April's weather was fickle. As the locals put it, it was just like a Pancham-you never knew what it would do next.
The early morning brought a faint, misty chill, but by noon, sunlight poured down without restraint. A few brisk steps under the sun were enough to work up a sweat.
The old locust trees in the alleys had put out new shoots. A fine layer of dust coated their tender green leaves, a "local specialty" carried over by the spring winds from the northwestern Gobi.
Ripples shimmered on the river running through the city. A few Pelipper floated lazily on the surface, and wherever there was water, Magikarp were never far behind. Every so often, one could be seen leaping out of the water.
Around the benches along the bank, people in all sorts of outfits were taking souvenir photos, while Xin Mu stood in line nearby.
Strictly speaking, this was not the queue to challenge the Jade Dragon Gym, but the queue for the Donghuang Arena.
As the largest arena in all of Donghuang, it not only hosted the Donghuang Conference regularly, but also held other high-level competitions.
Right now, for instance, a competitive match between Gym Leaders was underway-or rather... a battle between members of the Elite Four.
It was not uncommon for members of the Elite Four to double as Gym Leaders. Many regions had similar arrangements.
The most famous example was probably Aoki, simply because he was so very busy.
Inside the arena, a white-haired old man stood on the left. He was Long Xiao, the Jade Dragon Gym's leader two generations before the current one, and the current Dragon-type member of the Elite Four.
His family had not originally borne that surname. According to their genealogy, however, certain events long ago had made