Le Liangcai's sharp suit stood in stark contrast to Brock's casual attire.
Brock's brows furrowed slightly.
A trace of displeasure surfaced in Brock's heart.
Le Liangcai stepped onto the battlefield.
He raised his hand and snapped his fingers above his head.
Crisp. Clean.
Clearly a gesture he practiced often.
The Pewter University students instantly quieted down.
Some of the infatuated girls looked ready to faint from excitement.
"Student Le is so handsome!"
"Leader Brock, please accept my challenge."
Le Liangcai's gaze was calm.
There wasn't much respect in his tone.
As if Brock were nothing special in his eyes.
"Is that the young man from the Le family?"
"His spirit looks decent. Shame about his personality."
"He's young. A little arrogance isn't necessarily a bad thing."
In the spectator section, three middle-aged men discussed quietly.
The Le family—
A major clan in Pewter City.
With over a hundred years of history.
Their influence in Pewter City was significant.
They specialized in Fire-type Pokémon.
"Very well. Let's begin."
Even though Brock felt some dissatisfaction, he didn't show it.
Le Liangcai's lips curled upward.
Truthfully, Le Liangcai didn't think much of Brock.
A mere Gym Leader—
Spending his days battling ordinary trainers.
No matter how strong someone was, wouldn't that eventually lead to stagnation?
He had watched Brock's earlier battles.
Too weak.
"Go—Charmeleon!"
Gu Qiu glanced casually.
Not bad.
Level 32.
Mid-grade aptitude.
From that alone, Gu Qiu estimated—
Le Liangcai was likely already a certified Elite Trainer.
"He's sent out Charmeleon! Last time, Student Le used this Charmeleon to one-shot his opponent with a single claw strike—so cool!"
"Student Le, defeat Leader Brock!"
The crowd was full of confidence in him.
"Using a Fire-type, hm?"
Brock's expression turned slightly strange.
"Return, Geodude."
Le Liangcai's strength wasn't bad.
Becoming an Elite Trainer in his freshman year—
By graduation, he could likely pass the Three-Star Elite assessment.
Becoming a Quasi-King in the future wouldn't be difficult.
Geodude wouldn't be enough.
"Leader Brock is switching Pokémon!"
"Will he send out his ace?"
The crowd buzzed with anticipation.
Clearly—
They were overthinking it.
This was just a freshman.
"Graveler, you're up."
Graveler.
Level 27.
Mid-grade aptitude.
It seemed Brock possessed quite a number of Pokémon, most of them mid-grade.
He loved raising Rock-types.
Each evolutionary line had multiple members.
"It's Graveler! It looks strong."
"Graveler can't possibly beat Charmeleon."
Hearing those comments, members of the Pewter Gym couldn't help but laugh.
"So ignorant. They have no idea how terrifying Leader Brock is when he gets serious."
The battle began.
What unfolded next exceeded the university students' expectations.
Graveler displayed combat power far beyond its level.
Dominating.
Overwhelming.
Le Liangcai's confident smile froze.
Charmeleon was defeated effortlessly.
It hadn't even managed to inflict a single injury on Graveler.
The entire student section fell silent.
They couldn't believe what they were seeing.
Mei was stunned.
"How could he lose so badly?"
By now, she had left her battlefield and—without realizing it—ended up standing beside Gu Qiu.
"That's normal. He already lost from the very beginning."
Mei blinked.
"Why do you say that?"
"Graveler counters Charmeleon. It heavily resists Fire-type attacks. Yet he still used Fire-type moves recklessly. That's just asking for trouble."
"More importantly, he focuses too much on flashy presentation."
"Flashy presentation?"
Mei looked confused.
"Unnecessary movements. If you cut them out, battles become much simpler.
"For example, when Charmeleon used Slash, it could've executed the move while advancing at full speed. Instead, he made it pause dramatically to 'charge up.'
"Insufficient training."
Gu Qiu delivered his assessment calmly.
"Pfft. Mei, don't listen to this random guy talking nonsense." Using Slash while moving? That's extremely difficult. He's just all talk."
"If we're just talking, I could say Charmeleon should do a handstand while using Slash."
Hahaha."
Mei was beautiful.
Naturally, many people paid attention to her.
Seeing a handsome and refined man standing beside her drew even more attention.
"Lost again."
Gu Qiu glanced at the field lazily, not bothering to argue.
Different horizons.
He had no interest in debating with frogs at the bottom of a well.
However—
Mei's comprehension seemed quite good.
She had already fallen into deep thought, clearly considering the possibility of executing Slash while moving.
"Gu Qiu?"
Hearing the commotion, Yu Hao turned his head—
And saw the familiar figure.
Anger flared within him.
Why was it that everywhere Gu Qiu went, beautiful girls were by his side?
But then—
A thought surfaced.
Perfect.
His strength had improved tremendously over the past ten days.
If he challenged Gu Qiu here—
Perhaps Leader Brock would notice his talent.
Maybe even take him in as a disciple.
As Gu Qiu uttered the words "lost again,"
The battle on the field came to its conclusion.
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