Chapter 226

She didn't expect that this boy would surprise her once again. If the first day's performance was a groundbreaking solo show, then this performance thoroughly explored all the possibilities of the two Pokémon, bringing the audience a refreshing experience.

It was a textbook example of a duo performance.

The Dianxi on stage— Su Yiliu had seen videos of her before. Everyone knew this Pokémon could create some kind of pink crystal, but who would have thought that this ability, combined with Vulpix's pale blue ice crystals, could create such a Mew scene?

This isn't a simple matter of one plus one equals two. Whether it's Vulpix or Dianxi, it would be difficult for either of them to give others the same feeling if they performed alone. However, when they come together, they display a captivating charm.

Moreover, to achieve this level of coordination and such precise shaping ability in such a short time, these two Pokémon must have put in a lot of effort in this area. Just that Vulpix alone... Su Yiliu had also trained Ice-type Pokémon, and making ice condense into the shape she wanted was not something that could be accomplished just by thinking about it.

"And... this child... no, doesn't he look a little better than before?"

Looking at Qiao Ran standing between the two Pokémon, Su Yiliu frowned, as if she noticed something was amiss. Compared to Qiao Ran on the first day, he seemed to have become more charming.

"I understand."

Meanwhile, in the lounge, Lillie clenched her little fists, her expression a mixture of excitement and agitation. While the other audience members were probably focused on Pokémon, she was watching Qiao Ran on stage.

She helped Qiao Ran with her outfit, and now it seems the effect is surprisingly good.

Qiao Ran's previous conditions weren't bad, but after Lillie's tutelage, her overall demeanor improved significantly. Makeup truly is a magical technique.

"... Hmm... It's a little better than before, isn't it?"

Sabrina gently brushed the hair from her forehead. Although she didn't want to admit it, it was indeed a fact to some extent.

All of this was based on Lillie's understanding of Qiao Ran, which allowed her to accomplish such a feat in such a short time. Although Qiao Ran's transformation didn't attract the attention of most viewers in this Pokémon -themed Performance Competition, Lillie was still quite happy.

Hmm.

Mei, standing to the side, remained silent, simply staring at the screen in front of her, lost in thought.

So... he had this side to him too?

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The opening performance had already Harvest enough attention, and the subsequent performances proceeded without any issues. The interplay of ice crystals and Gem presented the audience with an unprecedented visual feast.

In previous Performance Competition, no Pokémon had ever possessed the same abilities as Dianxi. When this princess of Diamond stood on the stage, she immediately captured everyone's attention.

Moreover, when this ability is combined with the ice crystals of the Vulpix, it is like a work of art. This is not a performance at all, but a creation of art. Every second of the scene can be captured and appreciated in silence.

"I'm so moved. To deliver such a performance for two consecutive days, I can almost imagine that a brand new superstar has risen among China Performing Family."

"A perfect display, perfect teamwork. Even when paired with Pokémon like Dianxi, it still showcased Vulpix's strengths, holding its own in no way. It allowed both Pokémon to demonstrate their unique charm; it was truly amazing."

The judges all gave high marks. Even Su Yiliu, who usually scores low, received a score of 8.5, which was 0.5 points higher than last time.

"If I could, I really would like to give this performance a score of 9 or higher, but there are still two days left in the Competition, and I'm sure Qiao Ran can bring us even more surprises. So, I'll save my higher score for later, hoping he can continue to bring us even more beautiful moments."

Su Yiliu didn't hold back her praise for Qiao Ran, but having watched the video of Qiao Ran's battle with Old Man Nian Hai, she understood that this performance hadn't actually showcased all of Dianxi's abilities, such as that extraordinary evolution and the diamond Whirlwind... Although her cooperation with Vulpix was quite different from before, she still had high expectations for Qiao Ran's future performance.

He has room for further improvement.

Thank you, judges.

After giving his comments, Qiao Ran prepared to leave the stage.

Rotom once again fulfilled his duty by filming everything during this performance.

"Well done, Rotom."

After the performance, Qiao Ran, who once again Harvest applause, left the stage with light steps. However, unlike last time, this time Vulpix and Dianxi did not immediately return to the Wild Area, but stayed by Qiao Ran's side. Being petite, they had no requirements for the environment and were not like Suicune, who could not appear indoors.

"You guys did a great job too, your teamwork was fantastic."

Qiao Ran patted Dianxi's head, then gently touched the chin of the Vulpix perched on his shoulder, making it Qiao Ran comfortably before finally stopping with a smile.

His score is high enough to guarantee his advancement, and with the video Rotom filmed today, he'll probably garner a huge amount of attention.

However... Qiao Ran hoped that the next person to contact them after seeing the video would be someone from the legitimate Pokémon World, and not some strange being from another world.

"Qiao Ran."

Back in the lounge, the girls looked directly at him, their faces filled with joy and excitement.

Of course, their behavior was probably not only due to their previous performance, but also partly due to what happened after his sudden departure.

However, Qiao Ran felt that the way they were looking at her was strange. Could it be... that she put something on her face while applying makeup?

After everyone was chatting and praising Dianxi and Vulpix's performance, Sabrina changed the subject.

"Ahem. It's good that the Competition is over. Let's go back now."

Go ahead, and tell me what happened on your end later.

She was quite concerned about the situation there, and just to be on the safe side, she didn't ask Cynthia about it directly in the lounge. After all, it was a public, open space with many people and noise.

Qiao Ran's Competition was the last one. After Qiao Ran finished her performance, everyone left the venue and returned to Sabrina's home. There were no other contestants worth paying attention to, and there was not much point in watching them any further.

In Sabrina's living room, Qiao Ran and Cynthia recounted their previous encounters. In short, they met a group of people who claimed to be from the "Ultra World," and their organization was called the "Ultra Recon Squad" or something like that.

"... I also have some information of my own about that world."

Qiao Ran didn't hold back and directly told the story of the Ultra World that he knew, which was roughly about "backstabbing Necrozma and then having his light stolen by Necrozma" or something like that.

After listening to Qiao Ran's story, the girls present all frowned in unison, and even Dianxi and the others fell silent.

"... It's truly ironic."

Sabrina leaned back on the sofa and listened to Qiao Ran's story. She no longer had much goodwill towards these Otherworlder.

"Did their greed lead them to harm the Deity who once bestowed light upon them, causing the Deity to devour all the light? Now what do they want to do? To bring back the vanished gods?... Heh."

"... Human beings should live in greater harmony with these legends."

Cynthia, standing nearby, also offered her opinion. Records from the Sinnoh Region show instances of people plotting against the "gods" out of greed. However, these schemes were ultimately thwarted by other humans who believed in the Deity. Everyone should be a unified whole.

The fact that things have come to this point, causing the whole world to lose its light and enter a cold and dark apocalypse, is ultimately the world's own fault.

It's a pity that ordinary people, who were completely unaware of this, became victims of the greed of those in power who launched the operation.

"Let's leave those aside for now; they've already borne the consequences of their actions. But what they left behind were their words as they departed, something about Alola being a civilization thousands of years old..."

Qiao Ran brought up the point that mattered most to him. He looked at Lillie beside him. He didn't understand the meaning behind those people's words, but... if Alola was a civilization with thousands of years of history, then what was Lillie in front of him?

"...? Thousands of years?" Lillie was also full of question marks, stunned by what Qiao Ran said.

"Alola... isn't everything alright?"

They and Qiao Ran had just been to Alola a while ago.

"Yes, we even spoke with Lillie's mother before." Mei also found it strange; it didn't make any sense. Maybe Qiao Ran just misheard? Or maybe those people misspoke?

"..." Sabrina remained silent, looking at Cynthia, wanting to hear the opinion of another person present.

"Actually, my understanding of this sentence is..."

Cynthia also shared her views, which were basically the same as what she had told Qiao Ran before. Her point was that the Otherworlder were talking about the Ancient Alola Kingdom, which was indeed a civilization from thousands of years ago.

"... So... that's how it is?"

Logically speaking, Cynthia's point of view is actually more convincing, and after listening to Cynthia's explanation, Lillie nodded in agreement.

It seems she has basically accepted Cynthia's opinion.

"Of course, I'm just stating my current judgment; I have no other evidence to prove it."

Cynthia shook her head. Those people left too quickly. Without truly understanding what the other party meant, these were merely speculations.

"In case there are other possibilities... I hope everyone will keep an eye out."

Cynthia's expression gradually turned serious.

The conversation that evening didn't last long, since Qiao Ran had only brought back limited information. After the conversation ended, everyone returned to their normal lives.

The following day, Qiao Ran and his team did not encounter any major problems. Although it was already the third round of the Competition, their skill level was still sufficient.

Mei's score was slightly in danger, but thanks to her excellent skills and the Coaching from Sabrina and Cynthia, Mei and Lillie made it into the top sixteen on the final day.

To be honest, even in the Pokémon World, getting guidance from a top Gym Leader like Sabrina or Champion like Cynthia is something that's incredibly rare and hard to come by. If the current situation weren't so special, such treatment would be impossible to obtain at any cost.

Another thing is that Nian Xiaoxiao's older sister, Nian Hongyu, also appeared on the list of the top 16, becoming one of the strong opponents for Qiao Ran and the others in the final day.

Congratulations, everyone has advanced to the final round!

At dinner, Mei excitedly pulled out a newly bought firework tube, adding a touch of festive atmosphere to everyone, even though the last day of the Competition was still...

It hasn't even started yet, but the feeling that everyone has advanced is still pretty good.

"By tomorrow, we'll all be rivals."

Sabrina looked at everyone's faces around her. Unlike the Pokémon World, she now seemed to be living a completely different life than before. Although they hadn't been living together for very long, it didn't feel too bad.

"Um."

Lillie responded, but in fact, she was already quite satisfied with her performance these past few days. From a complete novice to now being able to earn Gym Badge and perform on stage, she had changed a lot.

She also gained many supporters online, something she had never imagined before.

Dinner was the same as before, ordered from outside. However, everyone had agreed that after the results came out tomorrow, Sabrina would take them out for some fun.

Sabrina didn't refuse; she just acted a little haughty before agreeing.

"Speaking of which... that red-haired woman who appeared a few times before... if she were here too..."

Sabrina suddenly remembered a guy with terrifying Psychic, someone she had met when she first met Qiao Ran. She had thought that Qiao Ran would meet that guy a few times while he was here, but she didn't expect that the guy would never appear again.

"Oh, I think she's no longer in Magic City."

Qiao Ran couldn't possibly tell Sabrina that it was Latias, so he could only make up some excuse. Not everyone can accept the idea of Pokémon on Humanoid Transformation, and besides, it was quite necessary to keep this secret.

Qiao Ran would never reveal such things to someone who isn't extremely close to her.

As evening fell, after everyone finished their basic training, Lillie and Mei found Qiao Ran, hoping he could take them to Alola.