Su Bai advanced smoothly to the semifinals. By the end of the morning's matches, the other two semifinal spots had also been claimed by Zi Shang and Ru Meng from J City's Pokémon Academy.
For a time, the buzz around J Pokémon Institute kept growing.
After all, both contestants who had made it out of the group stage had advanced. To the audience, J Pokémon Institute now had the best chance of winning this year's Health Cup.
But Bai Ze and Su Bai, who had yet to reveal their second Pokémon, remained immensely popular as well.
The semifinals would begin that afternoon, with Bai Ze facing Zi Shang and Su Bai facing Ru Meng.
Seeing the matchups, Su Bai perked up.
Ru Meng was a student in the J Pokémon Academy Coordinator Department. Did that mean she was a Coordinator?
Yes, this person was a man.
In the Dragon Nation, Coordinators enjoyed a social standing no lower than Trainers. In fact, Coordinators earned even more.
That also meant competition among Coordinators was fierce, with no shortage of experts.
Su Bai had specifically looked into Ru Meng. Like him, she was a sophomore with two years of study under her belt.
Her Pokémon were a Combusken and a Voltorb.
[Ding! A change in the host's circumstances has been detected. Mission issued: Double Blossoming in Sports and Arts] [Mission objective: Defeat Ru Meng in the style of a contest battle and earn recognition] [Mission reward: +10 accumulated random draws, Experimental-Grade Home Berry Mixer (includes cleaning, weighing, noise reduction, and other functions; doubles the probability of producing premium Pokéblocks)]
Accept! I have to accept this mission!
Although Su Bai had a Berry mixer at home, the noise was unbearable. His neighbors had complained several times already.
The Berry mixer needed an upgrade.
Lunch was an ordinary boxed meal delivered to the contestants' lounge by the organizers. The taste was nothing special, but the portion was generous.
Su Bai poured out Pokéblocks for Pikachu and Growlithe, then redeemed some fried chicken from the System Shop for himself.
While he was eating, Su Bai received a call from Qi Shijun.
"Kid, congratulations on making the semifinals. You've really done us proud."
"Oh, Uncle Qi, what do you mean, done you proud? I'm just doing this for a few credits."
"All right, all right, stop pleading poverty. Ten credits have already been added back to your total."
"Only ten?"
Qi Shijun told him to take it or leave it, then moved to hang up.
Su Bai hurriedly said he would take them. Every little bit counted.
Qi Shijun told Su Bai that he had to bring glory to J University this time. The university had already approved the Thunder Fang TM prepared for him.
"That's not enough."
"Kid, are you trying to raise the price on your uncle now?"
"Uncle Qi, it really isn't enough. You've seen how strong my opponents are. Besides, if I win this Health Cup, won't that bring glory to J University too?"
On the other end of the line, Qi Shijun was so exasperated by Su Bai that he laughed.
Still, Su Bai had a point. With Qi Shijun's standing as one of the Dragon Nation's Elite Four, he had no need to care about a little cup like this. But he was J University's president, after all, and he cared a great deal about the university's reputation.
"What do you want, kid?"
"A Protect TM."
"Should I throw in Substitute and Toxic TMs for you too?"
For the first time since transmigrating, Su Bai thought Qi Shijun's voice sounded wonderful.
"Uncle Qi, you're my real uncle! Can you really do that?"
"Like hell I can!"
Qi Shijun said that both the university and he personally would reward Su Bai after he won the championship. First, however, Su Bai had to win the Health Cup.
"Uncle Qi, what about that Protect TM?"
"Win the championship first!"
Qi Shijun hung up. Su Bai silently grumbled, What an old miser, before hearing the system's voice.
[Ding! The host has been detected receiving academic credits. Progress on the long-term mission "Redemption of the Failing Student" has changed. Current mission progress: (10/380)] [Congratulations, host! Reward: +10 accumulated random draws. Current random draws: (60/100). Please draw more often, host. My fate is in heaven's hands, not my own.]
Almost there! The accumulated total is already past halfway!
While Su Bai was lost in thought, a knock came at the door. He opened it to find Director Li.
"Big Sis Li, what brings you here?"
"Xiaobai, that was a beautiful win in the quarterfinals. Give it your all in the semifinals! Here's the TM the president asked me to give you!"
"Thank you, sis! You're the best!"
Su Bai accepted the Thunder Fang TM. Director Li told him that his credits had already been added, and if he won the championship, he would receive another ten.
"Thank you, Big Sis Li. Also, please take a look at these."
Su Bai showed Director Li the Origin Gym's Liberation Badge and the Golden Source Gym's Ruby Badge.
"Oh! Xiaobai, you've already earned two Gym Badges? That's impressive! I'll report this to the Academic Affairs Office right away. Once the staff verify them, you'll receive another fifteen credits."
"Fifteen credits? Isn't it supposed to be twenty?"
Director Li regretfully told Su Bai that the Golden Source Gym's qualifications were a little lacking.
Although the Pokémon Departments at many universities regarded all Gyms in the Dragon Nation as equal, that was not the case here.
At J University, only Badges from top-tier Gyms earned ten credits. A Badge from a Gym like the Golden Source Gym earned only five.
Fine. Every little bit counts.
After Director Li left, Su Bai looked at the Skill Disc in his hand.
"System sis, can you exchange this Skill Disc for one of those handy TMs you give me?"
[Sigh, there's just no helping you. Pay 200 yuan, and I'll do you this favor.]
"Sure thing!"
Su Bai paid 200 yuan. The Skill Disc in his hand vanished, replaced by a system TM.
It looked like he had spent extra money, but it was a guaranteed bargain.
The TMs in this world were mainly instructional recordings. Pokémon needed time to learn from them.
The TMs awarded by the system, however, let Pokémon learn moves instantly.
After confirming that Growlithe had learned Thunder Fang, Su Bai took a nap for about an hour before the noise outside woke him.
The afternoon matches had begun. First up was Bai Ze against Zi Shang.
Bai Ze sent out his Jangmo-o again, while Zi Shang's Pokémon was an Azumarill.
Well, look at that-a dragon slayer.
Because Azumarill was a Fairy type, Bai Ze did not dare use Dragon-type moves.
"Jangmo-o, use Thunder Punch!"
"Dodge, then use Belly Drum!"
Jangmo-o lashed out with Dragon Tail. Azumarill dodged it outright, then punched its own belly.
"Jangmo-o, use Low Kick!"
"Ice Punch!"
Jangmo-o kicked out with Low Kick, landing squarely on Azumarill.
Azumarill struggled to steady itself, then slammed an Ice Punch into its opponent.
Jangmo-o was knocked out.
Excited cheers erupted from the audience.
Ever since entering the tournament, this Jangmo-o had won every battle, even defeating two opponents by itself. Now, it had finally fallen.
"You certainly deserve your place in the semifinals. You've actually made me bring out my second Pokémon. Go! Hakamo-o!"
Bai Ze recalled Jangmo-o and threw a Pokémon Ball. A formidable Hakamo-o appeared on the battlefield, raised its head, and let out a Noble Roar.
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