The matches at the Main Stadium would take place over two days, with four matches each day, two in the morning and two in the afternoon. The estimated time for each match had also been extended from the preliminaries' half hour to a full hour.
Unlike the secondary stadiums, the Main Stadium was at least twice as large and would hold more than a hundred thousand spectators.
Since Liu Qing's match was the first at the Main Stadium, he arrived early with Liu Yuan trailing behind him. By chance, he ran into his opponent at the entrance. Liu Qing later learned that the girl was called A Li. Accompanying her was another of his opponents, though one he had already defeated: Xiao Ni.
"Hmph, so you're Liu Qing." A Li walked a full circle around him before saying, "You don't look like much to me." Inside, however, she was already trembling a little. Oh my gosh, how can he be so handsome!
"Uh... hello." Liu Qing really couldn't figure out what his opponent wanted. "Can I help you?"
"Hmph, I'm really annoyed that you bullied Xiao Ni, so I came to tell you that I'll get revenge for her during our match!" With that, A Li dragged Xiao Ni into the Main Stadium, ignoring her repeated apologies to Liu Qing.
"Big brother, your opponent is pretty funny." Liu Yuan laughed beside him.
"Enough chatter. Let's go inside." The corner of Liu Qing's mouth twitched as he entered the stadium.
Although it was still early, there were already at least a thousand people in the stands. It seemed the spectators couldn't wait either.
Once Liu Yuan had settled into the VIP seats, Liu Qing headed straight to the competitors' waiting room, where he closed his eyes and rested while waiting for the match to begin.
"...Next up is a round-of-sixteen match in the Indigo League Conference. Entering from the right is Liu Qing from Saffron City in the Kanto Region... Entering from the left is A Li from Celadon City in the Kanto Region..."
Before long, it was time for the match. Prompted by a staff member, Liu Qing walked onto the battlefield through the right-hand competitors' tunnel as the Announcer introduced him. A Li emerged from the left-hand tunnel, and thunderous cheers erupted throughout the stadium. As far as the eye could see, the stands were a dense sea of people.
Seeing that both competitors had taken out their Poké Balls and were ready, the referee immediately called, "This match is between Liu Qing and A Li. Let the battle begin!"
"Go, Scizor!"
"Persian, I'm counting on you!"
As the referee brought his flag down, both competitors threw their Poké Balls at the same time. The white light faded, revealing Scizor and Persian.
"Scizor, strike first! Brick Break!" Liu Qing commanded first.
"Not a chance! Persian, Fake Out!" A Li issued her own command in response.
Persian leaped off the ground, performed a forward flip in midair, and landed lightly in front of Scizor. Raising its forelegs, it clapped them together in front of Scizor with a sharp smack, interrupting Brick Break. Visible ripples spread out from the clap, forcing Scizor to reel backward.
"Persian, Iron Tail!" A Li's voice rang out again.
At her command, Persian's tail quickly took on a metallic sheen. It leaped up, belly facing the sky, and swung its tail toward Scizor's head.
That caught us off guard. I didn't expect this Persian to be so physically capable. Its balance, speed, and flexibility are all excellent, Liu Qing couldn't help admiring. Yet a cold smile touched his lips. "Scizor, grab its tail! Brick Break!"
"Sciz!" Just as Iron Tail was about to strike Scizor, a red pincer shot out and clamped hard around the base of Persian's tail, stopping its attack cold. Scizor's other pincer shone white and slammed straight into Persian's belly. Persian let out a miserable cry. The hit was super effective. Then the pincer glowed white again, ready to repeat the attack.
"Persian, pull yourself together! Hidden Power!" A Li hadn't expected Liu Qing to react and counterattack so quickly, and she immediately shouted her command.
"Meow!" Seeing another Brick Break coming, Persian cried out. Droplet-like spheres of Hidden Power appeared around its body and shot straight outward.
Boom, boom! Hidden Power collided with Brick Break, triggering an explosion. Persian seized the opportunity to break free of Scizor's grip and retreated in front of A Li, panting.
By now, every spectator was engrossed in the thrilling battle, and the cheers grew louder and louder.
"Fire-type Hidden Power?" Liu Qing frowned at the obvious burn marks on Scizor's left pincer. Although Brick Break's energy had offered some protection, Hidden Power had still injured Scizor. As expected, no one who made the top sixteen was weak.
"Come back, Persian!" Just then, A Li took out a Poké Ball and recalled Persian before sending out her second Pokémon. "Drowzee, take the field!"
"A Li has recalled her first Pokémon, Persian. She's now using the Psychic power Pokémon Drowzee..." The Announcer threw himself into his commentary.
"Drowzee, Confusion!" A Li commanded first. As soon as she spoke, Drowzee's eyes glowed blue.
"Scizor, keep moving!" Liu Qing had no intention of letting Scizor get caught and immediately issued a command. Scizor became a streak of red lightning, flying rapidly around Drowzee.
"Drowzee, don't rush!" Seeing Drowzee constantly trying to track Scizor's movements, A Li immediately called out. It would be disastrous if Drowzee only made itself dizzy instead of catching its opponent.
"Now! X-Scissor!" The instant A Li gave her command, Liu Qing shouted his own.
Oh no! He was waiting for me to say that! A Li's heart jolted in alarm. The moment Drowzee stopped tracking Scizor, Scizor broke out of its circling flight behind Drowzee and shot up to its back. A vicious X-Scissor slammed Drowzee into the ground with tremendous force, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Drowzee, don't let it get away!" Seeing Scizor about to fly off after its strike, A Li hurriedly shouted.
As soon as she spoke, a ring attached to a string flew out of the dust. The string instantly wound around Scizor's leg, and Drowzee flew out along with it.
"Scizor, stay calm! X-Scissor!" Tangled in the thin string, Scizor immediately panicked, twisting and rolling through the air in an attempt to shake its opponent off. But Liu Qing knew that while an ordinary Pokémon might be easy to deal with this way, a Pokémon that relied on Inner Focus was another matter entirely. Besides, flying like this was draining a great deal of Scizor's stamina.
"Drowzee, Disable!" Just then, A Li issued another command.
The instant Scizor used X-Scissor, Drowzee's eyes flashed red. A red glow then spread over Scizor's body, and X-Scissor failed!
"Perfect! Hypnosis!" Taking advantage of the pause when X-Scissor failed, Drowzee floated the ring in its hand right before Scizor's eyes and swayed it gently. Moments later, Scizor fell from the sky, struck the ground, and lay there asleep.
"Come back, Scizor!" The instant Scizor landed, Liu Qing took out its Poké Ball and recalled it. He had no intention of leaving the sleeping Scizor as a target for Drowzee. Judging by A Li's angry expression, that was clearly what she had planned.
"Liu Qing has recalled Scizor! Faced with A Li's powerful offensive, which Pokémon will he use next...?" The Announcer's words whipped up the atmosphere in the stadium.
"Mom, this girl is really good," Liu Yuan said to Mili with feeling.
"No one who reaches the top sixteen is weak. Besides, this girl has clearly studied your big brother. The Pokémon she's using were obviously prepared specifically to counter him. But now that he's familiar with the rhythm of her attacks, she won't give him much trouble," Mili explained.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the stands, Reggie, Xiao An, Han Ye, A Xuan, and even Ash's trio were discussing the match as well.
"This girl won't have such an easy time from here on out," A Xuan told the others.
"That's right. Her tactics may be unconventional, but Liu Qing still responded quickly. Now that he's familiar with her fighting style, I imagine this battle will be over soon," Reggie agreed.
By now, Liu Qing had sent out his second Pokémon, Gengar.
"Drowzee, Confusion!" A Li also knew how unpredictable this Gengar was, so she gave her command decisively.
"Shadow Ball!" At Liu Qing's command, a Shadow Ball shot out instantly. Just as Drowzee's eyes began to glow blue, it slammed into Drowzee with a boom and exploded.
"Drowzee is unable to battle!" the referee declared, seeing that Drowzee was down and unable to get up.
"Ah, what a fast attack! Liu Qing's Gengar struck before Drowzee could move with its incredible speed... Which Pokémon will A Li use next? Persian, or her third Pokémon?" The Announcer's voice rang out at just the right moment. The spectators, stunned by Gengar's power, broke into loud cheers.
"Come back, Drowzee." A Li shot Liu Qing a vicious glare, then took out another Poké Ball and released it. "Persian, come on out!"
"Gengar, Dark Pulse!" As soon as Persian appeared, Liu Qing ordered an attack.
"Dig!" Seeing Gengar swiftly fire a black pulse toward Persian, A Li hurriedly shouted.
Unfortunately, Persian couldn't escape Dark Pulse even underground. After Persian dug its hole, Dark Pulse traveled straight through the opening and down the tunnel. A moment later, Persian let out a scream as it was blasted out of the ground.
"Hypnosis! Dream Eater!" Gengar, already waiting nearby, grinned wickedly and pressed a red orb into Persian's body. Then a dark shadow flew out of Gengar and passed straight through Persian. In an instant, Persian was unable to battle.
"Persian is unable to battle!" the referee accurately declared.
"A Li has lost two Pokémon in succession..." As the Announcer spoke, the crowd's excitement reached its peak. Everyone eagerly awaited A Li's final Pokémon, wondering what thrilling battle it would bring them.
"Come back, Persian. Get some rest!" A Li recalled Persian and comforted it, then threw her final Poké Ball. "Ditto, it's all up to you."
With a flash of white light, a small, purple, rubber-like Pokémon appeared on the field. Upon seeing Gengar, its whole body shone white, and it transformed into Gengar.
"There it is! A Li's final Pokémon is Ditto, which has transformed into Gengar! Ditto is an extraordinary Pokémon. Once it sees another Pokémon, it can take on that Pokémon's appearance and copy everything about it, including its abilities, level, moves, individual values, types, and Ability. In other words, Liu Qing's opponent right now is none other than his own Pokémon!" The Announcer's voice echoed throughout the Main Stadium.
"Mom, can big brother beat a Ditto that's transformed into Gengar?" Liu Qing couldn't help asking.
"Of course he can. Although Ditto can copy all of Gengar's abilities, it can't copy its stamina or experience. Besides, Ditto's Trainer, A Li, isn't nearly as familiar with Gengar's abilities as your big brother is," Mili explained. Liu Yuan nodded and watched the match closely.
On the field, the two Gengar had already begun fighting. They vanished from time to time, then suddenly reappeared, their moves flying all over the battlefield as a continuous series of booming explosions rang out.
"Ditto, Hypnosis!" Suddenly, Liu Qing's Gengar appeared directly in front of Ditto, which had only just reappeared itself. Seizing the opportunity, A Li immediately shouted her command.
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