The situation was already one-sided; Zhang Heng had taken control of the battlefield.
Zhang Heng had no intention of being merciful or letting them go, so he immediately commanded, "Cutting Rotom, use Electric Net!"
Cutting Rotom's electricity surged again, and several electric bolts shot towards the Toxtricity, weaving into a net, electrocuting both of them, making them tremble and shriek, and filling the air with a pungent burning smell.
Though heavily wounded, the two Toxtricity were still struggling for survival; the Low-Key Form Toxtricity endured, using its remaining strength to unleash Acid, attempting to block the offensive; the Amped Form Toxtricity gathered faint electricity, trying to counterattack Cutting Rotom.
Marshtomp wouldn't give them a chance; now standing on two feet, using skills was even simpler, and Fighting-type energy condensed in his fists.
With a flash, he rushed in front of the Low-Key Form Toxtricity, using Mach Punch, which he had learned under Urshifu's blessing.
Toxtricity's electric-type skills struck Marshtomp, but had no effect, because Marshtomp was no longer just Water Attribute, but Water and Ground Attribute, making him immune to electric-type skills.
Marshtomp first punched Toxtricity directly in the face, then followed up with Mud Shot, his attacks becoming increasingly fierce, specifically targeting the wounds on its body, unleashing a barrage of blows.
Cutting Rotom moved nimbly, avoiding counterattacks, and continued to Discharge; Frogadier also condensed Water Pulse again, preparing to deliver the finishing blow.
Under the combined fierce assault of the three, Toxtricity ran out of stamina and collapsed, completely losing its ability to fight.
Zhang Heng looked at Marshtomp with excitement, saying, "That's great, Marshtomp, this evolution turned the tide of the battle."
After Zhang Heng finished speaking, he subconsciously patted Marshtomp's head; the touch was still cool, unchanged.
"Glaragla."
Marshtomp comfortably narrowed his eyes, wanting to jump onto Zhang Heng's shoulder as before, but after looking up at Zhang Heng's shoulder and then down at his own body, it seemed he couldn't climb up anymore.
Zhang Heng noticed the little guy's predicament, squatted down, and said, "You can lie on my back, I can carry you, that's fine too."
"Glarala~"
Marshtomp joyfully jumped, then steadily climbed onto Zhang Heng's broad back. Marshtomp excitedly wiggled his body.
Psyduck was also holding his head nearby, observing Marshtomp with interest. Zhang Heng also looked at him in wonder; it seemed that ever since the Water Tower trial began, Psyduck had been particularly fond of his Marshtomp.
Zhang Heng also tried to communicate with Psyduck, but found that the Water Tower's will was still inside the tower, while the transformed energy body Psyduck had been following Zhang Heng. While Zhang Heng was still pondering something, Psyduck slowly disappeared again.
Zhang Heng really couldn't figure out the reason, but his hands were gently patting Marshtomp's tail, his eyes filled with tenderness.
Their interaction was natural and harmonious, like a pair of inseparable family members, reflecting an incredibly warm scene.
Zhu Zi, on the other hand, was not polite. He took Frogadier and retrieved the parts that could be made into items from the bodies of the two fallen Toxtricity, seemingly indicating that his economic situation was truly dire.
Watching Zhang Heng approach with Marshtomp on his back, Zhu Zi cautiously said, "Are you interested in these?" Zhu Zi thought Zhang Heng also needed to collect item materials.
Zhang Heng merely glanced at them, knowing that the other person was not well-off, and first handed over the Mimic Herb he had just gotten from Marshtomp, saying, "Thank you for lending me your item. I'm not interested in these Electric-type Pokémon's items, feel free to take them."
Zhang Heng then looked towards the front of the passage, where he could vaguely see a steel door, with a faint light shining through the crack.
"There's a door! We must be getting close to the central area of the prison, right?"
Marshtomp jumped off Zhang Heng's back and warily looked ahead. Zhang Heng could barely contain his excitement and quickened his pace, running forward, with Zhu Zi and Frogadier hurrying to keep up.
Arriving at the door, Zhang Heng and Zhu Zi both took a deep breath, placed their hands against the door, and pushed hard. With a dull thud, the door slowly opened, and a blinding light instantly poured out, making them unable to open their eyes for a moment. After their eyes adjusted to the light, what greeted them was a spacious and bright underground room.
The surrounding floor tiles were so polished they reflected like mirrors, perfectly flat and spotless, as if someone meticulously wiped and cleaned them daily. The lights overhead emitted a soft, transparent glow, illuminating the entire space brightly, without a single dark corner.
"This is my first time here too, but there's no mistake, it's the power station beneath the prison," Zhu Zi exclaimed, looking around.
Zhang Heng was also filled with surprise, and slowly stepped in. The soles of his shoes made a faint echo as they touched the floor tiles, reverberating in the silent space. Marshtomp curiously looked around, bouncing a few times on the ground, seemingly testing the safety of this new and strange place.
Just as they were immersed in their astonishment, a faint "buzzing" sound, like the operation of some electrical appliance, came from not far away, breaking the tranquility.
Zhu Zi's nerves tensed in alertness, his gaze quickly sweeping towards the source of the sound, and he whispered, "Be careful, it sounds like a Magnemite."
With that, he and Zhang Heng stood back to back, cautiously moving towards the sound source, preparing to deal with the unknown situation.
But what came next was not the hum of a machine starting, but a sharp Roar.
Upon hearing the Roar, their hearts instantly jumped into their throats, and they nervously watched the direction from which the sound came. They saw a more imposing Electivire slowly appear, its body wrapped in thick, powerful currents, crackling and popping, and each step it took caused the ground to tremble slightly.
It was followed by two Magneton, looking very much like a leader inspecting his subordinates.
However, unexpectedly, this Electivire showed no obvious hostility in its eyes after seeing them clearly.
Zhang Heng quietly asked, "Should we make a move?"
Zhu Zi responded to Zhang Heng, saying, "This Electivire, which has a trainer, should be a guard Pokémon in the power station. It probably saw my police uniform and felt the magnetic field from our prison badges, thinking we were official personnel, which is why it didn't attack."
Electivire just tilted its head and examined them for a moment, then actually raised a paw towards one direction, letting out a few low grunts, as if giving an order.
Zhu Zi hesitated for a moment, then whispered to Zhang Heng, "It seems to think we're here to work. It means for us to go over there." Saying this, he pointed in the direction Electivire indicated.
Zhang Heng was full of doubt, but dared not act rashly, so he could only nod slightly and cautiously move in that direction with Zhu Zi.
They hadn't walked far when they turned a corner and saw a room with the words "Cleaning Room" clearly written on the door.
Entering the room, it was filled with various cleaning tools. Zhang Heng and Zhu Zi exchanged glances and helplessly picked up brooms. They had just walked out of the cleaning room.
Electivire led the way again, bringing them to an open area in the basement, pointed at the ground again, and then stood aside, monitoring their every move.
Thus, the two of them, along with the two Water-type starter Pokémon in their second evolutionary stages, pretended to sweep the floor under Electivire's command.
Zhang Heng gripped the broom and whispered to Zhu Zi, "Let's go along with its wishes for now, and see if we can find an opportunity to figure out the situation here and locate the guardian Pokémon." Zhu Zi nodded in agreement.
So, the two of them started cleaning, but their eyes occasionally darted around. This basement appeared spacious, but in reality, it held hidden secrets.
There were many complex wiring pipes on the walls, some even flickering with faint light, which seemed to be electrical conduits transmitting power from the underground power station to the prison above.
Just as they were sweeping and observing, Zhang Heng inadvertently discovered a faint blue light emanating from a crack in the floor tiles, flickering subtly, which was very peculiar.
He calmly used the broom to gently brush away the surrounding dust, attempting to investigate, and at this moment, that Electivire also seemed to have noticed the anomaly, slowly walking towards them with large strides...