Scary Face

"Hmph! None of your business!" Shen Yue snapped. Not being able to teach that Girl a lesson on the spot had left her anger simmering.

"Yueyue! Don't get so worked up. Look how many of us are here. Whoever draws that Girl will teach her a lesson for you!" a petite Girl said with a smile. Xiao Ran remembered that her name was Shan Huanxin, and her Pokémon was Bulbasaur, one of the starter Pokémon.

At her words, they all looked around. Well, more than half of the top thirty-two were from their class. Quite a few were smiling and waving at them. Seeing this, Xiao Ran couldn't help worrying for that Girl. It looked like her path through the finals wouldn't be easy!

Shen Yue had clearly realized the same thing. A trace of surprise appeared on her face. She hadn't expected so many of the top thirty-two to be her classmates, either. Seed Class One certainly lived up to its reputation.

"Wow! Thanks, everyone! Thank you!" Shen Yue thanked them excitedly, her face brimming with smug satisfaction. For a moment, she even forgot her conflict with that Girl and kept greeting the classmates around her. Meanwhile, the Girl's expression darkened at the sight of their crowd.

"Hello, everyone! I'm Qin Ming!"

"I'm Zhao Yue Ling!"

With everyone present, the two familiar senior students took their places on the podium.

"Next, we'll draw the matchups for the finals. I have to admit, Seed Class One is still a powerhouse. A full twenty of our top thirty-two come from Class One, while all the other classes combined have only twelve. Tsk, I really hope a dark horse emerges to knock Class One down a peg!" The finals were clearly different from the earlier rounds. The moment Qin Ming appeared, he stirred up plenty of hostility toward Class One.

After all, each year had more than a dozen classes of Trainers alone, not to mention classes for Pokémon Breeders, Pokémon Coordinators, and the like. Out of all those students, only this handful had made it into the finals. That showed just how important resources were to raising Pokémon. Those resources didn't just mean money, but also knowledge, experience, connections, the Pokémon themselves, and more.

As Qin Ming finished speaking, the entire venue erupted. Almost everyone seemed united against a common enemy, and chants of "Down with Class One!" rang throughout the stands. Fortunately, Class One's seating area was some distance from the other classes. Otherwise, Jiang Cheng and the others wouldn't have dared stay there to watch.

"Heh, seeing everyone so fired up reminds me of last year's Freshman Challenge. Class One was just as dominant then, but only fifteen of them made the finals. Unfortunately, one of their students still took the championship." Qin Ming continued rubbing salt into the wound.

"Yes, Class One is as strong as ever. The Freshman Challenge has practically become an internal tournament for them. But don't give up, everyone. Dark horses do exist! I heard that in Qin Ming's year, he fought his way from an ordinary class all the way to the Rookie King's throne!" After that blow, they had to offer some encouragement, and Zhao Yue Ling could flatter the big shot beside her while she was at it. She spoke with a bright smile.

Her words fired up the crowd once again. An overwhelming victory was certainly enviable, but a comeback against impossible odds resonated with most people even more. Everyone wanted to capture the world's attention, yet most were destined to remain ordinary. Rising from humble beginnings and soaring into the heavens was what ordinary people truly dreamed of.

"Heh, that's ancient history. I didn't think anyone still remembered. But you're no slouch yourself. If I remember correctly, you ranked first in your year on last year's year-end assessment," Qin Ming said modestly, not forgetting to return the compliment. Universities held year-end assessments every year, and ranking first in one's year was no less impressive than taking first place among the freshmen.

"Ahhh, you're going to make my head swell with praise!" Zhao Yue Ling said happily. She hadn't expected a celebrated third-year student to remember her, a second-year who had ranked first in her year.

"I'm only stating the facts. All right, all right! If we keep praising each other, we'll never get through today's finals. Let's hurry up and draw the matchups!" Glancing at the time, Qin Ming cut off Zhao Yue Ling before she could launch into another round of flattery, his tone half joking.

With so many Class One students present, the draw produced quite a few matches between classmates. Xiao Ran, for instance, drew Ning Xiao, the haughty boy who specialized in Electric-types. His Electric-type Elekid had a huge type advantage over the Water-type Popplio.

Xiao Ran hadn't expected such a strong opponent in his very first match of the finals. With such a severe type disadvantage, even if he could win, it would be anything but easy. Ning Xiao was no novice like the opponents he had faced before.

Besides Xiao Ran, Ye Ling also drew a classmate, one with the Fire-type starter Pokémon Torchic. It was another starter Pokémon rarely seen in China, having only become widely available in recent years, so few new Trainers chose it as their starter Pokémon. However, Torchic was naturally at a type disadvantage against Froakie. Combined with Ye Ling's formidable strength, that left little doubt about the outcome.

Shen Yue, meanwhile, had the rotten luck of drawing the first match of the day. Perhaps fate had a hand in it, because she actually drew the Girl she had clashed with. Their gazes immediately crackled with hostility. Xiao Ran and the others finally learned who the Girl was: Zhu Yanting from Class Two, whose Pokémon was the Ground-type Sandshrew.

"Heh, I wondered who was acting so cocky. Turns out it was just a filthy rat!" Shen Yue sneered before the battle even began. Sandshrew wasn't actually a rat, but its Chinese name did contain the word. Hearing Shen Yue call it that, the Girl's face flushed with anger.

"Who's being cocky here, you or me? You're shameless!" Zhu Yanting shouted furiously.

"Obviously, you are!" Shen Yue looked at Bai as though she were an idiot, pushing her past the limits of her patience.

"You! Just you wait! Sandshrew, Rollout! Teach it a lesson!" Zhu Yanting shouted, her face filled with rage. At her command, Sandshrew curled into a ball and rolled swiftly toward Charmander.

Rollout was a sustained move whose damage increased over time. As long as the Pokémon's body could withstand it and it could keep its bearings, it could theoretically keep rolling indefinitely, stacking its damage to a terrifying level. It was a very basic move with a low floor but an extremely high ceiling.

"Heh, you tell it to roll and off it goes. You've certainly trained that rat to be obedient. Charmander, Scary Face!" Shen Yue knew how Rollout worked and naturally wouldn't let Sandshrew keep rolling, but she wasn't about to skip a single taunt.

As her words fell, Charmander stretched its cheeks, presenting Sandshrew with a terrifying face. Even rolling at full speed, Sandshrew couldn't ignore it. It stopped dead in fright and even began trembling, trying to retreat.

"Oh? Not bad, Shen Yue. It's even learned Scary Face. Does that mean its Trainer taught it well?" Surprise crossed Xiao Ran's face before he turned to Ye Ling beside him with a smile.

Scary Face was a relatively difficult move for Charmander to learn, requiring a certain talent for mischief. However, it wasn't especially useful, so many people simply couldn't be bothered to have their Pokémon learn it. Xiao Ran and the others hadn't expected Shen Yue's Charmander to know Scary Face. It seemed to have picked it up on its own after frequently watching Shen Yue play tricks on Jiang Cheng and make faces. Still, the move was certainly effective in the current situation.

"Heh, a rat is a rat. One scary face and look at the state you're in. Charmander, Dragon Rage!" Shen Yue timed her taunt perfectly, issuing an attack order to Charmander at the same time.

"Sandshrew, dodge!" Zhu Yanting cried out at the sight of the light gathering in Charmander's mouth.

Rather than choosing the Fire-type move Ember, Shen Yue had used the Dragon-type move Dragon Rage. It dealt fixed damage that couldn't be blocked. No matter how strong the target's defenses were, they were powerless against a dragon's fury.

The move's usefulness was very limited at higher levels, but at lower levels, it was a powerful attack that could easily deliver a one-hit knockout. Although Charmander was still young, the dragon's breath drawn from deep within its bloodline was anything but weak.

In its frightened state, Sandshrew's reactions were sluggish. By the time it heard its Pokémon Trainer's command and tried to dodge, it was already too late. A blast of dragon's breath struck it head-on, knocking it out instantly.

"Sandshrew!" Zhu Yanting raced onto the field as though she had gone mad. Sandshrew's back was a bloody mess. The Medical Team waiting nearby didn't dare delay and hurried after her.

After a brief examination and treatment, Sandshrew's condition was largely stable. It would only need a few days of rest in the infirmary. As Zhu Yanting left with the Medical Team, the look she gave Shen Yue was filled with venom.

"I won't let this go!" Zhu Yanting said bitterly, then left with the Medical Team.

"Hmph! I'll be waiting!" Shen Yue answered, holding her head high.

Yet when Shen Yue stepped off the stage, she wasn't nearly as happy as she had imagined she would be. She had won the match, but the whole affair was too aggravating. That girl had ruined her perfectly good mood. Fuming, Shen Yue returned to the competitors' seats to wait for the next match.

The matches that followed were fierce contests between strong opponents. Nancheng University had dozens of classes, and on average, only one student from every few classes had reached the finals. Naturally, none of them were mediocre. Every battle went back and forth, and no one won easily—except Ye Ling.

The Water-type Froakie faced the Fire-type Torchic. Though Torchic had been raised quite well, enough that even Xiao Ran's Popplio would have needed some effort to beat it, it had no chance to fight back against Ye Ling's Froakie. Froakie opened with the Dark-type move Fling, then rushed in with Quick Attack as its opponent dodged. It followed with Lick to paralyze Torchic, then finished the battle with Bubble. Clean and decisive.