Stones scorched by lava scorched trail down from the sky with a bare tail, mingled with the sound of explosions and the smell of sulfur. The humps of the fire-breathing camels became the source of light and heat, pouring their power into the same target, almost condensing into a beautiful, murderous meteor shower in the night sky. For a moment, even the flames of the gods and the glimmer of the eastern skyline were overshadowed.

The people of the flames certainly weren't arrogant enough to defeat the god of Niwa.

They knew very well that the power of the gods that had lasted for thousands of years was huge and that there was a huge gap between the power of ordinary Pokémon, and even if they gathered the strength of their entire clan and unleashed the most feared rock attack of the Flame Bird, the actual damage they could inflict on it would still be far from enough to defeat it. The brilliant meteor shower was not designed to kill the gods, but was forced to lower its altitude by intertwining its elaborate trajectories to block the retreat to the sky.

As they had expected, the instinct engraved in their genes caused the Flame Bird to subconsciously avoid the terrifying rockslide. It converged its flames and pressed close to the ground, almost logically entering the only safe zone that the Flame Folk had left for the formation of the battle array.

- and the real killer has set off silently.

Carrying its trainer on its back, the Flaming Chicken sped across the mottled ground, like a red lightning bolt shuttling between the falling meteor showers.

Many tourists believe that the patriarch of the Flame People was able to feel the mood of the Flame Bird through the Pillar of the Covenant because the Pillar of the Covenant was a special item with such a function. But in fact, it was the opposite - the Pillars of the Covenant, or the Gray Crystals that were constructed into it, only served as a reflection and transmission, and it was the Flame Folk themselves who really had the power to "read".

Of course, they don't feel the mood of other people, or Pokémon, casually. Legend has it that the special abilities of the Flame Folk were bestowed by the god Niwa, and their powers share the same origin and ripples, so they can communicate with each other through direct contact. Modern people do not know whether the so-called "god-given power" is true, but at least there are countless cases of "using God-given power to communicate with the gods" in the history books, and it is by no means a fiction.

When the Flame Bird descends to the ground, the Patriarch will get up close and personal with it, and use his power to soothe its emotions - this is the ultimate plan of the Flame People.

To the stranger, this was a dangerous move that bordered on death, but the guards who were training at the time did not seem to think so. They were convinced that Niwa-sama would not turn a sword against his people even if he was angry, and it turned out to be true.

If only it hadn't been hit by that shot that deprived of reason.

The situation was very different from what he had expected, but the young patriarch did not hesitate to take the risk. He squinted in the wind, calmly watching the god as it was about to fall to the ground, pupils and palms beginning to ooze faintly visible points of light at the same time.

According to the plan, the Flame Chicken would break into the safe zone after two seconds and use its moves to break through the flames surrounding the god, and the patriarch would touch its feathers with both hands to establish a telepathic channel. And in the next second, the god of Niwa reacted fiercely like never before.

It had been blind to the people who passed it when it had chased the lightning, but now it had cried as if it had invaded territory. The fiercely burning wings suddenly opened, and a hot storm swayed!

The powerful rockfall was easily blown away like a fragile snowball. The meteor shower scatters in all directions, and when viewed from above, it looks like huge fireworks are blooming from the inside out, illuminating the dim mountain forest.

The hot flames were mixed with the storm, spreading and eroding in a spiral. Ye saw a blinding red rush towards him, and the air was almost so hot that he couldn't breathe. Instinctively sensing the deadly threat, the Flame Chicken spread its arms and subconsciously held the trainer firmly behind it.

The huge vortex of flames burned for a long time before it gradually dissipated into nothingness.

The excessively high air and the violent smoke and dust caused karma at the center of the storm to suffer and cough darkly, and it was difficult to recover. He staggered to his feet, looked around, and then froze.

The land in front of me has turned completely black. Trees, blades of grass, flowers, everything that used to be in the jungle of the South turned to indiscriminate black dust, scattered lifelessly everywhere.

Almost all Pokémon have fallen to the ground. The blazing tornado came so suddenly that they used all their strength to protect the trainers, even using their bodies as shields to block the flames. The patriarch's partner, the Flaming Chicken with whom he had grown up since childhood, fell in front of him, his beautiful feathers mottled and his breathing extremely weak.

Under the onslaught of deadly heat, which can directly lead to shock, red-haired people inevitably suffer heavy blows. Some struggled to stand up, while others lay motionless and silent.

Rivers of lava flow above the scorched earth and meander down the mountain. A dangerous red light swirled across the lava surface, imprinted on the pitch-black color of the earth with extreme blindness, like a river of blood in purgatory.

The young patriarch was clearly in the scorching heat of summer, but at this time, he felt a biting chill sweeping over his body. Mt. Aso beneath his feet roared for the last time, as if abandoning its inhabitants.

Perhaps it was the shock wave that was slammed back into the ground by the rocks that were ejected into the sky, or perhaps the top of the active volcano completely cracked apart because the lava dome that had not yet cooled down could not bear its weight. Rock debris mixed with hot air currents tumbles down the slope of the mountain. The patriarch struggled to raise his head, only to see the gray-black waves in the distance obscuring the sky and the glimmer of the skyline.

The enraged flame bird had long since risen into the air again, hissing and spitting crimson fireballs indiscriminately at creatures that were too close to it. The flames burst into the wind in the air, turning into majestic characters. Behind it, the waves of rock debris paint the background into a curtain of dull dust.

The speed of the Big Word Explosion is too fast. Karmic didn't have time to make any countermeasures, so he instinctively stepped forward and blocked the dying flame chicken behind him.

The next moment, he felt a fire that was enough to kill him hit him. The world in front of him turned a terrible red, and the sharp pain engulfed the spiritual world in an instant, and the despair had just risen before it was dispersed by another force that had penetrated in.

The white light lit up.

The pain of being burned by the fire should have made one faint instantly, but the patriarch of the Flame People kept him awake with an astonishing amount of willpower. He even had the strength to think—he felt that the power in his body had not disappeared, that every inch of his skin was scorched and healed in the fire, that blood was oozing and stopped—as if a "restored" force was struggling to engage in a tug-of-war with the killing moves of the gods.

And the palm of the initiator was firmly behind his back, supporting the tormented man to continue to stand.

Sayo skillfully hides herself behind the patriarch to avoid the flames' frontal attack. The instantaneous rise in temperature evaporated the sweat, the consciousness was scorched to the ground, and the continuous consumption of the heart power made the temples tingle as if they had been pierced, and the arrival of the limit was accelerated even more.

She knew she didn't have much time, and she knew what she was most to say at the moment.

Not just to convey power to someone who can turn the tide – but also to the poignant grief of her long memories that do not belong to her.

"Mr. Ye, please...... Please 'save' it. ”

The stranger's voice echoed in the chief's ears with great clarity through the blast of flames and the collapse of rocks.

"Don't let it lose you. ”

Pain infinitely elongates the subjective feeling of human beings. In fact, the effects of the Big Character Explosion only lasted for a short time.

At the same time as the flames were extinguished, the hand behind the karma slipped down.

The slight thud of the fall was cloaked in a crisp hum - the fiery cobblestone embedded in the handle of the patriarch's silver scimitar shone brightly. Its brilliance is magnificent and dazzling, like a flowing flame, and like a spirit dancing, unstoppably spilling over every corner of the scorched earth.

Every shattered spark in heaven and earth has received an unquestionable call. They converged towards the center like a cloud of thousands of stars in the universe, and even the angry gods were dazzled for a moment.

And the next moment, the lava also changed direction.

Thick, red-hot liquids from all directions rose into the air, swirling and condensing into countless twisted ropes. The chain of lava wrapped and bound the creatures in the flames layer upon layer, and sank hard, and the unprepared flame bird was dragged and smashed straight into the charred earth.

The sticky lava only caused it a little trouble, but the god's struggle stopped. The blood-colored eyes in the firelight opened wide, as if they had discovered something unbelievable.

A drop of water seeped out of the young patriarch's eye, evaporating into a mist before it hit the ground.

Hundreds of years of living and dying together have left many indelible marks on the minds of the god of Niwa. For example, the children of the flame are resilient, optimistic, and fearless. Even when they were stabbed by their friends on the battlefield, they never shed tears.

The hazy mist was also swallowed up by the firelight in the next second. The Patriarch's brightly colored array of feathers danced wildly with the blazing wind, the corners of his clothes almost melting into flames, and lava and fire surrounded him, brightening the anger surging in his red eyes.

"Is it a patron saint to vent your anger indiscriminately where you should be protecting?"

The dancing flames turned into a whirlwind, engulfing both figures. The sparks that human fingertips touched flew into the vast curtain of light, the ropes of lava, the feathers of the gods—and finally opened the invisible passage that had been closed for five hundred years.

In an instant, everything in heaven and earth became extremely silent, and only the voice of the spokesperson exploded with a roar.

"-Open my eyes to the world in front of you!"

The billowing pyroclastic flow is already within reach. The gray-black waves were overwhelming, and there was a loud rumbling sound, and the fading whirlwind of flames seemed so weak.

However, before the pyroclastic flow was about to swallow everyone, the hurricane leveled the ground.

The blades of air danced in the air with entangled flames, and the interlaced colors of red and white formed an impregnable spiral wall of wind. All ash was easily swept away, and the blasting air currents made the walls stronger—they swirled faster and faster, and the tornadoes of fire eventually soared into the sky, burning away the clouds in the distance.

Through the night pilot's high-definition camera, people around the world can clearly see that the over-dazzling fire tornado has destroyed the pyroclastic flow, swaying in the sky for a long time.

After a long time, the storm subsided.

The coat of flame that symbolized anger finally faded, revealing the true form of the creatures within.

The bird has an elegant, streamlined body shape and warm pale yellow plumage. It extinguished the flames burning in its wings and carefully surrounded the patriarch, who had long since fallen into a coma.

Red-haired people lay on their stomachs on the charred ground. Most of them were still conscious, and at this time they were looking left and right in a daze, looking like they were almost staring out of sight.

The destructive pyroclastic flow did not hurt them in the slightest.

The bird lowered its head slightly, half-closing its eyes. A tear spilled out of the corner of its eye, dripping to the ground, shattering into countless colorful points of light.

The rising sun wheel slowly emerges from the eastern skyline, casting the morning light on the traumatized Mt. Aso.

It's dawn.

====================

On the eve of dawn, the Valley of Flames.

"Hey, hey, there's a bunch of small fist stones rolling in the east, come and go up with me!"

Yong Zhen roared at the top of his throat, and at the same time did not forget to give instructions to his Pokémon, and for a while he wanted to turn into a three-headed Duduli. Heruga rushed to the front line first, knocking the rolling little fiststones apart. The reinforcements who were shouted by him were also in a hurry, and barely provided a wave of fire support, not letting Xiao Fist Stone face up.

Ever since the direction of Mt. Aso lit up with a scorching fire, and the god of Niwa appeared in the night sky, the wild Pokémon in the mountain ran wild as if they had broken their guts. Most of them are still just running around, but there are also Pokémon who are in a state of stress and are stimulated to fight people when they see them, causing several chaos in which people turn their backs on their horses.

In order to protect the old and young sons who live in the Valley of Flames, as well as their new homes, almost everyone who can fight spontaneously plunges into the siege of the Valley of Flames.

There was an intermittent loud sound in the direction of the volcano, and the earth shook incessantly, accompanied by the light of the fire that almost lit up the skyline. The river flowing through the valley floor became so turbulent that several unbuilt wooden houses on the banks had collapsed, and people were busy piling up sand and gravel along the banks to block the flow.

The Defenders had no time to care about anything else, so they had to guard the outer defense line of the residential area while secretly worrying about the people who would welcome the Flame Bird, and repel the wild Pokémon that went berserk one by one. The entire Valley of Flames was filled with shouts and explosions, and the scorched smoke almost paralyzed the sense of smell.

Yongzhen and Yang Yu are both located near the central square by the river, and they are trying to guard the important altar - Yongzhen is eager to catch up with his friend who has been missing for more than a day and ask the truth, but unfortunately now is obviously not the time for small talk.

The soldiers guarding their homes fought from just after midnight until the sky was slightly bright, and finally got a glimpse of the dawn.

The chaotic beast tide thinned out, and they were gradually able to grab a little respite.

The brown-haired boy half-knelt beside the river embankment without any image, and his grumbling voice became breathless, "Okay, okay, there are more Pokémon, let me stop for a while...... It's the most exciting battle I've ever fought......"

Yang Yu withdrew the fire Ibu, which had almost exhausted his energy, and reluctantly wanted to step forward to help his friend.

After a few hours of scuffle, not only the trainers, but also the Pokémon's physical strength was on the verge of limit. At this time, Yang Yu, who noticed that the number of wild Pokémon had decreased, and had not been able to rest properly since waking up in the dungeon of the wind thief, was finally able to relax his nerves slightly, and was almost overwhelmed by the exhaustion that surged from all over his body.

And the next moment, an earthquake was more violent than any before.

They saw a sudden fire in the direction of Mt. Aso, and a roar like a mountain collapsing spread throughout the island. The Flame People, who had been shaken out of their experience in recent days, were able to stabilize themselves with ease to prevent them from being knocked to the ground.

It's just that, unlike humans, who are able to learn and grow continuously, inanimate dead things only become more and more fragile with each devastation. As if the limit had finally been reached, the improvised embankment on the bank of the river collapsed, and the rushing water swept through the gravel and sediment!

The central plaza on the banks of the Valley of Flames is just around the corner of the river, and when the levee falls, the flood is rushing into the square. The falling stone smashed into the water, stirring up high waves and directly patting Yongzhen who was located next to the river embankment.

Yang Yu saw that Yongzhen and Heiluga were swept away by the waves, and the flood was already rushing towards him, and he was about to give an order anxiously, but he was suddenly stunned after his eyes fell.

He realizes that his Pokémon has almost completely exhausted his physical strength, and the only one left to fight is his original partner, the strong chicken. The Pokémon's cry had changed tone, and it took a conscious step under its feet, but its body stiffened helplessly—it knew that it could not fight the raging flood without using fire.

The cracked Pillar of the Covenant stood silently on the altar behind the sun feather. The young red-haired boy and the weak Pokémon stood between the altar and the waves, and it seemed that in the next second, they would be swallowed by the flood along with the Pillar of the Covenant and fall in the whirlpool.

Perhaps because his consciousness was tense to the extreme, Yang Yu felt that time had slowed down in a trance. As he turned to face his partner a little, all that flashed through his mind was inappropriate memories.

The resolute beating of drums, the hesitant arms that stood still in the air, the words of the purple-haired stranger—and then, the thoughts continued to rewind, flashing back to the images of childhood that had faded to a dim yellow.

As when he stood in front of the Upe drum to make a decision, he remembered that conversation again.

"Are you going to give up?"

In a long memory, the boy with ice-colored hair confronted him. This time, his face was not obscured by the overly harsh light outside the window—Yang Yu saw that the man's expression was not as disappointed and angry as he had imagined, and worry was soft in the boy's glass-colored eyes, overflowing with empathetic sadness.

They whispered a few more words. Young Yang Yu lowered his eyes in frustration, and suddenly felt that something was missing from his head.

"Wow, my hat ......"

The Flame People Boy's childhood friend reached out and took his cap and put it on his head with a smile. As soon as the "self" with tear stains in the corners of his eyes raised his head, he was overwhelmed by the sudden warmth wrapped around his neck.

"Instead, I'll give you the scarf. ”

His best friend spoke in a crisp tone, full of relief and encouragement that the boy could not understand at the time, but now sounds unusually obvious.

"It's a testament to our friendship. ”

Slow-down time returns to its original flow rate.

The strong chicken turned his head to look at his trainer in a panic, but he was stunned for a moment when he met the young man's gaze.

Yang Yu's face no longer showed a well-hidden, reluctant expression. The light of determination was wrapped in a subtle hint of excitement, shining like a flame in the depths of his eyes.

Sorry, four years late...... But I finally understood how you were feeling.

Yang Yu tightened the soft fabric around his neck with his slightly sweaty fingers, and held the wrist of the strong chicken with his other hand. As if sensing something, the young chicken Pokémon no longer chirped anxiously, but just fixed its eyes on its trainer.

The boy smiled—he now understood why the Mighty Chicken couldn't use the flames. Or rather, he always understood.

He and Lizhuang Chicken grew up together, and the two sides have a common heart and understand each other. When he was afraid of the flames and wanted to escape the pain of his past, the strong chicken unconsciously suppressed his flame ability, just to keep his important trainer from suffering even more.

"So, what if I stopped being afraid?"

The moment the young man said these words, the orange light began to light up from the strong chicken.

The light began to climb rapidly from the soles of his feet, and finally turned into a substantial flame in the high-pitched cry. The young chicken Pokémon's body quickly rose in the firelight, and in the haze, it was as dazzling as the projection of the flame god bird in the sky.

And Yang Yu still held his partner's wrist firmly and firmly, without the slightest hesitation or trembling. The rising flames dodged out like creatures with souls, leaving no red marks on human skin.

- I won't run away this time, I'm going to fight to show you!

"Burst fire!"

The directive, after many years, evokes a blazing storm. The flames swirled rapidly, condensing into a horizontal whirlwind of fire in the howling wind. It casts a mottled reflection on the surface of the current, and even the tiny sparks that splash everywhere are dazzling and scorching.

The tongue of fire and the waves of water intersected, and a large white mist was instantly evaporated. In the depths of the fog, where vision is obstructed, water and fire engage in a tug-of-war.

The flood is pouring in, and the flames are gathering strength. The tornado of fire rose in the wind, and it became more and more intense—

Finally, at the highest point, all the power was released, and it was like a scorching red lotus in the sky.

Sensing the danger, the Flame Folk have arrived, scrambling to try to plug the gap in the riverbank. As the shield of rocks was erected, the flow of water was gradually cut off, and only the light of the fire remained in the air for a long time.

Subsequently, the white fog slowly dissipated.

The red-haired boy and the flaming chicken raised their heads together and saw the clear blue sky.

====================

Small Theatre:

Assassin-turned-healer-chan-chan: Mr. Yes, I know this is a very inappropriate question, but I really want to know - what kind of material is your Jinhaori made of? My Great Healing Technique doesn't work on clothes, why can't it be burned?

Almost roasted to the ninth maturity of karma: ordinary cloth - it's just that the author of this article thinks that it is disrespectful to let the head of the clan face Niwa-sama naked, so he interferes with the reality of this world slightly.