Chapter 436: Double Vision
The massive Shadow Ball crashed to the ground, instantly vaporizing half the battlefield. Shadow energy erupted like black flames soaring through the air, painting the arena in darkness.
"What the hell..." Victor was stunned, unable to figure out why Damian would choose such a destructive approach.
Just because Spiritomb had type advantage against Ghost-types, did that justify potentially taking out his own Pokemon too?
When the Shadow Ball detonated, Spiritomb, as its creator, wasn’t spared from the blast. After all, this wasn’t a video game where friendly fire was disabled.
However, John’s Gengar wasn’t so easily defeated.
The shadows slowly cleared, revealing the devastated landscape.
Spiritomb lay motionless, both its eyes now showing telltale signs of defeat. Without a doubt, it had been knocked out by its own Shadow Ball. Normally, if Spiritomb had simply tanked its own attack, it wouldn’t have been instantly defeated due to its lack of type weaknesses. But Gengar’s Shadow Punch from earlier hadn’t been for show, it had softened up the target perfectly.
And John’s Pokemon, the chubby purple Gengar, was grinning wickedly amid the swirling mist. The shattered bracelet on Gengar’s wrist gleamed as the purple Pokemon transformed into a brilliant purple-gold.
After the shield from Stealth Barrier absorbed most of the damage, Gengar had still taken about 25% damage from the residual Shadow Ball energy.
But this triggered its next phase.
[King’s Presence (75%): All stats increased by 10%, Ghost and Electric-type move power increased by 10%.]
"Keh keh keh keh!" Gengar cackled maniacally before using Teleport to return to John’s side.
"Wait, is John’s Gengar a Shiny Pokemon?" Riley frowned, thinking carefully. He was certain he’d seen an ordinary Gengar before, so why did it now have that golden sheen typical of Shiny Pokemon?
"Hmm..." Victor silently pulled out his binoculars for a closer look.
As John’s opponent, Damian was equally puzzled. Under such a devastating Shadow Ball, Gengar, who should have been at a type disadvantage, had emerged relatively unscathed, while Spiritomb, who had no such weakness, had been knocked out by its own move.
So what exactly had John’s Gengar done in that critical moment when the Shadow Ball was about to hit?
More concerning still, John’s Gengar had actually grown stronger. Instead of being weakened by injury, it radiated an even more intimidating presence, especially toward other Ghost-types.
Damian’s gaze fixed on the charm that had turned Gengar purple-gold. It seemed this accessory wasn’t just for show, it clearly possessed special abilities he didn’t understand.
Damian’s hand hovered over his belt. For the first time, he hesitated about which Pokemon to send out next.
Finally, his finger settled on his last Pokeball.
"Gengar, I’m counting on you." Damian threw out the Pokeball.
The Pokemon that emerged was his trump card, also a Gengar.
There was nothing particularly special about this Gengar at first glance. It wasn’t a Totem Pokemon, wasn’t Shiny, and didn’t appear to have any unusual breeding modifications. It looked completely ordinary. Yet this was the ace of the Elite Four member known as the "King of Hell."
(’Hey there, handsome!’)Damian’s Gengar grinned and gave John’s purple-gold Gengar a provocative wave.
A taunt?
The purple-gold Gengar raised an eyebrow with an expression that clearly said, (’Are you serious right now? I’ll destroy you in a second!’)
"Finally, the trump card." John stroked his chin, then quietly revealed his Mega/Z-Power bracelet.
"Gengar, Mega Evolution!"
A burst of colorful light enveloped the purple-gold Gengar as it transformed into Mega Gengar.
Facing Damian’s ace Gengar, John’s Pokemon was definitely at a level disadvantage. Rather than continue playing the underdog, it was better to Mega Evolve immediately and level the playing field.
But Damian wasn’t about to be outdone.
"Mega Evolution!"
On the battlefield, two Mega Gengars faced each other, an extremely rare sight in the world of Pokemon training.
Two identical Pokemon, carrying completely different bonds with their trainers, prepared to battle in the same evolved form.
Both John and Damian tacitly chose not to use Dynamax. For Pokemon like Gengar, known for their speed, the gigantification could sometimes be more hindrance than help.
"Shadow Ball!" Both trainers commanded simultaneously.
The two Gengars attacked at the same time, but even though both used Shadow Ball, their execution was dramatically different.
When John’s Gengar raised its hand, more than twenty Shadow Balls appeared behind it, launching like brilliant meteors with trailing flames.
Damian’s Gengar raised both hands skyward, then suddenly punched downward. Immediately, countless fist-sized spatial rifts opened in the air behind it, with purple-black ghost energy shooting through like bullets.
The midair filled with streaks of purple-black light.
Each beam of energy was no weaker than John’s Gengar’s Shadow Balls, in fact, they were noticeably stronger.
John stared in disbelief.
You call that a Shadow Ball
? Where’s the ball part? As long as there was even a vaguely spherical shape, he would have accepted it. But this... this wasn’t a Shadow Ball, it was more like Shadow Wave.John’s Gengar’s Shadow Balls were immediately overwhelmed and annihilated by the storm of shadow waves!
Seeing this display, John had to admit that Damian’s Gengar outclassed his own by more than one level. It wasn’t just the Shadow Ball technique, it was the sheer depth of experience and mastery.
His time training Gengar was still too short.
The purple-gold Gengar’s move proficiency, energy control, and overall level simply couldn’t match Damian’s seasoned ace.
However, it wasn’t time to give up yet.
"Dodge!" John commanded.
"Shadow Sneak!" Damian followed up, determined to press his advantage and completely suppress the purple-gold Gengar.
Two massive shadow arms suddenly erupted from the ground beneath Gengar, reaching up to grab it!
These arms were thick as tree trunks, massive enough to dwarf a human. Compared to the shadow appendages used by Dusknoir and Spiritomb, Gengar’s shadow arms were several times larger and could easily envelop John’s Gengar in a single grip.
"Teleport!" John called out sharply.
John’s Gengar immediately warped behind Damian’s Gengar, launching a Shadow Ball directly at its back.
The same strategy that had defeated Dusknoir and Spiritomb was repeated.
But this time, it wouldn’t work as smoothly as before.
"Shadow Sneak," Damian calmly repeated his previous command.
A shocking scene unfolded as two shadow arms stretched out from Gengar’s back like wings, catching the teleporting the purple-gold Gengar mid-warp.
"Phamtom General" Damian’s eyes flashed coldly. This blow would be decisive!
A pitch-black general rose from the darkness, wielding a massive blade. The phantom warrior’s eyes blazed like fire as it locked onto John’s Gengar, leaning forward for a devastating slash!