Chapter 54: There's Something Off About My Pokémon. [54]
"I, Ralts, have no feelings!"
"Expecting too much from Ralts was clearly a mistake," Lu Cheng sighed.
While he was lost in his thoughts, Kevin had already issued a command.
"Ralts, use Confusion!"
Ralts' soulless eyes glowed, and a wave of purple energy surged toward Vulpix.
"Interesting," Lu Cheng smiled. Though Ralts' psychic abilities were a powerful weapon, they posed little threat to Vulpix, whose mental strength was formidable.
"Vulpix, use Extrasensory!"
Lu Cheng deliberately gave this command. Though Extrasensory wasn't particularly effective against Ralts, he wanted to test Vulpix's power by comparing their psychic abilities head-on.
When the two forces collided, it was almost a landslide victory. Ralts let out a pained cry while Vulpix remained unharmed, its eyes faintly glowing blue.
"Vulpix, use Flamethrower!"
With Ralts immobilized by Extrasensory, Flamethrower would undoubtedly hit its mark!
"Ralts, Light Screen!" Kevin, sensing the danger, quickly ordered Ralts to throw up a protective energy barrier. In the next instant, Ralts teleported directly behind Vulpix.
Teleport! However, Ralts was in bad shape, and the Light Screen couldn't fully block the damage. It was still scorched by the Flamethrower.
"Vulpix, now, Quick Attack..." Lu Cheng was just about to finish the battle with Quick Attack when he noticed something off about Ralts.
"Wait, Vulpix!"
Ralts had curled up in pain, but it was starting to emit a bright white light. The crowd gasped.
Was it about to evolve in the middle of battle? That was incredibly risky! While evolving, a Pokémon was practically defenseless, and if Lu Cheng gave the order, Vulpix's Flamethrower could end the match right there.
"Ralts!" Kevin was just as shocked, clearly not expecting this turn of events either.
The referee hadn't blown the whistle—according to official rules, the battle could only end when one Pokémon was declared unable to fight. This meant that attacking a Pokémon during its evolution wasn't against the rules!
"Forget it, that would be too cruel..." Lu Cheng's conscience kicked in. He decided to wait until Ralts finished evolving before commanding an attack.
Kevin, grateful for Lu Cheng's sportsmanship, nodded and shouted, "Ralts, hold on!"
The white light gradually faded, and Kirlia's new form slowly emerged.
"Wow, so beautiful!" "Yeah, Kirlia has more of a girlish charm than Ralts!"
While the crowd cheered, Lu Cheng felt a sudden tension. Kirlia's once bowl-cut green hair had transformed into twin ponytails, and from beneath the bangs, a pair of blood-red eyes stared out—eyes that would undoubtedly give any kid nightmares. Its green, scaly feet now extended from insect-like chitinous sheaths, and it hovered just above the ground.
Forget it, let's just end this already. This thing's appearance was unsettling.
Although Ralts had successfully evolved, it had yet to adapt to its new form and was almost roasted back to its original state by Vulpix's Flamethrower. Kevin, despite losing the battle, smiled with gentlemanly grace and congratulated Lu Cheng, eliciting a wave of cheers from the crowd.
Ugh, down with this perfect guy.
What Lu Cheng didn't realize was that his generous sportsmanship had left a strong impression on many spectators, and quite a few quietly took note of the trainer with the Vulpix. Meanwhile, Mu Mei's online shop saw yet another boost in sales.
Mu Mei's plan was successful!
---
The afternoon matches proceeded without much surprise. Su Xiangrou and Gao Chi both advanced steadily, with no wasted movements. Su Xiangrou relied on her triple-attack strategy of Thunder, Fire, and Ice, while Gao Chi's Machop dominated with its "Three Punches" technique, bombarding opponents with various status effects, leaving them with no chance to fight back. Many spectators marveled at how such a delicate-looking girl like Su Xiangrou could be more ruthless than some elite trainers. Gao Chi, on the other hand, looked like a refined young man, but his battle tactics were exceedingly brutal.
Ding Chong's opponent was the child of a doctor, whose starting Pokémon was a Chansey. However, due to Chansey's slow movements, it was slowly drained by Zubat's Leech Life. By the end, Zubat had feasted well, while Chansey looked utterly drained. Watching this unfold, Lu Cheng couldn't help but wonder if one of Ding Chong's motivations for entering the U20 tournament was to save on Zubat's feeding costs. Zubat typically eats blood packs or animal blood, both of which are expensive and not as nutritious as fresh blood from other Pokémon.
It's worth mentioning that the hospital where Lu Cheng's mother works also has Chansey. In this world, there are both regular hospitals and Pokémon Centers, and Chansey and Blissey are standard fixtures at both.
Meanwhile, in the 64-player round at the 4th venue:
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 4th division of the U20 tournament. I'm your commentator, Yu Lei!"
"And I'm An Tongxin, a student from Shanghai University of the Arts."
In the previous match, due to some audience complaints about Momo's commentary, the organizers decided to bring in a new commentator. This time, they used the experienced Yu Lei to guide the rookie An Tongxin, who was still adjusting to the job. An Tongxin, a sophomore majoring in hosting, was also an outstanding trainer.
"With the pre-match analysis out of the way, I believe the audience has a basic understanding of today's match," Yu Lei said, smiling as he set down his notes. "So, Xiaotong, what are your thoughts on this match?"
An Tongxin, pushing back her short, professional hair, considered her answer before replying, "The Blue player today is Wang Yingjie, a contestant who has already had several impressive performances and is considered a favorite for the championship."
"Meanwhile, the Red player is Hu Sheng from Jiangcheng No. 1 High School. He was accepted into the tournament via direct recommendation and has been highly regarded by magazines, although there are rumors that his abilities might not live up to the hype."
"Looking at their Pokémon, we have a Wartortle and a Charmeleon, both of which are highly capable starter Pokémon. Both have already evolved, which indicates that these trainers haven't neglected their training."
"Although Charmeleon's type is countered by Wartortle, Charmeleon's powerful Dragon Rage can still deal significant damage to Wartortle."
As the two Pokémon on the field prepared for battle, An Tongxin's expression grew more serious. "The key to this match lies in whether Wang Yingjie can continue his streak of one-hit victories, and whether Charmeleon can withstand that critical blow!"
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T/N: I forgot to add that last chapter, I changed T-shirts to jackets... Why? I thought a jacket would complete the Trainer look better...sorry!
If there are any mistakes let me know!
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