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Taking down a Centiskorch was actually very simple. If Riolu couldn't withstand it, let Incineroar take the hit.
No matter how powerful your moves are, if you can't one-shot it, then just wait to be one-shot yourself.
A simple principle.
Incineroar hadn't appeared earlier, precisely to serve this moment.
When encountering a Pokémon that others couldn't handle, sending it out was always the right choice.
So Li Xiang brought out this particular "master."
And its performance was exactly as expected: it withstood Centiskorch's Roll, grabbed the rapidly spinning body of this creature, and played a merry-go-round with it.
It was hard to imagine that a trainer like Li Xiang, who prioritized stability above all else, could have such a reckless, violent Pokémon.
Could it be said that, deep down, he was a hot-headed guy?
After all, Pokémon were a mirror of their trainer—a commonly accepted fact.
Li Xiang trudged through the snow, one foot sinking deep, the other shallow.
The sunlight was blazing, but he had already started shivering. The continuously rising steam repeatedly moistened his clothes, causing their waterproofing to fail.
The heat drawn away as the sunlight evaporated the moisture on his body surface was unbearable.
If he didn't hurry up, he might catch a cold.
Hmm...
Hadn't his opponent already caught a cold?
Li Xiang looked at the Meicheng team captain in the distance. This guy's face was deathly pale, as if he had lost too much blood.
He was soaked all over, like a drowned rat.
Even though it was sunny, because of the snowy field, both of them had been reduced to such sorry states.
Bang!
A Poké Ball opened.
The last Pokémon, Torkoal, landed on the field.
Compared to Centiskorch, this defense-oriented guy actually had moves that could hit Incineroar.
It knew both Ground-type and Rock-type moves.
Unfortunately, without using Shell Smash, its speed was insufficient, making it extremely susceptible to the snowy field's effects.
Li Xiang remembered that the Meicheng team captain had a Chandelure that could set up Trick Room.
Too bad he didn't bring it out, choosing Centiskorch instead. Who knew what he was thinking.
Afraid of Incineroar?
Possibly. Chandelure was fragile. In front of a Dark-type like Incineroar, it would be like a cracker that crumbles with one bite.
On the field, Sunny Day was still holding strong.
The duration of this guy's Drought ability was as exaggerated as if it held a Heat Rock.
From start to finish, it lasted almost seventeen or eighteen minutes. Far exceeding the standard weather duration.
Li Xiang couldn't help but marvel that Pokémon with weather-related Abilities were somewhat more talented than those who set weather via moves.
Seeing Torkoal, Incineroar decisively dashed towards it.
As it ran, its body was once again shrouded in steam, its muscles tensing like iron, its massive frame swelling a few more centimeters!
Clearly a sign of a second Bulk Up!
"Fall back! Shell Smash!"
The Meicheng team captain spoke with labored breathing; he decided to gamble.
Immediately after, Torkoal let out a loud cry, pressed its belly against the snow, and slid backward into the pit behind it, completely disregarding the puddle inside.
The grayish-brown shell on its back glowed red, forming a protective membrane that then shattered with a crack!
Attack and Special Attack increased! Speed increased! Defense and Special Defense decreased!
It succeeded!
This was the first time it had used Shell Smash so quickly!
Watching Incineroar getting closer and closer, Torkoal quickly retreated into its shell.
Leveraging the terrain advantage, it rolled horizontally directly through the puddle, its body glowing with a watery blue light.
[Withdraw].
This guy successfully restored its Defense.
Retreating into its shell was almost instinctual for all turtles, but without this slope, it probably wouldn't have had the chance to use it.
Thump!
Incineroar leaped to the other side of the puddle and threw a punch at Torkoal's shell, producing a dull, heavy thud!
The shell cracked with a sharp sound, showing fine fissures, but it still held firm, reducing the impact on the Torkoal inside.
"Earth Power!"
A loud shout. Yellowish-brown light waves spread from beneath Torkoal. Within the snowfield, a point of intense light flashed, then, like a volcanic eruption, frantically spewed upward Ground-type energy!
Boom—
The ground shook incessantly; the nearby puddle trembled.
Smoke and steam covered everything.
This guy was even hitting itself!
Looking at Torkoal and Incineroar both enveloped within, Li Xiang's expression was extremely surprised.
What was this? A suicide attack?
Betting that Torkoal could withstand the hit better than Incineroar?
However, what he didn't know was that the Meicheng team captain was even more surprised than he was.
'You—you—you—not using Protect!? Hard-tanking Earth Power!?'
Originally, he had planned to bait out Incineroar's Protect, break the shield with Earth Power, scatter both apart, and then use Iron Defense to boost its defenses further.
Who would have thought...
'You dare to tank a Shell Smash-boosted Earth Power?'
The Meicheng team captain's mouth hung open wide enough to fit an entire egg. He never expected Incineroar not only to tank Earth Power but also to firmly grasp Torkoal without letting go!
'Are you out of your mind?!'
Incineroar really was that reckless.
After the smoke cleared, this large tiger, smoking all over its body, completely charred, yet still pinning Torkoal down, was abundantly clear.
It was common knowledge that most attribute energy, once released, didn't distinguish between friend or foe.
Therefore, even though Torkoal was withdrawn into its shell, taking that Earth Power wasn't very comfortable either.
But it managed to withstand it, more or less.
Who knew if it was luck or if the energy was dispersed.
If it can't take you down, then hit it until it goes down!
"Ancient Power!"
"Bulldoze."
A brownish light shone on Torkoal's body, transforming into numerous rocks in the air that rained down on Incineroar, who was pressed right against it.
Incineroar, meanwhile, very decisively raised its leg and stomped viciously on Torkoal's shell!
Slap slap slap slap!
Thump!
Amid the crisp sound like rain on plantain leaves, that dull roar was unmistakably distinct!
The Meicheng team captain's heart trembled, his face showing despair. He knew Torkoal probably couldn't hold on much longer. Incineroar could tank way more than it could.
Just as he thought, Incineroar was panting heavily, but its eyes were bright and lively, as if it could still fight for another three hundred rounds.
Torkoal, however, was on its last legs, looking like its time was up, liable to faint at any moment.
'—I don't believe it!'
The Meicheng team captain's eyes turned sharp. Even with his back against the wall, he would drag down at least one of Li Xiang's Pokémon!
"Explosion—"
However, before he could finish, before Torkoal could react, Incineroar had already slapped its back.
Boom!
Torkoal's shell became covered in cracks, countless white fumes leaked out, and the head hidden inside rolled its eyes and fainted.
"Roar?"
'Explo-what?'
The charred Incineroar picked its ear, looking curiously at the Meicheng team captain.
Unfortunately, this gentleman could no longer answer it.
Because the moment Torkoal fainted and the referee blew the whistle, the Meicheng team captain dropped to his knees, looking as if his world had collapsed, stunned into silence.
Personally, he was completely able to accept defeat.
Meicheng U had lost before; it wasn't anything new. They were perennially eliminated in the fifth round of the Spring Tournament. Everyone was used to it; no one would say anything.
But that kind of loss was entirely different from this kind of loss.
Meicheng University was finished.
Many people watching the kneeling Meicheng team captain on the field had this thought flash through their minds.
And in Meicheng University's preparation area, there was a deathly silence.
Temporary Resting Room.
Li Xiang changed out of his soaked clothes and shoes.
If there weren't only a ten-minute break, he might have even considered taking a shower.
"This is more exhausting than fifty sets of Beng Quan."
He rubbed his knees. The long trek through the snow had almost frozen his muscles stiff.
He wasn't a superhuman with immense stamina after all.
This match wasn't the most difficult, but it was the one that inflicted the most damage on him, the trainer.
Repeated alternating hot and cold, hot currents, and water vapor... If he weren't healthy enough, he'd probably be like that Meicheng team captain, carried out on a stretcher by now.
It really was a brutal fight.
When would specialized protective suits for competitions appear? Like the ones Ash and his friends wore in the Sun & Moon anime.
Li Xiang dried his hair with a towel. This was the situation for now.
Better finish the last match early.
He walked out of the passage and saw his opponent already standing on the devastated field.
His face was full of the tragic grandeur of marching to one's death.
As if in the next second, he would sacrifice himself here.
Li Xiang: "..."
Although there were many points worth ribbing, the fact that Meicheng University had come this far without surrendering, choosing to continue fighting, this perseverance was worthy of respect.
It wasn't in vain that Incineroar and the others fought seriously, with all their might, against these people without revealing their trump cards.
Saying you surrender was easy—just two words, a flick of the lips.
But actually deciding to surrender was hard.
No one wanted to lose. No one was willing to lose.
Aside from Li Xiang and his team's playful surrender to give others a chance, a trainer's essence shouldn't be afraid of battle.
As the saying goes: "Don't be afraid. If you're afraid, you've already lost for life."
He remembered Xu He once said, even if you're beaten like a dog, fleeing in disarray, surrounded by ridicule and mockery, with everyone looking down on you, you should stand until the end—answer to your training career, answer to the Pokémon you love most.
The Pokémon actually fighting aren't afraid, aren't ashamed. What are you, someone just standing on the sidelines watching, occasionally interjecting a few words, afraid of?
Of course, trainers weren't just standing on the sidelines watching; this was just an exaggeration.
The principle was the same.
Pokémon were innocent beings. As long as you weren't afraid, as long as you dared to go forward, they would willingly die for you.
What trainers had to do was control their mouths and legs, rack their brains to win until the very last moment.
"Meicheng University will get back up."
Su Qian appeared beside him at some point, suddenly saying, "The more you understand the pain of failure, the harder you'll work. Humans are just such despicable creatures."
"Senior Su?"
Li Xiang was momentarily stunned, not understanding why she was so emotionally expressive.
"The Meicheng University standing there now is actually no different from us standing before the threshold of the Junior World Championships last year."
Su Qian smiled. "The same reluctance to accept, the same despair. A step's difference is a world of difference."
Last year, Mist CIty University lost by a mere two points, coming in fourth. No one knew how unwilling, how humiliated this seemingly cheerful girl truly felt.
What seemed like an honorable position was, in reality, meaningless.
Mist City, without entering the World Championships, could never shake off the label of a fake powerhouse.
"Keep it up. Don't lose to anyone."
Su Qian poked Li Xiang's chest. Beneath her wing-like eyelashes, her eyes were full of seriousness. "Don't let regret be the ending of your career."
'What kind of look was this?'
Li Xiang couldn't quite comprehend for a moment. That gaze, filled with longing and determination, seemed to look through him, seeing a more vast place.
He was stunned for two seconds. Only after Su Qian turned and left did he come back to his senses.
'Was this... a declaration of resolve?'
A resolve to definitely reach the World Championships?
Li Xiang pressed the spot on his chest where Su Qian had poked. Suddenly his blood boiled with excitement, but it quickly deflated because the Summer and Fall Tournaments had no place for him. Xu He had made that perfectly clear.
Even the university board getting involved wouldn't change it.