The Terrifying "Mom" Fans

Name: Charmeleon
Gender: Female
Type: Fire
Ability: Blaze Effect: When HP drops, move damage increases
Moves: Scratch, Ember, Smokescreen, Flamethrower, Dragon Breath, Fire Punch, Metal Claw, Dragon Claw
Inherited Move: Frustration
Rank: Peak Intermediate
Evolution Progress: 47%

"Charmeleon?" Ye Lan's eyes flashed as he looked at the data panel before him.

It had once been Snivy versus Charmander. Now, it was Servine versus Charmeleon. Ye Lan could not help thinking of Lin Yan.

"I wonder how he and Charmander are doing now. Oh, right, and that Wartortle too."

Sensing that Charmeleon was about to launch an attack, Ye Lan shook his head and emerged from his thoughts.

Based on what he knew of Lin Yan, no matter where they were, they definitely would not fall behind in strength.

"Servine, Glare!"

"Hiss!"

Before Fire Punch could reach Servine, strange patterns lit up across its body.

With a buzz, Charmeleon's mind went blank, and its body went numb.

By the time it came to its senses again, not only were its limbs tightly bound by Vine Whip, but Leech Seed had firmly attached itself to its body.

Servine did not continue attacking. Instead, it kept circling Charmeleon, preventing it from suddenly lashing out.

"Roar!"

A pained roar came from Charmeleon. Seeing this, its trainer's expression darkened.

The other side was clearly not taking him seriously. Not only had Ye Lan not eliminated Charmeleon outright, he was even using it to restore Servine's condition.

"Don't look down on people too much! Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!"

In an instant, Charmeleon's tail flame surged. With Blaze activated, raging fire engulfed its body, burning the Vine Whip and Leech Seed to ashes.

"Why does everyone think Fire-types can always beat Grass-types?"

Under Ye Lan's command, Magical Leaf continuously flew out around Servine, stirring up waves of air and forcibly driving back the surging flames.

Giga Drain activated. After draining Charmeleon's last bit of stamina, Servine landed gracefully, the cold pride in its eyes growing even stronger.

Far too weak. The pressure it brought was nowhere near that Charmander from before. It couldn't make Servine excited at all.

"Congratulations to contestant Ye Lan for claiming six consecutive victories!" As the referee's countdown ended, the host's voice rang out.

"Although everyone already knows your choice, according to the rules, I still have to ask as usual. Contestant Ye Lan, are you sure you wish to continue the challenge?"

"Of course!"

On the arena's big screen, Ye Lan smiled at the camera. Gone was his usual lazy demeanor, replaced by the confidence of someone certain of victory.

"This guy's completely different once he starts battling." Chen Yang clicked his tongue in amazement from the stands.

Who would have thought that this spirited young man was actually the same sleazy shut-in who spent an entire week at home playing handheld games without even changing his underwear?

"Ye Lan! Ye Lan!"

Cheers rose from the stands once more. Quite a few spectators who had only come along because their friends invited them were astonished that an Intermediate trainer had such popularity.

"You're asking why I'm so excited? You must be new here, right? Ye Lan is only sixteen. He'll definitely compete in this year's provincial tournament, and he may even get the chance to compete in the national tournament once he gets to university!"

"If we support him now, we'll be veteran fans in the future!" an excited, red-faced middle-aged man replied.

"Besides, Ye Lan is so strong at such a young age. He's obviously one of us from Jindu. Supporting him is basically supporting our own!"

A female office worker gazed at the smiling Ye Lan in the arena, her eyes shining.

Honestly, as long as Ye Lan did not reveal his absurd nature, his age of sixteen, coupled with that confident yet lazy temperament, really was enough to attract the attention of some women.

It gave quite a few female trainers and office workers who had come to watch the matches the urge to become mom fans.

"Go bravely, little Ye! Mommy will always be with you!"

The voice was so piercing that the surrounding spectators covered their ears. It even passed through the arena's protective barrier and reached Ye Lan directly.

"?"

Ye Lan's face stiffened. He awkwardly scratched his cheek, but still waved in the direction the voice had come from.

After all, they were his fans. Though... well... it was really hard to put into words.

Starting from the seventh match, the prize pool's base score had accumulated enough and was about to begin increasing rapidly by geometric multiples.

The first six matches combined had only been worth 31.5 points, yet as long as one won the sixth match, the score would immediately rise to 63.5!

This was also why most contestants fell at the seventh match.

After six consecutive battles, both Pokémon and trainers had suffered varying degrees of exhaustion. Lack of stamina or overly severe injuries became the reason some trainers failed.

Even more fatal was that, when faced with points that were about to double, many contestants could not help but think, I'll stop after winning this round.

There was nothing wrong with that thought. It was quite sensible, in fact.

But it also made them unwilling to take risks in their tactical arrangements, trying to secure victory through the safest possible approach.

The more they worried about, the more they lost. In the end, they were defeated by their opponents in wars of attrition.

After carefully checking Servine's condition, Ye Lan's expression became calm, without the slightest hint of impatience.

Those who aim high achieve the middle; those who aim for the middle achieve the low.

Ye Lan's goal was fifteen consecutive victories. Everything before him showed that the situation was entirely under his control.

Thanks to the recovery effects of Leech Seed and Giga Drain, Servine's stamina remained in excellent condition.

As for Ye Lan himself, the battles had not been very intense. Servine acted on its own most of the time, and his occasional commands did not consume much mental energy.

As a result, the next four battles did not have many highlights.

Servine's strength at the peak Intermediate level far surpassed that of Pokémon at the same stage, both in move power and proficiency.

So far, not a single Pokémon had been able to take Servine's Iron Tail head-on without collapsing from severe injuries.

The arena officials seemed to have noticed this as well. None of the opponents in these four matches were offensive types; they were all endurance-focused.

Even with the triple recovery from Grassy Terrain, Leech Seed, and Giga Drain, Servine began to feel exhausted and started panting heavily.

Its physical injuries were not serious, merely a few minor scrapes that had begun to recover under the embrace of Grass-type energy.

Instead, it was the mental fatigue caused by continuously using moves for so long that left Servine in far worse condition than when the battles had first begun.

"Contestant Ye Lan has completed the goal he set earlier, achieving ten consecutive victories—something not seen in the Intermediate division for a very long time! Will you choose to continue the challenge?!"

At this moment, not only the audience, but even the host, Xiao Li, was swept up in the atmosphere. It felt as though flames were burning in his chest.

Ten consecutive victories! This was not uncommon in the arena's long history. It had been achieved in the Intermediate division, the Advanced division, and even the Professional division.

Yet the battler who had achieved it this time was only sixteen years old! That was the truly unbelievable part.

"I choose to continue!"