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"What on earth—"
The opponent's expression changed slightly, not expecting Frogadier's foam to be so sturdy that even Gyarados couldn't break free in time?
It had already used Dragon Dance!
"Roar!!"
The furious Gyarados roared, twisting and struggling to break free from the sticky foam rope binding it.
But just as it was struggling with all its might, a beam of icy-blue energy appeared out of thin air, racing toward it. Wherever the beam passed, frost formed, leaving a trail of icy-white frost in its wake!
Gyarados' eyes widened in panic, and its struggles became even more frantic. However, in such a short time, it truly had no way to deal with the sticky foam rope.
The beam struck its head effortlessly, and an unbearable cold began to seep into Gyarados' body, forming large chunks of ice that froze its body stiff. Even its brain began to slow down under the continuous output of the icy-blue beam.
—A sign that the frozen status was about to take effect.
"Don't stop! Keep moving! Outrage!"
The opponent shouted in panic. The power of Frogadier's Ice Beam far exceeded his expectations. If it weren't for Gyarados' decent Special Defense and the fact that it wasn't weak to Ice-type moves, this one hit might have knocked it out completely!
The left side of Gyarados' body was already covered in ice and snow, but upon hearing its trainer's voice, its sluggish expression suddenly became lively again.
Flames of blue, red, and green began to burn around its body!
Its eyes also visibly filled with blood vessels!
True·Berserk Mode!
"Roar!!!"
A deafening roar!
Gyarados, now in the throes of Outrage, seemed to gain divine assistance. It first shook off the ice and snow covering its body, then snapped the foam rope that was hindering its movement!
After that, it began to charge around the battlefield irregularly!
The three-colored flames on its body grew even brighter and more dazzling!
Li Xiang stood at the edge of the battlefield, not daring to step into it for fear of being caught in Gyarados' rampage.
After using Dragon Dance, Gyarados' speed had increased significantly, and its massive size made it even more dangerous as it charged around the battlefield. It was only a matter of time before it hit Frogadier.
Therefore, the best choice at this moment was—
A sharp whistling sound filled the air as a gust of wind gathered into a ball, lifting a humanoid figure into the sky!
Bounce!
"Let's see how long you can last."
Li Xiang licked his dry lips. The opponent's expression grew increasingly tense as Gyarados failed to find the hidden Frogadier.
He knew that if Gyarados couldn't find Frogadier before it became confused, the outcome of this battle would be all but decided.
Of course, the opponent was also searching, his eyes anxiously scanning every inch of the battlefield.
"...Keep circling the battlefield!"
In a moment of desperation, the opponent threw out another "secret technique."
The semi-floating Gyarados immediately began to circle the battlefield along the boundary line!
In no time, the strong winds and some dust were swept up into the air by Gyarados' rapid spinning. Although it didn't carry any elemental energy, the wind was still far from ordinary!
Li Xiang took out a pair of goggles from his pocket, quickly put them on, and grabbed the wire mesh to avoid being caught in Gyarados' rampage.
In the sky above.
Frogadier, using the unique properties of Bounce to stay airborne for an extended period, swayed slightly, its expression serious.
In a moment, the effect of Bounce would wear off, and it would have to land on the battlefield, facing the onslaught of the strong winds. More importantly, the dust would reveal its location...
Frogadier's eyes scanned the battlefield.
When it spotted the six-meter-high wire mesh and the corner where two sections met, its eyes lit up. It grabbed the foam from the back of its head, shaped it into a rope, and threw it down!
This foam rope, when it touched an object, would blend into the surroundings, becoming invisible along with whatever it touched. Frogadier had used this trick before to save Li Xiang and Lin Feng.
Thus, even though Gyarados was still spinning wildly below, the opponent was still searching for it, and the spectators were wondering where it was.
With so many eyes scanning the battlefield like searchlights, no one noticed its little trick!
The end of the foam rope accurately stuck to the wire mesh. Although the wind caused it to deviate slightly from Frogadier's intended position, it wasn't too far off.
Frogadier tugged on it, confirming its strength, and then happily descended!
But its landing point wasn't the battlefield—it was the wire mesh on the other side!
The foam rope in its hands continued to extend, and by the time Frogadier landed, it had formed a rope over ten meters long, creating a triangular platform between the two sections of wire mesh!
This guy had actually created a "platform" that allowed it to move through the air!
And it had succeeded.
Gyarados, unable to find Frogadier, had no way to stop it. It could only continue to circle the battlefield in agony, trying to locate the hidden Frogadier.
Little did it know, Frogadier was already above its head, humming a tune, leisurely looking down at it, completely unaffected by the strong winds, quietly waiting for Gyarados' Outrage to end.
Here, it's important to note that there was a three to four-meter gap between the edge of the battlefield and the wire mesh, which wasn't considered part of the battlefield.
If Frogadier stayed on the wire mesh for too long, it would definitely be considered out of bounds and a foul.
But in this situation, that naturally didn't apply.
On the ground.
The opponent grew increasingly anxious as time passed. Gyarados had been exerting itself for a long time, and its stamina was severely depleted.
Even if it didn't become confused after Outrage, continuing like this would drain it completely.
But what about Frogadier?
Its Camouflage hadn't worn off, and Frogadier didn't have the ability to fly. How could Gyarados, with all its efforts, not find Frogadier!?
It must have hidden somewhere else!
The opponent's eyes scanned the surroundings, eventually landing on the wire mesh.
Could it be... hiding up there all this time!?
Once this thought entered the opponent's mind, he couldn't shake it.
He knew that Pokémon weren't allowed to stay out of the battlefield for too long. Exceeding a certain time limit would be considered a foul.
But in its Camouflaged state, even the referee couldn't see where Frogadier was...
In more formal matches, there would be Pokémon specifically using Foresight to detect the location of hidden Pokémon, but in school battles, it wasn't that professional.
It all relied on the referee's naked eye.
How could the eye see it!?
The opponent gritted his teeth, increasingly convinced that Frogadier was hiding on the wire mesh. Otherwise, there was no way to explain why Gyarados couldn't find it.
No.
If this continued, Gyarados would fall into confusion, and Frogadier would surely take the opportunity to return to the battlefield!
By then, no one would be able to prove that it had cheated!
"...Ref! I demand a pause! I suspect Frogadier has been hiding on the wire mesh all this time!" the opponent shouted at the top of his lungs. Gyarados slowly stopped moving, panting heavily and feeling dizzy.
It was on the verge of confusion.
A gamble—
Wait, if it returned to the battlefield now, wouldn't that be the same?
The opponent regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth. If Frogadier returned to the battlefield now, he still wouldn't be able to prove anything.
All for nothing!
But words, once spoken, couldn't be taken back. As soon as he said this, the referee blew the whistle, announcing a pause in the match.
A Lum Berry was thrown into Gyarados' mouth to cure its confusion.
Many in the audience began to murmur.
Hiding on the wire mesh?
They looked at the wire mesh and realized the opponent's words made sense. They had watched the entire match, and Frogadier's disappearance was indeed suspicious!
How could it remain hidden for so long without leaving a trace!?
On the other side.
Li Xiang was momentarily stunned. To be honest, even he didn't know where Frogadier was at this moment. Camouflage wasn't some smart recognition system—how could he see it!?
He could only rely on sound feedback to confirm its location. But with the strong winds earlier, how could he hear anything?
Could it be?
Was it standing on the wire mesh?
Li Xiang remembered repeatedly warning Frogadier not to stay out of bounds for too long.
It couldn't be.
Li Xiang trusted Frogadier and knew it wouldn't do something so foolish.
"Student, where is your Pokémon?"
The referee asked him to call out Frogadier for a confrontation and a review of the match's positioning.
Outside the battlefield.
The students' murmurs grew louder. This was the first time they had encountered such a situation.
"Frogadier!"
Li Xiang called out, glancing at his opponent, feeling a bit strange. This feeling of being questioned by the crowd was familiar.
It felt like...
"Kero~"
The sound came from above the battlefield, right above their heads.
Above?
The spectators, being farther away and surrounded by noise, couldn't hear it, but the three people and one fish inside the battlefield all heard the sound coming from above their heads.
And then, in the shifting light and shadows, a curtain of water slowly flowed down, revealing Frogadier standing on the sticky foam rope.
"This—"
The opponent's eyes widened in disbelief.
He never expected Frogadier to use such a method to stay in the air!
But...
How did it even make the "rope" invisible along with itself?
The referee glanced at Frogadier and said, "It seems the situation is clear now. If there are still doubts, there's a thermal imaging camera outside that can review the footage."
Thermal imaging?
Li Xiang became interested. Even he, as the trainer, was curious about how Frogadier had come up with this move.
Unexpectedly—
The opponent's chest heaved a few times, but in the end, he waved his hand in defeat. "No need, ref. I concede."
Earlier, he had called for a pause, but now he outright conceded. He truly had no face to continue. By now, many in the audience had noticed Frogadier on the rope and began to "boo" him.
Some even shouted that he was a sore loser.
If he stubbornly insisted on checking the thermal imaging and it turned out there was no foul...
It was better to just concede.
The referee nodded, shouting at the noisy students and asking which class they were from to shoo away the troublemakers.
He blew the whistle again.
"Beep—!!!"
The match was over!
"Sorry, I misjudged you."
The opponent muttered to Li Xiang, then quickly recalled Gyarados and left before Li Xiang could respond.
Li Xiang calmly watched his retreating figure, feeling no particular emotion. Right now, he just wanted to see the thermal imaging.
"Ref—"
He approached the referee.