The time had come.
Under the respectful guidance of the staff, Su Hao passed through the tunnel and entered the roaring arena.
Having battled here more times than he could count, Su Hao calmly faced the burning gazes of the entire stadium as he walked to one side of the field.
On the other side, Long Tianxing, who had been forced to tidy himself up and no longer looked quite so dejected, also took his position.
The arrogance in his eyes when he looked at Su Hao was gone, replaced by something far more complicated.
The host excitedly introduced both sides. This was a battle between the new Champion and the all-but-confirmed new Elite Four member. Both were making their first public appearance after receiving these titles.
Wave after wave of cheers rose from the spectators around the arena, most of them rooting for Su Hao. Even Su Hao had not expected his popularity to be this high.
There was no small talk or trash talk. The moment the referee lowered his flag, both trainers threw out their Pokémon.
"Noivern!"
"Zeraora!"
The light from the Poké Balls flashed at the center of the field. When it faded, the two Pokémon revealed themselves.
Long Tianxing's Pokémon was a sound-wave Pokémon with broad bat wings and enormous ears—Noivern.
Su Hao's, meanwhile, was a nimble, imposing yellow bipedal feline—Zeraora.
Noivern was no stranger to the audience, but Zeraora was another matter. Most of the spectators could not identify it at all.
Only some spectators from Rong City, along with the higher-ups watching the livestream there, froze for a moment before revealing looks of extreme shock.
Wasn't this the Pokémon Xiao Ming had used in the Rong City New Star Trainer Challenge Tournament, the one that defeated a seeded contestant and had vanished without