"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"
The blazing flames surged forward. Ursaring barely managed to keep standing, then followed its trainer's command and used Slash to strike back.
Its Guts ability had already activated, but it still wasn't enough to close the gap between the two sides.
Under the fiery assault, Ursaring eventually couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed, unwilling but defeated.
Compared to Shiro's miserable loss in the first match, Maejima's performance was much better. Maybe someone from the Silph Company would even contact him.
Returning to the training room, Gu Yuan continued watching the others' matches.
After yesterday's elimination round, there were only twenty-five matches happening at the same time today, which made it easier for Gu Yuan to focus on the Senior-level contestants.
And today's opponents were quite strong.
Aside from a few lucky junior-level contestants, most had at least intermediate-level strength and their own unique styles.
The Senior-level contestants were unlikely to be defeated, but some might still reveal their trump cards. After all, not everyone had a Pokémon as powerful as Gu Yuan's Charizard.
Gathering as much information as possible could help Gu Yuan keep Charizard's true strength hidden for a little longer.
He stayed in the waiting room until lunch break.
Although Silph Company provided food for both trainers and Pokémon, Gu Yuan preferred to eat alone.
In the afternoon, after returning to the waiting room, he kept watching other contestants' battles until it was finally his turn.
Like Maejima that morning, Gu Yuan's next opponent, Otsuka, was an intermediate-level trainer whose Pokémon was a Pidgeot.
"Pidgeot, use Tailwind and follow with Quick Attack!"
The battle began. Otsuka took the initiative to strike first.
Tailwind boosted Pidgeot's speed, and the bird became a streak of white light rushing forward.
"Charizard, use Heat Wave, then follow with Flame Charge!"
Even though Pidgeot had great control over its moves, the difference in strength was undeniable.
Once Pidgeot got close enough, Gu Yuan gave his command.
The oncoming Heat Wave shattered Pidgeot's momentum instantly.
Then, Charizard, wreathed in flames, lunged forward and slammed into Pidgeot, grabbing its wings tightly.
"Break free, Pidgeot!"
Otsuka's shout came, and Pidgeot struggled fiercely, but what met it next was a point-blank Flamethrower.
The flames engulfed it completely.
Charizard spread its wings and unleashed two sharp Air Slashes, each one striking a wing.
"Caw!"
Pidgeot cried out in pain, only for Charizard's assault to continue.
First, another Heat Wave knocked it out of the sky. Then a final Flamethrower ended the battle.
If Otsuka had started with a probing attack, the match might have lasted longer.
Unfortunately, he underestimated the difference in strength and lost in no time.
After recalling his Pokémon, Gu Yuan's battles for the day were over.
He stayed to watch the remaining matches, then returned to his rented training room.
Charizard's training focus remained the same: continue mastering Fire Blast.
But the important one today was Mankey. It was time for it to break through to the Junior Rank.
On the interface, Gu Yuan completed the final step, and Mankey's strength advanced from Rookie Rank to Junior Rank.
A surge of energy rushed through Mankey's body.
Luckily, it had followed Gu Yuan's instructions and was mentally prepared, quickly closing its eyes to stabilize the power inside.
After a while, Mankey opened its eyes sharply.
It clenched its fists, feeling its body overflowing with strength.
"Congratulations, Mankey. Now all you need to do is master your new strength."
"When we leave Saffron City, I'll find plenty of wild Pokémon for you to spar with, so don't tell me you're tired then."
Gu Yuan patted Mankey's head with a smile.
This kind of motivation worked perfectly on the battle-loving Mankey.
Nodding obediently, it followed the training plan Gu Yuan had laid out.
It strapped on the weights Gu Yuan had prepared and began practicing various fighting techniques.
For Fighting-type Pokémon, their strongest weapon was their powerful body. That was the foundation of their strength.
The next day, the elimination rounds continued.
As the tournament went on, Gu Yuan's opponents grew stronger, but they were all still at the intermediate level.
With his series of wins, Gu Yuan began to attract attention.
However, because he deliberately hid his full strength and his opponents had only been intermediate level, not many believed he would do well. Most thought he would lose once he faced a Senior-level opponent.
Gu Yuan was happy to see those comments. It meant his plan was working.
Soon, by the fourth day, only two hundred contestants remained.
When advancing to the top one hundred, Gu Yuan finally met an opponent with Senior-level strength.
His opponent, Quinn, looked rather relaxed upon seeing who he was up against.
From his observations, Gu Yuan's strength was indeed as weak as the online rumors suggested.
He wasn't top-tier himself, but still among the stronger group.
He just needed to watch out for Charizard's Blaze ability once it activated.
With his plan in mind, Quinn finalized his tactics.
Just then, the referee finished announcing the rules.
"Go, Ampharos!"
Like Charizard, Ampharos had "dragon" in its name in Chinese, but it wasn't a Dragon-type Pokémon. It was a pure Electric-type.
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"
The battle began, and Gu Yuan took the initiative.
At the same time, his system analyzed Ampharos's data.
Its ability wasn't the usual Static, but Plus.
Plus: if a Pokémon on the same team has the Plus or Minus ability, their Special Attack increases by 1.5 times.
Quinn probably had another Electric-type Pokémon that paired well with Ampharos, but in a one-on-one battle, that ability was useless.
"Ampharos, counter with Thunderbolt!"
As Charizard attacked, Quinn responded by testing Gu Yuan's strength first. After all, there was a chance Charizard was holding back.
Flames and lightning collided, evenly matched.
Seeing Quinn preparing to continue testing, Gu Yuan decided to end the battle quickly.