With its attacks restricted, Nidoking was driven back again and again by Pelipper.
Before long—it was covered in wounds.
And yet Guo Yi only watched from the side, gaze cold and steady.
Nidoking looked miserable, but Guo Yi could feel it clearly: Nidoking's proficiency was climbing, little by little.
After all, Nidoking could've ended this in one blow—but under the restrictions, it was getting pressed into the dirt.
That frustration was boiling inside it.
And that heat was forcing it to get faster.
Just like that—seven or eight minutes later,
Pelipper dove in again, and those familiar rock blades appeared once more, slashing straight for Pelipper's face.
"Peli—!"
Pelipper clearly hadn't expected Nidoking's timing to jump so much.
There were only a handful of blades—yet she still didn't have time to dodge.
Rip!
Sharp edges bit into feather and flesh. Several thin wounds opened across Pelipper's body.
"Oh?" Guo Yi's brows lifted.
"I didn't expect Nidoking to get clever. If it can't gather the energy in time, it cuts the count."
"Not bad. We can consider that progress."
With less energy required, the release speed naturally shot up.
Of course—with an attack that sparse, if Pelipper stayed alert, she could dodge it easily.
Unfortunately for her… after bullying Nidoking for so long, Pelipper had started to forget something important: Nidoking was her equal in level. Complacency had crept in.
Bzzzt—
"Teacher Guo, reconnaissance complete."
"There's no issues."
At the same time, Guo Yi's radio crackled with Squad 997's report.
"Copy that."
"Prepare to withdraw."
Guo Yi raised the radio and gave the retreat order.
Then his eyes returned to Pelipper hovering in midair.
"Alright, training's over."
At that, the injured Pelipper looked ready to teach Nidoking a real lesson.
The next second, her massive beak slowly opened.
The raindrops falling from the sky seemed to find a target, funneling into her mouth in a tight stream.
HYDRO PUMP
Pelipper's strongest Water-type finisher—boosted by the rain—carried terrifying power.
Seeing it, Nidoking immediately prepared to dodge again.
But Guo Yi's command cut in.
"End it."
"Nidoking—[THUNDER]."
Rain didn't only help Pelipper.
"Nido!"
Nidoking's eyes turned icy.
New grudges, old grudges—settle them all at once.
In the distance, the returning squads only saw a sudden flash of lightning—
BOOOOM!
A deafening peal of thunder tore through the sky.
In an instant, that blinding light lit up the entire rainy night.
...
"That lightning is terrifying!"
"With that power… it's probably already at pseudo-Elite Four standards."
"That direction—doesn't that look like where Teacher Guo is?"
"Did Teacher Guo get attacked?"
"No way. Teacher Guo still has that terrifying Beedrill."
"Who could possibly be his opponent?"
"Whatever it is, let's hurry back!"
At once, all three teams picked up their pace.
...
"Peli..."
In front of Nidoking, Pelipper was no longer arrogant and wild like before.
Her snow-white feathers had been scorched into sooty black.
That terrifying lightning strike—was Nidoking's Thunder.
With the restrictions lifted, Nidoking's release speed was far faster than Pelipper had imagined.
And with rain guaranteeing Thunder would hit—Pelipper, high in the air, had no chance to evade at all.
"Nido, nido!"
Watching Pelipper collapse, Nidoking felt the resentment in its chest drain away in one clean sweep.
And as Pelipper went down, the rain overhead eased noticeably.
"So the rain was partly your doing, huh?" Guo Yi chuckled.
Then he took an empty Poké Ball from his waist and flung it straight at Pelipper.
Pelipper's potential and strength were only Gym Leader Tier, but Drizzle boosted her value by a lot.
In rain teams, Pelipper held an important spot as weather support.
And in daily life, a Pelipper with Drizzle was in high demand too.
Film shoots that needed a torrential downpour, agricultural test bases running rainfall experiments, firefighting—you could find Pelipper involved in all of it.
A Drizzle Pelipper was worth more than ten ordinary ones.
Guo Yi didn't lack money, but he wasn't about to ignore profit sitting right in front of him.
Ding.
Without the slightest resistance, Pelipper was caught.
After that, Guo Yi took out a Pokéblock and handed it to Nidoking to replenish its stamina.
"Nido!"
Nidoking licked its lips greedily.
These Pokéblocks weren't as delicious as the custom one from earlier—but there were plenty of them, and they filled you up.
About fifteen minutes later, the three reconnaissance teams returned one after another.
The outward exploration had taken nearly an hour mainly because they didn't understand the Secret Realm yet and didn't dare move too quickly.
On the way back, it was different—the return speed more than doubled.
What greeted them was scorched tree trunks and blackened ground.
Nidoking's Thunder had been aimed at Pelipper, but in weather like this, the surrounding area still got caught in the aftereffects.
The squads began guessing which Pokémon had unleashed that terrifying Thunder.
Their eyes went first to the Beedrill beside Guo Yi, never leaving his side.
But they dismissed it almost immediately.
Beedrill couldn't learn Thunder.
Then their gaze shifted to Nidoking.
And it just so happened Nidoking's battle wounds were still visible—and they'd all seen footage of this Nidoking fighting before.
So the answer was obvious.
Gulp.
One of the team members swallowed and asked carefully, "Teacher Guo… this Nidoking is Gym Leader Tier, right?"
The others nodded hard.
"Definitely Gym Leader Tier."
After all, every one of them had Gym Leader Tier Pokémon. They knew that aura like they knew their own breath.
And that was exactly why their hearts were pounding.
A Gym Leader Tier Pokémon—and not even an Electric-type—had just fired off a Thunder that already touched Elite Four Tier.
That was insane.
"So this is the result of the Nidoking training plan Teacher Guo released a while back?"
"Sheer Force plus Life Orb… that power boost is terrifying."
One of the members couldn't help but sigh.
Ever since Guo Yi made public the secret behind Life Orb and Sheer Force, Life Orb's market price had surged.
Of course—what surged along with it were Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂ with the Hustle ability.
But because it was a Hidden Ability, Pokémon with it were extremely rare.
As a result—up to now, aside from Guo Yi and Su Qingxue, no one had successfully bred a Nidoking or Nidoqueen with Sheer Force and a Life Orb.
"Everyone's back," Guo Yi said.
"Then we move to the next Secret Realm."
With the teams assembled, he recalled Nidoking into its Poké Ball.
Then he led them onward to scout the next Secret Realm.
In just a single day, they identified seven or eight Secret Realms suitable for volunteers to enter.
So early the next morning, the Yunlong Dam notice board posted the coordinates of the approved Secret Realms.
"Finally! Time to show what I can do!"
"My Electivire's lightning has been starving for action!"
"My main is Venusaur—anyone want to team up?"
"I'm a medical nurse—any teams need support?"
In an instant, the notice board looked like a game dungeon about to open.
Some cracked their knuckles, eager to charge in.
Others were calling friends, trying to assemble the strongest lineup possible.
And among all of them, one person became the most sought-after.
That person was Hu Yan'er, Guo Yi's disciple.
Ever since Guo Yi appeared alongside Jin Peng and the other Elite Four, the spotlight on Hu Yan'er hadn't dimmed for a second.
Plenty of top students from major universities wanted to team up with her.
As for why?
In their eyes, as Teacher Guo's disciple, Hu Yan'er must have first-hand intel on the Secret Realm.
That would make their runs far easier.
And if danger struck—with Hu Yan'er there, surely Guo Yi wouldn't just stand by.
Add in Hu Yan'er's own strength, Pikachu's type advantage, and a dozen other factors… and the result was a swarm of teams pressing in around her, competing for her.
But—Hu Yan'er had already decided long ago to go solo on this Secret Realm run.
Her teacher had specifically given her a life-saving trump card so she could get the most effective training possible.
Under those conditions, teaming up with others was pointless.
"I'm sorry."
"Thank you for the kindness, but I plan to explore the Secret Realm on my own."
"So please—everyone, give me some space."
Hu Yan'er was usually easygoing with anyone. If someone asked her for something, she almost always agreed.
But on certain matters—especially anything involving her teacher—her stance was unshakably firm.
---
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This is a fan translation of 都市精灵:我的学生个个天资不凡 by 一年一次. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!