The Donghuang League's trainers weren't particularly strong overall.
Granted, comparing them to the Chinese national soccer team in a parallel world would have been an insult to them.
But they still couldn't be called competitive.
They were only consistently stronger than the Alola Region, which had only recently established its league. A few years ago, they had been in the same league as Kalos, Galar, and Johto.
Over the last two years, however, Leon and Lance's rise had left only Donghuang and Kalos at that table, a pair of brothers in misery.
The trouble was, Donghuang also had the largest population and territory of the ten major regions.
In a world where Pokémon battles were deeply intertwined with politics, military affairs, and even everyday life, the embarrassment its people felt was easy to imagine.
As Lin Qunzhi had put it before he left:
"Donghuang's battling scene has no shame left! Look at the authorities. How many Pokémon Trainers' Association presidents have they cycled through? Has anything changed? Same old crap in a different wrapper!"
"First we lose to Johto, then Kalos, then Alola. Who's even left to lose to after that?"
"Let's be practical and get our basic approach to battling straight first!"
Xia Chi didn't feel particularly strongly about regional honor, but he really needed high ratings from his battle rounds.
So his response before leaving had been suitably fiery.
"Restoring Donghuang's glory is our generation's sacred duty!"
Lin Qunzhi had been delighted to hear that. She said she would help Xia Chi apply for a high-quality Dusk Stone worth over two hundred thousand on the market, so Misdreavus could evolve.
One sentence to make a woman spend two hundred thousand on me!
Still, although Xia Chi was rather proud of wrangling a Dusk Stone out of the school,