"Larvitar was hit by Sand Attack. Its accuracy has dropped."
"Larvitar used Bite, but it still couldn't land a hit on Eevee."
"What is that Eevee even saying? It landed a clean Swift, Larvitar snapped, then tried Payback, but Eevee dodged again!"
"And now Charm. Eevee used Charm. Look at that expression. It is so hard to imagine this is the same Eevee that threw sand in Larvitar's face and made it furious a moment ago."
"Eevee is talking again! Larvitar's completely heated up. Its energy level is rising rapidly. Oh, it even learned a new move!"
"Too bad it still couldn't land a hit on Lin Feng's Eevee. And Eevee finished with Return. The power was enormous. Larvitar is down. You can really tell the bond between Eevee and its trainer is very strong."
With Lee Bing's commentary echoing across the arena, the audience's view of Eevee began to shift.
So much for the cute and innocent Eevee image…
Of course.
This trainer was unquestionably strong, but the Pokémon he raised were… not normal.
Not one of them.
And this Eevee…
It actually made Larvitar so angry it overheated itself.
…
After bowing to Luna, the opposing trainer, Lin Feng carried AJ, who had only lost a few strands of fur, back to the participants' bench. He gently pinched AJ's ear.
"How do you feel?"
"Bui bui."
(That was fun. The opponent was so clueless.)
AJ was still replaying the battle in his mind, tail wagging, grin wide.
Lin Feng couldn't help laughing.
"And you still insist you never think about causing trouble?"
Today he finally understood how this little runaway fox who once led two friends on an adventure truly behaved.
AJ said nothing.
He hopped out of Lin Feng's arms and ran off to find his teammates.
Next came the audience challenge segment.
Throughout the earlier rounds, many eligible trainers in the stands had been itching to jump in, thinking, "I could do this."
They lined up to challenge the top four.
Interestingly, the other three semifinalists all received at least a few challenges.
Only Lin Feng…
Not a single person dared to challenge him.
Probably because they were terrified he would pull off something bizarre again.
Match after match, the audience learned one thing clearly.
Under the set rules, the trainers who made it to the stage were already the strongest young trainers in Changsha City.
Lin Feng enjoyed the break.
He watched the crowd groan and wail dramatically after losses.
But eventually, his attention drifted to the small figure floating near the front.
Jirachi.
It had already been present for two and a half days.
And the question of whether it could truly awaken still wasn't solved.
Since Jirachi's existence depended on energy, Lin Feng had thought of one Pokémon the moment he fed it a Rare Candy.
Victini.
The one with infinite energy.
But where would he find it?
The only Victini he remembered was far away, sealed behind a barrier.
And while Victini was said to possess limitless power, Lin Feng believed this ability was also bound by rules, just like Jirachi's wish power.
In the film "Victini and the Black and White Hero," the king had built stone pillars to seal Victini in place and stabilize the ley lines, channeling its energy.
So Lin Feng wasn't sure which of these divine-like rules was stronger.
Jirachi's wish?
Or Victini's infinite energy?
Unless someone tested it, no one could say.
And if the true creator deity were summoned, Jirachi would wake with a thought.
But…
Calling Arceus down to help?
The idea alone made Lin Feng laugh.
Victini was far more realistic.
So then, how would he bring it here?
Lin Feng quickly found the answer.
A wish.
If Jirachi could summon Rayquaza, then summoning Victini should be just as possible.
The Victini from the movies loved nothing more than tiny round cakes.
If they wanted its help, they would need to prepare plenty of them.
With that thought, Lin Feng lifted his gaze to Jirachi.
"Jirachi?"
"Jira?"
Jirachi looked up, startled out of watching the tournament.
(What is it?)
"It's like this. On the night of the fifth day, I want to ask you to make a wish for me."
"Sure. Sure. What kind of wish?"
Jirachi's eyes brightened.
"We'll talk about it on the fifth night."
Lin Feng shook his head.
There were simply too many uncertain variables.
He couldn't guarantee Victini would arrive, or that it would agree to help, or that providing energy would truly allow Jirachi to live normally.
A ringing bell snapped Lin Feng out of his thoughts.
He looked up.
The audience challenge segment had ended.
It was time for the semifinals.
Only four contestants remained.
Their signature Pokémon were all around level 37.
Shroomish's evolution Breloom, Swellow, and Electivire.
That level range was awkward for Lin Feng.
Too strong for Eevee to spar with.
Too weak to properly train Blaziken or Snowtail.
So Lin Feng sent out Blaziken and knocked them down one by one.
Semifinal match: Swellow versus Blaziken.
Winner, Blaziken.
Electivire versus Breloom.
Winner, Breloom.
Then came the final match.
Just as the audience had hoped, the Fire-type Blaziken faced Breloom.
Against Blaziken, Breloom's Poison Powder and Leech Seed were useless.
A single Flamethrower cleared almost all the powder.
Breloom tried to fight up close with Fighting-type moves, but Blaziken's sheer raw strength and its Fire Punch and Fire Kick overwhelmed it.
It lasted only a few exchanges.
Blaziken easily claimed the championship.
The audience was thrilled.
A raw, power-based battle.
Exactly the kind of fight that felt satisfying.
"Yes, that's how you deal with Breloom. Make it pay for always using those nasty status moves."
"To be fair, if Breloom had used Seed Machine Gun or gone in earlier against that Swampert before, I might not have found it so annoying."
Finally came the post-match interviews.
These were unavoidable.
And the first one chosen, naturally, was the champion.
Every eye in the arena focused on Lin Feng.