The final sixteen

"I heard there used to be an Evil God Pokémon active in India, called Hoopa or something. Its presence was the very reason development there lagged behind. It led huge numbers of rampaging Pokémon in wanton destruction, making living conditions terrible. Things only gradually recovered after Hoopa was sealed away a few decades ago," Ning Xiao said with a sudden frown.

"Yeah, I know about that too. It should have been Hoopa. Once unbound, Hoopa ranks among the strongest Pokémon. Even among Legendary Pokémon, it's extraordinarily powerful. That's why India could never subdue it," Xiao Ran said, nodding. He had naturally asked around about Legendary Pokémon and even researched them. Something as widely known as Hoopa was hardly a secret.

"Are there different levels of strength among Legendary Pokémon too?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"Of course. Pokémon can be strong or weak, so Legendary Pokémon naturally differ too! But which Legendary Pokémon is stronger? That's hard to say. Everyone has their own opinion," Shen Yue said, tilting her head.

This world had done little research into Legendary Pokémon. The largest-scale encounter with them had occurred during World War II, when even the nuclear weapons deployed against them had been intercepted. That was also the first time humanity had recognized the immense power of Pokémon.

"Actually, regardless of how strong or weak Legendary Pokémon are, they're all different from ordinary Pokémon. Every Legendary Pokémon has its own duty in this world. That sets them apart from ordinary Pokémon, even pseudo-legendary Pokémon, whose only purpose is to perpetuate their species," Xiao Ran said after some thought. Rather than continuing the discussion about their strength, he steered the topic toward their duties. Otherwise, explaining it would involve too much from his previous life, and he would never be able to make it clear.

"The duties of Legendary Pokémon?" Clearly, Xiao Ran's words had stunned everyone again. Strong as they were, they were still rookie Pokémon Trainers. Their knowledge could not begin to compare with Xiao Ran's, which was already approaching the level of a Senior Pokémon Breeder.

"Yeah. Take the evil god Hoopa, for example. As an evil god, its duty is destruction. Meanwhile, a Pokémon named Arceus appeared during World War II, and its duty is to create and protect the world... But all of that is far too distant for us. By comparison, Yu Lin from Class Two and Qiu Feibai from Breeder Class One interest me much more." Not wanting to keep discussing legendary Pokémon, Xiao Ran redirected everyone's attention to the arena.

Aside from Shen Teng and Ye Ling, quite a few others had made the final sixteen, and plenty deserved close attention. The freshman tournament was not restricted to Pokémon Trainer majors. Breeders, Pokémon Coordinators, Researchers... all were branches of Pokémon University studies. There were even hundreds of other majors, including Pokémon Grooming, Archaeology, and Pokémon Singer.

Becoming a Pokémon Trainer was not the only path available at a Pokémon University. In fact, few people truly wanted to become Pokémon Trainers. After all, whether they qualified as an Alliance Investigator or joined an Expedition Team organized by a private company, their work often put their lives at risk. Few Pokémon Trainers truly lived to a ripe old age.

"Those two? Don't they just have a Vulpix and a Bug-type Pokémon?" Hearing Xiao Ran's words, the others looked up in confusion. Although they had never seen that particular Bug-type Pokémon, Caterpie and other Bug-types had already left a deeply ingrained impression on them: weakness.

Bug-type Pokémon might grow quickly, but their species had too low a ceiling and too short a lifespan. In the end, they could not escape being left behind. Many Bug-type Pokémon exhausted their vitality so severely that they grew old after just a year or two, before their rookie Trainers had even finished university. That was why few people chose a Bug-type as their starter Pokémon unless they had no other choice.

As for that Vulpix, it might be rare, but it was still only a Fire-type Pokémon. It had no advantage against either the Dragon-type Gible or the Water-type Froakie. Its chances of victory were pitifully slim.

"Who told you that was a Bug-type Pokémon?" Stroking the Eevee in his arms, Xiao Ran wore a mischievous smile.

"It isn't a Bug-type?" Everyone froze.

"I remember they mentioned its name during the introductions. That bug was called... Trapinch?" Lan Yanxi recalled, her memory better than the others'.

"That's right, it's called Trapinch. But it isn't a Bug-type. It's a Ground-type! And once it evolves into Vibrava, it gains the rare Dragon typing too. That's a bug with Dragon blood," Xiao Ran explained, thoroughly pleased by their astonished expressions.

"Wait, Xiao Ran. You're telling me that little bug has Dragon blood?" Shen Yue looked utterly incredulous. She could hardly imagine that a bug she had thought one burst of fire could burn to death was actually a mighty dragon.

"Mm-hmm!" Xiao Ran smiled, then continued, "And it isn't just Trapinch. That Vulpix is no pushover either. Vulpix may be a Fire-type Pokémon, but nobody said it had to use Fire-type moves. It also has tremendous psychic power. I happened to watch its earlier match, and this Vulpix specializes in psychic attacks. It's already learned the Psychic-type move Extrasensory, and it packs quite a punch."

"What..." At that moment, everyone felt as though ten thousand Alpacas had stampeded through their minds.

"Tricks! It's all tricks! Not a single one of these Top 16 contestants is normal!" Jiang Cheng cried indignantly, only to catch Xiao Ran's look a moment later. "Uh, except Lingling and Yueyue. All the others are frauds!"

Mm-hmm... Xiao Ran turned back, satisfied.

"I think so too!" Lan Yanxi said.

"I suddenly feel like I've been way too naive!" Ning Xiao said.

In Xiao Ran's previous life, these Pokémon were nothing unusual. Anyone who had played the games for a little while could recognize them. But this was reality. Even the Pokédex published by the Alliance had only been updated to include a little over three hundred Pokémon. The Pokémon ordinary people had actually seen were fewer still. Apart from the Pokémon of powerful Trainers who regularly appeared on television, most people's knowledge came from common Pokémon around them, such as Rattata and Caterpie...

As such, encountering an unfamiliar Pokémon on the Battlefield was perfectly normal. What was truly frightening were Pokémon that defied expectations: a Vulpix specializing in psychic attacks, a bug with Dragon blood, a pseudo-legendary Pokémon hiding its strength... In battles like those, Pokémon Trainers could only rely on their knowledge and experience.

"Hey, Xiao Ran, do you think we can handle this lineup?" Shen Yue suddenly asked, looking at him curiously. This final-sixteen lineup was stronger than she had imagined. As a close friend, she naturally had to consider her best friends' chances.

"How could a man ever admit he couldn't handle it?" Xiao Ran gave her a sidelong glance.

"But it shouldn't be much of a problem. Froakie and Popplio have overwhelming type advantages against both Vulpix and Trapinch. As for Gible, being pseudo-legendary doesn't mean it's already a Legendary Pokémon. While it's still this young, it might not even beat Jiang Cheng's Magnemite. Shen Teng has made it this far through his own skill, not because of his baby pseudo-legendary Pokémon. In terms of sheer ability, we don't need to fear anyone," Xiao Ran calmly analyzed after some thought.

"That's a relief. We won't have to cancel tonight's victory feast!" Shen Yue said, patting her chest. Xiao Ran felt exasperation wash over him. So you were just worried you wouldn't get dinner tonight...

While they chatted, the matchups in the arena were announced. With sixteen contestants competing for eight places, avoiding clashes between friends was difficult. Right off the bat, Shen Yue was matched against Ye Ling, setting the stage for another internal showdown. By comparison, Xiao Ran and Xuan Yuan Nian had considerably weaker opponents: a Fire-type Cyndaquil and a Grass-type Bulbasaur, respectively.

Among the others, Shen Teng faced a Squirtle, while Yu Lin faced Han Liangping's Butterfree. As for Qiu Feibai from Pokémon Breeder Class One, the owner of Trapinch, his opponent was Duan Tao from Pokémon Trainer Class One—the dark-skinned boy who had previously followed Si Le around. His Pokémon was Geodude.

Duan Tao and Han Liangping were the only two in the final sixteen with common Pokémon. Everyone else had either a starter Pokémon or a rare Dragon-type or Psychic-type Pokémon. Even Vulpix was an exceedingly rare Pokémon.

Compared with Yu Lin from Class Two, Qiu Feibai was far more famous. His reputation even rivaled that of the Awakened in Class One. He had received special admission to the university as a Junior Breeder, and his college entrance examination score had also placed in the top ten. Academically, he was no less outstanding than Xiao Ran.

After all, the graduation requirement for Nancheng University's Breeder major was simply to qualify as a Junior Breeder by graduation. Someone like him could be said to have graduated before even enrolling. That was also why he had entered the Freshman Challenge after joining the university. There were no longer many courses at the school that could teach him anything. What he needed was further breakthroughs.

Only a rookie with his extensive Pokémon Breeder knowledge could recognize a rare Pokémon like Trapinch. Even if an ordinary person had one placed right in front of them, they probably would not recognize it, much less choose it as their starter Pokémon.

On top of that, Qiu Feibai was exceptionally handsome: tall, slim, and fair-skinned. In Xiao Ran's words, he was a textbook pretty boy. Not long after the semester began, he had been voted the Freshman Campus Heartthrob, leaving Xiao Ran, the celebrated Campus Belle, grinding his teeth.

"Yiyi, I'm clearly so good-looking. Why did he get picked as the campus heartthrob?" Watching Qiu Feibai step onto the stage, Xiao Ran murmured to the little Eevee in his arms.

"Vee..." The little Eevee looked innocently at her owner. Clearly sensing the sadness and resentment radiating from him, she extended her tiny pink tongue and licked him in comfort.

"Because you're beautiful! He's still just the Freshman Campus Heartthrob, while you're already the Nanjing University Campus Belle." Shen Yue, sitting beside Xiao Ran, overheard him and immediately burst into mocking laughter.

"Jiang Cheng, keep your woman in line!" Xiao Ran shouted irritably. To everyone watching, however, the sight was a rare visual treat. Without his knowledge, his reputation as the campus belle became even more firmly established.

"All right, all right! Look, the teachers are starting to hurry everyone along. You should head into the arena!" Jiang Cheng laughed awkwardly, trying to divert Xiao Ran's attention. Still, he was telling the truth: the contestants were already entering for the round of sixteen.