Hmm...
This nickname was widely mentioned by the audience in the livestream of the Grand Festival.
"The popularity is really high, if this was in the past life, you'd probably get bashed if you didn't win brilliantly."
Baimu had to be thankful that people in this main region were of higher quality, because in the past life someone with high fame but insufficient achievements would get bashed no matter how brilliant they were, acquiring all sorts of mocking nicknames.
Of course.
That doesn't mean there's no criticism at all online.
Not only in games, but in the animated world, Raihan, who is known to have regional Champion-level strength and yet has repeatedly taunted the Dan Emperor without ever winning, receives a lot of criticism.
Though he himself doesn't seem to care, still posting selfies as he wishes, there are quite a few people who have issues with him.
Baimu just hopes that in the future, those who have issues with him won't bash him too harshly.
Otherwise...
Can't say for everything else, but Porygon II will surely travel through the internet cable to hit people, just like Baimu rejects others bashing his Pokémon partners.
Porygon II absolutely will not allow anyone to insult its Trainer.
While thinking.
Liuqia's score came out.
'96'
Two points lower than his.
Baimu perked his ears to hear the judges' reasons for the score - a lack of environmental elements and an unimpressive entrance.
The environmental issue was due to the Galarian Rapidash using the Power of the Moon to simulate the moon during the day, and although the effect was already very strong, it was more suited to an enclosed or semi-enclosed environment.
The unimpressive entrance was because it was affected by Baimu and the Altered-color Milotic.
If she had gone before him, perhaps the scores would have been 97 or even 98.
"What a pity."
Baimu raised his right hand.
"Hmph, rebel disciple! Consider yourself temporarily ahead!" Liuqia laughed as she raised her hand to high-five him, unfazed by her score being underneath his.
The two returned to the waiting room.
Since the preliminary candidates need to be decided just today, time is very tight.
They hardly had time to exchange words with Xiaoguang, who just smiled wryly and left the room to await his turn, while Wula La was nowhere to be seen.
However, Ge Mann seemed to have something to say but was beaten back by Baimu's smile before getting close.
"Heh..."
That face, chilling enough to make one shiver, was identical to the expression of minions when defeated in Pyrite Town in the past.
"Surprisingly effective."
He bowed his head in contemplation.
During the training at the Glazed Gym, Teacher Adam had given an elementary lesson on getting Pokémon to mobilize their momentum, and as a result, Mawile and the others weren't able to grasp it in a short time.
Instead, he, as the Trainer, inexplicably managed to learn it.
As expected, there are some things that not only Pokémon can use; perhaps humans were indeed once a kind of Pokémon, too.
"What's the matter?"
Liuqia looked at him curiously.
"Nothing, just wondering how much knowledge Teacher Adam actually packed into me during that month," Baimu replied softly.
The former completely ignored Ge Mann and naturally didn't notice what happened just now.
Liuqia said proudly, "Of course it's knowledge that can be beneficial for life! Uncle Master is amazing! He was often invited to be a judge for the Grand Festival in the past, just declined these past two years."
"Oh? There's such a thing!"
"As a teacher, am I going to lie to you? Let me tell you..."
Liuqia lowered her voice to recount Adam's glorious past in the Gorgeous Competition circle, much like a child boasting about how incredible their parents are.
——
Time slipped away like flowing water.
The first day of the Hoenn Grand Festival.
The preliminaries concluded successfully before 5 PM.
Similar to the online predicted qualifying score, the 64th contestant advanced with a total score of 81 points, while over a hundred Coordinator Trainers who obtained five ribbons exited dismally.
The intense competition made the audience all the more eager for tomorrow's main event.
In the preliminaries.
Baimu led the leaderboard with the highest score of 98, followed by Liuqia with 96, and then—
Xiaoguang with 94 points.
Partner Pokémon was Pachirisu, who used Electric Light to sketch a simple electric diagram on the ground.
With 93 points, Wula La was next.
Partner Pokémon was a Wigglytuff, relying on Charming Voice and its Inflation Trait to float into the air and compose a colorful note symphony. It must be said, its performance was very impressive.
If it could combine with that high-pitched voice which the Pokémon excelled at, the score could have been even higher.
What a pity.
Even if you're naturally equipped to sing high notes, without specialized training it's usually hard to master to the point of being useful, let alone perform at a grand festival.
Baimu couldn't help but feel that if Wigglytuff had the high note memory of that musician's Jigglypuff, it would undoubtedly be more suitable than Blissey and the altered-color Milotic.
Don't be fooled into thinking the altered-color Milotic's singing is slightly stronger than the former; in reality, their levels barely make the cut.
Moving on.
There are still five contestants scoring above 90.
Among them, only one familiar face—Mira, scored 90, partnering with Lumineon, whose fins resemble butterfly wings. Clearly, she plans to bring Milotic into the main competition.
The rest, such as Ge Mann and Ling Juan, were mostly around 85 to 87.
Did my teasing smile affect him?
Baimu glanced at Ge Mann in the corner, who was clearly unsatisfied, recalling the expression and state when he sent out Medicham for a performance, Baimu thought it probably hadn't.
At night.
A big gathering of familiar faces.
Besides Xiaoguang, Xiaogang, and Wula La, Baimu also brought along the siblings Hoopa and Balza, who had just arrived in Larus City this afternoon.
When they first met, Mei Yali was revealed by Hoopa to be his fan and later said she would watch his competition, which he thought was just a polite remark.
Never expected her to actually come to the Mikoli Club.
This made Baimu a bit embarrassed, with Hoopa and Mei Yali helping him so much, he should have proactively invited them.
So for this Hoenn Grand Festival, he not only covered their tickets but arranged the hotel too.
The Balza siblings and Hoopa gladly accepted the invite.
"Xiaobai—"
Just as Baimu imagined, Hoopa soon locked eyes with the altered-color Gengar, who hadn't developed its mischievous trait fully.
The two Ghost Attribute Pokémon gazed at each other and then both flashed bright smiles.
"Hehehe~"
"Hehahaha~"
From a distance, Mei Yali broke out in a cold sweat, "Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"
"No worries, the dragon is keeping an eye on them."
Baimu waved his hand.
The hidden Dragapult was silently speechless. It actually didn't quite understand why the Trainer had so much confidence in it; ignoring the altered-color Gengar, was Hoopa even something it could stop?
Reporting small troubles was its limit.
Dragapult skillfully avoided everyone and Pokémon, quietly watching the altered-color Gengar and Hoopa.
On the other side.
Piplup was stuck in a dilemma.
"Piplup…"
To the left was its crush, the world's cutest Mawile.
To the right was the altered-color Milotic, at the mere sight causing its heartbeat to accelerate, and probably something it dares not admit but thinks it's fallen for.
"Chiiii~"
"Mmmmm~"
Both Pokémon smiled at it, making Piplup feel like it was reaching the peak of its penguin life, but also entering a mental struggle.
Who should it choose?
Piplup, while torn, continued to engage in friendly exchanges with Mawile and the altered-color Milotic.
In the kitchen.
Xiaoguang withdrew her gaze, grinning, "Piplup is so popular, could it be getting a girlfriend soon!"
Everyone couldn't help but look that way.
"I'm afraid you're overthinking, it's obvious Mawile and Milotic have shown zero romantic interest in Piplup." Wula La scoffed.
Liuqia nodded in agreement, "Yeah, Milotic is the type of Pokémon whose long whiskers form a heart shape if it meets someone it likes."
"Eh—"
Xiaoguang was somewhat disappointed, "So isn't Piplup unrequited?"
Xiaogang, holding a spoon, solemnly said, "Love... can be cruel like this, one-sided efforts often go unrewarded."
Someone without even a first love shouldn't sound so much like a love sage.
Baimu looked helplessly at him, then at Mawile and the altered-color Milotic.
The former undoubtedly still regards Piplup as an intriguing friend, for it, Piplup—a rarely seen friend reunited—was naturally worth bonding with.
The altered-color Milotic, on the other hand, was curious about Piplup; its Trainer had mentioned that this little fellow packed impressive strength, possibly competing with them for the final victory.
Speaking of which.
Do its long whiskers turn into a heart shape?
Baimu shifted his gaze towards Aggron, who was socializing with large Pokémon like Mamoswine and Garchomp. Had the altered-color Milotic done that for it?
Not that he noticed, things of that nature.
Why wouldn't Teacher Adam teach breeding knowledge? Did he think it was useless to him?