Chapter 104: Surrounded Just After Coming Out

"Ahem!" Yang Yan coughed violently as he emerged from the water. It seemed like every time he got up, he couldn't help but cough a few times before catching his breath.

"Starmie, Meditite, are you okay?"

Yang Yan looked up to assess his surroundings, only to find himself surrounded by a group of Sandshrews and Sandslashes!

It turned out the lake they had appeared in was where these Pokémon came to drink water.

"Starmie, use Water Gun for cover!"

They were still in the water, making movement difficult. They needed to get to solid ground as soon as possible.

"Butterfree, stir up a Gust and add Stun Spore!"

At the moment, none of the other Pokémon could be relied on. Only the flying Butterfree was able to assist from above.

The Sandshrews and Sandslashes, initially caught off guard by the sudden appearance of Yang Yan and his Pokémon, were momentarily stunned. But Starmie's Water Gun and Butterfree's Gust combo were already heading their way.

The Sandshrews didn't have any long-range attack skills and could only resort to Sand Attack, but the wind stirred up by Butterfree's Gust blew the sand right back at them. Sandslash, on the other hand, could use Swift, but its power was no match for Starmie's Water Gun.

"Starmie, now! Use Surf!"

A huge wave of water rose into the air, surging toward the Sandshrews and Sandslashes on the shore. Not being used to water, they panicked and retreated.

With their path clear, Yang Yan and his Pokémon reached the shore. As soon as they landed, Yang Yan summoned the rest of his team.

"Rapidash, use Flamethrower; Sableye Feint Attack; treecko Energy Ball; Nincada Shadow Ball!"

Four attacks were unleashed simultaneously, targeting the Sandslash in front of Yang Yan.

Seeing everyone jump into action, Meditite prepared to charge forward too, but Yang Yan stopped it just in time.

"Meditite, not yet. Our priority right now is to break out of the encirclement!"

Yang Yan had previously noted that Meditite didn't have any long-range attacks, so he didn't want it to rush into close combat unless necessary. They were still surrounded, and it was too risky for Meditite to get involved.

Fortunately, Yang Yan hadn't encountered any Sandslash with advanced strength yet, and Starmie's water-based attacks were their best advantage in this situation.

"Starmie, keep up the Water Gun and clear a path! Everyone, attack in the direction of Starmie's lead!"

Most of the wild Sandshrews and Sandslashes were at beginner or intermediate strength levels. They couldn't hold out for long against Starmie's power, and they began to retreat, clearing a way for Yang Yan's team.

Some Sandshrews were digging tunnels in the distance, but it didn't seem like they were trying to attack—many were escaping through the tunnels instead.

After a few minutes, under Starmie's cover, Yang Yan and his team had moved far enough away from the lake to pause and catch their breath.

He took a moment to assess his new surroundings.

The land around them was mostly sand and rocks, dotted with scattered hills of various heights. There were few trees, and gusts of wind kicked up clouds of dust.

"Sand dunes… This isn't good," Yang Yan muttered with a frown.

This kind of environment was typically inhabited by Rock-, Ground-, and Steel-type Pokémon. While Water-type Pokémon like Starmie had an advantage, the environment itself posed a major problem. There would be very few resources, especially water, making it a difficult place for humans to survive and explore.

"Starting in hell mode already," Yang Yan sighed after shaking off the encounter with the Sandslashes.

"The most important thing right now isn't finding an exit. We need to find a place to settle down and then start exploring from there."

Water wasn't going to be a big issue since Starmie could create water when necessary. The real problem was food. Yang Yan had given away a lot of food earlier, not expecting to end up in such a barren place. He had assumed he would easily find berries or other edible plants, but now it seemed food might become a serious concern.

Checking his supplies again, Yang Yan estimated they had enough food for about 10 days. While it wasn't an immediate crisis, it did mean they needed to either find the exit soon or discover some new food sources.

As Yang Yan was pondering his next move, the ground beneath them suddenly began to shake violently.

"No… Is it the Sandslashes following us?!" Yang Yan's face paled. "We need to move, quickly!"

But it was too late. They had unintentionally been surrounded by Sandslashes that had burrowed beneath the ground!

However, they didn't attack immediately. Instead, they just stood there, staring at Yang Yan and his Pokémon.

Suddenly, a much larger Sandslash emerged from the ground not far in front of Yang Yan. As soon as it appeared, it let out a piercing screech, rubbing its front claws together to produce a metallic sound. Its strength was clearly at the advanced level.

Yang Yan narrowed his eyes. "This Sandslash must be the leader. Is it challenging Starmie to a fight?"

The Sandslash didn't try to dig or order its group to attack; it just surrounded them, as if to say they weren't leaving without a battle.

"Starmie, it looks like this Sandslash wants to challenge you. How about we show it what you're made of?"

Although being surrounded was stressful, Yang Yan knew they couldn't afford to lose their composure. They wouldn't be able to leave unless they defeated this Sandslash.

He admired the Sandslash's courage—it didn't shy away from challenging Starmie, despite knowing its disadvantage in type.

But Yang Yan also knew that as the leader, the Sandslash had no choice but to defend its pride. It couldn't let them leave so easily.

"Starmie, in order to pass the upcoming trials, I need you to completely trust my instructions during the battles. Can you do that?"

Though Yang Yan had occasionally given Starmie directions, he hadn't been strict about it. But now, he needed Starmie to fully rely on him.

After a brief pause, Starmie nodded.

Having a trainer, it knows that if it wants to unleash its full strength, it must rely on the trainer's ability.

It doesn't know whether Yang Yan can do this, but presumably after this battle, it can determine whether it wants to fight on its own or follow Yang Yan's command in the next time.