The audience immediately put down their snacks and phones, excitedly looking down, trying to catch a glimpse of Baimu and Alice, but unfortunately, neither had appeared yet.
But their enthusiasm was undiminished.
They knew the battle would start soon.
Indeed.
As the referee ascended the podium, Baimu and Alice walked out from the contestants' passage, both looking calm and carefree, even having the leisure to wave to the four corners.
The crowd instantly erupted with earth-shaking cheers and shouts.
"Baimu! Baimu!"
"Alice! Alice!"
Alice had her supporters too, but they were far fewer than Baimu's and were quickly drowned out by the latter's unilateral cheers.
For a moment, the audience seats were a sea of people, with countless banners, hand scrolls, and neon signs dazzling the eyes.
Xiagong and the others arrived late, finally finding their seats after struggling through the crowd, overlooking the situation in the field.
"It's finally starting!"
"Both of you, give it your all!"
"Baimu..."
The expressions on their faces varied slightly, Xiagong and Liuqia were calm and expectant, Xiaoguang was excited and worried, and Mann Chong was tense and serious.
Altaria and Piplup were earnestly cheering for Baimu, too.
One had a fondness for the person, the other for the person's Pokémon.
So they were decisively biased.
At this time, the two below were in the separating area.
"Baimu, I won't lose to you this time!" Alice extended her hand, her voice soft yet slightly magnetic, but what drew more attention was the battle spirit in her eyes.
Originating from Dragon Land, the Dragon-cancer Maiden came to the Hoenn Region to seek Rayquaza. After experiencing hardships on her journey, she was about to validate her gains in the Ever Grande Conference.
Like Baimu, she was also preparing to charge for the Regional Champion upon returning to the Unova Region.
Undoubtedly.
Alice bears her yearning for becoming a Dragon-type Pokémon Master, along with the expectations of Granny of Dragon Land and Shaka, the Hall Master of Shuanglong Gym.
Baimu took her hand and said softly, "I'm looking forward to it."
The two walked towards the battle platform.
The final is different from the previous matches.
Shanren had informed numerous blogs and media outlets to further ferment the Ore Region's Conference, with press releases already prepared.
Just waiting for him to claim victory.
So in this final, not only must they win, but win beautifully, win so that all the audience would be astonished!
"Bring it on."
Baimu stepped into the Trainers' stand, facing Alice, who was taking the stage simultaneously.
The referee looked at the two and shouted, "The upcoming event is the finals of the Hoenn Ever Grande Conference Championship Tournament! The contestants are Contestant Baimu from Pyrite Town, and Contestant Alice from Dragon Land!"
With those words,
the largest screen at the venue displayed their portraits, with six circles arranged in succession below each.
A four-color roulette appeared, with light spots rapidly flashing between each area.
The commentator shouted amidst the calls of the audience, "Let's anticipate the field for the first half of the finals—"
Beep!
With a light beep, the rock-like deep orange area was illuminated.
"Rock field!"
The ground suddenly made a loud noise, the ordinary field split in the middle, and a terrain full of gravel and rocks slowly rose.
The referee raised the flags.
Baimu and Alice both threw their Pokeballs seeing this.
"It's time to prove your ability!"
"Go, Garchomp!"
Boom boom!
White light flickered.
In the vast rock field, the Garchomp, which looked like a combination of a shark and a dinosaur, faced off against the Porygon II, which resembled a small car.
The latter had orange light glowing on its body, a sign of its Trait: Download activating.
That's right.
Alice's Gabite had evolved, becoming an important cornerstone for her to proceed toward being a Dragon Attribute Master.
And it was a Pokémon inclined towards Special Attack.
To this day, its main offensive techniques remained only two—Meteor Shower, Dragon's Pulse, with the other Special Attack techniques yet undiscovered due to the opponent's insufficient strength.
But starting with Garchomp, what's the plan?
Baimu squinted slightly.
Seeing both sides had released their Pokémon, the referee swiftly lowered the flags.
"The match begins!"
Thunk!
As if the trumpet for launching an attack had been blown.
Alice waved her hand and shouted first, "Garchomp, use Sandstorm! Rush!"
"Garchomp!"
With a muffled roar, Garchomp stepped quickly toward Porygon II, lowering its center of gravity, tucking its arms in; the sharp dual fins were like the wings of a supersonic fighter jet.
The ochre flying sand surrounded it all over, and its speed received a second boost due to the special posture.
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, Garchomp had already driven the yellow sand across the centerline of the field!
Where it passed, the flying sand and rocks blurred the vision.
Commentator: "What speed! Garchomp used its dual fins to adjust posture, reducing air resistance, worthy of being a Supersonic Pokémon!"
"Electromagnetic Levitation."
Baimu's command was a beat slow.
But he didn't care, silently scrutinizing Garchomp's rush over more than half the field.
"Buzz."
Porygon II's eyes flashed with electric light, looking exceptionally calm as Garchomp rushed at it at high speed, its oval-shaped legs spun up to high altitude in an instant.
Alice saw this and shouted, "Chase it!"
"Garchomp!"
Garchomp bent its legs and leaped with all its might, instantly lifting off the ground and quickly pursuing Porygon II.
The distance between them closed again, causing the sandstorm stirred up by the former to successfully engulf the latter.
Whoosh!
The petite Porygon II was swallowed by the yellow sand, and Alice didn't hesitate to order again.