Chapter Sixty-Nine: Venomous Jellyfish: I Just Can’t Attack!
A single toxic Tentacruel, six Agate Tentacool—he had encountered an entire swarm. Just how many Pokémon controlled by the Dark Team’s shadow balls were roaming the Tree Sea Maze? Zhuyuehan certainly didn’t believe the Qwilfish was acting as bait by choice; the wounds on its body were proof enough.
Milk Fairy leapt into Zhuyuehan’s arms, understanding that this was no longer a moment for gentle healing, but for a battle where she could offer no assistance for now!
Trying to greet me with ultrasonic waves?
“Lapras, use your voice!”
“Wuuu!”
Lapras’s resonant cry pierced the surroundings, and the Tentacruel, just about to unleash its ultrasonic attack, was so startled by Lapras’s voice it stifled its move, the crimson agate on its head flickering uncertainly.
A true expert!
But Zhuyuehan wouldn’t give Tentacruel time to think; a sticky orb was launched right at the agate on its brow.
“Lapras, Thunderbolt—clear out the riffraff!”
“Wuuu!”
Electric light surged—a testament to their recent training. Thunderbolt’s power was injected precisely into the Tentacool, without a single spark escaping into the water around them.
Lapras took a gentle breath; though it seemed like just a single Thunderbolt, the number of targets and duration made the energy expenditure far greater than usual.
The ultrasonic wave was interrupted by Lapras’s powerful cry, combined with Zhuyuehan’s sticky orb striking the agate on Tentacruel’s forehead, leaving Tentacruel to watch helplessly as its underlings were swiftly dealt with.
There was nothing it could do; now, the one feeling dizzy was Tentacruel, not the opposing Pokémon or their trainer.
“Do-Ku!”
Tentacruel’s tentacles suddenly extended, raining down toward Lapras, each tipped with a dangerous purple gleam!
Damn, another move modification!
Poison Jab, but this was relentless, continuous Poison Jab—Tentacruel was playing to its species’ strengths flawlessly!
Poison Jab (Ora Ora version)!
“Hydro Pump, blast it back!”
Attribute energy gathered swiftly. This time, Lapras didn’t deliberately resist the recoil, but instead used Hydro Pump’s mighty force to retreat, widening the distance from Tentacruel!
Hydro Pump struck Tentacruel with precision, but the opponent’s injuries weren’t severe; its anger suppressed the previous abnormal state!
“Water Pulse!”
No sooner had Zhuyuehan spoken than a pulsing sphere of water slammed into Tentacruel’s head, sending it back into confusion.
“I’d be surprised if you could manage an attack now.”
Zhuyuehan fed Lapras an energy cube made from decade-old berries.
This battle, it seemed, was truly fated—Lapras’s species trait allowed its cry to reach new heights, successfully frightening Tentacruel. The effect of the cry—lowering abilities—also confirmed Tentacruel didn’t have the Clear Body trait.
It was either Rain Dish or Liquid Ooze; in any case, nothing that would affect them.
“All recovered?”
“Wuuu!”
Lapras responded with action, sending the confused Tentacruel the final blow with Thunderbolt!
Poké Balls!
Zhuyuehan became a ruthless ball-throwing machine, targeting Tentacruel first, then rounding up the remaining Tentacool.
Tentacruel had decent strength, but its minions were lacking—they still hadn’t regained consciousness.
Your whole family is coming with me!
Zhuyuehan quietly prepared another sticky orb; Lapras had attribute energy ready as well, poised to deal damage if Tentacruel broke free.
Even though Tentacruel was already in a dazed state, one can never be too careful.
Even if they acted like total villains, caution and stability were paramount!
Ding—
All the Poké Balls stilled. Zhuyuehan put away the sticky orb and signaled Lapras to come closer.
Fortunately, Tentacruel’s mind wasn’t too clear.
“If it had kept hiding, secretly injecting dissolving fluid into the water and directing the Tentacool to control the current toward us, we might’ve suffered a nasty surprise,” Zhuyuehan said. “And if it had unleashed its ultrasonic wave immediately upon appearing, even if we countered with Lapras’s cry right away, we’d probably still have been affected.”
“It came out without preparing its ultimate move; otherwise, Tentacool might have had a chance to attack us. These guys seem to only know this one hunting method—no flexibility.”
“Wuuu wuuu wuuu!”
Lapras wished she had two hands to cover Zhuyuehan’s mouth—is this really the time to discuss tactics?
Aren’t you afraid some hidden Pokémon might be listening?!
“Encountering a jellyfish swarm is already outrageous; the League isn’t just sitting idly by. We’re only here to assist.”
Zhuyuehan counted the Poké Balls he’d used: the opening act King Goldeen, the Shellder and Magikarp on the road, the unfortunate bait Qwilfish.
“Counting this family, that makes eleven.”
He fired a signal flare skyward, summoning someone to collect his spoils.
Though used Poké Balls could be shrunk, Zhuyuehan had no interest in carrying this whole bunch deeper into the maze.
A Fearow swooped down; League personnel recorded Zhuyuehan’s work, replenished resources from the medical kit, then took off again.
“Let’s keep going—I want to see just how big Dark Team’s game is this time.”
“Milu.”
Milk Fairy drifted out, gently rolling a ball of cream to feed Lapras.
Boss lady, you’ve worked hard!
“Wuuu!”
Lapras responded with pride—this level of challenge was nothing!
Aside from the exertion of clearing all the Tentacool with one Thunderbolt, it felt less taxing than practicing ultimate moves with her trainer.
Milk Fairy: “Milu!”
No wonder you’re the boss!
“We’ve reached the Tree Sea Maze, Lapras, watch out for submerged branches and reefs… What in the world is going on here?”
As they approached, not only Zhuyuehan, but Lapras and Milk Fairy wore expressions of shock.
How to describe it? The frozen branches and shrubs looked lifelike, the added filter making them appear beautiful, but up close, the biting chill was palpable.
Another scene showed smooth cuts—beneath the water, there must be plenty of childhood treasures, sticks that could clear a hundred yards of grass but left nothing but baldness.
At the roots, faint traces of corrosion remained, the residue of Poison-type energy.
“They went pretty hard.”
Zhuyuehan clicked his tongue. Although the director denied the scenes he described, this widespread freezing was close enough.
In any case, the future Johto League wage slaves would be overjoyed.
Amazing—even someone invited Elder Liu to fight the villainous forces, and on such a grand scale!
“No one with any guts would linger here. We’ll follow the League staff’s markers deeper inside.”
Elder Liu and Koga were a bit heavy-handed, but for those who followed, it was much more convenient.
After such an assault, the difficulty of conquering the Tree Sea Maze was greatly reduced; following the markers meant no chance of getting lost.
Traversing a winding waterway, Lapras suddenly froze, then began calling toward the front.
“You sense Elder Liu and your parents?”
Lapras shook her head, still staring in that direction, her expression puzzled.
She could only confirm there was a sound, but couldn’t identify its nature.
“No hostile intent, then. Let’s go have a look,” Zhuyuehan said. “If it’s a Pokémon in need of rescue, we can’t just leave it be.”
“Wuuu!”
“Wait.”
Zhuyuehan turned to Milk Fairy: “Buff Lapras—use Decorate.”
Decorate, a support skill, could greatly boost attack and special attack.
[Attack +2, Spell Power +2]
“Milu.”
Milk Fairy rubbed her tiny hands, starlight scattered onto Lapras.
“Wuuu wuuu!”
Excellent—Lapras was fired up!
She thought that Tentacruel just now, let alone dodging its flurry of Poison Jabs, could be floored with a single Hydro Pump.
“Milu, milu!”
Decorate, decorate!
Zhuyuehan: ?
Did you just max it out in one go?
Lapras was surprised too, feeling as if a single Water Gun could blast her trainer away.
It didn’t matter otherwise—just wanted to regain some confidence.
Seeing Milk Fairy bursting with energy, firing off three consecutive Decorates with no trouble, Zhuyuehan understood her state.
To put it simply, her mana bar was very full.
“Let’s go have a look.”
Zhuyuehan tightened his grip on the Heavy Ball, watching above the water while Lapras guarded below.
With League staff covering the skies, their setup was nearly impenetrable.
“Pa-wu, pa-wu…”
The sound grew clearer. Zhuyuehan fished a telescope from his incense burner, scanning for the source.
He finally understood why only Lapras had heard it earlier—even now, the sound was intermittent and vanished with a gust of wind.
“Milu!”
Milk Fairy, on lookout duty, pointed left-front, and Zhuyuehan quickly shifted the telescope.
A white mermaid-shaped pillow hung from a tree branch?
Pa-wu, that sound; white mermaid pillow…
“No, that’s a knitted pillow—that’s a Seel!”
Zhuyuehan startled: “Lapras, get closer—looks like it’s in trouble!”
“Wuuu!”
Surf!
A surging wave became Lapras’s accelerator; Zhuyuehan seized the moment, leaping to become a Tarzan swinging onto another branch.
“Pa-wu…”
Perhaps sensing the strong scent of medicine and berries on Zhuyuehan, the Seel turned its head with difficulty, eyes full of pleading.
“It’s alright, we’re here.”
Zhuyuehan carefully edged over, gently cradled the Seel’s belly onto his shoulder, then released his grip on the branch.
“Wuuu!”
Ice Beam!
The ice rose up; Zhuyuehan crouched to absorb the impact, barely avoiding a knee-crushing superhero landing.
“How did you manage that?”
If Lapras hadn’t heard Seel’s voice, it might have been left undiscovered until the medical team arrived later.
Zhuyuehan placed Seel on the ice. The cold eased its pained expression; it licked Zhuyuehan’s right hand with its thick pink tongue, which bore clear purple stains.
Poisoned.
The white-haired monkey’s brow furrowed; his urge to use the Heavy Ball for the Dark Team villains intensified.
A normal Seel would have two small fangs outside its mouth—like a vampire’s inversion in a drama.
But this Seel had none.