The moment Chen Shi called Ho-Oh a "Shiny Fearow," both Lugia and Mew looked at him with strange expressions.
While it was technically true...
You couldn't just say it out loud like that.
With a Legendary Pokémon's hearing, this distance was nothing.
Ho-Oh could definitely hear him.
Chen Shi immediately felt embarrassed.
The nickname had simply been too famous in his previous life.
Because Ho-Oh somewhat resembled Fearow, countless fans jokingly called it the Shiny Fearow.
The moment he saw Ho-Oh just now, the nickname had slipped out before he could stop himself.
At this point, he could only pray that Ho-Oh hadn't heard it.
Unfortunately—
Reality was cruel.
After arriving, Ho-Oh first glanced at Dark Lugia before shifting its gaze toward Chen Shi.
It didn't speak immediately.
Instead, it carefully observed him for a while before finally saying,
"Human."
"I heard what you said earlier."
"Ah... hahaha!"
Chen Shi scratched his head awkwardly.
"Your hearing is pretty good, huh?"
Ho-Oh: "..."
Chen Shi hugged Jirachi and looked left and right before squeezing out another sentence.
"The... the sky is really white today, huh?"
If he had been standing on solid ground right now, he could have dug out an entire apartment with his toes.
This was simply too embarrassing.
Calling someone by a nickname—
And getting caught.
Worst of all—
It was a Legendary Pokémon.
Could anything be more awkward than this?
Fortunately, Lugia stepped in and saved him.
"Ho-Oh."
"What brings you here?"
"A disturbance of this magnitude occurred."
"So I came to take a look."
Ho-Oh's gaze finally left Chen Shi.
Its voice was calm.
Ho-Oh was just as familiar with the darkness as Lugia was.
After all, even its Sacred Fire had failed to purge it.
It had never expected that after Xerneas finally recovered, another Lugia would become infected.
At that moment, Mew flew over excitedly.
[Auntie Ho-Oh!]
[Long time no see!]
[You came at the perfect time!]
[We're discussing how to deal with this Dark Lugia!]
Ho-Oh fell silent for a moment before speaking.
"Seal it."
"The darkness is highly contagious."
"It cannot be allowed to escape."
"We still don't understand the nature of this darkness."
"If killing Dark Lugia triggers unforeseen consequences, the situation could worsen."
"Sealing it is the safest option."
Lugia nodded.
"I agree."
"Then let's find a small Secret Realm and imprison it there."
[Sounds good to me.]
Mew had no objections.
Ho-Oh was right.
For now, sealing Dark Lugia was probably the best solution.
Just as Lugia prepared to leave with the unconscious Dark Lugia—
Chen Shi suddenly spoke.
"Wait!"
Lugia turned around.
"Is there something else?"
Compared to most humans, Lugia was surprisingly willing to give Chen Shi some respect.
After all—
The number of Legendary and Mythical auras on him was absurd.
He traveled with four Mythical Pokémon.
And was currently riding a black Rayquaza.
Anyone would be confused by that lineup.
Chen Shi scratched his head.
Then cautiously asked,
"Um..."
"Can I take a closer look at Dark Lugia?"
The moment he said that, Mew exploded.
It flew over and smacked him on the head.
[Are you crazy?!]
[Is this something you can casually inspect?!]
[If the darkness infects you, nobody can save you!]
A vein bulged on Chen Shi's forehead.
He glared at Mew.
"You stay out of this."
"I know what I'm doing."
Ever since Dark Lugia had been defeated—
The moment he got close enough to observe it—
The psychic power inside his body had begun moving on its own.
It felt completely uncontrollable.
As though it desperately wanted to rush toward Dark Lugia.
A strange intuition had formed in his heart.
Perhaps...
Just perhaps...
He could remove this darkness.
Originally, he had wanted to bring this up earlier.
But Ho-Oh's arrival had interrupted him.
Now that Lugia was about to take Dark Lugia away, he could no longer sit still.
"Are you sure?"
Lugia warned.
"This is extremely dangerous."
The contagious nature of the darkness was terrifying.
Simply battling an infected Pokémon carried a risk of infection.
That was why both Mew and Lugia had used overwhelming force from the very beginning.
Neither had allowed Dark Lugia's attacks to touch them.
For beings like themselves, approaching Dark Lugia was one thing.
But Chen Shi was still human.
Even with powerful psychic abilities, getting this close was incredibly risky.
Chen Shi nodded firmly.
"Yes."
"I want to see it."
"Don't worry."
"I have confidence."
Mew became quiet for a moment.
Then it used telepathy.
[I'll go with you.]
[At least I can protect you if something goes wrong.]
Chen Shi looked surprised.
"You're actually being nice?"
"Let me tell you now."
"Don't think this means I'll suddenly feel touched and buy you extra ice cream."
Mew curled its lips.
[Don't misunderstand.]
[I'm only worried that if you die, I won't have a World Tree Guardian anymore.]
"Sure, sure."
"Whatever helps you sleep at night."
"Just take me over there already."
Chen Shi handed Jirachi and Victini to Cynthia.
Then he stopped wasting time.
At this moment, all he wanted was to discover what exactly was happening to the psychic power inside him.
Mew snorted.
Then carefully carried him toward Dark Lugia.
The closer they got—
The more serious Mew became.
A powerful psychic barrier completely enveloped Chen Shi.
It was obvious that despite its words, Mew was genuinely worried about him.
Meanwhile—
Chen Shi felt increasingly uncomfortable.
The psychic power within him was becoming harder and harder to control.
It surged violently.
It wanted to throw itself at Dark Lugia.
Finally—
He stopped suppressing it.
The moment he released control—
The psychic energy erupted from his body.
Then Ho-Oh, Lugia, and the others witnessed an astonishing scene.
After Chen Shi approached Dark Lugia—
A uniquely pure and special power suddenly burst from his body.
It pierced straight through Mew's psychic barrier.
Then rapidly spread across Dark Lugia's entire body.
"This..."
Lugia's voice carried uncertainty.
"Could this be Heart Power?"
Ho-Oh nodded slowly.
"Yes."
"It is Heart Power."
"It appeared once roughly a thousand years ago."
"He wants to use Heart Power to remove the darkness from Lugia?"
Lugia immediately shook its head.
"Impossible."
Three thousand years ago—
Countless Legendary Pokémon had failed.
How could a human possibly succeed?
...
What none of them knew was that—
Within a mysterious space hidden beyond ordinary reality—
A white Pokémon resembling both a qilin and a centaur stood silently.
Its gaze seemed to transcend countless dimensions as it quietly watched everything unfolding above the sea near Cinnabar Island.
After a long silence—
It finally spoke.
"The most evil thing is the heart..."
"And likewise..."
"The purest thing is also the heart..."
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