Dodo staying inside her Poké Ball was the same as staying outside. There was no need to consider the Poké Ball Rack's activation rotation; she could use "Agility" directly.
Their long partnership had built such strong coordination between the Pokémon that their Buff Skills entered the Skill Slots seamlessly, without the slightest conflict.
"Contestant Shen Qi!" the commentator raised his voice in excitement. "Contestant Shen Qi's Little Sheep has jumped over the winding obstacle section formed by rocks!"
"Daring to use a skill that lifts the car off the ground on the first lap-he truly has the skill to back up that courage."
"Mime Jr.!"
"Mime~"
On the Poké Ball Rack, activation switched to Mime Jr.'s Poké Ball.
Light Screen, Reflect, Safeguard... the three skills activated in succession, ensuring Little Sheep drove steadily.
Shen Qi's racing tactics did not include terrain, weather, or space, but they were already very comprehensive.
As he crossed the starting line to finish the first lap, the provisional results flashed on the screen.
Little Sheep's first lap took exactly eight minutes... it was almost breaking into the seven-minute range!
"Little Sheep... isn't going to catch up to Rainbow Flying Sword's time, is it?"
"Impossible!"
"Ayaka is unbeatable!"
"At a time like this," a nearby spectator muttered, "you're still saying Ayaka is unbeatable."
On the second lap, Little Sheep clocked seven minutes and fifty-five seconds.
Averaging the two laps, Little Sheep's final Qualifying Race time was seven minutes and fifty-seven seconds, just over two seconds behind Rainbow Flying Sword.
That gap... was actually negligible.
The Main Race course differed from the Qualifying Race course and was several times longer.
With him so close to Rainbow Flying Sword, it was no exaggeration to say Shen Qi's abilities had caught up to Ayaka's.
The Qualifying Race ended.