"Go, Alakazam! Teleport, Psychic Triple Play!"
The moment Frenzy Plant ended, Gu Yuan had Alakazam initiate a charge. Just as he suspected, Venusaur hadn't raised its mastery of Frenzy Plant to the Expert level, which meant the move's side effects still took hold.
Under the influence of Teleport, the distance they had previously retreated was quickly crossed. Three waves of Psychic blasted out. Augmented by Nasty Plot, intense pain rapidly coursed through Venusaur's entire body. Alakazam focused its attacks specifically on Venusaur's head, leaving the Pokémon dazed and dizzy.
"Future Sight, Psychic Triple Play!"
Following Gu Yuan's command, Alakazam went into full offensive mode. As long as Venusaur was defeated, Bella—who had no other Ace Rank Pokémon—would have no chance of victory.
Watching Venusaur being battered by Alakazam without even being able to strike back, Bella suddenly had an epiphany. Gu Yuan must have studied her personality before the match began. His earlier actions were likely intended to provoke her, and she had indeed fallen into his trap.
By having her Pokémon use powerful moves right from the start, she had exposed numerous openings, giving Gu Yuan an easier path to victory. Unfortunately, she realized this too late; the chance for a comeback was gone.
Bella looked toward the calm Gu Yuan on the opposite side. She didn't understand how someone who had only been traveling for a year could be so outstanding. Is this what a true genius looks like?
Meanwhile, the battle concluded. With a trainer distracted by her own inner monologue, Venusaur was left helpless. When Bella sent out her final Elite Rank Pokémon, she had calmed down, but the power gap allowed Alakazam to win easily.
"You are very strong. In terms of strength, wit, and tactics, I am far inferior to you."
"But I won't give up. I will definitely keep chasing your back as I move forward!"
Recalling her Pokémon, Bella spoke firmly to Gu Yuan before turning and leaving without looking back.
"Alakazam, did you just use Hypnosis on her?"
No, I didn't. Maybe it was Gengar?
"Achoo!"
In the shadows, Gengar—who was sleeping soundly—couldn't help but sneeze.
As soon as he left the battlefield, Gu Yuan was surrounded by the trainers responsible for maintenance.
"Listen, Gu Yuan, if you have suggestions for the arena, you can tell me directly. There's no need to destroy it," the maintenance leader said to Gu Yuan with extreme sincerity.
"I really don't have any complaints. Besides, my opponents did that; it really has nothing to do with me."
Just as Gu Yuan finished speaking, the leader held a tablet in front of his eyes. The screen showed photos of the wreckage left behind by Ditto and Alakazam.
"Gu Yuan, your opponents have already been eliminated. Even if they wanted to, they don't have the chance anymore. So, what do you say?"
"Fine! I understand. I'll definitely be more careful next time."
"That's better. Here's my business card. If you ever need to build anything in the future, look me up. I can give you a ten percent discount."
"Get some rest; we're leaving now."
Having settled the matter, the leader led his crew away to assign today's tasks.
Back at the hotel, Gu Yuan rested briefly before heading to the hotel's attached training room. The most active ones were Charizard and Annihilape, who hadn't battled yet. They could only vent their abundant energy through training.
Currently, Charizard had reached the limit of the Ace Rank and was preparing to push toward the Leader Rank. Gu Yuan's task for it was to attempt a breakthrough before facing other Leader Rank opponents. Although Kanto provided plenty of foundational support, the lack of Leader Rank combat power remained a flaw. If Gu Yuan wanted to perform well, Charizard had to possess the power of a Leader Rank.
After setting their training tasks, Gu Yuan closed his eyes to cultivate his psychic powers, attempting to break through to a Middle-tier Psychic. Time always passed exceptionally fast during cultivation. Before he knew it, the fourth round of battles began.
As before, Gu Yuan was the first to appear. In the stands, Taishi Utsunomiya watched Gu Yuan with an increasingly cold gaze. He already harbored hostility toward geniuses from the Elite Four's faction. Now that Gu Yuan had stolen the limelight that should have belonged to him, his intent to kill began to brew.
Not only Taishi Utsunomiya, but other trainers belonging to families or corporations felt the same. However, knowing they were no match for Gu Yuan, they could only endure.
Unaware that he had attracted so much enmity, Gu Yuan released his Pokémon following the referee's signal. This time, his opponent was a Flying-type specialist, and Gu Yuan chose Alakazam again.
"This is great. The opponent is a Flying-type trainer. If Gu Yuan still manages to destroy the arena, I'll eat shit while doing a handstand," the maintenance leader said confidently in the stands.
The next moment, Alakazam clashed with Pidgeot. Under the pressure of Psychic, Pidgeot was forced downward. Storms gathered as Pidgeot unleashed Hurricane, carving cracks into the battlefield.
Seeing this, the maintenance leader breathed a sigh of relief. "Just a few cracks, no big deal."
As the Hurricane swept in, Alakazam followed Gu Yuan's command and used Teleport to land on the battlefield, perfectly evading the storm.
"Pidgeot, Brave Bird!"
Enveloped in Flying-type energy, Pidgeot dove like a giant bird. Psychic energy condensed as Alakazam seemed ready to clash head-on, only to vanish at the last moment.
Boom!
A deafening sound echoed. Seeing Gu Yuan use Nasty Plot again to grow stronger, his opponent could only order Pidgeot to attack once more. However, the moment Pidgeot took flight, three waves of Psychic slammed into its body, blasting it down.
Immediately after, Future Sight activated, swallowing Pidgeot once more. Adjusting its power, Alakazam unleashed another Psychic Triple Play, completely defeating Pidgeot.
When the smoke cleared, Pidgeot was unconscious. Beneath it was a giant crater created by the successive impacts, with numerous cracks spreading from the edges.
Quickly recalling Pidgeot, Gu Yuan's opponent sent out his second Pokémon, a Dark and Flying-type Honchkrow.
"Leader, what 'flavor' would you like? The boys will go prepare it for you," a maintenance trainer asked helpfully in the stands.
"Uh, this kind of damage shouldn't be considered too serious, right?"
Wiping cold sweat from his forehead, just as the leader was about to defend himself, he saw Honchkrow being blasted down onto the battlefield. A look of despair appeared in the leader's eyes.