Xinhai, lying on the sofa, took the Pokédex from his pocket and lit up its screen.
A soft blue-white glow illuminated the dim living room, lighting up his smiling face.
Eevee was curled up on his chest. Startled by the light, it rubbed its eyes with its little paws, let out a dissatisfied "Vee," then buried its head back in the crook of his arm.
Xinhai smiled and stroked its back, then swiped across the screen, found Brawly's name in his contacts, and opened their chat.
"Brawly, you there?"
After sending the message, he placed the Pokédex on his chest, his fingers absentmindedly combing through Eevee's fluffy fur.
The reply came quickly.
"What's up?"
A mischievous smile curled across Xinhai's lips as his fingers rapidly typed on the screen. "Nothing much. Just wanted to tell you some good news."
"Good news? What good news? Is it that the anime airs tomorrow? I already know that."
Xinhai could not help chuckling softly when he saw the message.
"Not that." He typed, deliberately slowing down and entering one character at a time. "I've broken through the Three Gates!"
After sending it, he stared at the screen and waited for the reaction on the other end.
Sure enough, Brawly went silent for quite a while.
The "typing" prompt above the chat box flashed repeatedly, but no message came through.
Seeing that Brawly still had not replied, Xinhai's smile deepened.
He could practically see Brawly's expression through the phone—first staring wide-eyed in shock, then furrowing his brow, and finally wearing a skeptical look that said, "How is that possible?"
After roughly ten seconds, Brawly finally replied.
"Huh? You broke through the Three Gates?"
"Yeah, just a couple days ago. Something happened near Fortree City, and then I broke through." Xinhai smiled as his fingers