Chapter Summaries

Shen Qi prepared for the race in Doll Town, learning that Falling Bear Ravine’s damp course would demand careful attention to tires and brakes. The night before the competition, he recognized Xiao Ming working in a Wigglytuff mascot suit, and Xiao Ming panicked and fell while trying to flee.

• Shen Qi asked a local shopkeeper about Falling Bear Ravine and learned that its roads were damp, closed before the race, and altered with Pokémon moves.
• Shen Qi spent the next day searching Doll Town for useful course information, but found little beyond the route’s original appearance on a satellite map.
• Shen Qi saw a mascot worker finish handing out balloons and learned that the boy had spent the hot day working in the suit.
• Shen Qi recognized the exhausted boy as Xiao Ming, a student he had heard was interning at a Pokémon Battle Club.
• Xiao Ming noticed Shen Qi and his Pokémon, tried to run, and tripped over the mascot suit.

Shen Qi learned why Xiao Ming had hidden the truth about his punishing summer job, then went with Lilligant to prepare for Doll Town’s regular race. The chapter left them studying the course obstacles and adjusting their tires as the race approached.

• Shen Qi promised Xiao Ming he would keep his difficult working conditions secret after learning Xiao Ming had taken the job to support his family.
• Xiao Ming told Shen Qi about his family’s debts, his sister giving up her chance at school, and his determination to become a successful Trainer.
• Xiao Ming introduced Shen Qi to his young Tauros, whom he called Taro, and said he hoped to give his family a better life.
• Shen Qi returned to his hotel, then drove Lilligant to the race venue the next day in gloomy weather.
• Shen Qi and Lilligant learned that nine racers had arrived and reviewed the obstacle briefing before Lilligant decided to lower the race car’s tire pressure.

Shen Qi and Lilligant prepared for the race, assessed their competitors, and spotted Gym Leader Janine’s Pokémon team among the entrants. As the race began, Chansey boosted their car while Lilligant drove, and Janine’s team took an early lead.

• Shen Qi watched Lilligant check their tires and judged the nearby Torrent 2nd Generation to be poorly tuned for Falling Bear Ravine’s rough terrain.
• Shen Qi recognized Janine at the pole position and saw Qiu Yan cheering for her in the stands.
• Lilligant explained that Janine’s Tentacruel and Crobat were using racing as training for their Pokémon support abilities.
• The race began, and Janine’s Tentacruel and Crobat took the lead while Shen Qi and Chansey boosted their car’s horsepower with Work Up.

Shen Qi and Lilligant entered the regular race hoping to place well, but Tentacruel’s Haze and the Yuanbao 1st Generation’s unusual buffs disrupted the competition. After Shen Qi figured out the opposing car’s Ability Skill Slot, Lilligant used Racing Energy to take the lead and won the championship.

• Lilligant overtook several cars as Shen Qi boosted her with Work Up, but Tentacruel’s Haze repeatedly erased the racers’ buffs.
• Shen Qi realized Tentacruel was using a Clear Body Ability Skill Slot to preserve the Yuanbao 1st Generation’s buffs against Haze.
• Shen Qi used Racing Energy, allowing Lilligant to overtake Tentacruel and pull far ahead.
• Tentacruel held up the other competitors, while Lilligant carefully navigated the obstacles and maintained her lead.
• Lilligant crossed the finish line in first place, leaving Shen Qi stunned by their unexpected championship victory.

Shen Qi and Lilligant unexpectedly won the Doll Town race, earning 20,000 b and first-place tires, while Chansey was startled to learn they had taken the top spot. After Janine faced down an angry fourth-place racer, she introduced herself to Shen Qi, leaving their encounter poised to continue.

• Tentacruel and Crobat kept every car from breaking through their Haze defense, and the Ingot I took first place while the Torrent II finished second.
• The fourth-place driver's Ponyta evolved into Rapidash in a burst of anger, and Chansey was shocked to learn Shen Qi and Lilligant had won the race.
• Shen Qi collected the 20,000 b prize and first-place tires, realizing he was much closer to affording his Racing License Exam.
• The fourth-place racer confronted Janine over Tentacruel's tactics, but she defended her Pokémon and challenged him to battle, prompting him to leave.
• Janine approached Shen Qi at the food stall, introduced herself as being from the Fuchsia Gym, and heard him introduce himself as an islander from the offshore Sevii Islands.

Shen Qi and his Pokémon won the Doll Town race and brought home prize money, tires, and salvaged brake calipers. At Huzang’s shop, Shen Qi recounted the race and learned that powerful trainers such as Lance also used racing to train their Pokémon.

• Janine praised Shen Qi’s racing Style Technique and left her prize tires for him to take.
• Shen Qi and Chansey salvaged discarded Big Brembo Calipers, then drove home with their prize tires and Janine’s tires.
• Shen Qi considered adding an ability skill slot to Lilligant’s car, but learned that one cost about 50,000b.
• Shen Qi told Huzang that he had won the race by several minutes, and Huzang suggested the other racers had been delayed by an incident.
• Huzang described racing against Lance, whose Style Techniques enhanced Flying-type moves.

Shen Qi prepared for the next Vermilion City race while practicing Wild Princess and learning how Lilligant’s car had reached an air-intake bottleneck. At home, Chansey arranged for Buneary to secretly massage Shen Qi, but Buneary became so flustered that she collapsed and Chansey treated her with a frighteningly rough massage.

• Shen Qi and Lilligant decided to enter the Vermilion City regular race, hoping to earn enough prize money for Shen Qi’s racing license.
• Shen Qi learned that Lilligant’s car needed more air intake, while practicing Wild Princess remained his main training task.
• Shen Qi saw that his Desire Rabbit conquest progress was 26% and his Crazy Quack progress was 92%.
• Chansey brought Buneary to massage Shen Qi while he wore a blindfold, and Buneary nervously began pressing his shoulders.
• Buneary became dizzy and fell onto Shen Qi’s back, so Chansey picked her up and treated her with a bone-cracking massage.

Shen Qi used a proficiency card to help Lilligant improve her Protect skill, hoping to make the difficult defensive move usable and ease her fears. The card raised Protect from 8% to 14%, with the remaining increase expected to take effect gradually.

• Chansey cared for the unconscious Buneary after her anxiety and hyperventilation caused her to pass out.
• Shen Qi received a Charm Pendant that increased his affinity with Pokémon of the same sex and put it away.
• Shen Qi told Lilligant about his skill-proficiency item and offered to use it to improve her Protect.
• Lilligant accepted Shen Qi's help despite worrying that the item would be wasted.
• Shen Qi used a Skill Proficiency Card 1 on Lilligant's Protect, raising its proficiency from 8% to 14% while the rest of the increase remained to be absorbed.

Shen Qi’s Pokémon practiced and recovered while Buneary grew closer to him, and his training improved his physical and mental stats. He then set off for Vermilion City, where he planned to enter a competition.

• Lilligant improved her Protect proficiency through a long practice session with Shen Qi, reaching 17% by the end of the day.
• Buneary overheard Shen Qi and Lilligant training, became dizzy, and nearly fell down the stairs before Chansey struck her unconscious while intervening.
• After dinner, Shen Qi collapsed when Chansey reacted to his mention of being injured, then woke the next morning exhausted and checked his improved stats and level.
• Buneary said she wanted to travel with Shen Qi in the future as he prepared to leave for Vermilion City.
• Shen Qi departed for Vermilion City, planning to enter a competition and travel from Fuchsia City by a direct side road.

Shen Qi and Lilligant traveled toward Vermilion City and spotted a familiar Big Yuanbao driven by a skilled Maractus who seemed to have no support partner. As they caught up to the car, a fast Doduo carrying a bag of plants overtook them.

• Shen Qi and Lilligant left the Sevii Islands, rested at Fuchsia City, and continued toward Vermilion City along a well-maintained side road.
• Lilligant recognized a white Big Yuanbao and recalled that its driver, Maractus, had raced without a support partner and was stronger than Shan Sheng.
• Shen Qi and Lilligant accelerated to catch up with the Big Yuanbao after wondering whether Maractus was an unowned Pokémon.
• A Doduo carrying a shopping bag of plants caught up with both cars while they traveled at over seventy kilometers per hour.

Shen Qi and Lilligant met Maractus, who was racing to fund treatment for her sick Trainer, Imite, and Lilligant shared her own past with her. They continued toward Vermilion City, determined to compete for prize money, and after an exhausting trip settled near the racecourse; the next morning, Shen Qi rushed to claim breakfast.

• Lilligant and Shen Qi overtook Maractus and Doduo on the road, then stopped with them outside Vermilion City.
• Maractus told Lilligant that her Trainer, Imite, was ill, and that she raced to pay for Imite’s long-term treatment while Doduo cared for her at home.
• Lilligant comforted Maractus and shared her own past; the two Pokémon became friends and agreed to compete seriously in the upcoming race.
• Shen Qi and Lilligant headed toward Saffron City, aiming for a top-three finish to earn prize money and work toward a Racing License.
• After a long journey, Shen Qi checked into an inexpensive inn near the racecourse, and Lilligant went to sleep.
• The next morning, Shen Qi hurried to collect the inn’s time-limited breakfast while Chansey exercised.

Shen Qi and Lilligant joined Maractus at the Construction Site Racetrack, where they learned they could practice for free once the last customers left. Shen Qi also heard how the venue had grown out of a repeatedly stalled construction project.

• Lilligant received Maractus’s invitation to visit the racetrack, and Shen Qi agreed to go with her.
• Shen Qi and Lilligant checked Flower Crown, bought snacks, and drove to the Construction Site Racetrack northeast of Vermilion City.
• Lilligant and Maractus reunited at the staff entrance, while Shen Qi met Maractus’s friend Machop.
• Machop explained that the racetrack had begun as a property development that stalled after rising cleanup costs delayed construction again.

Shen Qi, Lilligant, and Maractus visited the Construction Site Racetrack and met Espeon and Wobbuffet, who were practicing for the Saffron City regular race. The newcomers learned that the pair belonged to Sabrina, leaving them surprised by the connection.

• Shen Qi and his Pokémon visited the Construction Site Racetrack, where Farfetch'd explained how the construction crew had built it after going bankrupt.
• Machoke told Lilligant and Maractus the track was clear, but Farfetch'd soon announced that paying customers had arrived.
• Shen Qi and his Pokémon met Espeon beside a Rose Champagne, an A-class car, and asked whether they could use the track.
• Wobbuffet invited them to practice together, and Shen Qi revealed that his group had also entered the race the day after tomorrow.
• Wobbuffet said it and Espeon were Pokémon from Saffron Gym and belonged to Sabrina, surprising Shen Qi and Maractus.

Shen Qi watched Espeon and Wobbuffet prepare for the Regular Race, discovering that Espeon would drive using psychic powers from inside a Pet Carrier. During a test run, he and Lilligant observed Maractus’s skill and saw Espeon’s Rose Champagne dominate the track, leaving their chances on the Quiet Forest course uncertain.

• Wobbuffet offered Maractus Berry Candy and teased Espeon about her weight, while Espeon vowed to beat the others in the race.
• Espeon climbed into a Pet Carrier secured to the driver’s seat, and Shen Qi and the Pokémon laughed until she refused to come out.
• Shen Qi realized Espeon was controlling the car with psychic powers and understood that her promise to crush her opponents was serious.
• Shen Qi watched Maractus drive the Big Yuanbao and wondered how she increased its speed, while Lilligant praised her friend.
• Espeon’s Rose Champagne surged around the track with overwhelming speed, and Shen Qi wondered whether the longer, unfamiliar Quiet Forest course would give him and Lilligant a chance.

Shen Qi and Lilligant practiced at the Construction Site Racetrack and watched Rose Champagne demonstrate its powerful turbo. After learning why Maractus had been saving her treats and hearing about the kindness she hoped to repay, they returned to the upcoming race, where Espeon arrived boasting that she would crush them.

• Shen Qi explained how Rose Champagne's turbo and Anti-Lag Ignition helped it accelerate, while Lilligant struggled to accept how far ahead it had pulled.
• Shen Qi, Lilligant, and the Construction Site Racetrack's Pokémon adjusted the car and practiced laps before preparing to rest for the race the day after tomorrow.
• Lilligant noticed Maractus had saved her snacks, tea, and Wobbuffet's Berry Candy, and Maractus said she wanted to take the tea to Imite and sell the candy.
• Maractus told Shen Qi and Lilligant how she had drifted to Kanto, been taken in by Pokémon House, and later adopted by Imite; she hoped to repay Imite and support Mr. Fuji.
• Lilligant and Maractus promised to give their all in the race, but Espeon returned in Rose Champagne and declared that she would crush them.

Shen Qi and Lilligant tried to understand Wobbuffet’s cryptic remarks before the Vermilion City Regular Race. They learned that idol Li Yizi had a long record of racing accidents, but her popularity made her costly crashes profitable, and she retained her Racing License.

• Maractus thanked Shen Qi and left the Construction Site Racetrack, while Lilligant wished she could challenge Espeon and the Rose Champagne.
• Wobbuffet apologized for Espeon’s haughtiness, then said he and Espeon only hoped not to finish last.
• Shen Qi, Chansey, and Lilligant remained puzzled by Wobbuffet’s comments as the Vermilion City Regular Race approached.
• Shen Qi recognized Li Yizi, an idol performing before the race, as the woman who had sold them a Class B Car engine.
• Lilligant found reports of Li Yizi’s repeated crashes and explained that she could keep her Racing License because she had not seriously harmed anyone and her popularity covered the costs.

Shen Qi and Lilligant started the Vermilion City Regular Race from third position and briefly took the lead before slowing for hazardous terrain. As they approached a series of dirt slopes, Rose Champagne charged up from last place and a Spoink-driven car closed in behind them.

• Shen Qi learned that Li Yizi’s race cars were driven by Clefairy in the Pokémon-format race, while her car started fourth and Espeon’s Rose Champagne started last.
• Shen Qi and Chansey prepared Flower Crown’s opening acceleration with Helping Hand and Normal-type Energy Coordination.
• Lilligant surged Flower Crown into the lead shortly after the start, then slowed to cross a gravel section safely.
• The commentator reported that Maractus had climbed from seventh to fourth and Rose Champagne had advanced from sixteenth to fifth.
• As Flower Crown approached a series of dirt slopes, Chansey and Shen Qi reduced its buffs and speed, while a Spoink-driven car closed to within ten meters behind them.

Shen Qi and Lilligant fought to keep pace as Clefairy and a rain-enhanced team surged ahead, then used Sunny Day and Helping Hand to escape the pack. As they entered Lavender Town, Espeon and the Rose Champagne had vanished from the race coverage, leaving Shen Qi and Lilligant wondering where they had gone.

• Clefairy used Gravity to keep her race car grounded over the hills and opened a large lead.
• Espeon’s Rose Champagne leaped across the mounds using Light Screen, Reflect, and Protect, while Shen Qi fell behind to fourth place.
• Raticate used Rain Dance to help a Surskit with Swift Swim overtake Shen Qi, and Maractus answered with Sunny Day.
• Lilligant used Helping Hand to pass the rain-boosted car and break free of the crowded pack.
• Shen Qi and Lilligant entered Lavender Town and noticed that the commentator had not reported Espeon’s whereabouts.

Shen Qi and Lilligant raced through Lavender Town, where strange conditions and the Rose Champagne’s erratic driving frightened the racers. They overtook the Rose Champagne and left the town, while Espeon remained terrified inside it and Wobbuffet tried to reassure her.

• Shen Qi told Lilligant that the Kanto Radio Station had once been Pokémon Tower, startling her and unsettling the cars behind them.
• Shen Qi realized Lavender Town’s strange conditions were disrupting communications as the Flower Crown came upon the slow, swerving Rose Champagne.
• Shen Qi distracted Lilligant and helped strengthen her Protect, allowing the Flower Crown to overtake the Rose Champagne safely.
• The Flower Crown left Lavender Town as the other racers cautiously passed the Rose Champagne, which fell to thirteenth place.
• Espeon trembled inside the Rose Champagne, unable to drive steadily because she feared the town’s sinister atmosphere, while Wobbuffet steadied the wheel and encouraged her.

Shen Qi and Lilligant fought their way into third place in Vermilion City's Regular Race, but the Clefairy's car crashed near the finish. Lilligant pulled over to help, and Shen Qi got out with Chansey.

• Shen Qi and Lilligant used Racing Energy and the Flower Crown to overtake Surskit and move into fourth place.
• Lilligant passed Spoink on the straight and claimed third place, while Espeon caught up and briefly pushed them back to fourth.
• Espeon's Rose Champagne swerved again in Lavender Town, allowing the Flower Crown to return to third place as the racers passed it.
• The Clefairy's car crashed off the track less than a kilometer from the finish.
• Lilligant stopped the Flower Crown to help the Clefairy, and Shen Qi got out and summoned Chansey.