Chapter Summaries

A coalition of foreign trainers, the Dark Web, and the Wang Family plotted to attack the College Entrance Exam Tournament in Ancient City and target its Special Ability Holders. After divining near-certain death at the tournament, Lu Li decided to search Ancient Ruins for Unown and would withdraw if he could not find them.

• A secret meeting brought together the Progress Society, American League, Dark Web, and regional factions, who agreed to send one champion and seven Heavenly Kings to the operation in Ancient City.
• The Wang Family trainer admitted that his faction wanted Raine, the Emissary of Ideals, dead to prevent the Lei Family from rising above the old aristocratic families.
• Outside the meeting, undercover inspector Lian Sheyi worried that Lu Li might be caught up in the plot, while Lu Li learned that the tournament finals would be held in Ancient City.
• Lu Li used his tortoise shell and Ancient Bronze Coins to divine extreme misfortune involving a Divine Beast, then called Ekaterina back from the Deep Qingyun Mountains.
• Lu Li told Ekaterina and Yao Yifei that he would search Ancient Ruins for Unown and give up the tournament if he failed to find one; Ekaterina offered to ask the Fairy Elite Four to protect him if he chose to compete.

Lu Li, Ekaterina, and Yao Yifei entered the Distant Ancient Stars Secret Realm to search for Unown and investigated an ancient temple dedicated to the God of Steel. Lu Li found no Unown, but he discovered something valuable in the temple’s underground rooms, leaving the group unaware of his find.

• Lu Li chose to travel to the Large Secret Realm near Ancient City, and Yao Yifei used her Gym Leader status to bring the group inside.
• Yao Yifei checked the League app and found a nearby ancient temple said to worship Melmetal, the God of Steel.
• Lu Li and the others explored the temple, whose valuable Metal Coats and Steel Gems had already been taken by earlier explorers.
• Lu Li used Divine Sense to search the temple and found no Unown or traces of them.
• Lu Li learned that Ekaterina believed Melmetal was born from the World Law, while he knew it evolved from Meltan.
• Lu Li noticed overlooked gears, Nuts, and tools in the temple’s underground Secret Rooms and recognized a valuable opportunity.

Lu Li found seven living nuts in the temple vault and believed they were Meltan, fragments of Melmetal that could revive after it returned to the Law Source. He made a bet with Yao Yifei over their identity, then continued searching other ruins before resting and considering how to hasten the nuts’ growth.

• Lu Li used his Divine Sense to retrieve seven nuts from a temple vault and told Ekaterina and Yao Yifei they were fragments of Melmetal that would revive as Meltan.
• Lu Li bet that Yao Yifei would belong to him if the nuts were Divine Beasts, while he would give her his flower garden if he was wrong.
• Lu Li, Ekaterina, and Yao Yifei found the next tomb completely looted and traveled on toward another destination.
• After nine hours of travel, Lu Li rested by a campfire and studied the nuts, wondering how to speed their development into Mythical Beast Cubs.

Yao Yifei revealed her ambition to build a powerful Combee Legion inspired by the Amber Kingdom, while Lu Li listened without revealing that he might be able to help. The next morning, the group continued exploring the Secret Realm, and Lu Li decided to investigate suspected tomb ruins after finding no Unown in the sites they had visited.

• Yao Yifei told Lu Li and Ekaterina about the Amber Kingdom, whose God-level Combee ruler commanded a million Combee and protected the Khmer Region.
• Yao Yifei said she wanted to raise a Combee Legion, first suggesting ten thousand Gym Leader-level Combee before lowering her target to one thousand, while Lu Li silently considered that it might be possible.
• Yao Yifei questioned why Ekaterina had taken an interest in Lu Li, and Ekaterina claimed she liked him before Yao Yifei accused her of hiding a motive.
• Lu Li secretly fed Elixirs to Tropius and Milotic before putting them away for the night.
• The next morning, Lu Li, Yao Yifei, and Ekaterina explored three ruins but found no Unown or valuable discoveries.
• Yao Yifei described dangerous, unexplored suspected tomb sites, and Lu Li decided the group should investigate them.

Lu Li, Ekaterina, and Yao Yifei found and explored an ancient queen’s tomb after Ekaterina’s Champion-level Froslass defeated the Ghost-type Pokémon guarding it. They searched its burial chambers for treasures and discovered Mega Stones in the fifth side chamber.

• Lu Li found an unexplored tomb containing one Elite Four-level and three Gym Leader-level Ghost-type Pokémon, and Ekaterina summoned her Champion-level Froslass to defeat them.
• The group entered the tomb, avoided its traps under Lu Li’s guidance, and learned from its murals that Queen Leona of the Godforged Kingdom had died defending her realm.
• They explored the first side chamber and found one Auspicious Armor and three Cursed Armor, which Ekaterina, Yao Yifei, and Lu Li divided among themselves.
• The group found Champion-level Pokémon skeletons, ruined books, and an empty burial pit in the next three side chambers.
• Lu Li led Ekaterina and Yao Yifei into the fifth side chamber, where they found several boxes containing Mega Stones.

Lu Li claimed the treasures in Queen Leona’s tomb, including a Divine Forging Book that revealed a recipe for Iron Heart, which he believed could be related to Meltan Candy. After studying the Unown’s rules through Divine Sense, he emerged from comprehension to find that the three Unown had mysteriously vanished.

• Ekaterina and Yao Yifei divided the Mega Stones, while Lu Li took the Key Stone, Metagross’s Mega Stone, and Aggron’s Mega Stone.
• Lu Li discovered the Divine Forging Book’s ancient item recipes, including the Iron Heart recipe, and kept the book.
• Lu Li stopped Ekaterina and Yao Yifei from opening the coffin after sensing that the corpse inside was partly assimilated into metal.
• Lu Li meditated on the three Unown and concluded that they were primitive Runes and the source of Talismans.
• After Lu Li resumed his comprehension outside the tomb, the three Unown disappeared, apparently using a move similar to Teleport.

After gaining spatial insights from the Unown, Lu Li made talismans to protect himself before the tournament and asked Qu Suxin to help guard him. Meanwhile, Ekaterina secretly agreed to aid a plot against Raine, and Lu Li prepared to face Yamato Region's Natsukusa Kiri in the preliminary round.

• Lu Li returned to the Tsar Hotel, organized his insights from the Unown, and made nine Minor Teleportation Talismans and nine Minor Protection Talismans.
• Lu Li divined that his life would no longer be in danger, then asked Yao Yifei for the tournament competitors' profiles.
• Ekaterina met with Clown and agreed to provide a Heavenly King to help kill Raine during the tournament operation.
• Qu Suxin appeared and promised that her Gardevoir would secretly protect Lu Li, while warning Ekaterina to leave the Kyushu Region after the tournament.
• Lu Li learned that his next opponent was Natsukusa Kiri, a strong civilian Trainer with a Late-stage Normal Frogadier, and confidently predicted victory before questioning whether the rankings were designed to keep Natsukusa from advancing.

Lu Li prepared for the Gaokao Finals under Champion-level Gardevoir’s protection and defeated Natsukusa Kiri’s Frogadier with Tropius. Afterward, he watched Raine’s match and learned that Raine’s Electabuzz had reached Elite-level strength through its lineage, the Lei Family’s resources, and an Electric-type Divine Item.

• Lu Li learned that the Yamato Region had requested Natsukusa Kiri’s difficult match arrangement and received Gardevoir’s protection from Qu Suxin.
• Lu Li sent Yao Yifei back to watch over his Orchard and reviewed Natsukusa Kiri’s match records with Tropius.
• Lu Li met Sister Hua, learned the tournament rules, and waited for his match at the Pokémon Center.
• Lu Li used Tropius to defeat Natsukusa Kiri’s Frogadier, and Natsukusa Kiri thanked him for showing mercy.
• Lu Li watched Raine’s match and learned that Raine’s Electabuzz was a Master Descendant supported by the Lei Family’s Electric-type Divine Item.

Lu Li and Sister Hua tried to reach Yu Lili during an attack that sealed Ancient City and targeted the tournament’s Rookie Trainers. After major battles broke out across the city, Lu Li arrived safely at Arena 2 and found Yu Lili and her father.

• Lu Li used Spirit Vision Eye to discover that the Lei Family’s Electabuzz had Master-level potential, then surveyed the tournament contestants with Sister Hua.
• A cloaked man began the attack by having Slowbro seal Ancient City with Psychic power, prompting the Security Office to mobilize.
• The Clown attacked the Pokémon Center, where Lei Ze and Leng Huchong confronted him and a battle between Champion-level Trainers began.
• Lu Li learned that Yu Lili and her father were at Arena 2, so he and Sister Hua headed there while Sister Hua ignored calls for help elsewhere.
• At the Pokémon Center, Wang Linglong and other Trainers attacked Raine, while the Cloak Man prepared to intercept League reinforcements.
• Lu Li reached Arena 2 without encountering enemies and found Yu Lili and her father at the entrance.

As terrorists attacked the Ancient City Pokémon Center, Yu Zhonggang tried to protect Yu Lili but was forced to answer the League’s emergency summons, leaving Lu Li with her in the Underground Garage. The fighting escalated across the city, and Gardevoir later warned Lu Li that someone around his age was searching for him.

• Yu Lili embraced Lu Li when he arrived, while Yu Zhonggang refused Leng Qianqiu’s request to support Arena 1 until the League formally summoned him.
• Yu Zhonggang escorted Yu Lili and Lu Li to the Underground Garage, then left to join the operation after the League emergency summons arrived.
• On the Tsar Hotel roof, Qu Suxin and Ekaterina watched the battle and hoped Raine would die as Leng Huchong and the Clown clashed over control of the weather.
• Outside Ancient City, the Cloak Man released Mega Medicham and went to hold back two Champion-level Trainers and two Elite Four-level Trainers.
• Lu Li gave Yu Lili a Safety Charm and waited with her near the garage exit as the Pokémon Center battles shook the building.
• Gardevoir told Lu Li that someone about his age was searching for him, though she sensed no killing intent.

Lu Li reunited with Lian Sheyi, learned more about the chaos at the Pokémon Center, and infiltrated the Dark Web’s looting of the Ecological Park. He stole Black Knight’s cargo compartment and returned near the Underground Garage, where he destroyed the backpack’s tracker as Black Knight began pursuing him.

• Lu Li recognized Lian Sheyi, who gave him a combat suit and mask and explained that the Progress Society and rival families were fueling the Pokémon Center’s chaos.
• Lu Li gave Lian Sheyi two Substitute Amulets before heading to the Ecological Park to take advantage of the raid.
• Lu Li took a high-potential Torchic Egg and joined Dark Web members loading captured Pokémon into cargo compartments.
• Lu Li stole Black Knight’s Space Backpack as Black Knight stored a full cargo compartment, then escaped using Small Teleportation.
• Black Knight released a Skarmory and used the backpack’s tracking system to pursue Lu Li, who returned near the Underground Garage and crushed the tracker with Psychic.

After looting Pokémon from the Breeding House during the Pokémon Center chaos, Lu Li sought shelter in an Underground Garage with Yu Lili and encountered Kavis and his companions. The garage collapsed in an explosion, and a Progress Society squad confronted the survivors, demanding to know whether they had Elite Four-level Pokémon with them.

• Lu Li asked Gardevoir to hide his Space Backpack and abandoned his idea of raiding the League Treasury after hearing about its powerful guardian.
• Gardevoir warned Lu Li that Rookie Trainers were heading for the Underground Garage, where Lu Li met Kavis and four other contestants seeking shelter.
• Lu Li recognized hidden Elite Four-level Psychic Ability near Kavis and observed the battle between Chandelure and Electivire while Gardevoir kept watch over him.
• An explosion collapsed the building above the Underground Garage, and Lu Li escaped with Yu Lili before Steelix and Kavis's group emerged from the rubble.
• A Progress Society squad appeared and asked the survivors to reveal whether they had Elite Four-level Pokémon; Kavis respectfully called on his Ancestor to appear.

Lu Li and the others were threatened by Progress Society members, then a Deity’s Shadow World descended as Marshadow responded to the death and miraculous revival of Li Zhi, a Rainbow Hero. The crisis ended when the Shadow World receded, leaving Clown and the League Trainers to reassess their battle.

• Hariyama’s Elite Four-level strength made Chen Ke'en prepare to withdraw, but Kavis pointed Lu Li and the others out as targets before leaving with his companions.
• Chen Ke'en learned of the Gym Leader-level Psychic Ability around Yu Lili and withdrew, while Sister Hua and the staff member worried about the commoner contestants.
• Marshadow’s Shadow World spread over the Pokémon Center, crushing Yu Lili and the staff members with oppressive force while Lu Li struggled to remain standing.
• Hattori Jiro’s account revealed that he had assassinated Wang Xiao'er, Liu Tiantian, Ouyang Fei, and Li Zhi, then discovered Li Zhi’s Rainbow Wing and witnessed Li Zhi revive.
• Clown learned that a Rainbow Hero had entered the tournament and tried to attack Lei Ze with Blacephalon, but Marshadow’s Shadow World receded before he could press his advantage.

Lu Li learned that Marshadow had appeared after the Progress Society attacked Ho-Oh's Emissary, while the battle at the competition ended in the deaths of Yu Zhonggang and Raine. With the attackers withdrawing and Gardevoir preparing to leave, Lu Li faced the choice of leaving the dangerous area or trying to recover Yu Zhonggang's body for Yu Lili.

• Lu Li deduced that Marshadow had appeared because the Rainbow Hero was in mortal danger, and Gardevoir confirmed that the Progress Society had attacked Ho-Oh's Emissary.
• Yu Zhonggang ordered Aggron to use Stomp, collapsing Arena 1, but an Elite Four-level Scyther cut him in half as Bronzong Teleported away.
• Raine died after Rookie Trainers used Grass Knot against him, and Miyamoto Bude ordered his forces to retreat as signals prompted the Black Knight and White Queen to withdraw.
• Yu Lili recognized her father's lower body, and Lu Li urged her to recover his remains, but Bronzong said the arena had collapsed and refused to take them there.
• Gardevoir told Lu Li that Raine was dead, both sides had withdrawn, and the area was becoming too dangerous to remain in.

After escaping the Pokémon Center, Lu Li learned that Gardevoir had seized the League’s valuable Starter Pokémon Breeding Data and taken it to Qu Suxin. Qu Suxin planned to share a copy with Lu Li and return the original to the League, while Ekaterina learned that Lu Li’s presence had brought her good fortune too.

• Lu Li and Yu Lili escaped the Pokémon Center with Bronzong’s help, leaving Sister Hua and a staff member behind.
• Gardevoir killed the Dark Web members carrying the Breeding Data, erased Bronzong’s memory of the encounter, and left with the data.
• Lu Li led Yu Lili and Bronzong to the Tsar Hotel, where a Champion-level Pokémon was stationed.
• Qu Suxin celebrated Gardevoir’s theft of the data and decided to make copies, give one to Lu Li, and return the original to the League after staging a pursuit.
• Ekaterina concluded that following Lu Li had brought her recent good fortune, and Froslass told her that Lu Li had returned with a young girl.

After Yu Zhonggang died in the Ancient City Pokémon Center disaster, Lu Li comforted Yu Lili as she told her mother and received instructions to recover her father’s body and Aggron. Meanwhile, the League’s late response fueled Lei Ze’s grief and anger, while the true killer of his grandson remained unknown.

• Ekaterina learned that Yu Lili had arrived with Lu Li and realized Yu Zhonggang’s death could make the girl a greater rival for Lu Li’s attention.
• Lu Li took the grieving Yu Lili to her room, where she called Jin Fengjiao and told her that Yu Zhonggang had died in the line of duty.
• Jin Fengjiao told Yu Lili to contact the Pokémon Center, claim her father’s body, and prioritize retrieving Aggron’s Poké Ball to protect the family estate.
• Lu Li learned that Yu Lili could remain at Shui Bo Gym as her teacher’s final disciple, then went upstairs to ask Ekaterina about the situation outside.
• Si Kongzhen apologized for the League’s late arrival and explained that the Dragon Champion was abroad, Qu Suxin was pursuing Dark Web criminals, and the Northern Region Elite Four had been summoned to the Wang Family Secret Realm.
• Lei Ze’s three Elite Four blamed Yu Zhonggang for the disaster, then speculated that a Champion-level Grass-type Pokémon had killed Xiao En; Lei Ze left with Leng Huchong without identifying the killer.

After the attack on the Pokémon Center, the League investigated the stolen Starter Pokémon Breeding Data while hiding the disaster from the public. Lu Li learned that Yu Lili had withdrawn from the tournament and that Yu Zhonggang was the only Elite Four-level Trainer killed, as the attack’s wider consequences remained unclear.

• Lei Ze ordered an investigation into Yu Zhonggang’s background, then decided to reward his descendants with a Lü Steel Dragon Pokémon Egg for supporting Raine.
• Si Kongzhen reported that the League Treasury, Ecological Park, and complete Starter Pokémon Breeding Data had been stolen, so the President assigned Qu Suxin to recover the data.
• Qu Suxin and Gardevoir agreed to complete the mission quickly, knowing the League’s cooperation would make their work easier.
• Lu Li saw the League’s sanitized headlines and learned that Yu Lili was withdrawing from the College Entrance Exam Tournament after her father’s death; she went to claim the Pokémon he left behind.
• Lu Li’s Pokémon worried that they were too weak, and Yao Yifei later told him that most commoner Trainers and their Gym Leader-level Guardians had died in the attack.
• Yao Yifei told Lu Li that Yu Zhonggang was the only Elite Four-level Trainer killed, while the League had lost three Elite Four-level Pokémon.

Lu Li learned that the League and Lei Family had compensated Yu Zhonggang’s family with a Duraludon Egg, then discovered the Lei Family had taken Aggron and suspected it had ulterior motives. Yu Lili returned home to grieve with Jin Fengjiao and found her grandfather’s Jin Family was interested in taking the egg.

• Yao Yifei told Lu Li that the League had granted Yu Zhonggang’s descendants access to the treasury’s outer levels and that the Lei Family had given them a Duraludon Egg.
• Yu Lili told Lu Li that the Lei Family had taken Aggron under the pretext of questioning it, and Lu Li concluded the family had detained it deliberately.
• Yu Lili told Lu Li that the tournament had been moved to Zhongdu, then returned home after her mother asked her to come back.
• Ekaterina warned Lu Li that the Yu Family was in trouble and that other families might target it, while explaining she could not accompany him to Zhongdu.
• Yu Lili reunited with Jin Fengjiao, and they discussed the Duraludon Egg as a costly and potentially dangerous compensation.
• Jin Fengjiao told Yu Lili that her grandfather’s Jin Family wanted the egg because Yu Lili was a Water-type Trainer and the Jin Family specialized in Steel-types.

Yu Lili and Jin Fengjiao settled the fate of Yu Zhonggang’s Duraludon Egg and sought Liu Li’s help in protecting the Yu Family’s legacy after his death. Meanwhile, Lu Li traveled to Zhongdu, where the League President and Long discussed whether he or Li Zhi was the Rainbow Hero.

• Yu Lili rejected her grandfather’s demand to give the Duraludon Egg to Jin Huang and insisted that she would choose its Breeder.
• Jin Fengjiao took Yu Lili to meet Liu Li, told her that Yu Zhonggang had died, and knelt to ask her to help protect Li Li.
• Liu Li agreed to help stabilize the Yu Family’s affairs and proposed seeking a Gym Leader-level Trainer to oversee Qingmu Black Market, while Jin Fengjiao made her Li Li’s godmother.
• Lu Li flew to Zhongdu for the College Entrance Exam Tournament while Ekaterina prepared to return to Golden Rooster Villa.
• The League President asked Long whether Li Zhi or Lu Li was more likely to be the Rainbow Hero, and explained that those in power feared the Emissary of Ideals because that Divine Emissary could command a Deity.

The League President and Long concluded that Lu Li was the Rainbow Hero and discussed his safety and Long’s sister becoming his follower. In Zhongdu, Lu Li watched tournament matches, defeated a Combusken with Tropius, and then urged Tropius to improve its move proficiency.

• The League President showed Long the files of Lu Li and Li Zhi, and they judged Lu Li to be the Rainbow Hero because of his Elite-level strength and commoner background.
• Long asked whether the League should protect Lu Li, and the League President said the Divine Cult would not dare harm him; Long then considered sending his younger sister to Lu Li.
• Lu Li reached Zhongdu, arranged for Yao Yifei to gather materials for Storage Rings, and meditated while waiting for the tournament to begin.
• Lu Li watched Axew lose to Grotle and later defeated a Combusken with Tropius, while Long and his younger sister watched from a private viewing room.
• Long’s younger sister said she would become Lu Li’s follower if she lost to him, and Long reminded her to keep her promise.
• Lu Li told Tropius to train its moves, and Tropius explained that it had been practicing Leech Seed and considering combining it with Bullet Seed.