bookcurios Chapter 721 Hostage Exchange
Chapter 721 Hostage Exchange
"You think you can leave?!?"
Zhang Leiyuan's roar, filled with boundless rage, was like a thunderbolt from the heavens, instantly tearing apart the poison and despair that permeated the battlefield!
The violent shockwave generated when the dominant Charizard folded its wings completely swept away the remaining poisonous mist!
Zhang Leiyuan, perched on its back, his silver-white cloak fluttering in the wind, his eyes like ancient ice, coldly swept across the ravaged battlefield below, finally settling on the Plague, who was holding the Xiao family father and son hostage, his face gloomy.
"Roar--!!"
Almost at the same time Zhang Leiyuan landed, Thunder Drum, which had been holding back its anger and suffering from the lack of a trainer to guide it, let out a roar mixed with wild joy!
Its massive body transformed into a streak of dark golden lightning, and with a few leaps it arrived beside Zhang Leiyuan.
Zhang Leiyuan reached out and patted the cold, hard shell of the Thunder Drum. The icy look in his eyes melted slightly, replaced by reassurance for his companion and a deeper resolve.
"You've worked hard, old buddy."
His gaze returned to the plague, and the champion's aura, forged from mountains of corpses and seas of blood, pressed down fiercely on the plague and the awesome dog!
His breathing visibly faltered beneath the plague mask. Zhang Leiyuan's personal arrival completely extinguished his last shred of hope.
A champion in excellent form, plus the main legendary Pokémon Thunder Drum, and the menacing Ripple blessed by the Dragon Stone... the balance of power has completely shifted.
"Zhang... Lei Yuan."
The sound of the plague came through the mask. He tried to remain calm, but a hint of dryness and tension still leaked out.
"As expected of the champion...you came really fast!"
"Shut up!"
Zhang Leiyuan interrupted without any politeness, his tone rough and direct, his gaze sharp as a knife, sweeping over the plague and the dog.
"Release them, surrender. I might consider leaving you a whole corpse."
"A complete corpse? Heh..."
The plague let out a nervous chuckle, and the dog's hand, which was gripping Xiao Ding's throat, tightened its grip even more defiantly, causing Xiao Ding to let out a painful groan.
"Your Excellency, it seems I have the upper hand now, doesn't it? A fight to the death would benefit no one."
He paused, his eyes scanning through the holes in his mask at the fire-breathing dragon carelessly tossed aside in the distance.
The motionless, seemingly unconscious "corpse" of the Eighth Divine Strike - Lightning Fiend, flashed a barely perceptible look of disgust and irritation in its eyes.
He couldn't help but curse inwardly.
This piece of trash! He possesses fragments of the holy artifact and commands Reggie Elegy, yet he still managed to fail here and become a burden!
"How about this, Your Excellency Champion, let's make a deal."
The voice of the plague carried a hint of deliberate sincerity.
“One for one. Use this young lad in my hand—” He gestured to Xiao Gang, who was being held by Gouzangou’s other hand.
"Switch him back."
He pointed to the electric "corpse" in the distance.
"Then, shall we discuss the next step?"
The plague was a shrewd scheme. It used the relatively less valuable Xiao Gang to exchange for its companions, while still retaining the more valuable card, Xiao Ding.
Most importantly, he needed time, a buffer period, and to figure out Zhang Leiyuan's attitude and bottom line.
The Plague and the Lightning Fiend weren't that close; it was just that the Plague was still useful to that person, and if it died here, the Plague wouldn't be able to explain itself.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Leiyuan's thick, dark eyebrows furrowed tightly, and his face revealed a clear struggle and weighing of options.
He glanced at his aching son Xiao Gang, then at the "unconscious" Dian Sha in the distance, and finally, his gaze, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally, drifted to his son Zhang Heng beside him.
Zhang Heng's eyelids were slightly lowered at this moment, as if he was also thinking intently.
But his right foot, almost imperceptibly, lightly treaded on the shadow beneath his feet.
A subtle and exquisite movement.
A flash of understanding crossed Zhang Leiyuan's pupils.
He saw the Gengar in his son's shadow and it had already made its move.
The unspoken understanding between father and son was achieved in an instant.
The struggling expression on Zhang Leiyuan's face gradually subsided, replaced by a gloomy look born of helplessness and weighing the pros and cons.
He snorted coldly, his voice still firm, but it seemed to carry a hint of "compromise".
"Alright! Let's switch to another one! Release Xiao Gang!"
He turned his head and gestured to the dominant Charizard.
The Overlord Charizard roared, extended its claws, grabbed the corpse of "Electric Fiend" on the ground, and tossed it casually toward an open space not far in front of Plague and Good Dog, as if it were trash.
"Pfft."
"Electric Fiend's" corpse fell into the dust, rolled twice, and lay face down, still motionless, covered in dust and blood. His tattered white cloak was even more tattered, making him look extremely miserable.
"Great dog." Plague winked at Great Dog.
A hint of impatience flashed in Gouzangou's scarlet eyes, but he still released his grip on Xiao Gang's throat as instructed, and then pushed him away forcefully!
“Cough! Cough cough cough!!”
Xiao Gang was shoved out like a broken sack, staggering forward and coughing violently while clutching his throat. His face turned from purple to red, and his eyes were filled with the fear of surviving a disaster and worry for his father.
"Xiao Gang, come here! Walk slowly!" Zhang Leiyuan shouted in a deep voice.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Gang, enduring the dizziness and the sharp pain in his throat, trembled and slowly walked step by step toward Zhang Leiyuan and the others.
Meanwhile, on the other side...
The "Electric Fury" corpse lying on the ground also began to move.
Its movements were extremely stiff and uncoordinated. First, its fingers twitched slightly, then its arms, in a bizarre way that defied human joint control, awkwardly supported its upper body as it wobbled and tried to stand up.
As he stood up, his body swayed noticeably from side to side, as if he might fall down again at any moment.
Its head hung low, and pale, lifeless skin was revealed through the ripped parts of its yellow spiral mask. It staggered step by step toward the plague.
The hostages from both sides are slowly moving in opposite directions in the center of the battlefield.
The atmosphere was extremely tense. All eyes were on the two of them.
The distance between Xiaogang and the "electric calamity" is getting closer and closer.
Five meters... three meters... one meter...
Pass by.
Xiao Gang could even smell the strong bloody odor emanating from "Electric Fiend" and a faint, indescribable chilling aura.
He dared not look back, and hurried towards his own camp, where he was quickly caught by a guard and taken to the rear for emergency treatment.
Meanwhile, "Electric Shock" continued to stagger towards the plague.
Looking at "Electric Fiend's" clumsy and pathetic appearance, the Plague's disgust, hidden beneath its mask, was almost overflowing.
Utter trash! Utterly and utterly trash!
Not only did the mission fail, but it also dragged him into a desperate situation, and now he looks like a dead dog!
When "Electric Fiend" finally staggered to within two meters of the plague, the plague could no longer contain its anger and contempt, and spoke out with a cold sarcasm.
"You're really...useless. How are you going to explain this to the adults when we get back?"
His voice was filled with undisguised contempt.
"Possessing fragments of the sacred artifact and commanding Reggie Elech, yet still being..." Plague's words abruptly stopped.
Because the "electric demon" that walked up to him suddenly raised its head without warning, its head that had been hanging low!
Beneath that tattered yellow mask, where the eyes should have been empty or lifeless, two eerie, pale purple flames were now burning!
At the same time, its right hand, which had been hanging down naturally, suddenly clenched its five fingers into a palm. In the center of its palm, a ball of extremely concentrated, light purple ghost-type energy with sharp edges like a knife suddenly lit up, like a ghost flame compressed to the extreme!
The plague's pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints behind the mask!
A chilling, instinctive sense of dread and a deadly warning from the depths of his soul regarding ghostly energy washed over him like ice water, making the hairs on his body stand on end!
"you--?!"
His exclamation was only half-uttered.
"Electric Fiend's" eyes, burning with purple flames, locked onto him. His stiff right arm, with a speed as fast as a ghost, completely out of proportion to his clumsy steps, suddenly swung upwards!
Ghost-type physical move - Shadow Claw!
This "Shadow Claw" strike was silent and stealthy, yet extremely ruthless and cunning!
A pale purple energy claw sliced through the air, leaving a chilling, eerie light as it aimed directly at the plague's vital organs!
“Pfft——!!!”
Although the plague, relying on its instinct honed from countless brushes with death, desperately leaned backward at the last moment, the distance was too close and the attack too sudden!
The pale purple ghost claws ripped through his black hooded cloak and clothes, and with their force, they cut deep into his flesh!
"what--!!!"
The plague let out a shrill, inhuman scream! A horrific, deep wound, running diagonally from his lower right abdomen to his left shoulder, instantly appeared on his chest!
Hot blood gushed out like a fountain!
But that's not the most fatal thing.
That pale purple ghost-like energy, like a bone-deep affliction, tore through his flesh and blood while frantically drilling into his wounds, eroding his life force, and freezing his soul!
A chilling, deathly stillness, filled with resentment, instantly spread from his wound to his limbs and bones, making him feel as if his blood was about to freeze!
"Loto—!!"
Just as the Shadow Claw was unleashed, a cheerful yet eerie electronic sound emanated from within "Electric Fury"!
"Woof—!!!!!!!!!"
Everything happened so fast that even the dog was momentarily stunned.
But when it saw the blood gushing from its master's chest, heard the painful screams, and felt the sudden drop in life force, a devastating rage and a frenzied protectiveness instantly overwhelmed all its reason!
Its crimson beastly eyes were instantly engulfed in blood, completely disregarding whether "Electric Fiend" was a corpse or something else.
Fighting-type energy surged wildly into his fist, unleashing a furious punch that slammed solidly into the chest of the "Electric Fiend" corpse, which stood frozen in place!
"Bang—!!!!!"
There was no sound of bones breaking, only a dull thud, as if a liquid-filled sac had been burst by a tremendous force!
The corpse of "Electric Fury" exploded without any doubt under this punch!
It wasn't just a simple fracture or being thrown backwards; it was a true shattering, turning into a cloud of blood mist and fragments of broken flesh and bone!
A strong stench of blood instantly filled the air, mixed with the chilling energy of the ghosts, creating an extremely cruel and terrifying scene.
However, Fighting-type moves cannot damage Rotom, which gives Rotom time to escape.
A beam of orange, semi-transparent light, like a startled rabbit, suddenly shot out from the back of the "Electric Fiend" corpse's neck and flew back towards Zhang Leiyuan without looking back!