Wang Siyuan nodded eagerly and walked up to the front of the stage.
"Should I release my Snorlax now?"
"Yes, go ahead."
Liu Xiangjun smiled and gave a welcoming gesture.
"Okay then—come on out, Snorlax!"
Wang Siyuan tossed the Poké Ball into the air, and Snorlax materialized on the stage.
"Kaa~"
Snorlax let out a joyful cry the moment it appeared—then froze, suddenly aware that every single person in the auditorium was staring straight at it. It turned to look at Wang Siyuan.
"Kah?"
Watching Snorlax's reaction, Wang Siyuan clasped his hands together and put on his most pleading expression. "Snorlax, I'm in class right now. Please cooperate with me."
The students below watched this exchange in stunned silence. If they hadn't just seen Snorlax emerge from the Poké Ball—Wang Siyuan's own Poké Ball—they'd have sworn the roles were reversed. Wang Siyuan was the one taking orders.
"Kah!"
Snorlax's eyes lit up the instant it heard Wang Siyuan's request. It nodded vigorously at its trainer.
(So the trainer finally wants to study? Good. Get your act together, my trainer!)
"First, put this on. Snorlax hates spicy, right?"
Once Snorlax gave its consent, Liu Xiangjun produced a Held Item Portable—a compact device designed to hold a single berry for Pokémon to consume mid-battle. Sitting in the device was a Wiki Berry.
When a Wiki Berry is held, its effect triggers once the Pokémon's HP drops to one-quarter of its maximum. It then restores one-third of the Pokémon's maximum HP.
"I imagine many of you already understand why I've given this Snorlax a Wiki Berry."
"Yes, Professor!"
The students below nodded in unison.
They'd all made it into Shangqing University—their theoretical knowledge wasn't weak. And as one of the most common berries, everyone knew exactly what a Wiki Berry did as a held item.
Likewise, the Gluttony ability was old news to all of them.
Most of them hadn't formally studied Pokémon held items before, but with a live example right there on stage, the advantage of pairing an ability with a held item clicked instantly.
The Gluttony ability lets a Pokémon consume its held berry at half HP instead of the usual quarter. So after Snorlax uses Belly Drum and its HP is halved, Gluttony immediately triggers—consuming the Wiki Berry that would normally only activate at quarter HP.
Students who'd studied Snorlax's movepool lit up. The quick thinkers had already connected this combo to Belly Drum.
Belly Drum reduces maximum HP by half while maxing out physical Attack.
Normally, after a Snorlax uses Belly Drum, it's sitting at half HP. Zero margin for error—one strong hit and it's gone.
But Gluttony plus Wiki Berry changes everything.
After Belly Drum activates, Gluttony triggers, the Wiki Berry is consumed, and the Snorlax recovers one-third of its maximum HP—bringing it right back up to nearly full strength.
Full Attack, nearly full HP. Even a Snorlax challenger wouldn't dare trade blows with it. The strategic value just skyrocketed.
Watching the mix of comprehension, calm confidence, and smug satisfaction on his students' faces, Liu Xiangjun smiled but didn't explain further. She waited for Snorlax to secure the Portable and its Wiki Berry, then turned to Wang Siyuan.
"Have Snorlax use Belly Drum."
Wang Siyuan nodded. His hands-on commanding wasn't his strongest suit, but his theory was solid—he understood exactly what Liu Xiangjun was demonstrating. He turned to Snorlax.
"Snorlax, use Belly Drum!"
Outside of battle, Snorlax hadn't been expecting to command itself, so it simply obeyed Wang Siyuan's directive and unleashed Belly Drum.
A sound like rolling thunder rumbled from Snorlax's massive belly. Its eyes flashed crimson, a burst of white light engulfed it—
—and Snorlax had transformed into an absolute monster. Physical Attack maxed out.
Before Wang Siyuan could give another command, another wave of white light washed over Snorlax. The Wiki Berry seated in the Held Item Portable dissolved into a stream of light and flowed directly into Snorlax's body.
Snorlax stood tall, visibly recharged. Liu Xiangjun gave a satisfied nod, then spoke again.
"Now have Snorlax use Recycle."
Recycle regenerates a held item that's already been consumed mid-battle, making it usable again.
Wang Siyuan blinked—then a grin spread across his face. He turned to Snorlax.
"Snorlax, use Recycle!"
Snorlax nodded. A pulse of white light rippled across its body, and the Wiki Berry reappeared in the Held Item Portable, good as new.
"I see some of you have caught on."
Liu Xiangjun turned to address the students—some practically vibrating with excitement, others wearing the satisfied look of those who'd already figured it out.
"This is the strategy pioneered by the American Champion,洛夫坎·拜拉莫夫—using a Gluttony Snorlax paired with a Wiki Berry, combined with Belly Drum and Recycle."
"Those with quick minds have already worked it out. The Gluttony ability lets Snorlax trigger the Wiki Berry immediately after Belly Drum, recovering HP."
"Then Recycle brings the Wiki Berry back, so it can trigger again the next time HP hits the fifty-percent threshold."
"That means Snorlax only needs to sacrifice a small amount of HP to gain maxed-out Attack power, plus one full Wiki Berry recovery."
Liu Xiangjun paused, looking out at her students with a grin.
"So—faced with this setup, how would you counter it?"
The auditorium fell into thought.
It wasn't long before a student stood up. "Use Taunt before Snorlax can use Belly Drum. Snorlax is slow, so just send out a fast Pokémon first and hit it with Taunt."
"Clap… clap… clap!"
Liu Xiangjun laughed and led the applause. Then, without warning, she tossed a Poké Ball.
"Alakazam—Trick Room."
The moment Alakazam materialized, a curtain of pink light encapsulated the entire stage.
"What if the Snorlax is operating inside a Trick Room?"
(The End of Chapter)
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