Over the course of two months, Serena obtained eight Gym Badges, and Ash wasn't idle either.
Besides the improvement of his Pokemon, he also acquired a new Pokemon.
To be precise, it was a new Poke Egg.
The Poke Egg has already hatched, revealing a blue Phanpy inside.
The talent of this Phanpy was decent, but among Ash's outstanding Pokemon, it appeared somewhat mediocre.
After Serena obtained the eight badges, the group's objective was completely achieved.
There's still a month before the Silver Conference begins, so encountering any kind of opponent wouldn't be surprising by then.
Ash and Serena need to work hard to improve within this month.
Especially Serena. Although she got the eight badges, none of them were obtained by fighting a Gym Leader at full strength.
If she were to attend the Silver Conference now, she'd only become cannon fodder.
Within this month, her strength must be significantly enhanced.
After Serena collected eight badges, the group's objective was thoroughly accomplished.
There was still one month until the Silver Conference started.
Ash thought about taking everyone back to Pallet Town, letting them meet his mom, and having a good rest before preparing for the upcoming Silver Conference.
Hence, the group embarked on their journey back.
At this moment, they were traversing through a lush forest.
Sunlight filtered through layers of tree canopies, spreading patches of dappled light on the ground.
Eerie cries of Pokemon occasionally echoed through the woods, making everything seem so peaceful and harmonious.
But as they walked, Ash's pace suddenly slowed down.
He furrowed his brow slightly, a hint of intense concentration flickering in his eyes.
Something's wrong—this forest is unusual.
Ash couldn't specify the source of this feeling, but with his Aura Power far exceeding ordinary perception, he could clearly feel that the surrounding scenes seemed to be subtly twisting.
Everything around carried an indescribable sense of incongruity.
What's more concerning was that this sense of distortion seemed to be only perceptible to him alone.
Misty, Brock, and the others beside him continued walking ahead, chatting and laughing as if nothing was wrong.
Ash stopped walking.
"What's wrong, Ash?"
Misty, who was walking ahead, was the first to notice his unusual behavior and turned back to ask with confusion.
Ash didn't immediately answer but surveyed the surroundings slowly.
"...Something's not right."
He spoke in a deep voice, his eyes growing more vigilant by the second.
At that moment, a low voice also resonated in his mind.
It was Mewtwo inside the Pokeball.
'Ash, you felt it too.'
Mewtwo's tone carried a sense of gravity as well.
'There's an unusual presence in this forest, deeply hidden, almost melded with the forest itself.'
'From the moment we stepped in, we were likely already being watched.'
Upon hearing Mewtwo's words, Ash's expression completely darkened.
If even Mewtwo sensed the anomaly, it wasn't just his imagination.
Dawn looked around but couldn't see anything unusual.
She blinked her big eyes, appearing puzzled.
"No, it looks ordinary here? Just a regular forest..."
Before she could finish her words—
"Clap, clap, clap."
A slow, rhythmic clapping sound suddenly echoed in the silent forest.
The applause wasn't loud, but it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.
The group quickly turned toward the sound.
A figure slowly emerged from within the thickest tree ahead.
It was a middle-aged man.
He had a tall and upright posture, a stern face, and deep eyes that seemed to absorb one's soul.
His face was expressionless, exuding an aura of authority and indifference from someone accustomed to high positions.
"No wonder you're the young lad who has forced Team Galactic to retreat multiple times."
The man slowly spoke, his voice low and calm, with genuine admiration in his words.
"To detect anomalies in the domain I've set up, your abilities are indeed exceptional."
Ash's pupils contracted suddenly.
"Who... who are you?"
Misty and the others behind also sensed the tension in the atmosphere and immediately became alert.
Before Ash and the others could respond, the man slightly raised his hand.
In the next moment—
"Buzz!"
The entire forest scene suddenly distorted violently.
Those verdant trees, the filtered sunlight, the scattered patches of light—all shattered like reflections on water, turning into spinning fragments of color.
Subsequently, those fragments completely disintegrated.
In an instant, the entire world around Ash and his group changed.
The tranquil forest vanished without a trace.
Instead, there was a boundless, gray void space.
No sky, no ground, no references.
All around was an overwhelming silence and emptiness, as if they had been thrown into an isolated cage.
...
Meanwhile, just as the void space materialized.
In the forest.
Cynthia, who had been trailing the group from a distance, suddenly had a change in expression.
She suddenly halted her steps.
Just now, the group led by Ash walking not far ahead of her suddenly vanished right before her eyes!
A few figures were laughing and chatting the previous second, but the next moment it seemed as if they were erased from this world, leaving no trace behind.
"Not good!"
Cynthia's heart sank sharply, and she quickly ran forward.
But when she reached the spot where Ash and his group had just been, there was only an empty forest path ahead.
Ash had disappeared.
It was as if they had never been here, vanished into thin air.
Cynthia's expression instantly darkened.
Without hesitation, she immediately threw a Pokeball from her waist.
"Garchomp, come out!"
In a flash of light, that imposing land shark Pokemon appeared by her side.
"Sense the surroundings, find Ash and the others!"
Following the command, Garchomp's sharp gaze slowly scanned the surroundings, its fin slightly moving as it carefully sensed every remaining breath in the air.
After a moment, it stretched out its claw, pointed forward, and gestured several times.
Having been with Garchomp for so many years, Cynthia immediately understood what her Pokemon was trying to convey.
Ahead, indeed, there was a lingering trace of Ash and the others.
But that trace had been completely isolated by some power.
Garchomp could only barely sense a faint trace, yet it was impossible to pierce through that power to accurately locate Ash's position.
It was a power that surpassed her own strength.
Cynthia's expression turned completely cold at this moment.
It was undoubtedly Cyrus.
The man who had been hiding in the shadows had always kept an eye on Ash.
Moreover, that guy had obviously predicted Ash's next route in advance, which allowed him to lay a trap in this forest and wait patiently.
Ash and his group had walked straight into the trap meticulously set by Cyrus.
And this trap precisely isolated her from the rest of the team at the back.
No matter if Cyrus did this intentionally or accidentally.
This was definitely not good.
Cynthia took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
Panic wouldn't solve any problems.
Cyrus's power was unfathomable, able to isolate both Ash and their aura, his methods weren't ones she could easily break.
Yet, even so, she couldn't just wait idly.
She lifted her head, gazing into the void where Ash had disappeared, a determined flame ignited in her golden eyes.
"Wait for me, Ash."
"No matter what methods that guy uses, I'll find a way to rescue all of you."
...
In the midst of chaotic space, there was nothing but endless void in all directions.
Ash and his group hung suspended in mid-air, with no ground beneath their feet or sky above, giving them an indescribable dizziness.
And in front of them, stood a man dressed in Team Galactic's uniform.
His face was gaunt, eyes sunken, and a crazed light shone from his eyes.
Ash was all too familiar with this face.
Since learning who Team Galactic's leader was, he had seen this man's photo countless times.
This man was none other than the leader of Team Galactic—Cyrus!
"I've waited for you all for so long, finally got my chance." Cyrus's lips curved into a faint smile.
"You have Giratina and another Divine Domain-level Pokemon on you. As soon as I get close, those two would detect me."
"So I could only use this clumsy method, setting up in advance here, waiting for you to walk right in."
"I hope you'll forgive the abruptness of this encounter, young man."
Ash's face turned cold, as Aura Power slowly rose within him: "You know I have Giratina and Mewtwo, and yet you dare come looking for trouble?"
"Do you think I can't handle you even with two Divine Domain-level Pokemon?"
Cyrus let out a light, mocking laugh.
"I, Cyrus, dare stand before you, then naturally I'm confident. Do you really think those two Legendary Beasts are invincible?"
As his words fell, he slowly lifted his hand, lightly waved it towards the void.
"Come out."
"Buzz——!"
With a scalp-numbing spatial shock, in the gray void, two colossal, sky-obscuring figures suddenly emerged.
The one on the left was covered in steel-like bluish-gray armor, with a brilliant diamond embedded in its chest, emanating a fearful pressure that seemingly controlled the flow of time.
Its body is grand, with several sharp silver-white fins on its back, and in its eyes flows a profoundness like the river of time.
God of Time, Dialga!
On the right, the one is bathed in soft pearl white and light purple sheen, its body slender and smooth, with two wing-like organs on its shoulders, sparkling with a pink pearl glow.
It is surrounded by a layer of twisted airflow, capable of tearing space, an ultimate power that governs all space.
God of Space, Palkia!
"This…"
Ash saw these two Pokémon instantly, his pupils suddenly contracted.
His breath was momentarily halted.
Time God Dialga, God of Space Palkia.
These two are Space-Time Gods alongside Giratina, jointly overseeing time and space in this world!
And now, these two deities are just calmly floating behind Cyrus, like two weapons ready for command!
"This guy… has even controlled the Space-Time Gods?!"
Ash's heart sank heavily.
Team Galactic's technology has actually developed to such a horrifying degree?
At that moment, the black-and-gold colored Pokeball on his waist suddenly began to shake violently.
"Buzz!"
A huge shadow burst forth from the Pokeball.
Giratina!
Its pair of eerie red eyes were firmly locked on Cyrus, filled with towering rage.
As one of the Space-Time Three Gods, Giratina instantly recognized those familiar figures.
These two are always out there fighting, disrupting the peace within the Reverse Space.
It doesn't have any fondness for these two.
But now, seeing their vacant eyes, devoid of any spirit, like puppets with their soul removed.
Giratina couldn't help but become fiery with wrath.
Seeing these two is like seeing itself when it was controlled!
'Cyrus! What have you done to them?!'
Giratina's voice was full of unstoppable anger, a divine might that made the entire Chaos Space tremble.
Confronted with the unrestrained wrath of the God of Reversal, Cyrus's face showed not a hint of fear.
He leisurely took out two stones from his bosom.
One stone emanated an eerie crimson light, while the other shone with a deep blue luster.
"Recognize these things?"
Cyrus held those two stones in his palm, his tone full of boastfulness.
Upon seeing those stones, Giratina's pupils suddenly shrank.
It almost blurted out: 'Lustrous Globe! Adamant Orb!'
Ash was initially stunned, but after hearing Giratina's words clearly, his face instantly turned extremely dark.
Beside him, Misty noticed Ash's unusual demeanor and quietly approached to ask.
"Ash, Lustrous Globe, Adamant Orb… what are those things?"
"Why do you and Giratina look so different?"
Ash's voice was very low, filled with gravity.
"Those items are the same type of existence as the Griseous Orb, they are dedicated tools for Legendary Beasts."
"Remember Giratina's Griseous Orb?"
Misty nodded.
"The Griseous Orb is Giratina's exclusive tool, capable of restoring Giratina to its peak state."
"And those two…"
Ash gritted his teeth.
"The crimson Lustrous Globe is Palkia's exclusive tool."
"The blue Adamant Orb is Dialga's exclusive tool!"
Upon hearing this, Misty's face also paled a few shades.
She finally understood why Ash's expression turned so ugly.
Back then, Team Galactic used the Griseous Orb to temporarily control Giratina.
And now, Cyrus holds the Lustrous Globe and Adamant Orb, these two supreme treasures.
This means…
Time God Dialga and God of Space Palkia, these two deities who control time and space, have now been firmly grasped in Cyrus's hands!
For them, this is simply the worst news!
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