After the preliminary round ended, and taking a break for three days,
the group stage of the Lily Youth Competition officially begins!
The short break is to allow those who successfully advanced from the preliminary round to the group stage enough time to adjust their condition.
The exciting displays in the preliminary round have made people even more eager for the start of the group stage, so the enthusiasm has not diminished, but rather intensified.
The main purpose of the group stage is to determine the top sixty-four who will advance to the final knockout stage.
There were over two hundred people who passed the preliminary round, plus the batch of Natsuhiko and others who survived the trial and directly entered the group stage, leading to an inflated number of participants in the group stage, reaching over five hundred.
Reluctantly, the organizers divided all the entrants for the group stage into sixteen groups by random draw, each group having roughly thirty-two to thirty-five participants.
The top four in each group will advance to the knockout stage.
The format of the group stage is a double-elimination system.
This means, after the first round of matches, winners enter the winners' bracket and losers enter the losers' bracket. If the losers' bracket suffers another loss, they are eliminated; if the winners' bracket loses, they continue in the losers' bracket.
Everyone has two chances, greatly reducing the situation where a particularly outstanding contestant in the same group might be eliminated early.
It also ensures that those who ultimately make it out will be even in number, rounding out the top sixty-four for the knockout stage.
However, to speed up the process, each contestant in the group stage can use only one Pokémon; losing combat capability equals defeat.
But with the existence of the "double-elimination system," it also prevents some shocking upsets.
If you get upset twice in such a system, you have no one to blame.
When the group lists and contestant numbers were announced, Natsuhiko exclaimed there was insider involvement!
This is definitely insider play.
Lance, Flint, Hilona, Kona, Xiaochun, whom he knows, and others like Rika, Yishu, Da Ye, and Wusong, none of them are in the same group.
To say there's no insider game, Natsuhiko would never believe it.
Simultaneously, he also saw the field and number he belongs to.
Field Number Six, Contestant Number Six.
Just by looking at the field number and contestant number, Natsuhiko felt pretty confident.
According to the competition's requirements, group stage contestants must wait in their respective arenas to be on standby for their matches, to accelerate the progress of the match.
Given the number of participants, the schedule is quite tight.
So Natsuhiko and the others temporarily parted ways to head to their respective arenas.
By the time Natsuhiko arrived, most contestants were already present near Field Number Six.
"Hello, is this Field Number Six?"
After Natsuhiko arrived, a girl in a white dress, panting slightly with a tinge of red on her fair face, supported her knees and urgently asked.
"Yes, it is."
He glanced at her subtly.
Though Natsuhiko was used to being around beauties like Hilona and Kona, he couldn't help but be slightly impressed upon seeing this girl.
Yes, a girl with an aura comparable to Kona and Hilona.
But that's about it.
Appreciating beauty always uplifts one's spirits.
Natsuhiko didn't pay much attention to her because he had no impression of this person.
Probably just an unknown dispensable character, he thought.
The first round of the group stage draw concluded smoothly under the referee's guidance, and thanks to his arena number and contestant number advantage, Natsuhiko became the first contestant at Field Number Six.
His opponent was a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy in traditional trainer attire, similar to what Ash Ketchum might wear in the future.
He appeared full of enthusiasm and confidence upon taking the stage.
"This match features Contestant Number Six, Natsuhiko, against Contestant Number Fourteen, Yosuke. Please call out your Pokémon,"
Following the referee's indication, Natsuhiko and the boy simultaneously tossed their Pokeballs to summon their Pokémon.
Although the group stage is a double-elimination format, as only one Pokémon can be dispatched, Natsuhiko cautiously chose Togetic.
While the boy Yosuke sent out a Feraligatr.
As Natsuhiko anticipated, this boy indeed was born from an orthodox line of trainers, possessing the Water Type starter evolution from the Johto Region, Feraligatr.
"The battle begins!"
As the referee's flag dropped, this "Lily Youth Competition" finally officially kicked off for Natsuhiko.
"Feraligatr, use Frozen Fang!"
Yosuke unhesitatingly initiated the attack first, not underestimating Togetic because of its appearance, starting off by using an Ice-type Technique that was effective against the Flying Type Togetic.
From this, it's evident that the quality of contestants in this "Lily Youth Competition" is fairly high.
"Yawn," Natsuhiko calmly said.
"Togetic——"
Facing the fierce-looking Feraligatr, whose massive mouth was covered with a layer of solid ice crystals, swiftly rushing at it, Togetic remained unmoved, a tear welled at the corner of its eye, and it let out a long yawn.
Boom~~
A transparent glimmering bubble shot out from Togetic's nose, meeting the charging Feraligatr head-on.
At the moment the sleep bubble burst, Feraligatr stumbled, its steps faltered, and its eyelids started to droop closed.