First Battle

After a few minor detours, Xin Mu and Meownei successfully arrived at the Pokémon Center.

A giant Poké Ball icon was mounted on the roof. This type of sign belonged to the universal style of Pokémon Centers, while other areas were built according to regional customs.

Inside the Pokémon Center, Xin Mu also saw the familiar face of Nurse Joy.

The Joy family and the Jenny Family could be considered the two most special families in this world, with extremely powerful genetic traits.

Aside from Brock, that rare genius, telling the Joy apart was still quite a troublesome matter.

However, aside from Nurse Joy, there were many other staff members inside the Pokémon Center. In such a big city, relying on Nurse Joy alone was not enough to manage everything.

Xin Mu's first priority upon coming here wasn't to find out where Ash was, but to register as a Trainer.

Only after completing this registration could one participate in official events such as the Gym Challenge, which also included services like renting arenas.

The registration process was not complicated, even easier than getting an ID card. One simply had to bring their own Pokémon and register them, which also resulted in an extremely high number of Trainers throughout Donghuang.

However, only a small fraction of these "Trainers" truly embarked on the path of full-time Trainers; more people simply added a few Pokémon members to their family lives.

Although Pokémon groups generally operated on the principle that whoever had the bigger fists made the rules, not all Pokémon were suited for combat. Much like horses, they were all horses, but pack horses, racehorses, and warhorses were completely different types.

Within a few minutes, Xin Mu completed his registration, though there was no Pokédex. That gadget was not standard equipment for a Trainer.

Strictly speaking, that thing was still a laboratory product, and only people familiar with a Pokémon Professor had their own Pokédex.

As for the gaming app on his phone, Xin Mu had already tried it on the way; it couldn't scan the information of unfamiliar Pokémon, and for now, it could only check Meownei's status.

After finishing these trivial matters, Xin Mu found Ash and his group in the lounge area of the Pokémon Center.

Misty and Brock were chatting nearby about their travels, and the food trays set beside them seemed to indicate they had just finished afternoon tea or dinner.

Ash and Pikachu were warming up, looking full of energy.

When Ash saw Xin Mu walking over, he immediately waved and ran up to him.

"Mr. Xin Mu, over here! We're all ready!"

"Pika-pika!"

"Ash! Someone just got here, in such hot weather, at least let them rest for a bit!"

Ash's loud voice had already attracted the attention of everyone in the lounge area, and Brock and Misty were no exception.

In Ash's eyes, a battle was an extremely important matter, but in Misty and Brock's eyes, calling someone over from so far away was already a bit of a trouble for them.

"It's fine, the subway station is very close to here. If you can't wait, we can start right now."

"Mr. Xin Mu, don't let Ash's appearance fool you. He's actually in the top sixteen of the Indigo League and an honorary Trainer of the Orange League."

Misty introduced Ash's past battle record, also conveying to Xin Mu that this was not some clueless kid, but a Trainer with some real strength.

She also didn't want Xin Mu to treat this battle like children's play, because after all, to Ash, every battle held a different meaning.

"Understood. I'll take this battle very seriously."

The group left through the back door of the Pokémon Center and came to the open-air battle arena. Brock skillfully took his place in the referee's box at the side of the field.

"Trainer Ash from Pallet Town challenges Xin Mu of the Donghuang region! The battle format is one-on-one! Both Trainers, please get ready!"

"Go, Pikachu! I choose you!"

Although he only had one Pokémon with him, Pikachu, Ash still uttered his signature line. Pikachu also jumped from his side into the battle arena, the pouches on its cheeks sparking with a few flashes of electricity.

That was where Pikachu stored electrical energy. If too much was stored and not released in time, the situation from earlier that day could occur.

"Meownei, go."

"Meow~"

That morning at school, Ash's Pokédex had already proven that it couldn't retrieve Meownei's information, and he could only roughly judge that the opponent should be a Grass-type.

This was also a trait of Pokémon; many Pokémon's types could be told from their appearance, though this didn't have much impact on Ash.

As the classic master of type-disadvantaged battles, Ash frequently defied common sense.

"Then I won't be polite and will take the first move! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Golden-yellow electricity flashed across Pikachu's body, and the converging current surged toward Meownei.

"Spikes."

"Meow. (You really do have quite a wicked sense of humor.)"

Hearing Xin Mu's command, Meownei waved a hand and tossed out a large number of sharp, fragmented stones. Those items vanished without a trace the moment they touched the ground, and the electric current released by Pikachu also struck Meownei at that exact moment.

Yet Thunderbolt failed to deal any damage at all. Meownei even looked back and flashed a mischievous grin at Xin Mu, feeling that Xin Mu's strategy was purely bullying.

"Completely ineffective?! Has the level gap really reached this extent?"

"No, even if a Grass-type can resist Electric-type attacks, Pikachu's Thunderbolt shouldn't have zero effect.

Just now it also used Spikes, a move that is meaningless in a 1v1 battle... It's Protean!"

Misty, standing at the sidelines, felt a wave of astonishment the moment she saw Meownei emerge completely unscathed. At first, she merely thought it was the result of a level gap, but Brock had more thoughts on the matter.

"Protean?"

"Mm, an Ability that allows a Pokémon to change its type based on the move it releases. If it's that Ability... then what Ash is facing right now is a Ground-type Pokémon..."

The two on the sidelines had their theories, but Ash had no clue. He didn't know much about Abilities, let alone a niche one like Protean.

Among discovered Pokémon, only Kecleon, the Greninja line, and some individuals within the Meowscarada line possessed this Ability.

"Slam Pikachu onto the Spikes!"

"Pika?!"

Before Pikachu even realized what was happening, its body was already sent flying high into the air.

"Meow~"

After Meownei, standing on the opposite side of the field, waved at Pikachu, Pikachu's body was ruthlessly smashed down toward the ground.

"Pika!"

The Spikes hidden beneath the ground took effect the moment the collision occurred, dealing a fair amount of damage to Pikachu.

Although Ash's command hadn't arrived yet, Pikachu could feel something entangling its body and immediately released a massive amount of electricity in an attempt to break free, but it had no effect at all.

At this moment, Meownei's body was like an extension of the ground, a pure insulator, and those electric currents couldn't cause even the slightest bit of damage...