Lively Song Xiaomeng and Poker-Faced Espurr!

"Xiao Yun?"

Hearing someone call his name, Mu Yun turned toward the voice and saw a petite figure only reaching his chest.

Her black ponytail was neatly tied behind her head, with a wisp of pale pink bangs over her forehead. She had a tall, well-proportioned figure, neither too curvy nor too flat, and wore a cute, elegant cat hairpin.

She looked playful yet brimming with youthful energy.

"Sister Xiaomeng?"

The unusual pale pink bangs let Mu Yun recognize her at once.

Song Xiaomeng, the only daughter of his homeroom teacher Song Fu, was studying in Evergreen University's Trainer program. After the school term began this year, she should have been a senior.

"What are you doing here?"

Mu Yun asked curiously.

If he remembered correctly, Song Fu had once bragged to him over dinner drinks about how talented his daughter was.

She had joined the school team as a sophomore and become one of its main battlers as a junior. After this year's seniors graduated, she had even been promoted to vice-captain.

Although Evergreen University was not one of the Top Ten, it was still among the top universities beneath them, and internal competition was fierce.

This showed just how gifted Song Xiaomeng was as a Trainer.

Why would a Trainer of her caliber appear at the Newbie Battle Hall?

Could she be one of those despicable noob stompers?

"Uh, didn't I redeem a new Pokémon from the school's breeding center before vacation? This place happened to have just opened, so I thought I'd bring her here to get some practice."

Perhaps embarrassed that an acquaintance had caught her stomping newbies, Song Xiaomeng twisted the pink hair by her ear around her slender fingers and explained awkwardly.

"You're here to stomp newbies, aren't you?"

Mu Yun got straight to the point.

"Of course not! Noob stomping means using high-level Pokémon to bully low-level Pokémon. I'm using a low-level Pokémon too. Theoretically, since I'm battling with a new Pokémon, I'm a newbie as well."

Song Xiaomeng poked Mu Yun's chest indignantly and said with feigned displeasure.

Mu Yun shrugged without replying.

Seeing that, Song Xiaomeng continued, "Let me tell you, there's scientific reasoning behind what I'm doing."

"I'm all ears." Mu Yun wore an expression that clearly said, Go on, make something up.

"First of all, every Pokémon is like a blank sheet of paper when it is born. If she keeps battling the old hands on the team, she'll eventually feel enormous pressure. She might even start hating battles because she hates losing."

"So, bringing her out to crush some rookies once in a while—ah, no, bringing her out to see more Pokémon of the same level—can greatly build her confidence. She won't resist or fear battling anymore, which is beneficial for developing a battle mindset!"

"That's how it is!"

Song Xiaomeng's voice grew louder and louder. By the end, she had even put her hands on her hips, feeling proud that she could put so much thought into her Pokémon's mental health.

She really was amazing!

"That makes some sense."

Mu Yun stroked his chin and pretended to agree.

"Right?" Song Xiaomeng beamed and nodded repeatedly.

"But I don't believe you."

"..."

"Xiao Yun, after not seeing me for a few months, you've learned to tease your big sister. Looks like I should teach you in advance about the proper attitude to have toward your seniors once you enter society!"

Song Xiaomeng turned sideways and hugged Mu Yun's arm, softness pressing against firm muscle. Looking up at him, she spoke with a smile that did not reach her eyes.

She was clearly smiling, yet Mu Yun somehow found it rather chilling.

"Sister Xiaomeng, I was joking. How could I possibly doubt the training philosophy of Evergreen University's school team vice-captain?" Mu Yun instantly changed his tune.

Who said Sister Xiaomeng's philosophy was bad? It was absolutely brilliant!

"Hmph! It had better be."

Song Xiaomeng puffed out her cheeks and released his arm.

After not seeing him for a few months, Xiao Yun's body had gotten better and better. Even the muscles in his arms were sharply defined. If Si Yao saw this, she would definitely get so excited she'd lick the screen.

I was still reserved. I only hugged him once.

"Battle Seven, Match Eight has ended. Please have both participants in Match Nine prepare."

Just as Song Xiaomeng was admiring herself, an announcement suddenly came from the lounge speakers.

"Ah, it's my turn. Xiao Yun, we'll talk about that later. Watch your big sister put on a good show!" Without waiting for Mu Yun's response, Song Xiaomeng hurried toward the small corridor.

"She's about to graduate from university, yet she's still so impatient." Watching Song Xiaomeng's retreating figure, Mu Yun smiled and shook his head.

After casually finding an empty chair in the lounge and sitting down, Mu Yun turned his gaze to the battlefield.

Once the electronic referee finished its long-winded speech, Song Xiaomeng and her opponent threw out their Poké Balls at the same time.

Song Xiaomeng's opponent was a somewhat chubby boy. With his baggy clothes and acne-covered face, he looked like an ordinary NPC who could appear in any school at any time.

However, compared with his plain appearance, his Pokémon was far more eye-catching.

It had a round body, orange-and-black skin, and the black portion looked like tiny shorts it wore on its body. Its limbs were short, but its eyes were large, making it look rather adorable.

It was Tepig, one of the Fire Type Starter Trio, whose final evolution was known as the second senior brother!

[Pokémon: Tepig]

[Gender: Male]

[Type: Fire Type]

[Level: 11 (Normal Level)]

[Ability: Blaze (When Stamina falls below one-third, the power of Fire Type moves increases by 50%)]

[Moves: Yawn, Tackle, Tail Whip, Ember, Endure]

[Held Item: None]

[Potential: Elite Level]

[Base Stats: 308]

"Only Elite Level potential. Looks like he didn't get it through the Pokémon Fund."

There were many ways to obtain a Starter Trio. The most common and well-known method was purchasing Pokémon Fund packages worth 800,000 League Coins.

The Starter Trio sold at that price were descendants of Totem Level Starter Trio.

Of course, one could also buy them from private or official breeding centers, but their potential would vary wildly.

"I wonder what Sister Xiaomeng's new Pokémon is." Curious, Mu Yun turned his attention to the Pokémon before Song Xiaomeng.

It was a fluffy creature covered in gray fur, with adorable vacant purple eyes, large curled ears, and tiny, cute limbs.

"It's actually an Espurr."

Mu Yun recognized the Pokémon at a glance.

Espurr was a Pokémon similar to Psyduck, born with Psychic power so strong that it could potentially lose control.

Because of that, she had to use her large ears to clamp tightly against her head, preventing psychic power from leaking out and affecting her surroundings.

And because she had to divide her attention to control her psychic power, the entire Espurr species wore poker faces.

Of course, this so-called power was not world-destroying. It was simply because their innate psychic power was high, exceeding their own level, so they needed to control it constantly.

The simplest way to judge whether an Espurr was strong was by looking at her expression.

If she had a deadpan face, that meant she was at a normal level.

But if she had lively, spirited eyes and ears that stood freely upright, then she was impressive.

An Espurr displaying that could even contend with a Gardevoir or even an Alakazam of the same level in a Confusion clash.

There was a saying that had long circulated among Psychic Type Trainers: if you had a powerful Alakazam, it only meant you were lucky. But if you raised a lively Psychic Espurr, then you truly had skill!

As for why, it was said that Alakazam could not only train independently, but also coordinate the entire team. In front of Alakazam, a Trainer was nothing more than an accessory.

Coming back to his senses, Mu Yun looked at Espurr's Status Panel.

[Pokémon: Espurr]

[Gender: Female]

[Type: Psychic]

[Level: 18 (Normal Level)]

[Ability: Own Tempo (Maintains a highly self-contained state and will not fall into confusion or other mental abnormal conditions)]

[Moves: Yawn, Scratch, Leer, Fake Out, Disarming Voice, Confusion, Covet]

[Held Item: None]

[Potential: Totem Level]

[Base Stats: 355]

"Totem Level potential? Sister Xiaomeng, not bad!"

Just because his good friend Liu Jianhao and childhood friend Chi Duoduo had Pokémon with Gym Leader Level potential did not mean Pokémon with Totem Level potential were weak.

The price of any Totem Level Pokémon, even a Weedle, was above 200,000 League Coins. If it was a Psychic Type, it would not cost less than 400,000.

Mu Yun roughly knew Song Fu's family situation. They had some money, but not much. They definitely could not afford to pay in full for another Psychic Type Pokémon with Totem Level potential.

Why another one?

Because Sister Xiaomeng's strongest mainstay was an Espeon with Totem Level potential.

Apparently, it had cost a full 450,000 League Coins when they bought her, and Old Song had even needed connections to get one.

So what exactly did Duoduo's master do? He could just give away Pokémon with Gym Leader Level potential like they were nothing. That was absurdly rich!