The fierce battles continued.
Walking through the corridors of the Mercedes Battle Center, cheers erupted from the various venues.
After all, this was a rare feast of battles, where top universities gathered to compete for the coveted opportunity to challenge Modu Gym!
"In Arena C's first round, the victor is Shen Tingzhi from Modu University!"
Shen Tingzhi, her face stern, retrieved her battered Granbull and let out a small sigh of relief.
At least… I didn't embarrass Teacher Lu!
Brushing her damp black hair away from her forehead, Shen Tingzhi returned to Modu University's lounge, only to find her teammates staring at her in astonishment.
"Dang, Coach Lu's Squirtle is ridiculously strong!" Wang Rui muttered in disbelief.
Coach Zhai nodded with a smile. "Overall, Lu Ye's training methods are quite impressive!"
Lu Ye had only captured the Squirtle two weeks ago.
Yet, in just half a month, Squirtle had decisively defeated the rookie champion from Qilu.
Even with the advantage of type matchups, the growth rate was simply unbelievable!
"You should all learn from Lu Ye's training techniques!" Coach Zhai said sternly.
"If you could grasp even a fraction of it, I wouldn't have to work so hard!"
The group nodded like pecking chicks, eager to agree.
A short while later, their captain, Jiang Chen, returned to the lounge with a smile. "Mission accomplished!"
All three participants had secured victories in their opening matches.
Coach Zhai Wenyao couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction.
To be honest, this was the weakest team he had ever coached.
But with Lu Ye on board, the team's strength had skyrocketed.
Perhaps this was the power of a role model!
'After this tournament…' Coach Zhai fell into thought. 'Should I reward him with an additional training manual or something…?'
---
Lu Ye was at the pharmacy with Squirtle.
Squirtle was gleefully clutching an armful of premium healing sprays, grinning from ear to ear.
"Squirtle!"
With this many healing sprays, even if Big Sis beats me up, I can patch myself up!
Lu Ye looked on, conflicted.
All this because an Onix grazed your shell, and now you're buying ten bottles of premium healing spray?
Aren't you just overreacting?!
The store clerk was beaming. "That'll be 20,000 Pokedollars, thank you for your patronage!"
"Squirtle?" Squirtle glanced at Lu Ye questioningly.
With a sigh, Lu Ye relented.
Even though the 1,000,000 Pokedollars prize wasn't confirmed, another 20,000 Pokedollars was slipping through his fingers.
Still, Squirtle had performed outstandingly and deserved a reward.
After all, with so many healing sprays stockpiled, it should last a while…
"Buy it," Lu Ye declared firmly.
"Squirtle!" Squirtle's eyes sparkled with countless tiny stars.
Aside from hoarding supplies, Squirtle had another grand ambition.
It dreamed of stockpiling Water Stones and Mystic Waters to better serve its master!
At this moment, seeing Lu Ye's unwavering approval, Squirtle's resolve for "steady growth" solidified even further.
"Squirtle…"
Squirtle looked at Lu Ye with deep gratitude and slowly nodded.
As expected of my master—he saw through my plans with just one look!
---
The schedule for the public tournament was packed.
By the afternoon, the list of qualifiers from each venue was hotly debated.
The rookie champion from Qilu's unexpected elimination left many stunned.
"Duan Cheng even earned the Qilu Badge, yet he was knocked out like this?"
On the bus, Lu Guanghai, who had once met Lu Ye, was dumbfounded.
"And he lost to… a non-professional student?!"
In front of the announcement board, Chen Tingyue, the icy champion from Lu'an City, furrowed her brows.
"Don't you watch Teacher Lu's livestreams?"
"Huh?" Lu Guanghai scratched his head in confusion.
"I'm not much into social media… Who's Teacher Lu?"
"No wonder."
Chen Tingyue nodded coldly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be so surprised."
Lu Guanghai was left speechless.
"Come on, aren't we all just college students? How big can the gap be?"
Watching Chen Tingyue walk away indifferently, Lu Guanghai mumbled under his breath. He pulled out his phone and began searching for "Teacher Lu."
With skepticism, he clicked on a video. Within three minutes, his expression turned peculiar.
A bead of cold sweat rolled down Lu Guanghai's forehead.
"This tutorial on Spikes teams… it's way too detailed!"
His uncle had won a regional championship with a Spikes team.
Yet even so, it seemed like Teacher Lu's insights were on another level.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Lu Guanghai clicked on a livestream recording and froze.
The handsome young man was unforgettable after a single glance.
This Teacher Lu…
Wasn't he the guy sitting next to me on the bus?!
What the—?!
He's not only good-looking but also crushed Duan Cheng?
And I even gave him my business card…
Talk about embarrassing!
"Wait a second…"
Lu Guanghai's expression suddenly turned strange as he muttered to himself.
"Could he be… smurfing in the amateur league?"
---
"Achoo!"
Teacher Lu sneezed unexpectedly.
Fresh from a match, he and Squirtle visited the pharmacy.
Under the store clerk's reverent gaze, Squirtle grabbed two premium healing sprays and began meticulously treating the scuff marks on its shell.
"Squirtle…" Squirtle sighed in admiration.
As expected of Zhejiang University's Sandslash—it almost left a mark on my shell!
Following the match, Squirtle purchased another ten bottles of healing spray.
Lu Ye's feelings were complicated.
"Wait… Why does this feel like such a loss?"
One match, down 20,000 Pokedollars…
Even with the potential 1,000,000 Pokedollars prize, something didn't add up.
Although Squirtle was unscathed and had already visited the Pokémon Center, it carefully sprayed every inch of its shell with healing spray.
"Squirtle! ヽ(￣▽￣)ﾉ"
Squirtle tossed the empty spray bottles aside and grabbed two fresh ones…
Lu Ye felt a pang in his chest.
It was as if "-4,000 Pokedollars" had appeared above Squirtle's head.
You're not even injured!
Do you really need to be this cautious, Squirtle?
---
As the first day of the tournament concluded, the eight arena champions earned the right to challenge Gym Leader Tang Hui.
The final "Best Individual Award" would be decided based on their performance against Tang Hui.
For many, the 1,000,000 Pokedollars prize was secondary to the Modu Gym's training manuals, Auxiliary Power and Calm Mind.
Even non-Psychic Pokémon could enhance their mental fortitude with these techniques.
Lu Ye rubbed his chin, muttering, "Hmm… These manuals don't seem as practical as the 1 million."
"Whatever. I'll just let Eevee play around with them."
Training methods like Calm Mind could probably be borrowed from Sabrina anyway.
But the 1,000,000 Pokedollars prize would address Teacher Lu's immediate concerns—paying off the Water Stone debt for Squirtle.
Satisfied with his reasoning, Lu Ye nodded.
The gym leader challenges were scheduled for the second and third days.
As Modu's only official Gym Leader, Tang Hui was formidable.
Given the stakes tied to performance and prize money, Lu Ye looked up at the sky.
I thought crushing the other contestants was enough.
But in the end, I still have to face the gym leader!
Coach Zhai, did you plan this from the start?!
A standard 3V3 gym match meant Tang Hui would choose his team based on the challenger's badge count.
With no badges, Lu Ye should theoretically face a weaker lineup.
But as a Gym Leader-level Trainer, Tang Hui was still a tough opponent.
Lu Ye stroked his chin and muttered, "Well… let's leave it to fate. Gastly, it's up to you."
"Haunter? (￣～￣)"
Hearing its name, Haunter raised its sauce-covered face from a bowl of spaghetti. Licking its surroundings clean, it looked up.
"Do your best tomorrow," Lu Ye smiled faintly.
"It's fine if we don't win the prize—just don't get hurt!"
Haunter's tongue flicked thoughtfully, and it nodded.
"Haunter…"
If I obliterate the Gym Leader, does that mean I won't get hurt at all?