"First, let's celebrate everyone completing this stretch of training!" He Xisong wore a happy smile as he stood up first and raised his glass. "A toast to you all!"
Granny Du stood up with a smile as well. Beside her were several retired members of the Elite Four.
"Cheers!" Glasses clinked as everyone raised a toast in celebration.
"Ah!!! I was so close to making the top 1,700 this year! What a shame!"
"Haha! My first time competing! I've got to bring home a good result!"
"Whoa, are you kidding me? I checked yesterday and I was still in the top 1,700. How did I drop out again today?"
"All right, don't be upset. Keep working hard, and let's compete together next year, okay?"
Besides the Elite Four, those present included outstanding trainers from across the country. Today marked the end of their training, as well as the deadline for this year's World Pokémon Championships qualifiers.
There were 200 more spots this year than last year. Some rejoiced at having made it through, while others complained about their failure, but many had already begun planning their next tactics.
Among them, Cheng Tian stood out somewhat.
He was too young, and his overall strength fell short of everyone else's. He also hadn't worked on his world ranking in a long time, so there was absolutely no chance of him representing China at the Championship Tournament this year.
He didn't mind, though. Right now, he was on a video call with his parents.
"What? You really went to train with the Elite Four?!" Cheng Tian's Mother sounded very surprised.
"Yeah! Everyone's been looking after me! I feel like I've grown a lot!"
"Haha, what did I tell you? Our son's talented. Look how young he is, and he's already made connections with