Pokémon: Join Team Rocket at the Beginning

Chapter 773: The First Battle, Swamp King vs. Dragon Baruto

"The format of the competition is a best-of-three series. Pokémon swapping is not allowed. Whoever wins two rounds first is the winner."

"No problem." Yang Ming nodded.

"Then, let's get started."

Kebin was full of confidence. As the second of the younger generation of the Temple Clan, he had great confidence in his own strength and family background. He didn't think that the country bumpkin "Island King" from Alola could threaten him at all.

"This is my first Pokémon. Come out, Dragonite!"

He tossed a richly decorated Poké Ball into existence, and a mystical dragon Pokémon appeared on the field. It possessed three heads, half a completely transparent body, vivid eyes, and an agile frame. From the moment it appeared, it exuded a powerful aura. Dragonball circled in the air, emitting a sharp cry, as if to challenge its opponent.

"Duolong Barutuo... that's interesting." Yang Ming was slightly surprised. "I didn't expect the other party to send out a 'quasi-god' right away. It seems that this so-called temple clan is really wealthy."

"Then this is my first Pokémon," Yang Ming threw out a very cheap Poké Ball, "Come out, Swamplord."

As the Poké Ball opened, Swampert appeared clumsily in the arena, his naive appearance forming a sharp contrast with the magical and agile Dragonball.

Seeing this, Cobin couldn't help but laugh contemptuously. "This is the king of your Alola Island! How hilarious! Swampert is like a little Rattata on the side of the road in our Sinnoh, and you actually think it's a treasure? I advise you to quickly get a more decent Pokémon to avoid humiliating yourself."

Even the Swamp King himself was very nervous. His biological instinct had told him that the opponent in front of him was very noble and far beyond his reach.

"Boss, the pressure from that guy is too strong. In the past, we had to rush up together to deal with this kind of opponent. I'm afraid I can't beat it one-on-one..." Swampking retreated to Yang Ming's side and kept waving its forelimbs, trying to tell its trainer that it was just an ordinary Pokémon and could not defeat a noble existence like Dragonite.

Yang Ming could naturally hear Swamplord's thoughts through Viridian's power. So he knelt down, patted Swamplord's head, and encouraged it with Viridian's power: "Don't say such discouraging words. All along our journey, have we ever encountered an opponent that was easy? We've always crushed them one by one! You must not only have confidence in yourself, but also in me as your trainer."

The Swamp King was still a little hesitant: "But Boss, I feel a kind of pressure from it that only a superior can possess. That feeling is just like..."

"Like a 'god', huh?" Yang Ming smiled. "Don't overestimate this opponent. He's nothing more than a 'quasi-god' at best. Honestly, I don't really take him seriously. And don't underestimate your own strength either. Trust my judgment. Since I've chosen you to fight, I must be absolutely certain of your victory."

Swamplord was initially quite afraid of Dragonite. After all, as a Pokémon, it could naturally sense the difference between species. But with Yang Ming's encouragement, it gradually lost its fear. Ultimately, its trust in its trainer outweighed its fear of its opponent. It mustered its courage and stood in the center of the arena, staring intently at Dragonite.

Dragonball looked at his opponent with disdain. He was born into a noble family, his parents both being incredibly powerful Dragon Pokémon. From birth, he had been meticulously nurtured by specialized human breeders, undergoing intense daily training. The food alone was more than an ordinary trainer could afford. The guy across from him was clearly a wild, neglected "street urchin" living in a cave. He had been captured by that unrefined human. How dare such a creature challenge him? He was courting death!

"Like-like trainers determine like-like Pokémon," Cobin scoffed. "Kill it, Dragonite, use Dragon Arrow!"

Dragonball had long wanted to crush this presumptuous opponent. As soon as it heard the trainer's order, it immediately took action. The two "little heads" above Dragonball's head shot out like arrows, turning into two streams of light and shooting towards Swamp King.

"Swamp King, use the muddy current to knock them all down." Yang Ming said lightly.

A huge wave of filth rose up into the sky, hitting the two dragon arrows. However, the top of each of these two "dragon arrows" had a pair of eyes. Seeing the huge wave coming, the two dragon arrows quickly turned around and avoided the muddy current of the Swamp King.

As Dragonite's unique move, its "Dragon Arrow" still has independent vision and thinking ability after being shot, just like three Pokémon fighting in coordination.

The two dragon arrows easily bypassed the muddy current and headed straight for the Swamp King. With two explosions, both dragon arrows hit the Swamp King.

"We won!" Kebin excitedly raised his fist. In his opinion, "trash" like the Swamp King, which can be found everywhere, would definitely not be able to withstand the attack of Dragon Baruto. This dragon arrow move could already secure the victory.

Dragon Ball also grinned widely. Like its trainer, it felt that the outcome had been decided.

But as the smoke cleared, Cobin and his Pokémon were shocked by the sight before them.

"This, how is this possible!"

Kebin's eyes widened in disbelief. The Swamp King before him not only didn't fall, but wasn't even seriously injured. Aside from a few scratches, he was completely fine.

Dolong Baruto was almost shocked. He thought that his casual attack was enough to end the battle, but he didn't expect that his dragon arrow was just tickling the opponent!

Even the Swamp King himself couldn't believe that the powerful attack from the "quasi-god" opposite him couldn't even seriously injure him, which was almost overturning his worldview.

"Could it be that what the boss said is right, these so-called quasi-gods are actually just show-offs, and even I can fight against them?" The Swamp King thought so, and began to have confidence in his heart.

"I've said it before, I don't even take a mere 'quasi-god' seriously," Yang Ming said, using Evergreen's power to transmit a message to it, "You must remember, we are waiting ahead, and there will be no rivals!"

I'm waiting for you ahead, there will be no more rivals!

Swampking's heart trembled. It had sensed that Yang Ming's words were not "I" but "us and others." In other words, in its trainer's mind, only when he and his Pokémon were together could they achieve "invincibility."

Thinking of this, the Swamp King clenched his huge palm and looked at Doron Baruto opposite him with a firm gaze.

"You just caught two dragon arrows? Don't get complacent!" Kebin said sternly, "Dragon Baruto, use Dragon Dance!"