Pokémon: Start with a Dragon-type Gym Leader, and pick up Guroton.

Groudon raised its head, its eyes piercing through the atmosphere, locking onto the meteorite that was approaching at an alarming speed.

The ground energy around it contracted and pulsed like a heartbeat, sensing the aura of the extraterrestrial visitor.

A moment later, Groudon turned to Li Luochen and said, "Champion level. The energy level of that meteorite is Champion level."

"If I were to use the Sword of the Cliff, I could shatter the surface layer of a meteorite into dust, breaking it into countless fragments before it even enters the atmosphere."

"But the prerequisite is that I must return to my original, reverted form. Right now, my power is still lacking."

Upon hearing this, Li Luochen did not hesitate for a moment.

He took out the crimson pearl that Crimson Flame Pine had personally given him from his bosom. The pearl was entirely crimson, and liquid flames seemed to flow slowly within it; just holding it in his palm, he could feel a scorching heat.

Groudon's gaze fell on the orb, and as it extended its claws, the moment its fingertips touched the orb, the entire orb transformed into a crimson beam of light that plunged straight into its chest.

The ground began to tremble.

Groudon's body expanded rapidly in the light, and its originally deep red carapace turned into a jet-black color.

The energy patterns that were originally only faintly visible in the cracks of the shell have now turned into fissures in the earth's crust, with golden-red molten lava surging and flowing through them, scorching and distorting the surrounding air.

Regression!

The true form of the Earth God has descended upon Orange Blossom Forest!

The moment Primal Groudon descended, the primal pressure surging up from the depths of the earth pressed down on the chests of everyone present like a mountain.

The League trainers surrounding them all gasped in unison.

"This...this is Mega Evolution?" A young trainer stared wide-eyed, his voice filled with disbelief.

Groudon's jet-black appearance and flowing lava form have exceeded all their understanding of Mega Evolution.

Standing beside Primal Groudon, Li Luochen calmly corrected, "It's not Mega Evolution. This is Primal Reversion, which is different from Mega Evolution."

"Mega Evolution is based on the bond between the trainer and the Pokémon, and uses the resonance between the Key Stone and the Mega Stone as a medium to unleash the Pokémon's hidden potential."

"The Primal Reversion is achieved by using the power of the Crimson Pearl to restore it to its true form from ancient times. It is not a temporary burst, but a return to its original appearance."

Daigo stood in the crowd, his hands in his suit trouser pockets, but his eyes were fixed on the magma patterns surging between the black shells of Primal Groudon.

Unlike the others, he didn't gasp in surprise. Instead, he narrowed his eyes slightly and silently etched Li Luochen's words into his heart.

A return to the original state, a return to one's true nature—a different path from hyper-evolution...

"Meteorites, they can fly, how annoying!"

Primal Groudon roared to the sky, its sound waves like the cracking of the earth's crust, sweeping outwards in all directions from its center.

The ground of the entire Petalburg Woods trembled slightly at the roar, and several trainers who were too close were even shaken and staggered a few steps before they hurriedly grabbed the tree trunks next to them to steady themselves.

Li Luochen raised his hand and gestured: "Everyone, move outwards and make way."

The trainers immediately sprang into action, and the crowd receded to both sides like a tide. In just a few breaths, a wide open space was cleared around Primal Groudon.

No one dared to linger for even a second longer at such a moment, nor did anyone dare to ask any unnecessary questions.

Primal Groudon lowered its center of gravity slightly, raised one foot, and stomped down hard, its massive black foot embedding itself deeply into the soil.

boom!

The earth trembled violently with this stomp, and the ground suddenly cracked open from the point of impact.

Countless sharp rock pillars rose from the cracks, each as thick as an ancient tree, their bodies glowing with the lingering dark red heat of lava after being tempered.

These rock pillars rose at an astonishing speed, carrying an overwhelming momentum to pierce the sky and boldly meet the meteorite that was growing larger and larger in the field of vision!

Whoosh!

Before everyone's eyes, just as the meteorite was about to collide head-on with the cliff sword, it suddenly veered at an odd angle and slid past the edge of the foremost rock pillar.

The top of the rock pillar was only millimeters away from the surface of the meteorite. The sparks generated by the friction flickered briefly in the air before quickly extinguishing, while the meteorite had already bypassed the cluster of rock spears that shot into the sky and continued to fall towards the ground.

"It...it dodged it?!"

An incredulous gasp erupted from the crowd.

Meteorites don't change direction on their own; this is common knowledge.

It's not a living thing, it has no independent consciousness, so how could it adjust its orbit in space?

But the facts are right in front of us: that thing did indeed change its trajectory, as if it were deliberately avoiding an attack.

Amidst the rising and falling gasps, Li Luochen and Daigo remained completely unmoved.

The two stood side by side, their gazes calmly fixed on the ever-growing meteorite in the sky, as if this scene had been anticipated all along.

Several senior researchers at the Green Ridge Space Research Center simply adjusted their glasses, showing no surprise whatsoever.

Daigo looked up at the meteorite, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Just as you guessed, Brother Luo Chen, there's a Pokémon inside that meteorite."

"That damn flying Pokémon!"

The Primal Groudon's vertical lava pupils suddenly contracted, and the ground beneath its feet trembled once more with this roar. The magma overflowing from the cracks shone with an even more intense and dazzling light than before.

That cliff-breaking sword strike was delivered with full force, yet that thing easily dodged it.

This feeling of being toyed with infuriates Groudon even more than if it had taken a direct hit!

Seeing this, Li Luochen stepped forward and patted the thick thigh of Primal Groudon.

The moment his palm touched the molten, scorching carapace, a surge of azure aura energy flowed from his palm, trickling into Groudon's body.

The power of the waveguide spread along the veins of the Earth God, merging with its perception, and firmly locking onto the meteorite that was still changing its trajectory.

"Groudon, try it now."

"learn!"

Primal Groudon let out a low growl, and a cold light flashed in its lava-like vertical pupils.

It stomped its feet hard on the ground, and the earth cracked open with countless scorching fissures beneath its feet, from which even denser and sharper rock pillars rose up.

This time, the Sword of the Cliff was no longer a straight, soaring strike, but rather it swept across the sky in a fan shape, blocking all possible escape routes for the meteorite!

The rock pillars climbed up in an interlocking pattern, like a giant mouth opening from the depths of the earth, clamping down on the unavoidable meteorite!