Chapter 14: The Lizard King's Battle Against the Armored Warrior (Conclusion)

The armoured warrior extended its sharp claws, digging into the ground, then grasped a massive boulder and hurled it toward the Lizard King. The stone, infused with earth energy, whistled through the air as it flew.

“Lizard!”

Facing the incoming rock, the Lizard King swung the grass-type scythes on its wrists. With sweeping, powerful strikes, the leafy blades shattered each stone mid-air.

Watching this, Xia Yu furrowed his brow. Though the Lizard King lacked tactical finesse, its raw strength was formidable. For a moment, the outcome seemed uncertain. Xia Yu needed to devise a strategy to break the deadlock.

How to bridge the speed gap between them? Xia Yu found himself longing for the Dragon Dance and Quick Move skills—both could enhance speed. Unfortunately, the armoured warrior was incompatible with these skills and could not learn them.

Moreover, preemptive strikes like the initial attack could only be used upon entering battle, making the current situation rather tricky.

Wait, there was another move. Xia Yu suddenly recalled another technique of the armoured warrior.

“Armoured Warrior, Water Jet!”

[Water Jet]: A water-type physical move that strikes the opponent with lightning speed, guaranteeing a preemptive attack.

Although Water Jet was a low-power preemptive skill and water moves were minimally effective against the grass-type Lizard King, its speed advantage made it valuable.

At Xia Yu’s command, the armoured warrior hesitated not for a moment. It unleashed a massive jet of water from behind, propelling itself forward at incredible speed.

“Bang!”

In the blink of an eye, the armoured warrior closed in. The Lizard King was caught completely off guard. The armoured warrior’s Water Jet was so rapid that it crashed into the Lizard King full force, staggering it back two steps.

Following the Sword Dance, the armoured warrior’s attack power had reached a terrifying level. Even with water’s reduced effect on grass types, the strike still inflicted significant damage.

More importantly, by using Water Jet, the armoured warrior had successfully closed the distance.

Once in close quarters, its overwhelming attack power would render it virtually invincible.

“Armoured Warrior, Leech Life!”

Having closed the gap, Xia Yu commanded without hesitation. Leech Life, a bug-type move, was especially effective against grass types and boosted by the armoured warrior’s own affinity. A hit would severely wound the Lizard King.

This time, the armoured warrior did not disappoint. At such close range, the Lizard King had no time to evade; the bug-type leeching needle struck it squarely.

The leech life attack dealt a grievous wound, far surpassing the impact of the previous Water Jet.

“Lizard.”

Despite its injury, the Lizard King showed no sign of retreat. Instead, it launched a fierce counterattack.

In response to the leeching assault, the Lizard King unleashed a powerful grass-type skill: Leaf Storm!

[Leaf Storm]: A storm of razor-sharp leaves swirls toward the opponent. However, the move’s recoil drastically lowers the user’s special attack.

Leaf Storm was the ultimate grass-type technique, immensely powerful but with a severe drawback—lowering the user’s special attack by two stages. Typically, it served as a final finishing move for grass-type Pokémon, sweeping the battlefield.

Interestingly, for the Serpent Monarch—known for its Contrary ability—the stat reduction reversed into a boost, raising special attack by two stages instead. The recoil became a source of strength, allowing the Serpent Monarch to grow even more formidable, possibly sweeping entire teams.

Seeing the Lizard King summon Leaf Storm, Xia Yu was not dismayed but rather pleased. Though tremendously powerful, the armoured warrior in its current state could endure the attack. Meanwhile, the Lizard King’s two-stage special attack drop would leave it vulnerable afterward.

Moreover, Xia Yu’s armoured warrior had paid a hefty price to learn the Protect skill.

“Armoured Warrior, Protect!”

[Protect]: Completely blocks the opponent’s attack. Repeated use may fail.

In the games, Protect was a godly move—regardless of level or species differences, it could block even the fiercest attacks. For example, a Caterpillar’s Protect could withstand the legendary Rayquaza’s assault, making it notoriously annoying.

In reality, however, Protect could only block attacks from foes of comparable strength. If the disparity was too great, the protective shield would still break.

But the armoured warrior and the Lizard King were evenly matched, so Xia Yu had no worries.

The armoured warrior’s body surged with normal-type energy, forming a translucent shield before it, firmly guarding itself.

Leaves whipped into a furious storm, charged with grass energy, engulfing the armoured warrior. Sharp blades relentlessly sliced at the shield.

The onslaught was tremendous and powerful but never breached the armoured warrior’s defense.

A smile appeared on Xia Yu’s face—this was the difference between wild Pokémon and those trained by a trainer. Wild Pokémon, though strong, were limited in skill variety. Without access to move tutors, they simply couldn’t learn moves like Protect.

With a shallow skill pool and no tactical synergy, wild Pokémon at the same level rarely prevailed against trained Pokémon.

“Lizard.”

The recoil from Leaf Storm severely lowered the Lizard King’s special attack, presenting the perfect opportunity for the armoured warrior to strike back.

“Armoured Warrior, Leech Life!”

The armoured warrior lunged forward, bug energy bursting forth as it fired a thin needle into the Lizard King’s body.

The surging bug energy once again dealt a heavy blow, while the energy transmitted back through the needle healed the armoured warrior’s wounds.

“Chase it down—don’t give it a moment to breathe.”

After several exchanges, the outcome was clear. The armoured warrior had clearly gained the upper hand, while the Lizard King was utterly on the defensive.

Had the Lizard King initially leveraged the jungle terrain with hit-and-run tactics and attacked with special grass moves like Energy Ball, the armoured warrior might have struggled.

But lacking a trainer’s guidance, the Lizard King resorted to brute force and was naturally outmatched.

“Armoured Warrior, finish off the Lizard King!”

“Lizard!”

The armoured warrior unleashed Leech Life again. At the same time, green grass energy flared at the Lizard King’s wrists as it activated Leaf Blade, preparing for a final desperate strike.

“Armoured Warrior, Sucker Punch!”

Confronted with the Lizard King’s all-or-nothing attack, Xia Yu commanded the armoured warrior to use Sucker Punch.

[Sucker Punch]: Strikes first if the opponent intends to attack. Fails if the opponent uses a non-attack move.

Dark energy enveloped the armoured warrior’s hardened claws. With a preemptive strike, its sharp claws swiped directly at the Lizard King.

Simultaneously, the Lizard King’s Leaf Blade connected, carving a deep wound into the armoured warrior’s tough shell.

Both attacks landed, but the armoured warrior’s sturdy shell absorbed much of the damage, suffering a lighter injury. The Lizard King, lacking any defense and already weakened by two Leech Life hits, was pushed to its limit, gasping for breath.

“You’ve already lost.”