A low roar, a green light spread from Torterra's body and instantly enveloped the Rhydon! Rhydon immediately felt its strength being rapidly drained and quickly broke free, retreating in a flustered manner.
After this round of battle, although its Rock Slide had caused considerable damage to Torterra, Torterra quickly recovered with the move Giga Drain.
In contrast, Rhydon, which was four times weak to Grass-type moves, was greatly troubled. A single Giga Drain had taken away most of its strength.
"Huff… huff…" Rhydon panted lightly, its face dark as it stared at the still-energetic Torterra.
Aside from the difference in power, this Giga Drain was really too unfair. After every battle, it was exhausted, yet its opponent was still perfectly fine.
"Rhy Rhy Rhy!"
Rhydon never gives up!
Another rock was conjured by Rhydon and hurled at Torterra.
Then came a second and third—suddenly, the battlefield was filled with booming sounds as shattered stones surrounded Torterra.
"That's way too violent," a villager gulped.
At the same time, their hearts surged with excitement, imagining themselves owning such powerful beasts.
"There will be a day for that!"
"Then let that day start from today. First, we'll start by capturing a beast!"
The villagers looked on with anticipation, etching the scene of the battle deep into their hearts.
In the arena, Rhydon continued its barrage. The rumbling never ceased.
Gradually, Rhydon entered a strange state, surrounded by Rock-type energy.
Suddenly, it had a thought—it began trying to control this Rock-type energy.
In an instant, a brown-gray energy ripple spread from Rhydon's body.
The energy gathered rapidly, turning into numerous floating rocks surrounding its body.
"Ancient Power!"
Rhydon looked at Torterra and launched the attack.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh! Countless stones shot forward like missiles, instantly engulfing Torterra!
Faced with such a terrifying assault, Torterra was momentarily stunned. It snapped out of it and quickly launched Leaf Blade to counterattack.
But it was too late. Leaf Blade sliced through a few of the boulders, but there were simply too many. The flying rocks overwhelmed the attack and slammed onto Torterra, burying it like a small mountain!
"So… so terrifying."
"Is the battle over?"
The villagers began to chatter excitedly, astonished by Rhydon's sudden burst of power.
In the distance, " stared blankly at the scene.
Ancient Power—it was definitely Ancient Power... Tangela repeated the words in its heart, its eyes widening.
Rhydon had actually managed to unleash Ancient Power in the middle of battle. It was unbelievable! The training method was right—battles could indeed awaken one's hidden potential...
Tangela recalled what Aven had said and lowered its head, deep in thought. Then, it raised its gaze, full of determination.
It would follow in Rhydon's footsteps and master Ancient Power!
In the arena, Rhydon was also extremely excited.
Ancient Power—it had finally learned the move! That sensation of freely controlling Rock-type energy was incredible!
Then, it looked toward the distant Torterra. Had it won?
Just as that thought crossed Rhydon's mind, the pile of rubble began to shake, and Torterra's figure emerged.
Though it looked battered, it was still far from collapsing.
"Torr! Terra!"
Torterra let out a fierce cry, its body quickly enveloped in a surge of Grass-type energy, transforming into countless leaves swirling around it.
Seeing this, Rhydon got even more excited and once again used Ancient Power.
Whoooosh! The leaves, combined with a strong wind, shot forward like a storm, instantly engulfing Rhydon!
After the storm of flying leaves passed, Rhydon stood frozen for a moment.
Then, with a thunderous crash, it suddenly collapsed to the ground!
The battle had finally come to an end—with Torterra's powerful Grass-type finisher delivering a one-hit knockout blow to Rhydon.
In the distance, Tangela was startled and quickly ran over to check on it. Seeing that Rhydon was only unconscious, it quietly sighed in relief.
"As expected, another defeat." Peter sighed. He'd lost count of how many times Rhydon had been defeated now.
He skillfully took out a bottle of healing potion and walked over to Rhydon, pouring it into its mouth.
Then he turned to the watching villagers and said, "The battle's over, everyone go home now."
Hearing the patrol captain's words, the villagers reluctantly left, still wearing nostalgic, dreamy expressions.
In the days that followed, the villagers' interest in capturing beasts soared. That battle had planted the seed of becoming a trainer deep in their hearts.
…
At the farm, Aven had also heard about the earlier battle.
In front of him, Rhydon was continuing its training with high spirits.
A single defeat didn't mean anything. From now on, it would have to train even harder and challenge again!
Nearby, Tangela was just as motivated, becoming Rhydon's most loyal companion.
"Rhydon, congratulations on learning Ancient Power," Aven called for a break and expressed his praise.
"Rhyy!"
Rhydon roared excitedly, gathering Rock-type energy around it.
"Yes, that's definitely Ancient Power."
After watching Rhydon demonstrate the move, Aven smiled and continued coaching it on how to refine Ancient Power.
Tangela listened intently from the side, noting down the finer details for later practice.
Nearby, Petilil, who had just treated Rhydon, was also listening carefully, deep in thought.
'So that's how it works.'
Just as it was contemplating, a snowball suddenly landed beside it.
Looking over, it saw the mischievous Froslass, happily playing with a pile of snowballs.
Clearly, Froslass had also been secretly trying to use Ancient Power, but since it lacked Rock-type energy, it had to use Ice-type energy instead.
This gave Petilil some inspiration—what if it tried substituting Grass-type or Life Energy instead?
"Meow"
The little Shinx listened seriously to the training notes from its seniors.
Although it hadn't been with the team for long, it greatly admired their strength.
Lately, it had been training hard and had just learned the most basic electric-type attack—channeling energy into a shockwave.
But that was far from enough. Its small goal was to one day use Thunderbolt, just like the Luxray senior on the farm.
Starly and Cherrim perched side by side on a branch. Starly looked a bit grumpy, while Cherrim, as always, wore a cheerful smile.
"Rhydon, use Ancient Power again and gather energy."
Aven continued directing Rhydon to perform Ancient Power. Brown-gray energy ripples formed once more around its body.
"Tangela, come over and carefully sense this energy."
Aven then waved Tangela over, and it happily ran forward.
Petilil scooted closer, Froslass also moved in, and Shinx, though confused, followed suit.
Aven: "..."
…
Brent gripped the wooden bow in his hands, his heart surging with emotion as he recalled the earlier battle.
Beside him, the Mightyena followed closely, its eyes full of longing.
"Old buddy, do you want to become as strong as that Rhydon?" Brent looked seriously at his partner.
Mightyena was momentarily stunned, then exchanged a look with its trainer before firmly nodding. But… how?
"Hoo… I guess it's time to decide."
"To join the Fruitvale Village patrol or return to Stonefall Village and become the next village chief…"
Brent paused, then declared firmly, "Though I feel sorry for my old man, I want to stay in Fruitvale Village!"
After making his decision, he quickly ran toward the village to tell Raul and then find Aven.
He believed that Aven could definitely make him stronger—just like that Rhydon!
Back home, Brent saw his father sitting at the table, lost in thought. When he saw Brent return, he finally smiled.
"Dad…" Brent felt a sudden pang in his heart and softly called out.
"Hmm, you're back."
Raul smiled at him, then glanced at the longbow in his son's hand and fell silent for a moment.
Brent opened his mouth, but even though he had already made his decision, he now found it hard to say.
Raul looked at his most capable son and suddenly smiled, "So, have you decided?"
Brent froze, looking flustered, and just as he was about to explain, Raul raised a hand to stop him.
"Stay. Stay in Fruitvale Village."
"Only here can you achieve your dreams. Stonefall Village… is too small for you."
Raul's face held a gentle smile, leaving Brent completely stunned.
A father knows his son best. Brent never imagined that his father had already guessed his hesitation and spoken up first.
Looking at the weathered face of his father, Brent's eyes grew misty.
Stonefall Village—this was the place his father had guarded all his life.
He knew his father probably didn't want him to stay, but for his son's dreams, he chose to compromise. To spare him the struggle, his father spoke first.
(End of chapter)