Chapter 217: Sylveon's Sweeping Victory
Sunday, October 25th.
The highly anticipated semifinals of the East China Championship had officially begun. Inside the stadium, the sacred flame of Moltres burned brightly as the crowd erupted in cheers. A man with sharp, sinister eyes stepped out from the player's tunnel, immediately surrounded by reporters.
"Mr. Han Hun! We've heard you've passed the professional trainer certification. Is that true?"
Han Hun frowned, annoyed. "Move aside… I need to draw my match."
"What do you think about Lu Ye, who hasn't lost a single point in the tournament yet?"
Han Hun halted, narrowing his eyes. "Say that again?"
The reporter hesitated. "Teacher Lu… is currently the top favorite to win the championship…"
"A sophomore college student?" Han Hun scoffed. "Refuses to evolve his Pokémon? That's kind of… adorable."
The reporters exchanged glances. Online discussions about Lu Ye's Pokémon had been heated.
"My only goal is the championship," Han Hun said, looking up at the giant screen. "And that backpacker… with the Tyranitar? Tell him to wait for me."
In the VIP seats, Tang Hui and Lt. Surge sat with their eyes fixed on the drawing ceremony. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the East China Championship semifinals!" the announcer's energetic voice echoed.
"So many people?" Lu Ye glanced around, slightly taken aback. From the audience, he spotted Coach Zhai leading a group of young fans, all waving banners. "Go, Teacher Lu!!" Han Xiaoxiao's voice cracked from shouting. Even Gu Zhong, usually reserved, had turned red-faced from yelling. Lu Ye smiled and gave a small wave, and the audience roared even louder.
Just then, another semifinalist approached—Chen Tingyue. "G-Good afternoon," she stammered.
"Hm? You made it to the semifinals too?"
Chen Tingyue blinked. "D-Don't you check the matchups?"
Lu Ye rubbed his chin awkwardly. "Doesn't matter who I'm up against—I just need to bulldoze through."
"Of the four semifinalists, we're the only two still in school," Chen Tingyue said. "Those two… are seriously strong."
Lu Ye smirked. "I'm stronger."
"…Huh?"
"You'll see soon enough."
He waved and walked toward the center of the arena. Chen Tingyue watched his back, her heart skipping a beat. "The drawing is complete!" the announcer declared. "In the semifinals—Lu Ye from Modu University will face professional trainer Han Hun!"
The crowd erupted. As they shook hands, Han Hun smiled. "Your Pokémon are pretty cute."
Lu Ye responded, "Thanks, you too."
Han Hun's smirk froze. His expression darkened as he scoffed and walked away.
Lu Ye chuckled. "I've always thought you were cute."
"Bui~~ (*σ´∀`)σ"
After a short break, the match began. "Go, Typhlosion," Han Hun tossed out his Poké Ball. A scorching heatwave surged through the front rows. With a deep roar, Typhlosion's fiery mane blazed even higher.
All eyes turned to Lu Ye. "Sylveon!" The stadium erupted. "So cute!!"
"Bui~~" Sylveon lazily glanced at Typhlosion and muttered something to Lu Ye.
"Don't worry," Lu Ye said. "Win this match, and I'll buy you a new treadmill."
Sylveon turned back toward Typhlosion, its gaze suddenly sharp. "Bui! (▼皿▼#)"
Typhlosion flinched, its flames visibly flickering.
Han Hun's face darkened. "Flamethrower!" A fiery explosion engulfed the battlefield. Could Sylveon have been one-shot?!
"Bui!" As the flames closed in, Sylveon split into two—its Substitute clones darting toward Typhlosion.
Han Hun's lips curled into a cruel smirk. A wide-range Flamethrower like this? There's no way it could get close!
With a flick of his fingers, Typhlosion's flames flared even higher. "Holy sh*t?!" The audience stared in disbelief. "N-No way!!"
Han Hun narrowed his eyes. A faint blue glow surrounded Sylveon—Light Screen, effortlessly blocking the raging heatwave. It charged straight through, unscathed! "He read Han Hun's follow-up move," Tang Hui murmured.
Han Hun clenched his teeth. "Giga Impact!" The audience gasped. A long-range fighter like Typhlosion… hiding a devastating close-combat move?!
The moment of collision—BOOM!! The entire audience looked up. A massive shadow flickered across their view—Typhlosion had been sent flying! It crashed violently into the ground, unconscious.
"Holy sh*t!" "How is Typhlosion the one that got blown away?!"
Han Hun stood frozen, dumbfounded. There was no way these two were in the same weight class! Even if Sylveon had Pixilate, it shouldn't have been this powerful!
Sylveon landed gracefully, looking down at its fallen opponent with disdain. That's it? It almost seemed… disappointed. Han Hun's face turned sour. "…Go, Hariyama!" You like close combat? Fine! "Hariyama, Belly Drum!"
A hulking Hariyama slammed its belly with full force, sacrificing half of its HP to maximize its Attack!
"Force Palm!" Han Hun roared. Like a battle drum, Hariyama lunged forward. But then—a snow-white blur streaked forward like lightning.
"You're asking for it! Force Palm again!"
Lu Ye remained unfazed. "Iron Tail. Aim for its ankle." A flash of light. Sylveon's feelers gleamed with the cold sheen of steel, striking Hariyama's thin, fragile ankle. CRACK! A sound like bones shattering echoed. Hariyama grunted, its balance completely thrown off. THUD!! Its head slammed into the ground.
Before it could recover, Sylveon leaped gracefully into the air, forming a pitch-black Shadow Ball. BOOM!! The attack detonated, and Hariyama lay unconscious.
The crowd erupted. "First brute force… now precision?!" "Teacher Lu is INSANELY sharp!!" "3-0! 3-0!"
Han Hun's forehead was drenched in sweat. Why… why does he always predict my moves?! He gritted his teeth and threw out his final Poké Ball. "Go, Gyarados!!"
His ultimate trump card. A towering 7-meter-long Gyarados rose like a skyscraper, unleashing its Intimidate ability. Lu Ye glanced at Sylveon. "Want to switch out?"
Sylveon shook its head. Staring up at the enormous Gyarados, it bared its teeth. "Bui!! (▼皿▼#)" Why are you screaming so loud?! Under Sylveon's Baby-Doll Eyes, Gyarados visibly flinched. Humiliated, its fangs sharpened with a chilling layer of ice. Ice Fang!
"Dodge it and use Yawn," Lu Ye instructed. Han Hun's heart sank. Crap!
With its huge size, Gyarados's attack missed. Sylveon squinted its eyes and let out a cute yawn. Gyarados' body stiffened.
Despair welled up, but Han Hun still roared: "Gyarados, use Aqua Tail!!" At the very least, he had to take down that Sylveon!
Gyarados roared, its tail surging with water as it slammed down. Boom!! The audience's eyes widened. Sylveon crossed its feelers to block the attack, getting knocked back several meters. "Bui! (艹皿艹)"
Swoosh! A layer of glistening water coated Sylveon's feelers, turning them into razor-sharp water blades. Mimic! With a flicker, Sylveon leaped, and the water blades slashed down, carving two deep gashes across Gyarados's belly!
A collective gasp echoed. This Sylveon… is this thing always this violent?! Gyarados fell into a deep sleep, and a barrage of Shadow Balls finished it off.
"Winner: Lu Ye!" The referee blew the whistle. The stadium erupted in cheers. The blinding "3:0" on the scoreboard made Han Hun want to dig a hole and disappear. This was… peak social death.
In the VIP seats, Tang Hui sighed in relief and patted Lt. Surge's shoulder with a grin. "Let's go get a drink later!"
Lt. Surge replied, "You guys go ahead, my stomach hurts."
Amid the deafening cheers, Lu Ye lifted Sylveon into his arms. "You're not hurt, are you?"
"Bui, Bui! (｀皿´)ﾉ"
"Oh, right… I'll check you over again when we get home."
"Bui!（○｀ 3′○）" Sylveon pouted and quietly wrapped its feeler around Lu Ye's arm.
The semifinals concluded. Lu Ye had stormed through to the finals. In Group B, Yang Zhichang advanced effortlessly with his Tyranitar. Then, for once, the system actually responded.
[Ding! Mission detected: 'Regional League Champion']
[Mission Goal: Win the tournament finals and claim the championship.]
[Mission Reward: Skill Upgrade Ticket, Random Orange-tier Item ×1]
"...The hell? We're already in the finals, and you're just now giving me a mission?" Lu Ye's mouth twitched. "So if I lose, I get nothing?" That said, a Skill Upgrade Ticket was still a huge deal. At the very least, his long-stuck [Cooking Lv4] could finally reach the realm of 'God of Cooking.'
Back home, Lu Ye tried to grab Sylveon. "Are you hurt or not? Let me check!"
"Bui! (〃＞皿＜)" Sylveon yelped and bolted around the house.
Wartortle poured Gengar a cup of hot tea. The ghost and the turtle sat on the couch, blowing on their tea, radiating an air of peace.
"Awoo~" (I wanna play too~) Growlithe panted excitedly and leaped into the chase, only to get smacked away by Sylveon's Iron Tail.
"Awoo (O_o)??" Growlithe flopped onto the floor, utterly confused.
Amid the lively atmosphere, Crack~. Another crack appeared on the surface of the Pokémon egg.
"Kukuku?" Gengar glanced over, blinking. A new family member was about to be born. How delightful~
[Inorin Note:
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