Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

As he spoke, tears streamed down Uncle Liu's face.

The three children, who had only heard the truth intermittently, also felt a pang of sadness in their hearts…

"You guys watch over him, I'm leaving for a bit." Ash seemed unwilling to linger in this atmosphere, and he did indeed have things to do, so he teleported away with Alakazam.

Boom!

Moments later, a deafening explosion came from the direction of the Lake of Wrath outside the town.

The people present were all drawn to the explosion at the same time. Ash returned with Alakazam and an unconscious Team Rocket member in his arms.

"What's going on with this guy? Is he a fish that slipped through the net?" Xiao Lan asked, puzzled.

"This is Tatsumi, a high-ranking member of Team Rocket, second only to the Elite Four," Ash explained. "He was plotting with a group of henchmen to build a base at Lake of Rage. Luckily, I discovered it, or he would have escaped."

"The Lake of Rage?" Gary was taken aback. "There are a lot of Water-type Pokémon there, but most of them are Magikarp. What is Team Rocket up to?"

"Plan R, which is evolution! Team Rocket plans to build a radio transmitter at the Lake of Rage to forcibly evolve Magikarp into Gyarados!"

"How could this happen..." "These despicable guys!"

Xiao Lan and Xiao Mao both frowned at the same time.

They had just seen the data on evolutionary radio waves at the base and knew how much damage it could do to Pokémon!

If that so-called R Plan succeeds, all the Pokémon living in the entire Lake of Rage, including those around Kaji Town, will suffer!

So they are really glad that Ash blew up that base and brought that bastard to justice!

Xiao Zhi is also feeling fortunate now.

Rather than catching the red Gyarados himself, or following the original story and having Lance catch the red Gyarados, Ash decided to choose to prevent it from ever appearing in the first place!

The Gyarados in the original story wasn't naturally shiny; it was forced to mature by Team Rocket, resulting in incomplete evolution and leaving behind some of Magikarp's red color.

It was a victim of the experiments conducted by Team Rocket, suffering immense physical and mental pain!

As the bearer of the power of Viridian and who prides himself on his immense love for Pokémon, Ash has the opportunity to intervene in the story ahead of time, and he absolutely cannot allow a tragedy like that of the Red Gyarados to happen again!

Red Gyarados will not appear... The Lake of Rage should not be used to bear the anger of Pokémon!

hum~

This small decision caused Tokiwa no Heart to fluctuate slightly once again.

No one present noticed this, but the three sacred birds all turned their heads in surprise…

Chapter 240 Triumphant Return, Quartz Champion!

While destroying Team Rocket's main base in Johto, Ash also solved the problem of Lake of Rage, which was an unexpected bonus for him.

Even so, he cannot let his guard down.

The enemy may return, and the Pokémon of the Lake of Rage may once again become their target; they must be properly protected.

Thinking of all this, Xiao Zhi approached Uncle Liu, who happened to be leading a long-haired pig to greet him.

"Xiao Zhi, I really want to thank you!" Uncle Liu grasped Xiao Zhi's hand with trembling hands, his expression extremely excited, and filled with deep self-reproach.

"Without you, I would still be unable to reunite with the long-haired pig, and I would have no idea what mistakes I made! In short... I can never repay your great kindness enough!"

The return of the Wooloo shattered the ice in Liu Bo's heart. Amidst his regret, the passionate trainer he once was is also returning.

He was genuinely grateful to Ash and was even willing to give everything he could to repay Ash's kindness today.

"You flatter me. I just happened to run into them." Ash shook his head, then earnestly pleaded, "Mr. Liubo, if you really want to repay this kindness, please protect Kaji Town and Lake of Rage from now on, and don't let any bad guys have the chance to harm the Pokémon here again!"

"No problem! I'll come to patrol every day from now on, and I absolutely won't let any bad guys have a chance!" Uncle Liu immediately patted his chest and guaranteed, "From now on, Uncle Liu will only appear in front of the enemy in winter!"

"That would be perfect!" Xiao Zhi was relieved to hear what Uncle Liu said.

He didn't want to go through the trouble of changing the plot himself, only to have it changed back due to reasons like 'habit'.

And so, everything was fine, and Ash and his friends were finally able to prepare to return home.

"It's a pity that today is so unlucky, otherwise I would have kept you in Kaji Town for a while longer and then had a good fight with you."

Uncle Liu seemed very regretful about this. Although it was only a short encounter, he really admired Xiao Zhi.

But he also knew that the other party had skipped the awards ceremony to come and provide support, so he certainly couldn't keep the audience waiting in vain.

“There will definitely be opportunities in the future,” Ash promised. “I will definitely challenge the Johto League later, and then I will visit Kaji Town again.”

"Then it's settled!" The old man finally broke into a hearty smile...

“By the way, it’s not far from the Quartz Plateau, should we fly straight back?” Xiao Lan suggested after saying goodbye to Uncle Liu.

If you calculate the straight-line distance, it's actually closer to the venue from Kagi Town across Mt. Hakugin than from Konoha City.

"Screech!" Before Ash could speak, Moltres, which had been silent all along, answered for him.

Zapdos and Articuno seem to have the same plan.

Just now, they sensed Ash's kindness and developed a deeper appreciation for him.

Let's finish what we started and send them back to the venue... The three sacred birds thought this in unison.

"It's our honor, thank you so much!" Ash smiled and nodded in agreement, then jumped onto Moltres's back first.

It's very warm, and there's none of the danger of being burned by the fire I felt before.

"Don't just stand there, the three legendary birds will take us back to the venue," Ash urged urgently, he really couldn't wait any longer.

It's not just a championship trophy at the venue...

"Is that so... Then I'll leave it to you, Zapdos!"

"Great, Articuno... But won't my butt get cold if I just sit on it... Ouch!"

Ash's reminder snapped Blue and Shirley back to reality... Meanwhile, a certain girl, because of her chatter, got a 'wing attack' from Articuno~

"Screech!" "Whoosh!" "Gah!"

The three birds—fire, ice, and thunder—let out a loud cry in unison. Each of them held an important prisoner at their feet, spread their wings, and carried the trio into the night sky, flying together towards the Quartz Plateau!

My first experience with riding legends has been achieved... and all three Kanto primary colors have been achieved together!

...

At this moment, at the main venue of Quartz Plateau, the entire audience was anxiously waiting under the cover of night.

The big screen no longer plays the previous battle highlights; instead, it displays live battle footage constantly being transmitted from various locations.

When people first heard that Team Rocket was launching a major offensive against Kanto and Johto, many panicked... Of course, quite a few hidden guys also showed their true colors.

However, they soon discovered that the gym owners and police forces in various places were well prepared and soon contained Team Rocket's offensive!

The major towns in Kanto were spared from danger thanks to the support of the Frontier Brain; in the Johto region, Team Rocket was forced into a series of defeats thanks to the Elite Four's personal involvement in the battle!

Such good news undoubtedly inspires all those who yearn for peace.

So much so that when the organizing committee lifted the warning and informed the audience that they could go to the restaurant for dinner on their own, many people were still waiting at the venue on an empty stomach, afraid that they would miss the first opportunity to witness the heroes' return.

Their wait was not in vain. Not long after dinner, the Kanto Elite Four returned to the venue on Dragonite.

"The battles in various regions have ended, Team Rocket's momentum has been lost, and the Kanto and Johto regions are safe and sound!"

The simple announcement of Yulongdu drew cheers from the audience.

"Now, please join the Elite Four and wait for the tournament champion's triumphant return!" Out of gratitude and affirmation, Lance gave Ash a lot of face.

Dama Lanqi began arranging for people to set up the awards ceremony venue, and all the audience members eagerly awaited the event…

Finally, someone spotted a cluster of bright colors on the distant horizon, different from the night sky!

"What is that...? Are they back?"

"It's Moltres? Zapdos and Articuno are here too!"

"There seems to be someone on the backs of the legendary birds... Oh my god, it's Ash and his friends!!"

In an instant, the entire Quartz Plateau erupted in cheers, even more enthusiastic than when the Four Heavenly Kings returned!

The champion and runner-up of the tournament, who have yet to receive their trophies, and the girl who accompanied them on their journey... these three people actually returned together riding the Three Sacred Birds!

"Screech!" The firebird let out a loud cry, causing the flames on the sacred fire platform to leap high, almost turning the night into day!

Now there's absolutely no doubt left!

The sacred flame of the Indigo League is taken from Moltres, and this strange phenomenon indicates that the one carrying Ash is indeed the genuine Sacred Bird of Fire!

The three legendary birds circled the venue once, then escorted Ash and his friends directly to the podium before flapping their wings and leaving.

As for the three prisoners they brought back... they had long been left aside and handed over to the guards to keep watch.

"Our main character has returned, let's begin the awards ceremony now!" Taking advantage of the audience's high spirits, Dama Lanqi immediately announced the start of the ceremony.

Amidst the intense anticipation of the crowd, countless fireworks soared into the night sky, bursting forth in a dazzling display of light.

Ash and Gary took the top two spots, while the third place went to a female trainer named Lily.

She narrowly defeated Lei Si, who was in poor form, and ultimately won third place in the tournament.

"Congratulations, Ash! And thank you for everything you've done for the League!" Under the intense gaze of everyone, Damaranchi handed the championship trophy to Ash.

"Thank you so much!" Ash solemnly accepted the trophy, unable to contain his joy at breaking the curse!