"Mega Evolution?"

Roark showed a look of astonishment.

Immediately, in Roark's bewildered gaze, he saw Teacher Lu commanding Sylveon to release Light Screen near the command seat.

It seemed to be to isolate the effects caused by wind pressure and aura.

But wasn’t this way too cautious?

Could Mega Evolution actually cause large-scale damage, affecting the command seat and even the gym grounds?

Roark shifted his questioning gaze toward his father Byron.

Byron’s smile froze, his arms crossed tightly, his rough face full of seriousness.

It was said... Mega Evolution would unleash extremely powerful energy fluctuations based on the bond between trainer and Pokémon.

He had also uncovered a Steelix Mega Stone. With Mega Evolution, Byron’s Steelix could erupt with battle power comparable to an Elite Four member for a short time.

It was unimaginable what Mega Evolution would bring to this Haunter, which was already at an Elite Four level.

"Wait and see," Byron said in a deep voice.

"What I mean is," Roark licked his lips, "shouldn't we take some additional reinforcement measures?"

"Afraid of what?" Byron snorted coldly. "Have you ever seen any trainer’s Mega Evolution affect the barriers outside the battlefield?"

Roark nodded blankly. He had studied battle videos from the Kalos League, where trainers used Mega Evolution and the evolution light would end quickly.

His father’s words made sense. What he had to do was just observe and learn.

He looked at the Haunter in the center of the arena.

"Gengarrr~" Haunter grinned, sticking out its crimson tongue, the dark red orb at its tip shining brightly.

Roark’s pupils contracted.

A strong fluctuation surged simultaneously from Teacher Lu and Haunter, forming a shockwave that spread around, making father and son shudder inwardly.

"What the hell is that?" Byron asked hoarsely.

Roark swallowed his saliva and answered tremblingly, "Mega Haunter?"

Mist-like blue light emerged from Lu Ye’s body, the wind brushing his clothes.

The sharp-eyed man raised his right hand, the Keystone embedded in the black-and-red glove’s center radiating dazzling rainbow light.

"Haunter—"

"Gengarrr!" Haunter bared its teeth with a smile, its eyes instantly turning dark red and sharp.

Strands of silken white light connected the Haunter Mega Stone and the translucent Keystone in the glove’s center. Father and son held their breath.

Snap—

Lu Ye raised his right hand high and snapped his fingers, the crisp sound echoing throughout the gym.

"Mega Evolution!!"

In an instant, dazzling radiance blossomed in the arena.

The splendid rainbow light from the Keystone intertwined with the white halo on Haunter’s body, forming chain-like beams that connected the two.

Haunter, Mega Evolution!!

At this moment, Lu Ye seemed one with Haunter, the surging energy instantly spreading outward around the gym.

Crack!

The chandelier on the ceiling couldn’t withstand the terrifying aura and shattered first.

Then came a series of cracking sounds;

in the flickering gym, light was swallowed by shadows.

The ground was covered in dense shadows, rising with purplish-red mist. Haunter’s half-body disappeared into the shadow, a third jet-black eye opening on its forehead.

In Lu Ye’s words, this was unmistakably the Evil King’s True Eye!

"Gengarrr!!"

Under the evolution light, Haunter’s eyes were scarlet, its fierce yet cute teeth bared, its entire body sprouting sharp spikes. Its limbs were submerged in thick shadows, with purplish-red mist drifting above.

Terrifying energy spread around, and father and son simultaneously looked toward the trembling energy barrier beside the field.

Under this almost tangible collision of fluctuations, the energy barrier emitted mournful wails!

"This is bad." Byron’s eyes widened as he abruptly looked up.

The shadow beneath Mega Haunter seemed to have astonishing gravity. Like a miniature black hole, stones on the ground were pulled in.

Crack!!

Large fractured rock pillars were sucked into another dimension;

dust and debris fell from the ceiling as the gym dome teetered on the brink!

Rumble—

It seemed like the gym itself was shaking beside their ears.

Lu Ye glanced at the shadow beneath Mega Haunter’s body.

Legend said that place connected to another dimension and was where Haunter usually stored its fridge, microwave, and soda.

You say tossing some snacks in there is one thing... but throwing in rock spikes and layers of stone? Wouldn’t that attract strange creatures?

"This isn’t the key point."

Lu Ye shook his head, his breathing heavy as he looked at Mega Haunter in the arena.

The pitch-black shadow energy continuously spread outwards, seemingly alive, firmly imprisoning everything in the arena.

Mega Haunter’s ability: Shadow Step!!

As a tactical trainer, at this moment, the bond with Mega Haunter was fully displayed.

It was a master of training and moves, traversing shadows and reality, inheriting nightmare hypnosis powers, the strongest King of Destruction—

Celebrate the birth of Mega Haunter, the Shadow Step King of Destruction!

Rumble!

Lu Ye spread his arms, large chunks of wall plaster fell behind him, stirring a cloud of dust.

In front of him, purplish-red mist permeated, pitch-black shadows covered the entire gym.

The walls reflected Mega Haunter’s huge silhouette.

"Gengarrr~!!ヾ(≧∇≦*)ヾ"

Mega Haunter emitted a mischievous laugh, moving as if wading through water within the shadows.

It turned its body, extending its crimson tongue to lick toward Lu Ye—

Lu Ye’s expression changed sharply, his eyes wide with horror.

Mega Haunter’s tongue lick... could I withstand that?

No way, a hundred thousand lives couldn’t take it!

At the critical moment, Lu Ye felt a force draining from his body. Satisfaction and weakness surged in his chest simultaneously.

At least the duration was a bit longer than last time’s Mega Blastoise...

Rustle—

Shadows covered the entire gym like flames, faintly light filtered through cracks in the dome overhead.

"Gengarrr?"

Like a retreating tide, the shadows beneath gradually dispersed.

Haunter shifted from its swimming-like limbs back to standing on two legs, scratching its head in confusion.

The gym fell silent.

Roark and Byron exchanged glances, both seeing the tremor in each other’s hearts.

"The aura of a top-tier Elite Four... is only this much, huh?" Roark asked hoarsely.

Byron seemed about to speak but lost the words.

This level of Mega Evolution completely shattered Byron’s previous understanding of Mega Evolution.

This terrifying energy and consumption was less Mega Evolution and more like an infinite approach to the legendary Bond Evolution.

Byron looked at Teacher Lu resting on the spot with reverence.

Perhaps... those rumors about the champions weren’t baseless!

Lu Ye was panting heavily, holding Forest Yokan in his left hand and a Revival Root resembling tobacco in his right.

"Hiss—" Teacher Lu exhaled a long breath.

Mega Evolution, a trump card for critical moments.

In normal battles, bursting with energy is really unbearable!

Even a true rookie like Ash would exhaust during Bond Evolution. Not to mention Teacher Lu’s Mega Evolution, which was almost a bond power.

The little ones watching around were greatly shocked.

"Captured precious photos, Lo-Lo-... Rotom!" Rotom panicked with high ping delay.

"Bu-ee! (〃＞皿＜)" Sylveon shook its ribbons, still needing to get stronger!

"Ka-may!ヾ(⌐■_■)" Blastoise did push-ups on the spot.

"Howl?" Arcanine looked at the trembling Cilan, tilting its head.

"Ga! (´థ౪థ)σ" Ducklett chuckled sneakily.

Good, Ducklett, finally can relax and win without effort!

"Chaqi-duyi~" Togepi sat on Arcanine’s back, giggling.

Haunter grinned, floated in front of Teacher Lu, and gave a sloppy tongue lick to his face: "Gengarrr!"

Under normal circumstances, the tongue lick was easy to endure.

Lu Ye wiped his face and looked at the expressionless Roark and Byron.

Clearly, the recent Mega Evolution had refreshed their worldview.

"Phew—feeling much better."

Lu Ye stood up and smiled, "Thank you, Gym Leader Byron!"

Byron was stunned, then nodded, "You’re welcome."

"If nothing else, I’ll be going now?"

"Ah, of course, please go ahead."

Father and son respectfully watched Lu Ye’s retreating figure, lost in thought.

Fortunately, the badge was sent out in time... Byron felt proud of his wisdom.

Fortunately, Teacher Lu didn’t command personally;

otherwise, I would’ve been blown away by Sylveon! Roark also breathed a sigh of relief.

Now, the next problem was...

Father and son stood amid the wreckage of the Water Vein Gym, wind blowing through, the chill deepening.

"Your coworkers should be able to help with the construction, right?" Roark asked Byron.

"Since you’re in Canalave City, you should be able to get the raw materials, right?" Byron asked Roark.

They exchanged looks for a moment, suddenly smiled, and bumped fists.

The tense relationship earlier seemed to ease in cooperation.

From a certain perspective,

This was exactly the day Teacher Lu brought smiles through Mega Evolution...

Walking outside the Water Vein Gym, the great revenge avenged.

Lu Ye patted his own shoulder, feeling emotional:

"You really are something, Teacher Lu!"