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After confirming that they would go to Mist Island, the conversation came to an end.
Bai Wanhua proactively suggested eating out, but Mo Ye refused.
"I'll cook."
He squinted his fox-like eyes, secured the sword at his waist, rolled up his sleeves, and walked inside the house. Hearing this, Bai Wanhua smiled and said they were in for a treat.
'An Elite Four member actually knows how to cook!'
Li Xiang was quite surprised. The outside world always said Mo Ye was not interested in anything other than battling or improving his Pokémon's strength.
'Rumors, all rumors.'
"Your teacher Mo's culinary skills are pretty good. Although he has only been self-taught for a year, you can look forward to it."
Bai Wanhua said with a smile from the side, then went to assist Mo Ye, telling Li Xiang to look around on his own.
Self-taught for a year...
Li Xiang's expression turned strange. Suddenly, he heard the sound of feet thumping down the stairs.
"Senior! Let's battle!"
Bai Yuanyuan was somewhat excited, with her Glaceon hopping around beside her. Judging by her expression, she had probably been watching battle recordings in her room because Lin Feng's expression after watching battle recordings was pretty similar to hers.
Extremely inflated, even daring to challenge him proactively.
But after just a couple of matches, that guy frantically waved his hands in surrender, mumbling something about how he definitely was not up to it today.
How embarrassing.
How long could this one last?
Li Xiang pondered for a moment, then agreed. There was no reason to refuse candy delivered to his door.
Perfect timing.
Just outside Mo Ye's backyard, there was a sunken medium-sized field, the seventy-meter kind.
Enough to handle small-scale situations.
"Senior, are we doing a full battle or a three-on-three?" Bai Yuanyuan hopped around the field, extremely excited.
After all, the person before her was a senior from the Youth Training Camp. As a fellow trainee, she was not just admiring, but also full of longing.
She wanted to become a trainer like him.
Seeing Li Xiang in person, she had to have a battle.
"Three-on-three, it saves time."
Li Xiang glanced at Glaceon, reached into his pocket, and took out a Poké Ball decorated with landscapes.
"Okay, okay!"
Bai Yuanyuan nodded vigorously, recalled Glaceon, and switched to another Pokémon.
Both sides simultaneously sent out their Pokémon.
Li Xiang chose Aegislash. This guy had not really had a proper battle since evolving.
On the opposing side, she sent out a bipedal dinosaur with a brownish body, a light yellow belly, and a small pouch containing a miniature version of itself.
The Normal-type Kangaskhan.
"Huh... Kangaskhan."
Li Xiang became interested. After all these battles, this was indeed his first time encountering a Kangaskhan.
The main reason was their scarcity. Even though the Alliance had been vigorously breeding them alongside Lapras in recent years, the number held by trainers was still not high.
On the opposing side, Bai Yuanyuan's eyes lit up when she saw Li Xiang send out a new Pokémon, not any of the ones he had used in competitions.
Not only did he have six incredibly strong Pokémon, but he also had a seventh?
The girl could not help but feel full of anticipation.
The battle began.
"Fake Out!"
"Swords Dance."
Kangaskhan charged forward with a roar, the little Kangaskhan in its pouch also letting out an adorable cry.
Using a Normal-type move suggested it likely had the Scrappy Ability.
It was clear this one had also invested quite a bit in Speed. Otherwise, covering nearly fifty meters so quickly would not have been possible.
Aegislash danced, its Attack sharply rising.
Kangaskhan arrived right in front of it, raised its right palm glowing white, and slammed it down hard on Aegislash!
Clang!
The sound of metal striking metal!
Undoubtedly, this Normal-type Fake Out did hit the Ghost-type Aegislash.
Scrappy Ability confirmed.
Fortunately, Fake Out's base power was not strong, and with Aegislash's Steel typing, it did not cause much damage.
Bai Yuanyuan was well aware of this, so her focus was on the attack after Fake Out.
"Power-Up Punch!"
"Grr!"
Before her command even finished, Kangaskhan's right fist was already enveloped in a reddish-brown glow, smashing hard against the briefly flinching Aegislash!
Bang!
A dull thud like a hammer hitting metal!
Aegislash's body, under the force of this punch, flew back uncontrollably!
"Nice one!" Bai Yuanyuan waved excitedly.
With Power-Up Punch, Kangaskhan successfully boosted its Attack. Next, just—
Swish!
"Aerial Ace."
Accompanied by Li Xiang's voice, the soft ring of a blade leaving its sheath echoed in the field.
Then, a chilling light flashed!
Before Kangaskhan could react, a massive blade had already passed by it!
Bang!
Smoke scattered!
"Grr!"
The intense pain made Kangaskhan clutch its side, even kneeling on one knee.
The little Kangaskhan in the pouch looked up worriedly, pushing against its mother's belly.
'Such terrifying power!'
Bai Yuanyuan was astonished. Her Kangaskhan balanced Speed, bulk, and Attack evenly. Even most Fighting-type moves could be taken easily.
But being hit by Aegislash's non-STAB Aerial Ace had left it with little stamina left!
Li Xiang smiled without speaking.
With Swords Dance boost and Blade Forme, Aerial Ace, under multiple buffs, was not so easy to take.
It did not matter that it did not faint in one hit because the next attack followed immediately!
Without even needing Li Xiang's command, Aegislash spun its body, its blade whipping around!
Sacred Sword!
A reddish-brown air current turned into a blade storm!
Kangaskhan used Protect to block, but the green shield shattered after just a moment, and Aegislash's blade struck it!
Bang!
Smoke exploded!
Kangaskhan stumbled back several steps before collapsing dejectedly to the ground, listless with eyes closed.
It was clearly a sign of depleted stamina.
Apart from those first two hits, Kangaskhan was completely powerless, defeated one-sidedly.
The gap between them was incredibly obvious.
Ultimately, giving a Pokémon like Aegislash a chance to set up was a mistake.
Let alone that last move. If Kangaskhan had been willing to gamble with Reversal, there might have been a chance.
Too bad.
Seeing her ace lose so quickly, Bai Yuanyuan's initial fighting spirit was doused. She deeply realized Li Xiang's strength.
Was she not also a top-tier trainee in the Youth Training Camp? Why did she lose so fast?
Feeling frustrated, the girl recalled Kangaskhan and sent out her next Pokémon.
Aegislash slowly sheathed itself.
The second Pokémon was the previously seen adorable Glaceon. Upon landing, it immediately used Baby-Doll Eyes, sharply lowering Aegislash's Attack.
However, with Aegislash's offensive power, even without Swords Dance, it could still one-shot Glaceon with Iron Head.
That is what it thought, and that is what it did.
So, when Glaceon used Baby-Doll Eyes on it, it did not dodge at all, letting its Attack drop. Then, unsheathing, it charged at Glaceon with its shield raised!
Bang!
Silver light exploded like smoke!
Glaceon cried out as it was sent flying, its small and exquisite body rolling across the ground until stopping several meters away.
It was clearly knocked out.
The second match ended in such a seemingly childish, yet brutally real way.
Bai Yuanyuan's thoughts became even more chaotic. She recalled Glaceon and sent out the third Pokémon she had trained intensively.
A Pokémon wearing a witch's hat, looking like a purple teru teru bozu. (A japanese doll to ward off bad weather)
The Ghost-type Mismagius, with the Levitate Ability.
Why are they all single-type?
Li Xiang found it amusing. Did Bai Yuanyuan not have any other Pokémon? Sending out Mismagius against Aegislash?
"Hypnosis!"
Using Hypnosis right after landing surprised Li Xiang a bit.
Mismagius typically have difficulty learning Hypnosis. It is mostly obtained through breeding.
In the games, Mismagius with Hypnosis were only available through events.
Quite the spender, this girl!
"Shadow Sneak."
Facing Mismagius's Hypnosis, Aegislash again did not dodge. It changed from Shield Forme to Blade Forme, stabbing its blade hard into the ground!
Bang!
Dust kicked up. A pitch-black shadow extended from beneath Aegislash, traveling all the way to underneath Mismagius, who was releasing pink waves. The shadow then transformed into a giant blade and stabbed upwards violently!
Bang!
Ghost-type energy exploded!
Mismagius wailed as it was sent flying. Shadow Sneak, as a priority move, has low power, but with STAB and super-effective damage, its final power was terrifying!
Enough to one-shot it!
Too bad, luck was not on Li Xiang's side. Mismagius held on, but Aegislash fell asleep due to the Hypnosis.
"Great! Shadow Ball!"
Bai Yuanyuan saw a chance to win and shouted excitedly.
"Sleep Talk."
Li Xiang was not panicked. Even in this state, if that Shadow Ball hit Aegislash, it was done for.
Lady Luck was definitely on his side.
And so it proved.
As Mismagius spat out the dark energy ball from its mouth,
Aegislash, with its blade still embedded in the ground, suddenly extended its ribbon-like arms, transforming them into two massive ghostly claws, reaching for Mismagius from left and right!
Extremely fast, Mismagius had no room to dodge!
Both moves hit!
Two clouds of smoke exploded separately. The field fell silent.
A moment later, the smoke cleared, revealing the two Pokémon inside, both unconscious.
A double knockout.
"Its defense is not good."
Li Xiang shook his head helplessly. Aegislash in Blade Forme was just too fragile, unreasonably so. Any super-effective move could take it out.
On the opposite side, Bai Yuanyuan's expression was complicated.
She did not know if she should be happy. After all, she had taken down one of Li Xiang's Pokémon.
That was something many school team members, even captains, had not managed on the competition field.
But feeling genuinely happy about it seemed a bit shameful. A trainer should not take pride in just defeating one opponent's Pokémon. That was not right.
"Next time, remember to attack directly. You actually had several chances to take down Aegislash directly."
Li Xiang recalled Aegislash and then said.
This kid's biggest problem was being too fixated on status moves, on restricting the opponent. Glaceon's offensive power was so high.
If she had been willing to go head-to-head with Aegislash, she might not have lost.
"Huh?"
Bai Yuanyuan was momentarily stunned.
"Learn to be a bit more reckless. Do not always think about playing it safe. Trust your Pokémon." Li Xiang's advice ended there.
In the distance, Bai Wanhua called them for dinner.
At the dinner table, they ate and chatted. Mo Ye's cooking was indeed very good, much better than Li Xiang's own attempts.
Bai Yuanyuan was still immersed in the previous battle, somewhat dazed. Seeing this, Bai Wanhua steered the conversation toward her.
As a member of the second Youth Training Camp intake, although this girl was not as extreme as Li Xiang in earning points, she was still a top-tier trainee in the Mist City camp.
Only one person could truly compete with her. And from what Bai Wanhua said, Bai Yuanyuan seemed intent on enrolling in Mist City University, becoming his junior.
"I hope you can look after her a bit then."
Bai Wanhua said pleasantly, making polite conversation.
"I will certainly do my best."
Li Xiang responded quietly.
After the meal, they did not stay long. They drank the tea Mo Ye brewed, strolled around the courtyard for a bit to digest, and then Li Xiang left to make preparations.
What preparations?
Preparations for the assessment.
Anyone entering Mist Island through the Ranger Union route must undergo rigorous vetting and testing.
Mist Island was too important. Letting people enter without restrictions would cause problems.
They could not control the ones proactively invited by the Knowledge Museum, but they certainly had to control those going through their route.
Actually, Mo Ye telling him the specifics of Mist Island ahead of time was overstepping. Normally, it would be vetting, then testing, then signing a confidentiality agreement, and finally being told the details.
But he had already said it.
What more could they say?
Even if they wanted to somehow erase Li Xiang's memory, they would have to get him inside Mist Island first.
Of course, unless the situation was extremely severe, they would never do that.
The Ranger Union was not an extremist animal protection group.
As for the vetting, Li Xiang was confident he would pass. As they say, the child is valued by the mother. Mrs. Yin was the deputy director of the Qingcheng Conservation Base!
He had impeccable credentials!
Ahem, that might be exaggerating, but it was true. Having grown up in the breeding base, he could definitely be considered one of their own.
As for the testing, Li Xiang also did not foresee many problems. He absolutely loved Pokémon, every single kind, even smelly ones like Muk and Garbodor.
The secret of Mist Island could attract thousands of people. While some with ulterior motives might not get inside, the other Pokémon living around Mist Island Lake could be implicated.
Therefore, he absolutely could not leak it.
He was not stupid.
But considering the complex situation inside Mist Island, even though it was only early May, he felt he might not be able to attend the summer tournament.
For this, he needed Bai Wanhua's help. This was also why Mo Ye insisted Bai Wanhua be present.
She could resolve many troublesome matters, saving Li Xiang the hassle of running around.
The test was scheduled for Monday. The location was the Mist City Conservation Base.
The situation was urgent. They could not afford to waste time.
Currently, a ranger was stationed year-round inside Mist Island. According to his reports, it seemed something was really about to happen inside.
Many wild Pokémon were becoming active.
Hearing this, the Ranger Union naturally stepped up their efforts.