Another round?'
When Axel's words fell, the entire scene went deathly silent.
Aside from the rumbling of collapsing research structures and the Sky Island continuing to fall, the entire platform was enveloped in absolute stillness.
The sickly fanaticism on Lusamine's face froze instantly, her pupils shrinking to pinpoints from extreme shock and disbelief.
When the middle-aged researcher had failed earlier, Lusamine hadn't taken it too seriously. After all, aside from a Salamence, the rest were just ordinary Pokémon. Losing to Axel was normal.
But now, what was she seeing?
The Ultra Beast Buzzwole, in which she had placed such high hopes and which possessed terrifying power, had actually been seriously injured by Axel with his bare hands.
And Axel had used only one move. A single Flamethrower.
Pheromosa's high-speed afterimages stalled. The electric arcs around Xurkitree became chaotic. The explosive colors flickering on Blacephalon's head turned unstable.
Even the extremely greedy Guzzlord stopped its roaring in confusion, its enormous mouth slightly agape, as if it too had been frightened by this utterly incomprehensible scene.
'Is this… a human?'
'Even if this guy were placed in the Ultra Wormhole, he would have combat power comparable to a clan chief, or even stronger than one.'
Lillie's tightly shut eyes secretly opened a small slit. Seeing Buzzwole struggling on the ground and Axel's still-calm profile, her heart couldn't help pounding wildly, the shock beyond words.
'Master… he actually knocked an Ultra Beast away with his bare hands?'
She had always known Axel was very strong. His Pokémon could even easily suppress Ultra Beasts and make Buzzwole follow her.
But the shock those things brought was clearly incomparable to the scene in front of her now.
This was Axel's own power.
Sapphire circled at a distance atop her Tropius, witnessing this terrifying scene as well.
She was so shocked she almost fell off the dragon's back.
She felt her understanding of power being refreshed once again. Ultra Beasts that had caused no small amount of trouble in the Hoenn region with just two of them descending had been suppressed by Axel to this extent?
Because she didn't know the Sky Island's defensive level, the impact this scene had on her was even greater than Axel sinking the Sky Island.
'This guy… is he really human?'
Axel slowly withdrew his palm, traces of scorching flame seeming to linger on his hand.
Without even looking at the heavily injured Buzzwole, his cold gaze swept over the remaining four Ultra Beasts, finally landing on Lusamine, whose face was deathly pale and whose body had begun to tremble slightly.
"Do you still think they can save this world?"
"Tell me where the passage to the Ultra Wormhole is. Compared to people like Pryce and Maxie and Archie, the greatest threat to the world is inside the Ultra Wormhole."
"I've said this much. If you still refuse to believe me, I don't mind…"
Axel's gaze passed over the remaining Ultra Beasts, all frozen in fear, and he spoke softly.
"I don't mind letting them experience my power again."
"You're threatening me?", Lusamine's body shook violently, half from anger, half from fear that seeped into her bones.
After the random summoning device was activated, spatial rifts had appeared many times in the Pokémon world.
These Ultra Beasts had all been secretly stationed near those rifts, and every capture had taken an enormous amount of effort.
In Lusamine's original view, these Ultra Beasts were invincible.
Each and every one of them possessed the power to sink a small island.
But now, when facing Axel, the trump cards she prided herself on were so fragile before him.
Yet the flames of obsession in her mind had not been completely extinguished. A trace of madness flashed through her eyes as she screamed, "Don't even think about making me believe your one-sided words. I've seen plenty of people like you!"
"You go on and on about benevolence and morality, but not a single thing you do counts as decent."
"Just like your power right now. How could something a normal human possess that? You must have done plenty of experiments harmful to Pokémon as well."
"Pheromosa, Xurkitree, get up there and tear this guy apart!"
At her command, Pheromosa helplessly shook her head, turning into a white streak of light nearly invisible to the naked eye as she stabbed straight toward Axel's vital point.
At the same time, a terrifying giant net of lightning erupted from Xurkitree's side, descending toward Axel.
Blacephalon grabbed its own head, an intensely hot, unstable sphere of light condensing there, like a cannonball on the verge of exploding, ready to launch an attack at any moment.
Guzzlord opened its abyssal maw, a powerful suction force trying to swallow Axel and Lillie whole.
All five Ultra Beasts, including Buzzwole struggling to stand back up, attacked Axel at the same time.
Violent energy instantly engulfed the position where Axel and Lillie stood.
"Master!"
"Axel!"
Lillie and Sapphire screamed in terror at the same time.
Seeing that Lillie had also been swallowed by the attack, Lusamine's eyelid twitched. Her right hand swung forward uncontrollably, her lips trembling as if she wanted to say something.
But in the end, those words were swallowed back down.
"Let him see what real power truly is."
"Even if my Lillie is affected by the attack, I still have to change this—"
Before she could finish speaking, Lusamine's voice abruptly cut off again.
Because she saw that at the center of the energy eruption, an ancient, heavy aura, as if bearing the weight of the entire planet, burst forth with terrifying force.
Axel's figure flickered in and out within the red light. He held Lillie in one arm, while the other propped up a fiery red barrier, his voice like an eternal bedrock, resounding through the skies.
"I originally wanted to clash head-on with you guys and give it a try, but now it seems… that won't really work."
The Precipice Blade that had pierced the Sky Island earlier, although executed by the miniature Groudon, had in fact still used Axel's own psychic power.
Axel's personal level was only Champion-tier. It was just that his energy quality was relatively high.
After consecutive battles, his psychic power was running a bit low. It was hard to continue suppressing five Ultra Beasts at once.
"But luckily, I still have some other power."
Seeing the strange smile on Axel's face, all five Ultra Beasts felt an instinctive urge to retreat.
But before they could pull back, they saw Axel suddenly adjust Lillie's position and strike a bodybuilding pose.
Something bizarre happened.
At the exact moment Axel made that pose, two upward-rising halos of light suddenly flashed over his body.
Both attack and defense were boosted.
And recalling the scene earlier where Axel had flung Buzzwole's "little brother" away with a single blow…
"Yoo!", Pheromosa was the first to react, letting out a sharp screech as her body immediately retreated backward.
Her retreat seemed to be a signal. The entire scene instantly descended into chaos.
The other Ultra Beasts fled in panic, and from Axel's body, that heavy aura surged forth once more.
Lusamine discovered in horror that at some unknown point, a massive earth-yellow greatsword had once again appeared in Axel's hand.
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