Haunter's inherited moves left Tang Hui momentarily stunned.
Not only had he observed my tactics, but he even had Black Mist up his sleeve.
I see what this is—you're here just to make my life miserable, aren't you?
"Hisssss!"
Swoobat flapped its wings, inhaling the Black Mist, and the blue glow in its eyes immediately dimmed.
The beam of Stored Power lazily landed on Haunter, causing only a minor "critical hit."
Haunter let out a leisurely yawn, unbothered.
From the audience, a stream of question marks flooded the air.
"???"
"Is this… some kind of massage?"
Su Yu, who had just lost to Tang Hui, also looked bewildered.
That Swoobat wasn't like this when it fought me!
My Scyther was nearly shattered by a single Stored Power!
The situation on the battlefield changed in an instant.
Swoobat began to Calm Mind again.
But before it could complete the move, Haunter retaliated with a Shadow Ball.
The surging Ghost energy rippled through the air with a deafening roar!
Boom!
The buffed Swoobat flapped its wings desperately but crashed onto the ground in disarray.
The entire venue fell silent.
Even though it was from the reserve team, it was still a Pokémon nurtured by the Gym Leader... Other people struggle to their limits just to beat Tang Hui's second Pokémon.
And now, you're practically steamrolling the whole team?!
But what stunned everyone more was this:
During the intermission, Teacher Lu didn't recall Haunter.
What's that supposed to mean?
Does he plan to let Haunter sweep all three Pokémon?!
"Is he insane? A 3-on-1 Gym Leader sweep…" Lu Guanghai murmured in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Chen Tingyue and Han Xiaoxiao stood up simultaneously, shouting excitedly: "Go, Teacher Lu!"
Their gazes met mid-air, sparking an intense rivalry.
Cheers erupted across the venue.
"Teacher Lu is awesome!!"
"Haunter, kill them all!"
What was supposed to be a public challenge match now resembled a star-studded exhibition event.
Tang Hui let out a long sigh.
He had already acknowledged Lu Ye's strength, and handing over the badge wouldn't have been a problem.
But this match was tied to the evaluation for the Best Individual Award.
Even if he had to lose miserably, he had no choice but to play all three rounds…
What a troublesome kid…
Tang Hui felt conflicted.
Could he be a seasoned traveler from another league who came back to Donghuang pretending to be a rookie?!
Otherwise…
How could an unassuming sophomore from the finance department possess such impeccable command skills?!
Tang Hui gritted his teeth. "Go, Kadabra!"
Both Kadabra and Haunter were high-speed, low-endurance special attackers, and both had a type advantage over each other.
It could be said that whoever struck first had the chance to secure a one-hit KO.
From the guest seats, Song Pengcheng mused, "It all depends on… who's faster."
Du Yuanshan nodded in agreement.
"Although… after two matches, Haunter's stamina might be running low…"
Before the words were finished, Kadabra's eyes glowed blue, and a tangible Psychic force shot toward Haunter like a giant hand!
"Protect," Lu Ye said calmly. "Then use Substitute!"
Another Substitute!
Du Yuanshan, Tang Hui, and others froze in astonishment.
After all this battling, Haunter's stamina hasn't even dipped into the red zone?
What have you been feeding this Haunter?!
Despite the closely-matched duel, Lu Ye's tactics grew more calculated.
After alternating Protect and Substitute twice, Haunter's Hypnosis finally landed on Kadabra.
The audience's expressions turned complicated.
"Why not just use Shadow Ball to KO Kadabra already?"
"You don't understand. Teacher Lu is preemptively countering Kadabra's Focus Sash!"
"That makes sense… but it still feels like Teacher Lu is just messing with his opponent…"
Kadabra fell into a deep sleep.
"Haunter! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ"
Haunter hurled Will-O-Wisp and Toxic in succession.
Seeing the sleeping Kadabra, now glowing purple and with faint embers flickering on its body, Tang Hui's mouth twitched.
He reluctantly instructed the sleeping Kadabra to use Teleport to retreat, conceding on the spot.
Hypnosis combined with Substitute-Protect-Toxic… That's just dirty!
Fine, you win this round—I'm done!
The referee hesitated for a moment before blowing the whistle.
"Victory goes to Modu University's Lu Ye!"
The entire arena fell silent for a moment.
Even though they had mentally prepared…
The audience still wore incredulous expressions.
"Did he… really just sweep Tang Hui?"
"Even the Gym Leader got steamrolled?!"
Lu Guanghai wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face pale.
Sure, it was a 3-0 victory…
But doesn't something about this 3-0 feel off?
"Holy—!" Lu Guanghai slapped his thigh and exclaimed, trembling, "Teacher Lu swept the Gym Leader 3-0!"
In the history of Modu Gym's public challenges, there had been instances of challengers winning.
But for a Gym Leader to be completely wiped out… This was a first.
Following his titles of "Rookie King of the Finance Department" and "Coach Who Plays in His Own Matches," Teacher Lu now added yet another bizarre record…
The audience sat in stunned silence before erupting into cheers.
"Teacher Lu is incredible!"
"Damn, where can I watch his streams? I'm an instant fan!"
"Haunter's on a rampage!!"
From the guest seats, Song Pengcheng chuckled.
"The younger generation is truly impressive!"
Du Yuanshan stroked his white beard, nodding with a smile.
"Indeed… we'll have to make sure Zhai Wenyuan provides him with proper training, resources, and Pokémon!"
Thanks to Lu Ye's crushing performance, the question of who would win the individual championship was now a foregone conclusion.
Every participant in the room looked at Lu Ye with newfound reverence.
Even the Gym Leader was zero-swept by Teacher Lu… This level of command and training was simply out of reach!
Han Xiaoxiao suddenly remarked, "Revered and unreachable… This must be the essence of Teacher Lu."
The school team all nodded in agreement, like pecking chicks.
'Why do I feel like…' Zhai Wenyuan crossed his arms, deep in thought. 'My position as a coach is in jeopardy?'
---
On the battlefield.
Tang Hui, dressed sharply in a suit, adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and let out a long sigh.
This was supposed to be a public challenge match… Why does it feel like a public execution? No wonder my eyelid has been twitching non-stop for days!
Although the defeat was brutal, Tang Hui wasn't a petty person.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have maintained his position as Modu Gym Leader.
Shaking hands with Lu Ye, Tang Hui sighed.
"Congratulations."
"Wow!"
Lu Ye's eyes sparkled as if he was shaking hands with 1,00,000 Pokedollars.
Tang Hui's face turned odd.
A moment later, he realized what was happening and sighed helplessly.
"I'll make sure those two move manuals are delivered to your place. Don't worry."
Lu Ye blinked.
Was I here to discuss that?!
"Oh, by the way," Tang Hui added kindly,
"These two manuals will greatly enhance your Pokémon's mental strength. Meditation will help relieve their fatigue… and it will also benefit Eevee's future evolution."
Lu Ye paused, clearly moved by Tang Hui's words.
Judging by the bond… Eevee's evolution was likely just around the corner.
Children always grow up eventually.
Though the old father was reluctant, he could only shed tears and make sure his daughter looked as beautiful as possible.
Perhaps… this would make up for the gift Eevee missed last time!
With tears streaming down his face, Lu Ye asked, "What's the training cost? Can I afford it?"
Tang Hui replied, "Not too expensive. But because there are two manuals…With items like Bright Powder and Dawn Stone… it'll cost just under 2,000,000 Pokedollars."
Lu Ye sucked in a sharp breath.
So, I'm not just making nothing—I'll be paying another 1,000,000 Pokedollars out of pocket?!
At that moment, Coach Zhai waved at Lu Ye and laughed loudly.
"Lu Ye! The principal has approved for you to pick one more move manual!"
Lu Ye: ???
Looking up at the sky, Lu Ye's eyes grew misty.
No matter how broke, education cannot be sacrificed. No matter how hard, children cannot suffer…
"Buy it!" Lu Ye trembled as he declared.