Amusement filled Bai Ze's eyes as he watched He Liang's stunned expression.
"Dude, don't you do your homework before battling someone?"
Director Li let out a long sigh. This was exactly what she had expected.
Although J University ranked among the best universities in all of Northeast State, its strengths had always been resources and theory. Its actual battling standards were not particularly high.
Otherwise, the president would not have made her work so hard to find promising contenders to bolster the university team.
Judging by He Liang's performance, J University had thoroughly embarrassed itself.
Su Bai, it's all up to you now.
On the battlefield, Bai Ze could not care less about J University's reputation.
"Jangmo-o, use Dragon Dance!"
"Slaking, Giga Impact!"
"Protect, then Dragon Dance."
Watching the televised broadcast, Su Bai closed his eyes helplessly.
He Liang had the right idea. Both Hyper Beam and Giga Impact were powerful moves that left the user unable to move afterward, which complemented Slaking's Ability perfectly.
But his execution was far too rigid.
"Jangmo-o, use Brick Break!"
After three Dragon Dances, Jangmo-o's speed and physical attack had reached terrifying levels. A single supereffective Brick Break knocked Slaking out.
Despite using such a powerful Pokémon, He Liang had not even forced his opponent to send out a second one.
How embarrassing.
[Ding! A change in the host's circumstances has been detected. Mission issued: You're Not the Only Genius] [Mission objective: Advance using only Pikachu before Bai Ze uses his second Pokémon] [Mission rewards: Accumulated random draws +10, Speed Enhancer ×10]
The system's voice sounded in Su Bai's mind. Just then, a tournament staff member also told him to get ready to take the field.
Su Bai arrived on the battlefield and found his opponent already standing in position.
This Zhou Mo was a very no-nonsense young man.
In the stands, He Liang's swift defeat had left everyone pessimistic about Su Bai's chances.
Even J University's own students thought their university was bound to lose this time.
He Liang was an exemplary student with excellent grades and character, while this Su Bai was supposedly a slacker who had never even passed an exam.
"Ugh, it's over. J University's going out in the first round."
"No way. Hasn't that guy Su Bai been doing pretty well in his battles?"
"What good does that do? Even He Liang couldn't win with grades that good. How's a flunking slacker like Su Bai supposed to win? Ugh, even I'd do better!"
"Then why aren't you up there?"
"I got knocked out in the group stage..."
The discussion spread beyond the stands to the guest seating. J University of Technology's dean of students was a middle-aged woman in her fifties, and she had not stopped smiling since learning that their university's Zhou Mo would be facing J University's Su Bai.
"Li, dear, Zhou Mo comes from a distinguished family. His father is a veteran Trainer, and he's one of our university team's top prospects. Your Su Bai is in trouble."
"Not necessarily. We won't know the result until they battle."
Despite saying that, Director Li was still sweating over Su Bai's chances.
Su Bai, you have to win.
At the referee's signal, the battle began.
"Dance through the skies! Gible!"
Zhou Mo threw a Pokémon Ball, and a round-headed Gible appeared on the battlefield.
Uh...
"Zhou Mo, are you a fan of Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion?"
"That's right. She's the coolest female Trainer I've ever seen, so I asked Dad to buy me a Gible from the Pokémon Day Care."
All right, another rich kid.
After Zhou Mo finished speaking, the referee urged them along, and Su Bai sent out Pikachu.
"Pikachu, Quick Attack!"
"Gible, use Sandstorm!"
Pikachu's Quick Attack struck Gible, but Pikachu took no damage in return.
Its Ability isn't Rough Skin, so it must be Sand Veil. No wonder he opened with Sandstorm.
"Pikachu, use Surf!"
"Dig!"
Pikachu raised an enormous wave, but Gible burrowed straight underground to evade it. Zhou Mo's face lit up with a smile as his strategy succeeded.
"No matter how powerful a move is, it's meaningless if it can't hit!"
"Is that really true?"
Su Bai smiled faintly. Looking at the mist-filled battlefield, Zhou Mo instantly realized the purpose behind Surf.
Surf had suppressed the sandstorm!
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"
Director Li smiled faintly in the stands, her hand clenching tighter.
Here it comes. Su Bai's signature Iron Tail earthquake.
Pikachu slammed an Iron Tail straight into the ground, jolting Gible out from underground. At Su Bai's next command, Pikachu unleashed another Surf and finished Gible off.
"Milotic, get ready to battle!"
The entire crowd erupted. Gible and Milotic-both Pokémon Zhou Mo had brought out were exceptionally rare.
Even Su Bai felt a pang of envy at such a luxurious lineup.
You really are trying to match Cynthia, huh? That lineup...
Which one of us is the transmigrator here?
"Pikachu! Thunderbolt!"
"Milotic, Twister!"
The Twister was powerful enough to stop Thunderbolt in midair.
"I'll say it again: no matter how effective a move is, it's meaningless if it can't hit!"
"Not necessarily! Pikachu, use Surf!"
"We'll use Surf too!"
Pikachu's Surf crashed against Milotic's Surf, and Pikachu was sent flying.
This was the first time Pikachu had come off worse in a head-on clash.
"Pikachu, use Surf again!"
"Milotic, we'll use Surf too!"
After the battlefield had endured six Surfs in total, the organizers had no choice but to adjust it for the sake of fairness. The center lowered and the edges rose, turning the standard battlefield into a relatively shallow water battlefield.
Milotic cried out happily, slipped into the water with a twist of its body, and became more than twice as agile.
Pikachu could only paddle its limbs as hard as it could, its lightning-shaped tail swishing constantly as it struggled to stay afloat.
Su Bai's actions drew a chorus of boos from the stands.
"Hahaha! Has this kid lost his mind? He actually created a battlefield that gives his opponent the advantage! Director Li, is this your university's top prospect this year? Has he already started making excuses for his defeat?"
J University of Technology's dean of students laughed without the slightest restraint.
Director Li did not answer back. She simply stared silently at the "vast ocean" on the battlefield.
She had guessed what Su Bai intended. This wildly imaginative approach to battle was certainly his style, but his plan was far too bold.
In two separate contestant lounges, Bai Ze from Group B and Zi Shang from Group C watched the scene on their screens and smiled knowingly at the same time.
Their eyes burned with fighting spirit born of the mutual appreciation between skilled opponents.
On the battlefield, Zhou Mo was utterly baffled.
Anyone who made it out of the group stage couldn't be an idiot. But just what was this Su Bai trying to do?
Suddenly, a terrifying thought flashed through Zhou Mo's mind.
"Milotic, jump out, quick!"
"Too late! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
Pika! Chu-!
Pikachu unleashed Thunderbolt, and a vast blaze of lightning engulfed the entire water battlefield.
Trapped inside, Milotic had nowhere to dodge and could only groan in pain.
"Let's see where you can hide this time!"
When the lightning faded, nearly half the water on the battlefield had evaporated. Milotic lay in the pool with spirals in its eyes.
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