Chapter 57: One Against Three and the Fifth Badge

As the red light flashed, a Pokémon with short limbs, eyes tightly shut like a small person, and a reddish-brown flower atop its head appeared in the battlefield.

Its appearance was very similar to a Rafflesia in a tropical rainforest; the stamens on its head were surrounded by four spherical petals, and beneath the massive flower sat a body resembling a blue plant bulb.

Pokédex: "Beep. Vileplume, the Weed Pokémon. Grass/Poison type. The evolved form of Oddish. A constant stream of foul-smelling saliva, which is as sweet as honey, hangs from its mouth. However, when it is relaxed, it does not emit its stench; it only releases the foul odor to repel enemies when it is nervous or senses danger."

A scent wafted around Vileplume, and even though Xia You was standing in the Trainer Command Zone, he could smell it from a distance.

It seemed that, just like the Skunk that they encountered yesterday, this one likely possessed the Stench ability!

Looking back at Charmeleon, perhaps due to previous combat experience, although it was currently nauseated and headache-stricken by the smell, it relied on the stubborn, unyielding spirit inherent to the Fire type to stand its ground, refusing to take a single step back!

Knowing that the longer the stalemate lasted, the more disadvantageous the situation would become, Xia You took the initiative: "Charmeleon, strike first!"

Charmeleon opened its mouth, and a flame stronger, larger, and hotter than Ember erupted!

"Has it already mastered Flamethrower?" Erika waved her hand and shouted, "Vileplume, dodge it quickly!"

Unfortunately, without the boost of Chlorophyll, given Vileplume's slow speed, even if it wanted to dodge, it was futile; it was ultimately struck by the scorching flames.

Its body burned, and as the flames subsided, Erika hurriedly commanded, "Vileplume, use Sleep Powder!"

Knowing that when Sleep Powder is used as a follow-up to a first strike, it is usually followed by other high-powered moves, Xia You did not dare to be careless. He decisively ordered, "Charmeleon, use Smokescreen again!"

The smokescreen from the previous battle had long since dissipated, so Charmeleon quickly exhaled black smoke once more, re-enveloping itself.

On the other side, clumps of powder drifted from the stamens of Vileplume, gradually spreading across the entire field and eventually seeping into the smokescreen.

Taking advantage of the moment when the smoke was not yet thick, Erika could vaguely see through the hazy outlines that Charmeleon was standing in place, fallen into a deep sleep.

"Excellent! Vileplume, use Growth!"

A faint green light emanated from Vileplume's body; not only did its size increase, but under the sunlight, the power of its moves was greatly enhanced.

In the command zone, Xia You also understood that while Charmeleon was asleep, it would be impossible for it to wake up on its own in a short time without external force. Thus, he did not speak, instead choosing to observe the situation and wait for the next move.

He had done all he could; now, it was time to see what the opponent would do!

At this moment, having endured for a long time, Erika finally revealed her trump card.

"Vileplume, use Solar Beam!"

Following Erika's command, Vileplume began to absorb sunlight. Countless particles of light rapidly converged and condensed at its stamens, eventually forming a sphere of light!

As the energy reached its peak, that sphere of light was suddenly fired toward Charmeleon!

A pillar of light cut straight through, instantly dispersing the layers of smoke and hitting Charmeleon!

Solar Beam, a high-level Grass-type move capable of dealing massive damage, usually required a long preparation time to gather sunlight. However, under today's abundant light, its energy accumulation was greatly shortened!

Taking the full brunt of the damage, Charmeleon stumbled and fell to the ground.

Although Grass attacks against Fire only deal half damage due to type effectiveness, bolstered by the Growth move, this single hit nearly knocked Charmeleon out of combat entirely!

Charmeleon looked pained, gritting its teeth as it struggled to crawl back up.

Both its stamina and its ability to endure had reached their limit, but thanks to that beam of light, its sleep was finally broken!

It let out a roar, triggering its Blaze ability. Before Xia You could even issue a command, it charged toward Vileplume driven by combat instinct!

"How truly tenacious!" Erika first offered a compliment, then shook her head. "But with your current stamina, what can you possibly do? Vileplume, use Poison Powder!"

Vileplume fluttered its petals, and clumps of pale green powder instantly formed a barrier in front of it.

Erika's intention was to force Charmeleon to change direction, but to her surprise, it didn't dodge at all. It charged straight into the Poison Powder and, before the move could take effect, suddenly leaped high into the air, lunging forward with its mouth open. Flames flickered between its teeth as it bit down hard on Vileplume!

In a flash, Vileplume let out a piercing scream of unbearable pain!

Flamethrower! It was super effective!

"What!?"

Erika was shocked and was about to order Vileplume to break free, only to see Charmeleon's body sway; the Poison Powder had drained its last bit of stamina, and it collapsed to the ground.

She let out a long sigh of relief, but just as the blue-haired girl beside her was about to announce the result of the match, something unexpected happened!

Vileplume's body suddenly turned red, and its entire being began to shake violently as if it were being burned!

"Oh no, it's the Burn effect!"

Erika couldn't help but cry out. No sooner had the words left her mouth than Vileplume collapsed, also losing its ability to battle.

"This..."

Erika and the blue-haired girl exchanged looks, both stunned by the outcome. It took several seconds before the blue-haired girl regained her composure and raised her right hand.

"Both Pokémon have lost the ability to battle. The challenger is the winner!"

Taking out a Poké Ball, Xia You silently recalled Charmeleon; this Gym challenge had truly been hard on it.

And the sudden turn of events had also allowed him to witness Charmeleon's potential strength. If he trained it well in the future, it would surely become a powerful helper!

"Congratulations on defeating me and winning the Rainbow Badge." Erika walked up to Xia You, clapping softly and saying sincerely, "I must say, your Charmeleon is truly impressive, especially that unyielding spirit at the end. It has truly impressed me."

"Its performance surprised me as well," Xia You said, shaking his head. "I will continue to train it to make it even more outstanding."

Erika said no more, taking a badge from her pocket and handing it to Xia You.

Wonderful, the fifth badge was finally in hand!

Looking closely, the badge was shaped like a blooming flower, and its petals corresponded perfectly to the colors of the rainbow, making it highly distinctive.

As he placed it into his badge collection case, Xia You expressed his gratitude: "Thank you for the guidance, Miss Erika. I suppose we shall meet again by fate."

(End of Chapter)