When Brock saw Luo Yuan's Gyarados, he was taken aback.
Out of all the Kanto gym badges, the Boulder Badge from Pewter Gym was often considered one of the easiest to earn. Every year, Brock was used to facing rookies with little experience and teams mainly made up of unevolved or just slightly evolved starter Pokémon.
To have a challenger suddenly bring out a powerhouse like Gyarados? That was definitely a first.
For a moment, Brock looked at Luo Yuan—standing there with his strong Pokémon, exuding confidence—and couldn't help but feel a pang of bitterness. Here he was, taking on the responsibilities of a Gym Leader at such a young age, raising his younger siblings alone, while other trainers like Luo Yuan could just focus on getting stronger.
But despite his feelings, Brock had a duty to uphold the challenge.
"Alright, Onix, let's do this!"
Now facing a formidable opponent, Brock set aside any prior underestimations. Luo Yuan was clearly strong, and he'd need to take this seriously.
The massive Onix moved forward at Brock's command, its segmented rock body grinding against the gym floor, stirring up vibrations that would make many Pokémon hesitate.
But Gyarados was unfazed.
"Gyarados, head on!" Luo Yuan called out.
"Roaaar!"
Gyarados's eyes glinted with a fierce light as it surged forward, its powerful, serpentine body twisting through the air.
With a loud, earth-shaking collision, the two Pokémon met in the center of the arena. A massive cloud of dust rose up, and the whole gym seemed to shake from the impact.
Both Gyarados and Onix had held their ground, resulting in a draw from the initial clash.
"Your Gyarados is something else!" exclaimed a bystander, who had just finished a match against Brock. The trainer, who'd faced Brock's Onix firsthand, was well aware of its strength. Seeing Gyarados stand its ground like that, even against a rock-solid foe, helped him grasp the true power Luo Yuan had brought to this battle.
Beside Luo Yuan, Misty couldn't help but smile with pride. The praise might have been for Luo Yuan, but hearing Gyarados get such recognition filled her with a shared sense of achievement.
The battle wasn't over yet, and both Pokémon eyed each other, sizing up their next moves. That initial exchange had only been a warm-up.
Realizing that brute force wouldn't win against this opponent, Brock quickly switched tactics.
"Onix, use Rock Tomb!"
Onix swung its tail, sending chunks of rock hurtling towards Gyarados.
The advantage of the rock-strewn arena became clear. On a typical battlefield, it would be harder to pull off Rock Tomb—Onix would have to resort to ripping pieces of itself apart. Here, though, the ground provided plenty of ammunition.
Luo Yuan's sharp attention to Brock's movements allowed him to anticipate each attack with remarkable accuracy. The addition of psychic abilities had heightened his reflexes, enabling him to predict each boulder's trajectory almost instantly.
"Gyarados, dodge back and to the right."
In a swift, fluid motion, Gyarados dodged the barrage of rocks with a grace that belied its size.
Brock's eyes narrowed. He couldn't understand how Luo Yuan had managed to read his move so effortlessly.
Luo Yuan wasn't about to let Brock linger on that thought.
"Gyarados, use Hydro Pump!"
Against a Rock-type like Onix, a Water-type attack was the obvious choice. The combination of the attack's power and Gyarados's natural advantage should be enough to end the battle in one hit.
Realizing the danger, Brock quickly called, "Dodge it, Onix!"
But Gyarados's Hydro Pump was far too fast for Onix to evade. In a desperate attempt to mitigate the attack, Onix swung its tail up, hoping to create a rock barrier.
The Hydro Pump crashed through, smashing the rocks to dust and splashing across Onix's side. The pain registered instantly, causing Onix to writhe.
Luo Yuan seized the opening before Brock could give another command.
"Gyarados, finish it with Aqua Tail!"
The water swirled around Gyarados's tail, creating a spiraling vortex. Lunging forward, Gyarados swung the water-clad tail straight at Onix's vulnerable spot.
The blow landed with tremendous force, fracturing Onix's stone skin and forcing it to collapse. After a pained, rumbling cry, Onix lay motionless on the muddy battlefield, unable to continue.
The entire battle had taken less than five minutes, but each move was sharp, precise, and powerful. Luo Yuan's final onslaught, his rapid, relentless commands, left the observing trainer spellbound.
"Well, that makes me the winner of round one," Luo Yuan said, patting Gyarados, which had slithered back to his side with an uncharacteristic docility, looking up at him with pride.
The spectator's eyes widened, unable to believe the contrast. Was this really the same Gyarados that had just rampaged through Onix? It seemed almost… tame?
What he didn't know was that Gyarados had, in fact, learned the hard way to keep in line—Luo Yuan's psychic power was no joke, and the lessons were memorable.
On the other side, Brock climbed down into the arena to examine his fallen Pokémon. After a moment, he sighed in relief; while Onix had sustained heavy damage, nothing was critical.
With a resigned expression, he looked back at Luo Yuan.
"You've won. With a Gyarados like that, I'd be a fool to think my second Pokémon would fare any better. Here's your Boulder Badge."
Brock tossed the badge toward Luo Yuan, who caught it mid-air.
A familiar alert chimed in his mind.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! Milestone "Victory! Rock-Type Gym Conquered!" achieved. One additional draw unlocked.]
"Just as I thought."
He'd expected the gym challenge to yield some kind of milestone reward. That meant Kanto's seven remaining gyms held seven more prizes in store.
In high spirits, Luo Yuan pocketed the badge and turned to see Brock kneeling beside Onix, carefully treating it with a worried expression.
Feeling rather generous, he saw Brock glancing at his injured Onix and made a quick decision. He reached into his bag and pulled out a Devon Company high-grade potion he'd brought from Hoenn, as well as an energy block formulated for Rock-types.
"Here, try these. They should help Onix recover faster," he said, offering Brock the items.
Brock looked surprised, hesitating for a moment before accepting. Normally, accepting an item from a challenger would seem unprofessional, but seeing Onix hurt had left him too concerned to refuse.
He sprayed the potion over Onix's cracks and bruises, watching as the revitalizing spray worked into the stone-like skin, gradually sealing the damage.
A few moments later, Onix stirred, visibly better.
"After a day or two of rest, it should be good as new," Luo Yuan assured him.
"Thank you. Really." Brock's tone was genuinely appreciative.
Just as Luo Yuan was about to offer some parting words, an unmistakable voice echoed through the gym, accompanied by a chorus of giggles.
"Where's Brock? I'm here to take you down and win that badge!"