"We'll take the water route to bypass Regirock!"
Lewis dove into the rushing underground river, carried by his Empoleon. Feng Che had no choice but to let Greninja grab him and plunge into the turbulent currents, surging toward the distance.
Facing the rapid flow, Regirock ground to a halt at the river's edge. It hurled several boulders—each taller than a man—into the water before turning away to resume its stony vigil.
"The risk level of these ruins is incredibly high," Alivia said to Lewis as they drifted. "I'm officially categorizing this as S-Rank."
"I just hope Regice hasn't woken up," she muttered, adjusting her goggles. "If it catches us in the water, we're finished."
Suddenly, a brilliant, icy blue light flared from the darkness ahead. The rushing river was instantly flash-frozen into solid, jagged ice.
At the critical moment, Feng Che used Teleport, pulling Alivia, Lewis, and himself onto the dry bank just as the frost encased their previous position.
"Alivia, I beg you, keep your 'crow-mouth' shut for five minutes!" Lewis gasped, his face pale. If it weren't for Feng Che's intervention, they would have been frozen like statues.
"Sorry, sorry... my lips are sealed," Alivia whispered sheepishly.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
A crystalline silhouette floated from the shadows. Regice had arrived. Its body was composed of Antarctic ice from the ice age, shaped like a cluster of crystals. Its face featured a "+" pattern of seven yellow dots. It hovered effortlessly, manipulating air as cold as -200 degrees Celsius.
"Regice... so all three original Titans are awake," Alivia whispered, her eyes wide. "If Regieleki and Regidrago join them, we're effectively trapped."
"They won't wake yet," Lewis snapped, looking at her with exasperation. "The ancient texts are clear: the three main seals must be subdued first. Now quiet!"
Regice didn't wait. It unleashed a flurry of thumb-sized ice shards that flew like bullets, blanketing the corridor in a freezing mist.
"Go, Incineroar!"
Feng Che's Incineroar, having inherited the divine essence of Groudon and Ho-Oh, was now at a power level bordering on the Mythical. Its flame belt erupted, launching a barrage of white-hot fireballs. In an instant, the frozen corridor was filled with steam as the ice shards melted into vapor.
Suddenly, the heavy sound of mechanical footsteps echoed from the rear.
"Regirock and Registeel are closing in from behind," Feng Che warned.
"The map shows that if we reach the edge of the Underwater Ruins, the Titans will stop their pursuit," Alivia reported urgently. "But I don't know what's in there. The murals marked that zone with a skull—it might be more dangerous than the Titans themselves."
"Retreat to the island or push into the deep ruins... Master Feng Che, the choice is yours!"
Regice raised its arms, firing twin Ice Beams that created a massive wall of spiked ice between them. Simultaneously, two beams of white light—Hyper Beams from Registeel and Regirock—screamed toward them from the shadows.
"We go to the Underwater Ruins."
Feng Che didn't hesitate. He signaled Mewtwo to perform an Ally Switch, swapping their positions with Regice.
BOOM!
The two Hyper Beams slammed directly into Regice. The Ice Titan reeled, falling to the ground as black smoke rose from its crystalline body. Its internal logic core flickered, momentarily short-circuited by the friendly fire.
"Go!"
Feng Che summoned Flygon, carrying the two specialists as they rocketed toward the final gateway. Behind them, Regirock and Registeel helped Regice up, their glowing dots blinking in a silent, mechanical fury as they resumed the chase, acting as living artillery batteries.
The Guardians of the Flame
Meanwhile, in the Hoenn region: Mt. Pyre.
The peak was perpetually shrouded in thick mist, where the veil between the physical world and the Spirit Realm was at its thinnest. This was the largest Pokémon cemetery in Hoenn, where trainers brought their partners to rest, believing the spirit energy would allow them to be reborn.
The two elderly guardians, the Grandma and Grandpa of Mt. Pyre, opened their eyes simultaneously.
"The Spirit Realm is restless," Grandpa sighed. "Thankfully, the world's laws still hold. High-level spirits can't cross over easily, or our old bones wouldn't stand a chance."
They were of the Spirit-Channeler clan, capable of communicating with ghosts and traversing the fringe of the afterlife.
"We must use the spirit energy here to suppress the Blue Orb (Alpha) and the Red Orb (Omega)," Grandma said, her voice grave. "If Kyogre and Groudon are stimulated by these stones, they will awaken prematurely. Hoenn will be reduced to ash and flood."
"I can feel the energy in the orbs becoming active. The awakening is near," Grandpa added. "The Devon Corporation's arrogance in trying to capture Rayquaza has left us defenseless. The Dragon is missing, and even Zinnia can't find it. To save Hoenn, we must find the true Sky Pillar and pass its trials. Only then will the Heavens grant us an audience with the Dragon King."