This was the first time the Twelve Sons of China had appeared together before the world, their first group photo, and the first time the title had taken root in people's minds.
The title sounded both corny and embarrassingly melodramatic, but no one had formally bestowed it on them. Netizens had coined it themselves, and it eventually spread overseas, becoming known around the world.
"Wenxuan, make sure you do a proper job with this year's Pokémon Contest. Don't let it turn out like the previous years!" a burly old man on the reviewing stand called down to Bian Wenxuan.
Bian Wenxuan jolted at those words and hurriedly agreed.
Unremarkable as the old man looked, he had once been a genuine Champion Class Trainer, one of the few in China's history. He was now over three hundred years old, and his surviving Pokémon were essentially enjoying their retirement.
Though his fighting strength was gone, his prestige remained. His standing in China was no lower than that of the premier or the president.
"Exactly! Now that was a dazzling performance. What even are those performances we get nowadays? Nothing but cheap crowd-pleasing tricks!" another dignitary said disdainfully.
"Indeed. We had a few properly organized Pokémon Contests back in the day. But now? Look at what they've become!"
"When all's said and done, these youngsters really are good. Their performance wasn't any worse than what we saw at those contests back then, was it?"
"Of course it wasn't! It was just a little unpolished, and it took all twelve of them working together!"
"I'm genuinely curious, though. How breathtaking would it be if one person pulled all that off?"
"Hahaha! If that really happened, I suppose the age of Pokémon Coordinators would be upon us!"
While those on the reviewing stand discussed