Cultivation

When Su Hao returned home, he greeted Carbink and Litten, who were resting at home and watching TV, then told them not to disturb him.

Back in his room, Su Hao sat cross-legged on the carpet and began his first cultivation session according to the method recorded in the Aura Insights notes.

Before long, Su Hao entered the right state and guided Aura through a specific route within his body.

Although Su Hao really wanted to complain that this looked like immortal cultivation, after Aura circulated through his body for a while, he could clearly feel it growing stronger. Even his physical condition seemed to have improved a little.

After confirming that the cultivation method was viable, Su Hao exhaled a mouthful of stale air and rose to his feet.

He estimated that if he kept cultivating like this, he would advance to Intermediate Aura Power within half a month. Then, perhaps, he could try practicing Aura Synchronize and forming Aura Bullets by hand.

The next day, Su Hao returned to the private training room, ready to lead Carbink and Litten through their training for the day.

Today, he planned to put Litten through endurance training, and the method was simple.

Carbink would create many small rocks to attack Litten. While controlling the rocks' power, Carbink would also manipulate them to attack him. Even if a Normal Level Carbink unleashed them, the deliberately weakened rocks would not hurt Litten.

Su Hao had tested it beforehand. Even when the rocks hit him, they only caused a certain amount of pain, let alone Litten, who looked small but possessed better physical abilities than he did.

He had considered how to foster healthy competition within the team. Such a relationship would help Pokémon grow through competition, but he also had to keep it within proper limits so they would not quarrel and damage their relationship.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Su Hao decided to first let Carbink and Litten train by cooperating with each other.

Controlling the strength of its moves to form rocks, then manipulating those rocks to track Litten, could train Carbink's Energy Control.

In turn, as Litten dodged the tracking rocks, he could improve his evasion ability. Since he would remain in constant motion, it could also build his stamina.

Besides this, Su Hao also intended to have Litten use close-range moves to attack Carbink, tempering the sharpness of his moves. Carbink, meanwhile, could train the hardness of its mineral body without using any defensive moves.

With a few nimble steps, Litten darted to the other side of the training ground. Carbink also began preparing Ancient Power.

"Meow!" (I'm ready!) A clear Growl came from across the field.

Litten, standing on the opposite side, told Carbink that he was ready. Carbink then fired the prepared rocks toward Litten.

Under Carbink's control, the rocks tore through the air and shot toward Litten as swiftly as bullets.

Litten lowered his body slightly. His red pupils, surrounded by bright yellow irises, narrowed into thin slits as he stared intently at the incoming rocks.

The irregular rocks came from every direction. Unlike others of his kind, Litten had possessed exceptionally sharp vision and a strong sense of timing since birth. In that fleeting instant, he spotted the gap in the net of rocks.

The limbs beneath Litten's red-and-black fur exerted a gentle force, and he nimbly dodged the first wave of rocks.

Carbink was not anxious after Litten evaded the attack. With a little difficulty, it controlled the rocks that had flown past and brought them back again.

And so, the training between the two Pokémon officially began.

Seeing Litten and Carbink gradually getting into the rhythm of their training, Su Hao chose a spot where he was unlikely to be caught in the crossfire and began cultivating his Wave Power.

Thus, Su Hao, Litten, and Carbink persisted in training and battling every day.

The start of school was drawing near.

[Recently, Dragon-type Elite Four Bai Du and Guang Lan, the Ice-type Elite Four Level Trainer ranked 1st in Master Ball Tier, began their Elite Four Challenge at the Imperial Capital Moltres Arena.]

[Under an unfavorable Type Advantage, Dragon-type Elite Four Bai Du defeated Guang Lan with an absolute display of strength, winning 4–6.]

[As expected of the strongest generation of Elite Four and League Champions in recent years! Where are the Trainers capable of defeating the current Elite Four and League Champion and taking their places!?]

[This has been Jiang Feng reporting.]

An Incineroar with a light blue scarf tied around his neck, from which hung a tiny silver bell, lay comfortably on Su Hao's lap, enjoying the attentions of his caretaker.

Nearby, Carbink, with a Pink Diamond atop its head, watched the news with great seriousness.

As he stroked Incineroar, Su Hao turned his gaze toward Su Hao's father, who was seated nearby, and voiced his question.

"Old Su, I remember you're also ranked within the top hundred of Master Ball Tier, right?"

"Why are you calling me Old Su? Call me Dad." Su Hao's father nodded, answering Su Hao directly through body language.

Su Hao curled his lips and asked again, "Is the gap between an Elite Four Level Trainer and a true Elite Four really that huge?"

Hearing his son's question, Su Hao's father unusually found himself at a loss for words.

After thinking for a moment, Su Hao's father replied, "Most Trainers ranked from around one hundred to the thirties in Master Ball Tier are like me, with one, or perhaps two or three Pokémon possessing Elite Four Level Combat Power."

"Although we possess Elite Four Level Combat Power, at the end of the day, we're still at the Gym Level Trainer stage."

"I've told you before that the Trainer ranks recognized by the Divine Land Alliance begin at Professional Level. A Professional Level Trainer must have six Pokémon, and all six must possess Professional Level Combat Power. A Gym Level Trainer requires an entire team with Gym Level Combat Power, while an Elite Four Level Trainer needs an entire team of Elite Four Level Pokémon."

"Starting from the top thirty, every competitor has at least a full team—that is, six Pokémon with Elite Four Level Combat Power."

"But the Elite Four of our Divine Land Alliance are the best among Elite Four Level Trainers. This Dragon-type Elite Four is even rumored to be the strongest beneath the League Champion."

"As for the League Champion's combat power..."

At that point, Su Xu's expression stiffened slightly. "He's a few years younger than your dad, but in both talent and strength, he stands among the very best in the entire world."

"So even with a specialized Type Advantage, overwhelming raw strength can ignore that weakness."

"The disparity in strength has kept anyone from succeeding the Elite Four through challenges in recent years. When the time comes, they can only select suitable candidates based on age to take the positions."

Su Hao's father sighed. As a Gym Level Trainer of the Divine Land Alliance, he naturally knew some insider information.

Although the Divine Land Alliance still displayed the strength of the world's number one hegemon, as time passed, other Pokémon Leagues had more or less produced Trainers capable of challenging their Elite Four.

Although the Elite Four and League Champion were still holding the line for now, before long, the Elite Four and League Champion over the age of thirty-five would no longer be allowed to participate in the World Championship. When that time came, who would the Divine Land Alliance send out to fight?

According to the rules established beforehand, large-scale competitions like these belonged to the young, while the veteran powerhouses had long since retreated behind the scenes.