"Everyone, take a good look at these materials. I stayed up very late last night researching all of this."
"Coach Liu, 666!" Oliver was the first to chime in.
"Coach Liu, 666!"
"Coach Liu, 666!"
True to form, once the first person started, the rest instantly followed like a chorus of copy-paste.
Jokes aside, Oliver took the competition very seriously. He opened the document Coach Liu had shared in the team chat and carefully reviewed it from beginning to end.
Overall, there were only three teams truly worth paying close attention to:
Rongcheng No. 2 High
Miancheng No. 1 High
Feicheng High School
Each of these schools had contestants who had successfully trained high-level Pokémon.
There had originally been another contender—Pengcheng High School—but their captain, Tian Yu, had provoked Oliver during the elimination round. His Pidgeot was instantly defeated, leaving him without the ability to continue competing for advancement tokens.
Among the three major threats:
Rongcheng No. 2 High
Captain: Meng Ming
Signature Pokémon: Blaziken (High-level)
Miancheng No. 1 High
Captain: Gao Zhen
Signature Pokémon: Greninja (High-level)
Feicheng High School
Captain: Qian Jin
Signature Pokémon: Arcanine (High-level)
As for the remaining twelve teams, none had openly demonstrated the strength of high-level Pokémon—though it was still possible some were deliberately hiding their true power.
The tournament organizers were thoughtful as well. Rongcheng No. 1 High, Rongcheng No. 2 High, Miancheng No. 1 High, and Feicheng High School were placed into separate groups, ensuring that the strongest teams would not face each other prematurely.
According to the latest draw, Rongcheng No. 1 High's group-stage opponents were not particularly strong. As a result, the team decided to have Oliver take the field last.
Otherwise, if Oliver went first, the match would probably end instantly—and the others would barely get any sense of participation.
Match Day Arrives
The next day, competition day arrived.
Mu Xue still had not returned.
Oliver arrived at Rongcheng Stadium together with Jiang Shuyun and the other teammates. Compared to the opening ceremony, the atmosphere was even more intense, and the crowd was noticeably larger.
In the eyes of many spectators, the group stage was the true beginning of the Inter-School Tournament.
The players' backstage area was much more spacious now, divided into sixteen separate lounges, one for each qualifying team.
The five members of Rongcheng No. 1 High entered their assigned lounge, where Coach Liu was already waiting.
"You already know today's opponent—Wancheng No. 1 High," Coach Liu said. "Just follow the strategy we discussed yesterday."
Wancheng No. 1 High's captain possessed a mid–high-level Wobbuffet, extremely dangerous due to its mastery of Counter and Mirror Coat.
His teammates were no pushovers either, each with Pokémon at mid-level strength.
Soon enough, the broadcast echoed through the stadium:
"Please welcome the competitors from Rongcheng No. 1 High and Wancheng No. 1 High to the arena!"
The five exchanged glances, nodded, and walked toward the passage leading onto the battlefield.
A Name That Shakes the Arena
As both teams stepped onto the field, the host began introducing them.
"The contestants from Wancheng No. 1 High are: Captain XX, team member XXX, team member XXX…"
"And Rongcheng No. 1 High—this year's championship favorite. Their contestants are: Captain Oliver—wait, this name sounds very familiar!"
The host froze mid-sentence.
"Could it be… the Oliver I'm thinking of?"
The atmosphere instantly exploded.
Spectators, commentators, and even the opposing team all turned their attention toward Oliver.
The day before, rumors had circulated online claiming that the mysterious powerhouse in Rongcheng No. 1 High was the genius researcher Oliver.
But the discussion had been drowned out—too little evidence, too short a time span, and frankly, no one truly believed it.
Now, faced with reality, Oliver calmly removed his sunglasses and smiled toward the crowd.
"My god! It really is Oliver, the prodigy researcher!" the host practically shouted.
"This is unbelievable! A researcher who has already achieved extraordinary results in the academic world is actually participating in a Pokémon battle tournament!"
The Wancheng No. 1 High team whispered among themselves.
"Captain… that's Oliver!"
"He's my idol!" one starry-eyed teammate murmured.
Even their captain felt immense pressure. This was not the same as facing a merely strong opponent.
Losing to a powerful trainer was one thing.
Facing someone who had made outstanding contributions to humanity itself was something else entirely.
"It's fine," the captain said, wiping sweat from his brow. "We just need to fight with everything we have. No regrets."
"Yes—let's show our best side!"
Shockwaves Across the Arena
Inside the other teams' lounges, every squad stared at the live broadcast playing on the walls.
The screens were synchronized with the main cameras, allowing contestants to study future opponents and adjust their strategies.
"That masked guy… was Oliver?"
"Am I dreaming?"
"Slap me."
"Ow—yeah, not a dream."
"So we might actually have to fight Oliver later? I'm suddenly really nervous."
Of course, admiration was not universal.
"A researcher should just do research," one contestant scoffed. "Why come compete in Pokémon battles?"
A teammate immediately shot back, "And did you forget his Garchomp?"
That single sentence left the critic completely speechless.
Right—he wasn't just a genius researcher. He could also dominate the battlefield.
"So it really is you… Oliver."
Meng Ming stared intensely at the screen.
"Just wait. My Blaziken isn't the same as it was two days ago. I'll make you see our true strength."
After a moment, the host finally regained his composure and continued introducing the remaining members of Rongcheng No. 1 High.
The camera eventually moved away from Oliver, but the shock lingered.
Within just ten minutes, "Oliver" was trending once again.
Then, with the host's loud declaration—
"The match begins!"
Both teams simultaneously sent a contestant forward onto the battlefield.
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