Xander clenched his teeth as he watched Cain, who remained calm on the other side of the plaza. The frustration in his heart was palpable.
Ekans was clearly at a disadvantage against the agile Murkrow.
Moreover, Murkrow's high attack power left Xander unsure if Ekans could hold out to the end if they continued exchanging blows.
Ekans was breathing heavily; Murkrow's last attack had been truly difficult to endure.
On the other hand, Murkrow flew in the air, its battle thirst evident in its eyes. Although it had been hit by Ekans' Acid move, for someone used to fighting in the wild, that was just a minor wound.
The power difference between the two Pokémon was clear.
"Xander, give up. You can't beat me," Cain said calmly, looking at Xander, whose face had turned pale.
Honestly, if he could persuade Xander to surrender, Cain would rather not continue fighting, as Xander's brother was a high-ranking Officer in Team Rocket, which made Cain somewhat cautious.
However, if the battle continued, Cain wasn't sure he could keep it under control.
Since this was a deathmatch, Cain would show no mercy. If it ended with Ekans dead, he would have made a complete enemy of Xander.
If they became enemies, even with a brother who was an Officer in Team Rocket, Cain wouldn't hesitate to finish him off to eliminate any future threat.
As for that Officer, whom he had never met, Cain, with his accumulated experience and system support, was confident he could surpass him and end this rivalry.
That was his absolute confidence.
But he needed time to grow.
Cain's words, which sounded like an attempt to show mercy, came off as extremely offensive in Xander's ears.
What Cain said struck deep at Xander's pride.
It seemed he had made a firm decision when suddenly Xander slightly waved his hand over his Team Rocket belt, and a dark purple sphere appeared in his hand.
Cain frowned as he saw Xander's movement, sensing a bad omen.
Xander clenched his teeth tightly, his expression turning sinister. "You forced me! Prepare to die, you bastard!"
With that, he threw the dark purple sphere toward Ekans, who, recognizing what it was, swallowed it immediately.
From the stands, Viper, who was watching Xander throw the object, slightly frowned but said nothing.
With his experience, Viper knew exactly what that object was. That purple sphere was listed in the Team Rocket exchange catalog, priced at 5,000 points.
It could rapidly boost a Pokémon's Poison-type energy, multiplying the Poison energy within it by five.
However, such a powerful effect also came with great side effects: the Pokémon that consumed this pill would be in a weakened state for a week.
Xander obviously wanted to take this chance to finish off Cain once and for all. If he succeeded, no one could surpass him in the test, even if he was weakened for a week. He was confident he could recover.
This pill had been given to Xander by his brother before coming to the island as a last resort for special situations. He hadn't expected to use it against Cain.
"Ekans!" After consuming the purple pill, Ekans felt a surge of energy in its body, even exceeding its limits, causing its body to expand slightly. A faint purple mist began to surround it.
"Hiss..." The purple mist around Ekans began to corrode the ground, leaving it full of pits and cracks.
These changes happened in an instant, before Cain could prepare.
"Ekans, use Poison Sting!" Xander ordered with a twisted expression.
Dozens of purple needles shot out of Ekans' mouth, filled with poison and with increased speed, aimed at Murkrow.
"Murkrow, use Gust to deflect those needles!" Although he didn't know what Xander had given Ekans, Cain could see from the purple mist and poisonous needles that Ekans had been enhanced with Poison-type energy.
Following Cain's command, Murkrow concentrated its Flying energy and created a small tornado to deflect the needles.
However, the venom-laden needles pierced through the tornado, only slightly weakened by the wind, and continued their path toward Murkrow.
With astonishing speed, the venomous needles struck Murkrow, enveloping it in a purple cloud: it was poisoned.
"That's an extremely strong poison!"
Cain frowned, seeing Murkrow had been poisoned, surprised by Xander's hidden card. He hadn't expected Xander to have something like that, showing that his brother held considerable power.
"Ha ha ha! Now your Murkrow is poisoned! You have no choice but to finish this quickly!" Xander laughed maniacally, seeing the poison take effect.
With Murkrow poisoned, Cain could no longer afford to prolong the battle to wear down Ekans.
"Murkrow, use Tailwind and attack with Wing Attack! Let's end this quickly!"
Evaluating the situation, Cain decided to strike directly.
He needed to end the battle quickly.
Though Murkrow felt weakened from the poison, it obeyed Cain's command, darting like a black lightning bolt toward Ekans.
Murkrow's Wing Attack was now its strongest move, perfect for a quick-strike strategy.
"Ekans, use Scary Face and then Poison Fang!"
Xander, not hiding his murderous intent, commanded Ekans to use its most powerful Poison-type move.
Murkrow closed in, but its speed dropped slightly due to Ekans' Scary Face move. Even so, it didn't hesitate and readied its wings to strike.
However, the poison's effects kicked in at that moment, and along with the speed reduction from Scary Face, although Murkrow managed to hit Ekans, it was also struck by Ekans' poisoned fangs.
Both Pokémon backed away after the clash, but this time, the result was different: Ekans had taken the attack, but Murkrow had also been poisoned again, with the purple mist around it growing even denser.
The poison was building up in Murkrow.
The battle was tipping in Xander's favor, and Cain and Murkrow were at a disadvantage.
"Ha ha ha! Today you'll die!"
Xander grew more confident after seeing Poison Fang's effect.
If he could kill Cain here, what did it matter if he was weak for a week? No one in the audience would dare to challenge him.
But what Xander didn't expect was that, at that moment, Cain smiled!