Fang Xiaoyuan, Diligent and Inquisitive

In the second match, although Scyther's opponent put up a bit of a struggle, they still failed to have much of an impact on Scyther.

Seed Player Xie Ming advanced successfully.

Exactly as everyone had expected.

There was nothing particularly noteworthy about the third and fourth matches. Fang Yuan judged that, barring any surprises, Xie Ming would be the one advancing to the Top Sixteen from this group.

"Seed Players really are impressive. Even though Growlithe and I have trained for so long, I still wouldn't be very confident if Growlithe had to face that Scyther."

"It would be fine if Growlithe's Fire-Type Moves could hit, but if they missed, it'd be troublesome..." Lin Jing compared.

"Does your Growlithe know Agility and Flame Burst?" Fang Yuan asked.

"Well... I don't think it does..." Lin Jing said awkwardly.

Then the chances of winning really weren't high...

Facing it would probably just be giving away a free win.

Unless they gave Growlithe a Fire Stone and evolved it now. Then perhaps Arcanine could win the battle with its powerful physical abilities.

After Group A's four battles ended, the competition entered a brief break, and then the Group B contestants began preparing.

Fang Yuan had no intention of leaving. At the very least, he planned to watch the entire event today.

If he could form a general impression of every contestant who advanced and learn their battle styles, then spending this time would definitely be more meaningful than training a little longer.

As the saying went, know yourself and your enemy, and you would never be defeated.

Next, he also planned to record the remaining Seed Players' battles and study them with Eevee when he got back.

For victory, Fang Yuan was going all out.

The matches proceeded in an orderly fashion throughout the morning. Group B's Seed Player with Mr. Mime and Group C's Seed Player with Misdreavus both won the support of many spectators.

Battling was also each contestant's chance to show themselves off. If they performed well, gaining fans was entirely possible.

"There's only one more match before it's your turn," Lin Jing said from the Players' Stand.

"Don't be nervous," Fang Yuan said.

"Shouldn't you be the nervous one?" Lin Jing asked in surprise.

"True. If you aren't nervous, help me record a video during my battle later! I'll record yours too," Fang Yuan said. "Just don't let your hands shake. It's rare to enter a competition like this, so it'd be nice to keep a memento."

Lin Jing was speechless, but upon thinking it over, recording a video as a memento did seem like a good idea.

If they failed to make the Top Sixteen, those battle videos could at least prove that they had been here.

"Alright," Lin Jing agreed.

Soon, the first Group D match ended. Fang Yuan then entered the tunnel leading to the field and waited to take the stage.

Outside, the commentator began introducing the contestants.

"The next match will be the fourteenth battle of the day! First, let us introduce the contestant entering from the left, Fang Yuan. Fang Yuan is from Flat City, and he also won his preliminary match with great ease. His strength cannot be underestimated."

"And the contestant emerging from the right, Han Jia, is likewise not a local of Magic City. She comes from the even more distant Silver City..."

"Now, let's see what exciting battle they can bring us!"

In the guest seats, after watching so many matches, every guest had grown bored. Among the dozen-plus battles, only a few had been worth watching. It was indeed rather dull.

Still, they had to keep up appearances. Seeing Fang Yuan and Han Jia take the field, they began chatting symbolically.

"Flat City... Speaking of which, a Super-Small Secret Realm appeared in Flat City some time ago. Not only did it cause no casualties, they even discovered a Sand Scale Fruit tree inside. Flat City's Trainer Association really is lucky," the Dawn Group representative remarked.

"Yes, the local Provincial Association probably gained quite a few benefits as well..." said the representative of the Modu Trainer Association.

The other guests also voiced their agreement.

Meanwhile, the battle below the stage had already begun.

"Cacturne, huh? I remember they love living in deserts, right?"

"Let me ask you something. Does Cacturne gain the Dark-type after evolving?"

"Can it use Dark-type moves now?"

"Why aren't you answering?"

On the field, Eevee dodged the Poison Stings Cacturne flung from its arms while Fang Yuan kept asking his opponent questions.

After thinking about it, he realized that making an opponent lose focus did not necessarily require insulting them. Constantly drawing their attention could have the same effect.

Fang Yuan had carefully read the battle rules several times and discovered that there was no rule forbidding contestants from speaking to their opponents during a battle. That gave him an idea.

Against a Pokémon like Cacturne, Fang Yuan had only asked three simple questions before the girl opposite him revealed an impatient expression.

"Uh... It seems contestant Fang Yuan is saying something to contestant Han Jia on the field."

The commentator adjusted his glasses.

"Could it be that the two knew each other before this?"

Since Cacturne was slower than Eevee, and Eevee had undergone many high-difficulty battles at the club, Fang Yuan was perfectly comfortable letting it handle things alone while he focused on practicing the Trash Talk he was still unfamiliar with.

It was not that he liked this kind of tactic. Fang Yuan also wanted to win battles openly and honestly, coolly and handsomely, but that was not reliable enough. He had put so much into the Little Phoenix King Cup that he had decided to go all out. As long as they did not violate the battle rules, they would use any means necessary to win.

Once he got the Soothing Bell and prize money, it would not be too late to become a quiet handsome man again.

"Come to think of it, the Seed Player in our group also seems to be a Grass-type Pokémon trainer. What do you think about that? After all, Cacturne is Grass-type too, right?"

"Where do you think Cacturne failed to perform well enough that the other person was made a Seed Player instead of you..."

"Are you done yet?" Han Jia said.

"Watch out, Eevee is getting close to your Cacturne!" Fang Yuan said.

Han Jia was immediately startled. She saw that Eevee had indeed suddenly accelerated with Quick Attack and reached Cacturne's side, while she... had actually lost focus.

"Cacturne, use Needle Arm!" Han Jia shouted.

Having made it this far, Cacturne's strength was undeniable. Upon hearing its trainer's command, it immediately swung its spiked arms fiercely at Eevee beside it. Seeing Cacturne react so quickly, Han Jia let out a breath of relief and swore that she would definitely concentrate from now on.

But...

"Eevee, Quick Attack."

Fang Yuan's next words stunned Han Jia, because Cacturne had not attacked Eevee at all. It had attacked a Double Team created by Eevee's swift movement. If she had been carefully observing the situation all along, she would never have fallen for it so easily. But because of Fang Yuan's chain of tricks, Han Jia had not realized that Fang Yuan's warning was part of the scheme as well.

The goal was to distract her into giving the wrong command, then create an opening for Eevee to attack.

As Eevee slammed Cacturne flying, Han Jia felt like crying. She had never experienced such a frustrating battle before. Unable to help herself, she shot Fang Yuan, who wore an innocent expression, a vicious glare.

"This Fang Yuan... is rather interesting."

The many guests in the guest seats had clearly never seen such a peculiar battle before.