The next day, the various school teams left Shen Island one after another.
The spectators were somewhat reluctant to see them go; most hadn't had their fill of excitement, as this year's doubles matches had been full of highlights.
Li Xiang and Su Qian's team was undoubtedly a dark horse.
Especially Li Xiang himself—while his freshman status had become almost tiresome to some, it felt incredibly fresh to many viewers.
Even those who hadn't bought live tickets would search for videos online after the matches to watch his performances. Those who had already seen them would revisit them for another look.
Whether it was Corviknight with its apparent Dodrio heritage, Aegislash wielding its blade of light, the dramatic Clefable, Lucario with its Extreme Speed, Metagross charging like a train, Gardevoir committing fully to Ally Switch, or Incineroar—which alone made it seem invincible—Li Xiang, making his Summer Tournament debut, had become the brightest star in the sky.
Of course, the other teams also delivered impressive performances full of highlights.
Dragon City's ace team had earned widespread acclaim for their excellent "troll" behavior, even trending online without any marketing effort.
Regardless of the supporters of the two schools involved, most viewers were tired of the Tournament being dominated by the top three. Although it still ended up being a Big Six internal affair, at least both Shanghai and Tiandu had been knocked down a peg.
Many mischievous netizens expressed regret online, wishing Dragon City's ace team could have faced Shen Island's team in the second round instead.
However, Dragon City's own third team had also been taken down by Sakura Island's team in the second round, making it hard to say if this was cosmic justice.
Lin Feng and the others also left, carrying many gifts they had bought on-site.
The night before their departure, with Xu He's permission, Li Xiang dragged Song Jie along to sneak out for a meal with them.
The Youth Training Camp six-person group reunited in a lively and boisterous atmosphere.
After several rounds of drinks and food, amid the haze of smoke, they all expressed their feelings to Li Xiang—that he had run too far and too fast.
In less than a year, those who had once stood beside him could now only see his back. It was impossible not to feel a pang of sadness.
But more than that, they were happy for him—happy to be his friends. The greater his fame, the more they felt proud to be associated with him.
Still, they said: "The path of a trainer is long. You don't need to look back—just keep moving forward. But one day, we'll catch up again! Remember that!"
It wasn't the most stirring speech, but under the fiery gazes of those few pairs of eyes, Li Xiang felt his blood run hot. He nodded firmly.
"Alright!"
Lin Lan watched from the side, her eyes full of envy.
On the way out, the usual luxury bus led the way, with fans crowding at the entrance.
Although Song Jie hadn't had any role in this tournament, signs supporting him were still held high. The only difference was that beside his signs, there were now a few more bearing Li Xiang's name.
The fans standing outside, waving their signs and hoping the two inside would notice them, would never know how childish their idols were inside the bus.
Not to mention the snide remarks—they even physically wrestled, tugging at each other's mouths. It wasn't until Su Qian stepped in that they let go.
"You! You're getting worse! Learning all the wrong things!" Li Xiang held his mouth.
Ever since entering Mist City University, Song Jie had become more and more violent. He'd almost torn Li Xiang's mouth just now. In the past, the proud white-haired boy would never have stooped to physical fighting.
"I learned it from you," Song Jie rubbed his cheek, which was red and swollen. Li Xiang didn't know his own strength and had nearly bruised it.
Gong Xu popped his head out from the front seat and said quietly, "In my opinion, you're both the same. Violence runs in your nature—"
"Hm?" ×2
"Uh, forget I said anything."
Sweat beaded on Gong Xu's forehead as he silently sat back down. The memory of being pummeled while just trying to eat popcorn a couple of days ago was still fresh in his mind. He did have some martial arts training, but facing two opponents—one of whom was a legitimate martial arts heir—he couldn't hold his ground.
Chao, sitting next to Gong Xu, laughed heartily.
The bus drove all the way to the airport. It was time to go home.
In early July, the doubles portion of the Summer Tournament concluded, followed by the even more intense singles matches.
Mist City University announced their opponents online, and many supporters said that even though the venue was in Lingcheng, it wouldn't shake their determination to follow the team.
Still, many gave up—Lingcheng was too far and too cold. This didn't affect the team members much. Without a personal connection, supporters were hard to truly feel.
More than the newspapers, they were concerned about what was happening on campus.
As the heroes of the season, they were naturally welcomed with a grand reception.
The Summer Tournament victory meant that as they passed through the school gates, the air was filled with streamers and flowers, cheers rising and falling.
They got off the bus and switched to campus golf carts, driving through the gate and past the giant tree that symbolized the soul of Mist City.
Li Xiang tilted his head back, looking up at the colossal tree that blotted out the sky, his mouth slightly agape.
"It really bore fruit... and they're huge..."
The school tree was a species that didn't exist in his previous world—or rather, only existed in mythology: Jianmu.
When it flowered back in April, he'd wondered if it would bear fruit. But since it wasn't a pressing matter, he'd put it out of his mind.
He hadn't expected it to actually fruit—and grow so large in just over a week! Each one was about the size of his palm.
Since Jianmu was a rare tree species, virtually unseen elsewhere, Li Xiang had no idea if its fruit was edible.
"Wow, quite a harvest this year. Nice, we're in for a treat," Su Qian said beside him, as if on purpose.
"Senior, can we eat them?" Li Xiang turned to ask.
Su Qian nodded. "Of course. This is a perk exclusive to Mist City University students!"
"A perk?"
"Yes, a perk. These fruits are good for both people and Pokémon," Su Qian explained with a smile.
According to her, the school tree bore fruit once a year, with varying yields. The fruits were rich in nutrients, significantly improving human physique and strengthening Pokémon's bodies—essentially like EV-enhancing items, or the energy cubes Lin Feng had given him before, just weaker in effect. But over time, the accumulation would be noticeable.
Good heavens! It's a treasure tree!
Li Xiang was mildly surprised, then noticed the Braviary, Noctowl, and other Pokémon perched on the tree. He held back the question forming in his mouth. With such a precious tree and such valuable fruit, of course there would be guardians.
But Su Qian continued chatting enthusiastically beside him.
Jianmu was a critically endangered species worldwide, extremely difficult to survive, and could only thrive in Mist City's perennial spring-like climate. The one with a tree age of over five thousand years was the only one of its kind in the world.
The only one bearing fruit beneficial to humans was also this single tree.
Li Xiang strongly suspected that its roots might extend into the Mist Island in another dimension, using its spiritual energy to nurture such precious fruit.
And his earlier question—why this tree was at the university rather than in the city center—was finally answered.
When Mist City University was first established, the Mist City Association, hoping to foster the university's development, designated the area around the tree to the school. The intent was for the university to use these tree fruits to cultivate the next generation of trainers.
Mist City had always adhered to this policy, allowing students to exchange credits for the fruits, promoting healthy competition among them.
Of course, school team members didn't need to spend credits; they received a fixed allocation, with varying amounts for reserves, alternates, and starters. But after the school distributed them, team members couldn't exchange credits for more, leaving the opportunity for regular students.
"By the way, Junior, you have no limit. Eat as many as you want, until they're gone," Su Qian suddenly whispered in his ear.
Li Xiang was stunned. "No limit?"
"That's right. It's the privilege of the school's number one—it used to be mine, now it's yours." Su Qian smiled mysteriously.
Ah... so the top student gets to do whatever they want?
Li Xiang couldn't help but glance up at the fruits again. If he had a Snorlax, even all these fruits wouldn't be enough. But as it was, not many of his team members had big appetites. Even Incineroar's wasn't particularly large.
Back at the familiar villa, kept spotless by the janitor's efforts, the sheets and blankets had all been washed and sun-dried.
After the routine greeting with the Joltik and getting a static shock, Li Xiang released Incineroar and the others, then collapsed onto the sofa.
"Ah... so tired..." he groaned.
Lucario came over and carefully picked the streamers off his hair and clothes.
Incineroar expertly opened the fridge, grabbed its favorite spicy ice cream, and pretended to offer one to Li Xiang, wearing a face that said it was being forced to share by a tyrant.
"Get lost!" Li Xiang spat at it.
The bastard was the worst. If you actually reached for it, you'd get it at first—but the moment you pulled your hand back, it would snap its jaws down and swallow the scoop whole, then blast your wrist with a scorching breath. You'd be yelping in pain while it snickered on the side.
Li Xiang had fallen for it three times, and after that, he never fell for it again. Trust between man and tiger was gone.
"Roar." Incineroar looked disappointed, finding Li Xiang's frustrated reactions a good way to whet its appetite.
In the kitchen, the Galarian Meowth opened the fridge, gazing at the still-fresh vegetables and fruits inside. A glint of satisfaction passed through its dull eyes.
Just smelling them made its expression noticeably livelier. For this guy, being away from top-tier ingredients for over a week was pure torture.
"Stop sniffing. I'll go stock up tomorrow. What do you want? I'll hunt it down for you." Li Xiang took the headband hidden under its chin and tied it around its forehead.
The Galarian Meowth's gaze instantly turned sharp.
"Meow!"
"I want to go too—that's what it said," Rotom's voice came from the phone.
"You want to come too... alright, fine." After a moment's thought, Li Xiang nodded.
Just then, Greninja's voice suddenly rang out.
"Greninja!"
Li Xiang turned around and saw it holding a small box, its usually composed face full of anticipation.
Right. The Sword Art...