light like fragments of sunlight.
Dustox followed with Moonlight, bathing the stage in a soft silver glow.
Combined with the Silver Wind stirred by their fluttering wings, countless shimmering scales intertwined in the air, creating a dreamlike sea of stars.
The performance was gentle and romantic, earning unanimous praise from the judges.
Time passed quietly as one performance followed another, each contestant displaying their unique strengths.
Some paired Ice and Electric type Pokémon, using crystalline ice pillars to refract electric currents into dazzling webs of light.
Others combined Ground and Rock type Pokémon to create endlessly surging waves of sand.
The stage remained constantly filled with brilliance, and the audience's enthusiasm never waned. Applause and cheers echoed without rest.
Finally, Vivian's voice rang out again, carrying a hint of anticipation.
"Next, please welcome contestant number sixty six, Theo!"
The spotlight immediately focused on the contestant entrance.
Theo straightened his clothes and stepped onto the stage.
"It's Theo!"
"Finally, he's here!"
Fans in the audience raised glowing signs reading "Go Theo," forming a small sea of light.
Many also shouted Milotic's name loudly.
The livestream chat exploded instantly.
"Here he comes! The streamer is finally on stage!"
"I have been waiting so long, I am so excited!"
"I bet a Luxury Ball it will be Milotic and Metang!"
"I think it is Milotic and Larvesta, water and fire combo is unbeatable!"
Standing at the center of the stage, Theo smiled calmly toward the audience and the camera.
"It's your turn!"
Two flashes of red light appeared, and two Pokémon emerged on the stage.
Larvesta and Tyrantrum.
The cheers calling for Milotic stopped abruptly, and a brief silence filled the air.
The livestream chat also froze for a moment before erupting into even more discussion.
"It is not Milotic?!"
"Tyrantrum and Larvesta? I did not expect that combo at all"
"Is there some hidden trump card? Please do not disappoint us"
"That combo looks hardcore, I am actually curious now"
At the judges' panel, Ms. Yumiko pushed up her glasses, a trace of curiosity flashing in her eyes.
Mr. Sukizo leaned forward with interest, folding his hands together on the table.
Nurse Joy maintained her gentle smile, her gaze filled with anticipation.
On the stage, Theo looked at Larvesta and Tyrantrum with an encouraging smile.
"Are you ready? Show everyone what you can do!"
Larvesta excitedly shook its antennae, releasing small flickering flames.
Tyrantrum let out a low roar, its amber eyes gleaming with confidence, as if saying leave it to us.
Theo raised his hand.
"Begin!"
At his command, Tyrantrum moved first. It lifted its head and let out a thunderous roar toward the sky.
Sandstorm was unleashed.
Countless fine grains of sand surged up from the stage floor, as if drawn by an invisible force, rapidly gathering into a towering spinning column above the stage, imposing and majestic.
Larvesta followed immediately. An orange red glow lit up in its mouth as it unleashed Flamethrower.
Streams of flame shot out like agile fire serpents, weaving precisely into the sand column.
At first, only scattered sparks flickered among the grains of sand, but as Larvesta increased the power of its attack, the flames suddenly surged and expanded dramatically.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Isn't turning Ice Fist and Fire Fist into blades op if use on battles?