Group Champion

As he entered the competitors' passage, Su Bai suddenly stumbled and nearly fell.

Even Pikachu was flung off his shoulder. Luckily, Pikachu was agile enough to twist in midair and land on its feet.

"Who was so... generous!"

Su Bai turned to see whose litter had tripped him. On closer inspection, it was an oddly shaped apple core.

"System, appraise this!"

[Ding! Congratulations, host! You have picked up Leftovers (contaminated version).]

Leftovers-the item made from leftover food.

A Pokémon holding Leftovers could gradually recover its stamina during battle.

It was incredibly valuable. A single one sold for 18,000.

It was so valuable because it couldn't be manufactured. Only an apple core left behind after a Pokémon ate it had a chance of becoming Leftovers.

And the odds were very low.

"System, why is it contaminated?"

[Ding! Analysis indicates that this item formed from an apple left behind by an Elite Four Level male Roserade. It is not only highly toxic but also an assault on the eyes. It cannot restore stamina and has a chance of lowering the friendship of the Pokémon holding it.]

After hearing the system's explanation, Su Bai immediately knew who had thrown this thing away.

His shameless uncle, Qi Shijun.

Qi Shijun was known as the Eccentric Elite Four member. A shiny female Machamp, a male Gardevoir, and a male Roserade were all mainstays of his team.

His whole approach was to disgust opponents to death if he couldn't beat them to death.

Only Qi Shijun's Pokémon would dare eat apples so brazenly in the competitors' passage and litter wherever they pleased.

"System, randomize this apple core."

Even contaminated, it was still an item. Surely it could roll into something good?

[Ding! Congratulations, host! You have received a random item: single-use TM86-Grass Knot. Today's randomization attempts have been exhausted. Current randomization count: (23/100). Please keep randomizing, host. My fate is in heaven's hands, not my own.]

Nice!

Su Bai coaxed Pikachu into its Pokémon Ball, then placed the TM the system had awarded him on top of the ball.

The TM from the system was a disc, with a hole in the middle just large enough to hold it steady on top of the Pokémon Ball.

The disc spun three times, then turned into specks of light that slipped into the Pokémon Ball and vanished.

"So stingy. We've known each other this long, and you won't even give me an extra use or two."

Still grumbling, Su Bai let Pikachu back out.

"Pikachu, have you learned Grass Knot?"

"Pika!"

Pikachu struck a Piplup-style pose with its paws on its hips, assuring him he could leave everything to this Pikachu.

Sunday's matches consisted of one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

His morning opponent was a Gyarados with Intimidate. Although these were only the group matches, the competition had started getting tougher once they reached the group semifinals.

Perhaps because it had only just evolved, however, this Gyarados completely ignored its Trainer's commands. Pikachu took it down with a single Thunderbolt that dealt quadruple damage.

Su Bai advanced smoothly to the group final.

While he was eating lunch, Su Bai's phone suddenly rang.

It was that jerk, Old Gao.

"Hello, Teacher Gao. Did you need something?"

Although Su Bai hated this shameless old lecher, the man was still his college advisor. He had to show him the appropriate respect.

The man's tone sounded unnatural. Clearly, he was up to no good.

"Su Bai, I watched your matches. You did well, very well indeed. You've brought honor to our university."

"Teacher, did you need something? I'd like to get some rest and prepare properly for this afternoon's match."

"Don't rush, don't rush. Yes, there is something. I hear your next opponent is He Liang?"

At Old Gao's words, Su Bai remembered that his opponent did indeed seem to be He Liang.

He Liang was Su Bai's classmate, their class academic representative, and He Yuan's younger brother. Although the two siblings shared the same parents, He Liang wasn't as mean as his sister. In fact, he was a little dim.

"Su Bai, J University hasn't performed well in this year's Health Cup. As a student here, it's important to bring honor to the university. You must put the bigger picture first."

"Teacher Gao, He Liang and I both made the group finals, so we're already guaranteed to advance. Two of the eight competitors in the knockout stage are from our university. How is that a poor performance?"

Su Bai never pledged his cooperation. He kept feeling that Old Gao had more to say.

In the end, Old Gao couldn't hold it in any longer.

Old Gao explained that He Liang had a strong chance of winning the Health Cup. If he could win every match from the start through to the championship, it would bring J University considerable prestige.

So Old Gao wanted Su Bai to concede the group final voluntarily, allowing He Liang to win without a fight.

Su Bai genuinely couldn't understand how Old Gao had the gall to say something like that.

He had watched He Liang's matches. Although He Liang had won every round too, his opponents had all put up a fight, whereas Su Bai had defeated everyone with a single move.

Even if they wanted someone to achieve a perfect winning record, surely he had the better chance?

Besides, if He Liang's perfect record would bring J University honor, wouldn't his own voluntary surrender bring it disgrace?

"Old Gao, did you eat something nasty this morning? Or are you still half asleep?"

"What kind of talk is that? How dare you mock your teacher! Do you realize I'm doing this for your own good? If you and He Liang fight until you're both battered and reveal all your trump cards, your Pokémon won't have time to recover before the knockout stage. Won't that just give the other universities an advantage?"

Once Old Gao started talking, he couldn't stop. He piled on accusations of indiscipline, insubordination, and disrespect for teachers and elders.

Su Bai had no time to listen to Old Gao's lecture. One sentence shut him up.

"Then why don't you go persuade He Liang to surrender to me?"

Beep... beep... beep...

Old Gao hung up in fury.

Su Bai paid him no mind. After petting Pikachu for a while, he went to the competitors' lounge for a nap.

At one in the afternoon, Su Bai arrived at the battlefield on time with Pikachu.

Scattered applause rose from the surrounding spectator stands when they saw him.

Since the tournament began, Pikachu's crushing victories had earned Su Bai a small following among the spectators.

The group matches didn't use professional battlefields. The large sports field was simply divided into smaller sections with white lines, with separate matches taking place in each.

Still, Electric-type moves were eye-catching to begin with, and Su Bai's handsome face had helped plenty of spectators remember him.

Seeing Su Bai, He Liang adjusted his glasses across the field.

"You shouldn't have come."

"Did you get that jerk Old Gao to make that call?"

He Liang visibly froze for a moment, then shook his head with a disdainful expression.

"No. Even if I wanted to buy you off, I wouldn't have him handle it. That sort of person is too stupid to make a decent lackey."

"Pfft. He Two, I never imagined you could say something so profound."

"Don't call me He Two! I admit your Pikachu is strong, but I've prepared a Pokémon specifically to counter it!"

He Liang threw out a Pokémon Ball, and an exceptionally bulky Quagsire appeared on the battlefield.

Pikachu jumped down from Su Bai's shoulder as well, landing on all fours.

"Su Bai, your Pikachu's electric attacks are incredibly powerful, and it's fast too. But its real trump card is Surf. Plenty of opponents have suffered because of that move. My Quagsire has been raised specifically for size, so it weighs much more than an ordinary Quagsire. Your Surf won't wash it away."

"Are you sure?"

Su Bai couldn't help laughing aloud. He Liang frowned, his expression darkening.

"What are you laughing at?"

"I thought of something funny. Pikachu, Grass Knot!"

Pikachu stood upright, its eyes glowing green. It clapped its stubby little paws together, and a knot of grass suddenly appeared on the ground, tripping Quagsire.

This Quagsire really was heavy. Its fall left a large crater in the ground.

Quagsire was unable to battle, and Su Bai became the group champion.