Ding Sheng stared fixedly at Flaaffy.
Strange Light was a Ghost-type move, and some Flaaffy could indeed learn it. He just hadn't expected Su Yi's Flaaffy to know it already. He'd let his guard down, lured by the points, and his judgment had suffered.
"Use Cotton Spore!"
Flaaffy's Cotton Spore stuck Onix's body to the battlefield floor.
"Onix, wake up!"
Ding Sheng shouted anxiously. Since this was a one-on-one battle, he couldn't recall Onix to its Pokeball to end its Confusion.
"You thought my Flaaffy could only use Electric-type moves? You were way off. Iron Tail!"
Su Yi smiled. The crystal-ball-shaped orb on Flaaffy's tail gleamed like steel as it slammed hard into Onix.
Steel-type moves were super effective against Rock-types!
Onix let out a pained howl and finally recovered from its Confusion!
Ding Sheng brightened, but before he could give an order, Flaaffy struck again with Iron Tail!
Under the combined assault from Su Yi and Flaaffy, Onix collapsed and couldn't get back up...
The referee watched in shock as Flaaffy defeated Onix, then announced the result. Everyone around them fell silent.
Only the system's notification rang in Su Yi's mind.
[ Ding! Congratulations, Host! Flaaffy defeated Onix and gained Battle Experience. Its level has risen to Lv. 30! ]
Hummm!!!
At last, a brilliant light of evolution enveloped the Shiny Flaaffy!
It was evolving into Ampharos!
Shiny Ampharos!
Its pink-and-white body was topped with striped horns.
The crystal-ball-shaped orb on its tail had turned deep blue, making it look exceptionally beautiful.
[ Ding! Congratulations, Host! Ampharos performed exceptionally well and triggered a hidden reward: Skill Awakening Card: Dragon Pulse ]
Nice!
Su Yi immediately connected with the system using his thoughts and had Ampharos learn Dragon Pulse.
Just as expected of an Ampharos with Dragon-type abilities after Mega Evolution. No problem there.
This was like having Ampharos awaken Dragon Pulse ahead of time.
"Pokémon": Ampharos "Potential": Purple "Level": Lv. 30 "Type": Electric "Ability": Static "Moves Learned": Thunder Punch, Zap Cannon, Magnet Rise, Dragon Pulse, Fire Punch, Iron Tail, Growl, Thundershock, Thunderbolt, Cotton Spore, Electro Ball, Strange Light, Power Gem, Cotton Guard
Unable to resist, Su Yi used Eye of Investigation to check Ampharos's information.
He felt a little excited.
Flaaffy had evolved into Ampharos and awakened new moves.
Ding Sheng watched expressionlessly as his Spirit Watch deducted twenty thousand points.
His ranking had plummeted, too.
He also paid 200,000 Gold Coins.
He said nothing. He exchanged a glance with the person ranked ninth—no, tenth now, since Su Yi had gained twenty thousand points. Adding that to his previous 38,000, Su Yi now had 58,000 points!
His ranking had soared, and he'd climbed to fourth place!
Xia Chen, in third place, had gained some points during that time. He now had 59,680.
Su Yi knew he'd made the right decision. As long as he was stronger than the others, points...
He could challenge two people later and shoot right up the rankings!
The person now ranked tenth had the same surname as Su Yi.
His name was Su Dingfang.
Su Dingfang understood what Ding Sheng meant: he should give up.
He was bound to lose.
If he gave up, he could hold on to his 55,000 points and still earn the honor of finishing in the top twenty.
Su Dingfang drew a deep breath. They never should have sent Ning Zhi to test Su Yi in the first place.
One mistake had led to another, and there was no turning back.
Besides, he had 55,000 points—the same as Ding Sheng. Even if he lost, he'd still be among the top few thousand.
Everyone watched Su Dingfang.
By now, the situation was clear.
Su Yi had defeated almost every opponent quickly.
If he faced Su Dingfang, everyone already expected Su Dingfang to lose.
So whether Su Yi could claim first place now rested in Su Dingfang's hands.
In their section of the Spirit Primal Forest, the highest-ranked person was currently in sixth place, having previously been fifth.
That person had over 57,000 points.
Su Dingfang had the second-highest score here, and he was currently ranked tenth.
The other ranked Trainers were taking their trials in the other three Spirit Primal Forests.
No one knew whether the guy in sixth place would be challenged by Su Yi. Now, whether Su Yi could claim first place and surpass Zhang Kuang depended on whether Su Dingfang would refuse the challenge.
He could refuse. He still had five refusals left today.
Su Dingfang drew a deep breath, a sudden impulse welling up inside him.
He'd been kept down by the people ranked above him for too long. He'd had enough!
He couldn't surpass them, but someone else could!
"Let's battle!"
After making that decision, Su Dingfang felt as if his state of mind had reached a higher level.
Everyone was thrilled. Were they about to witness the top spot on the Trial Ranking change hands before the final challenge deadline?
It was electrifying!
Nobody spoke. They held their breath.
"Come on out, Scolipede!"
"Eeeyah!"
The purple-black Scolipede was tall and powerfully built, an imposing sight.
This Scolipede was Su Dingfang's strongest Pokémon. It had evolved just yesterday.
A Lv. 30 Scolipede!
At least in terms of level, it matched Su Yi's Ampharos.
What's more, Scolipede's Ability was Poison Sting, which gave it a chance to poison an opponent whenever it made contact.
"Eeeyah!"
Scolipede glared fiercely at Ampharos.
Ampharos had just evolved and learned Dragon Pulse. It was brimming with fighting spirit, too.
Su Yi had originally planned to switch it out, but seeing how things were going, he figured it was fine to let Ampharos keep battling.
Frogadier and Trapinch would stay on the sidelines.
"Scolipede, use Poison Sting!"
"Ampharos, use Thundershock!"
"Eeeyah!"
The two Pokémon attacked almost simultaneously. Scolipede opened its mouth, sending countless purple Poison Stings flying toward Ampharos.
Ampharos swung its arms, gathering Electric-type energy inside its body and firing a blast of electricity at the incoming Poison Stings!
In an instant, the Poison Stings were blasted aside and sent flying in every direction.
"Quick Attack!"
"We'll use Quick Attack, too!"
The purple-black and pink-and-white Pokémon darted around at dizzying speeds, attacking and dodging furiously.
"Fire Punch!"
"Scolipede, use Protect! Hurry!"
"Fire Punch!"
Ampharos had awakened and learned this move after evolving from Flaaffy.
The searing flames were super effective against Scolipede's Bug-type.
Su Dingfang couldn't risk letting Ampharos's Fire Punch hit Scolipede!
So it had finally used Protect for the first time...
With Eye of Investigation, Su Yi had known from the start which moves Scolipede had learned.
Now that he'd baited it into using Protect for the first time, the rest would be easy.
Bang!
Fire Punch slammed into the protective barrier, sending ripples across it before the barrier vanished.
"Poison Tail!"
"Iron Tail!"
The two moves clashed at the same time!
Iron Tail was undoubtedly more powerful!
It knocked Scolipede's tail aside. Scolipede tried to move again, but a current of electricity suddenly crackled through its body, leaving it paralyzed!
Ampharos's Ability, Static!
The electricity had passed over during the clash between Iron Tail and Poison Tail!
But Scolipede's Poison Sting Ability hadn't taken effect. Iron Tail was a Steel-type move, and luck wasn't on its side!
"Once more—Fire Punch!"
"Rrroar!"
Ampharos gave a low growl, stepped forward, and slammed its powerful Fire Punch into Scolipede's chest.
Scolipede let out a pained hiss as the gem on Ampharos's forehead lit up.
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