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Waking up.
The sound of dripping water echoed in his ears, along with some muffled groans.
Li Xiang tried to open his eyes but found a layer of gauze covering his face, his mouth also gagged with cloth, leaving him only able to let out stifled whimpers.
Moving slightly, he realized his hands and feet were tightly bound with oiled rope—the more he struggled, the tighter it became. His entire body was curled up like a worm, and the back of his right hand burned with pain, likely from punching the glass earlier.
After struggling fiercely a few times and realizing he couldn't break free, Li Xiang quickly calmed himself and used the Three-Blind Perception Technique.
Slowly, his surroundings became clearer in his mind.
First—there were a lot of people.
Muffled groans came from all around, and by twisting his body, he could tell he was surrounded by others.
Second—Mrs. Yin and Li Zhehan were likely behind him.
He could tell because he recognized his mother's emerald earring by touch.
As for Li Zhehan, his identification was simpler—his absurdly large and hard pectoral muscles were unmistakable.
Third—they were probably underground.
The air was damp, cold, and lightless. The ground was icy and uneven, covered in gravel, with a strange odor lingering in the air.
Overall, it was very different from the usual dry climate of Saizhou.
He needed to find a way to remove the cloth covering his face and assess the situation.
Li Xiang lowered his head and rubbed his face against the ground, no longer caring about whether he'd get scraped up.
After nearly two minutes of effort, the cloth slid partially off, exposing his right eye.
Li Xiang didn't make a sound, blinking a few times to adjust to the dim surroundings.
Just as he expected—many bound figures surrounded him. Judging by their clothing and the pendants on their chests, they were likely followers of the Snow Cult.
Li Zhehan and Mrs. Yin were behind him, the former shielding the latter. From the rise and fall of their chests, Li Zhehan was awake, but Mrs. Yin wasn't.
Environment-wise, they seemed to be in some kind of dungeon—no windows, no view of the outside. The only exit was a twisted, plant-like wooden door in the distance, sturdy and unmovable.
Beyond the door, there was nothing.
As he scanned further—
"Kid, stop looking. There's no escape."
A hoarse, low voice spoke up from behind him.
Li Xiang twisted around and saw a gaunt, middle-aged man sitting on a pile of dry hay. His expression was weary, his hair and clothes disheveled, looking like he'd crawled out of a garbage dump.
If not for his voice and beard, Li Xiang wouldn't have even been sure of his gender.
"Mmh!"
Seeing someone who wasn't bound, Li Xiang immediately wriggled toward him.
Hearing the man's voice, Li Zhehan also realized who he was talking to and let out a muffled shout.
"You want me to untie you? I can do that."
The middle-aged man chuckled. "But your dinner belongs to me."
We're tied up like this—do you really think they're planning to feed us?!
Li Xiang nodded frantically. Right now, all he wanted was freedom. As long as the request wasn't outrageous, he'd agree to anything.
"Then don't move."
The man laboriously dragged himself over, and only then did Li Xiang realize his legs were broken, hanging uselessly.
Broken legs!
Li Xiang stiffened, quickly testing his own lower body. Relieved to find his legs intact, he exhaled.
The man worked at the knots behind Li Xiang's back, taking a full ten minutes to loosen them.
The moment he was free, Li Xiang yanked off the remaining cloth over his eye and the gag, then undid the ropes around his feet.
"Thank you, uncle!"
He shot the disabled man a grateful look. The man just grinned and shuffled back to his spot.
"Give me your dinner, then thank me."
"Got it, got it."
Li Xiang nodded repeatedly. Once his legs were free, he stood and stretched, relieved to find no missing limbs—only the pain on the back of his hand remained.
Good.
After confirming he was unharmed, he rushed to his parents and untied them.
Li Zhehan was freed first and gently woke Mrs. Yin. The two checked each other over, relieved to find they were only bound, not injured.
When asked about their Pokémon, Li Xiang said they'd been thrown out the window—but Corviknight had caught them.
"A stroke of luck in misfortune." Li Zhehan sighed in relief before starting to untie the others.
Of course, he made sure they stayed quiet, only loosening their bonds after they promised not to make noise.
The middle-aged man watched cheerfully, saying nothing. About ten minutes later, all thirty or so people in the room were free.
Aside from Li Xiang's family, the rest were Snow Cult members—adults, children, even a bald old man.
His status in the cult seemed high, with others respectfully calling him "Dharma King."
Some tried prying at the wooden cell door, while others tended to the injured.
"How were you all captured?"
Li Zhehan gathered information, starting with the old man.
"In our village," the old man wheezed, leaning against the wall. "The village, the temple, everyone—we were all attacked by the New Sun Cult."
Temple?
"Grandpa, how many people are in your village?" Li Xiang asked softly.
"Over three hundred Snow God followers," a grimy-faced young man answered. "Our High Priest and Dharma Kings were captured too. I held out till the end, but I was no match for the New Sun Cult."
New Sun Cult…
Wait, what about those three?
Li Xiang stood and searched the cell, eventually spotting the trio who had promised to take them to Snow City. They were huddled in a corner, silent.
Not moles, then…
Frowning, Li Xiang approached and whispered, "How'd you get caught too?"
The woman named Pona glanced at him bleakly. "We… couldn't fight them. Their Pokémon were too strong."
No kidding.
Li Xiang held back a scoff. Given how their Pokémon had exerted pressure through the window, controlled humans effortlessly, and subdued four people at once, their level was undoubtedly high.
The stronger a Pokémon, the more absurd the feats it could pull off.
He pressed on, "Do you know where we are now?"
"Inside the Sun Temple, two hundred meters underground," one of the men murmured. "We can't escape. The cell door was made by the New Sun Archbishop's Trevenant—even a chainsaw wouldn't cut through it."
Trevenant?
That green-crowned, three-horned, one-eyed wooden Pokémon with six legs?
Was that the single eye he'd seen earlier?
But more baffling than that was the idea of a Sun Temple buried two hundred meters underground.
A Sun Temple… underground?
After a moment's thought, Li Xiang asked, "This is the uninhabited northern region of Saizhou, right?"
"Yes, very close to the polar region," another man confirmed.
"Why build a temple underground?"
"Because it's less noticeable. The League would spot it aboveground. Plus, theoretically, this temple can rise to the surface—if external force helps."
"And this temple… is where you live?"
"Of course not. The temple is the god's dwelling," Pona said, giving him a strange look. "Why would it be called a temple if it was for us?"
Hearing this, Li Xiang paused before asking carefully, "No offense, but… is your god a Volcarona? A Bug/Fire-type Pokémon?"
"No."
Pona's answer was crisp and clear. "Volcarona is Volcarona. The god is the god."
"...They're not the same species?"
"Theoretically, they are, but the god is different from them." Pona said calmly. "The god is the incarnation of the sun. Volcarona is just Volcarona."
What kind of vague nonsense is this?
"Then do you know why the New Sun Cult brought us here?" Li Xiang cut straight to the point.
The three exchanged glances before shaking their heads.
"We don't know. Honestly, we haven't had access to the New Sun Cult's deeper secrets for a long time," Pona admitted.
"That's because you've been played from the start!"
A voice suddenly cut in.
Everyone's attention snapped toward the source—the disheveled, disabled man, who sneered coldly.
"Pona, Cook, Zachia… Ever since you escaped, the one feeding you information wasn't me!"
"...Uncle Haman?!"
Pona froze, then stood up in shock. "Why are you here? And—"
She finally processed his words, her face turning deathly pale. "You mean… they let us escape?"
"Exactly. The moment you got out, I was captured. They broke my bones. Every message you received afterward? Them." Haman kept laughing, but tears streamed down his face. "Every single person you led them to… was because you told them." His face twisted grotesquely.
Pona collapsed to the ground, her eyes hollow as she muttered name after name.
The other two men broke down, gritting their teeth and slamming their heads against the floor.
...What the hell is going on?
Li Xiang watched as the Snow Cult members quickly gathered around them, then hurried back to Li Zhehan's side.
His father had just finished questioning someone, and the family exchanged intel.
"Dad, I taught Corviknight how to track and send signals. Unless something goes wrong, someone should come to rescue us," Li Xiang whispered, holding his mother close.
"Not should. They will."
Li Zhehan took off his shoe, pulled out the insole, and revealed a small black device glowing red. "Your old man didn't spend all these years in the business for nothing."
But there was no pride in his expression—only bitterness.
A transmitter?
"This thing is linked to my satellite phone. Uncle Xu has already connected to it. Even if there's signal jamming, it'll narrow the search radius. He's probably on his way to Tian Du to call in reinforcements. Now, we just wait for a deus ex machina."
Li Zhehan rubbed his face, his voice strained. "Originally, this was the last resort. The police were already on their way too, but I never thought that damn driver would take a detour just to earn a few extra bucks."
A freaking detour—
Li Xiang glanced around, itching to find that bastard and punch him.
"It's my fault. I didn't assess the situation properly. I should've studied the map of Laya City more, or even split up." Li Zhehan grabbed his hair, bowing his head deeply. "If they had attacked directly… This is on me. I'm sorry..."
The United Regions—no, the entire Pokémon world—was a peaceful place. People had conflicts, but under a well-maintained system, they lived happily.
So why had the Guzzlord incident caused such a global uproar, remaining a heated topic even now?
In a world where Pokémon wielded unimaginable destructive power, shouldn't it have been… normal?
Monsters attacking a city?
But large-scale Pokémon assaults on cities hadn't happened in centuries.
And this New Sun Cult's attack? Unprecedented since the League's founding.
Who even does terrorist attacks in this era? In an age where secrets barely existed before the truly powerful.
Those with world-shaping strength maintained saint-like impartiality, carefully preserving the world's balance.
Li Zhehan, in his thirty-plus years, had faced few real crises. Smuggling Xu Dongran out had been his biggest gamble. Li Xiang's kidnapping had been his greatest rage.
He never imagined someone would have the audacity to bomb highways, bomb districts, and kidnap people in broad daylight.
Even with all his precautions, all his calculations, he hadn't expected disasters to pile up one after another.
This thirty-four-year-old man was still young. He needed time to grow.
Li Xiang and Mrs. Yin watched Li Zhehan's self-blame silently before stepping forward to embrace him.
Family doesn't apologize to family.
No one had omniscience. Who could've known that helping a stranger would lead to this?
Who could've guessed this world still had lunatics who rejected society and chose self-destruction?
In the end, Li Zhehan had done nothing wrong.
He had kindly saved Bian Zhen twice. He had generously agreed to Chi Zang's request to escort them. He had meticulously planned their escape.
The ones at fault were the New Sun Cult—this damned religion, these maniacs who harmed innocents, acted recklessly, and spat on reason itself!
Li Xiang had never felt such fury. He wanted to tear them apart.
And for the first time, he truly understood the undercurrents beneath this peaceful world.
Ever since he arrived, ever since Lin Feng began growing stronger, this world had stopped being stable.
Complacency kills. Such a simple truth, and he'd forgotten it.
Too lazy. Too weak.
Strength. I need more strength!
Li Xiang stared at the vine-covered cell door, at Li Zhehan's bowed head, at his mothers tearful whispers.
And he realized— He could do nothing but wait for rescue.
Nothing at all.