Hearthome City, preliminary round venue.
The first round of the Youth Breeder Competition preliminaries quickly passed, followed by the second round.
"The ingredients have been placed in front of you. Please use them to make a Pokemon food."
Everyone had the same ingredients, with no Berries, so this round tested their cooking skills.
"And you have to consider dietary restrictions,"
Li Wei silently added.
Since he didn't know what kind of Pokemon would be eating it, making the most common flavor was definitely the best approach.
Li Wei abandoned all green onions, ginger, and garlic, as most Pokemon don't like these flavors.
With so many people making Pokemon food here,
the quantity of such Pokemon must be vast.
Grass-type and Bug-type Pokemon were everywhere.
Because there was very little meat in the ingredients, Li Wei deduced that Grass-type Pokemon were more likely.
The meat might even be a red herring.
Li Wei quickly finished and raised his hand to signal.
The staff immediately labeled Li Wei's food and stored it in a warming box.
The scoring was a joint effort by Pokemon and judges.
Li Wei could not leave yet; he had to wait until the scoring was complete, and he would know on the spot if he advanced to the next round.
Seeing a large group of Oddish enter, Li Wei knew he was secure.
After combining the scores from the written test and the Pokemon food preparation, the contestants advancing to the next round would be announced on the spot.
The staff lady revealed a sweet smile,
"Contestant Li Wei, number 27, congratulations on successfully advancing to the preliminaries seven days from now. The competition will still be held in Hearthome City."
Li Wei received his preliminary round contestant card, which had the competition location and time.
"If your card is lost, please call or email us, and we will replace it for you."
"Thank you."
The lady suddenly pulled out a pen, "You're welcome. I'm your fan. Can you sign for me?"
"No problem."
Although Li Wei had many fans at the venue, there was no need for any underhanded tactics; reaching the top eight was easy.
As for the Champion? Li Wei didn't know yet.
He had to see who his competitors were.
Currently, it was only the preliminary round, so there was no need to study opponents.
The competition ended very early. After Li Wei signed for some fans, it was only 11:30 AM.
"Sorry, I have an appointment. I'll sign next time."
After dropping that line, Li Wei quickly slipped away.
"Come out, Lucario!"
Lucario had been in its Poke Ball all morning, which was quite difficult for it.
But Cynthia had invited Li Wei to watch the Master League competition in the afternoon, so he naturally wouldn't go back.
Anyway, the old man was currently staying at the Breeding Center, and with him in charge, nothing could go wrong.
In terms of making Energy Cubes, the old man couldn't compare to Li Wei.
But when it came to breeding, Li Wei couldn't even touch the old man; he was still far behind.
Especially after the old man joined and Li Wei saw his stats, Li Wei realized he was too young.
The old man was truly learning until old age!
Name: Lien
Age: 73
Skills: Cooking (Master Class), Breeding (Master Class), Berry Cultivation (Top Tier), Fishing (Advanced), Apprentice Training (Intermediate)...
The old man had a ton of skills,
but the most terrifying were his Master Class Cooking and Master Class Breeding, and he still had room for improvement!
The old man only had certifications for Alliance Top Tier Breeder and Master Class Chef,
but the reality was that he had been improving all these years, and his breeding had long since advanced to Master Class.
It was just that the old man was too lazy to get certified.
Anyway, he was retired and had been living in Celestic Town.
Top Tier and Master Class made no difference to him.
Li Wei was originally a bit proud,
after all, he had become a Senior Breeder at such a young age, and his promotion to Top Tier Breeder was just around the corner.
Qinglv and Cynthia also highly recognized him.
Li Wei even thought that surpassing the old man was only a matter of time, but now it seemed that his grandson still needed more practice.
The old man had long become a complete demon king; he just didn't say it.
Now Li Wei understood why Qinglv always called the old man "Mr. Lien."
It was definitely more than just respect for an elder.
Li Wei took a picture of his preliminary round contestant card,
edited a message, and sent it to his dad,
"I passed the preliminary round. I'm going to watch the Master League competition this afternoon, so I won't be coming back."
"Alright, son! Cynthia's competition? Go ahead, have fun for a few days, it's fine!"
Ever since the family opened the Breeding Center,
Li Wei rarely had personal time.
But this was because Li Wei himself enjoyed it.
Many breeding tasks are very tedious,
and it's hard to persevere without passion.
This was also why Leon and Wen Hui prioritized a love for Pokemon and breeding during recruitment.
Any knowledge can be learned slowly,
but passion is very difficult to cultivate.
Li Wei then found Cynthia's Line,
"Are you in Hearthome City now?"
Cynthia quickly replied, "No, I'm in Solaceon Town. I won't arrive until five o'clock."
Cynthia's competition didn't start until seven.
Arriving at five to watch the competition backstage, changing, and putting on makeup would be just about right for her to go on stage.
"Okay, I'll contact you then."
Li Wei had originally thought that if Cynthia arrived earlier, he could go enjoy a meal on her dime.
Unfortunately, it wasn't possible.
Li Wei went to the mall to find food.
Li Wei had originally hoped that by coming to Hearthome City, he might encounter some rare Pokemon, but there were none.
However, when passing through Oreburgh City,
Scan (Advanced) had briefly alerted Li Wei that a rare Pokemon had appeared in Oreburgh City.
But at that time, Li Wei had to rush to participate in the preliminary round, so he couldn't stay in Oreburgh City to look for Pokemon.
Li Wei decided that after watching Cynthia's competition today, he would take some time to go to Oreburgh City and investigate.
As for whether he could find it, Li Wei wasn't too concerned. For him, it was more about the joy of searching.
While Li Wei was eating lunch,
Lance called.
"The Shaymin matter has been resolved. We caught the buyer who hired the Pokemon Hunter, and there will be news reports soon.
It's a pity that the Pokemon Hunter escaped, but I injured her Salamence, so she should be quiet for a while."
With the buyer canceling the order, the Pokemon Hunter's desire to capture Shaymin would significantly decrease.
Li Wei recalled that Hunter J owned an invisible airship.
Other coded Pokemon Hunters might also have them, which made capture very difficult.
Li Wei quietly listened to Lance finish speaking,
"You've worked hard, Lance."
Lance laughed heartily, "You're welcome. This is the job of an investigator anyway."
To ensure Shaymin's safety, Li Wei did not bring Shaymin out this time, leaving it at home.
But this matter was only temporarily resolved.
The existence of Pokemon Hunters was always a hidden danger, and if he had the chance, Li Wei still wanted to round them all up.
"If you ever need anything, just ask, for example, when catching Pokemon Hunters."
Li Wei wasn't being nosy; he was being proactive.
The probability of him being targeted was not low.
Lance refused, "This is the job of investigators and international police. Talk to me when you're willing to become an investigator."
Just then, the restaurant's bell suddenly rang.