"The first tier is meant to deal with challengers who have no badges, or just one or two."
"The second tier is for challengers with three or four badges."
"The third tier is for challengers with five or six badges."
"The fourth tier is for those with seven or eight badges."
"And the fifth tier is for veteran trainers who already have all eight."
Elder Chang'an spoke slowly and clearly. As for the sixth tier, he deliberately kept silent.
From the first to the fifth tiers, each row contained six Poké Balls—two standard red-and-white balls at the front, two Great Balls in the middle, and two Ultra Balls at the back.
But the sixth tier… there were more than a dozen Poké Balls lined up there, every single one an Ultra Ball. Among them were even a few rare Luxury Balls gleaming faintly.
There was no doubt—the sixth tier housed Elder Chang'an's true main force.
At the moment, Elder Chang'an withdrew one Great Ball from the fourth tier. In other words, he acknowledged that Yozora's strength was at least equivalent to a challenger with seven or eight badges.
"Come out, Tangela." After Persian, Elder Chang'an's second choice was Tangela.
It was a small Pokémon, its entire body wrapped in writhing blue vines, with only a pair of stubby feet that looked like it wore red shoes sticking out from underneath.
Though Tangela's body was small, its power was anything but. With a base stat total of 435, boasting both high offense and high defense, it was comparable in strength to a middle-stage starter evolution.
[Pokémon]: Tangela
[Type]: Grass
[Rank]: Commander-tier, Initial stage
[Potential]: Lord-tier…
Tangela was a purely Grass-type Pokémon. Once evolved, it became the mighty Tangrowth, even more formidable.
But Tangrowth was exceedingly rare. Though humans had confirmed cases of capturing it, and research had proven Tangrowth to indeed be Tangela's evolution…
The method of Tangela's evolution remained an unsolved mystery.
Some had tried exposing Tangela to Leaf Stones, Sun Stones, even Moon Stones, yet Tangela remained unmoved every time.
Gazing at the Tangela across the field, a thought stirred in Yozora's heart. If he wanted to raise his rank as a researcher, couldn't he begin here?
If he uncovered the secret behind Tangela's evolution and revealed it to the world, wouldn't that count as a groundbreaking contribution?
"Young man, our Chang'an Gym doesn't specialize in a single type." Seeing Yozora staring at Tangela, Elder Chang'an smiled and explained slowly.
Yozora blinked, then quickly realized the elder had misunderstood. He wasn't staring because of type matchups—he was thinking about research.
That said, it was true: the Chang'an Gym had no fixed specialty. Yozora had already learned this before challenging it.
Elder Chang'an's first Pokémon had been Persian, a Normal type. His second was Tangela, a Grass type. The third and fourth would no doubt be of other types as well.
Each Gym had its own style, and there was nothing wrong with that.
But generally speaking, Gyms that focused on a single type were easier to approach. If you brought along the right counter type, the battle became much simpler.
For example—Electric-types against Cerulean Gym's Water-types, or Water-types against Pewter Gym's Rock-types.
For trainers, mastering type advantages and disadvantages was always the most fundamental skill.
If you couldn't even grasp that, then you had no business aspiring to more.
"Yes, I understand." Yozora nodded.
"Good…"
At that moment, Elder Chang'an's aura surged, and the match resumed. "Seize the initiative! Tangela, use Energy Ball!"
Following the command, Tangela extended several vines and rubbed them together in midair.
In just a moment, it produced a glowing green sphere the size of an apple.
Though small, it pulsed with fierce Grass-type energy—an Energy Ball.
Whoosh! The orb shot forward like a cannon shell, straight at Graveler.
"Harden!" Yozora ordered swiftly. Graveler's body gleamed golden as its defense spiked sharply.
Boom! Dust exploded into the air as Graveler tanked the hit head-on. When the smoke cleared, Graveler stood grinning wickedly, completely unscathed.
"What?"
Elder Chang'an's eyes snapped wide open in shock.
He could accept that Persian's Water Pulse hadn't been effective.
But this Tangela was Commander-tier, a full stage above Graveler. On top of that, Grass was four times effective against Rock and Ground. By all logic, Graveler should have been crushed.
Yet… nothing?
What Elder Chang'an didn't know was that Yozora's Graveler was special—it possessed the Sap Sipper ability. Grass-type attacks didn't harm it; at most, they'd do half damage.
The difference between expectation and reality here was a full eightfold gap.
In truth, Graveler had only taken a scratch. With its overwhelming stamina, that tiny amount of damage felt like nothing more than an itch.
"Graveler, use Take Down!" Yozora gave his counter-command.
Rumble!
Graveler rolled forward, gaining speed in an instant, then slammed its body viciously into Tangela.
The small vine Pokémon was sent flying, knocked out in a single blow.
Tangela let out a faint groan, then collapsed with white foam at its mouth, completely unconscious.
"Tangela is unable to battle! Graveler wins!" the referee declared. Yozora had now won two battles in a row.
Elder Chang'an calmly recalled Tangela, returning the ball to its place. He gave Graveler a careful look, then chuckled. "Impressive. Your Graveler is even stronger than I expected. Not just talent—it's clear your training has been excellent."
Yozora's Graveler was smaller than others of its kind, yet its strength far surpassed them.
Elder Chang'an's experienced eyes could see it immediately—this Graveler's body was honed through relentless, rigorous training. Its defense and power both stood far above the average.
"Well then…"
This time, Elder Chang'an reached into the fourth tier again, but instead of a Great Ball, he pulled out an Ultra Ball.
A standard Poké Ball cost about a hundred. A Great Ball, a thousand. An Ultra Ball—thirty thousand.
The price reflected quality.
If Elder Chang'an kept a Pokémon inside an Ultra Ball, it was one he valued highly.
"I'll leave it to you. Go, Dugtrio!" Elder Chang'an sent out his third Pokémon.
Dugtrio—the evolved form of Diglett.
At first glance, it looked like a single Diglett had simply split into three.
But that wasn't quite true. It was still one being—just with three heads.
Its digging ability was unparalleled. In an instant, it could carve out a hole and vanish underground, merging seamlessly with the earth itself.
A flash of white light—
As the glow subsided, a Dugtrio emerged onto the battlefield, its three heads glaring sharply at Graveler.
(End of Chapter)