Beedrill, Charizard, Pidgeot, Fearow, Staraptor, Yanmega, Magnezone, and even the proud Unfezant from the Unova region.
Every Trainer participating in the next ceremony or rather, the next trial released their aerial Pokémon to keep up with Clair and her Dragonite.
Although many of the Pokémon belonged to species that were natural enemies, under their Trainers' control no serious conflicts broke out.
At most, two Pokémon would bump into each other to see whose body was tougher.
After Pidgeot sent a third Fearow crashing away, no other members of the Fearow line dared provoke it again.
In the wild, the Pidgey and Spearow families had always been bitter rivals.
The hot-tempered Spearow were one thing, but even the normally gentle Pidgey would aggressively attack whenever they encountered the Spearow line.
It was probably because their diets overlapped so heavily.
Whenever a flock of Pidgey occupied a certain area, it was difficult to find Spearow nearby and the opposite was equally true.
Both evolutionary lines had their own strengths.
In their first stages, the battle-oriented Spearow generally held the advantage.
However, once Pidgey evolved into the much larger Pidgeotto, Spearow stood virtually no chance and could only hope that a Fearow from its flock would appear to deal with its rival.
Unfortunately for Fearow, that advantage disappeared completely once Pidgeot entered the picture.
The only reason Fearow remained more common was because it evolved at Level 20, whereas Pidgeot didn't evolve until Level 36.
If not for the overwhelming numbers of Pidgeotto, life for wild Pidgey would have been even harsher.
For beginning Trainers, however, there wasn't much difference between these two common Flying-type Pokémon.
Fearow excelled at becoming battle-ready quickly, while Pidgeot possessed far greater long-term potential.
Both were excellent choices as aerial partners.
That said, like Silas, most Trainers also cared about appearances.
Although Fearow was sometimes nicknamed the "Little Ho-Oh," Pidgey, Pidgeotto, and Pidgeot were all considerably more attractive.
As a result, Fearow often ended up playing the villain in many stories.
Its reputation worsened even further after many members of criminal organizations began raising Fearow.
Thinking about it carefully, though, that was understandable. Those organizations had no interest in long-term development.
For them, surviving another day was already an achievement. Otherwise, the fierce internal competition would crush them.
Under those circumstances, choosing Fearow over Pidgeot was only natural.
After securing himself firmly on Pidgeot's back, Silas helplessly patted his partner.
To be fair it hadn't actually been the other Fearow that started the trouble.
Pidgeot simply hadn't bothered concealing its Elite-level aura.
Then, unable to resist, it deliberately flew beside a Fearow and shoulder-checked it out of the sky.
That naturally provoked retaliation from two more members of the Fearow flock.
Unfortunately for them...
Not only had their revenge failed, but they had ended up embarrassing themselves as well.
None of them fell far enough to lose the group.
Still, their awkward recoveries had cost them plenty of face.
Then again how much was the pride of the weak really worth?
Pidgeot wasn't the only one doing this.
Many other powerful Flying-type Pokémon behaved the same way.
Without saying a word, they naturally sorted themselves into different tiers according to strength.
Even before the competition or rather, the preliminary round officially began, both Trainers and Pokémon were already filled with competitive spirit.
Naturally, those flying at the very front were the Trainers whose Pokémon possessed Elite-level strength.
There weren't many of them.
Excluding Silas and Brock, only three remained.
One was an unidentified Trainer hidden beneath a black cloak, riding atop a Gengar.
Another was a heavily built man astride a Charizard.
The last was a cold, elegant woman being carried through the air by Alakazam's Psychic powers.
Masato.. Bu Zhidao... Bu Qing...
Silas silently recited their names.
In a situation like this, identifying them from the intelligence he'd gathered wasn't difficult.
As for the remaining Trainers who also owned Elite-level Pokémon.
Some deliberately followed behind using only Pokémon at the Pesudo Elite-level instead.
Others simply had Elite-level Pokémon that belonged to the "Little Groudon" category.
In other words they couldn't fly.
After all, expecting a Pokémon like Emboar to carry a person through the sky was asking a bit too much.
Silas wasn't the only one observing the other three.
They were observing him as well.
At close range, Pidgeot's extraordinary appearance became even more eye-catching.
"The level of its ancestral reversion is incredibly high."
Bu Zhidao's lips moved ever so slightly.
His quiet words were transmitted directly into Bu Qing's ear through a wireless earpiece.
She gave an almost imperceptible nod.
"Agreed. It's even stronger than we estimated."
Their expressions remained perfectly calm.
To anyone else, it was impossible to tell they were communicating while flying at such high altitude.
But silas heard everything.
His hearing was simply too sharp.
"As expected everyone came prepared."
His expression grew serious.
According to both his own observations and Zero's analysis, the opposing Charizard and Alakazam were incredibly powerful as well.
Neither had only recently entered the Elite tier.
Their energy levels were at least Level 65.
(Advance: Levels 30–50. Pesudo Elite: Levels 50–60. Elite: Levels 60–70. And so on.)
Improving after reaching the Elite tier was anything but easy.
Although Pidgeot had already reached Level 66, that was only because it had absorbed Sacred Fire.
In other words even a fragment of Ho-Oh's divine flame had only elevated Pidgeot from the beginning of the Elite tier into its middle stages.
That alone demonstrated just how difficult it was for Elite-level Pokémon to grow stronger.
Compared to the early stages where gaining a level every few days or every week wasn't unusual. Zero estimated that raising a Elite level Pokémon by even one level through normal training required at least one or two months.
That meant taking a Pokémon from Level 60 to Level 69 would barely be possible within two years.
And that didn't even account for the bottlenecks encountered during training.
Before reaching the Elite tier, every major rank was a hurdle.
After becoming a Elite-level Pokémon...
Every single level became a hurdle.
"As expected... I'm a genius."
Thinking about that, Silas couldn't help grinning to himself.
Perhaps because of the solid foundation laid during the earlier stages, not only had Pidgeot advanced rapidly, but Blaziken, despite only recently reaching the Elite tier, had already climbed to Level 61.
That rate of growth was unquestionably impressive.
Just then, a message from Brock appeared on his wrist communicator.
"That Gengar its smile feels really strange."
Silas shifted his gaze away from the siblings and looked toward the black-robed Trainer instead.
"Gengar~"
Sensing someone watching it, Gengar responded with a grin, moving only its eyes while keeping the rest of its body perfectly still.
Against the crimson backdrop of its eyes, the smile looked especially eerie.
The trainer hidden beneath the black robe, Masato turned slightly and gave Silas a polite nod.
At this level of strength, no one would act arrogantly or look down on an opponent from the very beginning.
Until they had actually battled, no one could claim they had a one-hundred-percent chance of victory.
"It really is different from an ordinary Gengar."
Silas smiled back while his fingers continued typing across his device without slowing in the slightest.
He didn't think there was anything strange about the other two trainers not using Silph Co.'s Pokémon communication devices.
Quite a few veteran Trainers looked down on portable technology like that.
Silas simply enjoyed using it because of habits carried over from his previous life.
That said, as Trainers became increasingly younger overall, people with that old-fashioned mindset were gradually becoming rarer.
After all, young people naturally accepted new technology more readily.
Bu Zhidao and Bu Qing naturally had no idea that Silas was quietly teasing their age in his mind.
After their brief exchange, neither side attempted any further conversation.
The more they talked, the greater the chance of revealing something, a lesson they had learned through years of experience.
Before long, the only sounds left in the sky were the cries of Flying-type Pokémon.
With so many powerful Pokémon flying overhead, the wild Pokémon below wisely stayed hidden.
They understood the difference between picking a fight and committing suicide.
Maintaining that formation, the large group of Trainers eventually arrived above a vast canyon.
"Dragonite!"
Dragonite let out a mighty roar, suddenly accelerated, and dove straight downward.
The Trainers following behind hesitated no longer, directing their own Pokémon into steep descents.
Only after landing did everyone realize that the canyon concealed an entirely different world.
An enormous clearing sat unnaturally in the center, looking nothing like something formed by nature.
Even more unsettling were the countless caves covering the surrounding cliff walls.
They were packed so densely together that many people instinctively hugged themselves, some even feeling a little nauseous.
"So this year's event is actually the Three Dragon Trial!"
Recalling his Aerodactyl, Brock stood beside Silas with eyes wide in surprise.
Every Dragon Ascension Ceremony differed from the previous one.
Only the final tournament and the opening Selection Ceremony remained fixed. Every intermediate trial and elimination round changed from one ceremony to another.
Over the years, however, people had pieced together quite a bit through experience.
The canyon before them was precisely where the legendary Three Dragon Trial was said to take place.
The name alone made it clear that it was one of the most significant events of the entire Dragon Ascension Ceremony.
During the earlier Selection Ceremony, the titles Sky Dragon, Earth Dragon, and Water Dragon were still fresh in everyone's minds.
Even if it was only a name, any trial connected to what were most likely three Legendary Pokémon demonstrated just how seriously the Dragon Clan regarded it.
And naturally, the more important the trial, the more difficult it would be.
According to historical records, the Three Dragon Trial had appeared fewer than ten times throughout history.
Every single appearance resulted in an enormous percentage of participants being eliminated.
"All right."
Clair clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"It looks like most of you already know what this is, so I won't waste time explaining.
This is the canyon used for the Three Dragon Trial. In a moment, each of you will choose one cave and enter it. Your objective is simple."
She smiled casually.
"Find your way back out. If you can emerge successfully, you've cleared this round."
She spoke as though it were no big deal.
The Trainers, however, wore grim expressions.
An elimination rate as high as eighty-five percent was enough to make anyone's scalp tingle.
No one had expected the Dragon Ascension Ceremony to be this difficult from the very first round.
After all, failing here meant receiving no rewards whatsoever.
"Isn't it a bit excessive to throw the Three Dragon Trial at us in the very first round?"
One Trainer voiced everyone's thoughts.
Clair flicked her ponytail.
"Yes, we didn't expect this either.
The average strength and especially the top-tier strength of this year's participants exceeded all our expectations.
To ensure the Dragon Ascension Ceremony finishes on schedule, we had no choice but to adopt this format.
We're very sorry."
Despite her apology, she didn't look apologetic in the slightest.
"Oh, right."
She suddenly remembered something.
"As compensation, every checkpoint you clear inside the caves comes with a reward.
That's different from previous years."
The gloomy atmosphere immediately eased.
Escaping the cave might be extremely difficult, but clearing one or two checkpoints shouldn't be impossible.
Everyone present had earned a Dragon Token through their own ability.
None of them were weak.
And given Blackthorn City's and the Dragon Clan's famous generosity, the rewards were almost certainly worth the effort.
"Then let's begin."
Clair waved her hand.
"I'm heading in first. Good luck."
Filled with anticipation, Silas immediately said goodbye to Brock.
Although Brock had no intention of entering the Dragon's Den, he had no objection to participating in the Dragon Ascension Ceremony itself.
Since his qualification would otherwise go to waste, he might as well enjoy the experience.
"Seriously why's he always in such a hurry?"
Watching Silas disappear into one of the caves almost instantly, Brock shook his head with a helpless smile before casually choosing another cave and walking inside.
Before long, the once-crowded clearing became silent again.
"Some people have come here with less-than-honorable intentions."
An elderly woman's voice suddenly echoed through the canyon.
"Grandmother."
Clair turned around respectfully.
"Should we have my uncles keep an eye on them—"
"No."
The Dragon Elder interrupted her.
"Let them be."
"But last time..."
Clair tried to continue.
"They're nothing more than a few insignificant pests. Compared to previous years, this Dragon Ascension Ceremony has been remarkably peaceful."
The Dragon Elder sounded completely unconcerned.
She was right.
Compared to the organized invasions by criminal syndicates in previous ceremonies, only a handful of suspicious individuals had slipped in this time.
"I'm actually more curious how quickly that young man will make it through the canyon."
She smiled as she looked toward one particular cave.
Her clouded eyes seemed capable of seeing straight through the mountain itself.
Clair thought for a moment.
"He should finish pretty quickly.
Maybe about as fast as I did?"
"You little brat."
The Dragon Elder rolled her eyes without the slightest hesitation.
"You really do love flattering yourself."
Clair simply giggled.
Meanwhile, deep inside the cave, Silas soon reached the first trial.
The roaring sound of rushing water echoed through the cavern.
A broad, winding underground river stretched out before him.
"So, this is the trial representing the Water Dragon."
Across the river stood a muscular Dragon Tamer dressed in traditional Dragon Clan attire.
With a hearty grin, he called out,
"Young man are you ready?"
...
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