Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 617: I’m Shudao Mountain!

July 2nd, clouds drifted across the azure sky.

Sinnoh, Michina.

This was a small town located in the central region of Sinnoh. Although the urban area wasn't large, Michina's natural scenery was quite impressive.

Michina had many towering rocky mountains, flowing lakes, and fertile fields. The residents living in Michina could be completely self-sufficient based on this land.

At the same time, among those scattered rocky mountains were abundant mineral deposits, evident from Larvitar's expression after disembarking from the Battle Pyramid.

However, Michina's residents didn't mine these deposits, as the fertile soil was enough to sustain their comfortable, leisurely lives.

This was a "gift" left by Arceus's plates.

Flint took a deep breath, spreading his arms, "What a wonderful place! How have I never been here before?"

The Battle Pyramid had landed on a vast meadow in Michina where wild Pokémon were active.

Beside the meadow was a large, sparkling lake where Bibarel played at the water's edge, building and comparing their "mansions."

The lake water came from a rocky mountain in the distance, flowing through the entire Michina area to reach this point.

Several Marill and Buizel poked their heads out of the water, curiously observing Johan's group and the huge pyramid, seemingly puzzled about how such a large object could fly without wings.

On the way here, Johan had already informed Cynthia and the others about his general plan.

This included using Dialga's power to return to the past and change history.

As well as searching for Marcus's staff that might have been left in the ruins of Michina, including the "Jewel of Life" inside the staff.

As for the final contingency plan Johan had prepared, he hadn't told everyone yet to prevent them from feeling too much pressure.

"So, will Dialga and Palkia appear here?" Lucian pushed up his glasses and asked.

"Most likely," Johan said.

He walked toward the rocky mountain where the water flowed from, and continued:

"All of Arceus's anger stems from here. This is the place it cares about most, so if its awakening brings temporal and spatial disturbances, Michina will definitely be affected first."

While Johan was explaining to Cynthia and the others, nearby...

"Yoji?"

Larvitar ran to the riverside, looking at the gently flowing, sparkling water. It crouched down, bringing its head close to the water's surface, which reflected its image.

Suddenly.

The water surface broke as a Buizel abruptly poked its head out from the water, startling Larvitar.

"Yoji!!"

The mischievous Buizel grinned at Larvitar, then spun around and dove back into the water.

"Yoji! (｀Д)"

Larvitar puffed up its cheeks, calling out to the Buizel underwater.

Come fight me one-on-one!

The water surface gradually parted again, and an adorable blue Pokémon with a balloon-like tail—Phione—floated up, curiously looking at the exasperated Larvitar, tilting its head.

"Phio?"

"Yoji!"

Caught you!

Larvitar thought it was the naughty Buizel, immediately raising its paw. Streams of sand floated from the riverbank and wrapped around Phione.

"PHIO!!"

Phione, caught and wrapped in sand, cried out in fear, causing ripples across the water surface.

It wasn't until Larvitar "caught" Phione and brought it to shore that it realized it had caught the wrong Pokémon.

Looking at the cute Phione continuously dropping pearl-sized tears, Larvitar felt at a loss, scratching its head...

"Ka-kaah?"

Gengar approached Phione, wanting to investigate what kind of Pokémon it was. However, when Phione opened its eyes and saw the magnified ghost face before it, it nearly had a stress response, bouncing up on its ball-shaped tail.

Unfortunately, since Gengar was a Ghost-type Pokémon, Phione passed right through it.

Larvitar and Gengar exchanged glances... both discovering the secret of Phione's tail, and simultaneously revealed mischievous grins.

"Vii~~"

Seeing Phione crying uncontrollably, Victini revealed itself and shared one of its treasured macarons.

Sure enough, after smelling the aroma of the macaron, Phione stopped crying and stared blankly at Victini.

And then...

"Yoji, Yoji."

Larvitar tugged at Johan's pants.

"What's wrong?"

Johan turned around and saw a scene that made him sweat.

Larvitar was patting Phione's tail like a ball, while Phione itself was "crunch crunch" eating macarons with Victini.

"Yoji! (Д)σ"

Look, a bouncy ball!

Saying this, Larvitar grabbed Phione's tail and threw it toward Gengar, who had been waiting.

Basketball!

"Ka-kaah! Ka-kaah!"

Gengar stuck out its tongue, ready to catch it.

Meanwhile, Phione was drawing a parabolic arc through the air with a bewildered expression, though the macaron in its mouth didn't fall out.

Johan: "..."

Splash splash—

By the riverside, the water stirred again. An intimidating Azumarill with clenched fists and bulging muscles appeared, accompanied by several Marill and Phione, glaring menacingly at Larvitar and Gengar who were playing ball.

The parent had arrived!

The expression and posture of this Azumarill made an image instinctively flash through Johan's mind.

Damn, a real dragon slayer!

Azumarill was originally a pure Water-type Pokémon, but later in the sixth generation of Pokémon, it gained the Fairy-type attribute.

As is well-known, Fairy-type is very effective against Dragon-type Pokémon. Besides having the Fairy-type attribute, Azumarill also had the "Huge Power" ability.

Combined with its inheritable moves like Belly Drum and Play Rough, Azumarill had earned the title of "Dragon Slayer."

It was said that one punch could take down a dragon—none could withstand it.

"Yo-Yoji..."

Seemingly sensing the hostile gaze, Larvitar and Gengar stopped their ball game, their heads stiffly turning toward the riverside.

Seeing Azumarill's bulging muscles, the two little ones...

Σ()

Gengar reacted fastest, shrieking as it dove into Johan's shadow.

"Yo-Yoji..." Larvitar carefully placed the confused Phione on the ground and forced a friendly smile.

Mis-misunderstanding...

"MARILL!!" Azumarill clenched its fists, making "crack crack" sounds.

"Vii~~"

"Phio?"

Fortunately, thanks to the naturally friendly Victini and Phione's own explanation, Azumarill gave Larvitar a few suspicious glances before letting it go.

But...

The Buizel in this river wouldn't have peace today!

Clenching its fists, Azumarill turned back to the river, lightly punching the water surface and creating a significant splash.

The Buizel in the river trembled in fear.

"Yoji—" Larvitar immediately let out a long sigh of relief.

Somehow, it had felt from that Azumarill the same sensation as facing Cynthia's Garchomp.

Not in terms of strength, but that protective parental feeling—creepy...

Larvitar sneakily glanced at Garchomp.

"ROAR—"

Garchomp snorted white air from its nostrils, arms crossed, looking down at Johan.

How did this boomerang back to me again?

Johan shook his head.

"Well, let's just eat here then. At the current rate, Dialga and Palkia haven't appeared yet. If they do show up, we can go over there in time."

Under a large tree by the river, the dense shade blocked the intense sunlight, and a picnic blanket was spread out on the soft grass.

Johan, as the chef, put on an apron and began cooking.

This time, not only were Johan's group and their Pokémon eating together, but also the previously encountered Azumarill family and the bump-headed-but-still-hungry Buizel.

Of course, other wild Pokémon from Michina joined as well, multiplying Johan's pressure.

"Yoji!"

Eat up everyone, don't be shy!

Larvitar alternated between a bite of mineral and a bite of macaron, not forgetting to "warmly" welcome everyone.

"This kid..."

Clearly hasn't experienced "hard times" together, doesn't know how difficult it is to accumulate our resources.

That was until Johan saw Larvitar accepting "gifts" from these wild Pokémon—things like berries, minerals, pearls, nuggets, and other return gifts.

This made him speechless, reflecting that wearing Uxie's claw truly hadn't been in vain.

"Johan."

Cynthia came over with a cake, whispering: "Do you have other plans that you're not telling us?"

Johan was stunned.

Had Cynthia seen through him?

Then he heard her continue: "You said find Dialga to go back to the past and change it. You're planning to go alone, aren't you?"

Johan blinked.

He hadn't said that.

Originally, he had considered this as one plan, but the main direction was still to find the "Jewel of Life" in the present era, avoiding a time-traveling adventure.

Time wasn't something to be trifled with, especially going back to the past to change history—it could easily produce unforeseeable consequences.

It might trigger a butterfly effect.

After all, whether a being like Arceus slept for hundreds or thousands of years would have significant impacts.

Besides, he wasn't Daigo and didn't want to be boiled into soup...

Before Johan could answer, Cynthia looked into his eyes with determination:

"I'm going with you!"

We might not need to go at all... thinking this, Johan nodded and said: "Alright!"

Hearing this, Cynthia smiled with satisfaction and scooped up a spoonful of cake, eating it delightedly.

"Mmm, delicious!"

"Made by Gardevoir and Alcremie. Next time I'll bring more for you," Johan smiled.

"Yes, please!"

"Toge piii~~"

At this moment, an egg-shaped little creature waddled over to Cynthia's side, gently tugging at her coat and gazing longingly at the cake in her hand.

"You want some too?" Cynthia crouched down, smiling as she stroked its chin with her finger.

"To-Togepi~o(^▽^)o"

Johan had noticed this little one earlier—a Togepi, Cynthia's newly caught Pokémon.

"So you really caught a Togepi."

He remembered suggesting that Cynthia catch this Pokémon, and was surprised she had done so so quickly.

Togepi was a relatively rare Pokémon symbolizing good luck. Not everyone was fortunate enough to encounter one.

"Yes." Cynthia carefully picked up the little one, preparing to feed it cake.

"Perfect," Johan glanced at Togepi and teased: "I was just needing an egg to crack."

"To-Togepi?! d(д)"

Crack... an egg?

"Ka-kaah?" Gengar emerged.

Crack an egg? Where's the egg that needs cracking? I'm an expert at cracking eggs!

Cynthia gave Johan an annoyed look, hugging Togepi tightly as she ran away, with Johan and Gengar's teasing laughter trailing behind.

Splash splash—

On the rocky mountain where the Michina Shrine was located, a lake situated on the mountain suddenly began to churn. A spiral water column abruptly twisted upward into the sky.

Then.

More and more spiral water columns swirled skyward, while a strong gust of wind swept through, bending the already sparse trees around.

Woosh—

The next moment.

A massive black hole-like vortex appeared above the lake, with water flowing upward into it.

Such a disturbance naturally caught the attention of Johan's group, who had been keeping an eye on the rocky mountain.

"That is..." Lucian stared blankly at the suddenly appearing black hole that seemed ready to devour everything. This was definitely not a natural phenomenon.

"They're here!" Johan said gravely.

This was the effect of Arceus gradually awakening, driving the collision of time and space between Dialga and Palkia in the Pokémon world.

After exchanging glances.

"Garchomp!"

"Dragonite!"

"Bronzong!"

"Yanmega!"

Flint: "..."

"Bronzong, take him too," Lucian adjusted his glasses.

"RAWR—!!"

A time rift appeared above Michina, and Dialga, covered in sapphire-like blue scales, flew out, looking toward the massive black hole.

But before it could act.

"ROAR—!!"

Another roar sounded as a spatial rift appeared, from which the Space Dragon Palkia, covered in gray scales, emerged.

The two merely glanced at each other before losing control of their emotions.

Dialga: What are you looking at?!

Palkia: What's it to you if I look?!

Dialga: Try looking one more time!

Palkia: I'll try—

"RAWR—!!"

Before Palkia could finish, Dialga directly unleashed a wave of azure light.

Roar of Time!

"ROAR!!"

Palkia: You're freaking ambushing me!

Woosh—

The red pearl on Palkia's shoulder emitted a faint light, its arm sweeping like a blade, suddenly slashing out a spatial edge.

Spacial Rend!

BOOM!!

The powers of time and space collided. The already turbulent sky above Michina saw the black hole instantly grow larger.

Just as Johan's group was rapidly approaching, a black mist swiftly arrived from the distance at extreme speed, accompanied by a roar.

"You two again! And you've stolen my black hole!"

It was—Darkrai, coming from Twinleaf Town!

Watching the three Pokémon battling, Johan was momentarily distracted.

Why did this scene feel so familiar?

Darkrai suddenly turned around, looking at Johan, "What are you standing there for? It's not these two this time? Deal with them!"

Although its strength had improved, it still couldn't match the gods of time and space.

But it wasn't afraid.

Dialga, Palkia were here, Johan and his companions were here—all the "codes" were correct.

Can't win?

Impossible.

Hurry up with your specialty of binding play, Darkrai's eyes suggested.

Johan held onto Dragonite's armor as Dragonite slowly stopped flying. His expression became somewhat strange.

But soon Johan took a deep breath, his expression turning serious as he declared:

"I'm Shudao Mountain!"

"One!"

"Two!"

Clink clink clink—

The sound of chains echoed above Michina, while the disturbance brought by the black hole grew increasingly stronger.

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Powerstones?

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