Chapter 155: First Battle in the Sky, Soaring Flames!

"Vigoroth!" Vigoroth stretched its arms, striking a muscular pose, its pair of sharp claws gleaming with a cold light as it swung them.
"It's fine, let Suyi-大哥 win this round for now. Dad's Vigoroth is very strong!" Max recovered from Slakoth's early defeat and cheered him on.
"You performed brilliantly, head back for now, Kubfu," Suyi said.
"Beiru." Kubfu nodded.
"Oh? Kubfu should still have plenty of stamina left, yet you're swapping it out?" Norman asked, surprised.
Suyi took out a Poké Ball and smiled, "I want to give my other partners some training."
"Is that so? A good idea." Norman nodded.
"I wonder what kind of Pokémon it will be?" Ash continued in eager anticipation.
"Time for your debut, Dakong!" Suyi smiled.
Bang!
After more than a month of careful feeding, Dakong had grown to over two meters in length and over a meter in height. The red scales on its body had hardened, and the sharp teeth in its mouth and claws on its feet were beginning to show their edge.
"Roar!" Dakong stretched its body, letting out a spirited roar, its voice gradually acquiring the majestic air of a king of the skies.
"Oh? What a spirited Pokémon," Norman exclaimed in admiration.
"So cool!" Max's eyes shone brightly.
"Yeah," Ash chimed in.
"So what kind of abilities does it have?" Norman found himself looking forward to it; Suyi's battle style brought him a long-lost sense of novelty.
"You're about to find out!" Suyi pointed forward and commanded, "Dakong, Soaring Blazing Flame!"
Whoosh!
Dakong tilted its head back, taking a deep breath as flames accumulated in its mouth.
The next instant—
Boom!
With a terrifying momentum that startled everyone present, a massive fireball blasted forward, instantly illuminating the field with a captivating red glare.
"Dodge!" Norman shouted hurriedly.
"Vigoroth!" Vigoroth was also taken aback, its fierce expression instantly turning flustered.
Fortunately, Dakong's brief charge gave Vigoroth time to react. At Norman's command, it instinctively dived to the side.
Boom!
The fireball struck the ground and exploded, the flames blooming like red lotuses and scattering in all directions. The ground was instantly scorched, glowing with patches of red light.
"Vigoroth..." Vigoroth stood back up, its back scorched with shallow burn marks from the lingering shockwave of the flames.
Dakong shook its head, dispersing the remaining fire in its mouth. It wasn't yet fully proficient in using Soaring Blazing Flame, mainly because its body hadn't finished growing.
"Such an astonishing attack!" May stared in speechlessness at the destruction caused by the move.
"So strong!" Max clenched his fists, his confidence in Vigoroth beginning to waver.
"I wonder how my Charizard compares to it?" Ash wore a solemn expression.
"Unbelievable. I can't afford to hold back anymore." Norman's gaze turned entirely serious.
If he wasn't careful, he might actually get taught a lesson by the challenger.
"Bring it on!" Suyi said with a smile.
"Vigoroth, Scratch!" Norman shouted.
"Vigoroth!" Regaining its fighting spirit, Vigoroth charged forward with claws raised.
"Meet it with Wing Attack!" Suyi chose to meet force with force.
"Howl-roar!" Dakong charged forward, roaring as it dashed, its glowing wings slicing horizontally through the air like a battle axe.
Bang!
The two collided. Initially, they were evenly matched, but Dakong gradually began to exert more force, its sharp claws gripping the ground step by step as it pushed forward, while Vigoroth retreated with a struggle.
"Vigoroth's strength has completely lost the advantage..." Ash said.
He still vividly remembered the formidable strength Vigoroth had displayed when they previously battled, but this time, Vigoroth was the one being suppressed.
"Vigoroth, grab it right there and use Thunderbolt!" Norman reacted quickly.
The sound of buzzing electricity rang out. While locked in a stalemate with Dakong, Vigoroth suddenly generated golden lightning across its body, engulfing Dakong in it.
"Roar!" Dakong let out a low growl, enduring the full force of the Thunderbolt, yet the fighting spirit in its eyes grew even more intense.
"No obvious effect?" Norman said in surprise.
On one hand, Dakong possessed the Dragon type, which resisted Electric-type moves; on the other hand, Vigoroth's Special Attack was not particularly impressive.
"Dakong, push it away!"
Dakong growled deeply, charging forward with all its might and shoving the locked Vigoroth away to the side.
Although Suyi also wanted to learn from Vigoroth and multitask by using two moves at once, Dakong's mastery over its moves was still too raw right now; trying that would likely backfire.
Realizing that if he didn't reclaim the offensive rhythm, he would remain suppressed by Dakong, Norman immediately launched a heavy counterattack: "Earthquake!"
"Vigoroth!" Vigoroth leaped high into the air and slammed down heavily. The ground began to tremble, and cracks started spreading beneath Dakong's feet as violent vibrations shook the earth.
"Roar-roar?!" Dakong panicked slightly, its footing unstable as it staggered continuously.
"Hold your ground!" Suyi soothed.
"If only Dakong could fly..." Suyi thought to himself. Perhaps due to the lack guidance from an adult Fire Dragon, Dakong hadn't yet grasped the essentials of flight, or perhaps young Fire Dragons simply didn't learn to fly so quickly?
"Effective. Earthquake again!" Norman shouted.
"Vigoroth!" Gathering its spirit, Vigoroth repeated the tactic.
"Dad's Vigoroth has seized the initiative, it's going to win!" Max watched Dakong swaying unsteadily in the earthquake while accumulating injuries, and shook his fist excitedly.
"Could it really be that simple?" May remained skeptical.
"How does a Malevolent Fire Dragon take flight again?" Suyi furrowed his brow.
"Earthquake!" Norman intended to rely on a single trick to see it through.
Seeing Vigoroth leap into the air once more, a flash of inspiration struck Suyi's mind. He commanded, "Dakong, flap your wings with all your might, then use Soaring Blazing Flame right beneath your feet!"
"Roar-howl!" Dakong immediately flapped its wings fiercely while accumulating flames in its mouth.
The exact moment Vigoroth stomped onto the ground, with a loud boom, the flames detonated.
The massive recoil lifted Dakong upward by a certain distance, while the heatwave generated by its flapping wings carried its body even higher into the air.
"So that's what 'Soaring' Blazing Flame actually means! Dakong, flap your wings just like that and soar into the sky!" Suyi grinned broadly and laughed.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Just like that, Dakong gradually found the rhythm, rising higher and higher until it reached beneath the gymnasium's ceiling.
"Roar!" Dakong let out a resounding roar, its eyes locked onto Vigoroth down below with a fierce glare.
"This is going to be troublesome..." Norman knew he had missed his window of opportunity.
"Soaring! Blazing! Flame!" Suyi clenched his fist, speaking with excitement.
Whoosh—!
Flames danced and wrapped around its sharp teeth.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Dakong flapped its wings, adjusted its angle, and blasted three terrifying fireballs downward. Instantly, the compact gymnasium was filled with dazzling flames, sparks, and rolling heatwaves that forced everyone to raise their arms to shield their faces.
"Too terrifying!" Max cried out in fright, sheltered behind Caroline.
As the sparks and heatwaves dissipated, everyone looked back at the battlefield. Vigoroth was lying flat amidst a patch of scorched earth.
"Vi—Vigoroth is unable... unable to battle!" Kenji announced the result with a trembling voice.