## Chapter 25: The Secret Within Reach
The three of them rode on the back of the Gyarados, continuing forward along the Passage. After an unknown amount of Time, the Passage ahead suddenly became wide.
Just then, Bai Feng suddenly pointed at the Wall of the Passage: "Look at the Wall, are those Water Stones?"
Fu La Da Li and Kalos looked at the Wall and indeed saw many blue Stones scattered across it, shimmering with captivating radiance in the dim light.
As they moved further forward, the blue Stones became more numerous.
"They are indeed Water Stones!" Fu La Li Da Li said after looking at the machine in his hand. "It seems the Water-Type Energy here is extremely concentrated; otherwise, there wouldn't be so many Water Stones born."
"Such pure Water Stones!" Bai Feng casually broke off a piece from the Wall and exclaimed in amazement.
Water Stones are generally deep blue, somewhat similar in color to Oshawott's skin, but Water Stones bought outside usually have light or dark blue-white spots. The number of blue-white spots is determined by the Purity of the Water Stone.
The purer the Water Stone, the fewer blue-white spots it contains, and the higher the selling Price.
Because Helioptile needs a Sun Stone to Evolve, Bai Feng had specifically inquired about Evolution Stones at a Pokémon Store, so he had some understanding of them.
Kalos and Fu La Da Li also each broke off a Stone from the Wall, immediately expressing the same amazement as Bai Feng.
Although Water Stones with high Purity are valuable, the three of them did not recklessly collect them, as they didn't know what unknown dangers excessive collection might attract.
After the recent escape, the three of them unanimously decided it was better to be cautious.
After a while longer, Bai Feng and the others finally reached the End of the Passage. The sight that appeared before them left them stunned and speechless.
The Water flowing out of the Passage cascaded downwards like a waterfall, and below was a vast Ocean Space. At the Bottom of the Space lay the bottomless deep blue Seawater. There were many other Passages similar to the one Bai Feng and the others were in, dotting the entire Space like it was draped with white ribbons.
Fortunately, the Gyarados braked in Time, otherwise they would have plunged into the Deep Sea.
The Upper Sky of the Space and the Surroundings were enveloped by a transparent Air Shield, preventing the outside Seawater from flowing in. Bai Feng and the others could even see Wailord, Kingdra, Lanturn, and other Pokémon swimming outside the Air Shield.
Those Pokémon seemed oblivious to the sight inside the Air Shield, clearly accustomed to it.
"Could this be the source where all Energy is born?" Kalos couldn't help but say.
"Probably!" Fu La Da Li frowned deeply as he looked at the Energy Detector in his hand. The Energy Concentration indicator on it had suddenly jumped from A+ to S, and the blue wavy line was faintly glowing red, as if it could sound an alarm at any moment.
The Energy here itself was not Harmful to the Body, but once the Energy Concentration reached a certain Warning Threshold, harmless things would become Harmful.
In the center of the huge Space was a piece of Land similar to an Isolated Island, not large in area, only slightly bigger than Bai Feng's Fang Xing Mountain.
"Let's go take a look at that island!"
Just as the three of them were discussing how to get onto the Small Island, Mantyke and Mantine suddenly flew out from the Seawater below.
Those Mantyke and Mantine did not attack the three of them, but they collectively sent out Signal Beams towards the Small Island.
"They aren't calling for backup, are they?" Bai Feng couldn't help but say.
"Very likely," Fu La Da Li said with a grim expression.
"Cree!"
As expected, just as the two finished speaking, a long cry suddenly echoed from the island, followed by a beautiful Creature with an ice-blue Body flying out from within.
"It's Articuno!" Kalos exclaimed.
Articuno flew in front of the three of them in the blink of an eye. Its gaze revealed anger, and extremely cold Ice Crystals kept falling from its Body.
"Cree!" Humans, how dare you!
After a cry, Articuno launched an attack on the three of them, starting with its powerful Skill, Blizzard.
Howling cold Wind mixed with ice and snow swept towards the three of them. Fortunately, Bai Ye and Kalos's Gardevoir promptly used Psychic Power to raise a Barrier in front of them.
But Articuno was too strong. The two Gardevoir struggled greatly and couldn't hold on for long at all.
"Roar!"
The Gyarados beneath them let out a roar, opened its mouth, and shot a Water Gun towards Articuno. Bai Feng and Kalos took this opportunity to send out Talonflame and Braviary.
"Yarok!!!"
Talonflame let out an excited cry, its Body erupting with crimson Flame, and fiercely pounced towards Articuno using Flare Blitz.
"Hoh!!!"
At the same Time, on the other side, Braviary also used Slash Claw to attack Articuno.
Facing the encirclement of multiple Pokémon, Articuno did not panic. It violently flapped its wings, and a hurricane appeared, instantly sweeping away the Talonflame and Braviary that were pouncing on it.
"Cree!"
Bai Feng and the others' resistance completely enraged Articuno. It flapped its wings even faster, and the Blizzard blowing towards Bai Feng and the others became more intense. The two Gardevoir finally began to struggle.
With a crisp sound, the Psychic Power Barrier jointly created by Bai Ye and Kalos's Gardevoir shattered. As the strong Wind swept over, Bai Feng and the three of them were all blown away, falling into the Seawater below one after another.
As for the Gyarados, it directly took Articuno's Blizzard head-on and was frozen into an Ice Sculpture, solidified in the Seawater of the Passage.
"Yarok~"
"Hoh~"
Talonflame and Braviary wanted to dive down to catch Bai Feng and Kalos, but Articuno, which followed closely, blocked their path.
"Yarok~"
"Hoh~"
The two giant Bird Pokémon had no choice but to continue entanglement with Articuno.
Splash~ Splash~ Splash~
Bai Feng, Kalos, Fu La Da Li, Bai Ye, and Gardevoir fell into the Water one after another.
Because of the rapid descent, Bai Feng drank several mouthfuls of Seawater after falling into the Water before he could surface. He quickly sent out Oshawott and instructed:
"Oshawott, save them!"
"Woo~"
Oshawott responded, and in the blink of an eye, blew a huge Blue Bubble, enveloping Bai Feng and the others one by one.
The bubble created by Oshawott was very sturdy. After holding Bai Feng and the others, it floated steadily on the Water surface.
However, misfortunes never come singly. Articuno Above was temporarily held back by Talonflame and Braviary, but the Mantyke and Mantine Below were now eyeing them menacingly and surrounding them.
Crucially, Bai Feng and the others couldn't use their Pokémon to attack them, otherwise the bubble protecting them would shatter, and the three of them would fall into the Water again.
"Oshawott, Sing!" Bai Feng suddenly Had a brainwave.
"La la~ la~ la la la~ la"
As Oshawott's captivating Singing Voice rang out, the surrounding Mantyke and Mantine stopped their advance, closed their eyes, and plopped into the Water.
"Quick, let's get on the island," Kalos said, pointing to the Small Island not far from them.
"Woo~"
Hearing this, Oshawott quickly controlled the bubble to drift towards the Small Island.
"Cree!!!" Humans, how presumptuous!
Articuno in the Sky saw that Bai Feng and the others' goal was to land on the island and was instantly furious. It flapped its wings, forcing back the Talonflame and Braviary attacking it from both sides, and immediately prepared to dive down, determined to freeze Bai Feng and the others into Ice Sculptures.
But how could Talonflame and Braviary let Articuno succeed? After stabilizing themselves in the Air, they attacked it again.
Braviary used the Tailwind Skill, and the speed of the two giant eagles suddenly increased, blocking Articuno's path in the blink of an eye.
Articuno was completely annoyed by these two fly-like, clingy Big Birds. It opened its mouth and spat out an ice-blue ray, freezing the closer Braviary into an Ice Sculpture in just an Instant.
Talonflame was greatly alarmed by this sight. It quickly used its claws to grab the Braviary that was falling into the Water and then retreated rapidly, no longer daring to approach Articuno.
Kalos, who was landing on the island Below, saw her Braviary frozen into a block of ice and her face changed drastically, but seeing that Talonflame had rescued it in Time, she slightly relaxed.
Talonflame emitted high temperature from its entire Body, melting the ice on Braviary little by little.
With the delay provided by Talonflame and Braviary, Bai Feng and the others Successfully landed on the island, and Articuno also chased after them closely.
"Quick, let's run into the Forest!" Fu La Da Li shouted, simultaneously sending out his Pyroar.
"Roar~"
As soon as Pyroar came out, it turned its head and sprayed a pillar of Flame towards Articuno in the Air. Unfortunately, Fu La Da Li's Pyroar's Strength was not as good as the previous Gyarados. Its Flamethrower didn't even reach Articuno before being scattered by the opponent's wing flap.
Seeing that it couldn't win, Pyroar turned around and chased after its Trainer.
"Cree!!!" Humans, stop, don't go any further!
Articuno's angry roars were incessant. It scattered a large amount of extremely cold air from its Body. Wherever it passed, the Flora was completely frozen.
"I can't run anymore!" After running for an unknown amount of Time, Kalos said breathlessly, an unnatural blush spreading across her pale little face.
"Just hold on a little longer!" Bai Feng gritted his teeth, though he was also extremely tired.
The most relaxed among the three was Fu La Da Li. He was physically strong and clearly someone who exercised regularly.
Bai Feng's Stamina was actually not bad, after all, he did so much farm work every day, but he was young and his Body hadn't fully Developed yet, so he was far behind an adult like Fu La Da Li.
At this moment, he wished he had the physique of a Super Rookie like Ash.
Seeing that Kalos's face was indeed very pale, Fu La Da Li shouted to Pyroar: "Pyroar, help Kalos."
"Awwoo~"
Pyroar responded, stopped abruptly in front of Kalos, and immediately carried her on its back.
Pyroar is not a large Pokémon. Even if Fu La Da Li's was bigger than average, using it as a mount was still a bit difficult.
Fortunately, Kalos was just a young girl in her teens, light in Body, so Pyroar could barely carry her.
"Cree~"
The angry Articuno sprayed another blast of cold air, which was blocked in Time by Bai Ye and Gardevoir using Psychic Power. But as Articuno's attacks became more rapid, the two Gardevoir were also close to giving up.
"Quick, eat this!"
Bai Feng ran while taking out two Berries and handing them to Bai Ye and Gardevoir to replenish their Stamina.
Just then, the Energy Detector in Fu La Da Li's hand emitted a piercing alarm sound.
"Not good, this place is filled with a large amount of Energy that is Harmful to the human Body."
"What is that?" Kalos said, pointing ahead.
Before the three of them appeared a huge Deep Pit. Inside the Pit stood a tall White Jade Pillar. Even from a distance, Bai Feng and the others could feel the Terrifying Energy emanating from the White Jade Pillar.
"Cree~" Don't go near there!
As Bai Feng and the others approached the giant Pit, Articuno let out a terrified cry and also stopped its pursuit.
"Let's put our Pokémon away," Seeing that Articuno didn't approach further, Fu La Da Li suggested with a pale face. "The Energy here is already starting to Influence our Bodies. Pokémon outside will also be affected."
The Energy Detector in Fu La Da Li's hand was still flashing red frantically, but he had turned off the alarm.
Bai Feng and Kalos nodded, took out their Poké Balls, and recalled their respective Pokémon.
As Time passed, Fu La Da Li and Kalos's faces became paler and paler, clearly suffering from the erosion of the Harmful Energy.
But what made Bai Feng strange was that he didn't feel much.
After checking his Body, Bai Feng quickly Discovered the abnormality.
There was indeed a scarlet Energy in the Air that was difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, eroding Bai Feng's Body, but as soon as this Energy entered his Body, it was attacked by the Golden Finger Energy and then expelled, so it could not cause harm to Bai Feng's Body.
"What are you planning to do?"
Seeing Kalos and Fu La Da Li covered in cold sweat, Bai Feng asked hesitantly, unsure whether to continue forward. He himself was fine, but Kalos and Fu La Da Li seemed to be in great pain.
"Continue forward. We've already come this far, I won't be reconciled if we don't go see!" Fu La Da Li said, pointing at the White Jade Pillar. "The Secret of the Sea God's Cave is likely hidden there!"
Bai Feng looked at Kalos, only to see her nod with a pale face, agreeing with Fu La Da Li's suggestion. This girl also had a stubborn personality, unwilling to give up until she hit a wall.
"Alright, since you both want to see, I can only accompany you."
"Wait!"
Fu La Da Li rummaged through his Space Backpack a few times and then pulled out three black Clothes. He handed two of them to Bai Feng and Kalos, saying:
"These are Protective Suits produced by my Research Institute. They may not completely resist the erosion of Energy, but they will definitely have some effect."
Bai Feng and Kalos quickly took the Protective Suits and put them on.
The effect of the Protective Suits was better than Fu La Da Li had expected. At least Kalos felt less uncomfortable.
As for Bai Feng, he still didn't feel anything.
"Alright, let's go!"
Just as the three of them were about to descend into the Deep Pit, two more cries came from behind them. The three turned back and saw that two more legendary Pokémon had appeared beside Articuno at some point - Moltres and Zapdos.
These two Pokémon were not in the Sea God's Cave before. Unexpectedly, after returning, humans had actually broken in and even approached that Forbidden Land!
"It's Moltres and Zapdos!" Kalos said in a low voice.
"Don't worry about them, they seem very wary of this place and don't dare to approach," Bai Feng said.
This was indeed the case. The three legendary Birds watched as Bai Feng and the three of them descended into the Deep Pit step by step, their faces filled with extreme fear, yet they dared not approach a single step, only able to watch helplessly as the three disappeared from their sight.
(End of Chapter)