Chapter 357: Staraptor: The One Who Wants It Most, Who Refuses to Accept It Most, Is Me!

Anping City Pokémon Battle Center.

Chen Mo's plan to break the seal of the World-Origin Tree and investigate what lay inside had attracted close attention not only from people across the country, but from numerous countries around the world as well.

Under such a tense atmosphere, it was naturally difficult for the many Trainers participating in the Extreme Challenge Summer Camp to devote themselves wholeheartedly to training.

Therefore.

Early that morning, Zhou Yichuan, acting as the administrator, issued a notice granting all the Trainers a temporary day off.

Apart from Gao Tianming, who had once again requested an extended leave of absence, the remaining Trainers all came to the common lounge with the largest projection screen after breakfast.

"This doesn't make sense!"

Song Qingyun stared at the enormous beast soaring through the sky on the screen.

"I remember Aerodactyl very clearly. It definitely doesn't look like this. And what are those black rocks covering its body!?"

"Could it be an evolutionary form of Aerodactyl that hasn't been recorded yet?"

Leaning against a Snorlax that was rapidly stuffing various snacks into its mouth, Chen Haoran quickly offered his own theory.

There were still many Pokémon in this world that had never been recorded in the Pokédex. As Trainers being officially cultivated with the full support of the authorities, they naturally knew more than ordinary people.

Take Drilbur, for example, which Teacher Mo had previously introduced in Quagsire's cave. After the Countermeasure Bureau sent personnel to conduct an in-depth exploration of that cavern, they unexpectedly discovered an evolved form of Drilbur that Chen Mo hadn't mentioned before.

Although it hadn't been officially named yet—the professor was still waiting for Chen Mo to conduct a final identification with his Eye of Detection—it was enough to prove that, just as Chen Mo himself had said, it was impossible for anyone to know everything.

"I don't think so."

Ah Hui stared at the screen and shook his head.

"Drilbur's evolved form does look a little strange, going from one segment to two or three. But honestly, the moment I first saw Drilbur, I had a feeling that it should have an evolution of its own. I don't get that feeling from Aerodactyl."

"Same here."

Qiao Cheng nodded and quickly voiced his own guess.

"I don't know if you remember, but when Teacher Mo previously introduced the Panpour family, he mentioned that Pokémon could have regional forms. I feel that this Aerodactyl looks more like a regional form of Aerodactyl."

Everyone began discussing the possibilities.

But whether it was Ah Hui, Qiao Cheng, and the others, or the hundreds of millions of viewers watching the livestream, they all understood one thing.

This Aerodactyl had clearly not come in peace.

"It's starting!"

On the screen.

After briefly pausing to confirm its surroundings, the Aerodactyl covered from head to toe in sharp rocks once again beat its wings and began rapidly diving downward.

"So fast!"

Zhou Yichuan's face was filled with shock.

Back in Viridian Forest, the main reason Aerodactyl had been able to hold its own against the Tyranitar-level Hydreigon was its astonishing speed.

Now, seeing this Aerodactyl covered in all sorts of sharp rocks, Zhou Yichuan had subconsciously assumed that it would be considerably slower than the Aerodactyl they had encountered in Viridian Forest.

However.

In less than a second, that assumption was completely shattered by the new Aerodactyl's strength!

In an instant.

The question of whether this Aerodactyl was a regional form or an evolution that had never been recorded suddenly seemed to have an answer.

"An evolution! This has to be a brand-new evolution of Aerodactyl! Only an evolution could possibly bring about such an outrageous increase in strength!"

In the blink of an eye.

Aerodactyl had already approached Chen Mo's position.

The area around its head, covered in sharp rocks resembling dragon horns, began to glow with dazzling white light.

Iron Head!

"Pidove!"

A loud cry rang out.

Staraptor rapidly beat its wings, which were also shining with an astonishing light, and shot out from the side.

Staraptor had been prepared for this from the beginning.

Although its speed was far inferior to Aerodactyl's, its advance prediction allowed it to arrive just in time.

Its sharp eyes quickly searched for the portions of Aerodactyl's body that weren't covered by rock.

Then it spun around, transforming into a streak of light before slashing forward!

Clang—!

The instant Steel Wing collided with the rock, fierce sparks erupted in midair.

Chen Mo's expression darkened.

With his Aura fully concentrated, he clearly saw Aerodactyl twist its body at the last possible moment, causing Staraptor's attack to land on a portion covered by rock.

Its speed and reactions were truly astonishing!

"Graaaah!"

As an ancient ruler of the skies, Aerodactyl slightly turned its head and glanced at the nearby Staraptor with disdain.

Then.

Its tail was rapidly enveloped in a metallic sheen.

Iron Tail!

The sound of something tearing through the air rang out.

Although Staraptor desperately tried to dodge at such close range, it was still a little too late.

Aerodactyl's Iron Tail slammed into Staraptor's abdomen.

The tremendous force caused Staraptor to let out a pained cry in midair, its body beginning to tilt.

"Gengar..."

Gengar put down the camera.

Against an opponent with an aerial advantage, the two Pokémon in the team best suited for combat were Gengar and Staraptor.

Now that Staraptor was having difficulty dealing with Aerodactyl, it was only natural for Gengar to take over and continue the fight.

However.

At that moment.

Chen Mo's voice suddenly came from ahead.

"Gengar, wait."

"Gengar?"

Gengar was puzzled.

Just as it was about to ask why, it suddenly noticed that Chen Mo's gaze wasn't focused on the strange-looking Aerodactyl.

Following Chen Mo's line of sight, Gengar saw Staraptor, which had been struck by Aerodactyl's Iron Tail, stabilize itself once again.

Its eyes were firmly locked onto Aerodactyl.

Suddenly, Gengar remembered some everyday details that had often gone unnoticed.

Each of Chen Mo's Pokémon had its own distinctive personality.

There was the pure and straightforward Pikachu, the knowledgeable but evolution-averse Magikarp, the playful and mischievous Gengar, the gentle and quiet Absol, the tsundere yet dependable Marshadow, the innocent, stubborn, and somewhat socially anxious Gible, and the adorable newcomer Jirachi.

Looking back at all of them, most viewers had a very simple impression of Staraptor.

Teacher Mo's tireless transportation Pokémon.

The hard worker who was always the first to step forward whenever something happened.

That was basically how the audience saw Staraptor.

But Gengar, who spent every day with Staraptor, understood it far more deeply.

When it came to those it considered family, Staraptor was absolutely the most selfless Pokémon of them all.

It responded enthusiastically whenever Chen Mo or any of the other Pokémon called for it.

Whenever night fell and everyone else had gone to sleep, Staraptor was always the last one to rest.

And even then, it didn't completely let its guard down.

Instead, it remained alert to its surroundings.

Especially when they were in the wilderness, even the slightest disturbance would immediately wake Staraptor, which would then quickly begin scouting the area.

Because Chen Mo felt so sorry for Staraptor, after Gengar evolved, he had stopped letting Staraptor sleep outside whenever they traveled.

Instead, he had forcibly made Staraptor rest inside the tent together with everyone else.

Chen Mo, as well as every Pokémon in the team, loved Staraptor dearly.

Even Gengar, as playful and mischievous as it was, liked falling asleep at night while hugging Staraptor's soft-feathered belly.

However.

Only Gengar knew that Staraptor, which always acted like a considerate older sibling in front of everyone, had worries of its own.

Its mediocre strength was the thing that troubled Staraptor the most.

As the second Pokémon to join Chen Mo's team, Staraptor had once been the leader of a flock of Pidgey.

As the leader of the flock, Staraptor possessed a far stronger sense of mission and responsibility than ordinary Pidgey.

It also possessed a far greater desire to become stronger.

When they entered the secret realm within the Arceus Ruins, Staraptor had still been unaware of just how powerful Legendary Pokémon were.

Back then, it had even wanted to challenge the Zekrom depicted in the murals.

It could be said that Staraptor was naturally extremely competitive.

It yearned for the kind of overwhelming strength that could protect everyone.

Because of this, when it came to its daily training, Staraptor consistently ranked among the top three of all Chen Mo's Pokémon.

It was even frequently ranked first.

Without a doubt, Staraptor was the Pokémon that trained the hardest every day!

From an outside perspective, thanks to its own efforts and the assistance of various system items, Staraptor's strength had indeed improved tremendously.

But Staraptor wasn't satisfied.

Because under the same conditions, Pikachu's growth rate far surpassed its own.

Even Gible, which had only been born recently, was rapidly transforming and becoming stronger.

This put tremendous pressure on Staraptor, which had once been the undisputed No. 1 of Chen Mo's team.

It could tolerate a teammate surpassing it in strength.

But it absolutely couldn't tolerate gradually becoming the one holding the team back.

Of course.

Having watched Pikachu grow up right before its eyes, constantly becoming stronger and rapidly surpassing it to become the team's publicly recognized No. 1...

It was impossible for Staraptor to have no thoughts about that.

Staraptor had its own pride, too.

Gengar hadn't noticed these inner struggles at first.

The reason it eventually learned about Staraptor's troubles was because Staraptor had put aside its usual restraint and taken the initiative to make a request.

That's right.

It was the dream-training method Gengar often used to train Pikachu.

Gengar still remembered.

It had happened after their time in Viridian Forest.

The first opponent Staraptor had asked Gengar to simulate wasn't the Hydreigon that had nearly killed all of them.

It was the Aerodactyl that had emerged from the underground cavern and briefly crossed paths with them!

"Gengar..."

Gengar looked toward Staraptor.

Remembering the figure that had struggled desperately countless times in its dreams, Gengar silently stepped back.

It picked up the camera from the ground and pointed it at Staraptor.

In its heart, it silently cheered.

Good luck!

"Pidove..."

Staraptor watched the disdainful and mocking Aerodactyl before it while also glancing at its Trainer below from the corner of its eye.

Chen Mo understood what Staraptor was saying.

It wanted Chen Mo to let it handle this Aerodactyl.

Honestly...

Chen Mo helplessly smiled.

You always do this.

Staraptor, you're simply too honest.

I've told you long ago.

As long as I'm here, all of you have the right to be selfish.

You who soar through the skies.

You who have always been fiercely competitive.

Ever since Viridian Forest, you've probably been unhappy that Aerodactyl has the title of "Sky Overlord," haven't you?

I know you far too well!

The corners of Chen Mo's lips curled into a slight smile.

"Staraptor, I'll support you. But pay attention to one thing. This Aerodactyl isn't the same as the one we encountered in Viridian Forest. Its ability is Tough Claws, which can greatly increase the power of contact moves, so be careful to avoid direct contact with it!"

"Pidove!"

"Then fight to your heart's content, Staraptor!"

"Pidove!!!"

A resounding cry answered Chen Mo.

Anping City Pokémon Battle Center.

Song Qingyun stared at the scene of Chen Mo and Staraptor on the screen in disbelief.

"No, why is Teacher Mo letting Staraptor fight Aerodactyl one-on-one? Staraptor..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

In his opinion, judging from the strength the seemingly newly evolved Aerodactyl had demonstrated, Staraptor was completely outmatched.

Besides.

Wasn't their main goal to reach the higher levels of the World-Origin Tree?

Choosing to fight this strange Aerodactyl one-on-one was practically going out of their way to be honorable.

Suddenly.

Song Qingyun thought of something.

Perhaps only that guy in the red-and-white cap would do something like this.

Just as Song Qingyun's thoughts wandered, Ah Hui suddenly shouted from beside him.

"Holy crap! Staraptor can do that too!?"

Everyone looked up.

Countless arcs of azure lightning burst from Chen Mo's body and shot toward the sky, connecting Staraptor above with Chen Mo below.

After learning how to use the source power left behind by Zekrom, Chen Mo had conducted many experiments using the Pokémon in his team as targets.

Of all of them, only Pikachu, whose type was compatible, and Staraptor, which had previously been acknowledged by Zekrom's source power, could receive its enhancement.

Although Staraptor couldn't enter the Overclock Drive mode like Pikachu, the power of a Legendary Pokémon was still enough to make Staraptor's strength undergo a tremendous leap.

Aerodactyl sensed an extraordinary energy rapidly accumulating within Staraptor.

For a moment.

It saw streaks of seemingly tangible blue lightning erupt from Staraptor's eyes.

Its gaze was razor-sharp.

As though it were saying:

"If anyone is going to defeat you here, it's me!"

Aerodactyl, which hadn't taken Staraptor seriously from the beginning, became enraged.

Even though the World-Origin Tree's defensive system was telling Aerodactyl that its target should be the chattering human below...

At this moment, as an ancient ruler of the skies, Aerodactyl's pride left only one instinctive thought in its mind.

Tear this feathered freak apart!!!

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