In the secondary arena, the audience numbered no less than thirty thousand, with every seat filled.
Staff moved through the aisles, either selling snacks or collecting trash.
Below, countless cameras pointed at the battlefield like black cannons.
Journalists with press badges stood behind the cameras, some pacing and whispering to each other, others sitting and writing reports.
Inside the arena, numerous Magnemite hovered around the cameras, spinning their magnets and screws while drifting about.
The referee held onto a Magnezone with one hand, drinking water and wiping sweat from his forehead with a towel.
The massive screens on all sides showed shots of the audience, occasionally switching to the commentary booth.
It was lively and noisy, yet orderly.
Tickets for the Tournament were now as expensive as those for top-tier concerts, and they remained high.
Even so, buyers were still eager.
If seated tickets sold out, standing-room tickets would do. If standing-room tickets were gone, they'd rather work as staff just to get in.
It was impossible to enter the inner arena—for safety reasons, the inner arena didn't hire staff.
But jobs like sweeping the stands, working as a doorman, or selling snacks would still take on part-timers.
The level of popularity was clear to see.
Before the match, Li Xiang and Su Qian sat in the players' waiting room, adjusting their mindset and waiting for the staff's notice.
Through the small window, he could see the massive crowd outside, looking like scattered black sesame seeds.
It made you involuntarily tense up.
Xu He stood before them, repeating some key points.
The opponent wasn't strong. They had been eliminated in the first round last year. But caution was still necessary—who knew how much they had improved over the past year?
Mist City wasn't the only school skilled at information control. Everyone had mostly old data. Using past info to judge the present would be foolish.
"Keep an eye on their Crawdaunt. And be careful with your attacks—don't fall for traps."
Xu He flipped through his notes and said.
Both nodded.
Knock, knock.
The door was rapped by a man in a striped uniform.
He called out, "Mist City team, get ready! The second match is about to start. Please head to the waiting area!"
It was time to go on.
Li Xiang and Su Qian exchanged a glance, took a deep breath, and adjusted their attire.
At this moment, going out meant showcasing Mist City University's image to the entire nation. Any flaw would be magnified. They couldn't afford to be careless.
"Let's go."
"Yeah."
With a shared rhythm, they walked together through the dark player tunnel.
A white light at the end guided them forward.
They stepped out slowly.
A roar like crashing waves instantly flooded their ears, accompanied by the commentator's amplified voice through the speakers.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Now entering the arena is the Mist City team! A duo made up of the team captain and a freshman! This is their first time on the doubles stage! Let's look forward to their performance!"
In an instant, close-ups of Li Xiang and Su Qian appeared on the screen, the shot gradually zooming out to capture them walking toward the field.
The waiting area was inside the arena itself.
Like the Spring Tournament, the Summer Tournament would use various field types.
Fortunately, the Stellar Arena's fields weren't as extreme as Tianhe's—no snowy ground with deep craters exposing bare earth beneath.
The water field was relatively shallow, with plenty of standing ground.
So even though they had unfortunately drawn a water field, Li Xiang managed to stay calm.
In the commentary booth, the two announcers began discussing Li Xiang's background.
"Captain-level strength, paired with a freshman—does this mean Mist City University no longer has any doubles talent?"
"Not necessarily. Sure, he's a freshman, but Li Xiang is no weaker than some seasoned players. You have to look at his record."
"Oh? How so?"
"In the Spring Tournament, his first appearance was a one-on-two, and he took down the Hongcheng team captain. And that wasn't all—in his second match, he went one-on-five! Do you know what that means?"
"Wow! That impressive? How old is he?"
"Fifteen, of course!"
They had done their homework long ago. Now they were just reminding the audience who Li Xiang was, since not everyone followed the Southern Xia region and knew about this monstrous student.
Hearing their conversation, many in the audience grew curious, and online, a bit of commotion stirred.
In the preparation rooms of various universities, many turned their attention to this match.
Li Xiang's name had been echoing in their ears like a chant over the past two months, and rightly so—the strength he'd shown so far was no joke.
They were all curious about how this student, with such a halo of accolades, would perform in doubles.
What gave Mist City University's coach the confidence to make this pairing?
Could it be that they were trying to boost this freshman?
It wasn't impossible. But they'd find out soon enough.
For a moment, countless people were eagerly anticipating the match.
On the field, the opponents were already in position.
The referee mounted a Magnezone and began reading the rules.
Li Xiang and Su Qian stood on a larger rock, surveying the surroundings to plan dodges and advances.
The moment the whistle blew, they threw their Poké Balls simultaneously.
Bang! Bang!
Four flashes of white light appeared.
Plop!
The sound of heavy bodies hitting water.
A rotund, balloon-like Azumarill with large ears bobbed up and down in the water.
Above it, a black Corviknight gleamed under the sunlight.
"Caw—"
A piercing cry echoed over the arena.
Those familiar with the foul-mouthed crow noticed it wasn't cursing and looked disappointed.
On the opposing side, the Pokémon sent out was a large, red Crawdaunt with blue stripes on its chest, a shiny gold star on its head, and an imposing presence.
Beside it was an Eelektross with a black back, red mouthparts, fins, and claws—looking like a lamprey. Its Abilities were Hyper Cutter and Levitate.
They seemed to have predicted that Incineroar wouldn't be sent out. After all, a Fire-type that couldn't fly on a water field would be asking for trouble.
Both trainers gave commands.
"Taunt."
"Belly Drum."
Corviknight's opening moves were predictable—usually alternating between Taunt and Tailwind. It flapped its wings and flew toward the opponent.
The Azumarill in the water chose to set up. Its small, stubby hands beat its belly like a drum, making thumping sounds. White light kept flashing from its body.
In the distance, the Eelektross, which was twisting like a windsock, used Coil, a purplish glow running through its body.
Both attackers had chosen to boost themselves.
But the other opponent trainer was a bit greedy—or maybe just stuck in old habits.
Seeing the distance was still great and there was plenty of time, he had Crawdaunt dive underwater and use Dragon Dance.
A Taunt user not Taunting but setting up?
Corviknight accelerated, began cursing, and fired black energy that shot straight into the shadowy Crawdaunt underwater.
Taunt successful!
Crawdaunt, still underwater and unable to finish Dragon Dance, was caught off guard.
It had dived deep—wasn't seventy meters enough? Was the bird that fast?
The commentators were equally stunned.
"What speed! This Corviknight is amazing!"
Normal Corviknight were nowhere near this precise or fast.
Regardless, Crawdaunt was effectively disabled.
Who wouldn't fear a fast Taunter?
The opponent immediately swapped Crawdaunt out. Staying on the field was pointless now.
The replacement was a Pelipper.
The moment it appeared, a blue water jet shot from afar and slammed into it.
Aqua Jet!
Bang!
Mist scattered.
A blue-and-white round body dropped into the water.
At the same time, dark clouds gathered rapidly overhead, turning into dense rain that fell within seconds.
Crack!
Thunder boomed.
It was Eelektross using Wild Charge!
Its body crackled with bright electric light as it shot toward the nearest Corviknight like lightning.
It definitely wouldn't dare use Discharge—its partner was four times weak to Electric. How could it risk that?
But Wild Charge was fine for ramming this Electric-weak bird.
"Bree!"
Corviknight instantly used Protect. It had been watching Eelektross from the start—it wasn't about to get hit.
Bang!
Thunder clashed against the green shield with a dull thud.
"Bree!"
Corviknight pulled back and, following the whistle, continued to Taunt Eelektross.
Its Taunts were fast, precise, and ruthless. Eelektross couldn't react in time and had to abandon defense, swinging its lightning-wrapped fists in response to its trainer's shouts while being locked out of Protect.
Crackle—Bang!
Corviknight took a Thunder Punch and was briefly paralyzed, falling from the sky.
Luckily, the paralysis wore off quickly. It managed to take flight before hitting the water.
"Caw."
Corviknight winced from the shock.
Actually, if it hadn't purposely folded its wings to take the hit, it wouldn't have fallen at all.
Even if its body went stiff, it could still glide.
The advantage was that it absorbed less damage, preserving its stamina. So even after taking a super-effective move, it was barely scratched.
From afar, the Eelektross's trainer saw Corviknight's unaffected body and felt a chill run down his spine.
That was a super-effective move, and after a Coil too. Couldn't it at least frown or show a little respect?
Instead, it looked like nothing had happened.
If even Eelektross's heavy hits couldn't do much against this fast, bulky Taunter... how were they supposed to win?
Even so, they had to keep fighting.