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When Li Xiang woke up again, he found himself lying in a hospital room, with a faint scent of disinfectant in the air.
A single room, equipped with a sofa, TV, and bathroom—everything was pristine white.
At the foot of the bed, Riolu was holding a small knife, meticulously peeling a Sitrus Berry, its brow furrowing with each peel.
As if sensing he was awake, the little dog looked up and cried out happily.
"Riolu?"
"I'm awake."
Li Xiang sat up, stretching his stiff upper body and listening to the cracking of his joints. He picked up his phone from the nightstand.
It was already past 6 PM.
So many calls, texts, and messages... he didn't feel like dealing with them. He'd handle it later.
It wasn't too dark outside yet. As summer approached, the days were getting longer.
He'd slept for nearly ten hours since this morning? Who brought him here?
"Where's Incineroar and the others?"
Li Xiang looked around but didn't see his other Pokémon, though Greninja appeared on the sofa by the window.
Riolu put down the Sitrus Berry and knife, pulling out a small box from behind. Inside were Li Xiang's colorful Poké Balls.
"Rio."
'Everyone's still asleep.'
Riolu blinked and was about to open the box.
"Forget it."
Li Xiang reached out to stop it, then lay back down, finding a comfortable position. He started playing with his phone, mostly to get in touch with the people he needed to.
The first thing he saw was Miao Shuang's voice message. After listening, Li Xiang learned that he had been carried here by Song Jie and the others—he'd been sleeping so soundly he hadn't noticed.
Coach Xu He had given him the next two days off, saying he should rest. Also to hide from the media at school and not leave the campus randomly. Someone would come pick him up and take him back to school in the evening.
"The media..."
Li Xiang scrolled through his call log and found quite a few unfamiliar numbers—thirty or forty of them. The latest one had called just two minutes ago.
'Which jerk leaked my phone number!? Looks like I need to get a private number.'
Li Xiang called his parents first, reassured them he was safe, then boasted a bit about his achievements. After promising to come back during summer break, he hung up and contacted others.
Even though there weren't many people to contact, it still took over an hour.
It only ended when a Chansey wearing a nurse's cap pushed in his dinner.
"Thank you."
Li Xiang smiled and patted Chansey's head. The latter swayed its six ear-like tufts and waddled away.
Being as round as a ball yet still so adorable—probably only possible for Pokémon, right?
He released Incineroar and the other Pokémon. Fortunately, they were only suffering from exhaustion of stamina and spirit. Aside from Incineroar's fur being a bit sparse and Corviknight's wings having some frostbite, bandaged up, the rest were fine.
"You didn't even fight, yet you're sleeping so happily?"
Li Xiang knocked on Aegislash's body with his knuckles. This guy could really sleep—if not disturbed, it could sleep twenty-three hours a day. The remaining hour was for waking up naturally to eat.
Aegislash didn't want to engage with him. It found the portion with its name on it, picked it up, and hid in a corner to eat.
This sword had no mouth. Eating was more like "fusion"—absorbing beneficial substances through its surface, while unnecessary materials were left behind, becoming like powder. It looked somewhat eerie.
Perhaps it was specially arranged. Li Xiang's dinner was fairly sumptuous. Halfway through eating, he said, "By the way, we have tomorrow off. Aside from morning and night training, the rest of the time is yours to manage."
It was time to give Incineroar and the others a break after their hard fight this morning.
The Pokémon responded. The three powerhouses exchanged silent glances, sharing a wordless understanding.
The one-versus-five in the Spring Tournament, under deliberate promotion by certain people, spread extremely widely.
At this point, whether Li Xiang wanted the spotlight or not, his name, appearance, and his Pokémon became known to many. What he had done was also repeatedly celebrated by the media.
Even the highest echelons caught wind of it. Of course, the wind at the highest level was deliberately stirred by some interested parties.
Among them, the one who blew the wind the loudest was undoubtedly the head of the Elite Four stationed in Mist City—Mo Ye.
Coincidentally, he was currently having tea with Hei Luo, the president of the Zhu Xia Pokémon Association.
The two watched the video of Li Xiang, looking somewhat weary but fully focused, nimbly dodging the residual effects of moves. Their expressions varied.
"This kid is pretty good. Haven't seen such good physical skills in many years. Is he from the same school as you?"
Hei Luo turned his head, wearing an expression of pleasant surprise at discovering talent.
"Mhm. One of the Zhu Xia Eight Great Techniques—Beng Quan."
Mo Ye, holding his sword, nodded. Watching Li Xiang on TV and his valiant Pokémon, he felt quite satisfied. He was starting to understand why Hei Luo enjoyed discovering talent so much.
That feeling of seeing someone you have high hopes for shine and being chased after by many—it really was quite nice. So he couldn't wait to share it with someone.
"Beng Quan... I think I saw it once when I was young."
The old man stroked his beard, recalling the past, then turned and said, "Was it you who arranged this matter?"
"It was my sister's idea."
Mo Ye shook his head. He wouldn't do something so pointless as having a freshman fight one versus five to gain fame.
"Young people are too impatient."
Hei Luo picked up his teacup from the table and took a sip. "Just before you arrived, the president of Meicheng Association called me, crying his heart out."
"Crying?"
Mo Ye was puzzled.
"Of course! Their local university got beaten like that. Wouldn't they come to wail?"
Hei Luo said with a smile. "They can't get money from the United Universities, so they have to get it from us here."
The child who cries gets the milk, especially the wronged child who needs to be comforted properly.
After realizing their reputation was beyond salvage, Meicheng University chose a more realistic step: cry to the local association. Then, the local association's president came to Hei Luo to cry.
Mo Ye frowned. "But Li Xiang's actions didn't violate the Spring Tournament rules."
"So they have to take this loss, and we have to give them sufficient compensation."
Hei Luo patted his shoulder. "You are one of Zhu Xia's Elite Four. You need to learn to be impartial. Mist City University might be your own, but Meicheng University isn't adopted. It's just that one is promising and the other isn't."
Hearing this, the frown on Mo Ye's brow smoothed out.
Over the past thirty years, he had firmly remained in the trainer's position and hadn't fully shifted his perspective to the Elite Four's side. So it was normal for his thinking to not be advanced enough to understand Hei Luo's perspective.
But over the past year, he had been working hard to learn how to become a guardian of Zhu Xia.
"Alright, enough about the unpromising one. Let's talk about the promising one."
Hei Luo put down his teacup. "Your sister seems determined to push this kid to the top and use him to make achievements. You have to keep an eye on her; don't let her go overboard."
"Mhm."
Mo Ye nodded. He knew his sister fairly well. She was ambitious, but her actions weren't too reckless. Betting on Li Xiang's future was the heaviest bet she had ever made.
The two chatted a bit more about Mist City University.
Suddenly, Hei Luo changed the topic.
"Alright, speak up. What did you, who never visits, specifically come find me, an old man, for today?"
Mo Ye was an out-and-out homebody. He would never initiate a visit without a reason.
He guessed Mo Ye was probably here for Li Xiang. After all, back during the Saizhou deification incident, it was also Mo Ye who spoke up first to protect Li Xiang.
"Something happened over at Misty Lake."
Moye's single sentence made the relaxed Hei Luo sit up straight.
"Misty Lake?"
"Yes. A few months ago, people from the conservation base told me someone spotted traces of Entei and Raikou. Not long ago, Suicune appeared at the edge of Misty Lake and was seen by two anglers."
Mo Ye took out his phone from his pocket. The screen showed several somewhat blurry photos. But the Pokémon inside were clearly recorded.
It was unmistakably the Legendary Beasts. The majestic trio of large quadrupedal Pokémon—in the forest, on city rooftops, and on the lake surface. Surrounded by either gray smoke, thin mist, or dark clouds.
"That one behind Entei." Hei Luo pointed at the photo of Entei.
On the rooftop of a building, Entei stood with a seemingly shy, orange-red large moth beside it.
Mo Ye nodded. "Yes. The deity of the Sun Cult. It's been following Entei for a while now."
The consecutive appearances of the Legendary Beasts in Mist City must have deep significance.
"So you mean—"
Hei Luo seemed to remember something.
"I estimate Phantom Island is about to appear. I plan to take Li Xiang inside. Something might have happened there. I will ensure safety."
Mo Ye's expression was extremely serious.
"Phantom Island."
Hearing these three words, a look of reminiscence flashed in Hei Luo's eyes. If Mo Ye hadn't mentioned it, he would have almost forgotten about this place.
Mo Ye didn't disturb him, allowing him to recall. After a while,
"Fine. I'll put in a word with the Ranger Union."
Hei Luo said, "Just the two of you entering shouldn't be a problem."
"Thank you!"
A trace of joy crossed Mo Ye's usually aloof face. The Ranger Union wouldn't make exceptions just because he was an Elite Four. Only Hei Luo had that kind of clout.
"No need for formalities with an old man like me. This old bones is still counting on you all—Eh? You're leaving just like that?"
Hei Luo looked at Mo Ye, who had picked up his sword and prepared to leave, and was taken aback.
"The matter is finished..."
Mo Ye was also taken aback.
"You really are... come here, come here."
Hei Luo helplessly stood up and pulled Moye back. "You're over thirty. You should at least understand a bit about social graces, right? Stay and have dinner with this old man."
"By the way, tell me about that kid named Li Xiang."
The old man, past fifty with frost-white hair at his temples, said. He was quite curious about Li Xiang.