Salamence's flying speed through the air wasn't slow at all, but when he passed over the geyser field, he happened to arrive just as the geyser erupted.
The massive column of water shot straight upward, disrupting the surrounding air currents and throwing off Salamence's flight path.
The sudden eruption of the geyser caught Salamence completely off guard. He staggered and swayed in the turbulent air before managing to land safely on the field not far from the geyser.
This area was known as Poni Wilds.
There weren't many species of Pokémon living in Poni Wilds.
Roy took a quick look around and spotted primarily Pelipper, Granbull, and Inkay.
Occasionally, he could also see a Gastrodon that would suddenly appear before running off to who knows where.
The other Pokémon seemed peaceful enough, but for some unknown reason, the Pelipper became very hostile the moment it spotted Roy and his team appearing in the field.
Pelipper, as its name suggested, possessed an extraordinarily large bill.
This massive bill was typically used at sea level to prey on fish that came to the surface to breathe.
But now it was rattling its beak wide open, spreading its wings as it charged toward Roy.
Compared to its enormous mouth, both Pelipper's wings and legs were relatively short and stubby.
So when Pelipper swooped down from above, one couldn't see anything except that wide-open mouth drooling constantly and a pair of blood-red, furious eyes.
Roy felt that this aggressive Pelipper still carried a hint of wildness about it.
The Water-Flying type had already swooped down from mid-air right in front of Roy, but Roy didn't seem rushed or concerned at all.
Until...
"Rock Smash."
As Roy's voice rang out, Lucario's figure followed immediately.
The extremely fast speed meant that Salamence could only see a black blur flash past before Pelipper fell powerlessly to the ground.
The Water-type flapped its wings twice weakly, but it didn't have the strength to continue struggling.
Lucario had been practicing control over his strength recently and had made considerable progress.
He was confident that the Pelipper would recover to its normal condition after a period of rest following the move he'd just used.
Roy naturally sensed this through his power of Aura and nodded in satisfaction.
Lucario calmly walked to the side and continued his practice, and he'd also gained an admiring younger brother in the process.
Salamence was staring at Lucario with stars in his eyes.
Roy smiled as he watched Lucario, who had increased the weight of his training bracelet and was constantly practicing his moves. Roy then put on his own weighted training bracelet as well.
Today's goal was to run until he couldn't stand up anymore!
Except for Metagross, all the other Pokémon were doing their own daily training routines.
During that devastating explosion, Metagross had used its own body to protect Roy's safety.
As a result, it required a long time to recover. Even Tapu Lele's revitalizing scale powder could only reduce Metagross's injuries, not heal them instantly.
Although Metagross strongly insisted on coming out to train, Roy had sternly rejected the request.
They all understood that if Metagross didn't take proper care of its body and made its condition worse, it would be completely detrimental to the Steel-Psychic type's future development.
They absolutely couldn't covet the immediate benefits of rushed training.
After Metagross listened to Roy's reasoning, it honestly stopped bringing up the matter of training.
At the same time, the Pokémon was determined to take care of its body quickly so it could emerge from its Poké Ball sooner.
The destructive power of spatial distortion could be seen clearly from this.
What's more, the spatial quake had caused the entire Altar of the Sunne to be reduced to ruins.
On Poni Island...
At the highest point near the dark tower region, a guardian deity was commanding the Pokémon to work diligently on construction.
Down in the field area, Lucario was constantly exercising to build his stamina, trying hard to adapt to the new heavy burden of the weighted bracelet.
Mimikyu was bouncing around energetically, appearing and disappearing suddenly, playfully harassing the poor wild Pokémon in the field.
Faintly, one could see a misty aura surrounding Mimikyu's disguise.
This made its figure even more unclear and difficult to pinpoint.
If this were at night, Mimikyu would undoubtedly be a peerless blade that revealed not a single trace of its presence.
In battle, the Ghost-Fairy type was becoming more skilled at integrating the Aura inheritance technique with its own moves and physical characteristics.
High in the sky, blue lightning occasionally flashed as Electivire continued using the power of electricity to stimulate the cells in its body in a steady and orderly manner.
Among the Pokémon on this island, as far as Electivire was concerned, no one could match it in power!
What's more, under the effect of the 'Thunder Armor' technique, Roy was also worried that Electivire might accidentally cause serious damage to the wild Pokémon here during close combat training.
For both parties involved, such an outcome would be counterproductive.
So there wasn't much difference between Electivire's current workout routine and its previous one.
The Electric-type had simply taken the lead in learning the Totem Armor technique from Mimikyu and was now trying to integrate it with its own 'Thunder Armor.'
If Electivire could fully comprehend and implement this fusion, it would represent a massive improvement for the Pokémon.
However, given Electivire's personality of training relentlessly without rest, Roy feared that by the time other Pokémon learned the technique, Electivire would have nothing left to do except continuously electrify itself.
Roy's eyes shifted, drifting toward the position of the dark tower from time to time.
He knew that in that vicinity, Solgaleo must be acting as an overseer, watching the construction of the temple progress bit by bit.
Perhaps...
The sudden thunderstorm brought about by the anti-gravity electromagnetic field caught Roy by surprise and interrupted his train of thought.
Electivire laughed a couple of times in embarrassment and quickly drifted to another location before Ninetales could scold it.
Roy wiped the water droplets off his face with his hand and continued running as if nothing had happened.
Recently, his physical training had been neglected for quite some time.
My eight-pack abs! Come back to me!
Ninetales sat perched on a boulder next to the geyser, flicking its tails irritably.
Then the Ice-type continued to close its eyes and entered a state of Calm Mind meditation.
Perhaps because this was its homeland, Ninetales felt that its Calm Mind condition was significantly better than before.
If Electivire hadn't caused such a commotion, Ninetales probably wouldn't have been willing to wake up at all.
During Calm Mind meditation, every plant, tree, and flower in this place welcomed Ninetales's presence.
The fox Pokémon could hear the soft cries of the ocean Pokémon in the waters behind it.
It could also hear the bubbling of the geyser beside it.
The geyser would erupt again soon.
Sure enough, the geyser seemed to have received some kind of instruction, and a massive column of water shot upward instantly.
Ninetales sat cross-legged in meditation, completely unsurprised by this development.
Under the Calm Mind condition, within the range that Ninetales could perceive, all subtle changes could not escape its awareness.
This was Alola's...
The moment Ninetales realized this truth, as if touching upon a certain critical point, the Pokémon's consciousness sank deeper and deeper.
It actually entered an even more profound level of Calm Mind meditation.
The psychic power within Ninetales increased little by little during this deep Calm Mind state, slowly gathering like water forming a shallow spring.
And then growing into a rushing brook that flowed with increasing strength.