Hitmonlee possessed immense strength, but it clearly held back during their sparring sessions. Its precise control over power was truly impressive to Lian.
Despite Lian's full-force attacks, Hitmonlee effortlessly defended against them. In addition to using his fists and legs, Lian occasionally incorporated his tail as a unique weapon.
As they continued battling, Lian gradually realized the gap between their abilities. After ten minutes, he paused, slightly panting from the physically demanding match. However, the training proved highly effective; with persistence, Lian felt confident that his physical strength could indeed improve further.
Although his attack ability value had already reached its limit, could this rigorous training help him break through that ceiling?
Attack ability values are directly linked to physical strength, where the potency of attacking moves stems from combining bodily force with energy bursts.
While Lian primarily focused on Special Attack output, having formidable physical strength offered advantages. If ever cornered at close range, he wouldn't be helpless, allowing for counterattacks using powerful physical moves.
After Lian's session, it was Ninetales' turn for combat training. However, Ninetales performed slightly weaker than Lian, as standing upright proved challenging for her; she primarily fought on all fours.
Meanwhile, Torchic also began its fighting practice but appeared somewhat hesitant and unsteady. Occasionally, when jumping and landing, it would wobble, almost losing balance.
Nevertheless, the dojo staff were accustomed to working with inexperienced Pokémon like Torchic, employing unique methods to spark its interest in battling.
During the training, despite looking frail, Torchic gradually grew more engaged in combat under Hitmonchan's intentional guidance.
Although just slightly, once the battle ended, Torchic collapsed onto the ground, appearing utterly exhausted.
Next up after Torchic was Kalia. Although lacking prior fighting experience, she trained diligently, putting full effort into every punch and kick.
While practicing, Kalia didn't forget to encourage Torchic. Nurturing a Pokémon requires dedication, and as Torchic watched Kalia's determined battles, a glimmer of inspiration emerged in its eyes.
***
Late at night, Lian entered the system space.
He hadn't wasted any combat ratings today, as training at the dojo was only during daytime. In the evenings, Kalia continued her regular practice sessions at the Pokémon Center's battlefield for further combat experience.
Examining his battle statistics, after evolving into Charizard, Lian's abilities experienced a significant boost.
Charizard
Type: Fire, Flying
Level: Lv 36
Gender: Male
Abilities: Solar Power / Blaze
Moves: ..., Overheat, Wrath of Fire, Heat Wave, Inferno, Air Slash, Dragon Claw
Ability Stats: Stamina 1576, Attack 993, Defense 1166, Special Attack 1605, Special Defense 1216, Speed: 1468
Explosive Power: 1.7 (+)
Rock Resistance: 3 (+)
Water Resistance: 1
Control Ratings: Fire Element Mastery: 50%, Dragon Element Mastery: 23%, Normal Element Mastery: 20%, Flying Element Mastery: 3%, ...
A level-36 Charizard with these ability stats is truly a force to be reckoned with, bordering on extraordinary. The Special Attack stat surpasses 1,600, speed approaches 1,500, and all other aspects, except for attack, exceed 1,000.
Lian's current total base stats had reached an astonishing 734, surpassing ordinary Legendary Pokemon and even some exceptionally rare ones.
However, base stats do not solely define strength. Legendary Pokemon possess immense power, coupled with intelligence and remarkable control over their elemental energies.
If Lian were to encounter Legendary Pokemon like Lugia or Ho-Oh at similar levels, he couldn't guarantee victory, but neither could they necessarily defeat him. After all, having base stats above seven hundred is no joke.
Apart from significant ability increases, Lian also gained several new moves, such as Dragon Claw, Heat Wave, Inferno, and Air Slash, which he instantly learned upon evolution.
Before evolving, Lian had practiced these moves hundreds, if not thousands, of times. With evolution, he mastered them immediately, and his mastery ratings for these moves significantly improved.
The Fire Element Mastery might have plateaued at 50%, making further enhancement increasingly difficult. It likely requires either gradual accumulation over time or utilizing Combat Points for improvement.
Upon evolving into Charizard, Lian automatically acquired the Dragon Claw move, resulting in an instant 3% increase in Dragon Element Mastery, saving him considerable Combat Points.
Another significant change post-evolution was Rock Resistance. It had previously reached '1', but after evolving and gaining the Flying Type, it dropped to '3'. This meant that Rock-type moves now dealt three times more damage to Lian.
To restore his resistance back to '1' would require substantial Combat Points, and Lian sensed that the cost might even increase further. If it still took only 100 Combat Points per increment, reaching '1' would be too easy at just 20,000 points.
Given the system's nature, the consumption of Combat Points for improvement was bound to rise. For Lian, accumulating 20,000 Combat Points wasn't daunting anymore. Nevertheless, enhancing Rock Resistance was crucial; encountering a Rock-type Pokémon with tripled damage could prove fatal despite being only three times higher.
Lian then checked his current Combat Points balance. After accounting for recent expenditures in the Dream World and adding the points earned over these two days, he now had slightly over fifteen thousand.
During the battle outside Rhine City against Dark Guild's Pokemon, Lian couldn't estimate how many Pokemon he defeated. Unfortunately, the combat rating calculated only based on two Pokemon.
However, given the chaotic situation at the time, there was no opportunity for strategic maneuvering or calculating ways to achieve a higher score.
With over ten thousand Combat Points, Lian decided to first enhance his Rock Resistance incrementally, rather than maxing it out all at once.
He clicked on the plus sign to check the required consumption and sighed with relief; it only cost 200 Combat Points for each level increase.
Based on this pattern, reaching 'Level 2' would require twenty thousand Combat Points, while advancing from 'Level 2' to 'Level 1' should double the cost, approximately sixty thousand Combat Points.
Although sixty thousand Combat Points seemed substantial, with diligent accumulation over time, it wouldn't take long to achieve.
"Now that I've evolved, it feels like a good opportunity to save up more Combat Points for upgrading the system," Lian murmured to himself.
The last system upgrade had cost fifteen thousand Combat Points, leading him to speculate that the next upgrade might require forty-five thousand Combat Points. With such high consumption rates, Lian planned to significantly accumulate points before waiting for the system's upgrade.
For now, he focused on improving his Rock Resistance. Spending two thousand Combat Points, he raised it to 'Level 2.9', leaving him with over thirteen thousand Combat Points remaining.
Next, Lian prepared to enhance move proficiencies. Heat Wave, Inferno, and Air Slash hadn't been upgraded yet, but as moves he intended to use frequently, increasing their proficiency was essential.