Night had fallen, but inside the venue, the large conference room atop the high-rise at the heart of the Central Area was still brightly lit.
More than a dozen figures sat in their respective seats, occasionally exchanging a few words.
Yong sat in the seventh seat on the left!
Starting from the first seat in the front row were Professor Oak, Master Wallace, Cynthia, and Elite Four member Will!
Next came the four competitors representing the Eastern Hemisphere!
The Kanto Region's representative was actually someone Yong knew!
Youluo from Lavender Town!
He specialized in Ghost-type Pokémon and was said to have caught Agatha's eye and become her disciple!
No one had expected him to reach the Elite Four tier as well!
At that moment, he sat quietly, a faint chill radiating from his entire body. He seemed like a frozen iceberg, or a slumbering ghost. His eyes were deep and mysterious, making others hesitate to peer into them. He said nothing, simply resting with his eyes closed, as though nothing in the world had anything to do with him.
As if sensing Yong's gaze, Youluo opened his eyes. Upon seeing the familiar figure, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and he gave an almost imperceptible nod, seemingly greeting Yong. Yong smiled back, and they both looked away, as though nothing had happened.
A flicker of astonishment rose within Yong.
The aura flowing around Youluo was somewhat erratic. Clearly, he had only recently broken through and had yet to fully master his strength.
But Youluo had broken through in both level and "energy tier." That meant at least one of his Pokémon had to possess genuine Elite Four-level combat strength, rather than being a Pseudo-Elite Four Pokémon whose level alone met the standard!
The difference in strength between the two