Venusaur did not continue attacking Zhou Zhiwen and the others at that moment. It stared fixedly at the pitch-black night sky, motionless.
In that fleeting instant, Jiang Tiansheng descended on Noivern, landing opposite Venusaur. Though Venusaur's aura was now as unfathomable as the deep sea, Noivern's presence was like a storm in the night. Its arrival was accompanied by a low, powerful gust of wind, as if even the air trembled beneath its wings. Its massive wings spread wide in the night sky, like a pair of giant shadows, each flap carrying invisible force that made the surrounding leaves and grass sway and dance. It feared no challenge, whether from a land霸主 or an aerial foe; Noivern met every battle with unyielding spirit. Although Noivern sensed its own strength was inferior to Venusaur's, its pride as a dragon and ruler of the night would never allow it to concede.
Seeing Captain Jiang Tiansheng descending on Noivern, Zhou Zhiwen quickly scrambled to his feet from the ground. With a whoosh, he was at Jiang Tiansheng's side, shouting loudly: "Captain, you're finally here! If you hadn't come, I'd be a goner. That scared me to death just now. That Venusaur is really strong—you need to be careful yourself."
After hearing Zhou Zhiwen's words, Jiang Tiansheng nodded, signaling him to step aside and keep an eye on the person nearby. Zhou Zhiwen understood the captain's intent, returned to Wang Jian's side, and stood motionless, watching the captain's Noivern face off against Venusaur.
Jiang Tiansheng's Noivern was only level 60, a quasi-champion, and its strength was no match for the Venusaur opposite. If not for the night's boost and the dragon-type's innate combative nature, it could barely match the霸主 Venusaur's aura. But as time passed, Venusaur's aura grew stronger, and Noivern seemed to be struggling. Jiang Tiansheng noticed this too; he knew that relying on just one Noivern couldn't beat the霸主 Venusaur. Holding out this long was already impressive.
Seeing this, he took out two more Poké Balls and released a quasi-champion Charizard and a quasi-champion Altaria. The combined aura of three quasi-champions barely matched that of the霸主 Venusaur. Venusaur, seeing the situation, had initially dismissed a single quasi-champion Noivern, but now two more quasi-champion Pokémon appeared, including a Fire-type that countered it. Venusaur found this troublesome. In its younger days, with the forest's help, it would have charged in without hesitation, but not now. It was old; even if it could take down these three Pokémon, it wouldn't come out unscathed, and it might even cost its life. So, Venusaur was torn.
In truth, Jiang Tiansheng was also in a bind. Who was the bastard who told him that Venusaur was too old and basically had no combat strength? Hearing that, he had rushed over alone in a fury. With Venusaur's current aura, he felt a bit endangered. If only he had brought his secret team along. Now he didn't dare move either.
On the battlefield, the tension grew. Noivern, Charizard, and Altaria stood ready, facing the dominant Venusaur. Venusaur's aura surged again; it opened its massive mouth and shot out a green energy wave, straight at the three Pokémon. Noivern reacted instantly, flapping its wings to dodge sideways at high speed, while emitting a powerful sonic attack that collided with Venusaur's energy wave, producing a dull roar. Charizard roared, spewing blazing flames like a fire dragon sweeping toward Venusaur. Venusaur calmly swung its vines, deflecting the flames. Altaria, not to be outdone, let out a melodious cry, its body shimmering with strange light, firing colorful rays at Venusaur.
Feeling the pressure, Venusaur, with its rich battle experience, used its massive body to nimbly dodge and block attacks. It leaped and rolled, deflecting the three Pokémon's assaults one by one. But Noivern and the others were no pushovers; they coordinated, constantly changing attack patterns and angles, keeping Venusaur on its toes.
As the battle dragged on, Venusaur grew impatient. It swung its vines fiercely, creating a powerful gust that temporarily drove back Noivern and Altaria. Then, focusing its strength, it launched a fierce attack at Charizard. A green energy blast shot like a cannonball at Charizard, who couldn't dodge in time and was sent flying backward, but quickly steadied itself and returned to the fray. Seizing the opportunity, Noivern and Altaria attacked again. Noivern circled in the air, continuously emitting sonic waves to disrupt Venusaur's movements, while Altaria used its flight advantage to rain light attacks from above.
Though powerful, Venusaur found the harassment from two flying Pokémon troublesome. But it had its own strategy. Suddenly opening its mouth, it spewed a green mist that spread rapidly. The mist was mildly toxic and disorienting, slowing Noivern and Altaria's actions. Venusaur seized the chance to land several strong attacks, leaving wounds on them. Enraged by his comrades' injuries, Charizard roared, its flames burning brighter, charging recklessly at Venusaur. Venusaur, undaunted, engaged in close combat. Vines and flames intertwined, crackling loudly.
Time passed in the fierce battle. Though Venusaur held the upper hand, defeating these three Pokémon quickly was no easy feat. They had tenacious wills and an unyielding spirit, giving their all in every attack and defense. Venusaur's stamina was also draining; it realized it couldn't keep stalemating. So, it decided to use its ultimate move. Taking a deep breath, energy surged wildly around it, the air seeming to tremble. Then, it unleashed an immensely powerful energy blast, like a green torrent, straight at the three Pokémon.
Noivern, Charizard, and Altaria felt the terrifying force but didn't retreat. They banded together to withstand the attack. Noivern emitted its strongest sonic wave, Charizard its hottest flames, and Altaria its brightest light—three forces merged, colliding with Venusaur's energy blast. The battlefield erupted with a deafening roar, and powerful shockwaves spread outward. Trees were uprooted, and a massive crater was blasted into the ground. In the chaos, both sides took heavy hits. Venusaur's aura became erratic, and the three Pokémon were battered and bruised. Yet they stood firm, eyes fixed on Venusaur.
The battle had reached a fever pitch. Both sides knew every move could decide the outcome. Venusaur adjusted its state, realizing it could no longer underestimate these three. Noivern and the others pondered their next move, needing to find Venusaur's weakness to win. In the tense standoff, time seemed to stretch endlessly.
Finally, Venusaur struck first. It unleashed another powerful energy wave while its vines lashed out like rain at the three Pokémon. Noivern and the others reacted instantly, dodging and counterattacking. The battle grew even more intense, every moment fraught with danger and challenge.
Jiang Tiansheng watched nervously from the sidelines, knowing how tough this fight was. He kept issuing commands to his three Pokémon, trying to find Venusaur's weakness. As time passed, Venusaur's stamina waned, but it showed no sign of backing down. It used a special move, shooting a massive green beam from its mouth that destroyed everything in its path. Noivern, Charizard, and Altaria scattered to dodge, but the beam's power was immense, still dealing them significant damage.
Jiang Tiansheng's heart sank; he knew this couldn't go on. Gritting his teeth, he decided to play his last card. He pulled out a special Poké Ball, and with a flash of light, a powerful champion-level Greninja appeared on the battlefield. Greninja's arrival shifted the momentum instantly. It moved nimbly through the battlefield, coordinating seamlessly with Noivern, Charizard, and Altaria. Together, they launched a new assault on Venusaur.
Venusaur now felt immense pressure, not expecting Jiang Tiansheng to have such a trump card. But it refused to give up, fighting on stubbornly. The battle reached its climax, both sides giving their all. Venusaur was covered in wounds but still stood tall. Noivern, Charizard, Altaria, and Greninja were also heavily drained, but their morale remained high.
In this tense moment, Jiang Tiansheng suddenly spotted a flaw in Venusaur. He immediately directed his four Pokémon to launch a coordinated attack. Noivern dove from above, Charizard spewed powerful flames, Altaria used its light skill, and Greninja seized the chance to unleash its finishing move. Under this assault, Venusaur finally faltered, swayed, and collapsed to the ground. But its eyes still glared fiercely at Jiang Tiansheng and his Pokémon, as if saying it refused to accept defeat.
Jiang Tiansheng breathed a sigh of relief, knowing this grueling battle was over. He stepped forward slowly, his gaze falling on the exhausted Noivern, Charizard, Altaria, and Greninja, a flicker of gratitude in his heart. If he hadn't summoned the search team's guardian spirit—that champion-level Greninja—before the fight, he would have surely lost. Even winning would have been a pyrrhic victory. Though Venusaur could no longer fight and conceded defeat, if they tried to kill it, it would fight to the death, likely causing heavy losses on their side. This outcome, a victory, was a stroke of luck.
"Venusaur, I know you're filled with anger, thinking we deceived you. But I must reiterate, we're victims too. We did search, but we truly didn't find any Bulbasaur in that place," Jiang Tiansheng said to the silent Venusaur beside him.
With that, he signaled Zhou Zhiwen to bring Wang Jian over. Zhou Zhiwen and Wang Jian, having just witnessed this thrilling battle, were utterly stunned. This was their first time seeing such an earth-shattering showdown. Initially, seeing Jiang Tiansheng's side on the verge of defeat, they were tense. But when Greninja appeared, they saw a glimmer of hope. Though the victory was hard-won, it was enough to make Zhou Zhiwen and Wang Jian ecstatic—at least they no longer feared for their lives.
Soon, noticing the captain's signal, Zhou Zhiwen quickly brought Wang Jian over. In front of Jiang Tiansheng and Venusaur, Zhou Zhiwen reiterated his and Wang Jian's earlier speculation. He specifically addressed Venusaur: "Lord Venusaur, we truly haven't deceived you. It's exactly as I said. If you don't believe me, you can investigate first."
After explaining, Zhou Zhiwen stepped back behind Jiang Tiansheng. Now, both Jiang Tiansheng and Venusaur fell into thought. Seeing Venusaur still hesitating, Jiang Tiansheng added, "Venusaur, given your current situation, we have no reason to deceive you. If we wanted to harm you, your current state couldn't stop us. So, how about investigating first?"
Venusaur found the man's words reasonable. Plus, the opponent's strength now clearly surpassed its own. Though it could still fight, it was already badly injured; continuing would be futile. A roar echoed through the night again, still domineering but tinged with weakness. Though Jiang Tiansheng and the others didn't understand the roar's meaning, they sensed Venusaur had no intention of fighting further.
Moments later, they heard heavy footsteps from behind Venusaur. Soon, Zhou Zhiwen and the others saw a group of Venusaur approaching. Though none were quasi-champion level, there were seven or eight gym-level and over a dozen elite-level ones. The sight made Jiang Tiansheng and the others tense—were they going to fight again? Fortunately, the霸主 Venusaur didn't attack after they arrived.
Then, a voice echoed in their minds: "I'll trust you one more time. Tell me which direction that Kecleon went, and I'll have my companions investigate."
Hearing it was just that, Jiang Tiansheng and the others breathed a sigh of relief—at least no more fighting. Wang Jian, understanding the situation, could only reveal Kecleon's whereabouts to Venusaur and its group. Soon, only the gym-level Venusaur remained on site, while the elite-level ones headed in the direction Wang Jian had indicated.