The Top 16 Matches

It wasn't that Chu Xin looked down on Lei Jing, but he simply couldn't bring himself to like the brat. That whole teenage edgelord act reminded Chu Xin of himself as a kid, and feeling like he was looking in a mirror was genuinely awkward.

Besides, Lei Jing's Pokémon was the Growlithe that had beaten Xiao Wu, so Chu Xin considered him a rival from the bottom of his heart. As an opponent, Chu Xin certainly wouldn't go easy on Lei Jing. And beyond that, Chu Xin... still didn't like the brat.

Whatever. None of that really mattered. After taking the information Aier had prepared, Chu Xin studied it carefully. The opponents who had made it into the Top 16 were formidable. If he got careless, he could very well be the one eliminated.

Chu Xin stayed up studying the documents until midnight. Exhausted, he fell asleep the moment he lay down on the bed, leaving Aier to deal with all the remaining materials.

The next morning, Chu Xin got up early and headed to the venue. The Top 16 had been decided, and every remaining contestant was an excellent Trainer. After reading yesterday's information, Chu Xin took the upcoming matches even more seriously.

Information on paper wasn't entirely reliable. After all, strength was something he ultimately had to experience in person. Written figures could only tell him so much.

The venue for the Top 16 matches looked completely different from before. The excitement surrounding this round had packed the stands, and cheers erupted whenever a contestant entered.

Chu Xin had arrived early. As a contestant, he didn't need to buy a ticket and instead sat in the separate seating area reserved for competitors.

His match was scheduled for later that day. His opponent was a lower-ranked contestant who had also defeated a seeded competitor to reach the Top 16.

His opponent was certainly strong, but had already revealed every trump card in earlier matches and was still a little weaker than Xiao Wu. As such, Chu Xin wasn't especially concerned about his own match.

He had come early today simply to see how strong the other seeded contestants were.

The first to appear was that brat Lei Jing. He struck a pose as soon as he entered and arrogantly declared his victory, showing no regard for his opponent whatsoever. Once the match began, however, his Growlithe's tremendous strength showed the audience exactly why he was so confident.

Growlithe moved so fast that dark streaks flashed across the battlefield. The opponent's attacks couldn't affect Growlithe at all. They couldn't even catch Growlithe's shadow.

The opponent's Pokémon was a Pikachu. As far as Chu Xin remembered, the only truly strong Pikachu was Ash's. Reaching the Top 16 with a Pikachu was already impressive, but against Lei Jing's Growlithe, this one had no chance to fight back. In the end, a single Flame Charge knocked Pikachu unconscious.

Growlithe, on the other hand, was still brimming with energy after that intense battle, looking as though it had taken no effort at all. Chu Xin had to admit that, annoying as Lei Jing was, that Growlithe was genuinely strong!

As Chu Xin watched Lei Jing's battle, he considered possible counters. Even Xiao Wu was a little slower than that Growlithe. Competing on speed wasn't an option.

Bai Le appeared in the second match. Seeing Bai Yuan enter, Chu Xin rubbed his chin. He had to admit, this guy really did look a lot like Bai Yuan!

Whether it was his looks or the way he dressed, he seemed like a larger version of Bai Yuan. Could they be brothers?

The older Bai Le looked more mature, though. His Pokémon was also a Scyther, but was vastly stronger than Bai Yuan's. That calm, composed demeanor made it obvious that this Scyther had fought countless battles. In combat, Scyther was still as a statue one moment and swift as a darting hare the next. The instant an attack began, Scyther appeared behind the opponent, both enormous scythes slashing at vital weak points.

Even in the Top 16, that Scyther finished the battle in a single exchange, and Bai Le hadn't even given a command.

The entire match lasted just fifteen seconds. It was hard to believe this was a Top 16 match!

Even Chu Xin was left speechless by that overwhelming strength. Was this guy here just to crush weaker opponents? Why had someone this strong waited until now to take the Monster Handler License exam? Was it really fair to let someone like him enter the competition?

Despite all his inward complaints, Chu Xin was a contestant, and he had to consider what he would do if he faced that monster.

That Scyther's attacks dealt absurd damage. Besides striking weak points and having a type advantage, Scyther probably also had the Technician Ability, further increasing the damage. On top of that, Scyther had likely used another move to enhance those attacks.

Was it Focus Energy, or some other move? The way that Scyther attacked looked a little like Night Slash. Could it be an Egg Move?

There were too many questions. Trying to understand an opponent from a single match was still too difficult. But without a doubt, Bai Le was the strongest opponent in the competition so far.

Besides Bai Le and Lei Jing, Chu Xin watched the other opponents closely as well. He had to admit that everyone who had reached the Top 16 had something impressive about them.

Sigh. Winning the championship wouldn't be easy. Every one of them was strong, especially Bai Le. Unless Xiao Wu revealed his trump card, he wouldn't stand a chance against that guy as he was now.

"Xiao Wu, our opponents are all really strong!"

Chu Xin stroked Xiao Wu, who was sitting beside him. He had deliberately brought him out so he could see firsthand just how powerful their opponents were.

"Wu, wu!" (When Chu Xin and I team up, we're invincible!)

Xiao Wu wasn't worried in the slightest. He looked proudly at Chu Xin, and his confidence rubbed off even on his somewhat downhearted partner.

"That's right! Who says we can't win the championship? We've got a trump card too! Once we use it, we can put up a fight even against Bai Le!"

Chu Xin hugged Xiao Wu and nuzzled him with a smile.

"Thank you, Xiao Wu. We're definitely going to win this competition."

No matter how powerful his opponents were, Chu Xin couldn't lose confidence now. If he didn't even believe in himself, how could he have any confidence in winning the championship?

Chu Xin and Xiao Wu had trained hard for three months to win the championship. Even if only to honor all the sweat they had poured into it, they had to give this competition everything they had.

At last, it was Xiao Wu's turn to take the field. The spectators watched the entrance excitedly, hoping the next pair of contestants would give them a visual feast.

"Are you ready, Xiao Wu? It's our turn to show what we can do!"