Pokemon: The Gameboy Effect-Chapter 609: Overwhelming Firepower!

"Sableye is unable to battle! Gengar wins!" The referee's declaration echoed across the stadium.

On the battlefield, the massive ruby shield had vanished entirely. Only the frail form of Sableye remained, sprawled across the shattered earth, its body trembling weakly as it struggled in vain to rise.

"WOOOOO!!!"

"JOHN! JOHN! JOHN!"

The crowd erupted into celebration. Countless spectators leaped from their seats, arms raised in jubilation.

You'd think John had defeated some unbeatable titan, some impossibly powerful enemy.

In truth, only a portion of the audience cheered for John's victory itself. The majority celebrated something far simpler, watching Lance lose.

It didn't matter who defeated Lance. What mattered was that Lance had been defeated.

The depth of Lance's unpopularity couldn't be overstated.

Even among Gengar users, John's Gengar clearly outclassed Damian's by an enormous margin. The power gap was staggering.

"What an insufferable bastard," Lance muttered through gritted teeth, his hand instinctively moving to the Pokeballs at his belt.

This was merely a warm-up exhibition match, not an official tournament bout with rankings on the line. So the question became, should he go all-out now and reveal his full capabilities? Or should he hold back, appear weaker than he truly was, and save his real power for when it actually mattered?

In the VIP observation seats, reactions varied dramatically.

"I told you! I told all of you! John would win easily!" Lilith danced in celebration, completely uninhibited.

Normally, the other Masters who knew Lilith would have teased her mercilessly for such behavior. But now, every single one of them wore expressions of profound seriousness.

Casual observers watch for entertainment. Professionals watch for insight.

Without question, as Master-level powerhouses, they were among the world's elite trainers, true experts who could recognize the deeper implications of what they'd witnessed. And what they'd seen revealed just how terrifyingly strong John's Gengar truly was.

John's battle strategy with Gengar was brutally simple: use overwhelming power to crush opponents without mercy until they collapsed completely.

No room for counterplay whatsoever.

Consider Lance's previous battle against Damian for reference.

Was Gengar John's ace Pokemon? What would happen if he sent out Greninja? Or Tyranitar? Or Gardevoir? Or Blaziken?

Yet for Lance, the Mega Sableye he'd just deployed was already his second-strongest Pokemon...

Suddenly, there was this sinking feeling, like playing your Jack and having your opponent casually beat it with a seven.

The Masters increasingly realized John's true depths remained completely unfathomable.

Back on the battlefield, Lance had finally selected his next Pokemon.

He'd thought carefully about his options. The eight-Master tournament wasn't guaranteed, he might not even face John in the actual bracket. Rather than hiding his true strength now, he might as well go full power. Even if he ultimately lost, he'd learn exactly where he failed. Next time they met, he could develop specific countermeasures.

Therefore, Lance chose to deploy his ace Pokemon.

"It's your turn! Bisharp!"

The Pokeball split open mid-air, and a proud, fierce figure materialized on the battlefield.

"SHA!" Bisharp released an imposing, masculine war cry.

Against Gengar, Bisharp's Steel-typing granted immunity to Poison moves and resistance to Ghost-type attacks. The type matchup heavily favored Lance.

"Bisharp, use Swords Dance!" The moment his Pokemon appeared, Lance immediately issued commands.

Instantly, Bisharp's Attack power surged dramatically! But the boost wasn't merely offensive, its defensive capabilities increased simultaneously.

At the Masters Eight level, no move functioned exactly as its basic description suggested anymore.

Expert trainers in the audience immediately recognized that Bisharp's Swords Dance concealed traces of Iron Defense woven throughout.

Attack and defense rising together, perfect offensive-defensive unity!

Bisharp had barely completed its Swords Dance when its body shot forward at terrifying speed!

Like blades skating across the ground, it moved with frightening agility, almost like ice skating. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

John watched Bisharp charge toward Gengar with blinding velocity. According to his memories, Damian's Gengar had lost to Sableye, so he'd perfectly countered that previous battle. But Bisharp...

"No particular impression, so I'll just end this quickly," John thought coldly.

Originally, he'd wanted to use members from his second or third string teams, that would've made the battle more interesting. But since he'd already deployed Gengar, there was no point wasting time.

"Kekeke!" Mega Gengar responded excitedly, immediately beginning to condense a Shadow Ball.

"This chubby little guy... how did he incorporate the Spiral Aura Sphere rotation techniques into Shadow Ball?"

Indeed, Mega Gengar's current Shadow Ball employed the spinning aura techniques from Aura Sphere, causing the Ghost-type energy to rotate spirally within the sphere's containment, continuously building momentum.

From a distance, Lance saw John directing Gengar to use Shadow Ball, and a smile immediately spread across his face.

Long-range energy attacks? Perfect!

Your Gengar is dead meat!

Bisharp's rapid assault continued, charging straight toward Gengar's Shadow Ball. Its running speed didn't decrease even slightly. Moreover, rather than dodging, it accelerated directly toward the incoming attack, as if afraid of missing the opportunity.

Then, in the very next instant—

Bisharp lowered its blade-arms and blurred past the Shadow Ball's position at incredible speed.

"Throat Chop, finish it!" Lance roared triumphantly.

Breaking through the opponent's attack, then launching an immediate counter, at this timing, the opponent absolutely couldn't react in time!

This strike would be completely unavoidable for Gengar.

"Is that your entire plan?" John glanced once at Lance, instantly seeing through his strategy. Although Bisharp's blade-slash contained impressive energy and notably hadn't detonated on contact, which surprised him slightly, still..

"You didn't actually think Gengar only condensed one Shadow Ball, did you?"

One second later, the entire battlefield transformed into what could only be described as a Bullet Hell. Over a hundred Shadow Balls materialized simultaneously!